and missing in america. after seeing our report, one family s 30-year-old mystery finally solved announcer: this is nbc nightly news with lester holt good evening. the american west is scorching tonight under a smooth ring heat dome that won t giving producing temperatures never before seen in september. breaking records by as much as 5 degrees. sacramento no stranger to summer heat reaching a record high of 114 yesterday at 104, salt lake city topping its september record for the third time this month. and now a deadly emergency playing out in southern california where two people died in a fast moving labor day fire the region now a week into a dangerous heatwave the brutal conditions are also threatening california s power grid which remains on the brink of rolling blackouts to cope with demand miguel almaguer is in hemet, california, where firefighters are still battling that deadly and lightning fast wildfire. reporter: it exploded out of control so quickly, autho
reporter: ebony was 12 the last time she saw her mom, myrtle brown. she was going to new york to get away. reporter: myrtle s brother robert was living in california. they had always been close i had a message on my answering machine all she wade is i m trying to get a hold of you. reporter: that s it yeah, back in those days she didn t have a cellphone, so i was not able to call her. she had called my grandmother to let her know someone stole her purse, her money and it included medication because she was epileptic. sh so she talked about going to the hospital so she could get a refill then that was the last moment, you know, we ever heard from her. reporter: the family checked the hospitals, called the police, but nothing. weeks and months with no answers turned into years and decades. it was very hard. you know, when you have your prom and just, you know, becoming a young woman, it s hard. reporter: she wasn t there for it? no. reporter: and you thought tha
Where to start may search. dr. soler called me. reporter: what is did she say? she says, robert, i think we found your sister. i said, well, i have a photograph that i can show you that will help us confirm this is her. reporter: that gives you a chill a little bit, doesn t it a little bit, yeah. it took me a second to realize that s her. yeah, instantly i saw the photo, like all 30 years, just, you know, i knew it was her. reporter: the family learned that myrtle died from a seizure in an emergency room at a brooklyn hospital. she didn t have i.d. she was never formally registered when someone s in your mind missing, you don t close the chapter. yeah. so we were able do that. reporter: you had a chance to say good-bye yes reporter: which is why dr. soler and her team take the calls and they never give up stephanie gosk, nbc