Morning News NOW Full Broadcast - February 23

foreign [Music] I'm Stephen Romo in for Savannah Sellers and I'm Joe fryer right now on morning news now that cross country storm that's crippling morning commutes for millions of Americans from coast to coast snow driving rain and Ice leaving hundreds of thousands without power in the Upper Midwest as airports Nationwide slow to a crawl and we're not done yet our meteorologist Angie lastman has the latest track all that is happening is folks in the South are ready to break out their t-shirts and shorts Washington D.C could see record-breaking highs we've got team coverage in just a moment tragedy strikes twice a Florida neighborhood rattled to its core this morning after a TV journalist and a nine-year-old girl are killed in multiple shootings just outside of Orlando Police now say the gunman shot and killed a woman earlier yesterday then returned to the crime scene to kill again later in the day a 19 year old suspect now in police custody what we know about the man's troubled past also this morning anxiety and fear in East Palestine Ohio and amid those fears Transportation secretary Pete Buda judge is meeting with community members there today three weeks after that toxic train derailment we've got more on his visit plus the latest on cleanup efforts and the new government report on the disaster that is out today and turning the page as we continue to highlight inspiring figures for this black history month later in the hour a New York Times best-selling author who's celebrating her family's culture through the art of children's box looking forward to having that conversation a little bit later we're going to begin with that dangerous cross-country storm with nearly 70 million Americans now in its path yeah a big deal here that massive system dumping feet of snow inches of ice and even bringing the threat of tornadoes NBC News National correspondent Dave Gutierrez is in Minneapolis once again tracking this multi-day storm for us Gabe good morning Stephen good morning we're getting hit with another snow band right now and this has been bone chilling over the last few hours as wind chills are definitely dropping and we're in the thick of it right now now across this region it has been a devastating few hours and across from the Midwest Ice is a major issue hundreds of thousands of people are without power foreign this morning a massive winter storm sweeping across the country causing cars to slide off freeways in Minnesota the treacherous conditions extending from Utah to South Dakota to Wisconsin keeping 9-1-1 dispatchers on high alert we do have the influx of winter related calls in Arizona nearly 300 miles of I-40 closed State Police in Wyoming warning of dangerous conditions like this newly released video showing a trooper narrowly escaping an out-of-control 18-wheeler travel snarled from coast to coast both on the roads and in the air more than 1600 U.S flights canceled Wednesday and thousands more delayed Crews rushing to treat the runways in Minneapolis-St Paul my flight got rescheduled for tomorrow we don't know if tomorrow's going to be any better a separate storm system now prompting a rare blizzard warning for the mountains near La a major ski resort in the same area bracing for up to four feet of snow 47 million people across 25 states are under winter weather alerts back in the midwest residents in Hart hit Wisconsin and Michigan are dealing with major power outages we're working around the clock to get power out as fast as we can as drivers are extra careful on icy roads about 10 miles under the speed limit and just trying to you know what I'm saying keep traction to prevent from sliding already today hundreds of flights in the U.S have been canceled here in Minneapolis we're expecting the snow to continue throughout the next several hours and it is not as much snow it was as was initially forecast earlier this week but Joe and Steven as you can see it is clearly significant looks like a postcard but no thank you Gabe thanks all right Gabe you might not want to watch this next report the other side of the coin parts of the country from Florida all the way up to the Mid-Atlantic seeing record-breaking heat all in the middle of winter more on this we're joined by NBC news reporter Gary grumbach in Washington so Gary I mean today we could see people walking around D.C in shorts in February I mean they'll still probably have ties and Suits on top but shorts on the bottom how rare is this kind of weather there this time of year yeah with apologies to our friends in Minneapolis there it's going to be a beautiful day here in Washington DC it's forecasted high of 81 degrees and even if it hits 80 degrees today here in D.C that will be just the fourth time that has ever happened during a winter month here in Washington DC so this is exceedingly rare great news for folks like us who get to spend the whole day outside folks that are going to be jogging around the Tidal Basin here in downtown DC but bad news for these guys the very famous cherry blossoms that are that are all over Washington DC they are two weeks ahead of their bloom schedule which really matters for tourism in this city because thousands and thousands of people come down to the Title Basin for the annual Cherry Blossom Festival which was scheduled for mid-march these guys may already be bloomed by mid-march so a lot to think about here but it's it's good news if you're in fan of good weather Joe I didn't even think about that the blossoms are already going to start blooming all right so it's been warmer than usual not just now but really much of this year for a lot of the Mid-Atlantic so how are people there reacting to the weather I'm sure they're excited but are there also some concerns it's this warm this early yeah today is February 23rd the last time it was this warm on February 23rd the telephone had not been invented yet in Washington DC so I think that's an important thing to put into a perspective here of course it's good news for folks who love getting out and enjoying it bad news for allergy sufferers like me who have allergies about a month earlier than usual I'm sure millions of Americans around the country have that as well but the stage two of the blooms the good weather good news for folks bad news for the climate because also in 48 hours there's a chance of snow in Washington DC Joe wow all right Gary thanks so much appreciate it some Whiplash there all right let's get caught up with your Morning News Now weather yeah here's the uh bringer of the Whiplash meteorologist Andrew lassman just now at the forecast it is that you're responsible I just said you're updating you're bringing the news to us I will take that title and I will run with it and show you exactly what's going on right now you can see still dealing with some of those impacts you've seen the pictures coming out of places like Minneapolis and some of the snow that has worked through parts of the New England area a lot of that is going to taper off through the day today so we will be able to rebound and get back to some quieter conditions albeit warm in a lot of those places here now notice there's still a little bit of snow left to come maybe a couple more inches the higher amounts are going to be focused more towards the up of Michigan and into Maine we still have the potential for some ice accumulation in parts of New England as well so power outages difficult travel that's all on the table here through the rest of the morning hours and into the afternoon on the flip side of that we look a little farther to the west and they're dealing with frigid temperatures you've seen the the warm weather that Gary was just talking about the conditions in the west are much different 10 million people right now are under wind chill alerts and that's because these temperatures are well below zero the actual temperature 13 below in Rapid City but feeling like -33 with those elevated wind gusts it's bitter cold in a lot of places Denver Salt Lake City you guys are sitting at 21 degrees right now so it doesn't feel great there either feeling like winter but a little colder than than what it was just a little while ago meanwhile there's those warm temperatures that we were just referring to New Orleans at 83 today could potentially see a record 81 degrees for Nashville we'll take a run at being at least close to a record Washington DC in Orlando is headed to 90 degrees now on the other side of the country we have a low pressure system that's going to drop in from Canada that's why it's so cold over there and temperatures are so much lower than normal for this time of year normally they come off of the Pacific but this is helping to usher in some really cold Arctic air into California that helps us with of course the record low temperatures that we're going to see but also the low level snow that we could see we have blizzard warnings for parts of LA county and plenty of rain on the way wind snow you guys want me to keep listening very uncalifornia-like weather yeah all right Angie thank you so much all right police in Orlando are now looking for a motive behind two separate shootings a gunman carried out the attack Wednesday morning killing a 20-year-old woman and investigators say that same gunman then returned to the crime scene to carry out a second shooting killing a member of a local news team that was covering the initial attack before also fatally shooting a nine-year-old girl in a nearby Home NBC News correspondent guard Venegas joins us now from Orlando Florida with the latest on this just tragic situation good morning Stephen good morning very tragic and total three people are dead two more being treated at this Orlando hospital as you mentioned police now have a suspect a 19 year old who is behind bars now there's a lot of questions to be answered as investigators try to determine why that suspect returned to the original scene of that shooting to cause even more damage twice in one day same Orlando neighborhood the scene of murder and Mayhem one authorities say a gunman opened fire at the same location just hours apart killing at least three people and leaving two others in critical condition authorities arrested 19-year-old Keith Melvin Moses a team they say had a troubled pass he has a lengthy criminal history to include gun charges aggravatedness aggravated battery and assault with a deadly weapon burglary and grand theft charges among those killed Dylan Lyons a 24 year old journalist for spectrum News 13 in Orlando in a GoFundMe page his sister writing he was a happy soul and wonderful person adding he loved his fiance and was a devoted son to his mother and father our Orlando NBC station's coverage emotional there are people here who knew that reporter who his fiancee and I were just embracing this is every reporter's absolutely worst nightmare the reporter and photographer were in Pine Hills covering a deadly shooting that happened earlier that day involving a 20 year old woman who was shot and killed in a vehicle he was an acquaintance of the the woman just hours later investigators say the suspect returned to the crime scene and opened fire at the news crew killing one and critically injuring the other Jesse Walden who has been able to speak with investigators and colleagues according to Spectrum News 13 anchor Greg Angel other members of the media jumping in to provide First Aid on at least one victim before emergency crews arrived deputies say the suspect then went into a nearby Home killing a nine-year-old girl and shooting her mother I had no connection to the reporters and no connection um to the the mother and a nine-year-old Spectrum news releasing a statement reading in part our thoughts are with our employees family friends and co-workers during this very difficult time authorities here say they are not sure why the suspect entered that home shot the woman and the nine-year-old girl or why he attacked that News Group the sheriff in Orange County did say that the vehicle used by the news crew was not marked so it wasn't completely clear to authorities if the suspect knew that that was a news crew he was shooting at this is of course one of the questions that remains unanswered as this investigation continues Stephen all right quadronegas thank you Transportation secretary Pete Buda judge is on the ground in East Palestine Ohio this morning he's touring the disaster site nearly three weeks after the toxic train derailment there his visit comes a day after residence there got a chance to voice their concerns and frustrations to the head of Norfolk Southern the rail company responsible for the derailment NBC News correspondent Jesse Kirsch joins us now from East Palestine Jesse good morning Joe good morning you can see the situation here still far from normal look at this we've got crews out here right now even in the early morning have been working out here near waterways which the governor of Ohio says are still contaminated but hopefully we'll have some more answers soon you mentioned the transportation secretary is on the ground and later this morning we're expecting a preliminary report from the NTSB with explanations as to how all of this might have happened overnight emotions running high in East Palestine you burned me we were going to sell our house our value went it's norfolk's disaster not on a train derailment residents really the CEO of Norfolk Southern on a CNN Town Hall I I don't feel safe in this town now you took it away from me what I can do and what I will do is make it right we're gonna get to clean up right even with officials promising the municipal tap water and air in East Palestine are safe questions are still piling up but more answers are hopefully on the way the national Transportation safety board planning to release its preliminary report on the trained derailment earlier this month that triggered a toxic cloud residents like local business owner Mike zelenak fear for their livelihoods he's building a new storage facility in the community I'm already losing business the CDC says it will go door to door asking residents about lingering health concerns officials say the air is safe do you buy that I don't buy it I smell it here today same plastic smell with the railroad and government responses under intense scrutiny this small community is also quickly becoming a big political football former president Donald Trump visiting Wednesday taking swipes at the Biden Administration your goodness and perseverance who are met with indifference and betrayal in some cases the EPA says it has ordered the railroad to perform a cleanup and cover all expenses the Biden White House blaming Mr Trump and other Republicans for loosening rail safety measures and Environmental Protections during his time in Office later today Transportation secretary Pete butterjudge is expected to meet with community members but some residents here worry they could be facing adversity for Generations you can't dump that much stuff in soil and get away with it concerns now stretching well beyond Ohio and neighboring Pennsylvania officials in Texas say they are aware that a Houston area company has been contracted to dispose of potentially dangerous Wastewater that has been removed from East Palestine Ohio so you can get a sense from that Joe that we are talking about something that has people's attention across much of this country the officials there in Texas say they are in touch with experts and are monitoring that situation closely Joe all right Jesse thank you so much the trial for former attorney Alec Murdock May soon be coming to an end and now the question for the defense is whether Murdoch himself should take the stand as his team tells NBC news that is something they are considering NBC News correspondent Katie Beck joins us now from Walterboro South Carolina with the latest on this Katie good morning well good morning guys today marks one month since the start of this trial we've heard from dozens of witnesses but none with the ability to help or hurt this case more than Alec Murdock himself it is a rare and risky move to put a defendant on the stand in a murder trial especially in this case because it could open the door to questions well beyond the murders it's a big gamble Alec Murdock and his legal team told the judge they're carefully considering whether to put the disgraced former attorney on the witness stand in his own defense his testimony could open the door to questions about the dozens of financial crimes Murdoch is facing separately charges prosecutors say are at the heart of his alleged motive the defense asking the judge to limit what prosecutors can ask about that on cross-examination if he does testify I am not going to issue an order in advance limiting the scope of cross-examination among the questions Murdoch could be asked about video that prosecutors say places Murdoch at the crime scene just minutes before Maggie and Paul's murders despite telling investigators multiple times that he wasn't there on the stand Wednesday Mark Ball a former law colleague who's known Murdoch more than three decades the defense using his testimony to suggest investigators made mistakes at the crime scene there was a piece of Paul skull about size of the baseball playing there did that upset you it did very much I mean it just really infuriated me on cross-examination the state focusing on money Murdoch is accused of stealing from his firm what do you know now about this man had been your partner and friend for 34 years causes you to question everything you thought you knew about him isn't that right it does all of it as the drama surrounding the Murdoch family has become a spectacle beyond the courtroom including a new Netflix docu-series that focuses on a series of other deaths and alleged misdeeds around the high-profile family Paul Murdoch's former girlfriend describing a sometimes turbulent and violent relationship I started crying and that's when uh Paul got in my face and he just started screaming and uh that's when Paul slapped me Murdoch's defense team says they could rest their case as early as tomorrow which means after five weeks of testimony this very complex trial could soon be headed to a jury guys complex indeed all right Katie thank you coming up a flare-up in violence between Israel and Gaza over the last 24 hours it's bringing fresh tension to the region more on this latest back and forth following the deaths of 11 Palestinians in an Israeli Army raid Plus on the eve of the one-year anniversary for the war in Ukraine what are analysts expecting in year two well fighting eventually ramp up as temperatures rise we're taking a look ahead coming up next [Music] we are back with breaking news out of the Middle East overnight Israel carried out airstrikes on Gaza in response to what Israel says was rocket fire from the besieged Palestinian Enclave the latest round of violence was sparked by an Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank yesterday which killed 11 Palestinians NBC News global correspondent Ralph Sanchez joins us now from Tel Aviv so Ralph what more can you tell us about this round of Israeli airstrikes what's the situation like right now well Joe families in both Gaza and Southern Israel this morning waking up to explosions Israel's military says it targeted two sites run by the Hamas militant group one of them a military compounds the other a weapons manufacturing site and those airstrikes in response to six Rockets fired from Gaza into Israel overnight five of them were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system the sixth landed in a field so no casualties reported on either side this morning from either the Rockets or the air strikes but Joe it's a reminder how violence in the occupied West Bank can very quickly spill over into Gaza I mean so Raph why did Israeli forces carry out yesterday's raid in the occupied West Bank what are both sides saying about it yeah so this was really unusual Joe Israeli forces in broad daylight storming into the center of the Palestinian city of Nablus in the West Bank Israel says it was targeting senior members of a terrorist group known as the Lion's Den with the Israeli military says we're preparing to plant to carry out imminent attacks inside Israel those Israeli Special Forces met by very large crowds of angry Palestinians throwing rocks hurling fire bombs now 11 people killed in total by Israeli fire both militants and civilians at least three elderly men among the dead and Joe there's this heartbreaking footage going around on Palestinian social media of a nurse in a hospital in Napolis he's just pronounced one of these men dead and then he realizes that the body on the operating table in front of him is his own father now the Palestinian Authority is calling this raid in the West Bank yesterday a massacre Jeff RAF we understand the un's Middle East Envoy has arrived in Gaza for talks I mean what's been the reaction all this from the International Community the normal reaction we hear there's appeals for calm there are hopes that things will quiet down the Biden Administration saying the same from the state department yesterday but Joe when you talk to U.S officials there really

is no plan to try to fundamentally shift the status quo or to try to reboot peace talks which have been going absolutely nowhere for about a decade now and the real fear in the Biden Administration Joe is that there are no cooler heads to Prevail right now the Palestinian Authority the sort of semi-government in the West Bank has really lost credibility with the Palestinian people and they have lost Security Control in the north of the West Bank in those cities like Napolis and on the Israeli side you have this new government headed by prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu the most right-wing government in Israel's history that is showing absolutely no sign that it is interested in de-escalation just last week they retroactively approved a bunch of Israeli settlements in the West Bank that were illegal even under is Israel's own laws that was in defiance of the Biden Administration and you saw the U.S in a number of other countries at the U.N security Council condemning that settlement expansion Jeff right thanks for your reporting this morning appreciate it let's turn now to Ukraine which is approaching the one year mark of Russia's Invasion over the past year NBC News has been shining a light on many individual stories personal stories that have emerged from the conflict NBC News correspondent Aaron McLaughlin has been following the story of one child from bucha just six years old he has seen a lot in his young life and Aaron joins us now from Key Baron good morning Good morning Joe according to UNICEF one and a half million Ukrainian children are at risk of anxiety and depression due to this war we caught up with Vlad Dragoon last week we've been following his story for the past 10 months just six years old he's dealing with so much loss and grief in the war-torn city of bucha six-year-old Vlad Dragoon is back in school now that it has partially reopened after being bombed during the Russian invasion at midday his dad picks him up but Vlad doesn't want to leave he loves to learn that much this little boy has become too familiar with heartbreak last year Vlad survived the Russian invasion and occupation of bucha with his half-brother and his dad but his 34 year old mom did not they say Marina Nomads died of stress and starvation hiding from the bombs in the family's basement they were forced to bury her in back of their apartment block every day if the bombings allowed Vlad would visit his mom's makeshift grave we were in bucha last April shortly after the Russian Retreat vlad's dad had Marina's body exhumed from their backyard then laid to rest in the city's Cemetery Vlad told us he remembered what happened to her and how Ukrainian soldiers saved them from the Russians praying is strong he says you're very strong ten months later we meet Vlad on his walk home from school how are you doing how was school he recognizes you with Russian missiles still a persistent threat vlad's dad tells us he's worried the war has his boys growing up too soon he says they're doing their best to cope with the loss of Marina what was Marina like she was a very beloved person it's difficult I miss her he says Vlad tells me he's a day away from his seventh birthday they share a video created to Mark last year's celebration they had no way of knowing that birthday would be their last with Marina but Vlad says he remembers vlad's dad was telling me that he would like to take his boys and leave Ukraine he does not feel safe here but he can't because there's still martial law in this country all men between the ages of 18 and 60 are not allowed to leave so they're having to hunk her down and and wait out this war guys just a heartbreaking and one story of many Aaron thank you so what could the future hold for this conflict in Ukraine as year two gets underway NBC News National Security analyst Clint Watts joins us now for a closer look at that so Clint we know things have been somewhat slower over the colder winter months but fighting is expected to ramp up as spring starts so what exactly are we looking at yeah so when we think about where the war is at and how it might end it really comes down to sort of three categories it could be sooner could be later it really could be never and and a way to think about that is what's going on today in the eastern part of Ukraine right now major battles in Baku lots of probing and pushing forward by the Russian military trying to get this offensive going but they're struggling not taking much ground taking heavy casualties and expending a lot of ammunition at the same point ukrainians trying to hold the line but still taking their own losses so in the near term this is where the battle is going to be I think the bigger picture is what would it be over the longer term and how it might end in the East it would mean that the Russian offensive is currently underway would have to make major gains and there's just no evidence to really support that at the moment for the ukrainians it would be is there a counter-offensive sometime here in 2023 that they launch moving in somewhere along these lines the same way they did here in the light blue last fall would they be able to do that and would it really crumble the Russian military if they could do this that might be a sooner outcome rather than a later one so Clint I mean looking ahead now we've obviously seen the heaviest fighting in eastern Ukraine where do we think the key Battlegrounds are going to be going forward and could we perhaps see renewed efforts in other parts of the country farther west I think two main regions the same two we've been talking about since last summer the first one is here in the East you're going to see this battle line here continue to play out it has been the focal point in the dumbass remember Vladimir Putin said he was going into the region in order to take Don boss separately the one we saw at the end right here last fall into early winter we saw the ukrainians take back all the way to curse on this city by doing that they they've gone right up to the river there once they hit that River though that's a very tough obstacle for them to cross there have been some Russian probing operations not very successful but this could be another major theater of operation at some point in the near future and Clint what about Crimea we see that on your map there Russia of course captured in annexed back in 2014 is it at all possible we could see Ukraine try to make some moves there so that has been the question you know the ukrainians have said uh president zielinski has said that he wanted to go ahead and push all Ukrainian forces and take back all of Crimea that's probably a stretch because when you look at what's been set up down here these trench lines now are quite dug in this is a different one from others I've shown earlier in the week but you see these successive positions built into the ground there that is a very tough fight and that requires things like armor artillery large enough uh Manpower and Troop requirements to get through that and that's very costly for a Ukrainian military that just has fewer troops than the Russians do over time so how would they go through things like these tank Fields here how would they push into these trench lines how many casualties could they take it seems unlikely they would take back Crimea but it doesn't mean we won't see intense combat there this summer it's something else to watch all right Clint thank you coming up we've got some new research that our team here at morning news now may not want to hear yeah that's an understatement it's all about the importance of yes you guessed it a good night's sleep and it could actually add years to your life sorry about that guys we'll bring you those details coming up next welcome back we've heard about the importance of getting a good night's sleep now there is more evidence to back that up even more evidence new research being presented at the American College of cardiology's annual meeting suggested getting good sleep could potentially add years to your life especially for men more on this we are joined by Dr Carol Ash who's a sleep expert with RWJ Barnabas Health Dr ash good morning good to have you with us so let's break down this study here for you a team of researchers compiled data from more than 172 000 people over a five-year period the study found young people who have better sleeping habits are less likely to die early I mean let's talk about what some of the factors are of actually getting quality sleep and why do we think men are benefiting more it was an amazing study Joe because they looked at 100 as you said over a hundred and seventy thousand individuals it was a survey the national survey from the CDC and national health statistics and they linked it to the National death index or records of death and this was done from Harvard top researchers and what they found was that if you had they created this score this five Factor score and if you had a positive answer to all five of those questions you were 30 less likely to die of any cause and you had longevity which was two times more for men so it was really a a fascinating phenomenal study that really points to the significance and the importance of sleep in preventing many of the common diseases especially cardiac disease and prolonging your life so sleep is a good thing yeah it's fascinating to hear that and this part actually shocked me the data suggested that as many as eight percent of deaths from any cause could be attributed to poor sleep patterns that is is shocking here so how can we improve that correct Stephen well we've long known that good sleep habits are associated with you know critical thinking judgment it controls your insulin resistance so when you don't sleep well many of those common diseases that we try to prevent will will be you know significant in your life so what what you really need to do and unfortunately our lives are so busy but stick to those sleep habits right you want to maintain the right amount of sleep you know seven to eight hours keep a regular schedule and getting up in the morning is really really key and you want to keep the room calm quiet and cool so just some simple things that that we we don't really adhere to in our lives and cool you're talking about 65 degrees in the room you actually sleep in a more cool environment than you think all right and then you know too much sleep too little sleep they can all have negative impacts on the heart right I mean so what are the key things to take away from that what should we be most worried about well it's you know men have you know shorter lifespans right and most commonly they're the ones that if they're going to have cardiac disease it's men right and die from cardiac disease so we think of diet exercise and lipids your your weight is those things that can prevent cardiac disease will now add in sleep and and if you start at the age of 30 so you see an incremental lowering of your risk for every one of these sleep factors you adhere to you're going to going to bed on time getting up in the morning getting restful sleep and if if you are 30 years old and you do this it's like you know saving money but at any age you can good habits you know can prevent many of the common things that we're struggling with for those who work weird schedules like us in our team I mean it is all lost or or can you still have good habits just in an odd schedule well you have to have the counter measures so what you have to realize is and I'll say to people you know if you were a an event planner and it obligated you to have the cocktails and the cheesecake right you'd say okay you know I have to I have to when I can really focus on what I can do so for people that really have odd schedules the fatigue countermeasures are taking a nap but you have to do it strategically you want to take a nap no more than 40 minutes that could be a problem believe it or not and and sticking to those those simple things keeping the room quiet dark and cool I mean just simple things and even your mattress and your pillows you you spend a lot of money on sneakers if you were an athlete right yeah but you don't think really much about the environment that you sleep in that's a good comparison all right Dr Carol Ash thanks so much for joining us this morning I appreciate it great info all right coming up this morning a first ever call at the national weather service after the break we'll introduce you to Elizabeth Lightman the first woman to issue a weather watch in the service's history looking forward to chatting with her plus the sting of inflation still has a lot of us cutting back on eating out and to help get customers back through those doors some restaurants are getting creative we'll explain after this you're watching Morning News Now [Music] the sex story we're bringing back in meteorologist Angie lastman and here's why first of all she's great and second of all last week when the thunderstorm watch was issued for parts of Oklahoma and Texas it was the first time in the National Weather service's history that it was issued by a woman yeah fascinating stuff here so joining us now is the meteorologist who made that historic call Elizabeth Lightman Liz thanks so much for being here this morning I know you've been at the National Weather Service for more than a decade now so take us back to that moment where you issued this thunderstorm watch I understand you're training to be a lead here so where in this process did you realize that you were going to make history being the first woman to issue this well I actually knew um before that that day and we had been talking about it um in our Ops leading up to that day knowing that that shift was coming up we already had a severe weather risk in some of our forecasts and so I I knew ahead of time that it would be happening and so there was just a lot of anticipation and excitement and um it was just a really great moment and Elizabeth as a fellow woman in stem I I just am so excited to see this but what's been the reaction you've been getting about this historic person what exactly does it mean to you personally it's been amazing um I I it was completely unexpected um but it's been it's been wonderful to be able to represent women in meteorology women in stem I have a five-year-old daughter um and so you know it's it's fun she she ran up to me the other day and Mommy I saw you on TV um and so you know I think representation really matters and so whenever you know girls see other women doing things that they might be passionate about you know it gives them it's encouraging and you know helps them to think hey I can do this too I mean speaking of your daughter I think we were all struck by something that was in the New York Times about you that when you were younger you would check the national weather service alerts and became a fan of the forecasters who were issuing issuing them in the same way many people maybe are fans of professional athletes or or a musicians so what's the advice you would give especially to the young girls like your daughter and others out there who are like you when you were were younger they want to make a career in weather and in meteorology I would say you know go forward don't let anyone try and determine your path for you you know what you're capable of and if you have the passion and the determination go for it and there will be other women there along your path helping you and supporting you and Elizabeth I mean this seems like it must have been on the top of your bucket list growing up you just talked about that and now what's next for you you're a lead forecaster there that's a pretty incredible fee right so you know um being at the Storm Prediction Center and working for the national weather service has you know been a lifelong dream for me and I'm doing it and it's exciting and I'm just thrilled to be able to continue to serve the public and in my role at the Storm Prediction Center Elizabeth Lightman thank you so much for joining us and congratulations on everything thank you all right so taking a check of your some some Financial headlines now Google transitioning into a desk sharing workspace in some of its locations cnbc's Savannah now joins us with that and other money news Savannah good morning hey good morning to you yeah so Google is asking some employees to share desks as the company downsizes office space now documents seen by CNBC show Google's Cloud unit has told workers it will ship to a desk sharing workspace in five locations San Francisco New York Seattle Kirkland Washington and its headquarters in Sunnyvale California employees will be encouraged to alter the days they're in the office Chinese Tech Giant Baidu plans to release its AI alternative to chat GPT to the public next month Baidu launched the project called Ernie in 2019 the company operates the top search engine in China where Google is banned chat GPT is also not available in China despite a ton of local interest Snapchat is rolling out new sounds features to make it easier to create content the product allows users to add clips from licensed songs TV shows and movies as well as their own original audio to their snaps and stories the new features will let you find relevant sounds to complement a lens filter you can also create a montage video that are automatically synced in Rhythm to the B of audio tracks from The Sounds Library guys I still don't have Snapchat I don't either I had it and lost it yeah I don't think you're missing too much the filters I don't know I feel like if Savannah were here She would argue in favor of Snapchat right now I know all right thanks so much sure thing if you are choosing to cook from home instead of eating at your favorite restaurant You are not alone I know we're doing that more more people are looking to save money as inflation drives up the prices of most food items yeah but restaurants are coming up with ways to keep customers coming back hopefully without breaking the bank NBC News contributing correspondent Kelly Hartung shows us how you can dine out on a budget hey good morning guys inflation may be slowing but so many people are still feeling the pinch in their wallets and with the cost of food still high restaurants like this one are looking to turn the table on the High Cost of Living and offer diners new and different options from chicken to beef to eggs the price you pay for food at the grocery store remains high and restaurants big and small are feeling that same Sting from inflation food is getting outrageous many businesses have been forced to pass on those costs to Consumers making the price you pay for dine in and takeout meals more expensive eight percent more than you paid for the same meals last year that ballooning Bill the main reason over 60 percent of Americans say they're choosing to eat out less often I feel like I'm paying more money for either not very much food or not very good food now restaurants are trying to turn down the heat on inflation while still cooking up deals for their customers some restaurants are even offering subscription plans at Asian food chain PF Changs patrons can now pay 6.99 a month for exclusive

loyalty perks including double Reward Points jumping to the front of the waitlist for a table and free delivery industry insiders say that new Revenue stream will help relieve some of the inflation stress on businesses have you all had to adjust your prices to reflect inflation costs there's no secret that prices had to be adjusted not only at our restaurant but really everywhere right at this location in Los Angeles employees say they're firing up more meals for PF Chang's subscribers every day do you feel that people are really saving money by paying a subscription fee I believe so if you're a loyal customer and this is the place that you go to all the time it's definitely worth it at Panera Bread a 120 annual subscription will get you into its unlimited sip Club where drinks and deliveries are available without any additional fees some smaller chains in local restaurants are thinking outside the box offering inflation conscious menus with options that are cheaper than a full price Plate restaurant operators are becoming pretty Innovative in terms of how they operate in this extremely high cost environment if you're looking to dine out without breaking the bank look for daily specials which often offer a side and a drink for Less opt for a late lunch instead of a more expensive dinner portion and if you plan to carry out see if you can order directly online or through the restaurants app to help avoid extra delivery fees so the best way to figure out if some of these restaurants subscription plans are a win-win for you you've got to do the math and think about it it's all about your loyalty so if there are restaurants that you're visiting often or getting take out from on a regular basis those subscription perks the discounts we were talking about like the free delivery without additional fees and those extra drinks those could really be worth it in the long term and like any good deal you've got to read the fine print so check the cancellation policies on these because you don't ever want to be stuck in a situation where you're paying for something that you don't need guys right good advice Kaylee Hartung thank you coming up we're turning the page for this black history month that's right after the break a best-selling author who's putting her and her family's culture in the spotlight with children's books as her medium will introduce you to her coming up next [Music] welcome back a selfie from the sky is going viral for a surprise photo bomb the Pentagon has confirmed that this selfie and Air Force pilot took did in fact have the suspected Chinese spy balloon in the background the defense department believes that this is the balloon that eventually made its way across the U.S and was later shot down off the coast of South Carolina earlier this month the Pentagon has not identified that pilot but officials say this photo has already gained quote legendary status at NORAD and in the Pentagon sort of spying on the Spy right there you go it's a good way to put it I also feel like shooting a selfie while you're flying a fighter jet wasting despite the skill so very skilled all right moving on February is Black History Month and reading books to your children is a great way to get them involved in the celebration yeah and Story Time can serve as a way to teach children about black history culture and diversity not just this month but all year long Nancy red and on-air host and a New York Times best-selling Author George just now are some great suggestions for books you're going to want to add to your child's reading list it is so good to have you with us Nancy so before we get to your list what are the things you think parents should keep in mind when they are selecting books for their kids well I think it's very simple because in the same way you want your kids to eat the rainbow you want kids to read the rainbow too because picture books are really powerful portals into the intimate lives of other cultures including our own yeah so those first two books on our list are ones you actually wrote so we're hoping you'd be able to tell us about them and what inspired you to write these absolutely so my two picture books are based off of aspects of my kids early childhood so for one my first one bedtime Bonnet it's based off of my daughter not wanting to wear a bonnet to bed to protect her hair and me not being able to find a resource to help her love this it was at the beginning of the adorable Bonnet revolution in children's media which we've all enjoyed tremendously you'll be happy to know my daughter wears her Bonnet Faithfully every night now what do your kids think about the fact that they're they're in these books that must be pretty cool for them oh they love it I mean I think one of the fun things about being an author is I want people to understand my culture I want my children to love their culture so being able to be part of helping others appreciate everyone in the world is just a dream come true and that's actually why I wrote my second book the real Santa because it was based off of my son's obsession with what Santa actually looks like uh and my inability at the time to find a book that did representative Justice to this age-old question that all children have and we have had so much fun with this book because my son was upset at first that bedtime Bonnet didn't have him in it so now he's got a book that has him in it that's very good and I'm guessing I mean not just from your kids but from families all around the country the reaction you must hear to seeing these stories must be pretty incredible oh it's just a dream come true I feel very fortunate to be able to be a Creator to be an artist and to share my vision with the world and I don't take that lightly and I'm surrounded by a bunch of other incredible authors that I can't wait to share a few with you yeah we'd love to hear about those authors I was also going to ask when you were a young person what books stood out to you that made you inspired to take on this career well for me I was actually inspired by a lack right so when I was growing up in the 80s there weren't that many books that spoke to who I was or my experience as an African-American woman growing up in Martinsville shout out to Martinsville Virginia and so when I became pregnant with my very first child actually 12 years ago a book just came out that year that it was the first children's book I ever bought and I want to talk about it right now it's called um Ruth and the green book and it's by Calvin Alexander and it is an incredible historical fiction gently sharing our past so we don't repeat it uh that is about how it was so dangerous to travel during Jim Crow that an African-American postal worker from Harlem named Victor Hugo green actually created an incredible resource called the green book for black people across the country to use to find safe housing and food while on a road trip and I love this book and I think it's an incredible work of art it's one of the first books in this movement of Multicultural books we have less than 30 seconds left I think you have two more recommendations can you quickly go through them for us I do you've got this one from charnay Lift Every Voice and change it is an incredible audiobook where you can press buttons and hear from um incredible people like Jay-Z that is cool yeah and you also have incredible Caitlyn um Wells a family looks like love and she wrote this book that represented her family and um that where she didn't look like everyone and she realized that children need to understand that it's not what you look like but love that makes a family and these pups are precious those are great messages and beautiful books Nancy red thanks so much for joining us this morning and sharing that great list for all of us oh you're gonna love all of these books all right appreciate it thanks so much and that's going to do it for this hour of Morning News Now the news continues right now [Music] thanks for watching our YouTube channel follow today's top stories and breaking news by downloading the NBC News app

2023-02-28 13:33

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