on this sunday night. going to extremes. snow, wind, ice and heat. a large dangerous storm paralyzes part of the country, causes havoc for holiday travelers and sets record highs. targeted. after that massive security breach. why you may be in for a big surprise the next time you go to use your bank card. looming deadline. the final push to get people to sign up for health care and still confusion one day before the key enrollment date. and christmas surprise. how a woman's carefully planned wishes for her family were finally granted two years after her death. good evening. extreme weather is causing an odd mix of misery and delight depending on where you are in the eastern half of the country. that powerful storm system we've been watching for days now has spawned floods and rare december tornadoes in the south and spread crippling ice and snow from the midwest into new england leaving hundreds of thousands without power and snarling air travel. all just three days before christmas. elsewhere in places like philadelphia and new york city, holiday shoppers hit the streets in shirt sleeves on this second day of winter as record breaking temperatures soared into the 60s and even 70s. the weather channel's mike seidel is in a colder and snowier wisconsin to start us off. hello. >> reporter: hello, lester. from wisconsin, we have a snowstorm. a wild weekend, everything, snow and ice, tornados and floods and at least six deaths attributed to this extreme weather. an emergency declared in parts of new england and upstate new york. thick ice, freezing rain and high winds prompted the governor of new york to activate the state emergency center. more than 1,000 plows deployed to clear roads of up to two inches of ice. downed power lines knocked out electricity to more than 300,000 customers in michigan and tens of thousands more in new york, maine and vermont. >> about 2:30 this morning, we awoke to the house shaking, transformers exploding, the skies lighting up, trees falling. >> reporter: the storm stretches north to toronto. hundreds of thousands of residents remain without power. utility companies there describe the damage as catastrophic. the highest level emergency situation. back in new york city, a very different scene. visitors at rockefeller center shed heavy coats on this spring-like sunday. >> fantastic. i'm in a t-shirt. >> this is what people in florida must feel like. >> reporter: in baltimore, christmas shopping in the sun. across the region, record high temperatures. new york city, a balmy 71. breaking its old record of 63 degrees. in philadelphia, 68 degrees. from 66 degrees, the previous record. augusta, georgia, 79 degrees. overnight the same storm produced powerful tornadoes and straight line winds. in arkansas, severe structural damage. in monroe, louisiana -- >> we saw the sides of the wall falling and then i saw the transformer over there blew up and flashed everywhere. the glass started shattering. >> reporter: just south of louisville, kentucky, fallen power lines sparked a fire. nine cars ablaze forcing a highway to be shut down. in indiana, rain fell hard and fast flooding streets and homes. >> a couple more inches and i think we would have been really in trouble. >> reporter: almost 600 flights canceled today. 4500 delayed. most of those holiday travellers were flying through chicago and philadelphia. while snow in parts of the midwest guarantees a white christmas. >> as far as i'm concerned, i've had enough. >> reporter: the cold front is heading to the east coast tonight. that will cut off the record warmth. highs tomorrow drop 10 to 20 degrees but still near 60 in new york and washington. then christmas day, back to 30s and 40s. no snowstorms lurking on the weather map into the last weekend of the year. >> all right. thanks. the weather notwithstanding, millions of americans headed out to do some last-minute christmas shopping. for some there was something they hadn't bargained for. a limit on purchases and cash withdrawals using their bank cards. it come after that big security breach at target. cnbc's sharon joins us with more. >> reporter: tonight some major banks are now administration limits on deblt cards if your account was potentially compromised by the target breach. and just as holiday shoppers are last-minute purchasers. chase said customers whose credit cards are at risk will face a 100 limit on cash withdrawals and a $300 limit on purchases. the limits will be in effect until chase is able to replace the card. customers who show proper i.d. at the branch may be able to have those limits lifted. city is also monitoring its cards for activity and if detected, it may limit, block or reissue cards. anyone who shopped in a target store from november 27th to december 15th should monitor their accounts and immediately report any fraud lent transactions. >> all right. thank you. we now know why nasa decided to delay a second space walk by two american astronauts making those critical repairs to the international space station. it is because of a problem with one of their space suits. we get details from nbc's kerry sanders. >> this is a good stopping point. >> reporter: after a 5:28 space walk, astronaut rick returned to the space station's air lock and discovered something that wasn't supposed to be. water had entered his space suit sublimator. a design to dissipate excess heat. >> there's always been water in the suit. the difference is they had devices that got rid of it. this time it accumulated. they really don't know why. >> reporter: nasa postponed a second space walk tomorrow until tuesday so a spare space suit can be reconfigured for him. meantime colonel mike hopkins reported no problems with water which is especially notable because he was wearing the same space suit an italian astronaut wore last july when a malfunction filled the helmet with water. the helmets now have makeshift snorkels and absorb dlenlt pads in case the water reappears. nasa says the water that developed inside the space suit in july that the water detected yesterday are not the same problem. >> okay, rick, pull back. >> reporter: on tuesday the astronauts will continue their repair mission to replace a cooling pump that malfunctioned. >> the space station is running with only a single cooling system which means it is vulnerable to that one cooling system having a failure. >> reporter: tonight the astronauts look forward to the next space walk. they're preparing for what they hope is routine and dry. kerry sanders, nbc news, miami. the state department says an unspecified number of americans were safely evacuated today from the african nation of south sudan where there is a growing conflict between government and rebel forces. the americans along with other foreigners were air lifted on u.s. and united nations helicopters. the evacuations come amid worsening violence and a day after three u.s. military aircraft were hit by rebel gun fire as they tried to evacuate americans. four american service members were injured in that attack. let's turn to that looming deadline that comes tomorrow for president obama's health care law. it is the final day for most americans to sign up for coverage that begins january 1st. more on this tonight from our white house couldn't peter alexander who is traveling with the president in hawaii. >> reporter: ahead of tomorrow's deadline for coverage beginning january 1st, a final push is online. this reminder from healthcare.gov and frs detail exchange, instead of regifting, why not give the gift that keeps on giving. health coverage. as anticipated, a last-minute spike in demand when we called today, close to a two-hour wait. >> thank you for calling d.c. health link. your estimated wait time is 105 minutes. >> reporter: in maryland this weekend, oliver mitchell breezed through. >> i got a call yesterday saying i was approved. and i came in today to finish the application. i'm covered now. >> reporter: threatening to complicate the process, a series of late administration changes. >> these constantly changing the rules at the last minute causes tremendous amount of confusion for consumers and it creates uncertainty for a health plan. >> reporter: meanwhile the heated political debate grows. >> i think they ought to talk about health care and what we're for rather than continuing to talk about what we're beginning. look. obamacare right now causes people to spend more money, have less choice, have a higher deductible and have less freedom. >> the president is working to fix it. we are working in the senate to fix it. we urge our republican colleagues to join us in fixing it. >> reporter: while vacationing in hawaii, president obama is also considering fixes to how the u.s. gathers intelligence reviewing an independent panel's critical 300-page report. ? it is time to fundamentally reform the way they operate. the president's panel made that very, very clear. >> reporter: today one panelist defended parts of the program. >> we don't think we have significantly undermined the government's ability to protect the country. while at the same time we think we've enhanced privacy and civil liberties. >> reporter: as for the proposals, president obama has said he will make a definitive statement about any reforms once he returns to washington early in the new year. >> all right. peter companioner in honolulu tonight. thanks. in colorado, a steady stream of mourners has been visiting a memorial for shooting victim claire davis. the 17-year-old died of her injuries eight days after being shot by a fellow student at arapahoe high school in centennial, colorado. our report from ron allen. >> reporter: for eight days, this community near denver had hope. today at a memorial, for claire esther davis, they shared their grief. >> and i just hope she's at peace because every one was hoping she would get better. >> reporter: a hospital statement said the most advanced medical treatments could not prevent this tragic loss of life. davis had been in a coma on life support. her parents at her side when she died wrote, the grace, laughter and light she brought to this world will not be extinguished by her death. >> you want to be able to say something to somebody that will fix this. and unfortunately, this isn't fixable. >> several civilians coming out the south side. >> reporter: davis was the only student killed, shot randomly at point blank range when classmate karl pierson open fire with a shotgun at arapahoe high. then he killed himself. it was all over in 80 seconds. late today in a statement his parents said, we are heart broken to hear of claire's passing. last night as word of davis' death spread, an outpouring of emotion at the high school. many there every night hope this night would never come. >> it is really not fair that it happened to her. i'm just speechless. >> reporter: classmates rallied around davis. raising money for her medical care. asking for the nation's thoughts and prayers. #pray for claire trended on social media. being remembered now as a great student and equestrian, an innocent victim of a senseless attack. ron allen, nbc news, new york. now to the civil war in syria where government aircraft bombard rebel areas in the northern city of aleppo for an eighth straight day. at least 32 people were killed. nbc's reporter is inside syria. he filed this report from damascus. >> reporter: more deadly air strikes in northern syria this weekend. a man searches for loved ones in the rubble. among the dozens killed were six children. an entire generation growing up amid this chaos. all this play fight at this government-run school, many with fathers at war. others have witnessed horrors. gunmen came to this 10-year-old aus house. >> reporter: who did they kill? >> a man. >> in front us. >> reporter: they killed a man in front of you. how did you feel? >> so scared. >> reporter: children learning of war while many schools in syria have been reduced to rubble. >> the children in syria are paying the heaviest price. they are paying it in terms of their lives. they are paying it in terms of the opportunity for education. >> reporter: children's health is at risk. polio is threatening. and starvation, fighting for scraps of food, millions made refugees. ♪ jingle bells >> reporter: in this children's school they're trying to celebrate christmas. a month ago they were holding funerals. >> three mortar attacks. >> reporter: three. >> yes. >> reporter: four students were killed. the youngest just 7. >> a most difficult part is that their friends, other children, they witness this. this tragedy. >> reporter: back at the school, they hope for a safer future. how many of you would like to see peace in syria? >> reporter: millions of syria's children are not in school with no sign of peace. nbc news, damascus. when "nbc nightly news" continues, tension between the u.s. and india after the arrest of a diplomat for allegedly mistreating her housekeeper. and later, a dying woman's three secret wishes come true for the husband she left behind just in secret wishes come true for the husbathis islthe quicksilver in cash back card from capital one. it's not the "limit the cash i earn every month" card. it's not the "i only earn decent rewards at the gas station" card. it's the no-games, no-signing up, everyday-rewarding, kung-fu-fighting, silver-lightning-in-a-bottle, bringing-home-the-bacon cash back card. this is the quicksilver card from capital one. unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, everywhere, every single day. so ask yourself, what's in your wallet? ♪ [ female announcer ] may your holidays be merry and bright. merry pringles. so here's to the bride and... 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