have been empty for more than six weeks. reporter: as for this family it s frustrating and it s scary. first we couldn t feed our children because of the infant formula shortage and now we re facing another challenge with being able to take basic care of them. reporter: athena jones, cnn, new york. hello. i m kristen fisher. welcome to cnn newsroom. this massive winter storm system is barrelling towards the east coast this hour, and this arctic chill is straining the power grids, closing airports from coast to coast, and causing deadly road conditions on one of the busiest travel days of the year. look at this video that we just got in from hamburg, new york. snowing and flooding on the coast at the same time. deep floodwaters across new england are a huge concern heading into the weekend as temperatures continue to drop, and nearby buffalo, officials have closed the airport and canceled all flights. you can see why. over 70 million americans are experiencing belo
life-threatening cold. we re tracking it all. also tonight, the january 6th committee s final report recommending donald trump be barred from holding office ever again. how the former president is responding. the new numbers from the cdc. will the holidays lead to another spike? the crash caught on camera. a plane slamming into the beach in santa monica. the warning from fedex and u.p.s. for last-minute shoppers. will your holiday packages arrive on time? and celebrating christmas in wartime. st. nick bringing holiday cheer to children in ukraine. announcer: this is nbc nightly news with lester holt. and a good friday evening to you. i m craig melvin in for lester. for many tonight, mother nature has decided to be quite the grinch. this is going to be the coldest, wettest, snowiest holiday in recent memory thanks to a once in a generation massive winter storm that s disrupting plans for millions. for some it s the really strong wind gusts already knocking out
Four boxes, craig. sam brock for us, sam, thank you. meanwhile, that gift may not make it in time for christmas. that s the new warning tonight from fedex and u.p.s., and it s all because of that wicked winter storm. emilie ikeda joins us now with more on that and the last-minute holiday shopping rush and, emilie, it looks like the crowds are out tonight. reporter: craig, behind me the final flurry of shoppers scooping up last-minute deals in what they anticipated to be the second busiest shopping day of the year. retailers are slashing prices to lure in cost conscious customers. meantime, shipping carriers up against severe weather. data firm ship matrix estimates 15% of last-minute deliveries experienced delays causing a backlog of packaging that could linger through next week. usps closed offices in five states thursday because of weather and u.p.s. and fedex warned of service disruptions at several shipping hubs. if you are in a bind
Canceled all flights. you can see why. over 70 million americans are experiencing below freezing temperatures, and that includes the entire state of texas, and even if you are not freezing, it s bad news if you are waiting on any last-minute christmas gifts to arrive. amazon, the u.s. post office, the u.p.s., fedex, all warning that the storm has hit major shipping hubs nationwide, and deliveries will be delayed. so we have cnn s polo sandoval. last time i saw you, you were walking out of the blizzard. we could barely even see you. this time, you re still standing right in the thick of it. how has it been over the last hours since we spoke? reporter: you know, kristen, i m glad you showed our viewers that triple threat that folks here have been facing. you have the flooding, you have the wind, you have the flash freezing. that is why this is an extraordinary storm that s hitting buffalo. it snows in buffalo, right?
Then again, maybe not. despite the fact that zappos steadily increased the amount offered for quitting. keep upping the offer feeling like not enough people are taking it. reporter: very few of the new hires take the money and run. even in this economy you put $4,000 on the table and almost nobody takes it? almost nobody takes it. reporter: turnover remains low, as well. both here in the main office, chosen in part for nevada s strong internet connections and 24-hour work culture and warehouse in kentucky chosen for the proximity to major shipping hubs. what is your key philosophy of running this business. we are a service company that just happens to sell shoes. reporter: to that end, when a call coming in, the team will chat away about almost anything, family, friends, hobbies, the company insists one call went on for eight hours. and yet that fit the zappos goal. give customers a good experience, let them know