and a tale of two coasts, as part of the west sees heavy snow and bitter cold temperatures, parts of the east could see record-breaking heat. where we re seeing summer-like temperatures in your forecast. there is a day not too long ago when i had to stop and think, when they come in with handcuffs and they come in with a warrant for my arrest. librarians afraid of being fired, or worse, just for doing their jobs. why some say they re being targeted and how they re now fighting back. we re so grateful to have you this sunday deshgs 26th. i hope that christmas hangover isn t too bad. appreciate you starting your morning with us. we begin with the u.s. racing toward a record number of daily new covid cases fueled by the fast-spreading omicron variant. in some parts of the country hospitals are stretched thin as emergency rooms and icu beds begin to fill up. more than 71,000 americans are hospitalized with covid-19. the increase in cases also causing major travel disruption
disruptions this holiday weekend. several major u.s. airlines have canceled more than 1,000 flights over staffing issues. so if you re planning a last-minute trip home, you re going to want to check your flight status, if you can get one. and amid all of this, don t forget what health experts have been saying for months, vaccines and boosters are keeping people from getting severely sick. and right now they are our only way out of this. let s begin with cnn s alison kosik, who is in new york. sear surging cases causing disruptions around the country. reporter: yes, but the biggest hurdle for so many people this christmas has been the struggle to get tested for covid-19. the race has really been on for millions of americans to get a test before traveling or joining family gatherings. here in new york we saw long lines over the past week, people waiting in the cold. also raleigh, north carolina, miles were a mile long. look at these pictures. this was christmas eve, with some
i m kristen welker, in tonight for lester on this christmas eve americans are preparing to spend yet another holiday against the backdrop of covid-19. and tonight the nation s major airlines announcing that thousands of flights have been canceled around the world, in large part because the fast-spreading omicron variant has prevented some staffers from working, creating shortages. and there is late word that a u.s. navy ship is stuck in port after a portion of the crew tested positive for covid. it comes as the biden administration announced it is lifting travel restrictions initially imposed last month and while the number of cases rises, there are new signs omicron may be less severe than other variants. we are covering all of the latest developments tonight sam brock starts our coverage from miami. reporter: with omicron shattering infection records set during the peak of delta, at airports nationwide a christmas curveball. united airlines pre-emptively canceling more th
yesterday. omicron cases have now surged past the peak we saw from delta cases in early september. the january high point for this pandemic is a ways off, but we re getting closer by the day. there is one piece of good news. average hospitalizations are still flat over the past week. the bad news is, the u.s. saw more than 3500 deaths on thursday. that s the highest we ve seen in some time. as we said, all of this is throw wrench into holiday plans. if you re flying, you probably want to check with the airline before heading to the airport. united cancelled more than 160 flights scheduled for today. that s about 10% of their total flights. they just don t have enough crews to fly. they re not alone, more than 400 u.s. flights and 1900 global flights have been cancelled, including flights on delta, jetblue, and allegiant. if you had your heart coming to new york city for new year s eve, those plans are changing, too. the mayor said the celebration is happening but it will be
in colombia are trying to help those in need this holiday season. announcer: live from cnn center, this is cnn newsroom with rosemary church. good to have you with us. well, the world health organization warns a storm is coming to europe where the omicron variant is partly to blame for more than 2.7 million new covid cases in just the past week. france and spain have broken new daily records, and germany, portugal, and scotland are bringing back covid restrictions. israel is now the first country to offer a fourth vaccine dose. medical workers, people over 60, and those with compromised immune systems will be eligible. meanwhile, u.s. president joe biden is laying out his strategy to fight surging covid cases in the u.s. due to the omicron variant. he says fully vaccinated americans can go ahead with their holiday plans, but he s also planning to make half a billion free at-home test kits available starting next month. more now from cnn s jeff zeleny. let me give it