college murders ahead of his first court appearance. the father of one victim speaking out. how he feels about potentially coming face to face with the alleged killer. new images of the crowd fleeing after the new year s eve machete attack on nypd officers. the suspect now charged. was it a terrorist act? new troubles as holiday travelers make their way home. why thousands of flights are canceled or delayed again. actor jeremy renner airlifted to the hospital after he was critically injured in a snow plowing accident. what we re learning. and our tribute to a tv trailblazer. the legendary barbara walters. announcer: this is nbc nightly news with lester holt. good evening. it is good to be back with you and happy new year. this holiday season that has seemingly been bookended with severe weather is spawning some new and dangerous threats tonight. as we come on the air, tornado watches are in effect, stretching from east texas to arkansas and louisiana. already we
dream. that a few hours ago was getting ready to play the biggest game of his nfl career. and probably nowhere else in the world he wanted to be. and now he fights for his life. we forget that part of living this dream is putting your life at risk. and tonight we got to see a side of football that is extremely ugly. shock and sadness during monday night football. buffalo bills safety hamlin is in critical condition in a cincinnati hospital. he suffered cardiac arrest during last night s game. also on capitol hill this morning, kevin mccarthy already moved into the speaker s office despite an influential group of republicans who vowed to vote against him today. plus, moscow says dozens of russian soldiers have been killed during a massive missile strike in an occupied part of ukraine. we ll take a look at what that means for the on going war. zbloom, we begin with that scary moment last night in the nfl. buffalo bills safety damar hamlin suffered cardiac arrest on the field
so deep dispatchers didn t know if the emergency flight would be able to touch down. flight is en route but unknown if they can land in feet of snow. reporter: authorities say renner was the only person involved in the accident. renner s rep confirms jeremy is in critical but stable condition with injuries suffered after experiencing a weather-related accident while plowing snow. tmz reporting renner was trying to clear the road after the new year s eve storm when the snowcat accidentally rolled over his leg, causing severe blood loss. nbc news has not verified this. the 51-year-old often posted video from what he called his happy place, showing mountains of snow and even himself driving the giant snowowplow. the actor r who shot t to fame in 2008 s the hurt lococker and w went on to become an avengers action hero, is also well known for his love of machinery and home improvement. all right. here we go. reporter: he was set to star in a show
nbc news correspondent kristen dahlgren has the details. reporter: video obtained by tmz appears to show the chopper air lifting two-time oscar nominee jeremy renner after a snowplowing accident near his lake tahoe home. the snow so deep, dispatchers didn t know if the emergency flight would be able to touch down. care flight is enroute but it is unknown if they can land in feet of snow. authorities say renner was the only person involved in the accident. renner s rep confirms jeremy is in critical but stable condition with injuries suffered after experiencing a weather related accident while plowing snow. tmz reporting renner was trying to clear the road after the new year s eve storm when the snow cap accidentally rolled over his leg, causing severe blood loss. nbc news has not verified this. the 51-year-old often posted video from what he called his happy place. showing mountains of snow and