On the ice tonight twin sisters both in pursuit of their own definition of gold. Nightly news begins now. Good evening. It is deadly. It is cripple ing. It is historic. Tonight parts of the east coast are paralyzed by a deaths. Its been felt in 16 states and it has dumped a lot more snow predicted including washington, d. C. And new york city. The south over three feet reported in parts of maryland and west virginia. Heres what it looks like tonight on radar. Beyond the snow, the blizzard has brought Hurricane Force winds surge to coastal areas ry recovered from Superstorm Sandy. More than 8,000 nights have been cancelled. Tonight we have extensive coverage of blizzard twiblgt blizzard 2016. We begin in hard hit reporter good evening. Whiteout much of the day here in washington, d. C. This is our 30th straight hour of snow. On a typical day you would usually be able to see the National Capital behind me. Certainly today thats not going to happen. Here into the Nations Capital we have had two feet of snow. This city tonight in the bullseye and were not alone. This is what they feared and so much more. Historic snow, crippling ice, severe flooding bringing much of the east coast to its knees. Tonight the roads are 16 killed across the region. Most in car accidents. In kentucky 3,000 cars stranded. Some for 13 hours on i75. No food, water, bathroom facilities. Reporter with hundreds of thousands in the dark, ice is snapping power lines. Many more in this deep freeze will lose heat and electricity. A convoy of help pouring in from outside state. To restore power and to restore hope whether thats for here at home or for our neighbors. Reporter with more than 8,000 flights cancelled in two days, you can see this monster storm from space sprawling 800 miles long from tennessee to massachusetts. Few have been spared in its path. Wall to wall coverage in what some call the storm of a generation. Broadway shows inches in central park. Its a winter wonderland. Reporter even the governor helping to pull stranded cars off the road. Between the snowfall and the wind, it is really a treacherous, treacherous situation. Reporter the coast is being pounded too. A surging tide, 70 mile an hour winds, trigging flooding along the jersey coast. First Superstorm Sandy, now this. Parts of virginia hit with three feet and counting. After 17 years behind a plow, he thought he had seen it all. When you go through a neighborhood, you see everybody outside clapping. Theyre happy to see us. Reporter tonight the white house is just that, white, surrounded by 18 inches of snow. Skiers took to the national mall. Scrambling to help needed a hand themselves. Theres no point to be out. Stay home. Reporter tonight 33 million impacted by this massive storm, but even as many start to dig out, theyre still getting buried. With these whipping winds starting to pick up, we expect the snowfall here in the Nations Capital to continue until about midnight. Tonight they are asking everyone to shelter in place. The mayor says when it is all said and done all across this region we could have 850 million in damage. Jose, back to you. Thank you. Here in new york city its all pretty much shut down tonight. The streets mostly and bridges and tunnels are closed. We started the day in washington, d. C. Now on the streets of new york city tonight. Reporter hey. About four hours from washington, d. C. To new york city. In the blue mobile it took us eight hours. Heavy snowfall and snowcovered streets forced us to take it very slowly. We did not make it back to new york city because of that travel ban. They did allow us through the lincoln tunnel. We actually made it through in record time seeing as there was no other traffic going through the tunnel. We are now on sixth avenue in midtown manhattan and it is a virtual vehicle ghost town with police threatening to arrest people who do not heed that travel ban. It is very surreal being in new york city on saturday night with no traffic and no horn honking. There are so many people walking around, just taking in this storm. Weve seen folks on skis. Some on snowboards. Middle of the street taking pictures, something you can only do when the storm hits the area. They include the jersey shore where memories of Superstorm Sandy are still fresh. Reporter they knew the waves of water were coming, but no one expected this. Much of jerseys south shore woke up to flooded streets. Some waves reaching up to ten feet and winds getting up to 48 miles per hour, many without power. Its like getting sandblasted out here, particularly up around the ocean. Reporter water rushed through neighborhoods. Areas hard hit three years ago by governor Chris Christie said residents were prepare prepared. Were so much better off now than we were three years ago. Reporter in Point Pleasant robin snyder and her daughter rode out the storm, still rebuilding from sandy. Hopefully we wont see any water. Reporter the jersey shore wildcats hockey team got in their workout today trading in their hockey sticks for shovels. Out here its a lot different with the ocean right here, the wind. Its brutal. Reporter tonight, there will be more of high tide and new jersey is bracing itself for the possibility of more fierce winds and even more coastal flooding. Jose . Lets remember the storm began in the south bringing death and misery there were stranded last night in frigid temperatures on one of highways. Reporter the backups stretched for more than 20 miles. Trucks and cars paralyzed on i75. We needed walmart closed. Walmart closed last night. Reporter tractortrailers unable to climb snowy hills blocked the highway, leaving hundreds trapped in their cars. They kept telling us a couple hours, a couple hours. A trucker said were night. Just taking cat naps. Making sure im still awake and still alive. Reporter Danny Gardner and her three kids started their trip in muncey, indiana. In their frigid car with nothing to drink until this morning. I was like my heart kind of jumped. I seen it moving. I was like, oh, god, i think its moving. Its moving. Its moving. Go, go, go. Reporter tonight her desperation is over. Traffic is moving and for so many drivers home never sounded so good. And then there are those who decided to abandon their vehicles just off the exits. It will take those drivers awhile to dig these snow drifts. Dozens of families spent the day at a nearby red cross shelter. Amazingly, there are no injuries. Some of the remain shut down tonight. Were at Laguardia Airport here in new york. Reporter take a look because this is not something youll see very often. Ghost town. Nobody here at the ticket counters. Just a few unfortunate passengers who are stranded here. We talked to one couple who couldnt get to a wedding tonight in chicago. They ended up getting a room for tonight in new york, but others say theyre sleeping here, including one woman who says shes staying until tuesday because thats when the airline says it can get her out. There have been more than 4400 cancellations nationwide and were already seeing more than 2500 for tomorrow. That, of course, has a Ripple Effect through the entire system. Were even seeing stranded passengers in places like miami and los angeles. The effects are worse than many people thought, so from the airlines tonight were hearing that operations wont resume in washington, d. C. Area until at least monday. Here in new york they are hoping to have limited Service Later on sunday afternoon, but its going to take several days, jose, to get everything back up and normal. So if you are flying idea to call ahead and check with your carrier. Lets go to al roker for the latest what we can expect for the rest of the week. Were talking about still some more snow at least until midnight hanging out. There is no relief. Tonight it is going to here. Some of the amounts we have gotten already, jfk, 26. Of snow. As we go through, this is what were looking for. By 11 00 tonight, should end in the washington and baltimore area. For philadelphia, 18 to 26 inch with the snow ending around new york city snow ending midnight, 1 00 a. M. This will start away. The snow will taper off after midnight. Well be left tomorrow sunshine and strong winds and blowing and drifting snow around. Are going to linger with its aftereffects well in next week. The political storms of the 2016 campaign were in full force today as a wild card emerged that had talking. The possibility of a third party run by another billionaire, Michael Bloomberg. Reporter it is yet another surprise, another billionaire may enter the 2016 today multiple sources tell nbc news former mayor Michael Bloomberg is seriously throwing his hat into the ring as an independent fed up with the state of the race. I think hed really like to do it. Reporter bloomberg would likely enter only if donald trump, ted cruz, or Bernie Sanders are destined to be their partys nominees. With the caucuses just nine days away, trump and cruz are on track running neck and neck trump today again raising eyebrows with yet another controversial comment. I could stand in the middle of fifth avenue and shoot somebody and i wouldnt lose any voters. Reporter the release of a new bush ad featuring his mother barbara. When push comes to shove, people are going to realize jeb has real solutions. Reporter trump mocking bush on twitter. Just watched jebs ad where he desperately needed mommy to help him. Im be careful donald. Reporter Trump Supporters standing firmly by his side. I think donald is always a bit shocking and i think thats something is that brings him a lot of support. Reporter the democratic race also hitting sanders on his medicare for all health care plan. My esteemed opponent senator sanders wants to start all over again. Reporter sanders sharpening his attack too. In poll after poll, we do better against donald trump than other republicans and hillary clinton. Reporter the register has a checkered history of picking the actual nominee, still it could give both candidates a boost. For more on the campaign, chucked to will be joined by donald trump, hillary clinton, and Bernie Sanders. After a deadly outbreak they represent blood cells. And if you have that may put you at five times greater risk of stroke they can pool together in the heart, forming a clot and travel where it can block blood but if you have afib thats not caused by a heart valve problem, pradaxa can help stop clots from forming. Pradaxa was even proven superior to warfarin at reducing the risk of stroke, in a Clinical Trial without the need for regular blood tests. And, in the rare event of an emergency, pradaxa is the only oral blood thinner other than warfarin with a specific reversal treatment to help your body clot normally again. Pradaxa is not for people who have had a heart valve replacement. Dont stop taking pradaxa without talking to your doctor. Stopping increases your risk of stroke or blood clots ask your doctor if you need to stop pradaxa before any planned medical or dental procedure. Pradaxa can cause serious, dont take pradaxa if you have abnormal bleeding. And seek immediate unexpected signs of bleeding, like unusual bruising. Pradaxa may increase your bleeding risk if youre 75 or older, have kidney problems, stomach ulcers, a bleeding condition, side effects with pradaxa can include indigestion, stomach pain, go with pradaxa, the only blood thinner that lowers your risk of stroke better than warfarin and has a specific reversal treatment. Talk to your doctor about pradaxa today. It takes a lot of work. To run this business. But i really love it. Im on the move all day long. And sometimes, i just dont eat the way i should. So i drink boost to get the nutrition that im missing. Boost complete nutritional drink has 26 essential vitamins and minerals, d to support strong bones and 10 grams of protein to help maintain muscle. All with a great taste. I dont plan on slowing down any time soon. Stay strong. Stay active with boost. Were back tonight with the latest on an outbreak of listeria that is linked to one death and has landed 11 other people in the hospital. Steve patterson reports tonight on how the company is responding. Reporter packaged salads found on store shelves across the country, some now linked to the deadly bacteria listeria. You could die . Of course, its scary. Reporter food manufacturer dole calling for the voluntary recall of states. It comes after the cdc says 12 people in six the company says theyre working with federal agencies to warn consumers, saying this suspension and withdrawal is being performed voluntarily by dole out of an abundance of caution. Tests by the Ohio Department of agriculture found the contamination started at this production springfield. A likely source of the outbreak in the dole plant is listeria that were brought in on the lettuce plants that were harvested. Reporter dole says salads beginning with the product code letter a are affected. Some were made for specific supermarkets including walmart, aldi, and fresh selections sold at kroger. If you have the lettuce, you should definitely throw it away. Reporter representatives from dole says it was just springfield, ohio, meaning no other facilities were affected and no other products are at risk. And when we come back, all this snow could be i built my business with passion. But i keep it growing by making every dollar count. Thats why i have the spark cash card from capital one. I earn unlimited 2 cash back on everything i buy for my studio. And that unlimited 2 cash back from spark means thousands of dollars each year going back into my business. Thats huge for my bottom line. When a moment spontaneously turns romantic, why pause to take a pill . And why stop what you re doing to find a bathroom . Pcialis for daily use, is the only daily tablet approved to treat erectile dysfunction so you can be Ready Anytime the moment is right. Plus cialis treats the frustrating urinary symptoms of bph, like needing to gop frequently, day or night. 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Easy to see why. Tonight in minnesota another slice of winter. A new womens champion figure skater will be crowned. Theres an unusual matchup in the making. Twin sisters competing against each other on the ice. Reporter an o olympian and former national champion. Every day in training you dream Something Like this might happen to you. Reporter but when she sate kates for this national title, she wont be the only golden girl on the ice. Her twin sister, carly, also qualified for the championship. Have the nerved ramped up yet . Im going in expectations because i just feel lucky to be here. Reporter carly is skating later than gracie. Both 20yearolds have trained in california under famous coach frank carol. Now for the first time competitor. Gracie and carly in this competition will be out for different things. Gracie is really challenging for the title. Carly is sort of happy to be here. Its such a coincidence for actually happen. Really cool. Reporter carly has been at the competition for years biggest fan. By skating the Short Program thursday was spotlight. Im just trying to really take a lot of pictures just so i can remember every moment from this experience. Reporter as carly hopes for a strong finish, gracies in second place going skate. While skaters sometimes wont watch each other, gracie says not tonight. You get nervous and amped up, but not enough where i wouldnt watch her the whole time. Reporter sisters turned competitors in each pursuit of their own definitions of gold. Up next, to al roker for an update on the blizzard of 2016. cell phone rings where are you . Well the squirrels are back in the attic. Your dad wont call an exterminator. Can i call you back, mom . He says its personal this time. If youre a mom, you call at the worst time. If you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. R its what you do. Where are you . R its very loud there. 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Xeljanz is a small pill for adults with moderate to severe ra for whom methotrexate did not work well. Xeljanz can reduce joint pain and swelling in as little as two weeks, and help stop further ability to fight infections, serious, sometimes fatal infections, lymphoma, and other cancers have happened. Dont start xeljanz if you have an infection. Tears in the stomach or intestines, low blood cell counts, cholesterol levels have happened. Perform blood tests before you start and while taking xeljanz, and monitor certain liver tests. Tell your doctor if you were in a region where fungal infections are common, and if you have had tb, hepatitis b or c, or are prone to infections. R r the symptoms of ra, p even without methotrexate. T lets get one final check with al rocker on the cripple crippling blizzard in the northeast. We just have to hang on about six more hours, jose, and then at least the heavy snowfall will be just about done, but we have boston all the way down the washington a fairly snow. 26 in jfk. All these cities are getting their average seasonal snowfall for the entire winter in this one storm, so we have really overperformed with this system. The good news is it tapers off after midnight. We have to deal with all the snow thats left behind, getting the mass transportations up and running, and getting homes. Good to see you. News for this thank you for the privilege of your time. In all of us here at nbc news, thanks for watching