russian threat: with russian troops amassing on the ukraine border, we're on the front lines tonight. remembering america's tv dad, fans and fellow comedians react to the sudden death of the "full house" and "america's funniest home videos" star, and the news tonight from the medical examiner. advantage djokovic, world's top player, vows to play after his visa victory. but could immigration minister stand in his way? national blood crisis, our ex lives reporting as blood banks warn doctors may need to postpone life saving treatments. and cooking up a dream and a future in harlem. ♪ ♪ ♪ this is the "cbs evening news" with norah o'donnell, reporting from the nation's capital. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> o'donnell: good evening, to our viewers in the west, and thank you for joining us on this monday night. we want to begin with the latest on that deadly apartment fire in the bronx that killed 17, including eight children. investigator are looking into whether a self-closing door malfunctioned, allowing smoke to spread, turning the stairwells into a death trap. the cause of the fire is blamed on an electric space heater. more on that in just a minute. meanwhile, more than a dozen others remain hospitalized including several in critical condition. and new york city's mayor today warned the death toll could rise. cbs' nancy chen is at the scene. good evening, nancy. >> reporter: norah, good evening to you. we have just learned federal regulators have opened an investigation into whether the space heater that sparked the fire was defective. firefighters described fouling thick smoke to save people even as their oxygen tanks began to empty.rgfl and h ssh out othe si floor windows of this bronx high rise just as karen dejesus said she was about to feed her son. >> i was hearing people yell, "help me, help me," and i realized it was really a fire. >> reporter: dejesus ran to her apartment window and firefighters got her out. you climbed out of a window? >> yes, it was very scary. >> reporter: a space heater malfunctioned in a third floor apartment. investigators are looking into whether the safety doors designed to close in the event of a fire also malfunctioned or if they were propped open allowing smoke to spread quickly throughout the 19 story new york building. mayor adams toured the building. what did you see inside? >> looking at the apartment where the space heater was located, the grandmother had burns to her feet. that's how they woke up, feeling the heat from the fire. just really intense. >> reporter: space heaters are linked to more than 25,000 house fires every year, resulting in more than 300 deaths in the united states. today, the f.d.n.y. issued these reminders: keep space heaters at least three feet away from bedding or curtains, don't use in a bathroom and never use an extension cord. you emphasized the importance of fire safety, closing the door. why is that important? >> it's crucial. the numbers of lives we lost were due to not actually fire, but smoke, and something simple as closing a door can allow firefighters to respond and save lives. >> reporter: 17 people lost their lives in this tragedy. it comes less than a week after an apartment fire in philadelphia claimed the lives of 12 people. mayor adams called this a global tragedy because many of the victims are immigrants from gambia and west africa. an online fundraiser to help those impacted raised more than half a million dollars in just one day, norah. >> o'donnell: nancy chen in the bronx, thanks. a blast of cold arctic air has temperatures plummeting across the northeast. more than 10 million americans will experience dangerous wind chills. parts of the northeast will experience the coldest wind chill temperatures in three years. in boston it will feel like minus one and saranac lake feels like minus 12, but wind chill could be negative 36 degrees. that is cold. turning now to covid and the unprecedented surge in the omicron variant. pediatric hospitalizations are on the rise. the c.d.c. says an average of 830 children a day were admitted to the hospital in the last seven days and new tonight both moderna and pfizer they did they're working on an omicron- specific vaccine that should be available soon. states are setting their own records, including texas. in the houston area positivity rates have gone from 4.3% one month ago to 38% today. cbs' janet shamlian reports from outside the texas children's hospital in houston. >> reporter: tonight, it's a red flag warning in the houston area. >> this time it's truly a tsunami when it comes to those cases. it's like nothing we've seen before in the pandemic. >> reporter: the elevated threat level comes as the nation's pediatric cases are surging. data from the american society of pediatrics shows covid cases have nearly tripled since the end of december and are far exceeding the peak of past waves. there are now 580,000 child cases, a 78% increase. >> we're used to the unexpected, but the volume is really disappointing. it's-- it's exceeded our previous peaks. >> reporter: and it's spiking across the country. hospitalizations in general are up almost 40% week over week, pushing healthcare to the brink. about a quarter of hospitals reporting a critical staffingsh beyond healthcare, omicron is crushing the nation's workforce. one economist says an estimated five million may have called out sick last week. >> what's happening now with omicron is so contagious, where i don't really even want to be open for the employees because we may make each other sick. >> reporter: and the i.r.s. today warned taxpayers they may have to wait longer for refunds due to pandemic-related delays. the nation's schools are also buckling under the strain, more than 5,000 across the country have gone virtual. chicago schools canceled classes for a fourth day amid a standoff with the teachers union over covid patrols. the community calling for a resolution. >> let's put our children first and make them a priority. this impasse needs to end immediately. >> reporter: texas children's hospital has a record number of infected kids, more than 75, including two-year-old jameston rogers who also has leukemia. it had to be nerve wracking for you. >> beyond nerve wracking because he can't tell me what's going on. >> reporter: the chief of critical care says most of the kids here who are vaccine eligible have not had a shot. >> i can tell you with certainty that vaccinated children do not get critically ill from covid and end up in the i.c.u. >> reporter: in light of the serious omicron surge, texas children's hospital has just announced that it will require a booster for all employees starting march 1. and there's an urgent warning from the american academy of pediatrics which says more data is needed to assess just how severe these variant cases are in children. norah. >> o'donnell: janet shamlian with all that new information, thank you. well, a high-stakes meeting between the u.s. and russia has led to no progress, after a day of talks aimed at diffusing tensions over ukraine. and cbs news has learned the u.s. will send an extra $200 million in aid to ukraine with hopes of getting it there by the end of the month. cbs' holly williams is on the front lines with ukrainian troops ready for battle. >> reporter: in freezing conditions, we trekked along ukraine's front line. with training and arms from america, they're fighting ss more than 14,000 people have been reported killed. now there are fears of a russian invasion. >> all my soldiers in this time, ready for battle. >> reporter: you're all ready to die... >> yes. >> reporter: ...to save ukraine from a russian invasion. >> yes, yes. >> reporter: some believe a russian-ground invasion moving in tanks and artillery is unlikely until the ground here frezes over, but here in the trenches, they've told us it could happen at anytime. today in geneva, russian officials claimed they have no plans for attack, despite the massive military buildup. the u.s. side told them to return the troops to barracks or explain what they're doing there. but some here believe russia's president, vladimir putin, is deliberately ratcheting up tensions to extract concessions from the u.s. and allies. >> i think putin is blackmailing president biden and other western leaders because he thinks they can be fooled in this game. >> reporter: in ukraine's capital, kiev, they've renovated bomb shelters in case of attack. a manual filtration system? this one bui lgerheads. russia is demanding security guarantees to diffuse knees tensions. in particular, it wants to prevent ukraine from ever jointing n.a.t.o. a state department official says that demand simply isn't up for discussion. norah. >> o'donnell: tributes are pouring in following the death of bob saget. he was found dead yesterday in a hotel in orlando. he was 65. cbs' jamie yuccas reports. >> reporter: authorities say comedian bob saget had failed to check out of his room at the ritz-carlton orlando sunday. after his family has been unable to contact him, hotel security found the 65-year-old comedian lying in bed face up and not breathing. >> what's going on there? >> we have an unresponsive guest in the room. my source is telling me that there is no pulse. >> reporter: a preliminary investigation found no signs of foul play or drug use. saget had performed near jacksonville the night before, tweeting in the early hours sunday, "loved tonight's show, appreciative audience." >> girls, i am taking all three of you out for father-daughter day. >> reporter: known as america's dad, saget played danny tanner, a father raising three girls on "full house." >> you're so corny. >> reporter: also the first host of and invisible narrator on the cbs hit "how i met your mother." in addition to his wholesome tv image, saget was known for raunchy and sometimes dark humor as a standup comedian. >> we made these children my wife and i, which -- >> reporter: comedy legend norman lear considered saget a friend. do you think he was always meant to be a comedian? >> he could have been anything. it's our good fortune that he stumbled into comedy. >> reporter: in a recent interview with cbs' dr. jon lapook, he reflected on grief after the loss of his sister. >> humor is the only way my family survived. >> reporter: humor he had begun to develop at just four years old. >> i would dance in the living room and just start dancing, dancing stupid. i've got to perform, got to make people laugh. >> reporter: the coroner completed his autopsy today. the investigation is still ongoing and can take up to 12 weeks to complete. meanwhile, saget is survived by his wife and three daughters. norah. >> o'donnell: jamie yuccas, thank you. well, tonight, the world's top tennis player is out of detention in australia and vowing to play in the australian open next week, but the australian government is warning the fight is far from over. here's cbs' roxana saberi. >> reporter: on the streets of melbourne, fans celebrated the serbian star's victory in court. >> he won, djokovic won! >> reporter: and he wasted no time getting back on court to train, tweeting, "despite all that has happened, i want to compete at the australian open." the government is warning it may still deport novak djokovic, even after a judge today ordered it to restore his visa. djokovic had told a border official he wasn't vaccinated for covid-19 but had received a medical exemption adding, "i applied, they approved, i just really don't know what else do you want me to say." the judge appeared to agree, but the government argued prior infection is not a valid reason to delay vaccination. >> rules are rules, and there are no special cases. >> reporter: the tournament is set to begin on monday. if djokovic is deported before then he could be barred from reentering the country for another three years. norah. >> o'donnell: roxana saberi, thank you. tonight, cbs news learned the red cross is declaring a national blood crisis for the first time, and tomorrow will ask people to donate immediately, that lives are at risk. this is an historic shortage, the worst in more than a decade and the ramifications are unimaginable as doctors are being forced to make tough un decisions on who should get blood and who needs to wait. no 11-year-old should have to worry about the nation's blood supply, but dreylan holmes does. how does having sickle cell disease affect you? >> sometimes i can't get out of bed. >> o'donnell: just before thanksgiving, dreylan was severely anemic and needed a transfusion, but was forced to wait two days. what was that wait like? >> very scary, because that was actually the first time that we didn't know when the blood was coming. >> o'donnell: dr. jennifer andrews runs the blood bank at vanderbilt university medical center and treats kids with blood disorders. how is your hospital's blood supply? >> it's dire. >> o'donnell: and it means that a child who has leukemia may not get the transfusion that they need? >> that's correct, and, also, there's nothing else i can give them. there is no other alternative to blood. >> o'donnell: this is what her blood bank looked like pre- covid. this is what it often looks like now. >> i would urge your viewers to remember that they might need blood. nobody wakes up in the morning and plans on being the next trauma patient. so, this literally could affect you or your family members. >> o'donnell: the red cross tries to have a five-day supply of blood. in recent weeks, it's been down to less than one. what does it mean for dreylan when people give blood? >> it means he gets to feeling better a lot quicker and it means he can fight another day. >> o'donnell: you've really inspired me, so thank you. well, i was so inspired by dreylan that i'm going to give blood later this week, and i hope you will join me. we have resources for donating blood on our web site, cbsnews.com/blood. and if you donate, tag us and use the hashtag "give with me." tonight ahead on "cbs evening transplant, how a pig-- a pig-- saved a man's life. e. if i have something to help me breathe better, everything will be fun and nice. but i still have bad days... flare-ups, (cough cough) which can permanently damage my lungs. my lungs need protection against flare-ups. so it's time to get real. because in the real world... our lungs deserve the real protection of breztri. breztri gives you better breathing... symptom improvement, and flare-up protection. it's the first and only copd medicine proven to reduce flare-ups by 52%. breztri won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. it is not for asthma. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition... or high blood pressure before taking it. don't take breztri more than prescribed. breztri may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling... problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. for real protection, ask your doctor about breztri. [ doorbell rings ] oh! there's my little nephew. he looks more like dad every time i see him. -dad is old. -right. so, your message said you wanted to talk about insurance? i said, "i want you to talk about insurance." -kyiword -sav m did you know that new wh a sav? shh. sleeping baby. i love you, too. your shipping manager left to “find themself.” leaving you lost. 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 do you take aspirin? plain aspirin could be hurting your stomach. new vazalore is the first liquid-filled aspirin capsule clinically shown to cause fewer ulcers than plain aspirin. vazalore is designed to help protect... releasing aspirin after it leaves your stomach... where it is absorbed to give you the benefits of life saving aspirin... to help prevent another heart attack or stroke. heart protection with your stomach in mind. try new liquid-filled vazalore. aspirin made amazing! >> o'donnell: well, th >> o'donnell: well, there's medical history tonight at the university of maryland. a 57-year-old patient there is the first human to have the heart of a gene-edited pig beating inside his chest. it was a risky nine-hour surgery. doctors implanted the heart from a one-year-old pig that was genetically engineered and bred specifically for this purpose, saving human lives. what an advance. tonight, several los angeles police officers are being called heroes after racing to rescue the pilot of a small plane who made an emergency landing on train tracks. seconds after the pilot was pulled out, a commuter train smashed into the plane. the pilot was rushed to the hospital.lot was rushed to luckily, no one was hurt. tonight, women are bringing historic change to your wallet. the u.s. mint is shipping out the first of five new u.s. quarters coming out this year. first up is poet, writer and civil rights icon maya angelou. she's on the tails side. on the heads side is a new image of george washington. next month, sally ride, the first american woman in space. i'm going to start carrying change around. up next, cooking up healthy meals and bright futures in harlem. my hygienist cleans with a round head. so does my oral-b my hygienist personalizes my cleaning. so does my oral-b oral-b delivers the wow of a professional clean feel every day. look, this isn't my first rodeo and let me tell you something, i wouldn't be here if i thought reverse mortgages took advantage of any american senior, or worse, that it was some way to take your home. it's just a loan designed for older homeowners, and, it's helped over a million americans. a reverse mortgage loan isn't some kind of trick to take your home. it's a loan, like any other. big difference is how you pay it back. find out how reverse mortgages really work with aag's free, no-obligation reverse mortgage guide. eliminate monthly mortgage payments, pay bills, medical costs, and more. call now and get your free info kit. other mortgages are paid each month, but with a reverse mortgage, you can pay whatever you can, when it works for you, or, you can wait, and pay it off in one lump sum when you leave discover the option that's best for you. call today and find out more in aag's free, no-obligation reverse mortgage loan guide. access tax-free cash and stay in the home you love. you've probably been investing in your home making monthly mortgage payments... doing the and it's become your family's heart and well, that investment can give you tax-free cash just when you need it. learn how homeowners are strategically using a reverse mortgage loan to cover expenses, pay for healthcare, preserve your portfolio, and so much more. look, reverse mortgages aren't for everyone but i think i've been 'round long enough to know what's what. i'm proud to be part of aag, i trust 'em, i think you can too. trust aag for the best reverse mortgage solutions. call now so you can... retire better >> o'donnell: a new york city program ha found the perfect recipe for helping kids in the kitchen and in life. cbs' michael george reports. >> reporter: this basketball court in harlem is a makeshift kitchen for a group of young chefs in the making. ten-year-old messiah franklin- johnson is learning how to grow and cook veggies, thanks to the nonprofit harlem grown. messiah are you getting pretty good at cooking? >> i am. >> be sure you stir everything or else it's going to burn. >> i don't want it to burn. >> reporter: they're using fresh, local produce-- not easy to find in many communities. what are the options for families in this neighborhood to eat? >> few and far between, usually fast, cheap, empty calories and unhealthy. >> reporter: harlem grown's under tony says food deserts where nutrition options are scarce lead to a lifetime of health problems. >> it is hot, y'all. >> you see this in every poor community in this country, it's not black, white and brown, but it is poor. >> reporter: here, kids get their first taste of their own healthy cooking. it smells really good. >> thank you. >> delicious. >> reporter: do you think it's important for kids to eat healthy? >> yes, because if you eat healthy and you keep on inspiring more people to be healthy and soon enough the whole world's just going to be healthy. >> reporter: going home with a full stomach and a little food for thought. michael george, cbs news, new york. >> o'donnell: i am all for that. we'll be right back. superpowers from a spider bite? i could use some help showing the world how liberty mutual customizes their car insurance. ow! i'm ok! only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ only in theaters december 17th. i'm always up for what's next, even with higher stroke risk due to afib not caused by a heart valve problem. so if there's a better treatment than warfarin i'll go after that. eliquis. eliquis reduces stroke risk better than warfarin and has less major bleeding than warfarin. eliquis has both. don't stop taking eliquis without talking to your doctor as this may increase your risk of stroke. eliquis can cause serious and in rare cases fatal bleeding. don't take eliquis if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. while taking, you may bruise more easily or take longer for bleeding to stop. get help right away for unexpected bleeding, or unusual bruising. it may increase your bleeding risk if you take certain medicines. tell your doctor about all planned medical or dental procedures. the number one cardiologist-prescribed blood thinner. ask your doctor about eliquis. i'm greg, i'm 68 years old. i do motivational speaking the number one cardiologist-prescribed in addition to the substitute teaching. i honestly feel that that's my calling-- to give back to younger people. i think most adults will start realizing that they don't recall things as quickly as they used to or they don't remember things as vividly as they once did. i've been taking prevagen for about three years now. people say to me periodically, "man, you've got a memory like an elephant." it's really, really helped me tremendously. prevagen. healthier brain. better life. what can i du with less asthma? with dupixent, i can du more....beginners' yoga. namaste... ...surprise parties. aww, you guys. dupixent helps prevent asthma attacks... ...for 3!... ...so i can du more of the things i love. dupixent is not for sudden breathing problems. it's an add-on-treatment for specific types of moderate-to-severe asthma that can improve lung function for better breathing in as little as two weeks. and can reduce, or even eliminate, oral steroids. and here's something important. dupixent can cause serious allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. get help right away if you have rash, shortness of breath, chest pain, tingling or numbness in your limbs. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection, and don't change or stop your asthma treatments, including steroids, without talking to your doctor. are you ready to du more with less asthma? just ask your asthma specialist about dupixent. this is antonelli's cheese shop, and we're the antonellis! we chose our new spark cash plus card from capital one because we earn unlimited two percent cash back on every purchase. and with no preset spending limit, our purchasing power adapts to our business needs. what's in your wallet? >> o'donnell: on tomorrow's "cbs evening news," instead of closing schools, how about moving class outside? a growing movement to combat covid that has other benefits. and if you can't watch us live, don't forget to set your dvr so that you can watch us later. that's tonight's "cbs evening news." thank you for starting your week with us. i'm norah o'donnell in our nation's capitol. good night. right now at 7:00. >> if you feel sick or you have been exposed get tested but you cannot get a test. that is a problem. >> covid-19 testing trouble across the bay area tonight. why some sites are even more backed up than usual. others are telling test seekers not to bother trying. here in hayward, people were waiting hours for a covid- 19 test but then the computer system went down and they were sent home. >> the system is still unstable. >> frustrated. extremely frustrated. expanded covid-19 testing is a big part of the governor's new budget proposal but he is setting aside seven times the funding for another part of his plan. meanwhile, a lot of bay area schools are facing a tough decision tonight. stay open to students, or go remote? >> i walked closer and looked right up and it was looking right down at me. >> reporter: a bay area women's close encounter with a very big cat. tonight, california's test positive the average has soared past 22% as macron surges and thousands rush to get swabbed. and nationwide computer problem at a bay area-based lab left people seeking test standing in long lines for nothing. the problem at palo alto- based color labs for san francisco to shut down half a dozen test sites for the day. as kpix 5's ondrea borba reports, that was not the only reason the city's testing capacity hit its limit today. andria? >> reporter: elizabeth and brian, this was a two-pronged problem here in the city and county of sentences go, today. there was first problems with staffing at the testing site and reduced hours because of that. because a computer issue hit which set down test si