ABC World News Tonight with David Muir Full Broadcast - Oct. 8, 2026

David Muir, ABC's World News Tonight, America's most watched. newscast now streaming same day with all the breaking news. of the day on Disney Plus, most watched, most trusted now. on Disney Plus every night. Tonight here the breaking news millions now bracing for. this category 2 hurricane. Right now gaining in strength winds up to 100 miles per. hour the new track just in tonight. When this hurricane is expected to. make landfall and where. The evacuations, store shelves.

empty and now they're shutting down oil rigs with gas. prices already high in this country. Tonight this powerful hurricane bearing. Joining me now is the chief of the U.S. Department of Defense, Peter Hegseth. Also breaking tonight, defense secretary Pete Hegseth on. the deck of the USS Lincoln, revealing late today his plan. to publicly execute the Fort Hood shooter by firing squad. Hexheth saying the public will be able to watch. Tonight, a Defense Department official confirming they plan.

to live stream the execution. Just in tonight, in New York City, an ice shooting. The man raced to the hospital. What we know. Also, tonight, former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. and his wife in federal court here in New York, now charged. with torturing Americans. The horrific descriptions from the prosecutors. Tonight, that new video, the six-year-old who. brought a gun to school and shot his first-grade. teacher in the chest. The audio right here, what that six-year-old says to the. officers just moments after the shooting and it is chilling.

Tonight, the botched execution, the inmate, Krista Pike, waking up, asking, "Where am I and who are you?". And tonight, the new turn in this case, what we've. learned about Krista Pike. Tonight, the horrific scene inside a federal. courthouse. Police say a man walks in with a gun. When it didn't fire, he pulled out a knife. Tonight, the allegations against the U.S. Ambassador to Greece, Kimberly Guilfoyle, once engaged Donald. Trump Jr. and close to the Trump family. Tonight, a former donor and what he's accusing her.

of, the messages right here, Now claiming she asked him for. $100,000 to pay her Amex card. Tonight, the plane overshooting the runway, crashing down the side of this cliff. Look at this, the grandmother breaking her own record, holding this plank, and for how long? This is a stunning feat. The startling moment, Celine Dion falls on stage. And tonight, the four astronauts, the parachutes out, And we'll show you the dramatic splashdown right here.

From ABC News World Headquarters in New York, this is World News Tonight with David Muir. Good evening. It is great to have you with us here at. a very busy Thursday night. We begin tonight here with this Category two hurricane tonight. closing in on the Gulf Coast with winds right now. up to 100 miles per hour. Rapidly intensifying over the very warm waters. of the Gulf tonight. The storm expected to be a cat 2 as it nears landfall.

in the Pensacola, Florida area sometime tomorrow night. Already tonight, store shelves empty as families along the. coast stock up on supplies. Many oil and natural gas rigs in the Gulf have now. been evacuated tonight. More than 60% of the oil rigs in the Gulf shut down, putting. even more pressure on gas prices across this country. Hurricane hunters tonight flying right into the eye of. the storm as it gains strength a few hundred miles from shore. Millions tonight bracing for a storm surge of up to seven. feet, up to 15 inches of rain.

Power outages as well. Lee Goldberg has the new track. And Stephanie Ramos leading us off from the storm zone tonight. Tonight, millions bracing for East Saïd, now a. powerful category two hurricane, evacuating. families, jamming highways, shelves stripped, and concern. over oil rigs in East Saïd's path that could. impact gas prices. The governors of Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. already declaring states of emergency, warning. of long duration power outages.

Clay Hobbs is coordinating emergency response in Pensacola. He has 50 ambulances and 120 personnel standing by. There comes a time though during the storm where your teams. aren't able to reach those that need help. We are not able to respond once the sustained winds. reach over 40 miles an hour. So when someone needs help or they decide that they want. to evacuate, it's really too late. These ideas could bring up to 7 feet of storm surge. The people that live here know hurricanes and they're.

taking this one seriously. Shelves are empty and gas stations are running dry. Outside Biloxi, Mississippi, our Leslie Lopez found Chad Lewis. filling sandbags for people who can't do it themselves. This is our community. This is what we do. This is what the coast is. Katrina, we all got together and this is what. you get when storms come. And tonight with gas prices already on the rise in the US. and diesel at near record highs, the storm forcing major oil. companies to evacuate rigs. Producers halting nearly two-thirds of all oil production.

in the Gulf and more than half of gas production, which. could send gas and fuel prices even higher. And David here in Pensacola. The wind has certainly kicked up. You can see just how choppy the waves. are behind me as he says closes in. Landfall is expected near Pensacola Friday night, but the impacts will extend across much of the coast. As families are bracing here and all the way West to Louisiana, David, yeah, it's going to be much. uglier this time tomorrow night. We're thinking about the millions in the path.

Of course, you two and the crew stay safe. Steph, thank you. Let's get right to senior meteorologist Lee Goldberg. Lee, we know this is expected to be a cat 2 hurricane right. before it hits, but you were saying the big question tonight. is whether there's any wind shear that could help knock. it down right before it hits. That would be best case David. At the very least it'll stop it from rapidly. intensifying before a landfall. We've seen so many storms like that in recent. years that do that. This will not happen with these. ideas. We've seen an eye almost try to form this.

afternoon. A definite sign of strengthening winds of. 100 miles an hour. It's a cat too. It could peak over the next maybe 12 18. hours tomorrow morning is a strong cat too making. landfalls either a cat too or strong cat one tomorrow. evening. Pensacola, maybe Destin, Florida. The worst weather on that right. side with the surge. The hurricane warnings from. Biloxi over to Panama City. But I want you to notice how far inland the. tropical storm watches go up to Birmingham. So gusty winds there and. worry what about inland flooding as well as we. time it out. Conditions going downhill fast. tomorrow. The worst late day evening and into tomorrow.

night. Big winds flash flooding. It'll be remembered for tornadoes to. especially the panhandle into Florida. The storm surge could be 5 to 7 feet, especially from Pensacola to Panama City. If it does go to the right of. Mobile Bay, that's better for that Bay flood watches. inland as we go into the weekend, up to half foot. of rain along the track and even 2 to 4 inches into. the Carolinas. Preparation needs to be done by tonight, David. All right, well, let's hope for that wind. shear. But either way, this is gonna be a powerful. category one or two hurricane when it hits. So Lee, thank you will be tracking with you right.

back here tomorrow night. In the meantime, the other news this Thursday night, this evening, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on. the deck of the USS Lincoln, revealing his plan late today. to publicly execute the Fort Hood shooter by firing squad. Hegseth, in a pre-recorded interview, said the public. will be able to watch. The Defense Department official confirming to ABC News tonight. that they plan to live stream this execution. Trevor Ault on board the USS Lincoln. Tonight as sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln return. home from their record-setting deployment, Secretary Pete.

Hegseth making new headlines just a short time ago. While talking about Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan, Hegseth. saying the killer will face execution by firing squad. And now says he will make sure that people can watch it, that it will be done publicly. Tonight a defense official confirms the execution. will be live streamed. Prompted during an interview with a conservative news outlet. on the deck of the Lincoln late yesterday, Hegseth said this. Major Hassan, this news that came down regarding.

firing squad, can you tell us about how that. came about and what led to that decision process? No brainer. Execution by firing squad. Army major betrays his country, radical Islamist, kills a. bunch of Americans at Fort Hood. Of course we're going to do it at Fort Hood. We're going to do it on a Thursday. We're going to do it at one o'clock, which. is when he did it. And it's going to be soldiers with rifles. executing the firing squad. Hegseth saying the public will be able to watch. We'll make sure that people are able to watch. it, that it's public, because people need to.

understand that there's serious consequences. for these types of things. The shooter's attorney tonight saying Hegseth's pledge. for a public execution is political theater, calling his comments irresponsible. Now, David, if this execution takes place in December and. Hegseth says it will, it would be the first public execution. in the U.S. in some 90 years. And that defense official tells ABC News it will be live. streamed. David. Trevor Ault with us live tonight. Trevor, thank you. Meantime, here in New York City, there's. been an ice shooting in Manhattan.

The man raced to the hospital. Let's get right to our chief investigative correspondent, Aaron, what have you learned so far? >> Ice agents shot someone in a vehicle up near. 225th Street, David. And eyewitnesses said they heard several shots. They also said they saw a child in the car at the time. The person struck was taken to the hospital with. non-life-threatening injuries. It appears the ICE agents were looking for someone with a. prior conviction and a prior But all this comes as sources. tell ABC News, David, that ICE has increased its targeted.

number of arrests from 2,000 a day up to 3,000 a day, David. All right, Aaron, stay with us here, because in federal court. today here in New York City, former Venezuelan President. Nicolas Maduro and his wife now charged with. torturing Americans. Tonight hear the horrific descriptions from prosecutors. Aaron was in court for us. Nearly a year after U.S. forces swept into Venezuela in a nighttime. raid, capturing President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Celia Flores, whisking them to New York, tonight, federal.

prosecutors announcing new charges, accusing the couple. of torture of their own people and at least three Americans. Maduro, Flores, and other Venezuelan leaders tried. to silence political opposition through. murder and threats to murder victims' families, electric. shock, asphyxiation, starvation, so-called punishment. cells, beatings, and rape. In graphic detail, prosecutors allege one. American was subjected to torture that included.

electric shock to his arms, legs and genitals, and asphyxiation. after he was falsely accused of conspiring to. assassinate Maduro. Another American was visiting family when prosecutors say. Venezuelan officers attacked him from behind and later. electrocuted his testicles. That man allegedly told he was only alive because he was. a U.S. citizen and could be useful in a prisoner exchange. A third American allegedly suffered permanent. injury to his eye. For two days, they beat him with their fists to the face,

head and stomach approximately every half hour. So let's bring back in Aaron Katursky with us here tonight. And Aaron, what have we learned about those Americans. who were allegedly tortured? Where are they now? They've all been released, David, including one who was. let go just days after Maduro's ouster by the U.S. military. And tonight, David, Maduro's. lawyer tells us the former president denies all the new. charges. Aaron Katursky on both. fronts tonight, Aaron. We appreciate it. Tonight, the six-year-old who brought a gun to school. and shot his first grade teacher in the chest. And now the audio, what the six-year-old says.

to the officers moments after the shooting. And it's alarming. Here's Will Reeve. Tonight, the chilling police video just released. from inside a Virginia classroom. And the words of a six-year-old boy. who had just shot his teacher, >> He said this just minutes after he shot and. wounded his first grade teacher, Abbey's Werner. With a gun he said he stole from his mother.

>> Where is the weapon? >> It's on the floor. >> It's over there. >> As another teacher restrains the boy on her. lap, he screams at officers. >> I don't care if you call backup, I don't. care if I go to jail. >> We know you know that language and you know. that's not appropriate. The shooting occurred in Newport News, Virginia, in 2023. The boy's mother pleaded guilty to child neglect. And David, the boy's teacher was shot in the hand and chest. And her attorneys say that she still has a fragment. of a bullet inside her body and will be dealing with.

her injuries for life. David Will Reeve reporting. Thank you, Will. Tonight, we turn to that botched execution in Tennessee. The inmate, Krista Pike, waking up and asking. the people around her, where am I and who are you? and tonight she's now walking with help. So what comes next in this case? Here's Morgan Norwood. - More than a week after her failed execution, tonight, Tennessee death row inmate, Krista Pike, now up and walking around her hospital room, according to her attorney. - She was walking with assistance. These are just a few steps.

We're not talking about, certainly not running a marathon. by any stretch of the imagination. - But adding she remains mentally foggy. It's that sort of starting a sentence and losing track. of where she was going. It's not that she's unaware, but that she doesn't hold. the thought very easily. The convicted killer is surviving two lethal. injections. Lawyers saying prison staff used. at least seven needles to try and gain access to her arms. She's experiencing the pain of those burns and pain in.

any effort to use her arms and hands. Her lawyers say doctors thought she was brain dead and were. preparing to take her off life support earlier this week when. she regained consciousness. Her attorneys are now asking Tennessee's governor to. commute her sentence to life. And David, corrections officials say they followed the state's. protocol for executions. It's now up to the Tennessee State Supreme Court to decide. whether to issue a new order to execute Krista Pike. David? Morgan Norwood reporting. Thank you, Morgan. Tonight, the chaotic scene inside the federal.

courthouse in Nashville. Police say a man walked in with a pistol. When it didn't fire, he pulled out a knife. The suspect was shot and killed by a U.S. marshal. No one else was injured. Authorities believe the suspect was from out of state. We move on tonight to allegations against the. U.S. Ambassador to Greece, Kimberly Guilfoyle, who was once engaged to Donald Trump Jr. and. close to the Trump family. Tonight what a former Trump donor now accuses her of. Here's Jay O'Brien. She was one of President Trump's most visible supporters, once. engaged to his son Don Jr. and rewarded for her loyalty.

with a plum assignment, Ambassador to Greece. This was Kimberly Guilfoyle at the 2020 convention. The best is yet to come. But tonight, Ambassador Guilfoyle now accused. of trying to sell access to top Trump administration officials. The Wall Street Journal reporting. that days before her confirmation hearing, Guilfoyle urged a Trump donor to pay off her $100,000. credit card bill, texting, "Honey, please, I need you to get this done for me today.".

We spoke with that donor, Eric Dieters. She told me that she needed $100,000 to pay off an. American Express card. And if she didn't, she wasn't going to pass. her Senate confirmation. Did you think that she was asking for that payment. in exchange for something? Oh, absolutely. She was so desperate for me. to send that $100,000. She said, if you do this for me, and it's in the text. messages, I will be your ride or die in Trump world.

Dieter says he ultimately didn't make the payment because. he didn't have the money. Guilfoyle, her attorney, and the State Department. did not respond to multiple requests for comment. from ABC News. The story breaking the same day Secretary of State Marco. Rubio was visiting Greece, The two are greeted by Guilfoyle. with a hug on the tarmac, the two sitting side by side. at official events. But Rubio repeatedly refusing to answer questions. about the allegations. I'm not going to comment on a story that literally.

posted a few hours ago. It's just not going to work that way. And it most certainly is not going to work that way when. I'm sitting in another country. Again, David, we've reached out repeatedly to Ambassador. Guilfoyle, her lawyer, and the U.S. Embassy in Greece, and we have not heard back. Secretary Rubio saying the embassy is doing. a quote great job. And he called Guilfoyle a strong ambassador. David J. O'Brien in Washington. Thank you, Jay. We turned out of the war in Ukraine tonight. Russia launching a deadly barrage targeting civilians. In fact, a glide bomb landing next to two packed. buses and exploding.

Let's get right to our chief foreign correspondent. in panel tonight. >> Yeah, David, I think even by the standards. of this war, this was a devastating attack by Russia. A glide bomb exploding next to two packed buses. in eastern Ukraine. At least 30 people killed, 20 wounded. Rescuers there pouring through the debris. In the past 48 hours alone, more than 60 innocent Ukrainians. have been killed in mounting Kremlin attacks. And unable to.

I'm Brian Teta. When we come back here tonight, the dramatic images. Look at this, a plane overshooting the runway.

Actually crashing down the side of that cliff right there. Also the startling moment tonight that Celine. Dion falls on stage. We do have word on how she's doing tonight. Look at this grandmother breaking her own record, holding this plank right here. And for how long? You're not going to believe this. We couldn't. And tonight, the four astronauts. This was a beautiful sight. The parachutes out and we'll show you the. dramatic splashdown here right after the break. Tonight, dramatic video here of a small plane.

crashing down the side of a cliff in Ecuador after. failing to stop on the runway, the badly damaged plane. coming down on a road, then over that cliff. Two people on board. They are in stable condition. A passing tonight, Margaret Hamilton, the woman who. led the team of programmers >> We're going to. take a look at the A woman who was a flight. attendant at MIT that helped guide the Apollo missions. to the moon has died. Her team developed the two 70-pound computers the. astronauts took with them to help them navigate. Awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama. Margaret Hamilton was 90. When we come back here tonight, you'll see Celine. Dion's fall and her condition tonight and the grandmother.

She's literally America strong, breaking her own record, holding. this plank, and for how long? We couldn't believe it in just a moment here. To the index of other news, a 61-year-old grandmother. breaking her own record, the longest duration. abdominal plank by a woman. Donna Jean Wilde held the plank for five hours at. the World Senior Games. Her old record, four and a half hours. She started planking exercises just 12 years ago. when she broke her wrist. We're just a bunch of slackers here. A graceful recovery tonight for Celine Dion.

She fell on stage during a concert in Paris last night. But look at this. She quickly bounces back to her feet. Dion made her long awaited return to the stage last month. We're glad she's OK tonight. When we come back here, the beautiful sight today, the four astronauts, the parachutes out, and. we'll show you the dramatic splashdown in a moment. Finally, tonight here, splashdown. It was a beautiful sight off the coast of California today, right near Los Angeles, the sun shining, the parachutes opening,

four astronauts returning to Earth after eight. months in space. We have visual confirmation of splashdown. NASA's SpaceX Crew 12 back home tonight, successfully splashing. down in the Pacific Ocean after 235 days on the. International Space Station. We are so excited to be back on planet Earth. The crew of four, including two NASA astronauts, one cosmonaut. and one from the European Space agency in space since February, conducting scientific research, maintenance at spacewalks.

This morning, the recovery teams racing to get. them from the capsule. There you can see the hatch is being open. The astronauts waving as they emerged. The first one to slide back onto Earth. Tonight, returning to Earth after eight months in space and. one picture perfect landing. Picture perfect, indeed. I'll see you right back here tomorrow. Good night. David Muir, the most trusted, most watched. newscast in America. And now, World News Tonight has won the Emmy for Best.

Live News Program for the fourth year in a row.