breaking news this morning, city under siege. a rising death toll and protests growing more violent in ukraine. how is it impacting the olympics next door in russia? we're live with the latest. collapse concerns. all the snow and ice bringing new danger. now flooding is a real problem as the weather warms up. heated deliberation. what led to a mistrial in the controversial loud music murder case. the reasons behind the deadlock in an exclusive interview with one of the jurors. plus, up, up and away. a supermodel in zero gravity making a one-of-a-kind photo shoot. good morning. i'm john muller. >> and i'm marci gonzalez in for diana perez.

we begin with a deadly turn in ukraine. the government cracking down on pro-western protesters. >> more than two dozen people now are dead. this is happening right in the shadow of sochi where russian president vladimir putin hopes to project his power. in kiev's central square this morning, protesters are standing firm, but the future of their cause is uncertain. >> abc's hamish macdonald joins us live by phone from moscow. hamish, you were there just weeks ago. are you surprised at all by this new wave of violence? >> reporter: i think absolutely. there is a degree of surprise about how much force, how much violence has been used in the last 24 hours. this is the deadliest day of protests in the ukraine so far. at least 25 people dead that we know of. that's on both sides. police, security forces, as well as the protesters. i think things were calmer in the period since we were there last, but certainly things have sparked up over the last day. the protesters say they want a

future attached to europe and the west, the values and economy that come along with that. their president wants closer ties with vladimir putin, and they are at loggerheads over this key issue, and, of course, this is all happening on putin's doorstep in the midst of the olympic games. he has an uprising essentially on his hands in the backyard. >> yeah, absolutely. the eyes of the world on this region now with the olympics there. is there any kind of quick end in sight to this? do you think this is going to be a big protracted battle? >> reporter: unlikely that this will be resolved quickly because the president has support of russia, this enormous country just to its east. on the other hand, the protesters and the key opposition leaders have the support of europe and the west. this really pits the two biggest or two of the biggest powers in the world, america and europe, versus russia over this key battleground of the ukraine, and what happens here will influence who has control of this giant

country at the heart of europe. this is effectively the buffer between moscow and the west. vladimir putin is showing no signs of backing down, and the protesters are showing no signs of backing down either. it is unlikely that this will end peacefully at this point given what we've seen over the last 24 hours. there is much at stake in kiev and across ukraine over the next days. >> all right. hamish macdonald live on the situation in ukraine, thank you so much. and here at home, the big story is the weather, but it's good news for a change. >> yeah, the big thaw pushing the mercury up from coast to coast with minneapolis seeing temperatures in the 40s for the first time since thanksgiving. it has millions of americans rediscovering the outdoors. they were taking advantage of the balmy 64-degree weather in omaha, nebraska, on the golf course. >> we are on the downside of winter, and spring is going to be coming along here pretty soon, so there is a little sign of hope in there. >> reporter: but with that hope comes fresh problem, all that melting snow and ice is swelling rivers, overloading storm drains

and causing major problems on our rooftops. in eastern pennsylvania, wet, heavy snow collapsed a carport trapping a man in his 70s underneath. crews had to cut through the roof to pull him out. and in bloomington, indiana, the indiana university men's basketball game was canceled after a 50-pound piece of metal trim fell from the arena's ceiling damaging the seats below apparently giving way from the pressure of melting ice and snow. >> it settled at the lowest point in that curve in such magnitude that it essentially popped that bottom plate off. >> but while snow-weary americans enjoy the warmer temperatures, forecasters say, don't get used to it. another shot of very cold air is coming back into the east and midwest late next week. too good to be true. >> uh-huh. >> all right. let's take a look at today's weather. the northeast will see a wintry mix of rain and snow while it will be a rainy day for much of the midwest. the pacific northwest will see another 1 to 3 inches of rain. >> the entire nation will see milder temperatures. 59 for washington. 72 for atlanta. 75 for dallas.

and the hot spot again is phoenix, 82 degrees. well, new this morning another jetliner has run into severe turbulence. this time it was a cathay pacific flight from san francisco to hong kong. passengers describe two minutes of turbulence. some were jolted out of their seats and hit the overhead bins. at least nine people were injured, eight of them hospitalized. and that united airlines jet from denver to billings that hit severe turbulence on monday has been taken out of service until the airline can figure out what happened. one crew member is still hospitalized in serious condition after being thrown around the cabin. well, a suspect is in custody, but a massive search under way now for a 10-year-old girl from springfield, missouri, who was kidnapped yesterday. police have issued amber alerts for hailey owens in missouri, kansas and oklahoma. witnesses say a man in a gold ford ranger approached hailey and pulled her into his truck. dozens of officers are now searching for the girl. she was last seen wearing jean shirts and purple sandals.

and to washington now where a new report is reigniting the heated debate on capitol hill over president obama's push to raise the minimum wage. the report by the nonpartisan congressional budget office finds that raising the minimum wage would boost the incomes of 16.5 million workers lifting 900,000 families out of poverty, but it could also result in a net loss of about 500,000 jobs. economists appear to be evenly divided on the report. all right, now to the olympics in sochi. americans are back in action. just four more days of competition to go after today. >> taking a live look there now at sochi's olympic park, clear skies are back after the fog and rain, and despite the conditions yesterday, team usa did well as abc's kirit radia reports. >> reporter: another day of great american performances in sochi, but mother nature didn't make it easy. through slush, sleet and heavy snow, freestyle skier david wise clinched the gold in the halfpipe skiing. a brand-new event at these

games. the 23-year-old from nevada soared to a commanding lead after his first run. wise fell on his second run, but the first run was good enough for the win. conditions were just as bad for the men's snowboard cross, but that didn't stop alex deibold from taking third. deibold was a wax technician for team usa in vancouver four years ago. now he's a bronze medalist. >> the hard work that i put in and the sacrifices that i made over the last four years to win a medal is just the icing on the cake. >> reporter: lauryn williams and lolo jones are among a small group of americans to compete in both the summer and winter games. they've traded in their track shoes for a bobsled. halfway through the event williams and her teammate are in first place. with a win today, williams would become only the second olympian to take gold in both the winter and summer games. also today, skier bode miller is back in action in the men's giant slalom.

>> it's going to be a tough race. i feel good, but there's a lot of guys who are skiing really fast, so i come in here pretty confident and, yeah, looking to win. >> reporter: the u.s. men's hockey team faces the czech republic in a quarterfinal game and women's figure skating gets under way. american gracie gold looking to add to the bronze she won in the team event. kirit radia, abc news, moscow. >> so here is the medals count as things heat up today. >> it is very close. the top end of the standings there, the u.s. still very much right among the leaders thanks to yesterday's medals. all right, bringing back the '90s, vanilla ice is back with a brand-new venture. >> and digging through the details, investigators still looking into a teenager's claim that she killed nearly two dozen people. new details this morning about whether authorities actually believe her story. plus, smash and grab. dramatic new video of a jewelry heist. how the thieves used a snowstorm as their cover.

united airlines is apologizing for a nationwide computer glitch that added to weather-related flight cancellations and delays. the computers used to check in passengers and print boarding passes shut down briefly. united insists the problem has been solved and flights should be back on track today. well, the historic drought gripping california now being blamed for driving up milk prices. by next month families across the country could see a spike in what they pay for milk skyrockets by as much as 60 cents a gallon. the drought in brazil could soon have coffee lovers around the globe shelling out more for the morning jolt.

brazil is the world's biggest producer of arabica coffee beans. prices pushing higher amid concerns supplies could shrink. you want coffee with that doughnut? krispy kreme says why not have coffee in your doughnut. so they're introducing two new coffee flavored varieties. mocha cream and caramel coffee cream. they hope when you think of coffee you'll think krispy kreme. they say take that, dunkin' donuts and starbucks. >> looks pretty tasty. uh-huh. >> i love krispy kreme. america could have a new mul multimillionaire by tomorrow. the powerball drawing a few hours away. >> it soared to $400 million. the sixth largest in u.s. lottery history. tickets are sold in 43 states, the cost, just 2 bucks but the odds of winning just 1 in 175 million. i will take those odds, though. for 2 bucks, all right. when we come back, an abc news exclusive. a juror in the so-called loud

music murder trial is talking about what went down inside the deliberation room. plus, sinkhole scare. a woman is rescued after the earth opens up in her backyard. we have new pictures just in. so ally bank really has no hidden fees on savings accounts? that's right, no hidden fees. it's just that i'm worried about, you know, "hidden things." ok, why's that? well uhhh... surprise!!! um... well, it's true. at ally there are no hidden fees. not one. that's nice. no hidden fees, no worries. ally bank. your money needs an ally. [ male announcer ] need a little more wow in your life? just book a royal caribbean cruise by february 28th and receive a free upgrade or up to $300 to spend on anything you want. call 1-800-royalcaribbean today.

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[ male announcer ] need a little more wow in your life? just book a royal caribbean cruise by february 28th and receive a free upgrade or up to $300 to spend on anything you want. call 1-800-royalcaribbean today. this year's ice season has made for a dramatic sight off of lake superior in wisconsin. folks flocking there to check out the ice caves of apostle islands, which are covered in sheets of ice. those 60-foot sandstone cliffs now buried in as much as 18 solid inches of ice. and back on the mainland, a look at your morning road conditions. a wintry mix of snow and rain will make roads slick in the northeast. rain will soak roads across much of the midwest. heavy snow in the cascades and northern rockies will make some roads impassable, and torrential rains in the pacific northwest will make driving extremely hazardous. >> and if you're flying, airport delays possible in kansas city and in denver. well, investigators in pennsylvania now say they have

some doubts about claims made by a confessed craigslist thrill killer. >> miranda barbour insists she has killed more than 20 people in 4 states, luring many of her victims with ads on craigslist. but investigators say they have not been able to verify those claims. barbour and her husband have pleaded not guilty to charges they murdered a pennsylvania man in november. one of the jurors in the so-called loud music trial in florida is speaking exclusively to abc news about the controversial verdict. michael dunn has admitted shooting into a car with four teens inside killing one of them after an argument over loud music. the jury found dunn guilty of attempted murder but deadlocked on first degree murder, a conclusion that juror number 4 named valerie did not agree with. >> do you think michael dunn got away with murder? >> at this point i do myself personally, yes. >> when you went to the deliberating room, you thought michael dunn was guilty. >> yes, sir.

>> of killing a 17-year-old boy? >> yes, sir. >> what convinced you of that? >> to me it was unnecessary. >> you didn't think michael dunn had to kill jordan davis? >> i don't believe so. >> now, valerie says the results of the first poll was ten for conviction of first degree murder and two against. those two against believe dunn's claims of self-defense. the victim's parents in this case are speaking out later on "good morning america." stay tuned for this abc news exclusive. dramatic new video out of new jersey capturing a gang of jewelry thieves pulling off a brazen heist. first they smash through the glass door of a jewelry store with a pickup truck. they quickly attach a steel cable to a huge safe and pull it out of the building. it was the height of the storm, so the crafty robbers used a front end loader that looked like a snowplow scooping up the safe filled with $250,000 worth of jewels. and in texas, another bold smash and grab, but these two robbers weren't quite as

ambitious. they crashed into a convenience store near houston in the middle of the night, but they apparently only wanted one thing, a case of beer. the pair was in and out in a matter of seconds speeding off with 18 bud lites and leaving behind thousands of dollars in damage. >> i think they had a few beers before they went for those beers. >> uh-huh. all right. an oregon woman trying to round up her dog stumbled into quite a surprise last night. the dog had fallen into this, a 20-foot-deep sinkhole in her backyard. she moved in the dark towards the dog's cries. she fell in too. neighbors heard her yelling for help, called 911. fire crews had to use ropes and ladders to rescue them. this morning, both woman and dog are doing fine. >> okay, time now for sports, a full night of action on the hardwood. >> yep, we get last night's highlights from our guys at espn. >> good morning, "gma" viewers. you're now watching a sports report. i'm kenny. he is stan, and guess who we're going with first? >> that's the way you get it started. lebron james and the heat, remember, they were on a

six-game road trip when the all-star break hit. 3-1 on that road trip entering tuesday. they were in dallas taking on the mavericks. there goes james. that's worth another look. dwyane wade back from a bad foot after missing two games. got it to wade there and then -- got it to james there and james again for three. ties it at 83. he had 10 points on a 14-0 run that helped miami establish control. 42 points for james. heat win it. oklahoma city next for them. now the scholar athletes. villanova and providence. jay wright coming off a tough loss against creighton looking for a win against providence. ladontae henton, oh, with a guy the way the camera, still made that shot, his first shot of the game. bryce cotton, this is good. 45 seconds to go in the o.t. extra special and fancy, puts that home. now seven seconds left. tied at 79. ryan arcidiacono -- his friends just call him ryan. he would make the free throw. 'nova up 3. providence, great set play,

henton is get and go. villanova wins this thing, 82-79 and now we go back to news and weather. >> yeah. >> that's all we have. >> laying out. >> hope it was worth it. >> guys, thanks. >> thanks, guys. now an inspiration. a 91-year-old weightlifter in our "play of the day." here he is, sven steensgard, at the danish national power lifting competition this past weekend. he's getting ready to lift 286 pounds, that's more than twice his own weight. >> and check it out. after he lifts it. >> break time. >> he takes a little break. >> can't blame him. >> in the arms of the spotter. he is the oldest power lifter in an official international, but who is his competition? there's not really many other 91-year-olds doing this. he's pretty amazing. 91 years old. >> good for him, right? >> uh-huh. >> all right. up next, we'll go to "the pulse." kate upton is in a photo shoot unlike any other. and kraft creates a new mac and cheese shape with the

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around always up ♪ >> time to check "the pulse," storiesle's be talking about taut beginning with "sports illustrated"'s swimsuit issue. >> for the first time in their 50-year history there is a back cover girl. that features kate upton. her job was relatively easy. just show up in a small bikini and float around a bit. >> not so easy for the crew, though. it took 17 flights to capture this one perfect shot. >> it's a pretty good shot. >> you're not complaining. >> i'm not complaining. i think they nailed it. money shot. no window seats on kate's plane but if it's a must for you, this may be the plane for you. this supersonic jet in the works won't actually have windows but it may offer some of the best views in the world. the wall's luxury cabin is made of giant screens, they can be turned into a virtual window display family photos or breathtaking live images from outside the plane. >> that's interesting.

it's being designed to make speedy trips like new york to london in three hours. >> wow. >> wow. makers of the $60 million jet hope to get it off the ground in 2018. >> it's a little bit of a wait for it but it seeps pretty cool. craft is adding a ninja kick to its macaroni and cheese as well as a throwback to the '90s. >> check it out promoting its new teenage mutant ninja turtles resurrecting who else but vanilla ice's ninja turtle song. wait, it gets more awkward. ♪ go go go, go, ninja, go, ninja, go, go, go ♪ >> word to your mother. >> oh. >> word to your mother. the new promotion throwback to virginia nil ice's 1991 teenage mutant ninja turtle wrap. some things may be better left of the '0s. >> word to your mother. >> show me your best '90s.

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live from the kgo-tv broadcast center this is abc7 news. >> good morning at 4:28 on wednesday. thanks for joining us. >> you may encounter mist on way into work. i sure did. pike? >> mist. drizzle. the drops are too small for light rain. it is not heavy. you may find a slick spot or two. live doppler 7 hd shows clearing in the north as the front is pulling through. our best chance of drizzle is to the son peninsula headed into the south bay. everything is moving from northwest to southeast. as we look at sfo you can see a few drops. the streets were wet if some of the runways and tarmac. today, we have drizzle this morning, ending at 7:00.

we have increasing sunshine and breezy this afternoon, upper 50's at the coast and low-to-mid 60's for bay and inland. leyla gulen? >> despite the drizzle it is quiet and we don't have accidents to report. what we do have is wet roads so be careful. we will look at drive time traffic starting with tracy to cub lynn is 23 minutes on 580 and 101 southbound from senator ralph to san francisco is 17 minutes. this is the bay bridge toll plaza where you can see the headlights glistening off the pavement westbound direction but empty at the bay bridge toll plaza. 4:29 the developing news san francisco gene hospital and the sheriff are reviewing the security procedures after a psyche patient was freed and brutally attacked an elderly woman in the emergency room.

what happened, amy? >> look at this picture of the suspect, 29-year-old who was arrested for attempted murder, assault with great bodily force and elder abuse. officials say he was being trusted from the e.r. to the psychiatric e.r. can he jumped off the gurney and randomly attacked an elderly woman a patient at the hospital. she did suffer bruises. the hospital did release a statement saying that san francisco general hospital and trauma center is profoundly sorry miss peres was injured. we take patient safety very seriously and are reviewing our procedures. the officers usually escort patients with violent history. the sheriff department is in charge of the hospital security.