Good evening. Urgent preparations are under way right now for a major snowstorm developing for the east coast later in week that forecasters say could be the biggest in a century in some cities. It will come on the heels of another storm impacting several states tonight. The next storm predicted to hit on friday, paralyzing travel and dropping doubledigit snowfall amounts in major cities including in new york, philadelphia and washington which is under a blizzard watch starting friday afternoon. Right now airlines are warning passengers of possible flight disruptions as we head toward the weekend. Al roker joins me in a minute with the detailed forecast. But first to nbcs Gabe Gutierrez on the winters double punch. Reporter today the midwest on the ice, interstates shut down and morning commutes snarled in louisville and nashville. The first one of the season. Reporter the fastmoving weather system known as a clipper turned deadly this morning in knox county, tennessee. One driver killed in treacherous road conditions. But the bigger storm is yet to come. 50 Million People in its path along the entire eastern seaboard. Tonight blizzard watches already issued for baltimore and washington, d. C. On friday. Some areas bracing for more than a foot of snow. We are preparing nonetheless for the worst case scenario. Reporter it had been a mild winter. Snowfalls in albany, boston, new york and washington all well below average. A far cry from last years brutal january. But tonight the rush is on for supplies from d. C. To new york, where some store shelves are already empty. Food, toilet paper. Chips for my kids. Reporter airlines are warning travelers this weekend will be a mess. Some carriers anticipating major disruptions are waiving change fees. Greyhound has canceled several bus routes to and from the northeast. A mild weather no more. Here in kentucky, many folks are hunkering down after getting just a small taste of what is expected further east. Here in kentucky, many schools were closed today. Others could be tomorrow. And again, they are expecting that second wave of the winter blast thursday night into friday. Lester. Gabe. Al roker is here with us now tracking the storm. Al, how bad is this going to be . Some folks could be looking at three feet of snow, lester. We have winter storm advisories and blizzard watches from arkansas up to new jersey. The blizzard watch in effect right now, washington and baltimore area. First time theyve had that since 1993. Were watching this storm system get together. On friday we have snow from memphis to d. C. And we have a threat of Severe Weather down through the southeast, including florida. Cant rule out a tornado with this. Friday night, this really gets going. Moving into new jersey and into nashville, roanoke. Looking for the coastal low to continue to intensify. Tomorrow, on saturday, snow from new york city into boston. It will continue to intensify, bringing winds of up to 60 miles per hour. And with a full moon there is a risk of high tide flooding as well. Here is what were looking for as far as snowfall. New york city 8 to 12. Maybe a little bit more around philadelphia. But the washington, d. C. Area, lester, were talking 12 to 24 inches of snow. Parts of virginia could see three feet. Well see you with more tomorrow on today. Turning to politics. 12 days to iowa and 12 months until the inauguration of a new president. Candidates hitting each other hard and sarah palin hit the trail with donald trump today, raising eyebrows with what she said about her sons Domestic Violence arrest, ptsd and the president. We have both sides covered, starting with nbcs kerry sanders. Reporter today it was a duet. There is an assault on christianity and an assault on guns. There is an assault on everything. Reporter donald trump and sarah palin. Thank you so much, oklahoma. Reporter the former Vice President ial candidate saying donald trump will give the u. S. Military what they now lack. Let them do their job and go kick isis ass. Reporter that military theme turned personal for palin today. The enthusiastic crowd of 10,000 in tulsa fell silent as palin explained her oldest son track, an iraq war veteran, was arrested monday in alaska and charged with Domestic Violence against his girlfriend. But my son, like so many others, they come back a bit different. They come back hardened. The question, though, that comes from our own president , where they have to look at him and wonder, do you know what we go through . Reporter with the stop today here at Oral Roberts University and at liberty university. We are going to protect christianity. Reporter trump is focused on the evangelical vote hoping to peel away ted cruz supporters in iowa. But some evangelical leaders are skeptical. Most people understand that donald trump thrice married casino magnate who asks nothing to which to ask for forgiveness is not a religious man. Reporter palin may anoint him with some evangelicals, but she is not universally loved by trump supporters. I never liked her. I dont like her. Does the endorsement help or hurt trump in your view . To the people i talked to, i think it hurts. Reporter kerry sanders. Nbc news, tulsa. Im Kristen Welker in New Hampshire. Feeling the burn. Hillary clinton surrogates ramping up attacks, painting senator Bernie Sanders an unelectable socialist. I think it would be absolutely impossible for a selfdeclared socialist to win in a state like missouri. But former president bill clinton in New Hampshire today steering clear of the sword. Borrowing from the 2008 clinton playbook saying sanders is unelectable and just cant win. The real issue is who can win the election, who is prepared to do the job, who could make real change. Reporter could the socialist line of attack backfire. A lot of those voters are capable of looking past the socialist label. Reporter Hillary Clinton taking her own shot at sanders today in an interview. In some of the comments that senator sanders has been making there is room for disagreement and even concern. Reporter the current gop game plan, build up sanders. The Republican National committee tweeting during last weekends democratic debate, i feel the burn. They are trying to prop up Bernie Sanders and they would rather run against him. Reporter the Clinton Campaign getting jittery with polls slipping. A dead heat in iowa. Sanders in the lead in New Hampshire. Today the campaign downplaying any nervousness to andrea mitchell. We have a candidate who is leading throughout the country. She is leading in all of the super tuesday states by significant margins. Reporter the big question for sanders, could he turn support among young firsttime voters and independents into victory in the early voting state. And sanders will try to build on that before kicking off a twoday Campaign Swing through New Hampshire tomorrow. Meanwhile the rnc is downplaying suggestions they are trying to influence the democratic primary, write in part tonight, quote, do we want to rub against sanders. Sure. But well gladly take clinton any day of the week. Lester. Thank you. Another wild day on wall street. Stocks plunging over 500 points before gaining back some of the ground lost. The dow finishing down 249 points as the price of Oil Continues to tank. While that is good news at the gas pump, it is bad news for a major sector of the u. S. Economy. Where businesses are hurting. Nbcs Olivia Sterns has the latest. Reporter tonight the markets continue their slide, plunging more than 500 points on a volatile day of trading. The dow and nasdaq both touching the lowest points since august. It was a good deal of anxiety throughout the morning. Reporter what is behind the drop . For one the China Economy is slowing and nobody is quite sure exactly by how much. Also driving the selloff, concerns over the price of oil. A sign of Economic Growth around the world. The price has plummeted, down nearly 80 in the past two years. Today closing below 27 a barrel. There is a lot of Oil Everywhere on the planet. The saudis are producing a lot and we are producing a lot and we have the Iranian Oil Coming online. So there are more price declines to come. The impact on the u. S. Economy is mixed. The price of a gallon of gas, the nationwide average is half of the price of a gallon of milk. Americans are also saving on heating oil and airline sales. But on the flip side, more than 250,000 people lost energyrelated jobs last year. And for many, there is less money in the bank. Since last november, the average american has lost about 9,500 in his or her 401 k . Even so, experts say dont panic. You have to look at your fundamentals and your plan. There is a huge opportunity here in some great, Great American companies to own. Reporter and lester, buckle up. Experts say volatility is back. So we could get used to seeing the big swings in the market like we saw today. At least until the price of oil starts to stabilize. Lester. Thank you. And a Late Development in the story weve been following here. Michigan Governor Rick Snyder has released his emails related to the toxic water crisis in flint, a day after he apologized and vowed to fix it. He faces calls to resign as the people of flint suffer with the uncertainty of when clean water will flow from their taps again. Kevin tibbles has more. Reporter late today, the michigan governor, after angry protests over his handling of the flint water crisis, released more than 200 pages of emails in an attempt to show what he knew and when he knew it. You deserve better. You deserve accountability. You deserve to know that the buck stops here with me. Reporter the governors top aide wrote to him last september, several months after tests first revealed lead, saying the responsibility for the water crisis lies with the city and the county. But said the state should speak up to avoid the narrative that the state is ducking responsibility. The governor said he acted when he knew. And was legally permitted to do so. Tonight the state house approved his request for 28 million to help pay for Emergency Water supplies and lead testing in the schools. Too little, too late, said this mother of three. Sorry is not going to bring us freshwater every day. Reporter she said it is like living in the third world with no clean water. Brush my teeth, wash my face, i got to cook breakfast, lunch and dinner and make koolaid twice a day. Reporter she said her doctors told her her twoyearold has developed a rash from washing with tap water. Are you worried about their future . Yeah. I dont want my kids to have mental or anger problems or none of that. But when the water might be safe again is an unknown. Even the flint mayor today couldnt offer much hope to weary residents. We dont know when well have clean water again and that is why this is such a tragedy. Reporter donated water is arriving from across the country. Today singer cher who was raised in nearby detroit partnered with a Water Company to donate 35,000 bottles. Reporter arianna says its her children who redoifb the real apology. What the emails also show is that the governor took a much more proactive role in this after september 30th of last year. Even at one point asking his staff to check out Health Status of two Young Children found with elevated levels of lead in their blood. Lester. Kevin, thank you. 20 people were killed when a gunman stormed a university in northwest pakistan. There are conflicting claims about whether the Pakistani Taliban are responsible. There were four of the attackers. They were all killed as the military closed in. Police say they were all wearing explosive vests but only one managed to detonate. Now to more from our rare access inside iran where the lifting of Nuclear Sanctions have quickly set in motion big economic changes. But changing the culture of mistrust is a much different story. As our chief Foreign CorrespondentRichard Engel explains from tehran, many in iran continue to view america as the enemy. Reporter the nuclear deal lifted sanctions and expectations, too. But to those who think washington and tehran have completely turned the page, not so fast. Only hours after the deal was implemented, washington imposed new sanctions on the iran defense sector. A response to an Iranian Missile test. And today this statement from the ayatollah, irans Supreme Leader, praising the detention of american sailors. In another letter, he also warned his government to guard against deception and breaches of promises by arrogant governments, in particular, america. Irans foreign minister, the man who negotiated the deal with secretary of state john kerry, echoed his leader today in switzerland. I think they should learn that they cannot impose their views on others through sanctions and pressure. Reporter on the streets of tehran, the writing is on the wall. This recentlyhung billboard evoked the iconic image of iwo jima. But the u. S. Marines are shown standing on a pile of dead muslims. A clear message to everyone here that america remains very much an enemy. The Supreme Leader instructed iran politicians to be vigilant and watch for any cheating on the deal. And if they see it, to call the whole thing off. Richard engel, nbc news, tehran. Still ahead tonight, more about the virus striking fear in pregnant women. Tonight we answer some of the urgent questions you may have about where women could travel, and risks to their unborn babies and what to do if they are showing symptoms. Jamie foxx embraced a man after saving his son in a reallife action scene. The centers for Disease Control is urging doctors nationwide to closely monitor patients that may have recently traveled to the caribbean or latin america. Areas where the zika virus is spreading unchecked, putting unborn children at risk. There are several cases reported now in the u. S. We have details from nbcs tom costello. Reporter the cdc health alert to doctors, be on the lookout for signs of the zika virus in pregnant women who returned from countries or territories that Health Agencies are urging women who are pregnant who are hoping to become pregnant to avoid. Tara pierce is 34 years old and pregnant. Even though she loves traveling with her husband, she is now staying put in new york. I would definitely not be looking to travel to any of the affected areas because i dont want to put the baby at risk. Reporter researchers believe the zika virus could cause microencephaly, abnormally small heads and brains. But it is not clear during which trimester they are most at risk. In new york, this doctor is telling patients to stay away from the region. But if they cant, cover up and wear mosquito repellant. The deet spray is safe for women in pregnancy, so were telling them to use the deet and stay inside and travel outside to a minimum. So far the cdc is aware of just 12 adults who have returned with the virus over the past year. Including two pregnant women in illinois and one in hawaii. Now they are urging doctors to test for the virus and are closely monitoring women who return from zika hot zones. The good news is the virus brings mild symptoms. Once you had it, you should not get it again. You are immune. And if you decide to get pregnant years in the future, there is absolutely no cause for concern. Reporter but with the brazil carnival and the Olympic Games coming, the fear is it could spread with the mosquitos and victims arriving at u. S. Airports. Tom costello, nbc news, washington. When we come back, the solar system may be more crowded than we thought. The exciting discovery astronomers think they made. Astronomers think they may have discovered a new planet in our solar system. It is believed to be up to ten times bigger than earth and as far as 100 billion miles away. Way past pluto, which lost status as a planet in 2006. And for the first time in a decade you could see mercury, venus, mars, saturn and jupiter, all with the naked eye, all five aligned in the predawn sky from now until february 20th. It is official, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association announcing today 2015 was the hottest year since Record Keeping began in 1880. Ten months had record high temperatures. The record warmth was broadly spread around the world with 15 of the 16 warmest years on record occurring since 2001. When we come back, why one father is so grateful to jamie foxx, after the actor proved he is also a hero off screen. Headaches, and not just on the ground. Why bay area pilots are concerned about gridlock in the sky. Janelle vo plus, the woman killed in the Greyhound Bus crash. The surprising action her family had to take to get answers. Next close next. Janelle take vo right now at six. Finally tonight, usually when actor jamie foxx leaps into action, there is a director on hand to yell cut. But now the star is being hailed as a reallife hero for saving a man trapped inside of a burning car outside of his los angeles home. Morgan radford has the details. Reporter a pickup truck slams into a ditch and flips several times. Someone is trapped . Reporter frantic calls for help and an unlikely hero. I dont look at it as heroic, i just look at it like i just had to do something. Reporter something that made all of the difference. I hate to say it, but a couple of cars drove by and didnt stop. He was here for my son, and he saved his life. I get here and the truck is over on its side and in flames. Reporter 32yearold brett kyle trapped. I had the seat belt wrapped around my body and my neck and couldnt get out. Reporter foxx and another bystander cut him free as the flames drew closer. As we pulled him out, five seconds later the truck goes up. I said you got angels around you. Reporter and beside him. I think we all hope that we could do something when the time is there. But the question is, is do we . Reporter speaking from the hospital, the victim in shock. Just the fact that one human being willing to help another one means a lot to me. Just the idea that someone would do that is so much more than i could fathom. So i just it is all tears of joy. Reporter and gratitude. Come by any time. Reporter morgan radford, nbc news, los angeles. And that will do it for us on this wednesday night. Im lester holt. For all of us at nbc news, thank you for watching and good night. Right now at 6 00, emotional moments. Family and friends huddle on a bluff overlooking the ocean. They are remembering two College Students who are believed to be lost at sea. Thanks for joining us. Hope is fading tonight. The coast guard called off the search for those two students who were swept out to sea. The winds and waves too strong for search crews to go out. Here is a look at the coast. A common sight during our el nino winter. Rough seas out there. Rob is tracking another storm thats bringing a round of dangerous surf. We start with robert near santa cruz. Robert. Reporter the family and friends had gathered here for this vigil are dealing with mixed feelings. They are saying goodbye. Yet they havent given up hope. They would like the search to continue. We urge and we ask from all of you to pray. Reporter a 19yearold and 25yearold were on a trip with College Friends monday when they were swept out by the huge waves. A third friend managed to get back on the rock. Todays vigil was to remember and honor the outstanding students who were members of the schools Muslim Student association. Im