first nor'easter of 2014. we're standing right here where the crews in the city are busy trying to clear the snow off the sidewalks. we're told there's about 5 or 6 inches of snow in central park this morning. as you can see, more is falling. get this, in parts of massachusetts it has been hit hard. they've got more than 20 inches of snow already. check out the map. you can see where the storm is right now. we'll follow it all morning long. every major city in the northeast is covered. that has forced cancellation of classes at schools across the region. >> kids are screaming in joy this morning. not everyone, though. this is the long island expressway which is normally one of the busiest highways in the country, packed any time of day or night. right now it is completely empty. the state of new york shut this road down and other major arteries as well. i have to tell you, the roads are not the only problem. today alone, about 1,500 flights

have been canceled in addition to the thousands canceled in the past three days. folks, that could get worse. i have one other thing i can tell you, it is cold. it is really, really cold. we showed you 11 degrees with the wind chill below zero. i want to put up a map. this is what it feels like across the country. single digits in many spots, below in other spots. what does that feel like? awful. >> we wanted to feel it ourselves. maybe punishment for being warm and cozy yesterday. we scrambled our teams across the u.s., covering this breaking situation throughout the night. we want to show you what the conditions have been like throughout the night. we begin in boston. we'll tell you what conditions in the forecast are looking like. boston is pretty much shut down. that's where we find indra petersons. how are conditions there, indra? >> they're not great. how are you liking it outdoors? enjoying a taste of my job. >> i feel like this might have been you. >> she's the one behind this, no

doubt. >> you send me far away, look what you get. it is negative 21 here. take another 10 degrees off of what you're feeling. that is what i'm dealing with right now. winds are gusting to 39 miles per hour. 6 edges of snow already on the ground. there are almost 100 million people dealing with this across 20 states right now. >> the massive nor'easter battered more than 20 states into the night. almost 2 feet of snow already on the ground in boston. the onslaught of snow is producing closings in the government. >> we are closing state government. i am urging private employers to do the same. >> reporter: this year's first major snowstorm, forcing new york and new jersey to declare a state of emergency. >> stay home tonight and stay off the roads. >> reporter: it's a disastrous mix for travelers. thousands of flights canceled.

officials in new york closing several major highways in hopes of saving lives. several school districts from philadelphia to boston closed today as officials feared the commute to class would prove dangerous. check out this elementary school bus in missouri that skidded off an icy road into a ditch. the powerful arctic masses dropped temperatures in parts of the country to the coldest in years. >> it's freezing. >> reporter: this family in maine took boiling water and check it out, it freezes immediately. >> snow. >> reporter: the winds off of the lake caused wind chills of 25 degrees below zero in some parts of chicago. salt spreaders blanketing streets as countless spinouts litter roadways along the northeast and new england highways. millions, now waking up to a beautiful but dangerous winter wonderland. so there's a lot of things to be concerned with. we talked about the temperature, negative 20 is what it feels

like in boston with the wind chill. that means ten minutes outside will give you frostbite. the snow very easily blowing around. you can see right now, streets they're trying to clear but they're not salting them at this point. once the temperature on the ground gets below 15 degrees fahrenheit it doesn't really help anymore. that's the concern. this is so powdery. it is very dry, blowing around. the visibility down to less than a quarter mile. a lot of things to be concerned with. the storm itself is continuing to drop. we see it throughout the morning hours. hopefully people not going to work today, as you can imagine, the commute would be dangerous and visibility is poor. along the cape we have ocean effect snow. think about lake-effect snow and what you know about that. the temperature difference will still cause snow even though the system will start to clear out from west to east and make its way offshore. temperatures behind it, once you get the clouds out of here are

going to drop. it will be very cold. keep in mind, even though the storm lifts out today, there is another storm behind it. for the beginning of next week, they'll bring temperatures colder than what we're looking at today. hard to believe we have kind of a two-punch system on the way. michae michaela? >> this is the key, indra. look at this. you have to have a -- find a friend. misery and i love company. >> i'll remember that. you're coming with. >> we're good at this. we can do it. blizzard conditions hitting parts of massachusetts right now. the worst of it is hitting cape cod on the water dealing with whiteout conditions this morning. let's look at this picture. we cannot believe the picture. this is our reporter lori siegel, her live truck completely covered in snow and ice. this brave woman has been in the elements all night in chatham.

how are you holding up, darling? >> how do i look? tell me. >> you look fabulous. >> this snow that's been gathering, you'd think i've been out here all night. i ran from the truck to come out here and it still looks like i've been out here all night. that should give you a sign of what it's like out here. it's the wind, blowing in your face and it's really the combination of the snow and the wind. you know, lucky for you guys we decided to document it throughout the night. yep. there's another gust. check out, we take you through our trip to here to see the worsening conditions. check it out. the snow continuing to pile up here on cape cod, as fierce winds, frigid temps and coastal flooding threaten residents of the beach front homes. eastern massachusetts is expected to be among the hardest hit with blizzard warnings in effect in some areas through the morning. it's not just the snow that's a concern. limited visibility is making driving conditions treacherous.

we're on the road, about 6:00 p.m. we're seeing the first signs of the storm. you can see the ice forming on our wind shield right here, temperatures dropping rapidly. we just passed two accidents, another car pulled over, trying to scrape that ice from their wind shield. into the night, crews out in full force plowing roads. emergency services on call. >> stay inside, stay safe. don't be on the roadways unless it's necessary. >> reporter: sparks flying off power lines and crews are on the ready to respond to outages when the storm passes. as much as 2 feet of snow could accumulate overnight with wind chills dropping well below zero and winds gusting up to 35 miles per hour. we're looking at gusts of winds up to 20 miles per hour. it's only expected to get worse. that's why you see the streets are empty. everybody is at home weathering the storm. as you can see, conditions have worsened. i have the wind meter right here. you can see the gusts of wind blowing. right now we're looking at 20

miles per hour. it's been higher and conditions just continue to worsen. so i guess, you know, guys, this is what i get. i said i really wanted to go to cape cod. this is my favorite time here. pretty unbelievable. i will say, the folks here in chatham, they say they're used to this kind of storm. they were actually at a bar last night bringing in the storm together. i'm pretty sure they're not there anymore, one would hope. the driving conditions are pretty bad. once we were driving to our live shot, we almost got stuck. i think we have images of the satellite truck. it didn't work because of the weather. it was almost impossible to transmit. you can see the wind, the weather, we're at a blizzard warning until 11:00 a.m. the folks are worried that there will be coastal flooding. we'll keep you updated with all of that. i promise you my face will not freeze over if i have anything to do with it. >> this is just the vacation on the cape you were looking for,

the beach trip that lori siegel always wants. >> these are seriously cold conditions. >> seriously cold conditions. >> it's causing major problems in the air, too, breaking news coverage continues with a look at the skies where right now virtually all you see is snow. this monster storm is forcing the cancellation of some 1,500 flights. that's today, adding to the thousands grounded yesterday. thousands more are delayed. so many families trying to get back home after the holiday vacations are having a really, really tough go of it. i want to go to pamela brown. normally we like pamela a lot. they is the least popular member of the cnn family today as she stand warm and toasty inside laguardia. >> there's resentment. >> pamela, make it count. >> i definitely have the primeau assignment today, guys. cannot complain about this.

i'm here with the passengers stranded here at laguardia. you see the board behind me lit up in yellow, that's all the flight cancellations just today. in fact, at last check, 1,410 flights canceled in the u.s. just today, already more than half the flights canceled. yesterday, a majority of them -- the bulk of them at airport hubs in the midwest, the northeast, creating a domino effect for air travelers across the u.s. heavy snow, strong winds and limited visibility have stalled air travel this morning. more than 1,000 flights already canceled and more than 2,000 flights canceled thursday. >> supposed to leave today. it's been scheduled to leave on sunday. and so now i'm trying to find a way to get out of here. >> reporter: boston's logan airport remaining open during the storm but not many flights going or coming. chicago's o'hare international airport the hardest hit with

more than 650 halted flights accounting for most of the country's headaches. >> my first flight to chicago was canceled and now my next flight is delayed. i don't know when i'll be back. >> we're freaking out right now. we're running out of time. >> reporter: the storm causing a ripple effect for air travelers and nearly every state. >> even though folks may not be flying to places like boston and new york, because those airports are such important components in the aviation network, that can have a domino effect on flights not even going to those locations. >> reporter: one stranded traveler snapped this wintry photo at laguardia where flights were grounded at 8:00 p.m. last night. air travelers should be patient and expect lots of delays. it seems at this hour, the airports impacted by the storm remain open. flights are expected to resume at boston logan airport at around noon today. if you take a look behind me here at the ticket counter you'll notice it's desolate. no passengers checking in for

their flights. that's an indication passengers have been checking with their airlines and perhaps changing their flights. there is good news for those of you supposed to be traveling today by air. several airlines, including united and american are waving the cancellation fee. >> great news. >> it's easier to change your flight to another day so you don't have to pay that fee. >> that's the best news of all. it is stressful if you're trying to get somewhere, trying to get home in time to get back to work on monday. it's really great the airlines are stepping up and making that move. we'll check back in with you, make sure you're warm and cozy throughout the morning. >> get some coffee, pamela. >> i'll be just fine. don't worry about me. we've been talking about the size of this storm. it is socking in the northeast this morning, also taking a bone-chilling toll on the midwest. let's talk about chicago. over a foot of snow fell in the area, up to 10 inches blanketed the state of michigan. but what's worse, are the

dangerously low temperatures in the region with the wind chill, some places could feel as low as 25 degrees below 0. the sad news is, it's not going to end anytime soon. cnn's ted rowland is outside chicago. >> it is freezing. we're at 8 below 0. we have our big thermometer showing us below 0 here. we have our completely frozen cnn t-shirt, which is crispy. we're at 8 below now. it will get to 10 below where we are today. it will warm up a little on saturday and then it is going to get to about 15 degrees below 0 without the wind chill, starting on sunday. it is absolutely not only uncomfortable but dangerous to be out for more than a few minutes if you can help it. this is just not chicago. it is the entire midwest and as this moves to the east, you people will be feeling it as

well. i tell you what, the snow is a little bit of a hassle this cold, freezing temperatures are painful. get ready. it's coming toward you guys and it is not fun. >> yes, ted, i'm ready already. i'm feeling it already, no, not fun at all. i think you put your finger on it. it's not just the snow. there is impressive snowfall totals up in boston and cape cod but the cold here is the big, big story. bone-chilling temperatures, 0 or below in some places. it could be dangerous. we'll be watching that closely in the days ahead. right now i want to go back inside to ana cabrera who has some of the other stories. >> come back inside and join me, john and michaela. the australian ice breaker carrying the 52 rescued passengers is staying put because now there are worries that the chinese vessel which deployed the helicopter involved in the rescue could itself get stuck in sea ice. the chinese ship plans to try to

get out of this thick ice on saturday at a point when the tidal conditions are more favorable. happening now, two americans are being held by the libyan army in benghazi. a source telling reuters both were basketball players and they were arrested on the campus of benghazi university. now, the state department is looking into this matter. this as word comes that a britain and a new zealander were found dead with gunshot wounds in western libya. we're also following breaking news out of south sudan as peace talks began between two battling parties there, u.s. embassy personnel have now been ordered to leave the country. all americans are being urged to get out of the african nation because of flairing violence between rebel groups and government troops. over 1,000 people have been killed in less than three weeks of the escalating violence. police in eureka, california have a man behind bars in the death of a priest. father eric freed was found dead

in the rectory of his church. he was the victim of blunt force trauma after a violent struggle. now they believe gary lee bullock was the killer. he was arrested for public intoxication the night before freed's body was found. facebook is a defendant in a class-action lawsuit. the plaintiffs say the social network has been intercepting private messages between friends and then giving that information to marketers. two facebook users filed the suit in california. the company says the allegations simply aren't true and it will vigorously defend itself in court. still 11 degrees here outside the time warner center, very, very cold. this storm affecting so many people. next up on "new day," some other news, obamacare still in its infancy, facing a big test today at the supreme court. justices could real on a key provision that stoked controversy among religious

groups. the dead man busted. a banker declared dead. oh, he's very much alive. one of his alleged fraud victims says she knew his suicide was a fraud, too. we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] the new new york is open.

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"new day" is back. we're indoors continuing with our news today. obamacare's contraception mandate has hit a legal snag, the supreme court. hours before this mandate was to go into effect, supreme court justice sonia sotomayor granted a temporary exemption to catholic groups. jill doherty is following the development from the white house. >> reporter: good morning.

day three of obamacare dawns with a key part on hold at least temporarily. it's the last days of president obama's two-week hawaiian vacation and he spent thursday playing golf with the new zealand prime minister and his son. but in washington, as life returns to normal after the new year, it's back to obamacare. today, the supreme court could order the obama administration to allow certain religious affiliated nonprofits to remain exempt from the law's requirement to provide birth control and other reproductive health services to their employees. this comes after a group of colorado funs asked justice sonia sotomayor for a temporary injunction from complying with the law. a white house official responded saying we defer to the department of justice on litigation matters but remain confident our final rules strike a balance between contraceptive

care and religious of courses. coverage began january 1st for the 2.1 million americans who have enrolled in obamacare since october. >> i've been waiting a long time for january 1st, 2014. >> reporter: and president obama's allies at organizing for action continue to promote the new law. mr. obama himself sent out a new years tweet saying i signed the aca for kids like marcellus owens. he lost his mom because she couldn't afford coverage. today, millions of americans finally can. the white house has not said who those millions of americans are. a fact some republicans say indicates an overall lack of trust. >> if they keep putting a flowery spin on everything, how are we really going to ever -- how are we ever really going to trust that we're getting the best, accurate information about the prospects for the law? >> and that information about who is signing up, for example, are they young or old, et

cetera, is important. because the big concern is long term, how will this be paid for. and the white house says that they will be releasing updated information in mid-january. michaela. >> this just in from the cold. the news man lean. >> it is money time. warmer inside here. the ear muffs. >> oh, the ear muffs. >> i had to take them off because money time is so important. >> the dow was down yesterday. you didn't want to hear bad news about your 401(k). it was the best year for stocks since 1997. the dow lost 135 points yesterday, the nasdaq and s&p also fell. early predictions for how this year will go from analysts surveyed, everyone wants to know what happens this year? in short, analysts predict a year-end target on the dow and s&p, that means they think

stocks will go up about 6% this year. that's after nearly 30% rise in 2013. so more to go but not as great as last year. auto sales for the month of december, and for the year are out later this morning. ford has already said it will be the best-selling car brand in the united states for 2013. ford got there this year with big sellers like the f-150 pickup truck, the focus, which is likely to finish as the world's most popular, the fiesta and the fusion. and a billion dollar deal in a very hot industry. cybersecurity. with headlines about companies like target, snapchat, skype being hacked, we got news yesterday that a company called fireeye would be mandiant for a billion dollars. what is mandiant? it's the computer forensics firm that specializes in tracking down hackers. analysts say expect more of this kind of cyberdeals as hackers

get more sophisticated and ambitious. >> and to stay ahead of them, they have to be more ambitious. >> that will be an important space for the stock market. >> don't you think you want to do money time from outdoors with us next time? >> no. >> cold hard cash. cold hard cash. there you go. i just invented that right now. next up on the program, he was missing and declared dead but he was very much alive. in court where he came face to face with the people who say he swindled them out of millions. we'll hear from them. breaking news. we're right in the middle of it. the nor'easter of 2014, 100 million people in its path and next, dangerous below zero temperatures. it is very cold out. we'll take a closer look at new york city, some major highways around the city are closed and it's a huge test for the city's brand new mayor.

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welcome back to "new day." if it's not cold where you are, you're the lucky ones. a third of the nation covered by this massive nor'easter that's moving through the northeast. it's already dumped almost two feet of snow in parts of massachusetts. we're told the totals are increasing in other areas. look at the map. about 1,500 flights are canceled for today already. many of them in and out of boston, new york and philadelphia where the snow is making for dangerous conditions. if you have to fly today, call because your plans are probably being changed.

>> call and prepare to be unhappy. once the snow is gone we have another major concern, it could be the big story of the storm. the ice cold temperatures. literally colder than your freezer in many places. and it's not warming up anytime soon. icy roads could really be with us for a while. we have weather covered from all the angles today. we want to the start with indra petersons who's up in boston where almost 2 feet of snow has fallen already. you can just see, indra, how cold and awful the conditions are up there. >> so true. i have this new thing everyone was talking about this morning. it looks like my teeth hurt. i think they do. that is a new level of cold for me. the difference though this time from when i was here in boston for the blizzard almost about a year ago is how dry this snow is. look at the cars right now on the road. you can see the berms banking these cars in. last time it was a wet snow. they had to shovel out the cars. this time, watch my foot as i kick this. this is pure powder.

notice how the wind picks it up and flies it away. good thing, if you're trying to get your car out of the snow. not a good thing when you talk about visibility. that's the reason places in massachusetts and long island have blizzard warnings. you're talking about dry snow, winds going anywhere from 30 to 40 miles per hour, picking it up, blowing it around and that visibility taking you down to less than a quarter mile. that's pretty much the criteria when you get that for a prolonged period of time. that's the concern that brings, those blizzard warnings into the region. what we'll be watching for is the snow. it will keep falling especially through the next several hours, late morning it tapers off and moves from west to east as it builds and lifts offshore off the coastline. there's something else going on. we actually have ocean effect snow. this low that's built offshore is taking that moisture off the ocean and bringing heavy amounts, as much as 2 feet north of us here in essex county in boston, that's how much snow they'll be looking at.

once the snow clears off and moves offshore you have the winds that are left here. they'll be producing more snow off of cape cod. a lot to be dealing with, it is cold. by the time the storm gets out of here, you'll have to try to dig up the snow in negative 20 degree temperatures. >> ocean effect snow, this is an interesting concept that i haven't been made aware of. it's interesting, you said sometimes you can't see the snow on camera. we can see it coming down and how strong the wind is where you are, indra. one of the biggest, busiest roads connecting much of long island is under a driving ban. the long island expressway is set to officially re-open later this morning. but the state kept it closed to avoid traffic traffic troubles so they can get some of the snow cleared out of there. this happens to be the first big test for new york city's new mayor who decided to close

schools on just his third day on the job. we have more on the long island conditions and the new york mayor as well. welcome to your new job, sir. >> great. a big welcome. not the welcome he was expecting. we heard him say that. this is the kind of thing a storm this size always tests politicians. we'll see how everyone comes through this. as we are in the thick of it, the goal is to keep everyone safe. if you take a look out here, the long island expressway, it's why the governor decided to put a ban on driving out here. not everyone is following it. that ban, we should drive this point home is supposed to be in effect until at least 8:00 this morning. the snow is still falling, temperatures dropping and a blizzard warning remains in effect out here on long island until 1:00 today. throughout the night, blizzard-like conditions on long island, eastern parts of the island hardest hit. >> so far it's a mess. it's a mess. they're doing not too bad with the roads on the main roads but

the side roads are just horrible. >> reporter: roadways are covered in snow, making driving downright dangerous. new york governor andrew cuomo closed the long island expressway and the state's thruway south of albany after midnight as a precaution. we're waking up to an almost ear eerie sense of quiet here. that is the long island expressway. not a car on it. you can see the plows are out, they've been out all night. while they were preparing to take on this storm, they kept an eye on what's happened in the past. >> there's one thing we have learned from superstorm sandy is that we can never be too prepared. >> reporter: less than a year ago, the l.i.e. was littered with abandoned vehicles, hundreds of motorists stranded, some spent the night in their cars, others were rescued by firefighters. >> it was cascading effect. one car went up, got stuck, the rest stayed behind it and kept trying to get around each other an they all got stuck.

>> reporter: in new york city, hundreds of salt spreaders and plows were on the streets. the city's new mayor spent his first working day preparing for his first emergency. >> it would have been nice to have a nice calm first day but we have snow on our mind. and we are focused like a laser. on protecting the people of the city and getting everyone ready. >> reporter: city schools are closed friday but mass transit continues to operate while it's safe. the new mayor is hoping to avoid the debacle three years ago when it took weeks to clear some of the city's streets. >> the response to the storm was inadequate and unacceptable and clearly the response to this storm has not met our standards or the standards that new yorkers have come to expect from us. >> reporter: all right. we're hoping to see things go more smoothly this time around. if you are just waking up, it isn't over yet. we're expecting about a foot of snow in parts of long island. we're about halfway there.

we're seeing the same kind of snow they have in boston, what indra was showing us, light, easy snow to shovel but why would you bother in the wind is blowing so much. >> that's what i always say when the wife says go shovel the driveway. why even bother? didn't work very well. >> i did my part, i did one scoop. >> appreciate you being out there. 35 minutes after the hour. some parts of massachusetts are waking up to 21. >>s of snow. this powerful winter storm slammed the state with high winds and freezing temperatures. joining us now by phone from cape cod is kevin worley. kevin, thank you so much for being with us. he's with the department of emergency management. give us the situation out on the cape. >> good morning. pleasure to be with you. over the past three hours eve seen the temperature dropping a degree an hour and wind speed increasing by about 9 miles an hour and gusts over 40 now. rather than seeing things

getting warmer as daylight approaches, we're seeing things get colder. so that seems to be our predicament for the next few hours as the storm passes by. and these blizzard-like conditions continue. >> that cold which is dropping by the hour is dangerously cold. and it can get in the way of dealing with the situation on the ground, on the roads. salt doesn't work the way it's supposed to. give me a sense of the road situation out on the cape. a lot of people may know, there's really only one major artery to get to the tip of cape cod. are cars moving, emergency vehicles getting where they need to go? >> there's very little traffic. people are, i this i, wisely staying indoors. we don't have any reports of -- there are no reports of any traffic problems. it's still early yet. i think as people awake and discover you can't see but a quarter mile, i hope that prudence will outweigh anybody's daring do. >> we can all assure you, there's really no good reason to

go outside in this right now. wait till later when it stops snowing and warms up a little bit. our machines, our television equipment is freezing. in some cases not working at all. i hope everyone out there still has power. what's the power situation across the cape? >> well, i'm knocking on wood as i say it. we've had no reported power outages. we had a short outage in orleans but that was caused by a front-end loader clearing snow hitting a utility pole. as far as mother nature, she's been kind to us. we are sitting in our warm houses with lights on. >> it's a kindness. this won't be over, especially the cold until at least the end of today or tomorrow. >> well, right now, everyone is nervously eyeing the north coast of cape cod, because of storm surge and coastal flooding. we are in an astroonomically

high tide period. we passed through the midnight high tide reportedly with no real problem. the noon today around 12:30 on the bay side could pose a problem. so in terms of what we're fearing next would be some sort of splash over effect. >> kevin worley, we'll keep our eyes on that. the noon high tide coming in from the north there. kevin morley, stay warm. >> thanks. >> when the temperatures are dropping well below zero it is hard. obviously we'll stay with this story today. stay with cnn both online and on the air. throughout the day this is our top story but there are other stories to get to. here are a look at the headlines. the state department saying the u.s. embassy in south sudan can no longer provide services to americ americans, now that more staff have been ordered to leave. washington is urging all americans to get out of south sudan because of the fighting

there between rebel forces and government troops. more than 1,000 people have died and around 200,000 have fled their homes, as this violence seems to be spiraling out of control. peace talks between the two sides are under way in ethiopia. new this morning, the family of jahi mcmath and the children's hospital in oakland will meet in federal court today. a federal magistrate ordered the settlement conference between the hospital and the family. jahi was declared brain dead after tonsil surgery and her family is fighting to keep her on a ventilator. a temporary restraining order keeping jahi on that ventilator is set to expire on tuesday. so how did the first day of legal marijuana sales go in colorado? cnn affiliate kusa in denver say pot shop owners as a group believe they did more than $1 million in business on wednesday. 24 pot shops opened on new year's day, to sell recreational marijuana. most in the denver area.

there are applications still pending for many more. the spectacular explosions and the fire from this train collision in north dakota sparking a review of transporting crew oil by rail. the ntsb launched the first broad examination of moving oil by train. this accident just west of fargo was the fourth such explosion in north america involving crude oil trains. the latest derailment, forcing the evacuation of about 1,000 nearby residents because of the smoke from that burning wreckage. another celebrity wardrobe malfunction. this time it was britney spears. this is the 32-year-old in the middle of her show. she handled it like a pro, she kept on performing as her costume zipper opened up it just exposed her back during her las vegas show at planet hollywood. two backup dancers jumped into action, managing her to get zipped back up. >> that was the only thing holding it all together.

it could have been much worse. >> next up on "new day," getting his day in court. the banker who faked his own death and was caught after his elaborate hoax fell apart on new years eve. he faces a judge and his victims in a federal court. as you're delving into your bowl this morning, a popular cereal is getting a makeover. general mills makes a change to one of our breakfast favorites. let me guess which one it was. [ male announcer ] this man has an accomplished research and analytical group at his disposal. ♪ but even more impressive is how he puts it to work for his clients. ♪ morning. morning. thanks for meeting so early. oh, it's not a big deal at all. come on in. [ male announcer ] it's how edward jones makes sense of investing. ♪

welcome back, everyone. new details and video this morning on that former banker accused of faking his own death to cover up multimillion dollars worth of fraud. aubrey lee price vanished in 2012 reportedly leaving behind a

suicide note. he was declared legally dead over a year ago. police say even his family thought he was dead. the fbi, however, did not buy this. here's cnn's david mattingly. >> reporter: missing and legally dead, former georgia banker aubrey lee price appeared very much alive leaving federal court. looking very different than he did when he disappeared a year and a half ago. >> would you have recognized this guy? >> every time i see that shot, it doesn't get old, how shocking it is. >> reporter: wendy cross is among more than 100 people allegedly defrauded by price in a $40 million investment scheme. a federal complaint says price confessed in a 22-page letter that he falsified statements with false returns. in order to conceal more than 20 million in investor losses. >> it was my life savings. yes, it was devastating. >> reporter: cross lost

$300,000. it put her food truck business in jeopardy and left her financially ruined, a risk she never suspected she was taking. >> he was a clean cut, soft spoken guy that seemed extremely professional and, you know, that's how i knew him. >> reporter: in 2012 law enforcement said price told his family he was going to latin america but instead flew to key west, bought diving weights and a ferry ticket to make it look like he jumped overboard and drown. security cameras caught him taking his last steps before he disappeared. >> did you believe he was dead? >> i never once thought that he was dead. >> why not? >> well, i saw the footage of him on the ferry in key west and he had a backpack and suitcase with him. >> reporter: the elaborate hoax fell apart new years eve when georgia police stopped price for driving with windows too darkly tinted. on new years day, authorities

raided the house price was renting in marion county, florida and found a marijuana growing operation with 225 plants. prosecutors call him a flight risk and ask he remain behind bars without bail. david mattingly, cnn, atlanta. >> remarkable how different he looks. he really changed his appearance. we'll be watching that. next up on "new day," a change in your cheerios, have you noticed? we'll tell you what the cereal company is doing differently after consumer groups applied pressure. green bay fans can't win. sit through a wind chill that feels like 40 below or stay home and watch mama's family. the game's been blacked out because there's no sellout. more ahead on "the bleacher report." open to ambition. open to bold ideas. that's why new york has a new plan -- dozens of tax free zones all across the state.

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big news from general mills, the company says it has been manufacturing its original flavored cheerios without genetically modified organisms or gmos. general mills says the process has been going on for the past several weeks. why the change and did you notice? christine romans is here with more. what was the pressure about? >> you didn't notice but you might. there will be labeling, not made with genetically modified organism ingredients. this is just the original cheerios. it's made with oats and oats are not genetically modify. they are not.

there were other ingredients that were, specifically corn starch and the type of sugar they use. it was activist groups that says we don't want gmos in the first food that most little kids eat. activists groups think it's tied to allergies. you can barely get food that hasn't been genetically modified. the science behind it is very clear. they don't see a long-term impact of gmos? >> terms of the hurdles for companies switching over. >> cost and sourcing. you look at something like 70% of processed foods have gmo ingredients. 70% of processed food. i mean, gmo ingredients are used to feed our animals and then it goes through the food chain that way. when you look at what's produced on american farms, less than 1% is not genetically modified. corn, corn is the big thing that

has been genetically modified. oats, not so much and that's why they can do this with these cheerios. >> other companies following suit? do you expect more announcements. >> we've heard from whole foods, they want labeling. they want consumers to be able to know. kashi. it's a savvy business move. even if there's no science or the science is unclear yet or we won't know yet what the science of gmo is. >> it's about confidence. >> if you can label it. one concern is, if you say gmo, consumers will see gmos as bad. >> thank you for bringing this to us. our cheerios are changing. >> it makes me hungry. were you up late? a shocking result in last night's sugar bowl. the sooners rolled the tide handing alabama their worst lost

in the last three seasons. andy scholes joins us with the "bleacher report." >> alabama had hoped to play for their third straight national title. auburn spoiled those dreams with the miraculous field goal returned for a touchdown. alabama turned the ball over five times in the game. oklahoma, they scored 35 points off those turnovers. and the sooners, they eventually sealed the victory in the fourth quarter, stripping a.j. mccarron and returning the fumble for a touchdown. you have to check out mccarron's girlfriend, katherine webb in the stands. she was stunned by this result. not the way she or mccarron envisioned his college career coming to an end as alabama get beat by the sooners, 45-31 in the sugar bowl. >> trending all over social media and on "bleacher report" right now, it's going to be a cold game on sunday for the packers and 49ers. i mean like ice bowl cold. the low temperature for sunday night in green bay is negative

20 degrees with the wind chill somewhere around negative 40. this could actually go down as the coldest game in football history. that's probably the reason why there's still about 3,000 tickets left for this game. and if they don't sell those 3,000 tickets by 5:00 eastern today, the game's also going to be blacked out in the green bay/milwaukee area. ana, the fans will have to be hunkered down inside on their couches will not be able to watch this game. >> you feel for them. it's like a lose/lose situation. >> it's a major dilemma. sit in negative degree weather or you don't watch the game at all. >> you don't see it at all. radio. we still have one of those. >> there you go. >> thank you. next up on "new day," the murder mystery of a beloved parish priest. a suspect is in custody but the big question is still why? was it a crime of opportunity or something more? of course the breaking news, the nor'easter of 2014 bringing blizzard-like conditions and states of emergency across the

east. we have this just in, jfk airport now closed due to all the snow. we're tracking it all, john and michaela heading back out into the elements as we speak. stay with us.

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unisom sleeptabs help you fall asleep 33% faster and wake refreshed. unisom. a stressful day deserves a restful night. breaking news. the nor'easter of 2014. this morning, the storm is still at full force. >> the wind is crazy out here. >> howling winds causing whiteout conditions, 100 million americans now grappling with the mounting snow and freezing cold. the city of boston almost entirely shut down. >> to the extent possible we're advising people to stay indoors, stay off the roads. >> nearly 2 feet of snow in areas and it hasn't stopped yet. >> travel chaos, major highways

closed, trucks and school buses careening off the roads, thousands of airplanes grounded across the u.s. >> supposed to leave today. now i'm trying to find a way to get out of here. >> and this is just the beginning. behind the snow, an epic freeze. it's already started in the midwest where the wind chills are well below zero. and it's heading east. we're tracking it all this morning. >> your "new day" starts right now. >> announcer: this is "new day" with chris cuomo, kate bolduan and main. good morning. this is the scene from outside time warner center here in columbus circle in new york city. good morning. chris and kate have the day off. if you don't have to be outdoors, our best advice is stay indoors. we may be in new york city but it is spreading its power around. the nor'easter is causing some problems at jfk airport in new york. it's been completely shut down. all flights there have been put

on hold. we're told it's expected to re-open around 8:30. we will of course keep you updated. you can only hope this storm is not a sign of things to come in 2014. we're only three days in. we were told that there's about 6 inches on the ground behind us in central park. that really is nothing compared to what the folks in massachusetts are seeing. almost 2 feet has fallen on the ground already. let's take a look at the map. you can see the storm is starting to move over the atlantic. that is good but here's the problem. what's coming next? well, that's bad. >> that's bad and that's cold. take a look at these temperatures for today. this is what it will feel like with the wind chill this afternoon. negative territory in many spots. it could get warmer overnight but i have to say, not by much. it is very, very cold. the impact of the storm is wide ranging. now up to about 1600 flights canceled for today. schools in philadelphia, schools in new york, schools in boston,

all closed today. these cities pretty much grinding to a halt. some major roads still shut down, including the long island expressway. actually the wind is starting to pick up right now. the long island expressway is shut down right now. it's usually packed this time of day, awfully quiet right now. >> we have our team spread out throughout the country covering this breaking news. we want to give you an idea of what's happening on the roads, in the air and just the general forecast. we start with the hardest hit area probably is boston. one of the hardest hit areas. indra petersons is basically one of the only people outside right now. indra? >> you know, i heard you talking about that bad, the cold temperatures that are coming. what about this? take a look right now. i have to find the up side here. here's my up side. an hour ago it was 2 degrees with a negative 21 wind chill. right now it is 3 degrees with a negative 17 wind chill.

a good 6 inches already here in boston. just north of us, a good 2 feet of snow has already fallen. you talk about the cold air, add in these winds gusting and blowing this all around, that is what is making this storm so unique. it is all this very cold, dry snow, blowing around. i know i'm not the only one. almost 100 million of you out there are dealing with exactly what i am at this moment. the massive nor'easter battered more than 20 states into the night. almost 2 feet of snow already on the ground in boston. the onslaught of snow is producing whiteout conditions in the area. >> we are closing state government. i am urging private employers to do the same. >> reporter: this year's first major snowstorm, forcing new york and new jersey to declare a state of emergency. >> please stay home tonight and stay off the roads. >> reporter: it's a disastrous mix for travelers. thousand of flights canceled, officials in new york closing several major highways overnight in hopes of saving lives.

several school districts from philadelphia to boston closed today as officials feared the commute to class would prove dangerous. check out this elementary school bus in missouri that skidded off an icy road into a ditch. the powerful arctic masses dropped temperatures in parts of the country to the coldest in years. >> it's freezing. >> reporter: at around 5 degrees below zero, this family in maine took boiling water and, check it out, it freezes immediately. >> here we go. >> snow. >> reporter: the winds off of the lake caused wind chills of 25 degrees below zero in some parts of chicago. salt spreaders blanketing streets as countless spinouts litter roadways along the northeast and new england highways. millions, now waking up to a beautiful but dangerous winter wonderland. let's talk about some of the concerns. i mentioned it feels like negative 20 degrees with the wind chill. with that kind of a cool temperature, cold temperature, you're talking about the threat of frostbite with exposure in

just ten minutes. that is all it takes. think about all the people if they're trying to get on the road and they get stuck, those are very dangerous conditions. you also talk about these winds out here, winds are gusting from the north, even 20, as much as 40 miles per hour. with that we have blizzard conditions. we have them in massachusetts. we also have them in long island. a lot of people have been asking, what makes it a blizzard versus a winter storm? it's the steady winds continually picking up the snow and blowing it around. as far as the timing with this system willing pulling from the west to the east. by late morning, the snowfall should start to taper off except for on the cape where you have something called ocean effect snow. think of lake-effect snow, the warmer ocean, the winds will continue to bring snow on to the cape in higher ams for them into the afternoon. we still have a long ways to go, guys. >> if you don't have to good out, the good thing is, this is sort of that holiday week that

has been extended. if you don't have to get out, if you can stay indoors for the next couple of days while this passes, it's the best advice we could give you. >> turn on the tv, watch us, we'll tell you how bad it is outside. don't go out and check for yourselves. >> our teeth haven't frozen yet but we'll watch that. thanks so much for that. let's move on to talk about the effects you were talking about, this ocean effect snow, the blizzard conditions hammering parts of massachusetts right now. the worst of it is pounding cape cod. check out the visibility. or the lack thereof it really. winds swirling the snow. you won't see a whole lot in front of you. we had a bit of trouble ourselves this morning with some of our gear. that is a picture that lori seeingle sent us of her truck completely covered in snow. it's not actually white. she's? chatham and joins us now with more on the conditions there.

it looks blustery there, lori. >> absolutely. the good news is you no longer have to look at how covered in snow i am. the sun has come up here in chatham, massachusetts. look around and see how much snow is here. this is a coastal town, right in the elbow of cape cod. right next to the water. you can see, we got up to 15 inches here. see the wind blowing. we actually documented our trip here, we documented overnight to see the worsening conditions. i want to show you that. check that out. the snow continuing to pile up here on cape cod, as fierce winds, frigid temps and coastal flooding threaten residents of the beach front homes. eastern massachusetts is expected to be among the hardest hit with blizzard warnings in effect in some areas through the morning. it's not just the snow that's a concern. limited visibility is making driving conditions treacherous. we're on the road, about 6:00 p.m. we're about an hour and a half away from cape cod. we're seeing the first signs of

the storm. you can see the ice forming on our wind shield right here, temperatures dropping rapidly. we just passed two accidents, another car pulled over, trying to scrape that ice from their wind shield. into the night, crews out in full force plowing roads. emergency services on call. >> stay inside, stay safe. don't be on the roadways unless it's necessary. >> reporter: sparks flying off power lines and crews are on the ready to respond to outages when the storm passes. as much as 2 feet of snow could accumulate overnight with wind chills dropping well below zero and winds gusting up to 35 miles per hour. we're looking at gusts of winds up to 20 miles per hour. it's only expected to get worse. that's why you see the streets are empty. everybody is at home weathering the storm. as you can see, conditions have worsened. i have the wind meter right here. you can see the gusts of wind blowing. right now we're looking at 20 miles per hour. it's been higher and conditions just continue to worsen.

as a southerner i always envisioned visiting cape cod. as the sun came up, this wasn't exactly what i thought. the silver lining here, i spoke to some folks with the department of transportation. they said they haven't had many reports of coastal flooding. that's a big deal when it comes to this kind of storm and city. we're still waiting until about 12:00 p.m. or 1:00 p.m. to see the high tide come in, see if that is going to do any damage. right now, knock on wood, it hasn't done any damage. >> good news. they'll be watching that to make sure they don't get the storm surge or coastal flooding they do fear. so far, so good. you can see it with lori, you really can't hide from this wind and snow. it's blowing it everywhere. the crews have been behind us cleaning up all morning by hand, there have been small snowplows driving by constantly.

it's blowing around a lot. we have a lot of breaking news associated with this story. right now, this just in from jfk airport in new york. that's completely shut down now. this happened just minutes ago, because of this nor'easter. that will certainly up the number of canceled and delayed flights, causing a really mess for people trying to get home after the holiday break. our storm coverage continues now with pamela brown who's live -- there's a snowplow right there behind us. here we go. it's going on all the time here. there goes the snowplow. i bet there are no snowplows inside laguardia airport where pamela brown is standing right now. pamela? >> reporter: no snowplows, just doughnuts and coffee here inside laguardia airport, john and michaela. i have to say, passengers are taking it in stride, despite all the cancellations, you can see the cancellations on the board behind me here at laguardia, already 254 cancellations here. just today, 285 at newark airport.

altogether, 1,500 flight cancellations today. as you mentioned, jfk airport is closed this morning until at least 8:30 a.m. eastern time. and no flights are going in or out of boston logan airport until noon today. heavy snow, strong winds and limited visibility have stalled air travel this morning. more than 1,000 flights already canceled and more than 2,000 flights canceled thursday. >> supposed to leave today. it's been scheduled to leave on sunday. and so now i'm trying to find a way to get out of here. >> reporter: boston's logan airport remaining open during the storm but not many flights going or coming. chicago's o'hare international airport the hardest hit with more than 650 halted flights accounting for most of the country's headaches. >> my first flight to chicago was canceled and now my next flight is delayed. i don't know when i'll be back. >> we're freaking out right now. because we're running out of time.

>> reporter: the storm causing a ripple effect for air travelers in nearly every state. >> even though folks may not be flying to places like boston and new york, because those airports are such important components in the aviation network, that can have a domino effect on flights not even going to those locations. >> reporter: one stranded traveler snapped this wintry photo at laguardia airport in new york where flights were grounded at 8:00 p.m. last night. air travelers should be patient and expect lots of delays. just a quick update here for you. jfk airport is open but the flight operations are halted until at least 8:30 a.m. eastern time. we'll continue to keep you updated throughout the morning if that changes. here at laguardia, you con see it's pretty quiet behind me at the ticket counter. seems like a lot of passengers have checked with their arams ahead of time because of the cancellations. it's good to note here, the airlines are working with passengers, some airlines, united and american not charging them that ticket re-issuing fee so they done have the to pay anything to change their flight

to another day or time. john? >> see, that's fantastic news. before you even leave the house you can make alternate plans. you don't get stuck out there in that bad weather, your blood pressure goes up, et cetera. thank you for that, pamela. we really appreciate it. one of the other concerning things is not just the wind, the snow, it's the life-threatening temperatures that have a stranglehold on the midwest. check out the thermometer in international falls, minnesota. can you see that. >> oh, man. >> more than 40 degrees below zero. millions across the area are facing bone-chilling weather. just being outdoors for some 15 minutes could cause frostbite on exposed skin. these arctic-like freeze conditions will keep its icy grip for days to come. that's the bad news. cnn's ted rowlands is just outside of chicago. >> we're at 6 or 7 below zero.

i thought that was bad. 0 below zero is horrible. here's our t h-shirt. it's stiff as a board. add the wind chill, it's dangerous. any exposure can cost frostbite. people are being urged to stay indoors throughout the midwest. these temperatures will continue throughout the day today. we'll have a warmup on saturday. but then the deep freeze actually sets in in the midwest. it's going to go from bad to worse where we'll see temperatures nearing 20 below zero, downright dangerous. >> thanks to ted rowlands out in chicago. can i see that t-shirt one more time? >> yes. >> that t-shirt completely frozen. that is crazy. >> yes. it's a classic. listen to it. >> all right. hang that up again, warm that thing up. it's not a small t-shirt either. we'll leave that there.

ted rowlands, thank you so much. outside chicago with the snowplows going behind me again here. we continue with our breaking news coverage. the images of this nor'easter blasting millions with snow and fierce winds, the images are powerful. and some of you have been sharing with us what you are seeing outside. christine romans joins us now with that. christine? >> it's so cool, the response we're getting on social media. our first photo comes from @jennifer19. this is not her car thankfully but this is a snapshot she gave us. be careful driving on the roads out there. she was not injured but this is a testament really to what's been going on around the country. let me take you to michigan. this is east kingsford, michigan, an i-report from jason astland, showing the thermometer, minus 20. more than mine tuesday 20 degrees, 20 degrees below zero. this one is from henry phillips, chicago o'hare. we have a lot of pictures like this from o'hare but these are the cots set up this morning at

o'hare international airport. as i told you, that's one of the worst places for cancellations and delays right now. this is an instagram from kimberly carolyn. this is boston logan, john. snow throughs on the runways. artistic and beautiful. you don't see something like this all that often. amazing stuff happening out there right now. tag and share your extreme weather photos using #newday and #cnnweather. some really pretty pictures from what is really a gruesome day out there. >> appreciate it. let's go back inside to ana cabrera. the u.s. is ordered more embassy staff to leave south sudan and washington wants all americans in that country to get out. fighting between rebel forces and government troopses that left more than 1,000 people dead and chased around 200,000 people from their homes. peace talks between the two sides are under way right now in ethiopia. happening now, two americans are being held by the libyan

army at its headquarters in benghazi. a source telling reuters both were basketball players an they were arrested on the campus of benghazi university. the state department is looking into this matter. this, as word comes that a britain and a new zealander were found dead with gunshot wounds in western libya. the supreme court could act as early as today on utah's request to put same-sex marriages on hold. state officials appealing to the high court after a district court struck down the state's ban on gay marriage saying it violated federal guarantees of equal protection. ever since that decision, utah clerk's offices have been flooded with gay couples looking to get marriage licenses. new this morning, "the washington post" is reporting that the nsa is trying to build a super computer that can break nearly all types of encryption. it would be able to crack codes that protect banking, medical, business and government records all around the world. the paper cites information from edward snowden, his documents also suggest the nsa still has a

lot more work to do on this project. new this morning, a dramatic rescue on lake michigan after a man gets stuck in the ice. coast guard and chicago firefighters rescuing this man who was more than 60 feet out from the shore. the man who has not been identified was taken to an area hospital where he's being listed in critical condition right now. now more proof that pope francis really is a religious rock star. he reportedly drew 6.6 million people to his audiences, masses and other events at the vatican. that figure more than doubles the first-year numbers his predecessor, pope benedict xvi. the figures don't include his trips within italy or abroad. back to you now john as you bring us the latest from outside in the freezing cold. thank you so much, ana. it is cold, temperatures just above 10 degrees, could be dropping even more. next up on "new day," new troubling information this morning for rescuers of that ship in antarctica.

the australian ice breaker carrying the 52 rescued passengers is staying put, not going anywhere. we'll tell you why. and police say they have a man who killed a priest inside his church. what was his alleged motive? it has police stumped this morning. we'll explain why. [ male announcer ] nearly 7 million clients. how did edward jones get so big? let me just put this away. ♪ could you teach our kids that trick? [ male announcer ] by not acting that way. it's how edward jones makes sense of investing. it's how edward jones (dad) just feather it out. (son) ok. feather it out. (dad) all right. that's ok. (dad) put it in second, put it in second. (dad) slow it down. put the clutch in, break it, break it. (dad) just like i showed you. dad, you didn't show me, you showed him. dad, he's gonna wreck the car! (dad) he's not gonna wreck the car. (dad) no fighting in the road, please. (dad) put your blinker on. (son) you didn't even give me a chance! (dad) ok. (mom vo) we got the new subaru because nothing could break our old one. (dad) ok. (son) what the heck? let go of my seat! (mom vo) i hope the same goes for my husband. (dad) you guys are doing a great job. seriously.

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welcome back to "new day." now to a story we have been following now with a new update this morning. all 52 passengers stranded aboard a ship stuck in antarctic ice were finally rescued after a ten-day ordeal. but now their long journey home

has hit a snag. the rescuers themselves, they may need rescuing. cnn's matthew chance has more from london. matthew? >> reporter: it's getting an increasingly rescue operation. they waited for more than a week to try and air lift those passengers off that stranded research vessel, it's russian registered. they did that, 52 of the passengers being ferried by chinese helicopter from a chinese ice breaker close by to an australian ship where they are now located and where they were supposed to be heading into open water and back home to dry land. only problem is, that the chinese vessel has now itself become trapped in the very thick pack ice. it's the ice surrounded, around about 14 feet thick and it's having trouble dislodging itself. it means the australian ship with the scientists and tourists on board have been ordered to

stand by and stay where it is in case the chinese vessel needs asiftance. members of the australian crew say they believe this may not contain them very long, a couple days, perhaps, before the ice weakens in order for them to sail out of there. >> we know that that ship itself, that vessel is an ice breaker. do they wait it out or do they try and plow through the best they can? >> they'll do both those things. on the one hand they're trying to mash their way through the pack ice. it's just a little too thick for the boat's capabilities. 14 feet, incredibly thick for a boat, even of that size, to get through. they'll continue to do that, according to the australian maritime authorities. in the meantime, it's just a waiting game. they say they have fresh food up until the 16th of january. after that, they have dehydrated food. they're not going to starve or anything like that. they're not in immediate danger but they will be marooned for

considerably longer than they thought. >> the rescuers themselves are now stuck. matthew chance, keep an eye on that and bring us the latest when you have it. next up on "new day," my fingers are still cold from being outside. but you don't have to be outside to feel its effects. this is america's storm. this is hitting people down in sunny warm florida. also, police in california say they have a suspect and the evidence in a priest's violent death. one answer is still missing, though, for the shocked community. the question, why? but they live so far away. i've been thinking about moving in with my daughter and her family. it's been pretty tough since jack passed away. it's a good thing you had life insurance through the colonial penn program. you're right. it was affordable, and we were guaranteed acceptance. guaranteed acceptance? it means you can't be turned down because of your health. you don't have to take a physical or answer any health questions.

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it is cold. swirling winds, ice, blistering cold. these are the words of the day. welcome back to "new day." we're covering that massive nor'easter that's moving through the northeast and the midwest. this morning it's already dumped almost 2 feet in parts of massachusetts, up to a foot of snow in parts of new york and vermont after doing the same in illinois. >> once the snow is gone, the real news from the storm might be the frigid temperatures. they're really becoming a big concern. single digits with the wind chill for much of the weekend across the northeast. more than 1600 flights canceled for today already as the snow makes for dangerous flying conditions. notably here in new york where jfk airport, no flights in and out. the terminals are open but the airport otherwise shut down in terms of flying. that's along with boston and philadelphia. we have this weather system covered from all angles today. we'll have more on travel in a

couple of minutes. we start with indra petersons who is in boston which really does feel like the hardest hit area right now. indra? >> reporter: i can tell you, yes, it does. we're definitely talking about heavy snow but that's not the thing i want to talk about. i want to talk about what makes this particular storm so unique. i think you already nailed it. it is the cold temperatures. in fact it is so cold with the wind chill, it feels like negative 20 degrees. that is so cold, they're not even bother salting the roads anymore. once the ground is below 15 degrees fahrenheit, it doesn't help anymore. i want to show you what it looks like on some of the cars here. pan back around. you can see, this is the upside of this kind of system, it is so cold. the snow is very dry. as far as clearing the snow, that is not going to be an issue. the downside of it, we're talking about strong winds in addition. when you have the strong winds blowing around fine snow like this, the visibility is down below of a quarter mile. that is the reason we have the blizzard warnings in

massachusetts and also out towards long island. you have prolonged periods of steady winds that storm warning. so many people have been asking me that question. let's talk about what's expected. this low making its way off the coastline. it's going to move or clear out from the west to the east. as it does, it will continue to dump snow through the morning hours. if you're closer to the coastline, especially, just north of us here, in massachusetts, you're going to be talking about heavy amounts of snow, even as much as 2 feet of snow. the reason for that is you have the low over the water. just imagine all that moisture coming off of the ocean enhancing the amount of snow you can get. that makes its way offshore by late morning. but in places like the cape, just south of me here in boston, you'll be having that concern of ocean effect snow, kind of a new concept for a lot of people. the ocean is warmer than this ridiculously cold air. with that, even when the storm moves out of here, you will be

talking about snow falling in that region. the bigger concern is the cold temperatures and another blast of colder, hard to believe, colder arctic air is moving in from the beginning of next week into this region. i need to prepare myself. i don't think i can do it, guys. >> it's not easy. indra is in boston dealing with the snow, the wind and the cold. that city dealing with major transportation issues. it really is the biggest metropolitan area being hit by this storm. i'm joined on the phone by renee fielding, boston's director of emergency management thank you so much for being with us. give us a sense of how the city is going right now this morning. what's your area of greatest concern? >> so we're doing pretty good right now. our public works teams were out all night, hit the main arteries. unfortunately, the wind is going against us right now. they no more than plow, the wind blows the fluffy snow back in

their path. we're staying focused on keeping the -- >> schools are closed, most government workers told to stay home and the governor urged private workers to probably stay at home today if they can manage. are you finding that the roads are clear enough for your utility clues to do the work they need to do? >> yes. we are. again, the crews have been out all night. they're passable, there's some areas drifting. again, some things are getting in the way but we are hoping the people heed the warning of the governor, the mayor and stay home. it's cold outside. they've got to be prepared for the cold that they're going to experience if they do go out, and dress properly. >> the cold does get in the way of treating the roads. it's too cold for the salt to make any kind of difference. also cold can be a major concern for people who might be on the streets, including the homeless. what kind of provisions are being made for them?

>> so we have our emergency shelters that have been open and we've had our ems and our police crews out all night. if they come across someone who's homeless, they've picked them up and taken them to a shelter and gotten them services if they needed it. >> taking care of the people in need up there. that's good. one other thing that boston is facing is a transition. you're moving from one mayor to the next mayor, tom menino retiring after a long, long time in office. the new mayor, martin walsh heading in. this must be a complicated time to change mayors. >> it is. we're excited to get this one done and hopefully we won't have a new storm for mayor-elect walsh to have to deal with for a couple of weeks. >> quite a going away present from mayor menino. >> it is. >> stay warm. thank you for being with us. appreciate it. >> thank you. >> you have to give credit to the people that are doing those

services of clearing our roads. that's a lot of heavy work, terribly cold work. so definitely send your best wishes to them. >> and the wind. >> it gets right through you. >> blowing the snow right back on the road. >> you might be watching "new day" from an area not being bit by this extreme weather but you may find your travel plans will be impacted. there's a ripple effect with a storm like this. it's huge. christine romans you're taking a look at that. it will affect everybody. >> it doesn't matter where you are. let's take a look at the flights that are in the air this morning. the northeast, that should be covered with orange and red airplanes on this map and it is not. actually having a ripple effect, affecting air travel all over the country big time here. let's take a look at that. major hubs like chicago, new york and boston, they're all experiencing widespread cancellations. by thursday night, 29% of chicago's outbound traffic had already been canceled.

29%. more than 650 cancellations. when major hubs come screeching to a halt, the smaller airports like cleveland do as well. let me show you florida. sunny florida, for example, parts of the state are experiencing near-record heat. but travelers from ft. lauderdale and miami were grounded with a combined 37 cancellations and 89 delays because they couldn't get to their destinations. another reason why travel is affected, through flights that stop in a city before continuing on to their final destination. let me tell now what i'm talking about. this is a united flight from lax to boston via denver. if you're planning to take the plane to denver, think again. you're not going to be able to land there. that flight has been canceled. multiply that by all of those flights. and all the airlines. the widespread impact, that's the ripple effect that you see. it's so rare to see this part of the country with any green showing. and just so that you can --

wouldn't you like to be going down here? i think indra would like to be on one of these plays. >> we'd have to figure out how to travel without going in the air. >> this is true. >> the travel will be a problem. we'd have to jet ourselves there. >> teleportation. >> perfect. let's get a check with ana cabrera for a check of the other headlines. two americans detained by the libyan army, a source telling reuters both were basketball players, arrested on the campus of benghazi university. the state department is looking into this matter. while a britain and a new zealander we also have learned, were found dead with gunshot wounds. that was in western libya. new this morning, a tanker hauling flammable gas crashed and exploded on a snowy highway in michigan. residents in this area, near that explosion on i-69 were briefly evacuated as a precaution. the driver got away. he got out okay, suffering minor injuries and no other vehicles were involved in that accident. also this morning, a

collapsing pile of rock salt has now killed a man in pennsylvania. he was working in an excavator ahead of the snowfall when that pile 100 feet tall came crashing down. this is in falls township. rescuers were overwhelmed with the volume of the salt. by the time they got to that man, it was too late. a chinese tycoon who made millions in the recycling business says he is serious about buying "the new york time times". he's planning to fly in today to meet with a representative from the paper although it's unclear if he'll actually be able to get there, given the weather. "new york times" publisher, arthur sol arth arthursolesburger says the paper is not for sale. this billy got loose in an oklahoma city neighborhood and tried to head butt his way into a man's home and then when the cops came, look at what happened. the goat turned his horns on them. he tried to ram their cruiser.

everybody's okay. that goat is back with its owner. a little ornery. >> a little? >> for the time that goat was on the loose. you could say it was a goat on the lam. just saying. >> hashtag. next up on "new day," police say they have the man that killed a priest inside his church. the question is, why? and that question has police stumped. we'll explain. and did this nfl kicker lose his job for speaking out about gay rights? he thinks it's possible. why he's speaking out now, coming up next on "new day." the new new york is open.

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welcome back to "new day." now to the mystery surrounding the killing of a beloved california priest. police say they now have the man who brutally murdered him.

gary lee bullock was arrested thursday afternoon. his alleged victim, father eric freed, was found dead following what police are calling a violent struggle. but why it happened remains a mystery. cnn's dan simon reports. >> reporter: this was father eric freed being formally installed as the pastor at st. bernard church in eureka, california. he'd been leading the congregation for three years. >> he was a great teacher, a great tmentor, a loving person,a very, very loving man. >> reporter: on wednesday morning, new year's day, he was found dead inside his rectory. police say there was clear evidence of a forced entry and struggle. the priest died of blunt force trauma. church members seen outside praying. >> absolute loss for the parish and our community in general. >> he was about the most

charismatic man, pastor, that i've had. >> reporter: it didn't take long for thoughts to name and later arrest a suspect. 43-year-old gary lee bullock who in recent days had been no stranger to police. he had been arrested on new year's eve for public intoxication. officers even had to take him to the hospital for an evaluation where he had to be physically restrained. he was later taken to jail but released the following day. >> in california, if you're taken to jail for a misdemeanor such as public intoxication, you're normally kept four hours and after that four hours you're released. >> reporter: later that evening, a security guard heard a noise in the area of the church. he reports seeing a person matching bullock's description and says he told him to leave after a short conversation. it's now new year's day, 9:00 a.m. and father freed is supposed to lead a service but doesn't arrive. >> it was shock and, i think people knew that something wasn't quite right because a priest just doesn't not show up for mass.

and i just think we did what comes naturally to us, which is pray for our faster. >> reporter: authorities say they have no motive, they're calling this a crime of opportunity. they also tell us the suspect drove 45 minutes away to a family member's house in the pastor's car. it was one of bullock's relatives who called police. michaela and john, back to you. >> what a tragedy for that community. >> so sad. so sad. 46 minutes after the hour. new this morning, former information punter chris kluwe is lashing out. he says his outspokenness cost him his job. he says the minnesota vikings cut him because of his advocacy for same-sex marriage. andy scholes is here with more on this now. good morning, andy. >> reporter: good morning, john. chris kluwe wrote a letter to deadspin.com saying i was an nfl player before i was fired by two cowards and a bigot. he claims he was singled out and

cut from the vikings because of his advocacy for same-sex marriage in the state of minnesota. he said on multiple occasions special teams coordinator used homophobic language in his presence, once saying we should round them all the gays, send them to an island and nuke it till it glows. kluwe says he was asked to tone down his advocacy for gay rights as well. those allegations are strongly denied. the vikings say they're going to take the accusations seriously and thoroughly review this matter. >> as you said, he was cut last year. any sense of why kluwe decided to write the letter now? >> he said for a few reasons that now was the time. he didn't want to do it during the season because he has a few friends on the vikings and didn't want them to have to answer questions about this every week about this situation. he also said he wanted to prove he could still punt in the nfl. he says his numbers were always right in the middle of all the punters, even in the top third of punters in the league. he had tryouts last season and

eventually wasn't picked up but he said the scouts still talked positively about his efforts and that he was still a punter worthy of playing in the nfl. finally, he says he wrote this letter now because he wants to make sure that mike priefert never coaches in the nfl again or football at any level. that was one of the main reasons he decided to come out now, especially because of mike prifert, he doesn't want to see him coaching as a role model for football players. >> take a short break on "new day." ahead, nigella lawson is talking for the first time about the rough year behind her. she's hoping for better days ahead. we're hearing from her, right after the break. [ male announcer ] the new new york is open.

open to innovation. open to ambition. open to bold ideas. that's why new york has a new plan -- dozens of tax free zones all across the state. move here, expand here, or start a new business here and pay no taxes for ten years... we're new york. if there's something that creates more jobs, and grows more businesses... we're open to it. start a tax-free business at startup-ny.com. we're open to it. i've got a job to do today. i've got a job to do today. have a good first day at work, mom! your donations to goodwill fund job-training programs right in your community.

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welcome back to "new day," everyone. new this morning, celebrity chef nigella lawson speaking out for the first time since two of her assistants were acquitted of fraud. lawson testified at trial, denying drug accusations, 2013 saw her personal life put through the ricker, really did, including a messy divorce and allegations of abuse, now lawson says she's ready to put it all behind her. ana cabrera has more. >> nigella lawson is back, that he's what she wants you to believe. last year "the taste" premiered its second season, she's doing her first interview since her divorce in a tabloid trial against her two former assistants it's clear she wants to start the new year putting the drama behind her and focusing on what she does best. >> i think you and i would be a very good fit.

>> reporter: nigella lawson is back in the spotlight but this time on her own terms. her reality show "the taste" started its second season last night. the celebrity chef is likely hoping the public will remember her for her cooking career and forget about the drama surrounding her personal life through much of 2013. >> i think she's using this as an opportunity to show everyone she's doing great and no better way to do it than doing press and appearing on television. >> reporter: over the past few months she's been on the covers of tabloids and cookbooks, going through a very public divorce charles saatchi and public trial against her two former assistants. >> to have only your private life but distortions of your private life is mortifying. >> reporter: the trial itself was frequently overshadowed by the tawdry details of lawson's own life on the witness stand she was forced into admitting

she used cocaine several times. now she says the whole experience was mortifying. >> his eye was to protect my children but that's what i wanted to do and actually, you know, since then, you've eaten a lot of chocolate. >> reporter: lawson says she's ready to move forward, leaving those unappetizing details in the past. >> i think this is make or break time for nigella. now she's really got to show that she's got it put together and that her reputation is intact. if she blows this, it could be irreparable. >> lawson definitely wants to show audiences here in the u.s. that this personal drama is over. she wants people talking. her cooking, not her problems, and she's ready to reclaim that reputation as domestic goddess. up next here on "new day," how do you manage to fake your own death and live on the lam for a year? one man did it and he made his

first court appearance since his capture. and the long island expressway about to reopen but it may not be a good idea to drive just yet. michaela and john are heading back out into the elements right now as "new day" continues in just a moment. ♪ [ male announcer ] even more impressive than the research this man has at his disposal is how he puts it to work for his clients. morning. morning. thanks for meeting so early. come on in. [ male announcer ] it's how edward jones makes sense of investing.

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-- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com breaking news, the nor easters 2014, the new year comes in hard. blizzard-like conditions across the east, nearly two feet of snow already, and the storm's not over yet. >> please stay home tonight and stay off the roads.

>> states of emergency across much of the east. the governor of massachusetts asking all businesses to close today. 100 million americans now dealing with the snow and cold. >> it's freezing. >> reporter: as the holiday travel weekend is derailed, thousands of flights canceled, major highways closed. >> coming down pretty heavily, actually. >> reporter: we're talking it all this morning. >> your "new day" continues right now. >> announcer: this is "new day" with chris cuomo, kate bolduan and michaela pereira. >> good morning and welcome to "new day." i was looking at the that temperature gauge above columbussirk until new york city hoping that it would move a little bit, it's still at 11 degrees even though the sun has come up. >> it's been a cold, cold day in new york and across the northeast our friend the snow play driving mind us, has been at work all morning, a tough morning for a lot of people in the northeast. >> breaking news now if you're planning to travel. operations have been suspended

at john f. kennedy airport in new york. jfk is shut down, the reason zero visibility and wind-blowing snow. you can tell if it's like this here you can imagine how it is at the airport. that will have a ripple effect on flights around the nation and globe. almost 1,700 flights have been impacted. logan airport in boston is open, but there are a lot of delays there. call ahead if you're supposed to be flying. we're told poston has about two feet of snow on the ground in areas nearby. look at the map. you can see that storm moving. it's moving on, that's the good news, but the problem is the frigid temperatures are here to stay for a few days so all this snow is going to stick around, we're not going to get any melting. >> look at the temperatures, this is what it will feel like with the windchill this afternoon, that is very, very cold, minus 12, minus 10, look at that, and it's going to stay that cold through tomorrow morning and really the rest of the weekend, there goes the

snowplow one more time for another trip behind us. >> we have our teams spread throughout the country covering the breaking news. the fact is a third of the nation is being affected by this storm. we start with indra petersons in hard-hit boston. >> reporter: the massive nor'easter battered more than 20 states into the night, nearly two feet of snow already on the ground near boston. the onslaught of snow is producing whiteout conditions in the area. >> we are closing state government. i am urging private employers to do the same. >> reporter: this year's first major snowstorm forcing new york and new jersey to declare a state of emergency. >> please stay home tonight and stay off the roads. >> reporter: it's a disastrous mix for travelers, thousands of flights canceled, officials in new york closing several mablgor may ways overnight in hopes of saving lives. several school districts from philadelphia to boston closed today as officials fear the commute to class would prove dangerous. check out this elementary school bus in missouri that skidded off

an icy road straight into a ditch. it has dropped temperatures to parts of the country to the coldest in years. >> it's freezing. >> reporter: this family in maine took boiling water and it freezes immediately. >> here we go. >> snow! >> reporter: windchills of 25 degrees below zero in some parts of chicago. salt spreaders blanketing streets as countless spinouts litter roadways along the northeast and nupg new england highways. millions are waking up to a dangerous but beautiful winter wonderland. take a look, i can literally kick through the snow like it is nothing, good news if you're trying to take your car out of the snow but unfortunately with the strong winds, that continue to blow, 30 to 40-mile-per-hour winds out of the north we have

the concern for poor visibility, the snow expected to continue to fall throughout the late morning. it should taper off by the afternoon today except for on the cape, we're going to get ocean-effect snow so you'll still see snow in that region. the big story behind this is the frigid air, temperatures negative 20 below and a second storm behind this one will bring cooler air by the beginning of next week, hard to believe when it feels this cold. >> you think you made it through this one you better prepare yourself, more cold weather is coming. if you don't have to leave, if you don't have to go out, take the advice of some of the governors and elected owe fshls to just stay indoors. as indra mentioned, cape cod, this is new this morning, it's one of the hardest hit areas, dealing with heavy snow and ice and really strong wind. look at this, you might not recognize what that is. lo lor laurie segall was covering it

until we couldn't see her, she's been in the middle of the swirling winds and snow, giving us a great look at what has happened and she documented it overnight. laurie, how is it right now that the sun is up? >> reporter: it night be better that you could completely see me. the wind everywhere, blowing everywhere and now that the sun is up you see how much snow there is. there was so much snow coming down. now you can see and if you take a look at this store behind me it's a shoe shop and we have a picture of what it looks like in the summer compared to what it looks like now, and you can actually get the sense of how much snow there is here, take a look over here, it's up to 15 inches of snow here, and you also mentioned our satellite truck it stopped working because we're thinking of this chilly air because of the frigid weather here we're going live through a process, dng, there's a laptop in our car right next

door and we're actually eventually going live through the internet and we're going to have to move our car soon because the snow is just piling up. behind me the snowplows and as you mentioned before, this is cape cod. we are on the coast. we are near the water and a lot of folks, as the sun comes up and we near around noon, 1:00, people are going to be worried about the tide coming in. knock on wood, the good news is there hasn't exactly been too much coastal flooding which is a huge concern but we'll be waiting until 12:00 or 1:00 to see if when the high tide comes in if there's coastal flooding. >> a few more hours until they clear that danger zone in the cape, still snowing, the winds still blowing, it will be the last place the storm ends. laurie segall thank you for the story. the long island expressway is back open. it was shut down overnight so

the crews could plow through the snow. schools are closed today in several big cities, boston, philadelphia, new york, a lot of kids at home, this is the first major decision here in new york for the new mayor bill deblase yo. alexandra field joins us from new york. >> reporter: for at least a moment the wind let up but the demp tour dropping from 12 degrees down to 10 degrees and with it the windchill went from 6 below to 8 below. so you can feel every degree. i've added an extra layer, i had to throw on the ear muffs here, and you can also see some of the cleanup work is actually starting, while many of us have not been on the roads, the plows have. you can see the snow bank around the cnn suv. if you're headed out to your car you'll probably find something

like this, icicles just another sign of how cold it is all over the northeast. throughout the night, blizzard-like conditions on long island, eastern parts of the island hardest hit. >> so far it's a mess. it's a mess. they're doing not too bad with the roads on the main roads but the side roads are horrible. >> reporter: roadways are covered in snow making driving downright dangerous. new york governor andrew cuomo closed the long island expressway after midnight as a precaution. we're waking up to an almost eerie sense of quiet on long island. the plows are out, been out all night. long island officials say while they were preparing to take on this storm they kept an eye on what's happened in the past. >> there's one thing we learned from superstorm sandy is that we can never be too prepared. >> reporter: less than a year

ago l.i.e. hundreds stranded, others rescued by firefighters. >> it was a cass nating effect, one car went off, the rest stayed behind it and kept trying to get behind it and all got stuck. >> reporter: in new york city hundreds of plows and salt spreaders were on the street as the snow started falling. the city's new mayor spent his first working day preparing for his first emergency. >> it would have been nice to have a nice calm first day but we have snow on our mind and we are focused like a laser on protecting the people of the city and getting everyone ready. >> reporter: schools are closed friday but mass transit continues to operate while it's safe. the new mayor is hoping to avoid the debacle three years ago when it took weeks to clear some of the city streets. >> as a response the snowstorm was inadequate and unacceptable and not met our standards or the

standards that new yorkers have come to expect from us. >> reporter: hopefully a lot of you are waking up to a sight that looks like that, that's the only vehicle you really want to be driving this morning and hopefully you are seeing plows in front and loaders in your neighborhood. the snow has been falling quickly, the bulk of it overnight and early this morning. we threw our cables out here 4:00 in the morning, half a foot here and you can see all around me still coming down. >> that's going to keep crews busy and keeping cruise busy in columbus circle, new york city. the small plow is trying to keep the sidewalk concerned. flight operations at jfk airport suspended because of zero visibility at the airport. the terminals will remain open. the nor'easter is forcing the cancellation of up to 1,700 flights across the nation today,

adding to the thousands that were grounded over the last two days and then there's the delays over 2,000 so far today that number is expected to climb, pamela brown picks up our story live from new york's laguardia airport. what is the latest from laguardia? >> reporter: we're just finding out now, michaela, that there are limited flights going in and out of boston's logan airport, as you mentioned jfk airport has halted operations there and here at laguardia we just saw some people sleeping on cots acco according to an airport official there are around 180 cots set up here for stranded passengers and let me tell you they're taking advantage of them. many of them have been here since last night and probably be here for a while, considering how many flight cancellations there are. 1,571 flight cancellations in the u.s., a bulk of those at major hubs in the northeast and midwest. heavy snow, strong winds and

limited visibility have stalled air travel this morning, more than 1,000 flights already canceled and more than 2,000 flights canceled thursday. >> supposed to leave today but scheduled to leave on sunday and so now i'm trying to find a way to get out of here. >> reporter: boston's logan airport remaining open during the storm but not many flights going or coming. chicago's o'hare international airport the hardest hit, with more than 650 halted flights, accounting for most of the country's headaches. >> my first flight to chicago was canceled and now my next flight is delayed. i don't know when i'm going to get back. >> we're just kind of freaking out right now because we're running out of time. >> reporter: the storm causing a ripple effect for air travellers in nearly every state. >> even though folks may not be flying to boston and new york, because those airports are such important components in the aviation network, that can have a domino effect on flights not even going to those locations. >> reporter: one stranded traveler snapped this wintry photo of laguardia airport in

new york where flights were grounded at 8:00 p.m. last night. air travelers should be patient and expect lots of delays. back here live at laguardia airport, 254 flight cancellations here and we're expecting that number to tick up as the morning goes on, the conditions pick up. you see that reflected on the board behind me in the yellow is the cancellations. interesting to note the other flights that are leaving and coming in to laguardia are on time there. i also want to mention for those passengers who were supposed to be flying out today, many of the airlines are working with paepgz and not charging them the fee to change their ticket to another day or another time, so a pit of good news that are expected to be traveling this weekend. >> that is a bit of good news, call ahead, always good advice. today will be a long day but people will get to where they need to go. be patient, be kind, please, to everyone around you. >> best thing you can do. breaking news coverage of

this storm, social media is blowing up with pictures from this nor'easter, some of you have been sharing what you're seeing with us, christine romans joins us with a small sampling. >> the first from patrice clark in saratoga springs. this could be so dangerous, clear the tail pipe first, don't start the car and have someone sit in the car while you're digging it out. carbon monoxide deaths happen in big storms when people turn on the car, sit in there and tail pipe. be careful of the traffic and the snowplows. more from upstate new york, this is from twitter, the bridge made impassable by snow. look at the guardrails, you can see how high that snow is piled up. east to detroit, all the snow on the ground they're not going anywhere, and make sure you're

all packing extra patience if you're headed to the airport today. you'll see a lot of planes just like this and this is finally from southeastern pennsylvania via twitter, look at that car again not going anywhere any time soon. there's no place to go anyway. school is closed, no one is going to work, stay inside. >> you know what somebody else told me, christine romans, you can follow your airline on twitter or some of your local municipalities, sometimes they get really good up to the minute updates, transportation woes or cancellations with your airlines, a good way to stay on top of it all. >> go to your login and make sure your profile you have your phone number so they can text you and let you know if you're going anywhere. >> that has saved me more than once. christine romans thanks for doing that. i like getting to see what everybody's experience is like. let's head inside for some of the day's top stories, ana cabrera has that for us.

>> i'm sending you warm thoughts. the state tent say the u.s. embassy in south sudan can no longer provide services to americans, now that more staff members have been ordered to leave. washington is urging all americans to get out of south sudan because of the fighting between rebel forces and the government troops there. peace talks between the two sides are under way right now in ethiopia, but the fighting rages on. army officials say government forces are about to retake a city from rebels. also new the australian ice breaker carrying the 52 rescued passengers is having to stay put because now there are worries that the chinese vessel which deployed that helicopter involved in the rescue, now that could get stuck itself in sea ice. the chinese ship plans to try to get out of the thick ice saturday at a point when the tidal conditions are more facial, much more on this later in the hour. happening today the family of jahi mcmath at the children's

hospital in oakland will meet in federal court. federal magistrate ordered a settlement conference between the hospital and the family. the family continues to search for a doctor to prrm procedures to move her to another facility for long time care. barbara bush is said to be doing great and responding well according to a family spokesman. mrs. bush has been hospitalized since monday after showing signs of pneumonia. right now there's no timetable for her release but the family is hopeful it will take place sooner rather than later. check out this video, an amazing rescue at california search team from los angeles air lifting an injured hiker to safety. police say the 18-year-old woman was with friends at a popular waterfall when she slipped and fell, breaking both ankles. the woman was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment and certainly some scary moments but the good news, michaela, looks like she'll be okay and back on

solid ground. >> thank goodness she wasn't injured more severely. ana cabrera, thanks so much. we'll talk a short break here on "new day." next up, obamacare facing one of its first big legal tests today. the supreme court could rule on a provision that upset some religious groups. and a different kind of test in colorado, the green rush has created some gray areas for law enforcement as they try to police legal marijuana. we'll be back. [ male announcer ] the new new york is open. open to innovation. open to ambition. open to bold ideas. that's why new york has a new plan -- dozens of tax free zones all across the state. move here, expand here, or start a new business here and pay no taxes for ten years... we're new york. if there's something that creates more jobs, and grows more businesses... we're open to it.

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♪ ♪ welcome back to "new day" everyone. now to the latest in the legal battles over obamacare.

the supreme court could act as soon as today on a challenge to the law's birth control mandate. religious non-profit group was granted an emergency stay earlier this week. now the obama administration is responding. cnn's jill dougherty has the latest from the white house. >> reporter: hey, john. obama care is in its third day but that key provision concerning women is on hold at least temporarily. it's the last days of president obama's two-week hawaiian vacation and he spent thursday playing golf with the new zealand prime minister and his son, about you in washington, as life returns to normal after the new year, it's back to obamacare. today the supreme court could order the obama administration to allow certain religious affiliated non-profits to remain exempt from the law's requirement to provide birth control and other reproductive health services to their employees. this comes after a group of

colorado nuns asked justice sonia sotomayor for a temporary injunction from complying with the law. white house official responded saying "we defer to the department of justice on litigation matters but remain confident that our final rules strike the balance between contraceptive care and religious objections." coverage began january 1st for the 2.1 million americans who have enrolled in obamacare since october. >> you've been waiting a long time for january 1st, 2014. >> reporter: and president obama's allies at organizing for action continue to promote the new law. mr. obama himself sent out a new year's tweet saying "i signed the aca for kids like marcelees owens. he lost his mom because she couldn't afford coverage. today millions of americans finally can." the white house is not saying who those americans are, a fact

some republicans say indicates an overall lack of trust. >> if they keep putting a flowery spin on everything, how are we going to ever really trust that we're getting the best, accurate information about the prospects? >> reporter: and that information who is signing up, for example, are they young, old, is important because ultimately the concern is how this long-term is going to be paid for, and the white house says they're going to have updated numbers in mid-january. john, michaela? >> all right, jill, thank you so much. there from the nation's capital. we turn to colorado, new numbers out this morning for legalized marijuana sales in colorado are out $1 million of recreational marijuana reportedly sold there on wednesday alone. while sales are booming, many enforcement issues remain up in the air. you might think duus would be as simple as alcohol it's like. but the science and the law behind it are on the foggy side.

miguel marquez reports. >> reporter: out of the campus closet and into a new era of legal recreational marijuana. the great colorado smokeout is on. weed, a powerful drug, coming from across the country to partake. you are able to walk into a store and buy marijuana today. what did that feel like? >> it is overjoying to not have to hide it and you know be able to use what makes me feel better. >> reporter: i take it you go is are excited about this? >> woo! >> reporter: at medicine man denver action one of the state's largest dispensardispensaries, snow wind and cold didn't deter the faithful, the line in the hundreds all day long. what does today feel like? >> freedom. >> reporter: with new freedom comes new responsibility, signs are everywhere, the dos and don'ts of pot, illegal for under 21s to light up, public health

officials fear abuse. at greatest risk, kids. >> over half of the admissions for addiction in this state in kids under 15 and teenagers, they are from marijuana. >> reporter: and drivers can get busted, the legal limit 5 nanograms of thc in your blood. i don't smoke but if i had one puff of a marijuana cigarette would that put me over the 5 nanogram limit? >> yes. >> reporter: one puff? >> yes. >> reporter: for how long? >> after by two hours it will probably be gone. >> reporter: thc dissipates to lower levels relatively fast, even in habitual users. >> if they fail a roadside test we take them in to our dui room and we do a series of other tests that take up to about two hours to complete. >> reporter: it is possible to be pulled over high, and hours later get a pass on the blood test. >> thank you very much.

>> reporter: for now, pot aficionados, law enforcement and policymakers settling in for the long ride. miguanmiguel marquez, cnn, denv. >> it will be interesting to see, we've seen a lot of debate emerge on social media. join in on the conversation, with #newday, tweet us. next up on "new day" the debate raging over a california supreme court decision that allows an undocumented immigrant to practice law. the question is, will this open the door for other immigrants? we'll speak live to the man who won this court's ruling. and following the massive storm causing all sorts of problems, closing highways, shutting down airports and the creatical response from states, the governor of connecticut will join us live. ( bell rings ) they remind me so much of my grandkids. wish i saw mine more often, but they live so far away. i've been thinking about moving in with my daughter and her family.

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welcome back to "new day." welcome pack to "new day," we're so glad you to join us, we hope you're bundled indoors because it is cold out there. what faces us, a big cleanup in the northeast after a massive nor'easter moved through the region. flight cancellations keep piling up. read it and weep, 1,800 flights canceled today alone, many of them in and out of boston, ifily fill and new york, where weather forced kennedy airport to ground flights, they are expected to resume any moment now though. here we're looking at the map, you can see the snow is mostly over the east coast, not before dumping almost two feet of snow

in parts of massachusetts. >> even when the snow leaves we got more problems, the temperatures for tomorrow morning very low, minus 12 in boston with the windchill, ouch, and it's not looking to warm up any time soon, let's go one more time to indra petersons who is in the cold, in the blowing snow in boston, good morning, indra. >> reporter: good morning, and in the snow, i'm actually in a parking lot here in boston. i wanted to show you what we're seeing all over the city right now. remember, we've been seeing strong winds out there so wind drives piling up even though they've only had ten inches in this region the berms are several feet high. and that's the thing, you have this very try snow really across the area and that's been the concern with this particular system. we've been having anywhere from one to two feet of snow as this low is building off the coastline, it's expected to dump more snow through the late morning hours, by early

afternoon most of the system should be offshore. once you have snow kicking on the ground the wind is picking up you have the concern for low visibility so that's the main issue moving forward. also in the same region we have blizzard warnings in massachusetts and also in long island. this very airy snow, you take winds anywhere 30, 40 miles per hour, it blows around, your visibility goes down below a quarter of a mile. that's the concern again as far as the timing the bulk of the system moving offshore today but the leftover snow still a concern into the cape. i keep talking about this, it's that ocean effect know, you're talking about the warmer temperatures on the ocean hard to believe that the warmer temperatures are on the ocean right now and that's bringing some snow into the cape, even after the system moves out. i want to give you the best visualization, no better way to show you how soft the snow is but snow angel, loving it. find the upside in the system

some way. >> well done, indra. >> i am pleased to see you have not lost your good humor out there. it is miserably cold. you've been a trooper out there, indra. and a snow angel to boot. we'll get that on instagram. >> we want to talk about the conditions affecting the area. joining us is connecticut governor daniel malloy. it's great to have you with us. good morning to you. >> reporte >> good morning to you, happy new year. >> this is not the worst your state has seen but the story is the temperature, very, very cold. >> we were obviously new this was coming, we'd been working very hard. lot of people who we were worried about, and we've outreached to the folks the last 48 hours to get them to come inside, our shelters have bet the rules a little bit and found some extra space. we don't want anyone to get

frost bitten or lose their life because of the very, very cold weather, which we really haven't experienced here in a long, long time, at least this cold with these windchills. >> most people would agree if there's any time to bend the rules, it is now. give us an idea of the conditions there right now. are you anticipating public transportation closures, school cancellations today? >> there's tons of school cancellations. you was looking at the list, i think the vast, vast majority of school systems decided to close. college campuses by and large are closed. we are opening state government non-essential state foft at 9:30 which would normally open up as early as 7:45, so we just decided to delay it. listen, we're new england. you got to be used to snow and we got to be ready for it, we have to respond to it and we have to stay calm and carry on, the english say, and that's what we're doing. the cold is a special challenge

but you live in new england, you should expect a fair amount of snow. i think this is setting up a little bit like the winter of '11 where we saw precipitation about every three days. i think our next precipitation will be rain followed by more snow and 75 days of spring. >> 75 days of spring, that's a bold prediction. talk to us because you said the bold predictions you've made there about new englanders, we know you're made of strong stuff, talk to us about the response that you've been seeing getting to some of those communities and clearing the snow, have they had success in some of those areas? >> we had had the best drill that you could ever have last february when we had 42 inches of snow in some places and drifts as high as six feet. this is not a big storm for us, even as some communities coming in at eight inches. the blowing snow if it's a very dry snow, it has been blowing quite a bit but you know, it is

stopping snowing, i'm in hartford right now, there's almost no snow flying and i this i in another couple of hours we will have this thing pretty well done. >> forecasters talked about the storm moving out east but the cold temperature also last. we wish you the best in the new year, governor malloy, thank you for joining us on the phone and giving us an idea of how things are going in connecticut right now. >> thank you for all you do. bye-bye now. >> be well. >> happy to hear the shelters are bending rules to get inside into the beds they need because these temperatures are so, so treacherous. they're really a mess across the country all the way back to the midwest, where this storm hit first, the travel and temperatures bottoming out well below zero. icy roads in missouri sent this school bus off a hill and into a ditch, millions across the area are braving dangerously low temperatures. the real feel we're talking about right now could go as low as 25 below zero. our breaking news coverage

continues with ted rowlands, live outside chicago. ted you've seen the mercury dropping all morning. >> reporter: yes, it's about 10 below in naperville, illinois, outside of chicago. earlier we showed you our frozen t-shirts as crispy as they come, this is my favorite the frozen banana, which you can use as a hammer. listen to that. that's a banana. try to doing that in your warm studio. downtown people come up to starbucks, leave their car running and scurry in there. we can't blame them, as soon as we're done with this live shot jordan and i will be screwing right -- sorry, jordan -- into our live truck where we are hanging out as far as you know, we are not out on the streets any more than with he have to be. baaing to you, so we can get in there. >> when you scurry inside, take your banana hammer in there with you. >> valuable. >> thank you so much, one of the best live shots i've ever seen.

>> having been in california the last few years i think it's genius. many of you are used to it but it's entertaining, the frozen t-shirt and frozen banana. the five thungz you need to know for your new day. >> aside from the weather, more personnel ordered to leave the u.s. embassy in south sudan because of fighting between rebels and government forces. peace talks are under way in ethiopia but the fighting continues. two americans have been te tained in libya, a source telling reuters basketball players both arrested on the campus of benghazi university. the state department is looking into this matter. secretary of state john kerry is in the middle east proposing a framework for a peace agreement between israel and the palestinians. kerry says the time is close for making tough decisions. number four an arrest in the beating death of this california priest. the suspect, gary lee bullock, was arrested for public intoxication the night before the body of father eric freed

was fun. and "downton abbey" returns for a fourth season. find out what the family have been up to, a very popular show, lots of happy fans this morning to hear that news. we are always updating the five things you need to know, go to newdaycnn.com for the latest. >> very happy about the "downton abbey." >> a banker accused of faking his own death to escape fraud charges, one of his alleged victims knew his suicide was a fraud, too. plus no green card, no problem. california's high court says an undocumented immigrant may practice law, we'll speak with him live in a moment. [ male announcer ] the new new york is open. open to innovation. open to ambition. open to bold ideas. that's why new york has a new plan -- dozens of tax free zones all across the state.

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navarette. welcome back to "new day" everyone. now to dead banker walking. we have new video and new information on the ex-banker accused of faking his own death to cover up multimillion-dollars' worth of fraud. he reportedly left behind a suicide note, he was declared legally dead over a year ago. police say even his family thought he was dead. the fbi, however, they didn't buy it. here's cnn's david mattingly. >> reporter: missing and legally dead, former georgia banker aubrey lee price appeared very much alive leaving federal court looking very different than he did when he disappeared a year and a half ago. would you have recognized this guy? >> every time i see that shot, it doesn't get old how shocking it is. >> reporter: wendy cross is among more than 100 people allegedly defrauded by price in a $40 million investment scheme, a federal complaint says price

confessed in a 22-page letter that he falsified statements with false returns in order to conceal more than $0 million in investor losses. >> it was my life savings so, yes, it was devastating. >> reporter: cross lost $300,000, it put her food truck business in jeopardy and left her fmly ruined. risk she never suspected she was taking. >> it was a clean-cut soft-spoken guy that seemed extremely professional and you know, that's how i knew him. >> reporter: in 012, law enforcement said price told his family he was going to latin america but instead flew to key west, bought diving weights and a ferry ticket to make it look like he jumped overboard and drowned. security cameras caught him taking his last steps before he disappeared. did you believe he was dead? >> i never once thought that he was dead. >> reporter: why not?

>> well i saw the footage of him on the ferry in key west, and he had a backpack and a suitcase with him. >> reporter: the elaborate hoax fell apart new year's eve when georgia police stopped price for driving with windows too darkly tinted. on new year's day, authorities raided the house price was representing in marion county, florida, and found a marijuana growing operation with 225 plants. prosecutors call him a flight risk and ask he remain behind bars without bail. david mattingly, cnn, atlanta. >> i still can't believe the difference in appearance, a little more than a year ago to now. >> it's a fascinating story, one we'll continue to watch, brought it to you right here on cnn. we'll take a short break. next on "new day" he's been waiting nearly 20 years for a visa while opportunities passed hum by. this young man an undocumented immigrant won't need that elusive document to move ahead with his career. sergio garcia joins us next.

later, antarctica just can't let go. the rescuers might now need rescuing themselves. when our little girl was born, we got a subaru. it's where she said her first word. (little girl) no! saw her first day of school. (little girl) bye bye! made a best friend forever. the back seat of my subaru is where she grew up. what? (announcer) the two-thousand-fourteen subaru forester. (girl) what? (announcer) built to be there for your family. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. open to innovation. open to ambition. open to bold ideas. that's why new york has a new plan -- dozens of tax free zones all across the state. move here, expand here, or start a new business here and pay no taxes for ten years... we're new york. if there's something that creates more jobs,

and grows more businesses... we're open to it. start a tax-free business at startup-ny.com. but thieves can steal your identity and turn your life upside down. hi. hi. you know, i could save you 15% today if you open up a charge-card account with us. you just read my mind. [ male announcer ] just one little piece of personal information, and they can open bogus accounts, damaging your credit, stealing your money, and ruining your reputation. that's why you need lifelock

to relentlessly protect what matters most, helping stop crooks before the damage can be done. and now you can have the most comprehensive identify-theft protection available today -- lifelock ultimate. for protection you just can't provide yourself, get lifelock ultimate. i didn't know how serious identity theft was until i lost my credit and eventually i lost my home. [ male announcer ] lifelock is on the job 24/7. when they detect a threat to your identity within their network, they'll alert you by phone, text, or e-mail. that's protection from the industry leader -- lifelock. identity theft was a huge, huge problem for me, and it's gone away because of lifelock. [ male announcer ] while no one can stop all identify theft, if criminals do steal your identity, lifelock will hire experts to help fix it with our $1 million service guarantee. you have so much to protect and nothing to lose when you get two full months of identity-theft protection

risk-free. that's right -- 60 days risk-free. use promo code "gethelp." if you're not completely satisfied, you won't pay a cent. order now and also get this shredder to keep your documents out of the wrong hands -- a $29 value free. ♪ ♪ ♪ welcome back, evan. green card is no longer a prerequisite for a law license in california. thursday the california supreme court ruled in favor of sergio garcia, a 36-year-old undocumented immigrant from mexico. garcia attended law school,

passioned the bar in california but not able to get his law license because of his immigration status. garcia applied for a visa when he was 17 but 19 years later the visa still hadn't been processed, still hasn't been processed. thursday's decision marks the end of this long legal battle from garcia. his critics argue someone without legal status should not be allowed to practice law, but for garcia, obviously this decision is a dream come true. he joins us from sacramento. thank you so much for being with us and congratulations. >> thank you so much and thank you for the invitation. >> you've waited an awful long time for this, you graduated law school in 2009. can you tell us what this decision to you, personally? >> well, basically, it will allow me to fulfill one of my two dreams. i always wanted to be a licensed attorney and i hope to one day be a u.s. citizen for now at least one of my two dreams is now going to be possible and i'm just so super excited. i'm tired. i haven't slept much, but i'm

super excited to finally be able to fulfill one of my dreams. >> can we talk to you about the 19 years, i think many people would not understand why it took so long. we understand you've been approved for your green card but it hasn't been processed. you don't have it in your hand. why is that? >> well, unfortunately i would be mock those people who don't understand why it's likely to take 25 years and that highlights the problems with our immigration system and how the system's broken and it really, i don't think it should take that long to be able to process a green card, be able to tell somebody whether they can lawfully stay in this country or not, and so i was two weeks too old to get my green card at the time so i aged out, as they say, and now i'm in a category that takes about 25 years in order to get a green card, even though i'm the son of a u.s. citizen. >> wow.

so sergio, i'm curious, given all the obstacles that you faced since coming to the u.s., getting your visa and being able to practice law after getting your degree here, why was it so important for you to persist and to continue to try to work here in the u.s.? >> well, listen, i put all my eggs into one basket the whole idea of being an attorney was the only idea i had going and so 20 years of working on that dream, i couldn't really afford to just give up on it, so that and i'm a little bit stubborn anyway. >> stubborn is a good thing to be, dealing with the immigration system, that's for sure. there are critics who look at this and say there's an irony here, that you are now able to practice law even though you don't really have legal status here. what do you say about that irony? >> well, i would say, you know, at first blush, that might be the easiest response or the

easiest critic to make, the criticism to make, but in reality, if you look at all the facts, i was brought here as a min minor, i immediately applied for a green card, that has been approved and i've been waiting for 19 years. i this i if somebody's frustrated with that or has some issues with that, i think the federal government is the one to be addressing and talking to both republicans and democrats in d.c., and telling them to get their act together and fix this immigration system. >> do you plan on practicing immigration law? >> oh, no. that's too messed up. i don't want to be involved with that. >> what type of clients do you anticipate having then? >> you know, i love being in front of the judge and jury so just some civil litigation, you know, personal injury, debt negotiation, anything that's civil, but no, i intend in the future to hopefully have an immigration attorney on staff, but not for me. that's not the area for me.

19 years waiting and it's still not fixed, so i'm not interested in that. >> sergio garcia thank you for being with us, congratulations. >> thank you so much. >> a man who has truly dealt with frustrations over the last decade plus. >> you know there's a backlog, 20-year backlog, extraordinary. we'll take a short break. thanks so much, sergio. an update on the stranded passengers in antarctica, their journey home is at a standstill. we'll tell you why, next.

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welcome back to "new day." thinking it's cold where you are, imagine antarctica. wow. remember that rescue we were telling you about? it just got even more complicated. the people, 52 people that were rescued off a research ship their rescue has come to a screeching halt pause some of the rescuers themselves may now

need rescuing. matthew chance has been watching this from london for us. this is the last thing that they wanted to hear. >> it's getting ridiculous at this point, getting a much longer white christmas than they bar beganed for. what's happened now is that the chinese ice wrebreaker instrumel in rescuing the passengers from that "akademik" vessel, the 52 passengers helicoptered from the chinese vessel are on to an australian ship close by, meant to be headed to dry land, stopped in their tracks and forced to help the choo i knees ice breaker that is now stranded so rescuers are being rescued by the people they rescued in the if, place, getting very complicated indeed and at the moment there's no sign of it coming to an end. >> we watch how the conditions change whiby the minute.

is there any information you're gleaning when the rescue ship could be freed from the ice? >> it's all dependent on the freezing weather conditions there in that remote part of antarctica. the ice is some 14 feet thick. hopefully because it's summertime down there, remember, it will melt soon. crew members on board the australian vessel are saying it's going to be a couple of days tops before the ice is in the condition where they can break through it. >> matthew chance, keep an eye on this, we appreciate it. >> one thing after another down there. >> it really is. that's tea for us on "new day." we had a great time bringing you coverage live outside the snow and in the studio. >> cnn will continue coverage the big storm of 2014 beginning in "newsroom" with fredricka whitfield. >> thanks so much. i liked the parka and the ear muffs, though. taking it for the troops. >> i appreciate that. >> very good.

keep it all bundled up. i like that. thanks so much. good morning, everyone. i'm fredricka whitfield in for carol costello. she has the day off. so for about 100 million americans, this is the nightmare that they woke up to, a howling nor'easter plowing across the eastern half of the country, and unloading much of its wrath right there on the nor'east. thousands of flights canceled, major areas shut down and schools closed, as much as two feet of snow blankets much of new york and massachusetts, states of emergencies in effect to get an idea of the message sent to snowbound northeasterners of the man shoveling that snow is new york's mayor, bill de blasio. good way to christen the year and his term. just beneath me we're using every square inch of your le