design still being used in med evacs and hundreds of helicopters. "nightly news" begins right now. good evening. on what is a dangerous weather night, in the next 24 hours more than half of the country will have experienced the most severe weather of this winter season so far. more than 75 million people in the path of heavy snow, blizzard conditions and ice, another 30 million on alert for flash flooding across ten states. this system has already spawned deadly tornados and it is not moving quickly. nbc's jacob rascon is in omaha, nebraska, where it has been snowing all day. jake. >> reporter: good evening. tonight the deadly and crippling storm is prompting evacuation, states of emergency and swift water rescues. the midwest and plain states are taking a direct hit on an abrupt end until what was now an unseasonably warm winter. havoc across the midwest in plain states today. heavy snow, ice and gale-force winds spreading across 11 states. missouri under a state of emergency as heavy rains clobber the state for the third straight day. so far ten people have been killed there because of the flooding. >> it has been a very difficult several days. and this threat is clearly not over. >> reporter: on the other side of the storm system, another triple threat. snow, sleet and freezing rain. deteriorating conditions across iowa as blowing snow closed roads with up to a foot in some cities. a white christmas came a few days late here in iowa city. nine states are under winter storm warnings from kansas to michigan, with millions americans. overnight a plane slipped off the runway in ice and wind. no injuries were reported. at major transportation hubs like chicago o'hare, travelers left stranded or waiting, with as many as a third of the cancellizations originated here, according to flight aware. 1900 flights across the country have been canceled and more than 3000 have been delayed. >> i'm looking for a flight and i can't find one. >> reporter: as the system moves north and east, residents in massachusetts are gearing up for the storm's impact on tuesday. >> this warm weather is nice. but it is new england. we need the cold. we need a little bit of snow, not too much, nothing like last year and i'm ready for it. >> jacob rascon, nbc news, omaha. texas, a state reeling from blizzards, floods and record tornados all in one weekend. four counties declared disaster areas. >> i'm glad to be alive. >> reporter: in dallas, crews rush to rescue a driver stranded in high water after more heavy rain overnight. at least nine tornados cut through a 40-mile stretch, killing 11 people, including 27-year-old petra ruiz. her mother dom inga said petra with four children was driving home from the hair salon, a christmas gift from her husband. her car, among several, blown off i-30 saturday night. >> i just couldn't believe it. until i saw the suv, how it looked, i knew. >> reporter: this is what is left of the home where an in fact just 3 days old was killed. >> i was holding her little fingers. it was horrible. something i'll never forget. >> reporter: the wild weather stretching north, lubbock battling record snow. late today oklahoma governor extended the state of emergency to include all counties as 200,000 customers are without power. and some areas of new mexico buried under 2 feet of snow. tonight here in garland, texas -- >> this is your home? >> it was. >> reporter: reality is sinking in. >> the worst part was getting outside and realizing that everything was really gone. >> reporter: as residents let go of life as they knew it. >> the house is gone but we're still here. >> reporter: -- but hold on to whatever they can. authorities here say 18 people are still unaccounted for. while the rain has moved on, temperatures are dropping. making this clean-up even more difficult. kate. >> i can only imagine. gabe guiterrez in texas tonight. thank you. new developments in a case that has provoked a nationwide outcry. 12-year-old tamir rice was caring an air soft pellet gun when he was fatally shot by cleveland police. today we learned the officers involved will not face charges. causing backlash from rice's family and on social media. we get more tonight from stephanie gosk. >> reporter: the moment before tamir rice was shot and killed by cleveland police last year, the county prosecutor said the 12-year-old tried to show the cops his gun was fake. but the two officers didn't know that and feared for their lives. there will be no indictment. >> given this perfect storm of human error, mistakes and miscommunications, by all involved that day, the evidence did not indicate criminal conduct by police. >> reporter: the 911 call reported a gunman in the park. but the prosecutor says dispatch never relayed critical details that rice was likely a minor, and likely carrying a toy. that toy, an air soft replica of a colt looks a lot like the real thing. >> they are very difficult to tell, even by people very family to guns. even when you stand and stare at. >> today's rice's family is saddened but not surprised by the decision. >> someone other than the elected county official who works closely with law enforcement officers of this community day in and day out should have probably made that decision. >> reporter: rice's death sparked protests in cleveland and added fuel to ongoing demonstrations around the country. two weeks before officials in ferguson, missouri, said the officer who shot michael brown would not be criminally charged. today the county prosecutor called rice's death an absolute tragedy. adding, civil action may provide the accountability he said the family deserves. stephanie gosk, nbc news, new york. chicago mayor rahm emanuel is cutting his cuba vacation short after another violent incident involving his police force. this time police shot and killed two people at an apartment building. one of them, a mother of five, struck after she opened her front door, according to her family. nbc's kevin tibbles has a first look inside of that home and talks with family members demanding answers. >> reporter: today the family of betty jones gathered in her apartment without her. >> i feel like i want to wake up and have my mom. but i can't. she's gone. she was murdered. and that is all that sits in my heart. >> reporter: the 55-year-old mother of of five and grandmother of ten was shot dead by police on saturday when they were called to a domestic disturbance in the apartment upstairs. >> according to the family, betty jones was asked by the man upstairs to answer the door when police got here. she came out of her apartment and did just that. and seconds later she was shot. her daughter letitia found her mother shot in the neck. >> i never thought i would lose my mom to the front door. >> reporter: a 19-year-old was also killed. his family said he had developed a mental illness. in a statement police said officers were confronted by a combative individual. adding jones was accidentally struck and offered deepest condolences. rahm emanuel is asking for changes in the way they respond to mental health crisis. this comes at a time in chicago when many had marched the 2014 police shooting death of 17-year-old laquan mcdonald. something betty jones' family said deeply affected her. >> my mom was scared that my oldest son who is 16 get shot by the police officers. but who gets shot and killed? her. >> reporter: tonight the case is under investigation. kevin tibbles, nbc news, chicago. overseas now where iraqi forces are claiming a major victory against isis. the iraqi flag was raised over ramadi today. a key city that has been overrun by isis for seven months now. but the battle isn't over. pockets of isis fighters are still believed to be inside of that city. ramadi is 70 miles from bagdad, the iraqi military is trying to cut off supply lines to fallujah, another isis strong hold. turning to the campaign trail. republican front-runner donald trump continues to attack hillary clinton. but now he also has a new target. trump, who is holding a rally tonight in new hampshire, is taking aim at former president bill clinton. hallie jackson is on the trail with trump. >> reporter: in iowa, icy weather is forcing campaigns to cancel stops. but in new hampshire, a different kind of fleury. attacks from donald trump. not just on hillary clinton now. but her husband. >> bill clinton is not going to be the end-all in the campaign. and he'll come under attack. >> reporter: the first family bundled up with trump's tweet storms gaining strength. writing, if hillary thinks she can unleash her husband with his terrible record of women abuse and unleashing on me, she is wrong. >> i think he is fair game because his presidency was considered to be troubled. >> picking on trump for the comments he made about women, it is fair game. >> this is a sure-fire way to get conservatives to like you more but not as great of a general election strategy. >> reporter: from the clinton camp, no official reaction. other than announcing bill clinton will campaign next week in new hampshire. aides believe their candidate has the stronger argument when it comes to women. trump, a turn around from 200. >> hillary is a great friend of mine. her husband is a great friend of mine. fantastic people. >> reporter: still, it is not the blast from the past, but back to the future making headlines today in new hampshire. after a tough editorial comparing trump to old movie biff. called a crude blow-hard by the publisher, trump hit hard. >> he is a real low-life. there is no question about it. and on top of that, he does this. >> reporter: and late tonight the clinton campaign responding. a spokesperson saying hillary clinton will not be bullied by attacks against her and former president bill clinton. adding she will stand up to trump. bill clinton will be on the campaign trail for his wife here in nuls next week. the one pegged as the favorite in the republican race is shaking up his strategy. jeb bush seeking a way to elevate his single-digit poll numbers tried to show a different side of himself today. casey hunt covers the bush campaign for us. >> reporter: kate, far from the front-runner. jeb bush camed in his home state of florida today taking a question about selfies. he said he learned a thing or two about how to get it just right. >> young people do it better than older people. we'll go through a training class here. it is cooler to do it diagonally rather than straight up. remember that. and it is better to do it higher than lower because you look skinnier. [ laughter ] am i right? >> reporter: that is jeb bush's sense of humor. sometimes an awkward fit for the campaign trail. he's just not a natural politician like his brother george w. bush was and it really shows. but, kate, it is a year when older political institutions and maybe families are having a hard time making the sell to voter. running against donald trump has been tough for bush which is described by some people close to him as a paragraph candidate in a twitter world. bush is trying to change that with a hashtag and showing him human side. kate. >> casey hunt, thanks. still ahead tonight, peyton manning says he's angry and ready to take action despite stunning doping allegations made in a new documentary, despite the filmmakers who say they stand by their story. also an investigation uncovers a hidden danger in some med evacs and ot huh. introducing centrum vitamints. a brand new multivitamin you enjoy like a mint. with a full spectrum of essential nutrients... surprisingly smooth, refreshingly cool. i see you found the vitamints. new centrum vitamints. a delicious new way to get your multivitamins. put under a microscope, we can see all the bacteria that still exists. polident's unique micro clean formula works in just 3 minutes, killing 99.99% of odor causing bacteria. for a cleaner, fresher, brighter denture every day. redid you say 97?97! yes. you know, that reminds me of geico's 97% customer satisfaction rating. 97%? helped by geico's fast and friendly claims service. huh... oh yeah, baby. geico's as fast and friendly as it gets. woo! geico. expect great savings and a whole lot more. ♪ eye of the tiger ime. tv anncr: good afternoon everyone. tv anncr: it's the perfect day for a game of football. tv anncr: this team is having a fantastic season. morning rituals are special. when you share what you love... ...with who you love. kellogg's frosted flakes. they're grrreat! now...you can win a microsoft surface 3...when you buy any specially-marked kellogg's product. back now with new developments today on the bombshell doping allegations against star nfl quarterback peyton manning. the makers of the documentary are standing by their undercover reporting despite the main source recanting his story. manning, meantime, is playing offense and said he is ready to take action. here is nbc's blake mccoy. >> reporter: football great peyton manning now threatening to sue over an al jazeera documentary that links manning and several pro-athletes to performance-enhancing drugs. >> complete trash, garbage. there is more adjectives i would like to be able to use. but it really makes me sick. >> reporter: the doping allegations are made in undercover reportings with charlie sly who claims he inturned for a short time at the guyer institute in indianapolis in 2011. at the same time manning received treatment there following an injury. in the documentary, the pharmacist said his wife, ashley was sent human growth hormone or hgh. >> everywhere, f florida. it is never under peyton's name. >> i have my treatments. she has her. there is no connection between the two. >> reporter: sly has recanted his statements and said he is grieving his loss of his fiance. one of the reporters telling msnbc, the truth lies in the undercover recordings. >> we spent six days recording charly sly, hour been hour, there is more than 20 hours of recordings. look at his demeanor in those conversations. he's giving fact upon fact upon fact. >> manning's current and former teams are standing behind him. the denver broncos support him 100%. the colts call the report utterly ridiculous. as for the league, the nfl is reviewing the matter. >> finding the evidence is going to be challenging. because this involves parties that aren't within the nfl's jurisdiction. >> reporter: manning, an all-american hero, fighting to preserve his legacy. blake mccoy, nbc news, los angeles. we're back in it a moment with a major security change coming to airports across the nation. automated voice: to file a claim, please state your name. carnie wilson. thank you. can you hold on? ♪ hold on for one more day really? hey, i know there's pain. why do you lock yourself up in these chains? ♪ this would be so easy if you had progressive. our mobile app would let you file a claim and help you find one of our service centers where we manage the entire repair process. things will go your way if you hold on. 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we reveal his ex's new man. now on extra. blake and gwen getting serious. miranda hooking up with another singer. the christmas couples news. taylor and calvin hitting the slopes. >> they went to montana to have christmas with the family. the kardashians' christmas, did kanye buy kim 150 gifts? kylie jenner's chilling security scare. her crazed fan busted out of the sike ward. the cast of the new oj movie revealing details. >> you'll be alarmed at what's revealed. then. >> they drop up to five pounds in five days. >> new celebrity diet tricks. >> can going vegan for half the day shed the pounds? plus, jennifer lawrence spreading joy to these special kids. hoda and