of debris looking for survivors. president biden briefed on the situation earlier today directing resources to help in the situation. cnn's reporter is on the ground there in mayfield, hard-hit mayfield, kentucky. what is happening right now? >> reporter: well, fredricka, what we're seeing right now is different emergency response teams coming in from different cities and counties all throughout kentucky. coming right here to what they're calling ground zero after the tornadoes last night p you see behind me a slew of vehicles out here and different construction crews that come to use heavy equipment to lift the debris and try to find as many people as possible. we know more than 100 people were working here at this candle factory last night. they were working overtime trying to get the holiday orders out just two weeks before the christmas holiday. i spoke with one man. his name was ryan, worked at the factory. said i didn't feel like working overtime. was working a lot. decided not to come in and get the extra hours. he said that could have been me. other people have shown up looking for their loved ones including a man named ivy williams. married to his wife quite some time, known each other over 30 years, they have kids, grandkids. got a cal fcall from her. >> a call at 10:00. she said it's storming real bad. i said, okay. that was it. we hung up. 10:30 my daughter called me told me the roof was off the building. i came rushing over here. when i got over here it was just like this here. i mean, it wasn't a building. i didn't know it was -- a i thought a roof tore off and jumped in to start helping as much as i could. i did drag two people out. one lady and a guy, and -- from then i as was trying to, calling my wife's name, jeanine williams. didn't get no response. saw a guy she worked with and told me she was on the list. they had pulled her out but i don't know where they took her at. >> reporter: that's the confusion and the williams family shown up here again. you can see in the kind of orange-colored brown coat. that's ivy williams and these are other members of the family coming now trying to find out what happened to jeanine. matriarch of their family and doesn't know if she's on the list of people who died or taken to a hospital. also we met another woman who says she came here last night. pulled out her friend, just turned 30 years old. worked here at the factory. knew exactly where she would likely be and pulled her body out of the rubble. it's just horrific, one story after another. fred? >> oh, my gosh. to hear that people who live in the community are helping, or assisting in any way they can helping first responders attend to survivors and looking for others who remain missing is heartbreaking. nadia romero keep ug posted. thank you so much. potential for more severe weather continues as the storm moves east now. allison chinchar is tracking this dangerous storm. what cities are about to feel the impact of this storm? >> the main line of storms weakened some compared to the overnight last night but not gone entirely. we still have potential for isolated lightning, damaging hail and winds as you see here. main cities, atlanta, montgomery, stretching all the way down towards mobile, new orleans, charlotte and richmond, virginia virginia, looking for severe strong to severe thunderstorms. again, the main line of storms and warnings off and on throughout the last several years, some tornadoes, some severe thunderstorm warnings, depending how the line makes its way off to the east. another concern a lot of just popping up. may not be a lot of advance warning before some of these warnings come out. the last 24 hours a devastating outbreak. over 30 tornado reports, over 200 severe wind reports and about 20 large hail reports in all from this system. also spawned over 100 tornado warnings issued. the largest ever for a december day. two of those particular tracks are very concerning just because of how long they were, and potential there for these tornadoes to maybe have been on the ground the entire time, for more than 200 miles. again, to put this in perspective, most tornadoes are on the groundless than ten minutes and go less than ten miles. in this instance these tornadoes could have been on the ground for hours. again, spanning over 200 miles, which is, again, incredible to think about. also likely why the death toll is going to be rather high for this particular event. highest ever was the april 27th outbreak in 2011. 314 that died from a tornado day in the u.s. but this event, fred, unfortunately may end up creeping into the top ten deadliest tornado days in u.s. history. >> that is just hard to believe. thank you so much, allison chinchar for bringing that to us. talk further about this and bring in a former fema administrator and now chief emergency management officer at one concern. so good to see you, craig. what is your initial reaction now when you see this devastation? >> well, unfortunately the weather service called it. they said the risk was for strong tornadoes, and i would say most dangerous time. december, a lot of people not prepare ord thinking about severe weather. you're seeing now what we've seen too many times in the aftermath of joplin, the tuscaloosa outbreak. a frantic search. people, families, aren't sure. the one piece of advice i want to give everybody, if you are okay. check in with your family. let's them know you're okay. we know a lot of people had to leave quickly and gone in different directions. they should let people know quick as you can you're okay to cross the names off the list and keep looking for those that are missing. >> goodness. it's extraordinary, is it not, to hear allison talk about typically tornadoes on the ground ten miles. in this case, hundreds of miles? i mean, the devastation, the element of surprise while people got the warnings, i mean, nobody could brace for or expect something like this. does that further complicate any of these emergency response measures? >> well, absolutely. what you run into is, even if you get the warning, you got to have somewhere safe to go. you saw in many cases, so strong, taking homes down to a slab. something we've learned we need to think where we build. increasing the number of safe spots, particularly in public schools. as we rebuild the communities take advantage with the federal dollars making sure we're building back or giving people more safe space to go during severe weather and tornadoes. >> kentucky governor andy beshear sent a letter requesting fema assistance and has spoken with the fema administrator. what happens now, and in what form will fema resources be able to assist in the immediate? >> based upon past history responding to these types of tornadoes, the most immediate need is going to be temporary housing. people lost everything, need a place to stay. sorten things out. a lot of the programs fema's going to bring won't be immediate response. local governments doing that, states doing that. the next day and days after. where are people going to? getting vouchers for hotels and motels. assisting the financial cost for response and debris pick up and begin working with the governor in communities start taking next steps to recovery. right now the primary focus is being handled by state and local officials, search and rescue. fema focussing on what we would call mass care. making sure people have somewhere safe to go in the next couple of days. fema assistance coming in providing that tech error housing. >> spell out the immediate needs. trying to help people. survivors with immediate housing, and then talk about picking up debris, but there are other things right in between that. they've got to canvas all the properties and buildings. i can't imagine be how there is enough equipment or even personnel in which to do that. what do you think is going to be, i guess, the obstacle among the obstacles, in trying to canvas all of these properties when you look at vastness of the destruction just by these drone images. how do you see this being tackled? >> well, this is something our first responders unfortunately have gotten pretty good at. we saw this in joplin it took two, three days but they got through the search. fema is standing by if they need additional saerchd rescue teams. we've seen ability to bring in others, national guard, neighboring states, not often, is very often even faster than fema can get set up. everybody's focused on resources to do the search. they'll get what they call a primary search looking for survivors and then start looking at those that are still missing, have to go in and dig out or get into the removal of debris, and looking for, accounting for everybody that is still missing in these tough storms. >> craig fugate, thank you so much for your information. appreciate it. andy boy, our hearts and prayers going out to so many impacted by this devastation crossing six states. hard to believe. thank you, mr. fugate. appreciate it. after a quick break, we'll continue to cover this deadly storm. and the widespread devastation left behind. stay with us. which is a lot. so take care of that heart with lipton. because sippin' on unsweetened lipton can help support a healthy heart. lipton. stop chuggin'. start sippin'. you booked a sunny vrbo ski chalet. with endless views of snow-covered peaks. ♪ ♪ a stove that inspires magnificent hot cocoa. and a perfect ski-in ski-out. but the thing they'll remember forever? grandpa coming out of retirement to give a few ski lessons. the time to plan your get together is now. ♪ ♪ find it on vrbo. i brought in ensure max protein, with thirty grams of protein. those who tried me felt more energy in just two weeks! (sighs wearily) here i'll take that! (excited yell) woo-hoo! ensure max protein. with thirty grams of protein, one gram of sugar, and nutrients to support immune health. at intra-cellular therapies, we're inspired by our circle. a circle that includes our researchers, driven by our award-winning science, who uncover new medicines to treat mental illness. it includes the compassionate healthcare professionals, the dedicated social workers, and the supportive peer counselors we work with to help improve - and even change - people's lives. moving from mental illness to mental wellness starts in our circle. this is intra-cellular therapies. woman: i have moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. now, there's skyrizi. ♪ things are getting clearer ♪ ♪ yeah i feel free ♪ ♪ to bare my skin, yeah that's all me. ♪ ♪ nothing and me go hand in hand ♪ ♪ nothing on my skin that's my new plan. ♪ ♪ nothing is everything. ♪ woman: keep your skin clearer with skyrizi. most who achieved 90% clearer skin at 4 months had lasting clearance through 1 year. in another study, most people had 90% clearer skin at 3 years. and skyrizi is 4 doses a year, after 2 starter doses. ♪ it's my moment so i just gotta say ♪ ♪ nothing is everything. ♪ skyrizi may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms, such as fevers, sweats, chills, muscle aches, or coughs or if you plan to or recently received a vaccine. ♪ nothing is everything. ♪ woman: talk to your dermatologist about skyrizi. learn how abbvie could help you save. (chloe) wireless family plans save you money, but then you have to deal with family. so i got visible. get unlimited data for as low as $25 a month. no family needed. (dad vo) is the turkey done yet?! (mom vo) here's your turkey! (vo) visible. switch and get up to $200. ♪ i see trees of green ♪ ♪ red roses too ♪ ♪ i see them bloom ♪ ♪ for me and you ♪ ♪ and i think to myself ♪ ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ a rich life is about more than just money. that's why at vanguard, you're more than just an investor, you're an owner so you can build a future for those you love. vanguard. become an owner. all right. following breaking news. dozens of people killed after a line of severe tornadoes cut a path of destruction across six states in the central and southern u.s. making it "the" deadliest december day for tornadoes on record. kentucky governor, the kentucky governor, rather, saying he expects at least 70 deaths in his state alone. a short time ago arkansas governor asa hutchinson gave an update after touring storm damage in monnette, a town hit hard by last night's storm. here is some of that update. >> we were able to go through truman where there was a significant amount of damage that was done, and then coming here to monnette and you see the devastation of this tornado, and what's -- the length of the damage and how many cities that it touched and communities that it touched as it was going through the state of arkansas and continuing on into other states as well. and probably the most remarkable thing is that there's not a greater loss of life. we have accounted for two loss of life. one here at the nursing home here in this, in monnette, and lost one in leachvilleality the dollar general store. thez a those are preliminary numbers. i want to express appreciation to the first responders, management and those ta came to quickly take action to get the residents to other facilities and obviously multiple numbers of those that went to the hospital as well. some in critical condition. so grateful for the response and everybody pulled together on it. our responsibility now is to make sure we have accurate damage assessments. we're going to have to do a lot of debris removal. the mayor here, of course, will be focused on this as well as the local emergency managers. from here i'll be going through leachville and looking at the facility there from the air, and then we will be continuing to work to assess the damage in the coming days, and also to account for those that are still in critical condition and might have needs. i talked to them about the need for shelter, and we have, you know, our nonprofits, our churches, standing ready in the event of assistance, if shelters need to be established. it's still early in this responsest, but it is really important for all the homeowners, and we have a lot of homes that we saw that have been significantly damaged, if not totally destroyed, and they need to report that damage. they might have insurance, but it's important to report that to your local emergency management so they can make an assessment so we can calculate the loss and see if we qualify for federal assistance down the road. that is an ongoing process that will take weeks to accomplish that. >> and now to tennessee where at least three people are confirmed dead this morning. we got a report in from cnn affiliate from kingston springs, tennessee. take a listen. >> reporter: let me show you damage we're seeing. last live hot showed you the electric company and talked to one. workers there. a full structure here. he told me there was all lighting structures in here but now you can see the walls have blown out, and everything is now on the ground here blown away. as we come down here to sneed road, off of highway 70. i do want to show you we'll go somewhat down the road. make sure my photographer thomas davis is safe right now as we're walking's it is muddy out here, but you look down sneed road and even just right here at this tree. look apartment the twists in the branches of the tree. thomas, right over here. this tree. you can see the twists of the branches, and then all the way down the road, the debris that carries towards those homes right there. as far as damage goes, we haven't been able to get down there, because there are power lines that are down on the ground right now. we can see that there are some roofs off at this point, and we did just check in with the fire chief that's out here from kingston springs. he says that they don't have any updates on any injuries at this moment, because they have been able to sweep down here. we did see flashlights out here and rescue crews down here. they're also trying to get down highway 70 and work with some of the people that are clearing the roads to try and get there. at this point, they still haven't reached buttersborth r buttersworth road. we know from a gentleman clearing the road he told me they have been able to clear all the way to miller hill road and then he said he was told that the road is clear on highway 70 all the way to the harpeth river bridge. take a look at all of the damage, the debris out here. these apparently are lighting fixtures. what one of the workers here told me that is a part of this electric company that's here on u.s. 70. up in front of us here, that's the office of the building. beyond that is where all the rescue crews are working right now. it's actually incredible to see them out there. the fire chief there with a whiteboard on the radio talking to people that are in different areas of kingston springs right now trying to figure out where there's damage, who needs some rescues and who needs help at this point. >> wow. all so hard to believe. thank you so much, wsmv the brian breslin in kingston springs, tennessee. after a break we continue coverage of deadly tornadoes. president biden brief and taking action to help people in these storm zones. we'll have the latest, right after this. re thr oat lozenges. show your sore throat who's boss. new mucinex instasoothe. works in seconds, lasts for hours. your record label is taking off. but so is your sound engineer. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire it's the most joyous time of the year. especially at t-mobile! let's go to dianne. i got the awesome new iphone 13 pro and airpods, and t-mobile is paying for them both! and this is for new and existing customers. upgrade to the iphone 13 pro and airpods both on us. only at t-mobile. a mountain of toys to fulfill many wishes must be carried across all roads and all bridges. it's not magic that makes more holiday deliveries to homes in the us than anyone else, it's the hardworking people of the united states postal service. every day in business brings something new. so get the flexibility of the new mobile service designed for your small business. introducing comcast business mobile. you get the most reliable network with nationwide 5g included. and you can get unlimited data for just $30 per line per month when you get four lines or mix and match data options. available now for comcast business internet customers with no line-activation fees or term contract required. see if you can save by switching today. comcast business. powering possibilities. our breaking news. deadly storms cutting a path of destruction across six states. dozens of people lost their lives. a short time ago president biden was briefed on the situation and called the storm an unimaginable tragedy. cnn is in wilmington, delaware, where the president is spending the weekend. what kind of reaction and promise are we getting from the white house? >> reporter: well, right now, fred, the focus is on really getting the resources and money from the federal government on to the ground there in kentucky and those other states affected by the storm. we just got a statement from the white house that said the president had directed that federal resources be surged immediately to these locations where there is the greatest need to alleviate suffering and made that directive in a morning briefing from here in wilmington today. he's traveling here foned weekend, here with his chief of staff and deputy homeland security advisers is here with him. in that briefing, fema administrator, homeland security and deputy chief of staff and director of governmental affairs, all under way. fema director had interesting things in the briefing. describes severe consequences she heard on the ground and earlier had spoke ton the governor of kentucky for an update where things stood and updated the president on deployment of fema emergency response personnel, water and other needed commodities. you're starting to see a major effort stood up from the white house and fema to start assisting the efforts on the ground there. that's sort of the focus for the president right now is these logistical issues, but eventually, i think, you will see him turn a course to this role he played numerous times so far in his presidency of consoler in chief, sort of preparing the nation as it quickly becomes clear this is turning into a really serious tragedy, fred. >> yeah. this really is still the beginning stages. kevin liptak, thank you so much. in fact, the potential for more severe weather continues as the storms move east. meteorologist allison chinchar is tracking a dangerous system from the cnn weather center. allison, tell us more. >> yeah. i do want to emphasize the storm system we have now has weakened considerably compared where it was overnight. it's not done entirely. we do still have potential for isolated tornadoes, damaging winds and hail basically stretching from maryland back down through eastern louisiana. target points really are going to be this yellow shaded area here. includes places like asheville, north carolina, atlanta, stretching through montgomery. all of those, even charlotte, north carolina looking at potential for strong thunderstorms to move through going through the afternoon hours. a look at that line. again, a couple thunderstorm severe warnings one in ohio now. briefly a tornado warning in alabama less than an hour ago. these are going to continue to pop up throughout the afternoon. as we continue to see this storm system slide off to the east. good news is by the time we get to overnight tonight, we will finally see an end to this system. allowing any areas that have trees down, damage from tornadoes, whatever it may be, the opportunity to go and clean up afterwards. there's likely going to be a lot of cleanup, because this was a very large outbreak. over 30 tornado reports over 200 severe wind reports and about 20 large hail reports in all just in the last 24 hours. over 100 total tornado warnings issued. that's highest ever for a december day. this particular area right here ended up producing some of the more interesting tracks in terms of how long-lived and long tracking these two tornadoes potentially were. both of these white lines indicate tornado warnings and reports that occurred along them. potentially signifying we could have had tornadoes on the ground over 200 miles. that's several hours along. keep in mind, the average tornado is on the ground for less than ten minutes and tracks less than ten miles. again, this is quite a stark difference between average tornadoes versus what we've seen in the last 24 hours. it's also likely a very big component and why the death toll from this particular outbreak is likely to be on the high side. now, the highest-ever u.s. death tornado day was 314 fatalities from the super outbreak april 27, 2011. based off the numbers, fred, we've heard out of kentucky from the governor himself, this particular outbreak may end up breaking into the top ten deadliest tornado days in u.s. history. >> terribly sad. allison chinchar thank you for that. we'll continue to follow this breaking news. much more ahead on the damage and devastation left behind by these tornadoes. stay with us. hey google. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ [uplifting music playing] ♪ i had a dream that someday ♪ ♪ i would just fly, fly away ♪ feel stuck with student loan debt? move to sofi and feel what it's like to get your money right. ♪ ♪ move your student loan debt to sofi— you could save with low rates and no fees. earn a $1,000 bonus when you refi— and get your money right. ♪ (man 1 vo) i'm living with cll and thanks to imbruvica (man 2 vo) i'm living longer. (vo) imbruvica is a prescription medicine for adults with cll or chronic lymphocytic leukemia. imbruvica is not chemotherapy- it's the #1 prescribed oral therapy for cll, proven to help people live longer. imbruvica can cause serious side effects, which may lead to death. bleeding problems are common and may increase with blood thinners. serious infections with symptoms like fevers, chills, weakness or confusion and severe decrease in blood counts can happen. heart rhythm problems and heart failure may occur especially in people with increased risk of heart disease, infection, or past heart rhythm problems. new or worsening high blood pressure, new cancers, and tumor lysis that can result in kidney failure, irregular heartbeat, and seizure can occur. diarrhea commonly occurs. drink plenty of fluids. tell your doctor if you experience signs of bleeding, infection, heart problems, persistent diarrhea or any other side effects. (man 2 vo) i am living longer with imbruvica. (vo) ask your doctor if it's right for you. learn how we could help you save on imbruvica. ok everyone, our mission is to provide complete, balanced nutrition for strength and energy. whoo hoo! ensure, with 27 vitamins and minerals, now introducing ensure complete! with 30 grams of protein. you booked a sunny vrbo ski chalet. with endless views of snowcovered peaks. but the thing they'll remember forever? grandpa coming out of retirement to give a few ski lessons. the time for getting back together is now. find it on vrbo. to run a growing business, is to be on a journey. and along the ride, you'll have many questions. challenges. and a few surprises. ♪ but wherever you are on your journey. your dell technologies advisor is here for you - with the right tech solutions. so you can stop at nothing for your customers. >> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. more on this breaking news. we can now report at least 79 people across five states have died in the series of tornadoes that ripped through the midwest and south east united states overnight according to state and local officials. we'll continue to update you as we get more information. we'll get back to our coverage of the storm in a moment, but right now we want to focus on politics and the proposed build back better proposal. senate democrats are aiming to pass president biden's build back better bill before christmas, and over months of negotiations one of the main sticking points has been paid family leave. throughout our hours today we're going to talk through these proposals with lawmakers and real people that could be impacted. so let's bring in senate congresswoman brenda lawrence of michigan. the co-chair of the congressional women's caucus, congresswoman lawrence, so good to see you. so let's talk about -- >> good to see you, fredricka. >> thank you. let's talk about the road ahead now. republicans are criticizing these revised scores from the congressional budget office to say this build back better bill isn't truly paid for to the extent democrats say it is. what's your response? >> so right now, fredricka, we are confronted with over 3 million women who have left the workforce, and what do you hear across the country? we don't have enough workers. well, the reality from covid and all the other challenges that are faced, that families and especially women, are having to make that decision. do i stay home with my sick child, with my aging parents to be a caregiver? and i can't afford to pay for someone to come in my house. i don't have an option. the reality is that, the united states is one of just six countries, six, without universal paid leave. this is not a perk. this is about someone sitting down with their hands open. we have to take care of our families and our children, and the dynamics of that is that it's usually women. then you add on top of that, that usually the caregiver that you call when you can't afford it is predominantly women. so when we talk about the reality of our economic, politically, who are we as a country? and morally, paid family leave is something that is the right thing for our economy, and for our country. >> so am i hearing you say that there are different ways in which to gauge affordability? >> yes. so when you look at the savings of when -- let's talk about more than 65 million women who provide, who provide unpaid care. they're sitting at home not getting any financial resources. they're just doing what they have to do out of love for their family, and add to that, it's valued at $416 billion, if we're paying minimum wage. think about that these individuals who are in the workplace, in the economy. think about the supply chain crisis that we're having now. it's because people are not at work. women contribute at every level of our economy, but when they are forced disproportionately to choose between working and being a caregiver to their families and homes, and even those who are caregivers being paid less than minimum wage, there are now decisions being made across this country that's having a direct negative impact on our economy. if we can get our workforce back to humming and working full scale, it's going to reap benefits to our bottom line. it's going to address things like what we're looking at where we have higher costs, fewer resources that we're looking at, and when we talk about the economy, this is a major contributor to increasing our economy, and bringing our economy back to the strength we need. >> congresswoman, senate majority leader chuck schumer called paid family leave, one of the most important parts of this legislation, but it's already, it has been dropped from a draft of the bill, you know, once before. is it your feeling it could happen again? >> we know that no united states state in this union is doing well when it comes to care priorities. and that includes senator manchin in west virginia who received and f in a recent scoreboard on the care economy by the sentry foundation. let's be real about this. dropping this when this is one of the major issues that's having an impact on families in america, and when we talk about the issue of being able to keep my family intact where a family member can go to work, where we can -- if they're at home and have to be at home, covid showed us so many people had to take off from work, because they were exposed or they were sick with covid, add to everything else that goes with just living, and now we have an opportunity for the senate to step up. i can't predict the senate. i kiwish i could. i would be a very wealthy woman now if i could, but the reality is the senate must step up on this, and we in the democratic women's caucus went from the ground up. we were talking to organizations, the caregivers, the workers, the families, and to bring their voices to the spotlight, and magnify. like mothering with justice is a group i work with locally that fights for the rights of the caregivers, and we fought for minimum wage for caregivers in america. so we have to have this ground swell that hopefully the senate will not turn a deaf ear to. >> in fact, we're about to talk to somebody with a mothering justice. ask you quick before we go. the white house goal was to have at least a vote, of course, they want it passed, build back better, by christmas. do you think a vote is going to happen by christmas? >> fredricka, 2021 has been a roller coaster. i know the president is working on that. i have a lot of faith in the president. we got the infrastructure through. we got the build back better through the house. i'm counting on him and i'm counting on the leadership of the senate, but i am not a betting woman. >> all right. congresswoman brenda lawrence, thank you so much. have a great holiday season. a lot of work to do, nonetheless -- >> yes. every american in texas by this storm, we hear you, see you and we're going to be there for you in congress and with the president, and i'm praying for all the families affected by the storms. >> so many communities across six states devastated. thank you so much, congresswoman. appreciate it. >> thank you. happy holidays. >> thanks to you. and, again, now let's talk about this organization, and aishya wells is a part of it. a paid leave organizer for mothering justice and one of congresswoman lawrenson constituents. so good to see you. >> thank you. thank you for having me be here. happy to be here. >> you heard from your congresswoman. what's your message to lawmakers in terms of why paid family leave should be in this bill? >> yeah. and thank you for asking me that. so as brenda lawrence, representative brenda lawrence already said, mother in justice is advocating for mothers of color. build back better needs to pass because i'm a mom of a disabled child. i have a 15-year-old son who has multiple disabilities. he has hydro-seph liss, epilepsy, sir reap brawl palsy hearing and vision law and severely impaired. what that would mean for a lot of mothers is that just like i have, we don't have to choose anymore about whether or not we're taking care of our children or we're at work. so i think that the senate needs to pass it now. we need to go into the holiday season feeling at ease, knowing very soon we'll have policies that are for families and for families that are working every single day. >> while the measure passed in the house, you know, next up the senate. are you perplexed, or do you feel as though there are senators who don't understand your plight, and if they did understand the plight of yours and so many others they might look at this bill differently? >> i think that they, they should. right now only 20% of americans have access to paid leave. that means the other 80% does not. those are the people who are caring for your children. making sure we are well. so i hope that our senators realize that, that we need paid family leave and then it was just recent polling that came out over the past couple months that including west virginia, that paid leave is one of the most popular provisions in the build back better package. >> hmm. and perhaps you can paint a picture for your experience, your family's experience, particularly with your 15-year-old, what are the choices you have to make without paid family leave? >> so before mother in justice i'm blessed, grateful to be at an organization like mother in justice that allows for me to not skip a beat when i have to take alex to multiple doctors' appointments every week. what i do no before i got to mother in justice i missed hundreds and thousands of dollars out of my paycheck over the years of not having paid family leave, which catapults you back into poverty. the average american is only a few, like, one or two devastations away if that, before you're catapulted back into kpoverty. not only at the hospital with your child or caring for yourself and hoping you get well soon, you are also thinking about your bills. you're thinking about having a roof over your head. you're thinking about whether or not you'll be able to put food on your table, and we're better than that, in america. and so we should not be tasking people with that, and that type of heartache and that type of pressure of not knowing that if i care for myself or my child or my loved one that i won't be able to pay my bills when i leave this hospital. so that is not something that we should continue to task people with, and we have the ability to do this right now. we just need to do it. >> yeah. you're a tremendous fighter. for you, your family, your 15-year-old son and for so many others. aishya wells, thank you so much. a paid leave organizer for mothering justice. >> thank you. coming up next, our coverage of the widespread damage and devastation after dozens of tornadoes ripped through six states. data for as low as $25 a month. no family needed. (dad vo) is the turkey done yet?! (mom vo) here's your turkey! (vo) visible. switch and get up to $200. ♪ ♪ ♪ (sha bop sha bop) ♪ ♪ are the stars out tonight? (sha bop sha bop) ♪ ♪ ♪ alexa, play our favorite song again. ok. ♪ i only have eyes for you ♪ woman: i have moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. now, there's skyrizi. ♪ things are getting clearer ♪ ♪ yeah i feel free ♪ ♪ to bare my skin, yeah that's all me. ♪ ♪ nothing and me go hand in hand ♪ ♪ nothing on my skin that's my new plan. ♪ ♪ nothing is everything. ♪ woman: keep your skin clearer with skyrizi. most who achieved 90% clearer skin at 4 months had lasting clearance through 1 year. in another study, most people had 90% clearer skin at 3 years. and skyrizi is 4 doses a year, after 2 starter doses. ♪ it's my moment so i just gotta say ♪ ♪ nothing is everything. ♪ skyrizi may increase your risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tuberculosis. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms, such as fevers, sweats, chills, muscle aches, or coughs or if you plan to or recently received a vaccine. ♪ nothing is everything. ♪ woman: talk to your dermatologist about skyrizi. learn how abbvie could help you save. ("jingle bells") ♪ (doors knocking and bells ringing to the music) ♪ - [announcer] this holiday season, give the gift of grubhub. all right. continuing to follow breaking news. a search and rescue effort ongoing in edwardsville, illinois where an amazon warehouse partially collapsed overnight in severe weather. the police chief confirms at least two individuals dead. a spokesperson for amazon calls the situation a devastating tragedy. cnn's affiliate in the region has the latest. >> reporter: well, a search and rescue mission here as well and i'll step out of the way to give folk as better idea what exactly they're working with out here. that's an amazon facility. that wall right there, no more, the length of a football field and winds ripped off the roof here. still pretty windy now. storms have since moved on out of our area. we're about 20 miles outside of st. louis, missouri, here. as you kind of take a closer look, we know there have been at least two determined dead overnight as search and rescue continues. 30 people taken away, back at home safely now with family. one person badly injured flown to a hospital in st. louis for further treatment. still very much an active situation and scene right here. and this facility loads up amazon trucks to be out delivered to folks that make deliveries who ordered their items here. so not too much product inside. according to one worker we've already spoken with this morning. but there were people inside the building and search and rescue crews still searching for folks in the building. we've spoken with first responder who say it could be annest lasting set of days. the mayor of edwardsville saying, the governor of illinois already reached out to them offering state support. the mayor says thoughts and prayers as a search effort continues to reunite loved ones. back to the studio to you. >> ryan henson, thank you so much for that update. all right. after the break, we'll have so much more on the deadly storms that left a path of destruction across six states. first, for many this time of year is about giving back. but the 15th annual cnn heerroe tribute salutes ten extraordinary people who put others first all year long. the star-studded gala airs sunday at 8:00 p.m. eastern. take a look. >> there was no drinkable water. something inside me start saying you need to do something about it. >> i could not allow one additional life to be lost. >> i feel this responsibility to help these animals. this is what i was put on this earth to do. >> started calling me the makeup lady. i love it. because i am. >> what keeps you going is resilience of these children. >> we want to give you your second chance at life. it provides you a way to dream. >> we help people live through something they did nothing they would survive. >> i'm just doing the job that i'm supposed to do. i think i'm the luckiest doctor that ever lived. >> i want you to know their braids are beautiful. love each other across our difference. >> there is no small -- if you believe you will succeed. >> joinable anderson cooper and kelly ripa. the cnn heroes all-star tribute sunday at 8:00 eastern. it is going to be a great show. you don't want to miss it. gather up the family, grab your tissues and get ready to be inspired. >> announcer: cnn heroes brought to you by rocket mortgage. need to know what it takes to get a mortgage that fits your family? rocket can. help celebrate 15 years of inspiring stories. at fidelity, your dedicated advisor will work with you on a comprehensive wealth plan across your full financial picture. a plan with tax-smart investing strategies designed to help you keep more of what you earn. this is the planning effect. we've been waiting all year to come together. it worked! happy holidays from lexus. get 1.9% apr financing on the 2022 es 350. ♪ i brought in ensure max protein, with thirty grams of protein. those who tried me felt more energy in just two weeks! (sighs wearily) here i'll take that! (excited yell) woo-hoo! ensure max protein. with thirty grams of protein, one gram of sugar, and nutrients to support immune health. a mountain of toys to fulfill many wishes must be carried across all roads and all bridges. it's not magic that makes more holiday deliveries to homes in the us than anyone else, it's the hardworking people of the united states postal service.