billboard music awards when miguel slammed into her head. you got see the jaw dropping video. >> it's not pretty. >> it's monday, may 20, 2013. "starting point" begins right now. good morning, everyone. i'm john berman. >> and i'm zoraida sambolin. we'll begin with breaking news this morning. we're getting in shall estimates that at that rash of violent storms damaged or destroyed 300 homes in oklahoma. we'll show you a tornado now that hit central oklahoma. look at that, bearing down on the city of shawnee. one man who lived in a trailer park in the area has died. about a dozen others injured. these twisters tearing roofs off homes, took down power lines and trees. tornado reports stretched through the country's mid-section. look that map. oklahoma, missouri, kansas, iowa, illinois. a huge swath of the country affected. nick valencia is in the hard hit shawnee, oklahoma. good morning, nick. what are you seeing there this morning? >> reporter: good morning. we would like to show our viewers inside the trailer park. but authorities have too much to do and too much on their hands. but if this gives the view ears sense of how powerful this storm was, this was a tree that was completely ripped from the ground. you can hear the roar as this half mile wide tornado tears across the land, headed straight towards shawnee, oklahoma. there were more than two dozen reports of tornadoes from oklahoma to iowa sunday, more than 45 homes damaged, at least one person killed and a dozen injured. >> it's coming up on the houses here. >> reporter: the hardest hit a trailer park near shawnee, oklahoma. houses demolished. our affiliate john welsh said he's never seen anything like it. >> when you came over the shawnee trailer park to begin, were you not a bit astounded at the amount offing devastation there? >> i'm used to seeing trees ripped up but the house usually there. this was gone. everything was just gone. like you took the house, you put it in a gigantic blender, turn on pulse for a couple of minutes and dump it out. >> reporter: rescue workers scrambled through the devastation to find survivors. >> there were tree limbs flying we hunkered down and hoped for the best. >> reporter: i-40 was littered with debris as two semis were overturned np 18 wheeler blue off the overpalace and flattened. overnight video of the rescue crew tossing debris around trying to find victims. >> my brother-in-law called me and i was at home. he said a tree fell on my mother's house and i needed to pick her up. she's 79 years old. she's diabetic. she's blind. >> reporter: the oklahoma governor declared a state of emergency in 16 counties. residents fortunate enough to get underground were in utter disbelief when they surfaced. >> we were in the storm shelter, and it was like a lot of pressure in our ears. the top came off. there's 13 people living in our house. and it ripped off the top of the storm shelter. sound like a train and after all the noise, then when we came out the house and everything, the trees and the electric, we said we'll be trapped there all night. >> reporter: tornados ripped through three other states, illinois, kansas and iowa. in kansas downed power lines and hail the size of golf balls covered the ground as this tornado blew through wichita. >> it was very eerie. very dark. the sky got really dark. we went to the cellar and we were so thankful. we also had our brains and knew to go. >> reporter: a sigh of relief as two missing residents from shawnee trailer park were found. more storms are expected throughout the rest of the day. this morning i spoke to the american red cross. they estimate 200 homes destroyed or damaged here. they put that number at about 300 statewide. a lot of damage. >> nick valencia, thank you very much. the threat of tornadoes is not over yet. our meteorologist, new addition to our crew is indra petersons. where are they headed? >> today is the potential to be as bad as yesterday. 500,000 square miles under severe weather threat today. what does that mean? means 55 million of you have the potential to see the severe weather and even a moderate risk area encompassing 5 million stretching from texas to missouri. so definitely a tough day ahead of us. unfortunately it looks like this threat will stay with us. slow moving system. so really for the next couple of days we'll have to remain vigilante. keep in mind when you're not under severe weather threat and have a slight risk you have potential tor strong tornado to come and push on through. we saw ef-4 tornado pushing through granbury, texas last week. tornado chasers from base hunters chasing were in the thick of the storm. look at these pictures. simply extraordinary and terrifying footage of the twisters in kansas. let's stop for a second and watch the close up of the rotation here. >> we're right at the funnel. panning back down. almost too close. i can't zoom out and get the whole thing in the shot. panning up the funnel, looking almost right overhead. >> that really is amazing. i'm not sure i've seen pictures that vivid.chasers are joining s now. give us a sense what it was like to be so close to such a huge storm. >> wow. it's pretty incredible. it's a feeling that can't be matched. you're feeling the power of nature, you know, right in front of you. but at the same time it's a scary hunter because you know the power it can hold and damage it can cause. >> how close you were to that? >> i would estimate at the closest a little less than half a mile. when the tornado hit the house we were probably about three quarters of a mile to a mile away from it. >> did you ever feel you were a little too close you were in a danger zone? >> not really. this particular tornado, it was really a slow moving storm and the tornado was slow moving itself. so we had plenty of time to get out of its path, although it was, had some very wobbly motion to it so we made sure we kept our distance and had time to move if we needed to. >> looked like one of the funnel clouds was particularly big and particularly loud. i want to take a look at this one section of this video. >> wow. that's a long rope. goes way back. connects way up. they are saying in the storm way up here. there it goes in the storm. the rope goes all the way back to the west. segmented and then on the ground. >> look at that funnel. look at that storm cloud twisting up in the air like that. have you guys ever seen anything like this before? >> well, i was on a storm chaser back on february 10th when i got the hattiesburg, mississippi tornado. a lot of debris loft in the air. earlier in the season we got that. we do see on occasion because we get close to the tornadoes. and so we do see that very quite often. >> i guess we're glad you're that close. the images are awe inst. petersburg but terrified as we watch it. what pushes the three of you towards these feats of nature? >> well, our number one purpose is to get great footage and photos. that's the main part of our company. but on top of that our other passion is also reporting to the weather service and other sources to warn of the danger that might be coming. so we make that our number one priority as a storm chaser. >> since you guys do this for a living how do you compare this to other tornadoes that you've seen? >> well, on the front of damage, it was pretty fortunate it only really destroyed one structure as opposed to say the tornadoes that occurred this past sunday, yesterday. that destroyed so many homes and businesses across a more concentrated swath of population. but as far as tornado footage, it's up there for us. it was good close footage, steady shots. it was pretty incredible tornado. >> i know danger is your business, guys, but even as you were looking at it at one point you seemed out the ear little bit of a prayer. i want to listen. >> people stay safe. oh, no. it's hitting the house. there goes the house. i hope they are okay. >> you have a sense of how much warning people there had that these storms were on the way? >> the storm had been tornado warned for not quite sure how long. couldn't keep track. but they have been warned for a while. the tornado is slow moving. when we went up to the hours we were the first people there, there were two occupants in the house. they were both okay. no scratches or bruises so i think they had time to get shelter. >> that's great news that they had the warning to make themselves safe. >> incredible. i heard you say i hope they are okay. typically when all of this is over you're seeing a lot of damage, a lot of destruction. how does this affect you emotionally? >> it can be really tough. i mean obviously you never want to see a tornado hit a structure. when it does the first thing in my mind i hope they got shelter, i hope they are okay. of course when we see structures hit around where we're filming our first response after that is to make sure everybody is okay. we find everyone untouched and only damage done is to their property. >> we're glad you're okay. dangerous business you guys work in. we're glad you're okay and the people in that house you checked out were okay. you guys have some amazing pictures. thanks so much. >> thanks for the images. >> 12 minutes after the hour. three major scandals intending to weigh down the white house. the benghazi talking points, taping of reporters phone records and the targeting of conservative groups by the irs. what has it done to erode people's confidence in the government, in the president? we have some brand new poll numbers out this morning to talk to you about. cnn national correspondent jim acosta live at the white house this morning. good morning, jim. >> reporter: good morning. the white house has a sliver of good news with the new cnn/orc poll showing president's approval numbers holding up despite this triple trouble for the obama administration. but it depends on how this drags on. as president obama escaped the white house to delive a commencement speech in a steady rain at moorehouse college in atlanta, republicans were still pouring it on. >> there's a culture of intimidation throughout the administration. >> reporter: top gop leaders fanned out on the sunday talk shows. >> who knew, when did they know, why did they do this. >> they want to drag washington into a swamp of partisan fishing expedition. >> reporter: dan pfeiffer was asked time and again when did the president find out about it? >> when it came out on the news a week ago friday. here's why. because, here's the cardinal rule in situations like these. not just for this white house but all white houses. is you don't interfere in an independent investigation. >> reporter: the scandal hasn't damaged the president's approval rating. a deeper look at the numbers finds public remains concerned about the irs along with the questions about benghazi and government seizure of phone records from associated press journalists. after his address to college graduates on sunday the president told a democratic fundraiser it's him versus washington. >> sometimes you feel as if washington is impeding rather than advancing the possibilities that these young people represent. >> reporter: as for who knew what when the white house is acknowledging the white house counsel was told that the inspector general's office was conducting this audit, looking into those allegations of political targeting at the irs. she did not have the draft report but was informed of the general nature of that inquiry but it does appear the white house is taking a more aggressive stance with all of these controversies on one of the sunday talk shows yesterday, the top adviser dan pfeiffer said republicans owe susan rice the u.n. ambassador an apology over benghazi. that's not like try to happen. >> clearly the white house trying to play some offense on these three scandals. thanks so much. you bet. >> new video to show you this morning. dramatic pictures from turkey. one person was killed early this morning when two hot air balloons collided in mid-air. you can see one of the balloons going down right there. these balloons were flying above several volcanic cones at a popular tourist destination in central turkey. one balloon struck the other from the top causing the second one to go down right there. you can see it again on the ground there fruitering. at least 18 people were injured in the crash. nine people were seriously injured. >> ahead on "starting point," we all want to know who won the nearly $600 million powerball, right? so we went to zephyr hills, florida to see if we could find the person. you're watching "starting point". ow appreciative people are when you tell them they could save a lot of money on their car insurance by switching to geico...they may even make you their best man. may i have the rings please? ah, helzberg diamonds. nice choice, mate. ...and now in the presence of these guests we join this loving couple. oh dear... geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. ♪ [ male announcer ] how do you engineer a true automotive breakthrough? ♪ you give it bold styling, unsurpassed luxury and nearly 1,000 improvements. the redesigned 2013 glk. see your authorized mercedes-benz dealer for exceptional offers through mercedes-benz financial services. . welcome back to "starting point". the fbi is releasing new details about a training exercise that killed two special agents. they were members of the elite hostage rescue team. the men were part of the critical incident response group. so far there's no word on how the agents died. >> police on long island say the officer who accidentally shot and killed a student did not know a hostage situation was under way. the officer opened fire early friday morning on home invasion suspect dalton smith after smith allegedly point ad gun at him. smith was holding 21-year-old student andrea rebelo in a head lock. rebelo was remembered during sunday's graduate ceremonies. >> please join us in a moment of silence in her memory. >> at the time of the shooting the suspect dalton smith was wanted for jumping parole. rough day ahead for northeast rail commuter as a key section of the track remains closed following a collision. ntsb investigators are focusing on a broken rail as a possible cause for the crash which injured 70 people. five remain hospitalized. one is in serious condition. a long stretch of track in connecticut remains indefinitely affecting metro north and amtrak service from new york to boston. it's going to be a mess up and down the northeast corridor to be sure. the billboard music awards kicked it up a notch. miguel went airborne. he slammed into two women. brace yourself for this. >> oh. >> he kicked it in high gear. >> that's awful. oh, man i can't get over it. if you're going to try a maneuver like that make sure you stick it. one woman laughed this off back stage and interviewed with miguel with an ice pack on her arm. the other young woman took the worst of it. we don't know how she's doing this morning. >> i think miguel thought that was the woman who he hit. >> as for who won awards taylor swift was red hot. take to you l.a. in 20 minutes and tell you how many statues she walked away with. >> she has so many of those statues. >> ahead on "starting point," talk of the country, who won the powerball this weekend? we're live in zephyr hills, florida where the winning ticket was sold. >> who has it? >> don't know. call us. let us know. i am an american success story. i'm a teacher. i'm a firefighter. i'm a carpenter. i'm an accountant. a mechanical engineer. and i shop at walmart. truth is, over sixty percent of america shops at walmart every month. i find what i need, at a great price. and the money i save goes to important things. braces for my daughter. a little something for my son's college fund. when people look at me, i hope they see someone building a better life. vo: living better: that's the real walmart. it's the single largest powerball drawing ever, $590 million we can report this morning. >> a lot of money. >> yes, it is. it went to the holder of one ticket in zephyr hills florida,. someone without it at this grocery store but so far no one has come forward to claim the winnings. who has that ticket? john zarella is in zephyr hills, florida where i believe speculation is running wild this morning? >> reporter: yeah. you know, it's funny yesterday morning when we first got here people were coming up to us what are you guys going on, what are you here? later in the afternoon people were taking pictures of us and publix. still nobody knows who the winner is. this is the zephyr hills, florida publix. this is where someone we don't know who yet bought a single winning ticket in the richest powerball after, $590.5 million. some shoppers had no idea the ticket was purchased here or already had relatives calling. >> i'm hearing from relatives all over the country. >> wanting to know if you that have winning ticket. >> absolutely that i haven't heard from in years. i told them you have to buy a ticket. and i didn't. >> did you win the powerball? >> let's see. >> check the ticket. >> no it wasn't me. >> wasn't you >> that's all i got. >> the winner has 60 days to claim the cash pay out prize and show up at florida lottery headquarters in tallahassee to collect. the winner can take an immediate cash pay out of $377 million after taxes or a smaller pay out now followed by yearly pay outs over the next 29 years. in a statement, publix made it clear it was letting the media drive the who won it speculation. publix said quote we offer the lottery as a service to our customers however we do not promote the lottery nor do we participate in lottery stories. we're excited for the winner and respect their privacy as well. privacy for the winner? that won't last long. by florida law once he, she or they come forward the name is public. now, hopefully whoever has the ticket is doing the right thing, getting the lawyer, getting the accountants and getting their house in order before they go total all tt to tallahassee. and just in case lightning strikes twice in zephyr hills, i bought a ticket but only 40 million. >> always prepared. that's what we love about you. ahead on "starting point," just some awful damage this morning after dozens of tornadoes ripped through five states. we're going to look at the devastation live. then she was not supposed to be on the plane. we'll hear from one of the passengers on the us air weighs plane that forced to land on its belly this weekend. what it was like inside that cabin right after the break. you're watching "starting point". we went out and asked people a simple question: how old is the oldest person you've known? we gave people a sticker and had them show us. we learned a lot of us have known someone who's lived well into their 90s. and that's a great thing. but even though we're living longer, one thing that hasn't changed much is the official retirement age. ♪ the question is how do you make sure you have the money you need to enjoy all of these years. ♪ welcome back to "starting point," everyone. april lot going on this morning. i'm john berman. >> i'm zoraida sambolin. u.s. heartland gets hammered. threat of severe weather isn't over in many spots. initial estimates show some 300 homes were damaged or destroyed in oklahoma. this massive tornado bore down in the city of shawnee. one man died. tornado threats stretched through the country's mid-section. oklahoma, missouri, kansas and iowa. value is in shawnee, oklahoma. >> reporter: the sun has come up here in shawnee county and we're getting a better sense of the devastation. homes damaged destroyed. you mentioned 300 homes destroyed throughout the state. this story is about people. it's about people like kimberly graham. she joins us. she's a resident from this trailer park. she's wearing the clothes she fled