making news in america this morning, breaking right now, a chaotic scene after a car plows into a crowd of people. new video and information from police coming in. one plane, six days and still no answers. finding a clue in the mystery of flight 370 is growing more difficult after new details emerge overnight about possible debris spotted by a satellite. new developments surrounding that massive explosion that leveled two buildings in new york city. what we have learned about the victims overmight and what's being eyed as the cause. passionate plea. a precious kid in a viral video shows a master debating why he should have cupcakes for dinner. >> ask grandma. >> honey, honey, look at this.

good thursday morning. i'm john muller. >> i'm marci gonzalez in for diana perez. we begin with breaking news. a hit-and-run accident in austin, texas, as a town hosts the hugely popular south by southwest tech and media conference. >> two are dead and two dozen injured after a car plowed into a crowd outside one of the bars participating in the festival. police say the driver was a drunken driving suspect being chased by police. >> the driver continued to drive after crashing through the barricades and hit numerous pedestrians before the vehicle stopped. the driver was taken into custody. >> now, some of the injured are in critical condition much the two people killed were on a moped. tens of thousands of people attend south by southwest. it runs for ten days. the austin music awards were presented last night. we're still working on this

story. a full update on "good morning america." our other top story, the latest on the disappearance of flight 370. within the next 34 to 48 hours the uss destroyer "kidd" will join the search. >> new satellite images from china are only adding to the confusion surround the disappearance of malaysian airlines flight 370. malaysia's aviation chief says three objects shown floating off the tip of vietnam are not debris. search planes flew over and found nothing. the search continues in a zone now the size of indiana spanning a distance greater than chicago to atlanta. after being shut out for days, america's experts at the national transportation safety board and the federal aviation administration are being included in the investigation. >> there's nobody better in the world at investigating aircraft mishaps and so these are the

pros. >> the mystery is only deepening. recent radar data suggests the plane may have veered hundreds of miles off course before vanishing. it prompted malaysia to ask india to join in the search. >> i hear that the search and rescue becomes just a search. >> reporter: those families of the 239 people on board the flight are still waiting for definite answers as to what happened to their loved ones. >> it just disappeared off the face of the earth and we if we could just find the wreckage or something, it would be a help probab probably. >> malaysia airlines says it has retired the flight code as a sign of respect to the passengers and crew on board. overnight "the wall street journal" says u.s. investigators believe the plane may have stayed in the air for up to four

hours after disappearing from radar. possibly covering 2200 miles. that raises questions about whether someone diverted the plane toward another location after turning off the plane's transponders. stay with abc news for all the new developments on the mystery of flight 370. we have live team coverage coming up on "good morning america." all right now to the weather and that fierce storm that brought winter roaring back again this week. >> after battering millions of people with snow and fierce winds it still has new york and new england in its grip this morning. but it will be moving out over the course of the day. >> blizzard warnings triggered a state of emergency in effect in 14 counties in upstate new york. heavy snow, high winds blew through syracuse where city officials asked businesses to let workers go home early. more tan a foot of snow will fall before it is over. on the ohio turnpike whiteout conditions caused pileups that involved at least 50 vehicles and took three lives. a state trooper was seriously hurt when he was pinned between

two cars. drivers sat for hours waiting for traffic to move. parts of the turnpike between toledo and cleveland were closed in both directions. in the eastern third of the country, even if there is no snow, people are waking up to january-like windchills. >> our coverage continuing now with accuweather meteorologist jim dickey. good morning. jim. >> good morning, john and marci. looking across the country here this morning, profoundly quiet across the west, clear skies across the rockies to the west coast. different story in the east. powerful winter storm continues here putting down significant snow. significant rain and ice. now headed through the day improvements there you have low pressure moving out. snow through the morning hours near blizzard conditions in spots and dragging in cold air. the real-feel like temps will feel like below zero. john and marci, back to you. >> thanks, jim. the location of the deadly explosion here in manhattan is still a very active scene. crews working throughout the night likely a natural gas

blast. it turned two five-story apartment buildings from this to this. at least six people are now dead. several more are missing and dozens of people are hurt. abc's devin dwyer has the latest from the scene. good morning, devin. >> reporter: a desperate search for the missing. >> i want to know if my daughter is fine. oh. >> reporter: after a massive explosion leveled two five-story buildings in new york city's harlem neighborhood just before 9:30 in the morning. residents described an ear-popping blast that blew out windows, collapsed ceilings and set residents fleeing for safety. >> our hearts go out to all the families involved. we're expending every effort to locate each and every loved one. >> reporter: from the rubble incredible stories of survival. colin patterson was inside a piano shop on the ground floor when the explosion hit. >> pianos all over me. the pianos flew off the ground and on its side and probably

helped me too. >> reporter: it evoked memories of 9/11 though investigators have fingered a very different culprit. leaking natural gas which some residents reported smeing just minutes before it ignited. >> when we all know gas leaks and faulty electricity, all things happen that have been allowed to happen so it's not a surprise. it's just very unfortunate that it's now a tragedy. >> reporter: more than 60 people were treated at local hospitals for mostly minor injuries though doctors said several cases were life-threatening. investigators are focused on an eight-inch gas main in both buildings and the possibility that the cast iron pipeline may have been weakened during this harsh winter. john and marci? >> devin, thank you. in san francisco investigators looking at a welding issue as a possible cause for an enormous fire there. workers had been using welders in that area about an hour before the flames erupted on tuesday. fire crews have been dousing hot spots while wrecking cranes

dismantle what is left of the apartment building. as many as 400 living nearby unable to return home. at the murder trial of oscar pistorius, defense attorneys for the south african olympian questioned the credibility of investigators this morning. once again this morning the door through which pistorius fired killing reeva steenkamp is in the courtroom. pistorius' attorneys are also questioning the way in which evidence was handled. pistorius is expected to take the stand in his own defense later. and today is the first anniversary of pope francis becoming the leader of the world's billion plus catholics. he was introduced to a cheering crowd at the vatican and immediately started bringing his common touch to the job. >> since then he has broken with several long-standing church traditions and he has moved to bring more transparency to the vatican and has been named "time" magazine's person of the year. a popular nutrition company under investigation. why the federal government has them under the microscope. plus, caught on camera. a high-speed chase begins with a

stolen car and a child in the backseat. thins get even more wild from here. and family feud. the teen who unsuccessfully sued her parents makes another surprising decision.

welcome back. general motors is changing its time line about when it learned of a defect that is reportedly linked to 12 deaths. the company claims the first sign of an ignition switch problem which led to a massive recall came in 2001 as the saturn ion was being developed. and gm says it is only reporting that 2001 incident because of a

record of it was only discovered last month. now, the entire case is under criminal investigation by the fbi and the justice department. well, it's a good time to be working on wall street. bonuses and financials service industry rose 15% to an average of more than $164,000. that's the most since the 2008 financial crisis and the third highest average ever. bonuses often make up the bulk of a wall street employee's earnings. the government is investigating the nutritional supplement company herbalife. a hedge fund manager has charged they are a pyramid scheme making most of its money by recruiting new salespeople rather than selling its products. herbalife says it welcomes the inquiry hoping it will show the charges are false. social media users will accept these cookies. the oreo trending vending machine offers people 12 different choices. the 3d printer makes it in less

than two minutes. those for attending the south by southwest festival. that is awesome. >> that is just incredible. things to come. when we -- pardon me. when we come back, just hanging around the skydiver's mishap turning into a near shocking experience. bad news for lakers fans. the big decision just made by the team's leader, kobe bryant. some time? the next time you rent a dvd, don't bother rewinding it. the way i see it, it's the next guy's problem. oh, larry. she thinks i'm crazy. mm-hmm. but would a crazy person save 15% on car insurance in just 15 minutes? [ chuckles ] [ male announcer ] 15 minutes for a quote is crazy. with esurance, 7½ minutes could save you on car insurance. welcome to the modern world. esurance. backed by allstate. click or call.

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welcome back. the roads in eastern new york and new england will be snowy this morning. in the four corners area and seattle too. flying, airport delays possible in new york and boston because of snow and wind. well, wild car chase nobody could have predicted causes complete chaos during denver's morning rush. >> it started when a man stole an suv with a little boy inside.

carjacked two others and hit a state trooper before he tried to get away. brandi hitt shows us it was all caught on camera. >> reporter: one crash after another. authorities in colorado say the man behind this dangerous high-speed carjacking spree first stole this red minivan wednesday morning with little 4-year-old allen inside. his mother had left the car running at a gas station to grab a cup of coffee. >> i ran in real quick and came back out, the car wasn't there anymore. >> reporter: less than an hour later the red van was spotted. that's when 28-year-old ryan stone ditched it. carjacking a gold van instead with both passengers escaping. >> this individual was very dangerous person. he was not going to stop committing crimes. >> reporter: officers attempted several times to throw out spike strips with no luck. >> he did strike the trooper. the trooper was hit and then fell against the guardrail. >> reporter: then after an unsuccessful attempt to ditch the gold van he sped off again hitting this sedan.

he then carjacked that vehicle and threw the driver to the ground. only to find himself involved in another crash just minutes later. >> out of the corner of my eye i see this car coming at me that ran the red light. he just t-bones me. >> reporter: that's when he made a run for it with a warrant out for his arrest on drug charges, he was unable to climb this fence and was finally taken down bringing relief to the victims. >> i'll probably be crying but, yeah. but i'm thankful right now. >> reporter: including little allen's mother. >> a lot of joy. there's a lot of time kids aren't found and my son was found. >> reporter: investigators say all of the victims involved in the carjackings and crashes are okay. and the trooper that was hit suffered nonlife-threatening injuries. brandi hitt, abc news, los angeles. >> all right, brandi, thank you. the new jersey teenager who moved out and then sued her parents for support has gone back home. a lawyer for the family says they have settled their differences amicably. a judge denied her demand per

parents pay her tuition. the bigger issue, whether her parents have to support her even though she's now 18. a close call for an experienced sky driver in florida. he ended up in the power lines in a residential neighborhood after a gus of wind blew him off course much the man then cut himself out of his gear and fell a few feet to the ground. a few minor burns but otherwise is okay. >> all right. now the nba and kobe bryant as expected, he is done for the season. >> bryant suffered a broken bone in his left knee just before christmas. he's only played six games this season and yesterday the lakers made it official. bryant's knee is not healing fast enough to get back on the court before next year. he will still get his full $30 million salary, though. all right. nice. makes it easier. >> i guess so. as for guys who are still on the court now we get some highlights. >> as usual we get those from our friends at espn. >> good morning, america. welcome to the "sportscenter" set in bristol, connecticut. >> yeah.

>> he's stan, i'm neil. we are real people. the miami heat world champions last two seasons but they're starting to have a problem with the brooklyn nets. they met wednesday. pick it up in the fourth quarter. brooklyn up by 4. chris bosh, he had 24. three-pointer there cuts it to a one-point game. but at the other end, paul pierce, 17 in the third quarter but 29 in the game. his second best scoring output of the season for brooklyn. 96-95. heat trying to get it to lebron james. didn't work out well. shawn livingston able to knock it away, get in the passing lane and keep it away from james and the nets 3-0 against miami this season. keep that in mind as the playoffs get closer. stan, did you know the spurs are 9-1 since the all-star break and won seven straight gentleman. >> i did but i'm a sportscaster. >> that was tony parker doing crunches. that is patty mills, former st.

mary's gael. and the spurs are hitting shots, marco belinelli and the blazers are not. the blazers have had a rough road trip and they have struggled as of late. lopez, good hair but not enough to block kawhi leonard, spurs, eight straight wins. >> they just won't go away. >> best record in the nba. >> yeah. unreal. >> everybody else, don't talk about the spurs. they prefer it that way. >> back to you. >> guy, thanks. up next "the pulse" where the iconic run is over. the remarkable spot in "jeopardy" history that is arthur chu now holds. and compelling case. a young boy's plea for a cupcake going viral. >> anything you can get out. ♪ [ male announcer ] here, kids jump. ♪ kids dream. ♪

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and the 2014 north american truck of the year. and now, during chevy truck month, the price you see is the price you pay, for a 2014 chevy silverado now use special truck month pricing to get a total value of over 75-hundred on this silverado all-star edition with best in class v8 fuel economy. get to truck month at your chevy dealer today! [ playing the theme music to "jeopardy" ] >> time for "the pulse" and we start with the now former "jeopardy" champion arthur chu. his controversial but lucrative rein is over. >> chu was playing last night. never controlling the board with his renegade style of play which included jumping all over the board. meanwhile, his opponents were finding daily doubles and

answering lots of questions correctly. well, when chu answered the final "jeopardy" question incorrectly, he was left with t zilchnada. >> he will be on "good morning america" this morning. >> no one feels too bad for him. made out all right. first lady michelle obama hosting a screening at the white house of "muppets most wanted" with kermit the frog. >> they paid tribute to military kids saying they are just as strong and brave as their parents. and kermit added that he understands what it's like saying even know he's not a marine he is marine life. >> marine life. well, joint chiefs chairman general dempsey presented kermit with a special coin which kermit says was a thrill. >> cute. how could you say no to the 3-year-old you are about to meet? ma tay yo, you're about to see really wants cupcakes for dinner. so do i. he's trying to persuade his

mother to agree. >> he's awesome but his mom, linda is his name isn't very happy and listen to his persuasion. >> listen, linda, listen. >> okay. what. >> everything you do in this house can touch everything at grandma's house. >> listen to me now. >> listen to me. >> no. i said no cupcakes. and you try to get cupcakes and you tried to ask grandma. >> listen, but, linda, honey, honor i, look. look at this. >> his mom, calls him why, an old soul. i'd call him precocious and maybe a future lawyer or politician, negotiator. >> oh, yeah, he's got it down pat. not just what he's saying but, linda, the his facial expression, hands on his hips. >> he's talking gibberish but i'd give him a cupcake. >> for dinner is a great idea. >> me too. for some of you your local news is next.

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live from the kgo-tv broadcast center this is abc7 news. good morning at 4:28. a beautiful afternoon yesterday as we dealt with the winds yesterday morning. >> they were crazy. but not like that this morning. mike? >> not at all a. it has been quieter. you can see on live doppler 7 hd 14 in fairly. we have calm conditions in novato and mountain view and half moon bay and concord. everyone else is less than seven miles per hour. we will talk about it, the wins are barely blowing the flag on the exploritorium across the street at pier 15. in the afternoon we are starting off in the 40's and 50's and up to mid-70's at the bay and

inland, low-to-mid 70's, close to yesterday maybe a degree or two short. leyla gulen? >> in san francisco, san francisco police have the intersection shut down because of a shooting. avoid the area. it will be shut down until further notice when they do their investigation. >> this is a look at our san mateo bridge cross the water you can see traffic is light headed closer to the peninsula. from emeryville camera, that is a view of the bay bridge and traffic is flowing smoothly but we have some construction with us until 5:00 this morning. it should not cause a crimp in the commute. n francisco firefighters continue to douse the burned out remains of the highway rise apartment building under construction in mission bay. demolition is underway and our reporter is at the site.

katie marzullo? >> they have three engine companies and 12 firefighters keeping watch this morning. you can see first of all, the structure is half as tall as it was yesterday so they brought down the high points. as far as the fire, there are hotspots deep inside but the chief this morning says they are only putting water on it when they see smoke. they have seen smoke, throughing just an hour ago. last night you could see the fire inside flickering in the weapons and the fire revealed the crews the tear down of the building, called the tear down, and that is when it was exposed. >> now we know exactly where it is smoldering in the building. >> you can see the extent of the damage if this video inside the