police are asking churches to open later so roads can be cleared. mike seidel is in amarillo, texas, with the latest. good morning. >> good morning, harry. from the middle of interstate 40, it is shut down due to the blizzard from the west side of amarillo to albuquerque. we've been dealing with the ferocious wind all night. it's gusted 60 to 65 miles per hour in the panhandle and will blow like this today, tonight and into monday morning. looking at one to two feet of snow. some of the highway you can see. here, because it's a dry, powdery snow, you have drifts almost a foot and a half deep. we've already had 23 inches of snow in parts of new mexico, but this is the issue. it just blows. it's like powdered sugar. the temperature is 20 degrees. our wind chills are around zero. it's going to be a long day and night out here. travel is not recommended. in fact, the hotel we're staying at, before yesterday, they were 30% full. now, they're completely full. everybody pulled off the interstate and they're hunkered down, likely until sometime on monday. i

the roads are not just dangerous, but deadly. the weather channel's mike seidel joins us from oklahoma city. mike, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, erica. more freezing rain continues to coat the trees, the cars and power lines. over 23,000 customers in central oklahoma are without electricity on this cold morning. with ice storm warnings continues until noon. treacherous roads lie ahead for many drivers getting behind the wheel on the busy travel weekend. especially in the middle of the country. four people killed driving along roads in kansas. icy conditions were to blame for wrecks along oklahoma's highway friday. in dallas, downpours. 2015 is the wettest year on record with over 57 inches and counting. friday alone, they picked up 3.5 inches of rain. the rushing water swallowing up cars and killing at least three and stranding the sheriff's deputy who firefighters had to rescue. friday was a day of records for other parts in the country. it dropped to 22 below zero in wyoming. lander, wyoming picked up 10 inches of sn

the weather channel's mike seidel is in oklahoma city. mike, good morning again. >> good morning, erica. big issues for travelers and shoppers alike in the middle of the country. we've got a risk of flash flooding, a risk of freezing rain and sleet. let's start you off with the wintry side of the storm in the far west where they have pre-thanksgiving snowfall. this is what we need to get in california. some of those ski recertificates picked up as much as 20 inches of snow. then the moisture comes east, runs into the cold air in the surface, too warm aloft for snow, and so we gills ice. this morning we've had an much as a quarter inch of ice in ardmore, oklahoma. and flash floods from little rock back to dallas, even here in oklahoma city. in dallas overnight, they picked up a lot more rain. now over 4 inch, nearly 55 inches of rain for the year, now the wettest year on record in dallas. erica? >> mike, thanks. >>> let's head over to north carolina, where the hunt is on for a rare plant. it's worth a lot of money, and nbc's kerry sanders

back to you. >> mike seidel in maryland this morning. thank you very much. >>> al roker is back from vacation today. quince sde coincidence? i think not. >> good morning, guys. we hope to have winter's last gasp. we have winter storm warning and winter weather advisories to talk about. let's go to the video and show you what we are talking about. not only do we have snow but severe weather, as well. this was the bay hill, arnold palmer invitational at bay hill and it cancelled play. unbelievable weather. lawn chairs thrown all over. the golf course underwater. they will have better weather today for the final round. this is at a lowe's in orlando. you had shoppers scrambling to get n. workers trying to close the door against torrential rain and damaging wind. a lot of hail and you can see all of the problems and then the snow side of this to talk about. st. louis picking up a record snowfall yesterday, over 12 inches of snow. indianapolis seeing a record, as well. here's the latest on the system. this is the latest radar bringing you the

here's the weather channel's mike seidel. >> mother nature showed it's not over till it's over. in chicago strong winds and slushy snow made for slick roads and i ahmadening morning commute. >> there's been a lot of accidents. my area isn't plowed. >> the storm snarled air traffic krus the country. more than 200 flights canceled at o'hare, ruining weekend plans for joanna and her daughter katie. >> i wanted to see my brother and dad. >> reporter: this is only chicago's third sizable snowstorm this season and dozens of schools were canceled. snow plows and snow blowers getting a rare winter workout. after dumping more than nine inches it of snow in colorado and the dakotas, the storm system swept across the midwest into the great lakes. that many same system causing severe weather across the south. hail in georgia, and in alabama, high winds ripped the roof off of a school with 62 children inside. luckily, no one was seriously injured. in many connecticut, temperatures thursday approached 60 degrees. friday, there was as much as five inches of snow on the ground. it fell heavy an

the question this morning, how does that affect holiday travel, especially air travel and also by road. we'll be getting to that, we've got two reports, one from al in colorado and also mike seidel is in kansas that's also hard hit, so their report is coming up. >> not a good time for it at all. >>> on a lighter note -- certainly if you plan on throwing back a few drinks, that's what it said, or sipping -- whatever your thing is, we know that the liquid calories can certainly add up. we'll tell you which drinks are best for your waistline and we'll have some great healthy alternatives for your main holiday meal that will still satisfy your guests. joy bauer is back to answer your throwback questions. and diet s.o.s. questions. >> you do that so well. >> you have no idea, carl quintanilla. >> sorry, mom. >>> also back today, jill martin with some holiday steals and deals. what have we got, some good offers on restaurant meals, faux furs. >> that's very big right now. >> hair care items up to 94% off. if you can believe that, and that's just for "today" viewers. >>> also let's get a chec

london. >> we'll start with the mike seidel. good morning to you. >> reporter: here this morning up in minneapolis, at the university of minnesota campus, this is where they'll play that game tonight. the bears battling it out with the minnesota vikings. just one of many places around the world being crushed by weather. weather hit california hard, days of downpours in the hollywood hills caused flash flooding and fear of mudslides. it may be the wettest weather system the region has seen in more than a decade. and it's not over yet. heavier rain is on the way. >> they say it's going to go on for days and days. >> reporter: the weather has been kinder to california ski resorts. they're expecting as much as 12 feet of snow. and the midwest is bracing for more snow, even as the somehowdown between the chicago bears and the minnesota vikings takes place tonight. the game will now be played at the university of minnesota after last week's blizzard damaged the metrodome. across europe, freezing temperatures and snow caused travel cha

. >> just ahead, we'll hear from mike seidel in ft. pierce, florida, and an update on power outages as this special edition of etdette continues. i'm here in bristol, virginia. and now...i'm in bristol, tennessee. on this side of the road is virginia... and on this side it's tennessee. no matter which state in the country you live in, you could save hundreds on car insurance by switching to geico. look, i'm in virginia... i'm in tennessee... virginia... tennessee... and now i'm in virginessee. see how much you could save on car insurance. or am i in tennaginia? hmmm... because friends and family like myouay take an extra 20 percent off. that's on top of already low sale prices storewide which makes fleece for him only $14.39 and for her just $9.59 everyone gets kohl's cash too! now that's the good stuff. kohl's. yo...don't let sinus symptomsnd bring you down now.. get fast sinus relief with vicks sinex and get back in the game. sinex, the congestion, pressure, pain to clear your head... ...medicine. no, no, no, no, [music] people are b

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the weather channel's mike seidel is in oklahoma city. mike, good morning again. >> good morning, erica. here in oklahoma city that cold front blew through yesterday afternoon and knocked the temperature from the mid-60s down to the mid-0s in just two hours. this morning we're at 33 with a cold driving rain and winds out of north gusting 25 to 30 miles per hour. this storm dropped snow earlier in the week across parts of northwest and northern california, as much as 20 inches in the ski resorts of northern california and then yesterday it was rain, freezing rain and snow and across the plains. in kansas city they got the holiday celebration in and it was the wettest thanksgiving on record. temperatures in the upper 30s and nearly two inches of rain and heavy rain hit the dallas-fort worth area and a deputy in tarrant county was swept away trying to rescue a strand driver. he himself was later rescued and is now in the hospital. dallas has had over 4 inches of rain, and it's now their wettest year on record. if you're traveling today in th

at least 18 deaths are blamed on icy roads. weather channel meteorologist mike seidel is in maple grove, minnesota. mike, what's going on there? >> reporter: well, as you can see, it's a white christmas. it's snowing here. we've had about ten inches so far, jenna. another five to eight on the way today, but the city has been shut down, oklahoma city, take you there yesterday, an all-time snowstorm record of 14.1 inches. look at this. people just stuck. they had to just leave their cars and hike to safety. cars band bandoned everywhere. the city is shut down. the snow accompanied by 60-mile-an-hour wind gusts. this morning, dallas waking up to three inches of snow. meanwhile, jenna, back through the plains, more blizzard warnings and snow that will not wrap up until some time tomorrow afternoon. back to you. >> mike seidel, mike, thank you. >>> with a five-year custody fight behind him, american david goldman said he's anxious just to rekindle his relationship with his son 9-year-old sean. they are back in the u.s. from rio de j

two major interstates shut down, thousands evacuated, many roads closed, washed out bridges also washing out. meanwhile today, ann, the tornado threat goes away and the sun is back out most of the week here in nashville. >> thanks so much, mike seidel, this morning for your reporting. >>> two big airlines are merging, united and continental, in a deal to create the world's biggest airline. tom costello joins us from washington with more. what does it mean for the companies and the customers? >> reporter: experts have been arguing for years there are too many airlines, all struggling to eek out a profit and the only way for them to survive is for them to combine. the new name will be united based in chicago, offering the biggest frequent flyer program. for passengers, it will mean they'll be able to fly on one single airline across the u.s., into asia, south america and europe, but will regulators allow the deal to go through? analysts believe continental and united overlap on 13 nonstop routes and leaves the u.s. with just three big international airlines. that could mean higher ticket p

you can see an official standing with that vest in the middle of the road. this storm is headed to washington, d.c. in just a few hours. weather channel meteorologist mike seidel tells us what's expected there this weekend. >> here in the washington baltimore area, the blizzard kicks in at 3:00 this afternoon, snow should start falling at the capital shortly after lunchtime then it will get heavier and the wind will ramp up later tonight on through saturday, that's the blizzard warning. winds could gust 40 to 45 miles an hour, even higher in the coast. the beaches of maryland, delaware and new jersey will have major issues including beach erosion and moderate to major coastal flooding. federal offices shut down at noon, city employees go home early, most every school in the area is closed today ahead of the blizzard of 2016. the record snowfall in one storm in washington is 28 inches. probably won't get that officially at reagan national airport but we're looking at 18 to 24 inches. as far as flying out, forget about it, between bwi, reagan national and dull

and that is because it's closed between the state park road all the way to seidel. what's going on are road repairs in the area. i-75 looks good. no delays there. and construction on eastbound university at i-75, some lane closures. palmetto looks good. manatee county, southern apex to state road 70, eight minutes. and up through sarasota, that's a look at weather and traffic on the 8s. back to gene and gayle. >> all right. thank you, leslee. >>> a sneak peek behind the scenes of sunday night football's new theme song. >>> and what we're spending our money on. a new survey that reveals what americans are saving for. it's 4:20. you're watching news channel 8 >>> a look at what people will spd next five years. no surprise here, technology. according to an intelligence firm, sales of things like smart phones and watches and smart tvs are expected to skyrocket. by 2021, people will spend about $45 million on high-tech gadgets you can wear. >>> and another sign of our penchant for technology, a time we spend online. smart phone & eclipse all other digital media platforms

a big closure on state road 72 from the state park road over to seidel road. completely blocked. repair that's being done. so you can come up seidel, take to fruitville or take 75. quick live look. here's 275 at kennedy, traffic looks great in tampa on the >>> talk about low. a discuss abled veteran beaten and robbed outsided a local walmart. >> got on top of me and grabbed me around the neck and starting hitting and >> the key piece of evidence police hope will track down the thug. >>> dozens of guns stolen from a bay area store and out on the streets. where the investigation stands and why investigators believe the thieves are now amateurs. >>> plus, another milestone in the changing relationship between the u.s. and cuba. what is taking flight from south florida making it easier to visit the island. >>> good morning. welcome to news channel 8 today. i'm gene ramirez. >> and i'm gayle guyardo.

between state park road over to seidel road. that's through the park area. and you can jump up seidel, clay gully over the fruitville. or state road 70 or 75 to the south. that's a look at weather and traffic. and now back to gene and gayle. >> thank you, leslee. police need your help finding the person who beat up a disabled war veteran last friday. this happened in broad daylight in front of a busy store. jamel lanee' is live from st. petersburg. jamel, a disturbing story. >> reporter: a very disturbing story, gene. good morning. and police say the person who did this is still out there. now it happened right here in front of this walmart on 34th hardman says he was attacked in front of the store. he says he was in the parking lot on his way into the store when the suspect stopped him and asked him for the time. he told him it was 1:00 and that's when he says he was attacked. >> got on top of me and he grabbed me around the neck and started hitting and hitting and hitting. and finally gets me to the ground and he takes my walk

>>> out here between sarasota and arcadia, flight the middle, seidel road. and quick live look again at traffic in downtown. more vehicles but great speeds >>> breaking news overnight, a death investigation in a quiet brandon neighborhood. we are live the scene. >>> along the courtney campbell causeway. >>> plus, tracking the tropics. tropical storm julia is causing problems on the northeast coast of florida. will it have an impact here? leigh spann tells us what to expect. >>> thank you for joining us here on news channel 8 today. i'm gene ramirez. >> and i'm gayle guyardo. let's get you out the door with the tropics. >> yeah, you think tropical storm julia, what are you talking senate well, it formed at about 11:00 last night. it was an area of low pressure we were tracking yesterday.

now we also have a collision seidel road at state road 72 in sarasota county. and now moving over and looking here, remember eastbound ridge road still blocked just past airway boulevard due a fatal crash. antr college to get around that. back to gene and gayle. >>> breaking news now in brandon where detectives are investigating a death in a quiet neighborhood. >> they're trying to figure out how a person at a home died. news channel 8's ryan hughes is live from the scene. ryan, what's the latest? >> reporter: gene and gayle, good morning to you once again. investigators have been here onscene for roughly the past six hours. we're on east camille avenue here in the brandon area. the home. you see a number of investigators gathered there at the entry way of the home. they have been coming and going from the home all morning long, taking picture, using flashlights to poke around inside and and outside. let's go to video right now of the scene. someone called 911 from either this home or the neighborhood around 12:15 this morning. they reported that a dead person

in fact, from state park road to seidel. it 275 at kennedy, looks great. no delays across the howard frankland bridge. back to gene and gayle. >> all right. thank you so much, leslee. >>> a sneak peek behind the scenes of sunday night's football's new theme song. >> it will catch your eye for sure. that story still ahead. >>> and what we are spending our money on. a survey that reveals what americans are saving for. it's 5:20. >>> we're back. a look at what people will spend their money on in the next five years no. surprise here, technology. sales-- years, no surprise here, technology. sales will skyrocket. in fact, experts believe by 2021, people will spend about $45 million on high-tech gadgets you can wear. >>> and this morning we are getting a look at what we can expect from nbc this football about the gridiron match-ups. rather the puss cal open to sunday night foot -- the musical open to sunday night football. ? nbc sunday night about to happen ? >> carrie underwood. she is hot. singing the open set to her 2014 hit "something bad." you will hear the

on this side of the road is virginia... and on this side it's tennessee. no matter which state in the country you live in, you could save hundreds on car insurance by switching to geico. look, i'm in virginia... i'm in tennessee... ee. see how much you could save on car insurance. or am i in tennaginia? hmmm... get to kohl's thursday through monday because friends and family like you take an extra 20 percent off. that's on top of already low sale prices storewide everyone gets kohl's cash too! now that's the good stuff. kohl's. you bought a wig, a jersey, and overpriced nachos... sinex, the congestion, pressure, pain to clear your head... ...medicine. [music] no, no, no, no, people are both soft and strong... yey! which is why our products are too. angel soft. >> i'm meteorologist mike seidel, hurricane matthew making its track off the east coast of florida, heading north in line, daytona beach, jackson victim, also the georgia and south saturday. we have already seen wind gusts here over 7 miles per hour and over 1,500 customers without power. it will be

he admitted he shot and killed his wife after ramming her car off the road last year. their 7-year-old daughter was in the front seat. he will be sentenced in august. >>> governor chris christie faces criticism over how he spent federal money after superstorm sandy. the state received $11 million for lead screenings for more than 200,000 people. u.s. representative says the state only tested 14,000. christie's office said fewer people were tested because the state expanded medicaid which covers lead testing. getting the word out about free lead testing. they plan to encourage more people to participate in water sampling. letters will be sent to 135,000 homes and businesses to explain the program. >>> iran is blamed for a cyberattack in westchester county. in 2013, hackers infiltrated the control system at a dam. last year an iranian group took credit. investigators say iran did carry out the hack. >>> a fuel leak in brooklyn is contained now. people started smelling a strong odor yesterday. firefighters turned valves off and plugged the leak. >>> the towers in harlem g

europe not ju in ndon. >> we'll start with the mike seidel. goodorning to you. >> reporter:ere ts morning up in minneapolis, at the university of minneso campus, the brs wil battle it without withhe minnesota vikings. ju one of my places aroun the world being crushed by weather. weather hi califora hard, ys of downpours in the hollywood hills caused flash floodi and fear ofmudslides. it m be the wettest weather system the region has seen in more than a decade. but it's not over yet. they say it' going to go on for days anddays. reporter: t weather has been kinder to california ski resorts and the mwest is bracing for more snow. the game wilow be playe at theniversity of minnesota after last week'slizzard damaged the metrode. across europe, freezg temperatures an snow caud travel chaoslondon was blanted by snow overhe weekendorcing heathrow airport to shu down. roads across europe have been paralyzed blizzards. many motorists were trapped in their vehiclesor hours and carsere abandoned in german anitaly. northern ireland h seen thr first snowfa

the weather channel's mike seidel is live in leesburg. mike, it looks pretty slick out there already. >> reporter: actually, the roads are in good shape right now because they have salted these roadways and it's just wet out here. enough to accumulate on the untreated surfaces like the sidewalks and also on the grass. we're looking fine right now. west of here, we've had several inches of snow, petersburg, west virginia, down 81. getting some photos. pretty pictures there. two or so inches there as it comes across the blue ridge. snow, later this afternoon, sleet and ice tonight. as it is the case typically, it will stay colder out here in the suburbs versus inside the beltway where it's about 30 right now. at reagan national. 27 at dulles. at some point after sunrise we'll warm up above freezing. that's usually the threshold for seeing tree limbs snap and taking out your power. saving fwras here is that we won't have a lot of wind. when you combine ice and wind that's a massive issue with power going out for days and days, as we've seen

weather channel meteorologist mike seidel is in wisconsin for us this morning where it is snowing right now. he's live in green bay. mike, what are you seeing there? >> reporter: good morning. light snow here this green bay. we're just down the street from lambeau, we're on lombardi avenue. we have about 4 inches on the ground. it's been snowing light to moderate overnight. we're not going to get the amounts we had earlier expected. i think denver stole the show yesterday. some of the foothills had as much as 31 inches and they canceled over 80% of the tlis at dia not only because of trying to get in and out of the airport, but they had power outages so that will put a crunch crimp on deicing. there is still a blizzard warning until 1:00, but we're not gusting with the wind. this will wrap up later on today. the entire system is moving east. the cold front will spark severe weather. we have the net of tornados in the deep south including alabama and the southeast. and those showers and storms heading in toward d.c. in the coming days. aaron, back to you from snowy green bay whereby the