now dead in the maui fires. hawaii's attorney general today announcing an independent investigation into the response. and maui's emergency chief speaking out for the first time. why he says they didn't activate the sirens. and the video showing downed power lines. did they help spark the fires? our team on the ground in hawaii. also tonight hurricane hilary forming in the pacific taking rare aim at the southwest and california, the state that hasn't seen a direct hit in 84 years. al roker is here. the georgia grand jury that indicted former president trump receiving threats. the investigation the sheriff announced today. the stunning turn in the trial of two white men charged with shooting at a black fedex driver in mississippi. the victim's mother storming out of the courtroom after the judge declares a mistrial. why he did it. the fbi arresting multiple police officers in raids in california. their alleged racist texts. the new warning on north korea. is russia giving kim jong-un nuclear missile technology? a striking a chord. the brothers who inspired an orchestra to bring their story to life. >> announcer: this is nbc "nightly news" with lester holt. good evening and welcome, everyone. residents and survivors of the deadly inferno on maui are getting some enters to some of those growing questions about the adequacy of the official response to the disaster but not necessarily answers they accept including why sounding warning sirens would have been a bad idea. there were some testy moments when the island's top disaster official took questions in a public meeting defending what was and in some cases what wasn't done. and now tonight hawaii's attorney general says she will bring on a third party private organization to investigate the government response, promising an impartial, independent review. while no official causes of the wildfires that struck maui have been determined, there is a broad belief that many of the more than 100 lives lost could and should have been saved. the heart break and frustration on maui is where we start again tonight with tom llamas. and tom, people are really calling for accountability here. >> reporter: that is right, lester. and good evening. that relief is coming in tonight to lahaina, but the tension is rising. local officials are being pressed harder than ever before. the a.g. as you mention is muscling up her investigation into why. and tonight we are spending time with the families from this community just behind us who did not make it out alive. tonight the number of victims from the burn zone keeps climbing. more than 100 dead and 1,000 still unaccounted for as the head of maui's emergency operations faces the public for the first time since the disaster. >> do you regret not sounding the sirens? >> i do not. and the reason why -- >> so many people said they could have been saved. >> reporter: but when follow-up questions were asked, this happened -- >> you want me to give him the answer or -- >> i do. >> let him finish his answer. >> i'm sorry, there's a lot of people. >> you're talking and not letting him talk. if you want to talk, come up here. >> reporter: even though the sirens are all hazard systems they maintain they're primarily used for tsunamis. >> had we sounded the siren that night we're afraid people would have gone, and if that was the case they would have gone into the fire. >> reporter: the sense of frostration on maui lingers just like the smoke. >> it got to this point where it's like who are these people watching us or do they even properly care for us? >> reporter: high winds, dry conditions and low humidity are being called the climate threat multipliers that fueled those deadly flames across maui. but the root cause of the fires is still being investigated. hawaiian electric now being accused of years of inaction leading up to the deadly fire. a new lawsuit alleges the utility new of the risks for years and failed to take steps to prevent catastrophe, citing this stunning admission in a 2022 funding request to state regulators where hawaiian electric acknowledged, quote, the risk of a utility system causing a wildfire ignition is significant. despite the warning signs, the suit alleges the utility failed to act. hawaiian electric declined to comment on pending litigation saying in part, we will work with the state and county as they conduct their review. >> fire crossing the road. not good. >> reporter: but now some are also blaming the power company for slowing the evacuation. cole millington shot this video as the flames approached. >> there's a mass evacuation occurring and we were trying to get to safety, and it extremely hindered the chances and the speed at which we were evacuated. >> reporter: all of this as hope has faded for some families. >> he really loved lahaina. >> reporter: alfredo lived in hawaii for more than 30 years. he had an aloha for everybody his family told me, and now he's gone. what do you remember? >> actually last month i took him to vegas, 4th of july i was going to take him for his actual birthday. now he's gone. but that's my best actually memory of him. >> reporter: and now balancing all the suffering against financial need, there is tension over tourism. vuzteres account for roughly 70% of maui's economy. so you want the tourists to come and spend money on maui? >> we all do. you ask anybody who works in the tourism industry, which is pretty much everybody, yes. >> reporter: so many people are looking at the rubble and worrying can there be a future in west maui? >> we're going through fertility treatments. i want to have a baby, and i don't have a community anymore. >> reporter: a disaster that's already stolen lifetimes and threatens to last for generations. tom llamas, nbc news, maui. in southern california we're watching the threat of heavy rain and flash flooding as hurricane hilary now in the pacific off of mexico moves north west. al roker is with us. al, how serious is this storm? >> well, lester, we saent seen a tropical storm make landfall in southern california since 1939. this is rapidly intensifying storm already a category 2 with 110 mile per hour winds. it's moving north west at 14 miles per hour. the water temperature 6 degrees above normal, so this could be a category 4 by tomorrow at noon. it hits a pool of colder water right along the shoreline, but that could help waken it, bring it down to a 2 and then it makes landfall. but it still could retain its tropical characteristics, and that could be a big, big problem. heavy rain and winds, locally, lester, 5 to 8 inches of rain. and the month of august is the driest month in southern california. they get no rain so this could be a big problem. >> separately you're keeping a close watch on wildfires in canada. >> absolutely. we've got over 1,000 wildfires burning right now, and the smoke forecast brings that from winnipeg all the way down to chicago where we could be looking at 12 million people at risk for that canadian wildfire smoke. and if they are in that sensitive group, it could be very, very unhealthy, lester, for the next 24 hours. >> all right, al, thank you. and tonight authorities in atlanta are on high alert after personal information of grand jurors who voted to indict former president trump was posted online leading to threats. garret haake is in atlanta. garret, good evening. >> reporter: lester, the fulton county sheriff's office says they're working with other area law enforcement to respond to these threats and ensure the safety of grand jurors whose names and addresses have been posted now on a fringe website. one user of that site posting the jurors, quote, signed their death warrant by voting to indict donald trump on monday. and this comes as a texas woman was arrested and detained for threatening the life of the federal judge overseeing mr. trump's other election interference case in washington. no word tonight on when mr. trump will surrender for processing on the charges against him here in atlanta. that deadline, lester, is next friday. >> garret haake, thank you. in mississippi a shocking turn tonight in the attempted murder trial of two white men accused of chasing and shooting at a black fedex driver. the judge declaring a mistrial. jesse kirsch has details. >> reporter: tonight outrage in mississippi. a judge declaring a mistrial in the case of two white men accused of trying to murder d'monterrio gibson, a black fedex driver who had just made a delivery. >> and with great reluctance, the court has no choice in this matter but to grant the motion for a mistrial. >> reporter: gibson's mother escorted from court today after judge david strong's ruling, a day after a police officer admitted to withholding evidence. brookhaven police detective vincent fernando saying under oath authorities had taken a videotaped statement from gibson but did not share it with either the defense or prosecution as was required. >> the failure to turn over matters in discovery is just something that can't be ignored. in 17 years i don't think i've ever seen it happen, but it happened here. >> reporter: a mistrial is a major hiccup for the prosecution, but all in all a second trial really saps the resources of the defense more than the state. brookhaven police have not responded to nbc news' request for comment. gibson says in january 2022 he made a delivery in his fedex uniform and was driving a hertz van with the rental company's markings when gregory and his son allegedly shot at him. gregory case's attorney said his client only planned to ask the driver what was happening outside his mother-in-law's home, but the driver did not stop. gibson believes he was chased because he's black. in a statement tonight gibson's attorney calling the mistrial a delay in justice, calling on the department of justice to investigate the brookhaven police department. jesse kirsch, nbc news. there is breaking news tonight from northern california. the fbi arresting police officers in the bay area accused of criminal conduct. erin mclaughlin is following this. erin, what do we know? >> reporter: lester, what the antioch mayor is calling a dark day for the city, this morning the fbi arrested a number of officers in a series of raids across the east bay. the product of an 18-month old investigation into alleged criminal conduct by at least nine law enforcement officers from antioch and pittsburgh including racist texts discovered on seized cellphones. according to court documents unsealed just now, the officers have been charged in four separate federal indictments. charges ranging from the deprivation of rights and conspiracy to wire fraud. one 30-page indictment points to disturbing communications including an officer who -- his police k-9 bit at least 28 people. the officers have yet to enter a plea. tonight alarming signs russia has supplied north korea with a new missile that could evade u.s. missile defenses and hit multiple american targets. andrea mitchell has this exclusive report. andrea, what is this new north korean weapon? >> lester, according to a new study reported first by nbc news, this new north korean missile tested in july is nearly identical in appearance and trajectory data to a russian missile that can penetrate u.s. missile defenses and carry multiple war heads as far as here in washington. two weeks after that test, russia's defense minister met with kim jong-un in north korea to further cement their ties. russia was already helping north korea with energy and food, and north korea has been providing russia weapons for ukraine. all this will be part of tomorrow's camp david summit when president biden hosts the leaders of south korea and japan to discuss the growing threats in the region. lester? >> all right, andrea mitchell, thank you. also tonight russia staking its claim in a new space race to the moon and mars. a russian probe expected to land on the moon's south pole any day now in an area that could be critical for the future of exploration beyond the moon. here's tom costello. >> reporter: now orbiting the moon lune 25 is russia's first robotic mission in nearly 50 years. russia never land adcosmonot on the moon but it will work to confirm it presence of frozen water which could one day be used for rocket fuel. the head of russia's space agency says the moon could be the launching pad to explore distant planets including mars. >> russia has just launched a probe to land on the south pole. >> reporter: nasa chief bill nelson says that ice is why the u.s. plans to land artemis astronauts in 2025, but china is also aiming for the pole. >> i don't want china to get to the south pole first with humans and then say this is ours, stay out. >> reporter: is this starting to feel real? >> that's real. that's it. it's starting to feel very, very real. >> reporter: at the kennedy space center the artemis 2 astronauts, the first crew who will orbit the moon since apollo have now inspected the orion spaceship that will take them there next year. >> we're all smiles, of course. it's a pretty inspiring moment. >> reporter: nasa's goal similar to what russia and china are planning. ultimately nasa wants to create an artemis base camp on the moon and use that to go to mars. >> tom, i think the space race is really between us and china, and we need to protect the interests of the international community. >> reporter: nelson insists the u.s. would never lock out others, but the new space race is accelerating. tom costello, nbc news at the kennedy space center. in 60 seconds, smash and grab robberies at well-known stores. the impact and the pr the impact and the pr ic i'm walt. i have relapsing ms and a lot going on. that's why my doctor and i chose kesimpta. kesimpta is different. it's the only b-cell treatment for rms you can take at home, once a month. kesimpta was proven superior at reducing the rate of relapses, active lesions, and slowing disability progression vs aubagio. for me, a once-a-month treatment just works for my schedule. don't take kesimpta if you have hepatitis b, and tell your doctor if you've had it, as it could come back. kesimpta can cause serious side effects, including infections. while no cases of pml were reported in rms clinical trials, it could happen. tell your doctor if you had or plan to have vaccines, or if you are or plan to become pregnant. kesimpta may cause a decrease in some types of antibodies. the most common side effects are upper respiratory tract infection, headache, and injection reactions. when i'm ready, i spend less than 1 minute a month taking kesimpta. how i spend the rest of my time is up to me. ask your doctor about treating rms with kesimpta. governor says he's tripling highway patrol resources in los angeles to crack down on the recent string of smash and grab robberies at retail stores. it comes as the city announced it is forming a task force. here's antonia hilton. >> reporter: today a major step forward to help fight brazen crimes like these in los angeles where scenes of smash and grab robberies have become all too familiar. most recently at nordstrom where a mob used bear spray to disarm security. >> these are not victimless crimes. >> reporter: the mayor of los angeles announcing a retail crimes task force is now in effect focused on thieves but also on abe getaway drivers and resellers. >> our message is clear. those who commit these crimes will be caught. >> reporter: it's part of a troubling nationwide trend. 8 in 10 retailers have reported increased incidents of violence and aggression this year. rachel michelin is ceo of the california retailers association. >> it feels a little bit like we're under assault. >> reporter: experts say for every robbery seen at major retailers, there's a small business getting hit, too. retailers now demanding lawmakers increase consequences. do you think this new task force will have an effect? >> i'm hopeful that it will have an impact, but can udly, i don't think anything will truly change until we're willing to have a difficult decision about how do we change some of the policies on our books. >> reporter: just two days ago several stores here on rodeo drive were hit, and incidents like these are costing retailers billions of dollars. retailers warn consumers will pay the price, too. >> they will see prices go up. they will see stores close, and i don't think any of us want to see that happening. >> reporter: antonia hilton, nbc news, los angeles. up next here tonight, with covid cases rising we ask the type c 2 diabetes? discover the ozempic® tri-zone. in my ozempic® tri-zone, i lowered my a1c, cv risk, and lost some weight. in studies, the majority of people reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attack, or death in adults also with known heart disease. and you may lose weight. adults lost up to 14 pounds. ozempic® isn't for people with type 1 diabetes. don't share needles or pens, or reuse needles. don't take ozempic® if you or your family ever had medullary thyroid cancer, or have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if allergic to it. stop ozempic® and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or an allergic reaction. serious side effects may include pancreatitis. gallbladder problems may occur. tell your provider about vision problems or changes. taking ozempic® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase low blood sugar risk. side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may worsen kidney problems. ask your health care provider about the ozempic® tri-zone. you may pay as little as $25. more shopping? 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