good monday morning. a mixed bag of weather creating problems for people across the country. >> strong winds, spring snow and at least one damaging tornado. take a look at this picture of a street in nebraska. the left side shows the before on the right, the after. >> you can see the damage left behind following a strong twister. abc's larry jacobs has the details. >> reporter: several tornadoes sliced in nebraska blowing down buildings and trees damaging power poles and irrigation systems. >> look out there. you see it? there it is. >> i just got my truck. >> reporter: the town of sutton in southeastern nebraska suffered the heaviest damage, at least two homes were destroyed. twisters accompanied by large hail and strong winds. the colorado rockies hit with up to a foot of snow on mother's day, the wet, heavy snow forcing many road closures along interstate 70 west of denver. icy conditions being blamed on many car accidents, the snow extending all the way into utah. people are without power in cedar city, utah. across the southwest, powerful wind gusts up to 70 miles an hour are toppling trees from texas to southern california, even crushing this car. >> the angry then the crying and now it's just we're blessed, though, because we have good homeowner's insurance. we have good car insurance. >> reporter: and there's no end in sight. the national weather service says this kind of severe spring weather could end until the last of june. larry jacobs, abc news, new york. all right, well, those gusty winds larry mentioned are helping fuel a devastating wildfire in the panhandle. dozens of homes have been destroyed by the blaze that broke out late yesterday afternoon. hundreds of residents have been evacuated overnight. firefighters managed to get the wildfire 50% contained, but the extent of the damage is still unknown. >> it's a disaster, and many people have lost their homes. the crews were able to go back into the area, and they're starting the search of these to try to determine the extent of injuries, if we have any. and there are also no reports of any deaths. no word on what started the fire. thousands of homes are still threatened, but overnight some evacuees were allowed to go home. well, residents in other parts of the middle third of the country will be dealing with severe weather emergencies today. >> meanwhile, the east and the west, they will see near-record temperatures. accuweather's jim dickey has the forecast. good morning, jim. >> good morning, john and diana. tracking a powerful storm system here this morning bringing a wide range of impacts across the nation's midsection into the rockies. dangerous thunderstorms fired throughout the day on sunday bringing gusty winds, large hail, tornadoes and farther up to the west across the rockies, snowfall. some of that on the heavier side continues to fall through these morning hours winding down in the afternoon not before spots off to the west of denver, the front range of the rockies picking up 12 to 24 inches, 1 to 2 feet of snow. now, again, strong storms expected once again. not quite the tornado threat we saw on sunday but widespread gusty winds, large hail from detroit and chicago all the way south into dallas. keep it mild across the east. feeling like summer here and temperatures continue to climb as we head through the week across the west. john and diana, back to you. >> jim, thank you. both of the embattled owners of the los angeles clippers are speaking out this morning. shelly sterling tells abc's barbara walters that her estranged husband is in the onset of dementia. >> and she says even if donald sterling is forced to sell the team because of his controversial comments, she should be able to retain the 50% that she owns. >> mrs. sterling, you own 50% of the l.a. clippers. the nba may insist that the team be sold. what would you do then? >> well, that's -- i'm fighting for my 50%. >> well, there are reports that the nba wants to oust you completely as a team owner. you'll fight that decision. >> i will fight that decision. >> what does the team mean to you? >> it means a lot. i've been with the team for 33 years, through the good times and the bad times, and it's my passion, and i love it. >> do you support the nba decision to ban your husband? >> i can't comment on that. i was shocked by what he said and, you know, i guess whatever their decision is, we have to live with it. >> all right, just hours later the nba responded with this statement, "under the nba constitution, if a controlling owner's interest is terminated by a three-quarter vote, all other team owners' interests are automatically terminated, as well." >> it goes on to say, "it doesn't matter whether the owners are related as is the says here. these are the rules to which all nba owners agreed to as a condition of owning their team." as for donald sterling, he's asking for forgiveness. in an interview with cnn's anderson cooper, the clippers owners says he's "not a racist." he says he loves the league, his partners and believes he's "entitled to one mistake after more than three decades as an owner." "i made a terrible mistake. i'm here to apologize." that's what sterling told cooper. >> and there, of course, will be much more on shelly sterling's interview later this morning on "good morning america." and now overseas. violence broke out as voters in eastern ukraine went to the polls on sunday. at least two people were killed when ukrainian forces opened fire on a pro-russian crowd fueling fears that a civil war is spreading. results of the election are expected to be announced later today, but pro-russian insurgents say they won overwhelmingly. a provincial governor in nigeria says he has information on the whereabouts of about 200 girls kidnapped there. he doesn't think there have been any taken out of the country. meantime, protests are mounting in nigeria with many wondering why the government hasn't done more to find them. transgender advocates are welcoming new comments from defense secretary chuck hagel. in an interview with abc's "this week," hagel made it clear that the military's ban on transgender people is under consideration, but he stopped short of saying the policy should be overturned. >> i do think it continually should be reviewed. i'm open to that, by the way. i'm open to those assessments because, again, i go back to the bottom line. every qualified american who wants to serve our country should have an opportunity if they fit the qualifications and can do it. >> hagel said allowing transgenders to serve openly in the armed forces is more complicated than lifting the ban on gays because transgenders require medical attention that cannot always be provided in certain locations. well, one of america's most iconic landmarks re-opens today. the washington monument has been closed since august 2011 when an earthquake rocked the capital and sent panicked tourists running down the stairs. crews have since inspected 36,000 stones and they repaired more than 150 cracks. later today visitors will once again climb to the top to see those stunning views. all right. coming up, new this morning, more fallout for general motors following massive recalls and an investigation. plus, fiery crash this morning. we are learning more about the people on board that hot air balloon that drifted into the power lines and caught fire. and the kiss and now controversy. michael sam and his boyfriend celebrate his historic draft into the nfl, but it's what another player tweeted about their embrace that's making headlines. forged out of bravery, sacrifice, and duty. from all corners of the country, a family for life. ♪ but whether they served in lands far away or communities close to home, some of these men and women may face difficult times or even crisis. but sometimes reaching out for help can be the most challenging and worthwhile mission of all. thankfully, friends, family, and communities are standing by their service members and veterans now more than ever. ♪ we're all in this together. when you recognize something isn't right, make the call to the veterans crisis line or military crisis line. during times of crisis, reach out and call. dial 1-800-273-8255 and press 1. welcome back. we're going to get another look at the state of the economy this week when major retailers report their first earnings. consumer spending is considered a major driver of the u.s. economy. some stores say sales were off because of the harsh winter weather. walmart also blames a cut in food stamp benefits. we're also going to hear from jcpenney's, dillard's, kohl's and nordstrom's. there's another black eye for gm this morning. gm suppliers say it's the automaker they least like to deal with of the top six in the country. the companies say they don't trust gm. it doesn't communicate well and it's least likely to allow them to raise prices when materials get more expensive. toyota, by the way, is their favorite. and new york city is a favorite of billionaires apparently. it has 43 of them, but that's only third best in the world. just ahead of the big apple is moscow with 48. but the city with the most billionaires by far is london with 72. britain also has more billionaires per person than any other country. >> who knew? >> who knew. and watch out, oreos. your challenger is coming back. leaf brands plans to reintroduce the once popular chocolate sandwich cookie in the fall. hydrox debuted four years before oreo, but it hasn't been made in years. the maker of oreo is not worried. >> i remember those when i was a kid. >> it wasn't a neighborly thing to do but "neighbors" bumped off "spider-man" this weekend. the r-rated comedy about a frat house invading a community starring seth rogen and zac efron, "neighbors" opened with $51 million. your friendly neighborhood spider-man came in with $37 million and "the other woman" was left at the altar with $9 million. all right, when we come back, together forever. an amazing image that's going viral of two twins moments after their birth. and child's play. an nhl hockey player fined thousands of dollars for his sideline antics. first you get hit by psoriasis. and now you get hit again. this time by joint pain. it's a double whammy. it could psoriatic arthritis a chronic inflammatory disease that attacks your joints on the inside and your skin on the outside. if you've been hit by... find out more about psoriatic arthritis. take the symptom quiz at doublewhammy.com and talk to your doctor. give him the calorie smart is a nutrition of beneful healthy weight. with wholesome rice,real chicken,soy, and accents of vitamin rich veggies. plus a taste he loves. beneful healthy weight from purina. ghirardelli squares chocolate... ♪ a little rendezvous savor our luscious filling combined with our slow melting chocolate. ♪ that little reward for all the things you do. ♪ only from ghirardelli. a powerful spring storm dumped more than a foot of snow on parts of colorado and wyoming putting a damper on mother's day plans and this morning's commute, the winter storm warning still in effect, and snow showers are expected. taking a look at road conditions, a 400-mile stretch of interstate 80 in wyoming is closed. highways in the middle of the country from the great lakes all the way down to the gulf coast wet as well as those in the northeast. all right, and if you're flying, pack your patience in these cities. delays are possible in minneapolis, denver, dallas, kansas city, chicago and detroit. the bodies of all three victims of that hot air balloon crash in virginia have been recovered, and we now know their names. >> passengers ginny doyle and natalie lewis were friends and members of the athletic staff at the university of richmond. family members identified the pilot as daniel kirk who had decades of peeks ernest. witnesses to the crash are still stunned by what they saw. >> and we thought that the balloon would just catch fire and land in the field but instead it just kept rising. >> you could hear them screaming please, dear god, sweet jesus, help us, we're going to die, oh, my god, please help us. please help us. >> collisions with electrical wires are a real risk of hot air balloon flight. the faa and the ntsb have been pushing for more regulation of the industry. both agencies are now investigating the crash. sadly yesterday was graduation day at the university of richmond, and the chaplain led the families in a moment of silence for the two women who worked at the school and who died in the balloon accident. well, the coast guard has pulled off a dramatic rescue to save two cruise ship passengers off the coast of north carolina. the man and woman plucked from the carnival "splendor" yesterday and airlifted to the hospital. they're both now in stable condition. all right, well, little leaguers in san antonio ran for the dugout as a single-engine plane crash-landed just past the outfield. the pilot told authorities he lost power on approach to the airport. at about 700 feet it became clear he wasn't going to make it to the landing field. it was an anxious few moments for the coach, parents and those players. >> the parents were yelling watch out for the kids. and we looked and saw the plane came down sideways and land in the parking lot. >> i heard some kind of motor running, and then i looked at the wolfpack coaches, and they were like, "look out," and i turned around. it was like 50 feet in the air and then i just saw it crash. >> the pilot was able to walk away from that crash, though he did go to the hospital and was checked out. well, a tender moment in the delivery room for the parents of newborn twins in akron, ohio. the identical twin girls were actually born holding hands. the mom sara thistlewaite had a tough pregnancy. she was on bed rest because the girls were a rare set of so-called mono mono twins. it means that they shared the same amniotic sac and were in constant contact in the womb. >> it was so awesome. they were holding hands and so great to hear them both cry. >> what was going through my mind, i don't know. i couldn't think. i started tearing up immediately. it was just -- it was beautiful. >> we hear that there wasn't any dry eyes in the room. this morning sisters jenna and jillian are doing great. >> how cute are they? oh, my gosh. all right. moving on to this now, miami dolphins safety don jones has been fined and will undergo educational training after sending a negative tweet about michael sam, the first openly gay player to be selected in the nfl draft. shortly after the rams took sam in the seventh round saturday, espn showed the player kissing his boyfriend. well, jones then tweeted "omg" and "horrible." the tweets were taken down a short time later. he has since apologized. and the national hockey league is fining shawn thornton for unsportsmanlike conduct. with less than a minute to go in saturday night's game, boston bruins forward squirted a montreal defenseman with a water bottle as he skated by the bench. the bruins already had the game in hand. they won 4-2 and take a 3-2 lead in the playoff series. not cool. >> not cool. all right. time now for some more sports. the nba playoffs heating up with the clippers pulling 0 of a huge win. >> here are our friends at espn with all the highlights. >> good morning, america. welcome inside "sportscenter." i'm john buccigross. on sunday afternoon, the l.a. clippers pulled off a big comeback to even their series with the oklahoma city thunder. here it is. down by one, jamal crawford hits the three. the first lead for the clippers. time running out. thunder, if they make this shot, they win. russell westbrook for three, down two but, no. the clippers even the series two games apiece. game five in oklahoma city tuesday. meanwhile, later on sunday, it was pacers and wizards. just over a minute left. pacers by one. roy hibbert gets the friendly roll. he had 17 points, 9 rebounds, 6.1 to go. washington needs a three to tie but trevor ariza thinks bradley beal can keep running. he stops. the pacers are one away from the eastern conference final. stanley cup playoffs. martin st. louis mourning the unexpected death of his mother earlier in the week. she was 63. scores the first goal on sunday night, and the rangers must win game six against the penguins and then henrik lundqvist, the top of his glove deflects that over the net. rangers win game seven in pittsburgh on tuesday. >> for more from the playoffs, nba and stanley cup, check out a live "sportscenter" 9:00 a.m. on espn. >> all right, thank you. coming up next, it's "the pulse" where britney is back in a big way. the major payday the singer is close to signing. check this out. plus, an "a" for effort anyway. >> oh. >> these two young sons try to give their mom a special's mother's day. er's day. it's time to get a hotel.s, hey, razor. check this out. we can save big on killer hotels with priceline express deals. somewhere with a fitness center? hey you know what man, these guys aint no dragons. they're cool. these deals are legit. yeah, we're cool. she's cool. we're cool. i'm cool. hey, isn't that razor's old lady? not anymore. priceline savings without the bidding. jim's hair is perfect. so's his serve, and his mandarin [speaking mandarin] xieúxieú, hou chiú but like up to 90% of americans, jim falls short in getting important nutrients from food alone. making jim more like us. add one a day multivitamins, rich in key nutrients you may need. lactaid® is 100% real milk? right. real milk. but it won't cause me discomfort. exactly, no discomfort, because it's milk without the lactose. and it tastes? it's real milk! come on, would i lie about this? [ female announcer ] lactaid®. 100% real milk. no discomfort. and for more 100% real dairy treats you'll 100% enjoy look for lactaid® ice cream and lactaid® cottage cheese. ♪ ♪ hit me baby one more time all right. time for "the pulse," stories we think you'll be talking about today. "the new york daily news" is reporting that britney spears has been offered $12 million to continue her sin city show at caesars palace until at least christmas of 2016. >> now, her original deal pays her $30 million over two years. pretty remarkable. spears, many people consider her a lip-syncer during the show. >> all right. next musical performance by a boat. a giant cruise ship using its foghorn to belt out a song for crowds at a festival in the german port of hamburg. >> thousands of people heard a familiar riff, a cover on the pop song "seven nation army" made famous by rock duo the white stripes. take a listen. ♪ >> that's pretty good. >> that sounds very good. probably very unexpected. >> yeah. all right, well, moms around the world enjoyed breakfast in bed yesterday. but a certain mother of two may still be hungry. >> this is pretty good. >> viral video this morning. check it out. >> oh. >> oops. adorable little loved ones trying to surprise mom with that fruit salad and some hot cereal. just couldn't make it past the bedroom door. watch this. >> oh, oh. >> he's going to do it again. the bowl flips over right after dad tells him not to drop it. >> oh. >> look at his face, like, dad, please don't kill me. >> the boys give it a second try. >> oh. >> though they have to scoop it up again. >> that's try number one. >> oh, man. >> oh, man, oh, man. >> he's really trying. >> mm-mm, it's filled with fuzzy goodness. >> you know what, it's good for you. it's -- >> oh, don't do it. don't do it. don't do it. to our muscles are nerves that send messages through the body. my doctor diagnosed it as fibromyalgia thought to be the result of overactive nerves that cause chronic, widespread pain. lyrica is believed to calm these nerves. i learned lyrica can provide significant relief from fibromyalgia pain. and with less pain, i can do more of what matters to me. lyrica is not for everyone. it may cause serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worsening depression, or unusual changes in mood or behavior. or swelling, trouble breathing, rash, hives, blisters, changes in eyesight including blurry vision, muscle pain with fever, or tired feeling. common side effects are dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain and swelling of hands, legs and feet. don't drink alcohol while taking lyrica. don't drive or use machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. those who have had a drug or alcohol problem may be more likely to misuse lyrica. i found answers about fibromyalgia, then i found lyrica. ask your doctor if lyrica is right for your fibromyalgia pain. and learn more about the lyrica co pay savings program where eligible patients pay no more than $25 a month. visit lyrica.com for more information. you see the "mini" ion my chest? funny, yes? no. i'm huge. flavor? i'm bursting with it. creamy? i ooze it. rich. creamy. and 100% natural cheese. mini babybel. live from the kgo-tv broadcast center this is abc7 news and the onshore winds are down and you can see how clean the air is and how...calm the camera is. inland is warmest at 58 to 90 and around bay, 81 to 9 and the coast and san francisco and 74 to 79 degrees. above-average temperatures and this is just the beginning the how is the traffic? >> the traffic is light, mike. i went to the beach on saturday and it was so windy never wear lip gloss to a windy beach. my goodness. >> i always make that mistake. >> it is like glue. >> as we take you to san jose we have a closure in place until 5:00. if you are traveling along southbound 880 between coleman avenue and el camino that is in place until 7:00 this morning. at the bay bridge toll plaza you can see the traffic is moving smoothly but we do have a high wind advihere issued by c.h.p. we will let you know how long that will be in place. >> breaking news, san jose firefighters knocked down a ridge station fire that broke out after 3:30 at a homeless encampment that bopped less than an acre. the deputies are on the scene. no word on the cause. >> bay area begins the week on heat watch. we are talking about that, which coincides with a beefing up of defensive ranks for the california firefighters. amy hollyfield is in sunol. >> starting today there will be 15 trucks stationed here, usually they have 12. they say they are going to be busy training the new employees getting them ready for the fire season which they think going to be busy. they will declare the start of fire season today for northern california. usually, it starts at the beginning of june. they say that 95 percent of fires are started by people. they are asking everyone to be extra careful with power tools and campfires and they will be especially keeping a close