good morning. i'm marci gonzales in for diane macedo. >> i'm kendis gibson. some of the top headlines we are following this monday morning on "world news now." the trump administration appears to be backing away from president trump's promise of raising the minimum age to buy assault weapons, focusing instead on background checks and firearms training for specially qualified school personnel. we'll have more on that, straight ahead. five people dead after a helicopter slammed into the water near new york city. this is the third crash involving the same company in the past nine years, including one in which nine people were killed. the world series champions, houston astros will visit president trump at the white house today. they beat the dodgers last fall in seven games. it is time for the march madness party to begin. 68 schools are hoping their road

leads to san antonio three weeks from tonight. those are some of our top stories on this monday, march 12th. >> announcer: from abc news this is "world news now." >> we're going to say good morning on this monday. we're going start this half hour with the president's new plan to prevent future school shootings. nearly one month after 17 students and teachers were gunned down at a school in parkland, florida, the white house as released its plan, which includes arming some teachers. richard cantu has more. >> we have to do something about it. we have to act. >> reporter: the white house releasing new details on a number of gun safety proposals president trump is expected to endorse monday. those plans include supporting the corn and murphy bill which expands background checks, stop school violence, which focuses

on early intervention and expansion of mental health program. >> take the guns first, go through due process second. >> reporter: created in the wake of of the parkland, florida shooting. earlier, deputy white house press secretary, raj shaw giving a hint. >> what about raising the age. he made it clear on that. >> the president has been clear he does support raising the age to 21. for certain firearms. again there's going to be recommendations to states a task force. i don't want to get ahead of what's going to be announced. that will be a component off it, raising the age, including mental health and improving background checks. >> reporter: these proposals expected to be rolled out with little fan fair. richard cantu, abc news, new york. >> as part of the plan they say the trump administration will work with states on what they're calling rigorous firearms training for specially qualified

school personnel. not just teachers, but other staff members including school security. the administration also plans to steer retired veterans into the educational system. breaking news out of new york city. all five passengers on board a charter helicopter that crashed into the east river are dead. >> that moment of impact was captured here by stunned eyewitnesses. the pilot was the only survivor of this crash. the chopper slammed hard into the icy waters off manhattan and flipped on its side quickly. here is aaron. >> reporter: kendis, marci, this private tourist helicopter. tourist helicopter just a bit upriver from where we're standing. a mayday call was picked up before this helicopter crashed into the east river. it was caught on video and a

number of people watched in horror as that chopper went down and urged anybody to call 911. police and fire department divers were on scene very quickly as was a private tug boat. the pilot was able to free himself from his seat but five passengers on board were tightly harnessed in and the divers had to go 50 feet into chilly, murky water to freeze those passengers. they came up, there were medics on board a rescue boat waiting. two were dead on arrival. the ntsb has sent a crew hire to figure out what caused the helicopter to crash. preliminarily, this looks to be an accident. the pilot was able to talk to investigators. in the meantime the current carried the wreckage all the way down towards 23rd street and that's where a barge crew was hired to pull the wreckage out of the water so they can have a look to help determine what went wrong. kendis? marci? >> thanks to aaron there and the ntsb does plan to have a

briefing a little later on this morning with the latest update. the east coast bracing for its third nor'easter in less than three weeks. >> thousands are still without power in the northeast and a storm system that is set to dump 3-6 inches of snow across the ohio and tennessee valleys. set to make a sharp left turn up the coast. >> by tomorrow morning heavy snow will blanket delaware to maine with parts of new england set to get up to a foot of snow. and we're learning more about the gunman and his victims in that deadly hostage situation at the largest veterans home in the nation. a once decorated veteran taking the life of three women who tried to help him heal. marcus moore with the details. >> reporter: new details about the moment 36-year-old albert wong walked into a going away party at this veteran's home and

killed three. did your wife say anything about his xheener at the time? >> she did. he was very quiet, very calm. you out, you out, you stay. >> reporter: the three women he took hostage, psychologist jennifer gonzales and dr. christine seen here in a group photo with wong. abc news learned just two weeks ago, wong was asked to leave the program after eight months, one relative telling abc news because he wasn't fitting in. >> we've never had a violent episode anywhere near this. >> reporter: the program is designed to help veterans who return home with the scars of war. roughly 11% of veterans who served in iraq and afghanistan came home with ptsd. these three women were dedicated to helping them. >> they were very, very special people. >> reporter: and the pathway home has been up and running

since 2008 and in that time, they have helped more than 400 veterans. it's work they're vowing to continue despite the lives lost. marcus moore, abc news, california. one week ago a cleveland fertility clinic had a refrigerator malfunction possibly damaging thousands of frozen eggs and embryos. on the same day, a san francisco clinic experienced a similar failure. both incidents come as the number of women freezing their eggs soared in recent years. the extent of damage is being reviewed. some are questioning the entire process. >> this is extremely rare. i think it's important to remember this is a highly regulated industry. these centers are regularly inspected. but when whenever you talk about mechanical systems and human involvement, there's potential for error. i'm telling my patients, overall, this is an incredibly safe process. whenever you talk about reproductive technology, it's a really complex process. >> both clinics are

investigating what went wrong. patients that cleveland clinic are planning to take action. breaking overnight, country music star, tim mcgraw, as collapsed on stage in dublin when he dropped to his knees and sat down. according to a video filmed by an audience member, his wife, faith hill, returned to the stage to announce he was super dehydrated and she was the one to make the decision he could not come back out on stage. he is said to be doing just fine this morning. and an eventful end to the best dog show. protesters went on the floor. the owner of the winning dog took no chances, she picked up her dog named tease and got her out of there. the protesters were from peta. they claim dogs bread by humans have unnatural features. and this was another dog in the same show and he did whatever he

wanted to do. his owner tried her best but he wasn't paying any attention, wasn't having it. the crowd loved it, cheering on as he ran around the tv commentator. some saying he hasn't got a clue what he's doing. >> he's being a dog. >> he's being a dog, exactly. the old line says nice guys finish last but it's nice to know in atlanta, nice dogs do not. >> this is helena or as she's known at the shelter, velcro dog. her story went viral after her new owners gave her back because she was too nice. >> it's not even a thing. they didn't like the fact that she wanted to be around them all the time. the shelter says the snuggly pup has a new home that is as nice as she is. >> a home that appreciates her. maybe they wanted an attack dog and helena was like, the thieves

would come to the door and she was like -- >> i love you guys. well, coming up see the world from a whale's eye view. we find out how the ground breaking show, blue planet gets amazing images like these. an intense man hunt is underway for a 45-year-old on the run with a high school student. but first a look at today's temperatures. first a look at today's temperatures. well, here's to first dates! you look amazing. and you look amazingly comfortable. when your v-neck looks more like a u-neck... that's when you know, it's half-washed. add downy to keep your collars from stretching. unlike detergent alone, downy conditions to smooth and strengthen fibers. so, next time don't half-wash it.

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...straight years, and it's still recommended today. use as directed. a relative said it this evening. it is a miracle. elizabeth smart, the smiling 15-year-old girl, abducted from her home in salt lake city nine months ago has been found and she has been found alive. >> that was charley gibson reporting on the end to the elizabeth smart saga. exactly 15 years ago today. >> she had been abducted at knife point from her bedroom and later testified that she was tied up and raped daily and threatened with death if she tried to escape. she was rescued in sandy, utah,

18 miles from her home. >> absolutely incredible story of survival in the end. >> absolutely. this morning there is another missing girl in the news. they say she may be on the run with a married 45-year-old man. >> and we have new details on how police believe the two met. here is stephanie ramos. >> reporter: police continue the desperate search for a missing pennsylvania teen age girl and a man believed to be on the run together. the mom of 16-year-old amy yu reported her daughter missing march 5th. she says she disappeared with a couple hundred dollars in cash, jewelry and a pass port. the wife of 45-year-old kevin esterly says he with drew $4,000 in cash before he vanished. police think the two, who met at church, could be traveling in his 1999 red honda accord with pennsylvania license plates. the teen's mother discovered the

relationship between the two last month when she went to pick up her daughter from school and found esterly doing the same. according to an aft, estherly allegedly signed the teen out of school at least ten times. yu's mother called the police who told esterly and highs wife to stay away from the teen. they believe she altered school documents, adding esterly as the step dad. >> the question is going to be, what is the vetting process the school goes through to add people to the list. >> reporter: school officials say parents should check school records periodically to see who has the authority to pick up your kids. police are urging anyone with information on this case to call them. stephanie ramos, abc news, washington. we should also point out that in pennsylvania the age of consent is 16 year old but it's got to be a very alarming thing for many of the family members involved. >> and her mother says the guy's daughter is a friend and just a

year younger than amy. they never would have imagined something like this. >> yeah, absolutely. coming up the secrets behind blue planet as the show takes us into uncharted waters. >> we'll see how the photographers got images like this next. we'll see how the photographers got images like this.

♪ under the sea under the sea the team behind "blue planet 2" has gone to extremes to see never before seen angles of the ocean. >> that includes sticking cameras on killer whales. >> reporter: it's the awe

inspiring new series taking a deep dive into parts unknown. using advanced technology, the producers of bbc "blue planet 2" were able to explore the world beneath the ocean's surface like never before. new environments discovered. so what is different about this series? >> i think what we've really done is try to tell unbelievably surprising and new stories from the ocean. the ocean's such a giant, giant part of our planet and really so unexplored and we're still just scratching its surface. >> reporter: filming in 39 countries across every ocean. to see what a whale sees is going to be very exciting. cameras attached to suction caps placed on cheese whales, following their every move.

>> we were very keen to find a way to give the audience the experience of what it would be like to ride on the back of a whale. >> reporter: while the series captures fascinating creatures and the beauty below, it also highlights the effects of global warming and pollution on ocean life. increasing temperatures reeking havoc on coral reefs, home to one quarter of all marine species. in sarasota bay, dolphins calves are dying. >> there's a high mortality rate among first born cavs and this could be due to unexperienced moms and clearly there's something else going on. >> there's a native american phrase. we don't inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our grandchildren. for me, that really strikes a chord. everybody can do little things

and those little things add up and collectively they make a difference. >> reporter: for many people the oceans are out sof sight, out of mind. we wanted people to recognize we're more closely connected to the ocean than we thought possible. james london in london. >> that's spectacular. >> it is fascinating. it's a little too close up for comfort for me. i was watching one episode of "blue planet 2" where they followed this one octopus and they got close up with him and watched the act pus attack a shark and you see the tentacles. i've seriously not been able to eat calamari since then. you see it as a living thing, not just as a -- >> i just try not to thing about it and deep fry it. >> add a little thai chile sauce

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try cool mint zantac. no pill relieves heartburn faster. ah, "black panther" breaking the $1 billion mark in sales and another ground breaking moment occurred right here on abc last night. i'm not talking about the return of "american idol." >> much, much bigger than that. it's time now for the weekend rewind. >> new details about the deadly shooting rampage at a veteran facility dedicated to helping those with post traumatic stress. >> we are going to move to the state of florida. the governor has signed a major new bill to beef up safety and put in place gun restrictions.

>> to the students at marjory stoneman douglas high school, you made your voices heard. you didn't let up and you fought until there was change. >> now to president trump's massive diplomatic gamble. his decision to say yes to a high stakes, face-to-face with the north korean dictator, kim jong-un. >> who else could do it? honestly. they're not sending missiles up. think of it, they're not sending missiles up. >> i've covered the trump presidency from day one and this week like many before featured a big resignation, controversy, infighting and chaos. north of san diego, a paraglider stranded on a cliff in torrey pines. his parachute's stuck in a ravine on the face of the cliff. another rescuer from a helicopter hoists him to safety in a sling. amazingly, he only hurt his leg. he's going to be okay. >> i don't think that i can give you everything that you want right now.

you know, and i think that you sense that. >> so, what? you don't have trump on collusion? >> i just -- i think i need to explore the possibility that i might have a stronger case with some other stuff. jonathan black has become world news. >> and the debut on "deception" last night for three seconds. >> how did you memorize all of those line lines, kendis. >> i actually got two pages of script that ended up being four words on network prime time tv. >> still pretty cool. >> i smell emmy. >> that's it for this half hour.

this morning on "world news this morning on "world news now" a photo shoot, high above new york city ends tragically. >> the descent into icy waters and turning over as the main row tor kept moving. the pilot able to escape but others did not make it out alive. we'll have the latest developments from the scene. also this morning the campaign for 2020 now underway for the president. he debuts his new re-election slogan at a rally and encouraging the crowd to boo the media, but push back against boos for the north korean dictator. could the two meet or could the plan fall apart? and new overnight. if he did it. a disturbing o.j. simpson interview airs. his hypothetical account of

that double murder and why his lawyers say simpson has nothing to do with the interviews released. and want to know how to torture your friends with young kids? get them a drum set. if they are lucky, they might end up with kids like this 2-year-old that play the drums all the time. feel the rhythm on this monday, march 12th. announcer: from abc news, this is "world news now." >> it is sort of cruel punishment there. >> absolutely. >> as we say hello to marcy gonzales who hasn't been here in a long time. >> for ever. for ever. she can's been living the life on the west coast. >> i have, i have. >> been to the oscars. >> it's been a really rough life in l.a., going to the beach in february and you guys are dealing with snowstorms. >> but you're here just in time for the third nor'easter. >> great timing. so lucky. wonderful to be back. >> we want to start with breaking news. it's really sad. that tragedy in the frigid waters surrounding new york city.

we're being told at least five people, all the passengers are dead after the crash of that helicopter. >> the chopper went down in the east river near manhattan. the water temperature was just 40 degrees. emergency calls indicate it suffered engine failure before slamming into the water. here is aaron. >> reporter: this dramatic video showing the moment a private helicopter lost control, sunday night, crashing into the east river here in new york. >> we heard something and -- >> we looked back at the water and there was something floating on the water. and we were all calling 911 and then we didn't see or hear anything and then we saw the yellow raft and then someone on top of it. >> reporter: there were six people on board the euro copter as-350. only the pilot was able to escape. >> the pilot freed himself, the other five did not. so police and fire divers entered the water and removed the other five.

>> reporter: the skies over new york city constantly buzzed with helicopters carrying tourists and other people. crashes are not uncommon. in 2005 there were two separate incidents the same week. a salvage crew has been called in to pull the wreckage from the dark, murky water. ntsb is sending a team to determine what caused the helicopter crash. at this point it looks to be an accident. the pilot has been able to talk to investigators. >> our thanks to aaron. once again, the headline, all five passengers are now confirmed to be dead. we're going to move on now to the president and the meeting with the north korean leader, kim jong-un. an exact date and place for the meeting is still in the works. the white house saying there will be no more conditions imposed on the north ahead of the meeting, but a spokesman also says the regime must uphold three promises for that meeting to take place. >> they're going to end or rather cease missile testing,

cease nuclear testing and they've agreed to not object publicly to the upcoming joint military exercises. >> is there a chance it doesn't happen? >> if it does blow up, it's because they have not lived up to the promises made. >> the spokesman was asked whether the president would be open to hosting kim jong-un at the white house. he says it hasn't been ruled out but sources say the dmz is most likely the location for that meeting. >> the white house is backing off president trump's calls to raise the minimum age to buy assault weapons. the trump administration laid out a series of gun safety proposals that include giving rigorous firearms training for qualified school personnel on a voluntary basis. they also include improving criminal background checks on gun buyers but it's imposing a new federal commission to examine the age issue.

at least one calls it a dangerous retreat from president trump's promise. the president spent time in campaign mode over the weekend going to southwest pennsylvania ahead of tomorrow's special congressional election. the race is considered a toss up right now in a district trump won decisively two years ago. tara reports. >> reporter: the campaigner and chief setting his sights on 2020. unveiling a new slogan. >> keep america great, exclamation point. >> reporter: attacking his favorite targets. >> and pocahontas was up and she was so angry. a lot of bad people. a lot of fake media. look at them. a lot of fake media. >> reporter: even going after oprah winfrey, despite her insistence she won't run. >> i'd love to beat oprah, i know her weakness. that would be a painful experience for her. >> reporter: trump throwing out a startling idea, death penalty for drug dealers.

something he learned from china. >> i said, mr. president, do you have a drug problem? he said no, no, no. i said what do you attribute that to? the death penalty. i don't know the united states is ready for that. they should be ready for it. >> reporter: the pennsylvania rally a chance for trump to put the race for rick in the national spotlight. i hate to put this pressure on you, rick. they're all watching because i won this district by like 22 points. that's a lot. that's why i'm here. look at all those red hats. this guy should win easily and he is going to win easily. >> reporter: the republicans worry a loss in a district trump won by a landslide could be problems. the president insulting connor lamb in trump style. >> lamb the sham. lamb the sham. >> reporter: they said president trump was in his element even though he was campaigning for what they call a weak candidate.

we should expect him to hit the campaign trail for republicans as many as four to five times per week. with his low approval ratings the question is will it help? >> and the president will be back on the road again tomorrow. he's heading to california for the first time since taking office. during his visit he'll check out models for his proposed border wall in san diego. he'll also attend a big fund raising event. trump's visit comes as his administration is battling the state over the issue of immigration. and overseas, china's government has ended presidential term limits. it effectively allows the current president to remain in office indefinitely. only two no votes were cast from nearly 3,000 delegates from parliament to amend the term limits and adding new clauses to strengthen the communist party's domination. a turkish private jet crashed, killing 11 people.

among the dead heading to istanbul after they celebrated her bachelorette party in dubai. she posted images of the trip on instagram account. three crew members were also killed. back here at home we're learning about a second mechanical failure at a fertility clinic. a storage tank malfunctioned jeopardizing thousands of frozen eggs and embryos belonging to about 400 patients. this follows a similar liquid nitrogen failure, about 2,000 frozen eggs and embryos may have been compromised. but officials in san francisco say the extent of the damage is still unknown. >> we're not saying the tissue is lost. yes, it may be affected and we have to acknowledge that but our hopes are it will be a minimum impact. the cause is unknown and extremely stressful. it's very emotional. >> both clinics are investigating to determine what went wrong. the san francisco facility is

adding additional safeguards, meanwhile, many patients at the cleveland facility are planning to take legal action. let's turn to more winter weather heading straight for the east coast just in time for marci's visit here. >> yeah. >> with thousands still without power, the northeast is bracing for its third nor'easter in less than three weeks. 90 mile-per-hour winds downing trees and killing two people in east texas and damaging hail and parts of mississippi. by later this morning, 3-6 inches of snow will be moving through the ohio valley. by tomorrow morning, that nor'easter will pack strong winds and heavy snow from delaware to maine with breezy conditions possible for boston. >> come on. >> yeah. spring's not here yet. well, here is all the proof you need that golf is such a hard game to play. you're about to watch patrick reed at the 18th hole of this weekends pga event. oh, man.

he was tied for the lead at that point but he did not hit that putt hard enough and it rolled right on back down the green, just about the same place he hit it from. he finished tied for second place. that is painful. oh. >> we should mention some other guy named tiger finished tied for second as well. >> that sounds familiar. >> hasn't been on the leader board in years. >> true. yeah. but we have more from that pga event coming up, including how tiger did and he was actually on a roll. see how close he got to victory. but first the lost interview of o.j. simpson. did he really confess to murder? and remember to find us on face book at wnnfans.com. you are watching "world news now." nfans.com. you are watching "world news now." are cream conditioners bringing your hair down? from the world's number one conditioner brand...

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>> it was recorded 12 years ago to promote his controversial book, "if i did it," where he gives a hypothetical account of the murders of his ex-wife, nicole brown simpson and ron goldman. >> reporter: a disturbing televised o.j. simpson skeptical. >> very difficult for me because it's hypothetical. >> reporter: fox decided not to air because of public controversy and now branded as a hypothetical confession. >> i remember i grabbed the knife, i do remember that portion. >> reporter: o.j. still denies killing his former wife, nicole brown simpson and her friend, ron goldman. but civil courts have held him responsible for their deaths. in this clip he seems to make light of the relationship he had with his ex-wife before the murder. >> so i ran into her which they tried to say was stalking,

because her and some friends were at the opening of a restaurant. i was there with 16 people. so, if i'm stalking you, i'm stalking you with my crew. >> reporter: at his parole hearing for stealing sports paraphernalia, he said he would stay low key. >> i would be no problem and i think i kept my word. as i say i've done my time. >> reporter: simpson's attorney says he has nothing to do with this broadcast that was recorded 12 years ago. jim avila, abc news. >> recorded so many years ago. there was so much backlash about it then, they decided to can it at the time. >> and still a lot of interest after all of these years and the show's producers said the victims families gave their blessing to air the interview. >> yeah. i'm sure. just kind of odd to hear him -- >> it's chilling, really. coming up in our next half hour, "american idol" returns to

tv. we have the best moments from the season premier. but first march madness officially underway. time to get started filling out those brackets. see who made the cut, next. see who made the cut, next.

so it is time to start filling out those brackets days ahead of when you start crying about your brackets. >> that's me. can't wait to get into it. >> marci's not a sports fan. >> not so much. not so much, but i'm going act like i am, pretend i know what i'm talking about here. 68 teams in this year's ncaa tournament have been revealed. the southern region is stacked with a lot of traditionally tough teams led by number one seed, acc champion, virginia. those games are being played in atlanta. >> yeah. >> all right. so far so good. thanks. in the east the smaller schools looking for their cinderella stories will have to go through villanueva. nova faces the winner of the liu brooklyn versus radford game.

those games are in boston. >> okay. on to the midwest region we go where kansas is number one, yet again, the number one seed facing number one, ivy league, opponent, u penn. those games will be played in omaha, nebraska and in the west is xavier for the first time ever as it plays and gets underway in los angeles. >> finding out they are going to dance again can make young men jump around like little boys. the syracuse orange has to let it out before learning they would be playing arizona state in one of the first four match ups on wednesday night. >> you can understand the excitement. >> absolutely. >> they're all winners at this point. as are brackets. well, tiger woods still has not won on the pga tour since 2013, but it's how he lost that has the golf world buzzing. >> tiger came into sunday's round of the valspar championship near tampa, florida, just one shot off the

lead. he was still a shot back when he lined up over a 40-foot putt that would have forced a playoff. but it just came a little short. tiger finishing one back of paul casey who ended a nine-year winless drought but a lot of people are saying this is good. >> yeah. progress. >> progress for tiger woods. it's been a long time since we've seen him on the leaderboard going into a weekend. >> yeah, so doesn't have to be number one this time around. he's working his way there. >> but if he went into sunday wearing the tiger red on sunday. >> would have been a much different outcome. >> exactly, but it's exciting. i'm sure ratings for that championship will be high. >> for sure. >> so, tonight won't be just another tennis match between the williams sisters. it will be the first head-to-head between mama serena and venus. >> they're playing one another for the first time since little sister gave birth last year.

they are meeting in the third round of the b & p tournament in indian wells california. serena leads the sibling rivalry, 17-11, including wins in eight of the last nine match ups. >> and it's been a little more than a year since she's played really, really professionally. >> right. right. >> she won the australian open while she was pregnant. >> amazing. want you to meet the 4-year-old bowler who is already doing so much better than most adults. take a look at this. >> i think you got it, buddy. >> yeah, so that's jackson. you got to love the celebration dance here. he got a spare and couldn't have been any happier. >> i don't blame him. >> but he did have it off the bumper though. >> i can't even do that well with a bumper though.

>> it's kind of cheating. >> bravo. it's national napping day. >> goodnight. >> good night.

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the non-drowsy, coughing, aching, fever, sore throat... ...stuffy head, no sick days medicine. it is time now for the mix and of course we just celebrated the start of daylight saving time. >> did we celebrate it? really? no. >> did we have a choice? >> not so much. >> so we lost an hour of sleep and today is national napping day. >> thank goodness for that. >> we get caught up. so boston university professor and his wife came up with it. they say a 20 to 30 minute nap on this monday can help improve your mood performance alertness, all of that. >> but just today or is this an every day thing? >> it's an every day thing to help especially after daylight saving time. this is actually, no lie, what i wear when i nap in my office. >> very cute. were you sucking your thumb?

we were looking for you before. napping. real nice. >> and all those bottles of alcohol have nothing to do with it. but i do wear the onesies when i nap in the office. if you get a chance -- >> it's a good look. it's a good look. >> it's a good thing, national nap day. napping day. so for those of us who don't love working out, here's something you can do instead apparently. >> i'm not saying. >> i know you're big into working out. this is my kind of workout. apparently a 30 -- lying in a hot bath you can actually burn as many calories as a 30 minute waul walk. >> what? >> yeah. some scientists in england compared the effect of a hot bath on blood sugar control, sent a few guys out to do a bicycle ride and compared that to a bath. obviously, the bicycle ride burned more calories. they found the number of calories burned just from the hot bath because of the increase in body temperature, it's the same as a 30-minute walk. so save yourself the trouble. >> save the walk, take a bath.

>> i like it. i could be down with that. there's a certain 2-year-old in south australia who's really, really burning calories and might be the next ringo starr. he'll be more remembered than ringo starr but look at this kid. his name is matt. he was only 18 months old when he started to play the drum. he's self-taught, apparently. so a lot of people will give a drum set to torture their friends with kids. >> exactly. that is the worst gift you could ever -- >> he does it all the time. he's pretty good. >> he's like yeah, i got this. slightly, slightly different. we want to get to this video. nhl players brought their dogs out on to the ice for a race. and because why not? dogs on ice, so entertaining. >> these -- >> the l.a. kings doing this. and they're calling it bark

madness.

this morning on "world news now" the tour helicopter takes a deadly plunge into the east river in new york city. the chopper landing right in the water with onlookers describing the horrifying ordeal as those passengers on board desperately try to escape. the tragic update we just received. and new overnight the trump administration revealing its gun proposal including firearms training for school staff. despite the president's call for age limits on some guns, the new plan appears to stop short of that. details are ahead. and human remains found in a florida backyard. >> could they belong to the home owner who vanished three years ago? and what does that man's wife have to say about it? and after nearly two years "american idol" is back on tv

we have the backstage meltdowns. we can tell you who wigged out with katy perry. that's coming up on the skinny. it's monday, march 12th. >> announcer: from abc news, this is "world news now." and we do say good morning to you and we welcome marci in what's proving to be a very busy and tragic monday. we have breaking news on the helicopter crash here in new york city. >> at least five people are dead after the chopper went down off manhattan. the private charter was on a fee toe shoot when it slammed into the 40 degree water and flipped on its side. six people were on board including the pilot. >> crews raced out into the water minutes after the crash. the pilot, however, managed to free himself. harnesses worn by the passengers kept them trapped until rescuers could reach them. the ntsb is heading to the scene. tony yates spoke with witnesses

who watched everything unfold. >> reporter: you hear the horror and shock of family having dinner, witnesses to a tragedy as they watched from the window of their apartment. >> ooh! >> reporter: the helicopter hits the river. >> call 911. >> reporter: those are the voices of a family, one of them captured the video. >> we noticed a red helicopter going full speed towards the water. it almost looked surreal and next thing we know it's approaching the water slowly and then it just completely crashed and sunk. >> reporter: and that video was taken at about 7:07 at the east river near gracie mansion where many people were out, including people like kadira. >> the helicopter came, landed slowly. and the next thing you know, it just flipped and we heard someone crying for help. >> reporter: she managed to capture cell phone video, describing it as the moment she spotted a flotation device

in the water. did you see anybody coming out of the water? >> one person. one person was on a yellow deflator. >> reporter: calls pour in. and people came out to the water's edge. >> i was just running here a couple of hours ago and we heard all the sirens and crazy to think it's down the block. very sad. >> i saw it go down. >> reporter: for this family, witnesses at the window, it was simply hard to believe what was unfolding before them. >> it was surreal and praying and hoping that they were going to survive it. >> and that report wabc's tony yates. once again, the headline being some five people, five of the passengers were the ones confirmed dead. we want to move on to gun control advocates slamming the trump administration's new set of proposals to prevent school shootings. >> in a call with reporters,

administration officials pledged to review background checks and rigorous firearms training for specially qualified school personnel. but, it appears to be backing off on president trump's call to raise the minimum age to buy assault weapons. white house deputy press secretary appeared ahead of the announcement. >> the president has been clear that he does support raising the age to 21 -- >> as federal policy? >> for certain firearms. again there's going to be recommendations to states a task force. i don't want to get ahead of what is going to be announced but i will say that will be a component of it. raising the age, as well as mental health. >> that component is to create a new federal commission on school safe toy examine the age issue. betsy devos who recollects will chair the commission, describes the plan as pragmatic. we're just two days away from marking one month since the deadly school shootings in parkland, florida.

wednesday, thousands of students, teachers and parents are expected to participate in a nationwide school walkout. the event will take place at 10:00 a.m. across every time zone and last 17 minutes, one minute for each of the victims gunned down in parkland. more than 2,000 walkout events are registered. the trump administration says north korea must keep three promises before any potential meeting between president trump and kim jong-un. according to the white house those promises are no missile testing, no nuclear testing and north korea cannot publicly object to u.s. military exercises with south korean forces. no date for the meeting has been set. sources say the demilitarized zone is most likely the location for that meeting. and russia says it has successfully tested what vladimir putin calls an ideal weapon. russian military releasing a highly produced video showing a nuclear capable missile, detaching from a fighter jet and soaring toward a target.

the russians say the intended target was hit. the missile is set to have a range of 1200 miles and travels at ten times the speed of sound. we're learning more about a deadly hostage situation. many are honoring the three women killed during the day long siege at the pathway home with flowers and cards. the alleged gunman was asked to tlooef program that treats veterans with ptsd about two weeks ago. his former guardian says he always wanted to serve his country. says wong had problems after after returning from afghanistan in 2013. police say wong took his own life after killing the women. now, to the mystery behind a florida man's disappearance. michael shaver may have been missing for three years but it wasn't reported until this year and now they're focusing on the human remains buried in his backyard and questioning shaver's wife. eva pilgrim reports. >> reporter: investigators turning their attention to the

wife off a florida man after police recently discovered human remains in his own backyard. >> she is a person of interest and we are keeping close tabs. >> reporter: authorities say 36-year-old michael shaver may have been missing since october 2015. no credit card or cell phone activity and no one reported him missing until this february when a friend called asking for a wellness check. that's when law enforcement went to the home he shared with his wife. deputies said she told them she had not seen him since 2015. investigators noticed something odd, what seemed like a fresh layer of concrete near a fire pit and asked to bring in a cadaver dog. she refused. authorities obtained a warrant to search the property shaver shared with his wife and two kids, one 7 and one 10.

officials finding an arm bone under that concrete near the fire pit, later finding more remains and clothing. laurie shaver's attorney saying mr. shaver was unliked by many and they provided law enforcement with names of people mr. shaver had problems with. adding, as for mrs. shaver, she is not responsible for her husband's demise. investigators are waiting on dna tests and dental records to id the remains. they are hopeful an autopsy will give them some clues as to the cause of death. eva pilgrim, abc news, new york. so apparently there's a gum ball thief in california who has become the poster child for instant karma. >> here he is breaking into a sacramento animal shelter to steal the gumball machine. first he can't get back out, then he decided to break the glass. >> makes sense. >> okay. and the gum ball machine and cannot escape. >> finally decides to use a rare exit and shove the machine over

a fence all while 50 dogs are barking at him. he's still on the loose, actually. >> how do you get away with this and the police making fun of him using the #sacramento's dumbest criminal. >> well, he succeeded in the crime. >> right. >> not sure why he wanted a gum ball machine from an animal shelter. >> of all places. okay. coming up, it is our first look at the declassified department of defense video that has a lot of people wondering if this was a close encounter between a naval jet and a ufo. speaking of our first look, you won't want to miss "the skinny." the prime time television debut for yours truly last night. >> oh, yeah. >> some are saying it was delete worthy. >> i'm not one of them. >> wow. you're watching "world news now." you're watching "world news now." i'm so frustrated. i just want to find a used car without getting ripped off. you could start your search at the all-new carfax.com

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(colonial penn jingle) so it took just 10 seconds to wipe 46 years of history off the map in the town of frankfort, kentucky. the 28-story capital plaza tower, the city's tallest building, mind you, was

demolished to make way for a brand-new office building and the whole town came out. so breaking overnight we're getting details about a health scare from country star, tim mcgraw. >> he fell to his knees during a performance in dublin. his wife, faith hill, returned to the stage to tell the crowd he was super dehydrated. he's said to be doing just fine this morning. they were part of a large contingent of nashville stars touring the britishiles this weekend. and calls for the pentagon to restart a program that investigates unidentified flying objects. the calls led to the release of this video. it shows some sort of ufo seen by the crew of a navy jet three years ago. >> and this is the third that appears to show an interaction with a mysterious aircraft. the defense department has acknowledged there used to be a secret program that looked into

such sightings, but it was shut down in 2012. why? why was this shut down? >> conspiracy. >> yeah. >> and 2012, wasn't that the year the myans said it was all going to come -- >> creepy. i don't know. earthlings may be taking their first steps towards visiting mars. >> yes. spacex ceo, elon musk speaking at the south by southwest conference in austin, texas, told participants that his mars spaceships will be ready to take test flights by the first half of next year. but, he did admit his time line is a bit optimistic. >> you think? >> yeah. he was asked what the first humans to travel to mars will experience on the red planet. >> difficult, dangerous, good chance you'll die. excitement for those who survive. that kind of thing. and i think there's not many people who will want to go in

the beginning because all those things i said are true. >> for those who survive. >> yeah, okay. >> thanks. so he was asked about the first human colony's government on mars will look. he said it will most likely be some form of direct democracy with matt damon as president. >> i feel like we're getting a little ahead of ourselves. if you prefer keeping your explorations closer to home, supermario can help you get the job done. nintendo and google teamed up to create a mario themed version of google maps. the arrow and the navigator becomes mario driving in the cart and the cartoon plumber helps steer you to your destination making driving more fun. >> when we come back, it's the return of "american idol." yes. "the skinny" coming up next. yes. "the skinny" coming up next.

♪ skinny the ♪ ♪ skinny, just give me the skinny ♪ all right. skinny time and we start with "american idol" making its debut

on abc. >> the judges are katy perry, luke bryant and lionel richie. seacrest is back. let's bring in our senior "american idol" correspondent analyst, will gantz is here with us. >> how's it going? >> good and it's great to have it back on tv. >> it is so exciting to have it back. new judges, new talent and everything last night went incredibly. so in the past, the pool of contestant is a mix of real talent and real weirdos among them, this guy sang about, what else, worms. and did not advance to hollywood. katy's face says it all right there. there was also colby who was an aficionado. she thought she was a shoe in. >> until she wasn't. >> that's a no from me. >> i thought this was a singing

competition and i thought i sang really, really [ bleep ] well. i think katie is jealous. >> bless her heart. >> she's broadway bound, >> right. >> probably. they said she has a good voice, just not to sell records. >> i'm going to give her a mary roach. i don't know if you remember her from several seasons ago, but an epic meltdown. >> okay. all right. >> moving on now to harper grace. a few years ago she gained national attention for her unfortunate version of the national anthem. back then, she was only 10. but today she is 16 and has practiced a lot. listen to this. ♪ got to go loaded and he don't even know it ♪ ♪ but i'm about to go sell him out ♪ ♪ posing power lines ♪ because i never seen this town ♪ >> so, in the spirit of comebacks, i'm going to give her

a jennifer hudson. it says so much to her character that after national attention for not great singing she came back swinging. >> put herself out there. >> so there's hope for fergie. >> something tells me fergie's going to be just fine. next up was kentuckian and her adorable sister, dixie. >> that's cheating. >> it's like when you show up with a puppy or something. >> yeah, exactly. >> leyla got her ticket to hould. she's got that small-town lovable vibe. dixie also got a golden ticket to hollywood, but only valid in 2026. moving on now to dennis lorenzo from philly. i'm giving him a datre on the will-o-meter. he had a really cool story and super cool voice. >> he plays strings clearly. >> but one of the biggest surprises of the night was noah

from arkansas. he grew up on the farm and not only can he sing, he can sang. listen to this. ♪ how long it was a fever a cold sweat hot headed believer ♪ >> oh, wow. >> wow! >> noah gets a fantasia for me. it's a voice that comes out of his gut. i love it. he's also getting attention for this exchange with katy perry. take a look. >> wait, did you say wig? >> yes. >> i know, wig. i feel that already. >> what's wig? >> it's not your language. it's just for us. wig. >> i don't get it. wig. >> it's like when something's really, really impressive your wig is snatched, blown right off. yeah, yeah, yeah, wig. >> thanks for making us cooler. >> is this like a drag queen reference i don't know of? >> yeah.

so, wig. >> bonus skinny, coming up next. >> learning so much.

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♪ sadly i know all the words. >> just kind of mumbling under your breath. i love your version. >> including the ones that were bleeped. she's making money there. cardi b. kicking off with bodak yellow. d.j. khalid hosted the event in california. bon jovi received the icon award. while chance the rapper received the innovator award. >> and one of the most talked about performances wasn't even at the show. taylor swift released a new video for the latest song called "delicate." in it, she's constantly being

watched but in a plot twist, she becomes invisible. >> okay. >> all right. yeah. >> sounds fascinating. and the 28-year-old dances like no one is watching. she shows off some of her signature dance moves in a rainy downtown l.a. >> that's -- okay. are you laughing at her? >> i'm laughing at two things that are fictional. l.a. rain and taylor swift dancing. >> it was raining when i left. >> is that right? >> yeah. so, it happens once in a while. >> wow, actually impressive dance moves. >> they're different. olympic dreams do come true. they do, if you are sally fields son. adam rippon became the darling, winning hearts around the world, including sally fields' son. >> sam told his mom he had a crush on the figure skater. sally field went into mom

mode, blah, blah, blah you know how it ends. >> her work paid off. it may have taken a month, but sam and adam finally met in person. >> look at that. they met over the weekend. he captioned the photo saying, thanks, mom. >> my mom would not know how to do that so that's especially cool she knew how to tweet him. and to my prime time tv debut on a hit tv show. >> i can't wait. "scandal"? "how to get away with murder?" >> no, no, no. diane and i haven't been able to talk about it until now. so here is our new scene. we've made time for it. >> for decades, cameron and jonathan black. >> for decades cameron and jonathan black -- >> did you have to take acting lessons for that? because that was powerful. >> that was six seconds. this is my first time seeing it.

i wa

making news in america this morning -- breaking overnight. a tourist helicopter crashing in new york's east river. >> oh. >> new video from the scene. how the pilot was able to escape. and did a safety feature prevent the passengers from getting out? the battle over gun control. the white house announcing new measures in the wake of the parkland school shooting. what do the proposals include? and where does it stop short? if he did it. >> i remember i grabbed the knife. i -- do remember that portion. >> a new interview are o.j. simpson hypothetically discussing how he would have committed the murders of nicole brown simpson and ron goldman. is the mission to mars