thursday. i know that wind is a lot out to there but it's going to calm down for us. >> hold on to your cap and gown. a view we haven't seen until now of the oklahoma neighborhood and school that took a direct hit. also how so many people survived by hiding and riding it out in some unusual places. a grisly attack on the streets of london. a british soldier ambushed and killed by men with knives in an apparent and shocking act of terrorism. taking the 5th, the irs official whose admission started it all gave rise to a scandal. we'll show you the dramatic moment from today when she got up and walked out after refusing to testify before congress. and fighting back against the alarming rise in sex assaults in the u.s. military. tonight, maria schriver has a special report for "nightly news" on the women leading the charge. news" on the women leading the charge. "nbc nightly news" begins now.

captions paid for by nbc-universal television good evening. we are just back from moore, oklahoma, where life won't be normal for years, where the earth has been wiped clean in some places, and where the death toll stands still at 24, 324 people injured, ten children including two infants are among the dead. considering the fact that they have counted up 13,000 homes in the path of this one storm, some people are already expressing both thanks and surprise that the toll wasn't even higher. following the rarest of all tornadoes, the ef5, the most powerful on earth. today we learn how and where so many people were able to hide, ride it out, and survive this one.

we begin our coverage from moore, oklahoma, tonight with nbc's lester holt. lester, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening. the figure you mentioned, 13,000 homes in the path, that's destroyed or badly damaged. that's a huge impact in a town of only 56,000. imagine that. $2 billion in damage and this town is still beginning to accept, understand, and grieve the loss of so many who live here as we learn more names of the dead. at the same time, folks continue to marvel that so many people walked out of wreckage like this alive. >> i hope everyone's okay. >> reporter: each new view of the massive funnel makes it harder to comprehend how so many people survived. it's a question mike soto has wrestled with since he was pulled from under his house on monday. >> that's a miracle. >> reporter: mike was in a closet when his house fell in around him. trapped he scraped a metal wire through an opening to attract his neighbors' attention. >> i could hear the voices saying, make a noise, keep making noise because they could

not find me. finally they found me. >> reporter: most of the dead have been identified. among them 65-year-old hemmet bondi. swept away as he huddled in a bathroom with his wife. then the children killed at plaza towers elementary school like best friends an tone i can't candelaria and emily conatzer. they reportedly died holding onto each other. emily's mother posted on facebook, i know she is in heaven smiling down. the father of jenae hornsby another third grader, spoke of the search for his daughter. >> i was just hoping maybe she might have just been unconscious. i hoped she was alive. >> reporter: matt lauer got a firsthand look at the devastation inside the school, and the toll it took on first responders. >> once we have the first responders that come in contact with the bodies, especially children, they are offered different counseling. >> reporter: there is no rhyme or reason to why some lived and others didn't. the tinker federal credit union before the tornado and after. the heavily reinforced vault is all that's standing.

it is where jan davis and theresa price took cover with 20 others. >> even through the closed door you could hear the disintegration of what we are standing in now. there was no doubt in any of our minds that the building was gone on the outside. >> to me that was the only option. >> reporter: this homeowner heard an interior room was the fastest place to shelter in a pinch. he and his wife chose this closet. >> all i heard was a -- and it was quiet. i sat there -- we sat there for a bit. >> reporter: when it was over, half his house and most of his neighborhood was gone. few homes in this corner of tornado alley have storm cellars or safe rooms. today, town officials proposed the idea of making them mandatory for new homes. >> if you ask most people out there, they are going to rebuild and probably get a storm shelter. >> reporter: of more immediate concern here, cleaning up as

heavy equipment crews moved in today, so did an army of volunteers, loaded with rakes, shovels, and big hearts. >> this is what being oklahoman is about. you help your friends and family. it's called oklahoma strong. >> reporter: tomorrow is the last day of school in moore. brian, kids who attend schools that have been destroyed have been encouraged to go to other schools so they can at least close out the school year with their classmates. >> lester holt in moore, oklahoma. thank you. we have to go overseas to a twisted and disturbing story out of london today. fair warning, this is tough to look at, especially when you realize what it is we are looking at. a british soldier in plain clothes ambushed and killed on a city street while his barbaric attackers wait for police to come while they take -- allow people to take video while they vent their message about religion and politics. for reasons you will see, this is now being treated as an act of terrorism. we get our report tonight from nbc's michelle kosinski in

london. >> step back. move back. move back. >> reporter: in the middle of the day in the busy working class neighborhood next to an army barracks, near an elementary school, a scene of such raw violence, few could believe it. >> look at the guy. he's dead now. >> reporter: people here say a young man who nbc news has confirmed was an active british soldier wearing a charity help for heroes t-shirt was walking along this sidewalk when two men in a car apparently drove into him, then got out and started stabbing him with multiple large knives. >> they were hacking at this poor guy, chopping him, cutting him. >> reporter: some eyewitnesses say the victim was decapitated in the attack and the two suspects then approached people in the horrified crowd. >> they were telling people to record them doing it. >> reporter: one made a long political statement, weapons still in his blood-covered hands. >> we swear by the almighty allah we will never stop fighting you until you leave us alone. >> reporter: when police arrived witnesses say the men charged at

officers who opened fire. both were hit, now in hospital. >> small groups deciding to carry out these sorts of attacks is a part of a broader trend we have seen recently. the brutality we are seeing in this one does seem to be a new element we have not seen before. >> reporter: prime minister david cameron is rushing home from france for an emergency meeting on what exactly this was, whether others could be involved or other attacks planned. >> there are strong indications that it is a terrorist incident. >> reporter: tonight the two suspects are formally under arrest. the government here is increasing security at army barracks across london. one of the men did indicate they targeted the victim because he was a soldier. michelle kosinski, nbc news, london. there has been a new development in the boston marathon bombing investigation which led to a deadly confrontation between a man who knew the alleged bombers and law enforcement. our justice correspondent pete williams covering this all day

has more from our d.c. newsroom tonight. pete, good evening. >> reporter: brian, investigators say their search for friends of bombing suspect tamerlan tsarnaev took them to florida to question ibragim todashev, a native of russia and a mixed martial arts fighter. while being interrogated last night at a house in orlando, officials say he attacked an fbi agent and was shot and killed. authorities say before that todashev confessed to playing a role in a brutal triple murder in waltham, massachusetts, in 2011. one of the victims was a friend of tsarnaev's. todashev said tsarnaev was involved in the killing, too. todashev lived for a time in the boston suburb and became friends with tsarnaev who was a boxer there. they say the killings in waltham started as an attempt to steal drugs from the three victims but ended in their deaths to keep them from talking. authorities say they do not believe todashev had any role in the boston marathon bombings, brian. >> pete williams in our washington bureau tonight. thanks.

>> now to the news that broke late today. the u.s. government admitting for the first time that the u.s. military has killed four americans in drone strikes overseas. our chief white house correspondent/political director chuck todd is with us from there with more this evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. it's been one of the more secretive aspects of the government's war against al qaeda and other extremists. now it's less secret. for the first time the obama administration is confirming what we had already reported for some time -- that the government targeted a u.s. citizen, anwar al-awlaki for death via drone strike in yemen. the government also acknowledged three other american b citizens involved in terrorism have been killed in drone strikes. in the letter to congress, attorney general eric holder detailed a legal defense for targeting al-awlaki, well known for jihadist writings. holder wrote his targeting of americans including the attempted underwear bomber attack and the plot to hide bombs on cargo planes made him a legally justified target because he was an imminent threat, could not be captured and was a legitimate target under the laws

of war. this comes on the eve of a speech in which president obama plans to lay out a broader counter terrorism strategy incluing a legal framework and much more public oversight of drone strikes. he's expected to unveil a new plan to try to shut down the prison camp on guantanamo bay cuba. >> chuck todd from the white house tonight. chuck, thanks. there was palpable anger on capitol hill today as several senior officials of the irs were called to testify in this growing scandal over the targeting of conservative groups for special scrutiny. it is clear this is just getting under way. we get the story tonight from nbc's kelly o'donnell. today, confrontation and public spectacle around a key irs official. >> step back. >> reporter: forced to appear, lois lerner took the oath and then took the 5th, her constitutional right to avoid

self-incrimination. >> i will not answer any questions or testify today. >> reporter: lerner's refusal to answer came after she stunned the house oversight committee by speaking out, professing her innocence. >> i have not done anything wrong. i have not broken any laws. i have not violated any irs rules or regulations. >> reporter: an inspector general found before the 2012 election the irs division run by lerner inappropriately picked out conservative and tea party groups applying for tax-exempt status for special scrutiny. >> she ought to stand here and answer our questions. >> reporter: lerner was excused and attention turned to the former irs commissioner douglas shulman who swore last year no targeting had happened, found out it had, and then failed to tell congress. he faced a bipartisan flogging. >> you did nothing. you abdicated your

responsibility. >> it was your job to make sure people weren't abused. it was your job to stop abuse and also to report it. >> reporter: shulman insisted he was not personally responsible but offered his first public apology. >> i'm very sorry that this happened while i was at the internal revenue service. >> reporter: frustrated lawmakers said the government's credibility is at stake. >> truth and trust. we want to be able to trust the irs. but for this moment on this day we need to be able to trust your word. >> reporter: part of the fury today, lawmakers told us they have written more than 130 letters to the irs in the last couple of years urging them to look into this. they got no information or wrong information. today the president's pick to take over the agency began his job and promises to have a comprehensive review about the irs within 30 days. brian? >> kelly o'donnell, a busy news day in washington. kelly, thanks.

late this afternoon in chicago at a packed meeting, repeatedly, loudly interrupted by protesters, the school board voted to close 49 elementary schools and one high school. it's the biggest mass public school closing in american history. 30,000 children will be affected. nearly 90% of them african-american. the city says the schools are underused. many others under perform. there is outrage in chicago for the students this will have to uproot, including concerns for student safety in bad neighborhoods. still ahead for us tonight, a "nightly news" exclusive. maria schriver reports for us on the powerful women trying to stop a powerful and dangerous subculture within the modern military. later, we were covering a tornado in joplin, missouri, two years ago tonight. tonight what they have learned that could help the folks in oklahoma.

we are back now with an nbc news exclusive. a special report about the alarming rise in the number of sexual assaults in the u.s. military. there have been several high profile incidents of late. today a house committee approved

a series of provisions to military law including stripping commanding officers of the authority to overturn court-martial sex assault convictions. tonight in a special report for "nightly news," maria schriver talks with three powerful women in congress who are leading the charge for justice for a lot of women in the military. >> reporter: is this a military crisis, a cultural crisis, a sexual crisis, or a legal crisis? >> all of the above. >> all of it. >> without a doubt. when you have 26,000 victims a year and less than 10% report the crime? >> these men and women are going through the most horrible crimes, yet they cannot feel they can report these crimes and they do not feel the existing system will give them justice. >> the president said there is no silver bullet. is there? >> there isn't one solution.

we have to do not only change the law, we have to have better training. we have to discharge individuals who are convicted of these crimes. that will send such a message if they receive a dishonorable discharge. >> accountability is the answer. when there are more prosecutions and more convictions and more men and women feel comfortable as they come forward that they aren't going to be marginalized, labeled with some disorder and kicked out of the military, then it would be different. >> reporter: talk a bit about that that this is not just what's going on in the military but the ramifications of the sex abuse violations have effects for years to come. >> the victims have told us they can survive the rape or assault. what's difficult to survive is how they were treated afterwards. they see the military as their calling, as their family. for a lot of these women when they separate from active duty they do experience post

traumatic stress disorder in high numbers. >> they carry this with them for the rest of their lives. we have got to clean the system completely. >> reporter: do you feel there is a similarity between what we are seeing in the military and what's happened in the catholic church? >> absolutely. whenever you have a closed system and you can control the environment and sweep things under the rug, you can move people around which is what happened in the catholic church. it's what happened in the military. >> what parent is going to want to have their daughter, in particular, go into the military if they feel she's not safe from a sexual assault from her fellow service members? >> reporter: how confident are you that you will change the law? >> oh, we're going to change the law. >> very confident. >> we're going to change the law. there is no turning back at this point. >> three leading members of congress with our special correspondent maria schriver

tonight. coming up for us this evening, the special honors for two extraordinary american women. for our families...

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the next mayor of los angeles will be eric garcetti turnout in the election just 19.2%. that's a modern day record low going back to 1938. the era before the freeways came to southern california. garcetti is the son of gil garcetti, former d.a. who presided during the o.j. simpson drama. he's the first jewish mayor of the nation's second largest city and takes over during a fraught time for the city's finances. we learned yesterday while we were in oklahoma that vernon mcgarrity has died. he received the medal of honor for his actions in world war ii. badly wounded in a heavy fire fight in belgium in '44 he rallied, rescued his men, single handedly disabled a german tank and turned back the assault. he was 91. his death leaves 79 living recipients of the medal of honor.

also tonight, two fantastically talented women named carol are in the news for honors they are receiving. carol king has received the gershwin prize from the library of congress for popular songwriting from her extraordinary body of work starting with "up on the roof," "you've got a friend," "will you still love me tomorrow," a huge list of contributions. and the great carol burnett will receive the mark twain prize for american humor to go with her 25 emmys and eight golden globes. the prize will be handed out in october at the kennedy center in washington. when we come back, a message of hope from the people who know what the people in moore, oklahoma, are in for.

finally tonight i have here with me on the desk a brick from joplin high school. they were kind enough to give a few of these out to various folks with ties to that community. the bricks are a cherished symbol of all that was lost two years ago today when an ef5 twister tore up joplin including the high school. a third of the town was destroyed. 162 people lost their lives. now some of joplin's first responders have gone to moore, oklahoma, to help out. back in joplin, the folks are talking about what they have

learned these past two years. nbc's erica hill has our report tonight from joplin. >> reporter: a new landscape is emerging in joplin, one that looks almost nothing like this 22-mile path of destruction. >> devastation is a short while, but determination lasts all the time. >> reporter: determined to come back stronger. bethany first shared her story of survival with brian after she and her husband don rode out the tornado in this bathtub. >> he got on top of me to take the brunt of most of it. and, you know, he's my hero. >> reporter: don saved bethany, but he didn't survive. two years later, the void remains, but bethany is grateful for a second chance. >> i get to say thank you for --

letting me have this life. but i get to live it for him, too. >> reporter: a life that now includes a 4-month-old daughter who bethany calls her inspiration. there is plenty of inspiration to be found here. nearly 90% of affected businesses are now open. 75% of homes have been rebuilt, and 80% of new homes now include a safe room. mercy hospital, a new facility will open in 2015 with walls and windows built to withstand 250 mile an hour winds. its electrical systems securely buried under ground. >> joplin is a city of hope. we know what it's like to suffer, but we also know what it's like to get back up. >> try to say the right things that can come even whenever it doesn't seem there could be another bright day. >> reporter: there is much to celebrate as this town rebuilds,

but it is the strength of its people that is the true measure of success. erica hill, nbc news, joplin, missouri. and that is our broadcast on a wednesday night. thanks for being with us. i'm brian williams. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com good evening, and thank you for joining us. i'm jessica agear. >> i'm raj mathai. a battle is brewing in the south bay over first amendment rights. and accusations that a well

known weekly newspaper also served as an online brothel. the metro newspaper has a link on its own website for adult escort services and critics are demanding the newspaper remove it. the metro says the criticism is the result of ruffled furthers over its reporting of local politics. david trujillo joins us now. the paper says they're being unfairly targeted. are they breaking any laws with the website link? >> reporter: doesn't seem to at this point, raj. the metro has been doing some good and extensive investigative reporting on local politicians and candidates. the editor and ceo tells me that's the reason these accusations are coming out. but critics say this is about advertisement that exploits women and children. lo logon to the metro website and you'll find a section for adult escort services. some images are too graphic to broadcast. some call it online