some areas of california could see two inches an hour today. but some of the most dramatic damage is happening in northwest arizona. the power of rising floodwaters. six-straight days of rain were too much for these arizona homes. the water tearing apart the ground beneath. until this -- four, new homes were swept away here. so new, residents had yet to move in. in california overnight, the threat of mudslides forced sheriff's deputies to evacuate more than 200 homes in the l.a. foothills. >> we expect a major storm, wednesday morning into wednesday noon, the likes of which, i've heard, we haven't seen for ten years. >> reporter: today's rain, expected to be the worst yet, keeping rescue crews busy. near san diego, three undocumented workers were rescued after being trapped by high water. near riverside, three dozen horses were saved from four feet of rising water. elsewhere, storm drains overflowed into homes. >> everything got wet. >> reporter: this morning, the flood warnings were also in effect in parts of nevada, arizona and utah. a western storm that could cause trouble across the country. >> as we look towards the rest of the nation, this could be bringing some wintry weather across the plains. as we look into thursday and the big travel day on friday, could have some icy weather, south of chicago. >> reporter: the bright spot of all this, western snow pack. the water supply for millions and also, a winter playground. >> we're going to make snow angels, snow men and snow forts. >> reporter: still, little comfort for the loss already inflicted by this storm that will get worse before the sun comes out tomorrow. that sun, of course, can't come soon enough. we just checked the latest totals. one area east of l.a., has seen the most rainfall, almost two feet. and in the central sierras, the highest snowfall total, 17 feet. now, ava dinges has more on what's in store for today. good morning, ava. >> good morning, rob and vinita. heavy rain still bothering much of california, with additional concerns of mudslides and even flooding. some areas have seen a foot of rain over the last couple days. that's the case of san bernadino. and that's almost as much as they get in an entire year, as far as rain goes. this storm will be ending in california overnight and heading into the plains, as we look into thursday. by christmas eve, this could be causing problems along interstate 80. and that's bad news for some holiday travelers. back to you, rob and vinita. >> ava, thanks a lot. one other weather note this morning, this one from overseas. thousands of travelers are still stranded across europe, mostly because of lingering problems at london's heathrow airport. officials there say regular operations will not resume until tomorrow. all the delays and cancellations there, the result of just five inches of snow, which fell on saturday. this morning, president obama signs a repeal of the military's don't ask, don't tell policy. since 1993, it has banned gays and lesbians from serving openly. dealing with the controversial law is just one, major issue that the lame duck congress has been dealing with. with more on the others, we're joined this morning by mike marusarz. good morning, mike. >> reporter: good morning, vinita. the president wanted to push through an aggressive agenda. and so far, it appears to be working. since enduring a self-noted midterm shellacking, president obama is seeing success. today, lawmakers are poised to ratify a new nuclear arms treaty with russia, one of the president's top priorities. >> every minute we drag our feet, is a minute we don't have inspectors on the ground. >> reporter: in addition to mandating inspections, the treaty could cut the number of warheads, long-range missile launchers and heavy bombers. but republicans are concerned it would also jeopardize u.s. plans for developing missile defense in europe. >> they went into negotiations, it seems to me, with the attitude, with the russians, just like the guy that goes into the car dealership and says, i'm not leaving here until i buy a car. >> reporter: despite objections, democrats believe they have the votes. another score for the president, who in just the past few weeks, has seen his tax cut compromise package passed and repealed don't ask, don't tell. he's expected to sign that into law today. as the president leans to the middle, he appears to be gaining traction. >> the door's open a crack now. and everyone's leaving washington, perhaps with a better set of the other side, than we saw the past two years. that's awfully good. but he has to make the first move. >> reporter: the new year will likely bring chances for compromise on issues such as education reform, spending and even government transparency. but critics are pounding the president on his lack of public real support, to champion the passage of the 9/11 first responders bill. a vote on that is expected, after the s.t.a.r.t. treaty. mike marusarz, abc news. vinita? >> mike marusarz, reporting this morning. thank you. meanwhile, a massive, new spending bill has been passed that will keep the federal government funded until early march. the house passed the final measure last night, despite the fact that 77 members didn't bother to vote. it was necessary because congress failed to pass even 1 of the 12 annual bills used to fund day-to-day government operations. also passed in the house yesterday, a bill aimed at making food safer. the measure gives the government broad, new powers to inspect processing plants and order recalls. it's been sent to president obama's desk to be signed into law. in other news this morning, the south korean military is preparing for its largest-ever live fire drill tomorrow. the military exercise will take place near the border with north korea. and south korea has renewed an annual tradition of lighting a giant, steel christmas tree that's visible to the north. that tradition was suspended seven years ago, when it appeared that relations between the two countries were on the mend. back here at home, the university of connecticut women's basketball team and its fans are celebrating consecutive win number 89. they destroyed florida state last night, to set the record for the longest winning streak in ncaa basketball history. the win broke the record set by the ucla men's team in the early '70s. abc news consultant christine brennan told our diane sawyer one reason the huskies are so dominant. >> espn "sports science" has crunched the numbers on maya moore, the star player for uconn. it's amazing. her vertical leap is two inches less than that of a man in the nba. and when she fields the basketball, her hands are moving faster than the strike of a rattlesnake. this is pretty fast stuff. >> so, how did maya do last night? well, she had a career-high 41 points. we'll have more game highlights coming up later in our sports report. >> not messing with maya. all right. when we come back this morning, who makes the safest cars on the road? new rankings out overnight. also, wall street reaches a new two-year high. can the streak continue? and more from that destructive western weather. homes literally torn from their foundations. we'll be right back. could switching to geico really save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance? does a former drill sergeant make a terrible therapist? patient: and that's why yellow makes me sad. i think. sarge: that's interesting. you know what makes me sad? you do! maybe we should chug on over to mambie pambie land where maybe we can find some self-confidence for you. ya jackwagon! tissue? crybaby. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. on wall street, two, major stocks indexes are back at their precrash level. the dow jones industrial average and s&p 500 both open today at their highest points since 2008. corporate mergers and the tax extension both boosted stocks. investors like seeing corporate mergers because they indicate confidence in the economy. the dow jones industrial average opens this morning at 11,533. it ticked up 55 points yesterday. the nasdaq gained 18 to close at 2667. overseas, tokyo's nikkei average dropped slightly today. hong kong's hang seng is up in late trading. in london, the ftse opened lower. non-american cars lead the insurance industry's annual list of safest vehicles. south korean makers hyundai and kia, along with germany's volkswagen had the most cars on that list. gm, ford and toyota followed closely behind. the vehicles were chosen for protection in front, side and rear crash tests. 66 vehicles made the list, more than double last year's number. american airlines is breaking all ties with orbitz.com. american says its online system is both faster and cheaper. consumer advocates say the move could make it harder to find the lowest fares. one wisconsin man has a mcdonald's mcrib value meal to thank for making him a millionaire. that's what jonathan kehoe ordered when he won the annual monopoly game grand prize. kehoe is unemployed. he says he's going to use the money to pay off some bills and some debts. and he said he never would have gone to mcdonald's, unless his godson said that's what i want. >> god bless the mcrib. next on this wednesday morning, the evening news goes dark after a gunman enters the tv station. we'll show you how it ended. plus, the producers promise the broadway "spider-man" show will go on, after e on, after the latest injury to a performer. ♪ ♪ pillow pets and hot wheels for my sister's kids in maine ♪ ♪ oh, walgreens has perfect gifts ♪ ♪ for all those on your list ♪ like a walgreens gift card ♪ for your daughter's teacher miss gilchrest ♪ [ female announcer ] find all your last minute gifts at walgreens like a sony ipod clock radio, axe bath set... hershey's chocolates and more. and we're open late. stay jolly with walgreens. [ slap! slap! slap! slap! slap! ] [ male announcer ] your favorite foods fighting you? fight back fast with tums. calcium rich tums goes to work in seconds. nothing works faster. ♪ tum ta tum tum tums sleep is here, on the wings of lunesta. and if you wake up often in the middle of the night... rest is here, on the wings of lunesta. lunesta helps you fall asleep and stay asleep, so you can wake up feeling rested. when taking lunesta, don't drive or operate machinery until you feel fully awake. walking, eating, driving, or engaging in other activities while asleep, without remembering it the next day, have been reported. abnormal behaviors may include aggressiveness, agitation, hallucinations or confusion. in depressed patients, worsening of depression, including risk of suicide, may occur. alcohol may increase these risks. allergic reactions, such as tongue or throat swelling, occur rarely and may be fatal. side effects may include unpleasant taste, headache, dizziness and morning drowsiness. ask your doctor if lunesta is right for you. get lunesta for a $0 co-pay at lunesta.com. sleep well, on the wings of lunesta. another look, now, at the devastating effects of the floods in the west. this home in an arizona retirement community was just one of several that washed away. the house was unoccupied at the time. others in the area are still in danger because of continued rain. and that rain is making for a soggy morning commute on i-8 and 40, between southern california and arizona. wet on i-5, from seattle to portland. flooding on i-15, from san diego to vegas. icy on i-15, 70 and 80 in the rockies. wet on i-95, from boston north. >> if you are flying today, you can expect some airport delays in san francisco, los angeles, salt lake city, las vegas, phoenix, boston and new orleans. and now, to an abc news exclusive about the recall of a popular minivan. it involved more than 600,000 ford windstars with a critical defect. >> but why did it take years for the owners to finally be warned? our brian ross investigates. >> reporter: ford marketed its windstar van for families. touting a five-star safety rating, with big bird helping to make the pitch. but there was a serious, hidden problem with the windstar van and the rear axle that turns the wheels. a problem ford took years to do anything about. because of a design defect, the rear axle in the 1998 to 2003 models, can snap in half, unexpectedly. leading to more than 800 reported incidents, including this fatal accident outside boston just 2 months ago. the driver, 28-year-old sean bowman, was killed, about to go pick up his children. >> they asked, when is dad going to get here to get us? it was heartbreaking. it was screams and crying for hours. >> reporter: one week later, the ford recall notice arrived at bowman's home. >> if he got that recall sooner, he would have brought it into the shop. >> reporter: until federal safety officials conducted this test in june, ford had maintained there was little chance of an accident with a broken axle and no need for an expensive recall. but at 35 miles per hour, once the axle breaks in this simulation -- only the side stability bars seem to keep the van from tipping over, even with a professional driver behind the wheel. the federal tests were conducted only after a critical article in "the new york times," despite hundreds of incidents in the government's own database. >> i just don't understand how an agency that claims to be reviewing all of these complaints would have missed something like that. >> reporter: this will be the first christmas for sean bowman's family without dad. >> having my oldest daughter come to me and tell me, i just want to hug him, and i can't. it's not right. it could have been prevented. >> reporter: brian ross, abc news, new york. a woman in north carolina is undergoing a mental evaluation after causing a big scare at our abc station in charlotte, north carolina. wsoc was off the air for about an hour last night. a woman walked in, pulled out an unloaded gun and put it to her head. she was reportedly upset about her financial situation. no one was injured. and it is unclear if she will be charged. bernie madoff's former secretary is behind bars this morning, after a judge revoked her bail. annette bong joran know surrendered. the judge said there was a great risk that she would not appear in court to face charges next month. authorities say she helped madoff cover up his massive ponzi scheme. there are questions about whether the show will go on, after another serious accident on the set of the broadway musical, "spider-man: turn off the dark." aerialist christopher tierney broke his ribs after falling off a platform and plunging about 30 feet during monday night's preview performance. tierney is the fourth actor injured in that $65 million production. the producers will present new safety measures later today. we told you about the story earlier. a historymaking night for the uconn women's basketball team. the details on that and some other hoop games now, from espn. >> i'm anish shroff with this espn news update. the uconn women made history tuesday night in hartford. the huskies ran their win streak to 89 games. that's the longest streak in division i basketball, men or women. it's one better than the ucla team of the 1970s. maya moore, career-high 41 points. bria hartley, 21 points. she was five of six from three-point range. geno auriemma, the uconn head coach, giving hartley a kiss on the cheek. 89-consecutive wins for uconn. into the record books. they easily dispatch of florida state, 93-62. over in the nba, the magic hosting the mavericks. hedo turkoglu, making his return to orlando. third quarter, turkoglu drives. dwight howard on cleanup duty. 23 points, 26 rebounds for superman. on the other end, tyson chandler, ooh. a bizarre moment for superman. chandler, shaken up after the play. but he would stay in the game. jason terry, knocks down a big shot from the wing. the mavs old off the magic, 105-99. derrick rose and the bulls taking on the sixers. philly would plead no contest. ronnie brewer, the steal. leaves for luol deng. 22 for the swing man. bulls up 85-50 at that point. and then, carlos boozer, the steal. ronnie brewer, flip it, reverse it. the bulls win, 121-76. that does it for this sports update. back to you in new york. a 9-year-old boy in california has proven that he has all the right moves. >> samuel sevian has just been crowned the youngest chess master in the u.s. samuel, who turned 10 on sunday, was 11 days younger than the previous record holder. and it's not his first record, either. he was also the youngest person to reach the chess level of expert when he was just 8 years old. >> i'm not even good at checkers. well -- up next, we'll update our top story. that wild weather here, in the west and over in europe. thousands of holiday travelers, still stranded. we'll be right back. ♪ i'll stop the world and melt with you ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world ♪ ♪ i will stop the world ♪ ♪ you've seen the difference ♪ ♪ and it's getting better all the time ♪ ♪ i will stop the world ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world and melt with you ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world, i'll melt with you ♪ sleep is here, on the wings of lunesta. and if you wake up often in the middle of the night... rest is here, on the wings of lunesta. lunesta helps you fall asleep and stay asleep, so you can wake up feeling rested. when taking lunesta, don't drive or operate machinery until you feel fully awake. walking, eating, driving, or engaging in other activities while asleep, without remembering it the next day, have been reported. abnormal behaviors may include aggressiveness, agitation, hallucinations or confusion. in depressed patients, worsening of depression, including risk of suicide, may occur. alcohol may increase these risks. allergic reactions, such as tongue or throat swelling, occur rarely and may be fatal. side effects may include unpleasant taste, headache, dizziness and morning drowsiness. ask your doctor if lunesta is right for you. get lunesta for a $0 co-pay at lunesta.com. sleep well, on the wings of lunesta. now, a look ahead to the stories we'll be watching on this wednesday. california endures a fifth and final storm, the strongest in a week of bad, wet weather. flood warnings are up in arizona, nevada and utah, as well. the storm system will bring wet weather to the midwest next. crews at london's heathrow airport will be working to clear snow, so that full service can be restored by tomorrow. today, president obama signs a repeal of the military's don't ask, don't tell policy towards gays and lesbians. since it was enacted in 1993, at least 13,000 have been expelled from the armed forces for violating its rules. the senate appears ready to approve the so-called new s.t.a.r.t. nuclear treaty with russia today. senators will also take a test vote today on a bill that would provide billions for the health care of first responders at ground zero, following the 9/11 attacks. and coming up later today on "good morning america," the controversial surgery that's cost an arizona hospital its affiliation with the catholic church. did a nun go too far to save a mother's life? the full story on "gma." ? " but that's not the only story. it's got turn-by-turn navigation, onstar, an available six-speed automatic transmission, remote keyless entry, and 10 air bags. it's a big story for a compact car. the all-new chevrolet cruze. get used to more. very well-qualified lessees can get a low-mileage lease on a 2011 chevrolet cruze ls for around $159 a month. call for details. sleep is here, on the wings of lunesta. and if you wake up often in the middle of the night... rest is here, on the wings of lunesta. lunesta helps you fall asleep and stay asleep, so you can wake up feeling rested. when taking lunesta, don't drive or operate machinery until you feel fully awake. walking, eating, driving, or engaging in other activities while asleep, without remembering it the next day, have been reported. abnormal behaviors may include aggressiveness, agitation, hallucinations or confusion. in depressed patients, worsening of depression, including risk of suicide, may occur. alcohol may increase these risks. allergic reactions, such as tongue or throat swelling, occur rarely and may be fatal. side effects may include unpleasant taste, headache, dizziness and morning drowsiness. ask your doctor if lunesta is right for you. get lunesta for a $0 co-pay at lunesta.com. sleep well, on the wings of lunesta. of gourmet coffee and tea to choose from. it's the way to individually brew fresh, delicious coffee in under a minute. way to brew, hon. 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[ male announcer ] prevent uncomfortable gas moments with gas-x prevention. just one before meals helps prevent gas before it starts. from gas-x, the gas-xperts. now, "good morning, maryland." the governor says it could be time for the state to step in and save the preakness. we will tell you what happens now. neighbors, families and friends begin the painful process with saying bye to a family killed in a house fire. mud slides to rain and blizzard conditions. other parts of the country makes you breath a sigh of relief all we are dealing with are chilly temperatures here. those stories ahead on this wednesday morning. middle of the week. we are almost until christmas weekend. i am megan pringle. charlie crowson is off. we will start off with justin berk who has been busy this last week. justin. >> why. and we may get busier. all eyes set before the potential christmas storm. and i want to put the headline it may be a post christmas storm. a little delay in the arrival. so as you see santa throwing gifts, he is taking it back. and he is giving it. he is taking it back and is going to give it. looks like that snow instead i've risk overnight on christmas eve through christmas morning, we may not wake up to a white christmas although we could end with a white christmas. christmas night through monday, the potential for a broom or bust. this is going to be a monsterous storm. still a debate whether we get clobbered with the bull's eye or it gets off the coast. we will work out details for you. but right now, 32 in baltimore and easton. 31 in hagerstown and there's snow showing up on the radars. and luges like it's trying to pub into the west side. we are trying toop