>>ma making news in america this morning, a monday morning mess. snow, ice, power outages and flight cancellations. the historic storm slamming millions across the south. the nationwide impact and the concern at this hour. overnight, the new names now being considered for white house chief of staff as john kelly prepares to exit and a rising star takes himself out of the running. plus, the president's growing legal woes and a new threat from china overnight. happening now, the urgent search for a young mother missing for more than two weeks. the fbi now helping with the case. the mysterious clue her phone has provided.

plus, trouble in paradise. new accusations of a widespread coverup of sexual assault claims at well-known resorts in the caribbean. football shocker. the bears take a stand in chicago while the dolphins get a miracle in miami. and we ask, why does this keep happening on the highway in houston? everything is bigger in texas indeed. good monday morning, everyone. we begin with that massive storm that's creating a monday morning mess, and reports just coming in that the national guard has been called to rescue drivers stranded in the snow. >> at least four deaths are now blamed on the storm hitting the south and mid-atlantic. more than 3,000 customers were without power overnight from georgia to virginia. snowfall totals have been historic in some areas leaving drivers stranded in their cars for hours.

>> reporter: this morning, a major winter storm is crippling cities not used to dealing with these conditions. states of emergency have been declared in virginia and north carolina where as much as a foot of snow has already fallen. >> north carolina is in the cold, icy grip of a mammoth winter storm. the state highway patrol has responded to more than 500 crashes. >> reporter: cars skidding off the road and drivers facing near whiteout conditions. >> i would say stay off the road if possible, but you know people are going to get out and play. >> reporter: overnight, the city of bristol, virginia requesting help from the national guard to help stranded drivers on interstate 81. many of those drivers saying they have been stuck since noon yesterday. the storm turning deadly in matthews, north carolina where a tree fell on a car, causing the driver to crash into a church. police say three men died of carbon monoxide poisoning possibly because of a generator

used for heat. overnight in raleigh, thousands of people are without electricity and heat. >> power outages remain the biggest problem here in raleigh. several trees came crashing down, this one taking up two lanes of traffic on a highway. >> reporter: the storm forcing hundreds of cancellations at major hubs. 7 inches of snow falling at the raleigh-durham international airport. the most at that airport in 20 years, and record snow in charlotte with nearly 3 inches. the snowiest december since 1997. >> i mean, how often in north carolina do you have to get this thing off? >> never. this is the first time. >> reporter: the snow is so deep in greensboro where they got a foot. this small four-wheel-drive plow getting stuck. abc's rob marciano was there to help out. >> that's stuck in there good. >> reporter: emergency officials in south carolina are asking people to get into the christmas spirit rather than get on the road tweeting, please enjoy a day at home watching christmas movies.

and areas as far south as georgia broke snowfall records. we'll take a closer look at the forecast in just a few minutes. let's turn to washington now where the help wanted sign is up at the white house yet again. overnight, we learned that at least five potential candidates are in t running to replace john kelly as the white house chief of staff. in the meantime, president trump is undergoing legal pressure. one former prosecutor now says it's clear. the president will be indicted. we get the latest from abc's kenneth moton in d.c. busy morning there, kenneth. >> reporter: good morning, kendis. president trump finally confirmed what we have been reporting for months that chief of staff john kelly is preparing to leave the white house. the departure comes at a crucial point in trump's presidency. president trump is trying to minimize the fallout from two federal investigations. >> good morning, everybody. i have spoken to i have not read it. there is absolutely no collusion, which is very important. >> reporter: on one front, the

russia iestigation. special counsel robert mueller revealed in court new evidence in russian efforts to build a political alliance with the 2016 trump campaign. on the other front, federal prosecutors in new york say the president's personal attorney, michael cohen, paid off two women in 2016 to keep them silent about alleged affairs with trump years ago. the illegal hush money payments allegedly made at the direction of donald trump. >> this investigation is now starting to put the president in serious legal crosshairs and he should be worried and the whole country should be worried. >> reporter: the incoming democratic chair of the house judiciary committee weighing in on cnn, promising the democrat-led house will take a closer look. >> they would be impeachable offenses. whether they are important enough to justify an impeachment is another question. >> reporter: serious business for congress. for "saturday night live," not so much. with robert de niro reprising his role as robert mueller. who happened to be the boogieman in the closet of the son of

president trump. >> whoa! >> don't be scared. it's just me, robert mueller, your dad's friend from work. >> reporter: as the president's legal troubles intensify, he is looking to fill a crucial white house post. chief of house john kelly is out. >> he is a great guy. john kelly will be leaving at the end of the year. >> reporter: the president has publicly praised kelly, but sources say their relationship has been rocky. top advisers expected the vice president's chief of staff, nick ayers would replace kelly, but he revealed he will be leaving at the end of the year. >> we'll be announcing who will take his place, over the next day or two. >> reporter: and abc news has learned the president has four or five potential chief of staff replacements on his list including conservative gop congressman, mark meadows, acting attorney general matt whitaker and steve mnuchin. >> kenneth moton in d.c. thank you. a new threat from china could mean another volatile day on wall street. china has now summoned the u.s.

ambassador to protest the arrest of a chinese tech exective in canada. she was detained at the request of the u.s. and is suspected of trying to evade sanctions on iran. china is warning of, quote, grave consequence if she is not released. this as they try to negotiate a trade deal. the president of france will address his nation after promising to quell violent protests that are taking a serious toll on the economy. another 1,300 people were arrested this weekend. crowds have been demonstrating against the government's financial policies forcing the closure of stores and impacting tourism over the last month. also in europe, police in italy are investigating whether a nightclub was illegally overcrowded before a deadly stampede. the video shows a walkway collapsing under the weight of that crowd. six people were killed. prosecutors say the club held about 900 people, but 1,400 tickets were sold for a concert at that venue. investigators think the chaos started when someone fired pepper spray. time now for a look at your weather forecast for this monday

morning. >> good morning. look for the storm to begin to wind down, but still gusting winds and spotty rain along the coast, but a warm mix in the meantime giving us a chance of widespread icing to occur. look for widespread power outages, charlotte, raleigh up towards richmond as well. then the cold will linger throughout the northeast for the central part of the country, a dry spell will hold. for the northwest, watching out for patchy snow as well as minor rain on the coast. i'm accuweather meteorologist paul williams. well, today is green monday. coming up, the best shopping deals online. but first, how two nuns allegedly stole $500,000 to go on vacation and gamble. later, the miracle in miami. the dolphins stunned, the patriots, the reaction from the big coach. and the e-mail chain that

would never end. the mistaken message that led to a reply all nightmare.

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we're back with the new video of migrants climbing over the border wall between mexico and the u.s., and in some cases, climbing under it. border patrol officers immediately took them into custody. officials say many migrants are deciding to cross illegally because they're tired of waiting to apply for asylum. authorities in washington state are investigating a series of arson attacks at places of worship for jehovah's witnesses. one worship hall was destroyed in the most recent fire. it's the fifth such attack this year in thurston county. they have identified a person of interest seen on video, but

aren't sure why this religion is being targeted. >> it's obviously someone or some persons that are definitely disgruntled with the jehovah witness and kingdom hall in thurston county. >> in may, someone fired gunshots at a worship hall costing nearly $10,000 in damage. no injuries have been reported but a $36,000 reward is being offered for information in the case. two nuns in southern california say they intend to pay back the money they are accused of embezzling. it is claimed the women took $500,000 or more from a catholic school, and they are accused of spending the money on travel and gambling. the school says the nuns have admitted to taking the money. the school is considering criminal charges. if you missed black friday or cyber monday, you're in luck. today is green monday when online retailers offer their best december deals. expect to see discounts at major sites like amazon, target, walmart and jet.com. some of the best deals we spotted overnight include a

14-inch chromebook at best buy for $210. the popular instant pot is nearly half off at amazon and target selling apple's newest ipad for just 250 bucks. >> a new winter coat was a hot seller as well. ♪ are we just going to have that? exactly. among "star wars" fans, people waited in line for hours in the cold the get the limited custom-made coats that look like the ones worn by the crew in "the empire strikes back" in 1979. they are already sold out op line by the way. >> wow. >> money from the sales will benefit a charity supported by mark hamill who played luke skywalker. well, coming up, the bears take a stand on sunday night football. first, the nationwide search right now for the young mother who has been missing for more than two weeks. the clues her phone may hold. and the former beauty queen who could face years behind bars, accused of sending nude pictures to a boy. queen accused

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talk to your doctor about xarelto®. we're back with an oddly familiar scene on the highway in houston. a giant industrial spool was spotted rolling down the highway there over the weekend. drivers were able to avoid it. the truck driver who lost the spool is expected to be cited. this is the third case in recent months of a spool getting loose on the highway in that area with one case last month and one in october. >> wow. we turn now to the search intensifying for a young mother from colorado who s been missing for nearly three weeks. >> today, police are expected to hold a news conference with the woman's family. they are desperately trying to find her after picking up a signal from her phone hundreds of miles away. here's abc's lana zak. >> reporter: police are anxiously searching for a missing corado woman who disappeared without warning on thanksgiving day.

>> she was very happy. there wasn't a sign at any point there was something to to be alarmed of. >> reporter: 29-year-old kelsey berreth was last seen at this safeway grocery store in woodland park, colorado, but her cell phone pinged shortly after she went missing in idaho nearly 700 miles after she went missing. >> makes us wonder what she is doing up there, where the phone is. maybe she is not there, but the phone is. >> reporter: now authorities are hoping that phone could be the clue they need as they widen the search asking anyone to come forward to help reunite kelsey with her daughter. >> she is grounded and responsible. she is a 1-year-old child. she wouldn't just leave her. >> reporter: kelsey moved to colorado three years ago to be with her boyfriend, now the father of their child, but she has family including a grandmother in washington state. >> her grandma is not in good health. we thought maybe in which case she could have driven through the cities. >> reporter: but police say her car along with her makeup suitcases remain untouched at her home. her family hopes to be reunited soon.

>> at some point we're going to have answers and we pray that kelsey will come home safely. >> reporter: kelsey's brother says he is confident she did not pack to go anywhere, and as far as the family knows she has no ties to idaho where her cell phone last pinged. lana zak, abc news, washington. as millions of americans plan their winter vacations, there is a new report about the number of sexual assaults at caribbean resorts and allegations of a widespread coverup. "usa today" says several resorts in jamaica have tried to keep sexual assault victims quiet by offering payouts in exchange for nondisclosure agreements. one company named is sandals resorts, but the company denies any payouts and insists all assaults are reported to authorities. just last month a new jersey couple sued sandals claiming a butler during their wedding in the bahamas assaulted the bride. they claimed sandals offered a refund if they signed a nondisclosure deal. a former miss america contestant could spend decades

in prison for allegedly sending nude photos to a teenager. the middle school teacher is free on bail this morning. the former miss kentucky faces felony charges after prosecutors say she sent topless photos of herself to a 15-year-old former student. the notorious menendez brothers have been spotted in the background of an old nba trading card. look at this. the card shows lyle and erik menendez sitting courtside at a new york knicks game. that is from the 1991 season, so it would have been taken after they killed their parents, but before they were arrested. police got suspicious when the brothers started spending the family fortune, apparently splurging on luxuries like nba tickets. well, the rams and bears fought a defensive battle in very cold chicago last night. the bears' only touchdown came in the third quarter. right there, offensive lineman bradley soul catching it and now watch me walk. his celebration was unique. chicago handed the rams their second loss of the season. final score was 15-6.

bear down. this is the play of the season so far. the dolphins' last play. against the patriots, a completed pass there. two laterals that actually worked and the great running. and that tackling here. drake here with the moves. oh, with the face plant, and miami wins the super bowl for them. miami beat new england 34-33. patriots coach, bill belichick saying after the game, quote, they just made one more play than we did. the typical bill belichick way. up next in "the pulse," the 101-year-old man who says coors light is the key to his longevity. how the beer company is thanking him. and also ahead, the invitation to a holiday party that accidentally got sent to 25,000 people, and the reply all nightmare that followed. reply all nightmare that followed. accidentally sent to 25,000

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♪ ♪ it is time to check "the pulse" on a monday starting with an e-mail chain spiraling t of control. an invitation to a holiday potluck meal accidentally sent to 25,000 state workers in utah. >> the accidental invite triggered an avalanche of reply alls. the worst, some were shouted in all caps, everyone stop responding and stop the madness. >> utah's governor says he feared it will never end, and at last count there were more than 600 reply all messages. next, an act of kindness that had a mother in tears. this woman was traveling with one of her 11-month-old twins. little lucy suffers from a chronic lung disease, and she was flown to a hospital for treatment. >> they had just boarded a

flight when a flight attendant told her a passenger in first class wanted to trade seats with her. he later explained his generosity. >> it just seemed like the right thing to do. that girl actually reminded me of a woman that my wife works with, and she also is about the same age and has a little girl, and i just thought that i would hope that if that was her, that someone would do something nice for her. >> so excited she can't wait to tell lucy about it, and she expressed her thanks in a post that has gone viral being shared almost 500,000 times. a world war ii veteran has been rewarded for his dedication to beer. >> this man celebrated his 101st birthday. he credited his longevity to having one coors light every day. >> the coors brewing company thanked him for his service by sending him a coors light fridge stocked with free beer. >> how about that? and the grinch making an appearance in boone, north

carolina. only he wasn't up to his usual christmas shenanigans. he was plowing snow. actually it wasn't really the grinch. >> but looks like it. they can use his help in virginia as well. they can use this help in virginia as well. not really the grinch. >> take it, they can use his help in virginia right now. a u-neck... v-nee that's when you know, it's half-washed. add downy to keep your collars from stretching. unlike detergent alone, downy conditions to smooth and strengthen fibers. so, next time don't half-wash it. downy and it's done. but he has plans today.ain. hey dad. so he took aleve. if he'd taken tylenol, he'd be stopping for more pills right now. only aleve has the strength to stop tough pain for up to 12 hours with just one pill. aleve. all day strong.

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or dental procedures. what's around the corner could be surprising. ask your doctor about eliquis. good morning. it is monday, december 10th. and, hey, we have the ladies and mike today. >> that's right. reggie sick this morning.rning. >> i thought i was going to wake up to a little bit of rain. >> a little bit. some people are. i guess it wasn't where you are. the rain may not even make it to the south bay. that's how weak this storm is. we got through the storm impact scale on to let you know what's going on. light showers and breezes, especially this morning. everything ends by noon. a tenth of an inch of rain. if it does fall during your commute, it will be a mess. you can see here it is hugging the coast from half moon bay up towards daly city, pacifica, through san francisco, right through san francisco, right across 80, up to vallejo and

vacaville. that will slowly cinque to the south and the east. our best chance of getting wet is during the commute. good morning, mike. we do have a problem in fairfield starting off with a three-car crash westbound 80. so this is just before you get to north texas boulevard. we did have three lanes closed due to this. we have two more back open. that leaves us with one lane blocked. overall, it sounds like they are in the clearing stages. hopefully they will get it out shortly. richmond side of the richmond-san rafael bridge, one lonely vehicle coming our way. very light volumes so far this morning. we are tracking breaking news in the south way. a car drove into a four-plex near payne avenue. everyone is okay, including the driver and the people living inside. the san jose fire department

says eight adults and eight kids were displace said. the red cross is helping them find a place to stay. the building will be red tagged until they can assess the structural damage of the building. health workers at kaiser permanente will walk off the job. >> they are prosting staffing and benefits. it involves 4,000 psychologists, it involves 4,000 psychologists, therapists, social workers nurses. patients are forced to wait four to six weeks to see a therapist. they want kaiser to hire hundreds more mental health workers. building tpaoraffordable ho will take center stage in san francisco today. they will talk about potential changes to the current housing

policies. a report found only about one in five were affordable for low and middle income families. city leaders think local government needs to step in. >> we cannot depend on private developers for this. we need to depend on our own public resources if we want to maintain a balance of diversity here in san francisco. >> one idea being considered involves the city buying existing rent controlled housing from a $415 million windfall. >> a quick update on your weather and traffic. let's start with mike. and, mike, it's raining in some parts? >> yes, exactly. it's not a solid shield. but it looks like the car keane tphas, gold it gate bridge and the bay bridge getting a light shower. here is the golden gate bridge. the drops on the camera. for today, it is a 1, light, on the storm impact scale. it is mainly at 7:00 this morning with temperatures in the 40s.