listen to this or do you share this good morning, america. breaking overnight. that new covid-19 mutation hits the u.s. the first known case reported in colorado. officials saying it could be very contagious. this as louisiana congressman-elect luke letlow loses his battle with the virus at just 41 years old, just days after urging those who have recovered to donate plasma. now, new questions about the pace of the vaccine rollout. how effective will it be against that new variant? is help finally here? those $600 stimulus checks now being sent to americans across the country. could it already even be in your bank account this morning? as the push to up those payments to $2,000 hits another roadblock in washington. breaking overnight. missed warning signs. new revelations about that christmas day bombing in nashville. the suspect's former girlfriend

alerting authorities he was making explosives as far back as 2019, despite officials saying he was never on their radar. authorities now looking into evidence that the suspect was interested in conspiracy theories, including so-called lizard people bent on world domination. caught on camera. the nypd now identifying the woman at the center of this controversy, wrongly accusing a black teen of stealing her phone. the plan to upgrade the charges against her, and the search for her this morning. two major storms blast across the country with snow, dangerous winds and tornadoes. millions of americans in the path. ginger with the timings and the tracks as we head into new year's. ♪ i'm still standing and archie steals the show. the toddler making his big debut on harry and meghan's new podcast. >> fun? >> fun. >> for a new year surprise, the final countdown to 2021 is on with just one day until the big night. ryan seacrest is joining us

live. what we can expect from "new year's rockin' eve," times square getting confetti at the ready as we prepare to say good-bye 2020. and good morning, america. thanks for being with us on this wednesday as we count down to 2021. i don't even know if 2020 deserves a good-bye. just a back turn, march into the new year. >> see ya later. >> exactly. see ya. we have a busy morning. a lot of breaking news happening overnight including some good news. >> good news a little delayed here, but the word is that those $600 stimulus payments are officially on their way. they could actually be in some of your bank accounts this morning. we have much more on that ahead. and the latest on the vaccine rollout. there was one big vaccination on tuesday. take a look at 91-year-old margaret keenan, the first woman in the world to receive the

pfizer vaccine. there she is getting her second dose with what i think appears to be a very big smile behind that mask. >> a lot of people smiling about that, and this comes as that covid-19 mutation hits the u.s. the first known case in colorado. that patient now in isolation as a man in his 20s with no travel history. experts saying it could be much more contagious. let's go to kaylee hartung in hard-hit gardena, california, with the latest. kaylee, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, whit. things have gone from bad to unimaginably worse here at memorial hospital just over the last two weeks. this hospital, it's at capacity, and yesterday we were here watching ambulances line up. some waiting for hours for a bed to become available. this hospital says the breaking point, it's here. this morning, colorado reporting the first known case in the u.s. of that new variant of the virus which the cdc says could be far more contagious. health officials saying the patient, a man in his 20s with

no travel history, is now recovering in isolation. officials say a second possible case with links to the same small town was reported, but not confirmed. new research finds the new variant isn't more deadly, and experts believe the vaccine will likely be effective against it. this as the virus claims the lives of some younger patients. >> what's surprising also are patients who are coming in in their 30s and 40s who are truly symptomatic and requiring oxygen. >> reporter: overnight, louisiana congressman-elect luke letlow dying from covid at just 41 years old. he tested positive on december 18th and was admitted to the hospital the next day. he died just ten days later. just days ago, he urged those who recovered from the disease to donate plasma. tweeting, i cannot stress this enough. please consider saving lives by going out and donating at your local blood bank. as the nation mourns record death tolls, hospitals in california are hitting a breaking point. the number of daily hospitalizations in los angeles county nearly a 1,000% increase from just two months ago.

>> i just look back on new york city and italy, and that's what i -- that's what we feel like right now. after the christmas holiday season, i'm scared to death honestly. >> reporter: memorial hospital in gardena is now at capacity. ambulances forced to wait in line. >> it's nonstop. it's not unusual to get eight, nine, ten ambulances backed up. >> reporter: the hospital needs more beds, more staff and more oxygen for the dramatic influx of covid patients. >> if we can't keep a supply of oxygen, patients will die. if we run out of oxygen, we have plenty of beds, but if we run out of the oxygen, they're worthless. >> reporter: los angeles county alone is expected to surpass 10,000 deaths related to covid-19. state officials outlining plans to ration hospital care if the surge worsens. the vaccine brings hope an end is in sight. vice president-elect kamala harris received her first dose yesterday, but even so, president-elect joe biden is warning the holiday travel won't help.

>> soaring cases counts in january, and soaring death tolls into february. >> reporter: triage tents like this one have helped hospitals throughout southern california manage the flow of patients into their hospitals, but only so much patient care can actually happen here. so now the head of this hospital, he is calling on local officials for help. he wants alternative care sites set up. think about convention centers, arenas. that's how much help, how much more space is needed as the situation continues to get worse. t.j.? >> all right, kaylee, thank you so much. talking about the help needed there. let's turn to some hope now. breaking news overnight. a new hope on the horizon as the uk approves the use of a new vaccine. our james longman is in london with all of these details. james, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, t.j. a new hope just before the end of a very difficult year. britain has now authorized the oxford-astrazeneca vaccine. it doesn't need to be kept at super low temperatures like the pfizer vaccine.

the hope is it could be rolled out very, very quickly. and there's been a change to vaccine strategy here. this is important. britain will now vaccinate as many people as possible with the first shot, and allow up to three months to pass before the second is administered. health services want to get some level of protections for millions of people as soon as they possibly can, but all of this of course as britain is in the middle of a major coronavirus surge, reporting more than 5,300 cases tuesday alone. that was a new record. despite vaccine rollout, there's concern. officials reporting a new unprecedented level of infection. that's because of that new mutation which is so much more infectious. they canceled christmas, and with new restrictions ahead, people are saying they must stay home for the new year if this country is to avoid a catastrophe. mary. >> james, thank you. we're now joined by dr. paul offit. from children's hospital of philadelphia. thank you for joining us. it's no longer a question, right, this more contagious

variant is here in the u.s. as we just heard from james, cases and hospitalizations are surging now in the uk. much of that being blamed on this new mutation. is what we're seeing over there a preview of what we'll soon see here? how concerned should we be? >> well, it does look like the virus binds more tightly to itself and it does look like it may reproduce itself in larger quantities. it may be more contagious. i think that hasn't been formally proven yet, but it appears to be. i'm not sure what change that makes for us. the current virus seems to be contagious enough. we have 20 million infected and almost 350,000 people who have died from this virus. if we have a new contagious strain in the u.s., it shouldn't change our behavior. we should still do everything we can to mask and social distance and other hygienic measures protect ourselves. but we don't do that, and you -- look, for example, at the cowboys/eagles game, 30,000 people attended that game. i just don't know what we're

thinking here. we're trying to deny this, and i'm not sure this strain, this apparently more contagious strain is going to change the way we're handling this. >> of course, you are a vaccine expert. you've been optimistic though that the covid-19 vaccine will work against this new mutation. why? is there evidence for this yet? >> yes. there was one very small preliminary study done. they took serum from people who survived covid-19 and then looked in the laboratory to see whether or not that vaccine neutralized this serum and it did, the same way it did the nonmutant strain. the question is does it functionally mutate? in one it does appear to functionally mutate, and it becomes more contagious, but it doesn't appear to be more virulent, and it doesn't appear to have mutated away from the vaccine. >> that would appear to be good news, but so far we know vaccine distribution in the u.s. is far behind schedule, and with

researchers warning that this new variant appears to be significantly more contagious, will this translate to more hospitalizations and death, especially if we continue to vaccinate at this pace? >> well, again, and i think there's going to be a lot of stumbling as we roll out the vaccine. you put a lot of vaccine out there, and then the administration catches up, but i think over the next few weeks and months we're going to be much better at vaccinating. and again, although this appears to be more contagious, you know, the current non-variant strain has done enough damage that should make us get this vaccine out there quickly anyway. >> dr. offit, thank you as always. whit? mary, we do want to turn now to the latest on those $600 stimulus payments. the money now on its way to millions of americans across the country, as the push to increase the checks is locked in another standstill on capitol hill. rachel scott is live in washington with the very latest. rachel, good morning. >> reporter: whit, good morning. some americans will be waking up this morning with that

$600 stimulus already in their bank account. the treasury department says they started sending out those $600 stimulus checks yesterday. so if you have direct deposit set up with the irs for your tax returns, you can expect the money to go straight into your bank account. otherwise, you will be receiving a paper check. those are set to go out later today. americans who earned $75,000 or less can expect to receive the full $600 stimulus check. that means couples making a combined income of $150,000 a year will be receiving $1,200, plus an additional $600 per child. so a family of four will be getting as much as $2400. whit. >> many families are desperate to get any help they can. and rachel, as those payments finally start going out though, the push to increase them is hitting another roadblock on capitol hill. >> yeah. that's exactly right, whit. the house has passed a measure that would boost those stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000. when that bill made its way over to the senate, majority leader mitch mcconnell blocked it. republicans are divided on this. the vast majority of them don't

want $2,000 stimulus checks. they want to keep the spending of the bill down, but the president is still demanding that lawmakers make this happen, and he's also blasting his own party for not getting it done. so under immense pressure, we saw leader mcconnell introduce a bill of his own yesterday. it does include that request for $2,000 stimulus checks, but he also tied to it some unrelated items that the president has now been pushing for for months. the committee to investigate election fraud, limitations on social media companies the president believes are biased against him. democrats are calling those unrelated items poison pills. they will not vote for it, but the problem here is that mcconnell's bill is all or nothing. so at this point, the bottom line, those $2,000 stimulus checks are now deadlocked in congress. >> something else to watch as we head into the new year. rachel scott for us. thank you. t.j.? whit, we want to turn now to those two new year's storms. millions of americans in the path of snow, damaging winds and even tornadoes. happy new year. ginger joins us now with more on

where and when these storms are going to hit. hey there, ginger. >> reporter: seriously. what a way to start 2021. wait until i show you, but first, let me show you this in des moines, iowa. the first storm not messing around. the snowiest day they have had in more than a decade. more than 9.4 inches of snow. missouri, a quarter of an inch of ice right through kansas and missouri, and chicago had three to five inches. that's storm one. this morning, the rest is from grand rapids over to flint, along i-96. there's where you'll find slick spots on the roads. anywhere there from new year's eve day, so tomorrow, right? let's go ahead and track this storm and time it out for you. kansas city all the way over to say, quincy, illinois. watch this as it kind of develops. you have strong storms west of houston, but watch as the pink expands again, up through missouri, into illinois, and then eventually indiana and all the way to newberg, new york and scranton, we'll have icing and that's when you start 2021. that's by 6:00 p.m.

it's going to be a mess, unfortunately, but we will be here tracking it. >> ginger, thank you. and now to the latest on the investigation into the christmas day bombing in nashville. new reports that the suspect's former girlfriend warned authorities he was making explosives, despite officials having said he was never on their radar. kenneth moton has the latest. kenneth, good morning. >> reporter: mary, good morning and here's what we know. police in nashville went to the home of the suicide bombing suspect more than a year before the blast that rocked downtown. officers say they tried, but they couldn't get anthony warner to open his door and they had no contact with him. this morning, a newly resurfaced police report shows that local police and the fbi were warned about anthony warner nearly a year and a half before he detonated his rv in downtown nashville on christmas morning. >> where is your car? >> right there. >> okay. go to your car. >> reporter: according to that 2019 police report obtained by abc news, warner's girlfriend at

the time told nashville police that he was building bombs in the rv trailer at his residence. in the aftermath of the explosion, which injured six people and damaged dozens of businesses and homes, the tennessee bureau of investigation said warner was not on its radar. >> he was not on our radar. >> reporter: but in the august 2019 incident report, officers say both the woman and her attorney tipped them off about warner. the attorney reportedly telling them that the suspect frequently talks about the military and bomb making, adding he knows what he's doing. officers did investigate warner's home where they found several security cameras and wires attached to an alarm sign, but that officers were unable to see into the rv. overnight, a police spokesperson saying officers found no evidence of a crime and had no authority to enter his home or fenced property. the report was shared with the fbi the next day, but investigators found no records on warner and no additional action was taken. investigators are still trying to figure out warner's motive

for allegedly blowing himself up in front of the at&t building, but sources tell abc news writings associated with warner contain ramblings about multiple conspiracy theories and he was reportedly interested in paranoid theories over 5g cell technology. the conspiracy theory that shape-shifting reptilian creatures are bent on world domination. >> when you look at this destruction, it's also kind of amazing that nobody was killed. >> reporter: some disturbing and really bizarre details there as nashville police maintain that there was no everyday that anthony warner was making bomts when they went to his property back in 2019. we checked and we know that warner had at least one arrest on his record for marijuana possession more than 40 years ago. whit? >> thank you, kenneth. we do want to turn now to hot air balloon ride that went incredibly wrong here. take a look at this. nine people here in gilbert, arizona, got quite the surprise when a gust of wind broke the tethers holding the balloon down.

watch it there. just dragging across the ground. then pushed across the lot when it crashed into a fence. fortunately the passengers escaped with just minor injuries there. >> give me a second to scratch that off my bucket list. >> yep. >> basket list. i want to take this opportunity now to publicly thank the milwaukee bucks. because of your efforts, i got more sleep than i expected last night. because this game was such a blowout i could turn in early. they broke two nba records in a 144-97 win over the miami heat. the bucks became the first team to ever have 29 three-pointers in a game, and the first team in nba history to have 12 different players make a three-pointer in a game. get this. the only one -- only buck that didn't score a three-pointer is the defending mvp, giannis antetokounmpo. he's the only one that didn't have a three-pointer. the game was such a blowout that tnt just cut away in the third quarter and said, this is not worth our time. >> plenty of action. plenty of points to see on tv. that was fun though.

good to see the season up and running. we are following a lot of other headlines this morning though, including new developments in the se a occf t black teen of stealing her phone. officials saying they've identified her now, and the search this morning. and the boeing-737 max has landed safely. its first u.s. flight since being grounded, but families of those crash victims are now speaking out. first, back to ginger. >> reporter: and, mary, i want to make sure to mention on new year's eve day, lake charles, louisiana, beaumont and port arthur could see damaging winds. mobile, alabama, watch for tornadoes to wake you up in 2021. the sunny cities brought to you by liberty mutual insurance.

good morning, i'm abc 7 news meteorologist mike nicco. we're starting off colder this morning, as clouds will be on the inside. once the sun sets, light rain on our way, more chances as 2020 rolls about. today, 54 to about 59 degrees. that's pretty close to average. 30 in the north bay as the clouds open, the rest of we'll be right back. trelegy for copd. ♪ birds flyin' high, you know how i feel. ♪ ♪ breeze drifting on by you know how i feel. ♪ ♪ it's a new dawn...

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building a better bay area for a safe and secure future. this is abc 7 news. and good morning, i'm reggie aqui from abc mornings. the governor will provide an update on california's response to the covid-19 crisis. he's expected to speak at ten this morning, and we will be streaming that live on air on our web site, abc7news.com, and our abc 7 news app. california's hospitals are being pushed to the limit. particularly in two regions. icu availability remains at 0% in southern california and san joaquin valley. the bay area is seeing a slight improvement although we are still at 10.4%, which is not great. the head of california's health and human services, dr. mark alley is worried that we could see another surge that puts even more pressure on the hospital system. >> we know that a number of people are going to be newly exposed over the next -- over

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trusted soothing vapors, from vicks ♪ i'm still standing, yeah, yeah, yeah ♪ welcome back to "gma," and that is elton john performing "i'm still standing." that is the theme of the year, ain't it? that was back on dick clark's "new year's rockin' eve" back in 2015, the perfect song maybe for the end of 2020 this morning. mr. new year's eve himself, yes. ryan seacrest will be telling us all about the big show, how it'll be different. times square is getting ready. certainly going to look different from years past. this is the annual confetti test we usually see here every year. i actually saw people here yesterday, little kids walking down the street picking up some of that confetti. not going to be a big crowd down there as usual, to see that confetti, but still, it's going to fall and it's going to be different, but a lot's been

different this year. >> that might be the only time to get the confetti, during the test. more on all of that ahead, but first, the top headlines we're following right now. the latest on the coronavirus crisis. that new covid-19 mutation hitting the u.s., the first known case reported now in colorado. officials saying it could be very contagious. as california hospitals are hitting a breaking point as they deal with an influx of patients due to these rising cases. also right now, those $600 stimulus checks are now on the way. payments are being sent to americans across the country as the push to up those payments to $2,000 is now hitting another roadblock in washington. and the city of louisville is moving to fire two of the police officers involved with the fatal shooting of breonna taylor. officer myles cosgrove and detective joshua jaynes were both notified tuesday they would be fired. the officers will appear in a hearing tomorrow where the terminations are expected to be enforced. plus, nearly $800 million are up for grabs this week between the powerball and mega millions jackpots. no one won the mega millions

drawing overnight for $376 million. the next drawing is on friday. that estimated jackpot, get this, now more than $400 million, but if you are impatient the powerball drawing is tonight. it is now up to a measly $363 million. if you don't see me here tomorrow, you will know what happened. >> if you don't play, you can't win. >> exactly. >> somebody out there will be very lucky. we do have a lot to get to this morning. we begin with the new details about the shooting death of andre hill at the hands of a now-fired police officer. investigators releasing a statement from that officer's partner who was at the scene. stephanie ramos joins us with all the details. stephanie, good morning. >> reporter: whit, good morning. that fired columbus, ohio, police officer did not activate his body camera until after fatally shooting andre hill, but the camera has a feature that enables it to record 60 seconds of silent video before being turned on.

coy's partner now reveals some of that interaction with hill during that minute. this morning, new details in the deadly shooting of 47-year-old andre hill, an unarmed black man who was fatally shot by columbus police officer adam coy who was white. another officer, amy detweiler who responded with coy to a noise complaint said in a newly released report hill said nothing as he approached the officers from the garage. she didn't see a weapon and she did not observe any threats from mr. hill. body camera video shows moments leading up to the shooting, but without audio, because coy didn't activate the camera until after the shooting. >> hands out to the side now. >> reporter: according to the report, the officer said she heard officer coy say he saw a gun. police say there was no gun found on the scene. >> officer coy never issued any verbal commands. he never gave andre hill a chance. he didn't say freeze, stop, put your hands up. she said he just shot. >> reporter: columbus police

chief tom quinlan writing in a summary of his findings, saying, officer adam coy has exhibited incompetence and gross neglect of duty. adam coy is still under criminal investigation and could face federal charges. whit? >> all right, stephanie ramos for us. thank you. t.j.? let's turn now to the new developments in the story of that woman falsely accusing a black teenager of stealing her phone. authorities now say they know who she is, and they are looking for her. they plan also to upgrade the charges against her. our adrienne bankert joins us now with all these details. adrienne, hello. >> reporter: hi, good morning to you, t.j. yes, investigators upon reviewing this now-viral video say they're considering adding other charges including grand larceny, assault and attempted robbery for the still-unnamed woman. this morning, the nypd is trying to find this woman, seen confronting and physically trying to take a phone away from a 14-year-old boy claiming he

stole her property. >> this is my phone. >> show me -- no. >> you don't have to explain nothing to her. >> that's mine. >> are you kidding me? you feel like there's only one iphone made in the world? >> reporter: police say they now know who this woman is, and that she's likely from out of state. officers now trying to locate the woman who left before police arrived at the arlo hotel in downtown new york where the incident occurred. it all began when she allegedly began harassing jazz musician keyon harrold and his son, keyon harrold jr., guests of the hotel. the teen and his parents appearing on "gma" tuesday. >> we hit the lobby and she was all on him asking him for his phone immediately. >> i was confused because i have never seen that lady, ever. i think she was scared, but that's why when she saw me, she just jumped on me and attacked me. >> reporter: the video harrold shared of the scuffle seen over 2 million times. it shows the woman repeatedly demanding they give her the

phone. >> no. i'm not letting him walk away with my phone. >> reporter: police say the woman attempted to take the 14-year-old's phone grabbing his leg and tried to tackle him. >> can i please get my phone back? i cannot -- i cannot not have my phone. >> listen, get your hands off. >> she basically tackled and she scratched me. i can't imagine what it would have been like if i wasn't there to be with him. >> i would ask her why would she do something like this to a kid who never met you. >> reporter: the manhattan district attorney's officer says it is thoroughly investigating this incident. >> i'm angry and hurt. i want to know why. we don't have any clue why this woman attacked our son. so why? >> reporter: and their family the family as well as their attorney will be holding a news conference and a rally today at city hall. t.j.? >> and worth noting that cell phone was tracked down. she had left it in an uber apparently. adrienne bankert, thank you so much. mary? now to the boeing 737 max back in the air flying for the

first time in the u.s. since it was grounded for nearly two years after those two devastating crashes. gio benitez is at laguardia airport where the plane landed safely. gio, good morning. >> reporter: hey, mary, good morning to you. american is now the first u.s. airline to put the max back in the air, but the families of those who died are calling on regulators to take the plane back out of service. this morning, after nearly two years, the 737 max is back in the air carrying paying passengers tuesday for the first time on a flight from miami to new york. >> we're flying on a boeing 737 max. we have the utmost confidence in the safety of this aircraft. as a matter of fact, my wife is on board. >> reporter: the first officer's mother also on that flight. passenger ashley rappaport didn't realize she was on a max and at first was nervous, but she was put at ease by the pilot's announcement.

the previous crashes and deaths on her mind. >> were you thinking about those crashes? >> i was thinking about them when we were taking off, but then as we were midair and everything was fine, and the flight crew was amazing, i was definitely way more at ease. >> reporter: the max had been grounded for 20 months after those crashes, sparking a slew of investigations into both boeing and the faa. >> this airplane, i feel is the most scrutinized airplane that we've ever seen, and it needed it. >> reporter: abc news taking the first demo flight on the max just about a month ago. here in the max cockpit, you won't see any changes, but boeing says it has updated its flight control system, and that is all in the software. congressional investigators say design flaws, faulty assumptions about pilot responses, and management failures at boeing and the faa led to those two crashes. and boeing and the faa say the changes to pilot training and

to the plane itself make it safe to fly, but american says if you don't want to fly on this plane, you don't have to. you can change or cancel your flight. they say they will let you know that you are on a max. mary? >> gio, thank you. and coming up next here, prince harry and meghan debut their new podcast with a special guest. little archie chiming in. guest. little archie chiming in. that's why the new myww+ is our most holistic weight loss program ever. the app helps you take the foods you have

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first podcast episode just in time for the new year, giving listeners a surprise with their son archie's first public words, cute little baby words. abc's mona kosar abdi joins us with all the details. mona, good morning. >> reporter: whit, good morning. prince harry and meghan markle are no strangers to making headlines, but now they're the ones bringing us stories from around the world from some very prominent voices, but it's the last voice that we hear from on their first episode that has us all buzzing this morning. prince harry and meghan markle turning their podcast special into a family affair. >> welcome to our 2020 holiday special from archewell audio. i'm harry. >> and i'm meghan. >> reporter: the duke and duchess of sussex delighting listeners with their holiday special, ending with a cameo by their 19-month-old archie. his parents encouraging him to take the mic. >> you can speak into. >> archie, is it fun? >> fun? >> fun. >> reporter: as a family, the trio signing off with holiday cheer. >> after me.

ready? happy. >> happy. >> new. >> new. year. >> yay! [ laughter ] >> reporter: the this marking the first time the public is hearing the almost 2-year-old archie's voice. >> being able to hear his voice for the first time on this podcast wishing everyone a happy new year is a peaceful way to do it, and i think it really fits in with how royals often share these sort of snapshot moments of their children. >> reporter: the holiday special part of a multi-year multimillion-dollar deal with spotify. the new year will bring the first complete series from the sussex new production company archewell audio. meghan and prince harry also inking a deal this year with netflix where they'll produce a variety of programming from documentary to an animated series. >> 2021 is really the year where we get to see brand sussex or the archewell legacy come to life.

there's a lot of talk and now things are actually in motion. we heard the first episode of the podcast, and we'll be seeing the fruits of their labor. >> reporter: the family recently releasing their family christmas card. depicted in an illustration by meghan's mother, doria ragland. and towards the end of the episode, the couple also played "this little light of mine" by etta james. they mentioned it was their wedding song with meghan adding a quote from dr. martin luther king jr. that darkness cannot drive out darkness. only light can do it. whit? >> all right, mona, thank you so much. cute little baby. makes you want another one, doesn't it, t.j.? >> no, it doesn't. thank you, whit. thank you, whit. >> he was cute. coming up here, new year's eve one day away. we are counting down with ryan seacrest himself telling us all about what we can expect from the big night, and next, our "play of the day." ♪ lay of the day." ♪ so, uh, yeah, just a silly mistake. i guess i look pretty... ridiculous. [ chuckles ] no one looks ridiculous, bob.

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♪ do you love me oh, back now with our "play of the day." you are going to love it. we have an unprecedented dance-off foe this unprecedented year. i'm going to step aside and let you just enjoy. ♪ tell me baby ♪ do you like it like this ♪ do you like it like this ♪ tell me ♪ tell me >> all right, folks, what you're seeing here, the company boston dynamics put out these

videos every year of their robots doing phenomenal things, and they say this year, this is the start of what we hope will be a happier year. dancing to "do you love me," and this is awesome they can code these things to do all of this. just a happy dance for what they hope will be a happier year. >> i saw the running man. >> i did see the running man. >> look at that. >> that's your specialty, right? >> yes. pop and lock on a whole new level. >> wow. coming up here, folks, we're getting ready for 2021, and who else but mr. ryan seacrest will join us live. he's going to tell us about the big celebration. stay here on "gma." >> not a minute away from the new year, 2019. minute away from the new year, 2019.

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rogue band, i want to name my band that in the future. ice and snow forecast, and the heavy rain. don't forget, 4 to 6 inches, possible flash flooding. coming up here on "gma," we are counting down to 2021. so much to get to, including ryan seacrest. and we're going to have the stars of "bridgerton" with us. all of this brought to you by home instead. your local news and weather next. caspers new year sale is here! on a new cozy bedroom and wake up on the right side of the bed this year. from the fluffiest down duvet you'll ever feel.

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building a better bay area for a safe and secure future. this is abc 7 news. good morning, i'm reggie aqui from abc 7 mornings, a special delivery headed for the port of oakland as we speak. take a look at these live pictures from sky 7. flying above a ship carrying these tall cranes. these cranes will allow the port to handle massive containerships and stay competitive. the cranes have to be lowered in order to fit under the golden gate bridge. and the reason they have to do that is because these are actually the tallest ever that will be at the port of oakland. so pretty cool sight as these cranes come in underneath the bridge. all it has to do is make it under the bay bridge as well. mike, it looks like they've done it. >> right. yeah, coming in, low tide helps a lot. thankfully no king tides to deal with. let's talk about what's going on weather wise. we've got rain coming in tonight. it could get into the north bay around 4:00, 5:00 as you see on future radar. it could pulse to moderate.

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good morning, america. it's 8:00 a.m. breaking overnight, that new covid-19 mutation hits the u.s. the first known case reported in colorado. officials saying it could be very contagious. now new questions about the pace of the vaccine rollout. how effective will it be against that new variant? is help finally here? those $600 stimulus checks now being sent to americans across the country. could it already even be in your bank account this morning? how to track your payment right now. "gma" health alert. uncovering the reality of endometrial cancer. for so many women on a mission to raise awareness about early detection. ♪ i can make your hands clap snow solution. as ginger tracks those two new year's day storms bearing down on so many, how could you uber

your snowplow and get your driveway cleared? we're trying them out this morning. ♪ call me maybe and is that 2021 calling? we can't wait to answer. this morning we're counting down to new year's eve with the stars of "bridgerton," the actors behind simon and daphne here live. your favorite rookie, nathan fillion is zooming in, and the king of "new year's rockin' eve" ryan seacrest joining us live in just moments as he's saying -- >> good morning, america, and happy new year. ♪ here's my number, so call me maybe ♪ and good morning, america. thank you so much for being with us on this wednesday. new year's eve tomorrow. we are counting down to the end of 2020. some people have been counting since maybe april. >> yes. >> yeah. >> who else is going to count us down? we called him mr. new year's eve, and now whit just called him the king of new year's eve. looks like he likes both of those titles. we'll check in with ryan seacrest.

his 16th year hosting "dick clark's new year's rockin' eve." the show is going to look and feel a little different. that's okay. this year has been different, and we'll hear how they'll pull it off. and up ahead, we are setting out to sea. there is our will reeve on the oceanxplorer. we're partnering with nat-geo for a new mission and this morning they're taking us aboard live on "gma." can't wait for that. first, we have a lot of news to get to. starting with that covid-19 mutation hitting the u.s. the first known case reported in colorado. experts saying it could be even more contagious. let's go to kaylee hartung in hard-hit gardena, california with the latest. kaylee, good morning once again. >> reporter: good morning again, whit. memorial hospital here in southern california like so many other hospitals in the area, it's at capacity. the head of the emergency department here tells me inside it's chaos. controlled chaos. this is a hospital that typically has ten icu beds, but right now they're managing to care for 30 patients in intensive care.

the staff here saying they are barely hanging on. this morning, colorado reporting the first known case in the u.s. of that new variant of the virus, which the cdc says could be far more contagious. health officials say the patient, a man in his 20s with no travel history, is now recovering in isolation. officials say a second possible case with links to the same small town was reported, but is not yet confirmed. new research finds the new variant isn't more deadly, and experts believe the vaccine will likely be effective against it. >> we have a more contagious strain that would be circulating in the u.s., and it shouldn't change our behavior which is saying we should still do everything we can to mask, social distance and do other hygienic measures to protect ourselves. >> reporter: this as the virus claims the lives of some younger patients. >> what's surprising also are patients who are coming in in their 30s and 40s who are truly symptomatic and requiring oxygen. >> reporter: congressman-elect

luke letlow dying from covid-19 at just 41 years old. he tested positive on december 18th and was admitted the next day. he died just ten days later, and hospitals in california are hitting a breaking point. the number of daily hospitalizations in los angeles county, nearly a 1,000% increase from just two months ago. >> i look back on new york city and italy, and that's what i -- that's what we feel like right now. after the christmas holiday season, i'm scared to death honestly. >> reporter: memorial hospital in gardena is now at capacity. ambulances forced to wait in line. >> it's not unusual to get eight, nine, ten ambulances backed up. >> reporter: the hospital needs more beds, more staff and more oxygen to care for the dramatic influx of covid patients. >> we have plenty of ventilators, but if i run out of oxygen, ventilators are worthless anyway. >> reporter: this hospital has gotten creative, created space, but they believe before too long they will run out. they've put beds in their auditorium, and this triage tent can only do so much.

the head of this hospital is calling on officials to open up alternative sites. the breaking point, it's now. whit? >> december, the worst month since the pandemic began. thank you so much. mary? turning now to the latest on those $600 stimulus payments. the money officially on its way to millions of americans. rachel scott is in washington with the very latest. rachel, good morning again. >> reporter: mary, good morning. some americans could be waking up this morning with that $600 stimulus check already in their bank account. the department of treasury said those direct payments started to go out last night. if you have direct deposit set up with the irs for your tax returns, that money will be going straight into your bank account. otherwise, expect a paper check. those will be going out in the mail later today. now americans who earn $75,000 or less can expect to receive the full $600 stimulus checks. so couples making a combined income of $150,000 a year will be getting $1,200, plus an

additional $600 per child. a family of four can expect to receive up to $2,400, and the irs is setting up a tool on their website where you can track your stimulus check. it will be up and running on irs.gov later this week. mary? >> good to see those checks finally going out. rachel, thank you so much. coming up on "gma," we are counting down to new year's with who else? ryan seacrest. he's joining us live to talk about the big and somewhat different type of night. also this morning we're heading out to sea. will reeve is live with the oceanxplorer for a special live event and he's taking us aboard. and as we get ready for a new year, we're looking at tiktok fashion with the biggest looks to have in your closet in 2021. our expert is revealing all the hottest trends. all that and more coming up. ♪ you clean dishes as you cook, to save time and stay ahead of the mess but scrubbing still takes time. now there's dawn powerwash dish spray.

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♪ hey now welcome back to "gma" on this wednesday morning. tomorrow on "gma" the big reveal of american girl's 2021 girl of the year. and as a girl dad, i can confirm it's a big deal in my house. you've got a young one as well. they're getting a little older though. >> little older for it. if american girl doesn't come with an ipad she does not care. >> we'll see the big reveal. that's coming up. it's going to be great. >> always happy to have that. now our "gma" cover story. the countdown to "dick clark's new year's rockin' eve" just a day away. and joining us now, who else? the host who brought it to our homes, the new year for so many years now, the big night. the one and only mr. ryan seacrest. [ applause ] >> good morning. good morning.

i keep saying are we there yet? are we there yet? let's just get there. >> not quite, but this is -- i could not believe this is 16 years for you. you started doing this show when you were 14 apparently. >> yes, i did. i did. >> did you think -- is this one of those gigs that all of us who are watching now, our kids and our grandkids will see ryan seacrest for new year's eve, like, you have this gig forever. will you not? >> i hope so. you know, if any of the bosses are watching, i'm pitching myself for forever right now, but this is the show i grew up watching myself with dick, you know. i would be at home with my family, my folks and we would watch on the couch every single year. so to be there is incredible. obviously this year is going to be a lot different, but there are going to be some similarities. we're going to bring you, you know, a big party, live performances. our friend jennifer lopez will actually be in times square with us on stage, and lucy hale, billy porter will co-host with me. we'll move around times square

pretty freely, but with our masks in certain zones. in other areas we're clear to take the mask off for a couple of the segments. >> you mention 16 years. you say none exactly like this before. what else can we expect in terms of how things will be a little bit different? >> i think we're going to be wanting to get there faster sooner than ever before. a friend of mine actually said to me the other day, hey, are they going to drop the ball? i said, yeah, they're planning to drop the ball as normal. so we will definitely have a few different kinds of groups of people in the pens. we will have our heroes of 2020. we'll have the first responders, the essential workers. many of them don't call themselves heroes, but we'll have a chance to meet them, meet their families and celebrate what they have done for us this year. >> and you mentioned jennifer lopez. we know that every year there

are huge performances, big surprises. can you spill the beans on some of the other surprises and performances we can expect? >> well, everybody that has had a hit this year, lewis capaldi and doja cat, and envogue. bill will perform with cyndi lauper. that's going to be great. we'll have the last interview of the year with president-elect biden and future first lady dr. jill biden. that will all happen too right before the ball drops and we finally get to say, 2020 is over. happy new year, 2021. >> how did you find that balance, right? some people just want to put this year behind, forget about it and just have a party, but also, you know, i heard you talk about the heroes. >> yeah. >> you have to still incorporate some of that. how do you balance just putting that behind and everybody let's have a party versus also recognizing what we have been through? >> i think we do want to have a celebration. i think we are all looking forward to so much celebrating a new year and what hope this new year can bring.

i don't want to jinx it by saying it's going to be so amazing, but let's hope so. i remember when the ball was dropped in 2020, i was ad libbing all kinds of things about it's 2020, it's a new decade and what an amazing year it's going to be, but it turned out to be one of the most challenging. it's important to celebrate essentially those new yorkers who were here in the middle of the pandemic, but we want them to have fun. that's where the balance will be struck, t.j. >> we have to ask you an "idol" question. the show is going full steam ahead, but like so many others, it's gone through some changes too. how are auditions going? what can you tell us? >> the show so far, we have shot the auditions in different cities in california. we had to work inside of a bubble to shoot auditions, but the show looks like it normally looks even though we have our distance, and it looks like we'll be in the studio, fingers crossed, starting next year when

we go live. so the show will have that same big scale feel that it has, which is great for the performers too so they get a chance to feel what it's like to be on the big stage. so far, it looks like the original "american idol." >> so ryan quickly, we have to ask you because we've all picked up hobbies in 2020. we noticed the jars behind you. we thought you were pickling your own sauerkraut. this is something new. tell us about the olive oil. >> yes, whit. i was looking -- you know, i was always asked about hobbies and i realized i didn't have that many because i work so much. i decided i need a hobby. i have been reading up on the benefits of olive oil for the last year or so, and there are a lot of health benefits and it tastes good too. i have been studying different olive oils from around the world and i planted my own olive orchard. and in two years, you will be receiving for your holiday gift some olive oil from me if i can figure out how to make it well. that has become my hobby. >> two years?

you're a patient, patient man. >> quality takes time. let's not rush quality, okay? >> isn't that the truth? ryan, it's good to talk to you. it's been a heck of a year, but if anyone can pull this off, and this type of celebration, we know you can. good to see you, and we'll see you tomorrow. okay? >> guys, thanks so much. good to see you. happy new year. >> "dick clark's new year's rockin' eve" with ryan seacrest will air tomorrow beginning at 8:00 eastern right here on abc. let's say good morning to ginger again, now. >> reporter: t.j., i know an olive oil sommelier, so we'll have to try the seacrest brand in a couple of years. new york, 34 degrees at midnight. not too bad. good morning, i'm abc 7 news meteorologist mike nicco. we're starting off colder this morning, as clouds will be on

the inside. once the sun sets, light rain on our way, more chances as 2020 rolls about. today, 54 to about 59 degrees. that's pretty close to average. 30 in the north bay as the clouds open, the rest of now to our wellness uncovered theory shining light on the health disparities women of color face. this morning we're taking a closer look at endometrial cancer. studies show the disease is far more aggressive for black women, and one woman is on a mission to change that. janai norman has the story. >> ko >> cancer looks like a thousand different things, but cancer can also look like me. i'm a survivor. >> reporter: today shonda foster is living with endometrial cancer, diagnosed in 2012 at just 33 years old. she says for too long she suffered in silence. >> that pain, i mean i was living through pelvic pain for a very long time, and i didn't have to do that.

i was basically self-medicating myself with 600 milligrams of motrin whenever i was feeling pain. >> reporter: about 1 in 37 women will be diagnosed with endometrial cancer each year, but black women have a 90% higher mortality rate than white women, and are more likely to be diagnosed later and at a more advanced stage. >> that statistic has been here and present for decades. we hadn't had any research to address that issue. >> reporter: dr. kimmy dole is committed to eliminating the mortality gap in endometrial cancer through her own research, including by improving guidelines for screening and by raising awareness. she says it all starts with early detection. >> we have so many different tools of treatment for endometrial cancer, but the most powerful one is that women are diagnosed at early stages and that's our best chance of cure. >> reporter: to honor her mission, in 2017 dr. dole launched ecana, the even

endometrial cancer network to help more women like shonda speak up. >> if someone can go to the doctor and not feel afraid, i'm saving a life. i'm saving a sister. >> we talk about cancer, and it helps women to know they're not alone, and there's a lot of health and healing on the other side of treatment. >> reporter: for "good morning america," janai norman, abc news, new york. >> and we are joined now by abc's chief medical correspondent dr. jen ashton. dr. jen, thank you for being here. we know it's important to know what the symptoms are for any illness in order to increase early detection, but what do women need to know specifically about the symptoms for endometrial cancer? >> i'm so glad we're talking about this, mary, because this is the most common gyn malignancy for women. the hallmark symptom is any irregular or abnormal uterine

bleeding. many other things can cause that but it's important to be aware of what's normal for you and any deviation from that. >> so how do you know what is a deviation exactly? what are the steps women should know about evaluating irregular bleeding, especially if they're worried about this cancer? >> it's important for women to know when they go to their gynecologist, the two steps that need to be taken -- this is the standard. this is the gold standard in gynecologist. it's number one a pelvic ultrasound or sonogram, and then number two, a sampling of that internal endometrial tissue. that's either with an in-office biopsy or dnc in the operating room. >> what about black women? why are we seeing them so hard hit? >> there's lessons for the gynecologist and the women. the lesson for the doctor, is yes, black women are more likely to have fibroids and that can cause irregular bleeding, but it's also important to recognize they could have cancer. so it's important to look at all

possible diagnoses. the lesson for the women here is get social support. there is data that suggests that women, especially black women have a better support system do better after diagnosis than those who don't. there's a stigma around this, and we need to drop that stigma today. ask for help. ask for support because it can make a big difference. >> dr. jen ashton, thank you for the important information. whit? >> very important info. we want to turn now to something a little bit different. we're going to go out to sea with dedicated researchers searching for solutions to global climate change. oceanxplorer is seeking to protect our oceans and they partnered with nat-geo to give us an inside look at their work. >> this is really cool. will reeve is now aboard their newest vessel docked in brooklyn this morning. will, good morning. >> reporter: good morning there, mary. how lucky are we to be on the deck of this research vessel in the middle of the east river? a drone operator's dream.

lower manhattan in all its glory right behind me, and this helicopter behind me on the oceanxplorer has four research vessels, four research labs, up to 72 scientists and crew able to live and work here, studying the oceans, trying to save the oceans for future generations. really cool stuff going on here. >> will, you've spent some time with oceanx, and they were trying to save coral reefs. what have they been up to? what have they discovered? >> reporter: right. last may of 2019 i was on the previous research vessel. we went to the bottom of the ocean in a submersible to check out the coral reef and stuck a styrofoam coffee cup to the outside of the submersible. this is it. i kept this as a souvenir. it got condensed, pushed down by the pressure which was absolutely amazing.

this vessel is just back in new york from the red sea. it went out to egypt and the red sea to study supercoral, which is coral that can thrive in warmer temperatures to see if they can learn stuff about the coral reefs closer to home here. >> it's all fascinating, will, and i understand there was a rare weather phenomenon involved in that mission you were talking about as well? tell us about it. >> reporter: yeah, crazy weather. on their way out to the red sea through the strait of gibraltar in september, this vessel encountered what is called a medicane. it's a mediterranean hurricane, kind of like a cyclone. it can reach a category 1 hurricane level winds, crazy stuff. this helicopter actually, they can push that inside. it has a little hangar so they don't get the -- the helicopter doesn't fly off the ship. they have everything literally nailed down here on oceanxplorer. >> will, look ahead for us then. what's next here for the oceanxplorer? >> reporter: next up, warmer

weather. i hope that i can hitch a ride. they're heading to the caribbean. they're joining none other than james cameron for a nat-geo docuseries about the ocean, what oceanx and other researchers and scientists around the world are doing to try to preserve the world's oceans for future generations. awesome stuff happening here on the oceanxplorer and around the world which of course, the oceanxplorer can get to with relative ease. medicanes, not withstanding, guys. >> all right, will reeve for us. exciting stuff. we appreciate it. coming up here, the stars of the new hit series, "bridgerton," join us live. we'll be right back.

building a better bay area for a safe and secure future. this is abc 7 news. good morning, everyone, i'm from abc 7 mornings. small businesses in california can now apply for grants to the state's covid-19 relief fund. grant amounts will range from 5,000 all the way to $25,000 depending on the applicant's annual gross revenue. the first round opened this morning, will close at midnight next friday and approvals will be announced the final week. the san francisco unified school district will be able to test its employees for covid-19. the district announced that it has secured funding for covid testing. staff at elementary schools will be given priority, and as of right now, there's no date set to begin in-person learning.

good morning, let's take a look at the storm exact scale and show you where our storm right now. it's a one, it's going to be light, and it's mainly a window from 5:00 this afternoon in the north bay, as you can see, some green, moderate rain to begin with, to 5:00 as it exits the south bay tomorrow morning, so tomorrow's morning commute is going to be quite slippery. now, we've got dry weather thursday and friday, but look at all those storms lined up for the new year. >> thank you, mike, we'll have another abc 7 news update in 30

minutes. you can find the latest at our app and abc7news.com. gma continues right now. and you should know something about me, your grace. i will not have this go wrong. >> you mean our ruse? >> it's more than a ruse now. this is more than a negotiation. this is not just about finding the best match to impress the lady or the queen or any member. >> welcome back to "gma." that is a scene from the hit series of the holiday season "bridgerton," the historical romance from shonda rhimes. it follows the young men and women of london's high society, and this morning, we are joined by two of the stars, phoebe dynevor, and rege-jean page. i feel like i have been spending a lot of time with both of you recently. the show is fantastic. phoebe, of course, you play the

eldest bridgerton daughter out looking for love in the marriage market. rege, you are the ravishing duke of hastings, a committed bachelor, and i have to say, whoo. the relationship between the two of you, it is tumultuous, quite steamy at times. how did you work to build this chemistry? we're told you worked with something known as an intimacy coordinator. what's the deal with that? >> yes. >> the chemistry the probably the easiest part because phoebe is lovely as you can all see and probably experience. the characters already existed and they have great chemistry in the book so we had to channel through this amazing chemistry that already existed. as the intimacy coordinator, it's an incredible natural way of working on this. phoebe, do you want to talk on that? >> yeah. no. we had -- it was so great to have an intimacy coordinator. we blocked every scene weeks, you know, weeks before we started shooting them.

so by the time we got to set, we knew exactly what we were doing, and we both felt safe, and i think it just made the whole experience a lot easier and nicer for both of us. >> okay. i have so many follow-ups about the intimacy coordinator, guys, but i'm going to move on to the next thing though. it's described as "gossip girl" means "downton abbey." is that right? how would you describe it for folks that haven't gotten on board yet? >> i would say it's a reimagined world of regency england. it has so many elements, the modern elements, and the song that was playing and the song of ariana grande remixes and all sorts of things. the music is to influential and the costumes and everything is just a heightened world. so in that way, it is a period drama, but it's also elements of that "gossip girl" -- >> yeah.

>> the writer. >> ariana grande's perfect for that scene. it's aggressive tender swiping left except in real life. >> and rege, let me ask you this because there were eight full scale balls, celebrations as part of the series here. that's a lot of dance routines you have to remember and organize. >> yep. >> how did you pull that off? >> a lot of rehrsearsarehearsal when you thought you rehearsed enough, more rehearsal. phoebe and i called each other of saying, i've got sunday free. do you want to practice the dance some more? yes. we'd go around and trip over each other's feet for a couple of hours, and that's a good way to trust someone because they have to catch you when they fall. >> we had the best time as well. we loved doing the dance reh rehearsa rehearsals. we would get excited about doing them, and hearing the music we were going to dance to. it was a really special part of the show. >> i would like to hear from you both on this. you all have reached wide, wide

audiences all over the world now, and you've reached this new, i guess, level of fame at a time that you can't go out and enjoy being famous. now phoebe, i see your face there, rege. but phoebe, i'll start with you. what is that like now? you can't be out and about. even if you go out, you're supposed to have a maverick osk. how do you enjoy this fame mid-quarantine? >> it's surreal. me and rege just checked in with each other because a lot's changed in a few days, but it's actually really nice. i've just been going on walks with my mum and my family over the field, and that's about as much as, you know, going out as we get. so yeah. it is quite strange and separated, i think it's also quite nice actually. >> yeah. i think it's great because at a time when we're not allowed to be together in communal spaces and have this community that shows being away from people to be that enlightened. it's exciting and let's talk about it, but at the same time, you don't have to do that thing

where you go to the grocery store and it takes you 30 minutes more to get to the checkout. it's, like, personal life over here, professional like over there. perfect. >> phoebe, i have to ask you about the costumes in this show. they are amazing. i heard you wore 104 different dresses. >> 104. >> tell us, how brutally painful are those corsets? >> the corsets aren't that bad. they were fitted to our bodies which were amazing, and i lucked out because i only wore a half corset which isn't as bad as a full one, but i felt lucky to be in all these amazing costumes, and every single dress was fitted to perfection. i spent hours and hours in there with everyone, and just the hard work that was put into making those costumes. it was just such a joy to be apart of it, honestly. it was amazing. it's every 11-year-old girl's, like, dream. it was mine anyway. >> well, congratulations to both of you.

the show is just a wonderful escape. it's fantastic. "bridgerton" is streaming now on netflix, and tomorrow on "gma," two more stars from the cast join us live. coming up, nathan fillion joins us live. ♪

welcome back to "gma," and we are thrilled to have nathan fillion here with us.

he's charmed us in "castle," the cult favorite sci-fi series, and now the hit show, "the rookie." how are you, kind sir? >> i'm doing well. thank you very much. i have that one-second delay thing where i feel like you ask a question and i'll be, like -- thank you. >> no. it's working just fine. it's working just fine. not a bad delay. are you ready to turn the page on this new year? what are your plans? >> yeah. i can't wait to -- i love my house. i really, really do. i can't wait to get out of my house. >> that's your plan for the new year? >> that's -- small step. b baby steps, t.j. >> just as you know we're getting to 2021, you're already looking ahead to halloween? this is a thing? your costume last year,

with a robe on, that's for halloween. >> halloween and christmas are, like, neck and neck for me for favorite holidays and i really -- this year was terrible. this was me on halloween saying, i've done nothing to prepare for halloween. it's -- this has never happened to me. a pun costume was the best you'll get this year. i will say though, i have started my next year's costume already. i have a garage out there, and i'm starting welding for the new costume. no spoilers, but it involves this, t.j. >> no spoilers. we'll take that. can you give us spoilers for the new season of your show though? you have a great following with "the rookie." you have another season about to start up. kind of left on a cliff hanger. people are wondering what's going to happen to "the rookie." can you tell us -- what can we expect? >> that's actually the really wonderful thing about -- that happened as far as by accident by leaving season two on a cliff

hanger is season three, we come back, and we have to pick up where we left off which is pre-pandemic. so for these, we can all together just pretend none of this ever happened. >> let's take a quick look and i'll ask you about it on the other side. >> nick armstrong's on his way to the hospital and he has you tried to kill him. >> says you're on the payroll. >> he's the dirty cop. he's setting me up. >> okay. okay. let us inside so we can take a look around, and you and i can talk. nolan, you do not want to play things this way. >> actually, sir. this is exactly how you want me to play things. two cops are dead, and a third one is a murderer. >> you're picking up on that story line which is pre-pandemic and pre-a lot of things we have seen in this country. what is it like to be producing a cop show at a time in police and protests and so much of that has been in our -- in our national conversation? >> you know, it's something they

don't tell you about when you sign on to do a cop show that this might actually be an eventu eventuality, but we do strive to be -- i think what makes our show different is we strive to be a little more accurate, and we are finding that the experiences that we depict on the tv are not necessarily everyone's experience, and we want to, moving forward, be more accurate, and as a show, we want to do the right thing as we as a society discover what that right thing is. >> well, it certainly is resonating, the show. i know you're incorporating a lot of that into this season. i know you had issues with covid, and challenges in production, but you all are moving ahead, but congratulations on what you have been able to do. season three, of "the rookie." you have an amazing following. people talk about the show nonstop. so congratulations, and good luck, and happy new year to you. all right? >> thank you so much. i'm so proud of this team. thank you very much for having me, t.j. >> season three of "the rookie"

premieres sunday night, 10:00 right here on abc. let's say hello again to ginger zee. well, hello, t.j. hey, everybody. i got to tell you a story. we moved out of the city more than two years ago, but i am embarrassed to say we haven't had snow until two weeks ago, and that's why my husband and i realized we have no one to plow our driveway. so we were those guys in the neighborhood with the ice eventually. well, now there is an app and there's on demand snowplowing services that work like an uber for snowplows. it not only can help procrastinators like us, but it'll help you find some extra work on the side. >> reporter: winter is officially here, and with it, the snow. from iowa to wisconsin, and tennessee, fresh snow covering roads and our driveways. but if you aren't the shoveling type, good news. there's an app for that. many apps actually with names like snowhub and shoveller, all with the purpose of making your

life a little easier this winter. click snow removal. order a plow. mom of three plow, giving popular app plows and mows a go. >> it's nice to use something like this, especially on a school day when i have to get the kids out to school and day care and everything like that. >> reporter: think of the apps like the ubers of snow removal. some connect you with on demand professionals. others just look for neighbors who are ready to work. these apps are great for those that are working side >> if we get a big storm here, you can be out there for an hour, two hours, and factor that into your day. things like these are massive time savers. >> reporter: so using that next time. kristen spent $37 for that convenience, but prices do vary depend

good morning, i'm abc 7 news meteorologist mike nicco. dress warmer and expect to scrape some ice. there is more frosty cold conditions out there. it will be cooler this afternoon, 50s with increasing now to the new technology helping keep families connected during the pandemic with many seniors staying ice lasolated f their loved ones. people are stepping in with creative ways to provide an escape, introducing them to some of the most innovative technology, and we're not just talking about video calls and zoom and things like that. becky worley has the story. >> reporter: at one senior community in texas, this hug booth is providing seniors with the opportunity to connect with a loved one while staying safe. >> hi, eileen. >> reporter: in california, this respiratory therapist starting adopt a grandparent, delivering hand made goods and most importantly, human connection. >> it hurts to see them so cut

off from everyone. >> reporter: the pandemic has been particularly difficult and isolating for seniors, but one company bringing some of the most popular technology with younger groups to seniors in the safety of their own homes. >> what do you see, phyllis? >> i see across the street. >> reporter: mind vr. it's a virtual reality immersive experience. >> it makes you feel like you're there, right? >> i am there. >> reporter: and at this senior community in sarasota, florida, it's become a favorite activity. >> oh, isn't that gorgeous. >> reporter: 100-year-old loretta says she has lived a full life, and that hasn't stopped with the pandemic. her daughter barbara says her mom puts the headset on and gets to explore new places, and remember fond memories. >> washington square. i used to go there too. >> this virtual reality has really opened up her world. it's a bright spot. >> reporter: with this 360 virtual reality technology, it provides an escape from the

isolation. puppies. who doesn't love puppies? >> it's stimulating. it's engaging, and during this pandemic, i think it is the perfect piece of equipment to have our seniors feel like they are vital and part of the world. >> reporter: helping to create conversation and make a connection. >> what i've really seen in my mom has been a great opening up of her. socialabili socialability. >> reporter: for "good morning america," becky worley, abc news, oakland, california. >> that is a great idea. our thanks to becky worley for that. coming up here, the hottest fashion trends of 2021 straight from tiktok. ♪

welcome back to "gma," and we are back with tiktok's hottest fashion trends racking up millions of views online. let's bring in melissa garcia now. she's here with the looks you have to have in your closet for 2021. good to see you.

thank you so much. this first one racked up something like 89 million views online with the hashtag, and what we're talking about here is our model nicole. our producer nicole is modeling this look. faux leather. head to toe or a particular item? >> yeah. so faux leather pants. i was surprised because most of us have been wearing mostly joggers and sweats. there's been an increase in searches for going out pants. if there's one pant you want to add in, it's your faux leather pants. they go with everything from sweaters to t-shirts to boots to sneakers. you can style them with everything, and their faux leather and the technology has come such a long way that you cannot tell they're not real, and they're so comfortable. nicole is wearing these here from express, and we paired it with a shacket. it's a shirt and a jacket if

they had a baby. it would be a shacket. it's a comfortable, great layering piece for the fall and winter. >> i haven't heard of a shacket. that's a new word for me. all right, melissa. our next look is arguably the most popular of all right now. the trends hashtag getting this look on tiktok. our model andrea is looking good. tell us about this. >> this is all about the mon monochromatic look, and this is one of my favorite trends, and i don't know if i would call it a trend because this carries from year to year for sure. you probably already have everything in your closet to do this. you want to pick a tonal family that you want to stay in. you don't have to wear the exact same shade. on tiktok we're seeing lots of neutrals. ivories, beiges, tans, taupes. this entire look is from kohl's, really affordable, but again, you probably already have a lot

of this in your closet already. it's about layering it on top of one another. really easy to do, and it always looks polished, refined and put together. >> all right, melissa. last but definitely not least. we have a special model bringing us this look. your daughter harlow is here. there she is. gorgeous, wearing this of course. this is the cardigan look here, and the trends hashtag getting 4 million views. it's about to get 4 million more now with harlow. taylor swift inspired this as well, right? >> yes. we all know taylor swift came out with that great song "cardigan," and not only the song, but she has that exact saturday began sweater, and she sent it to some of her besties who wore it on tiktok. of course, the rest is history, and it blew up. i love a cardigan. harlow is modeling it. so adorable. what's great is it's like a sweater, cozy like a sweater, but it has a little bit more structure and more refined and polished.

wear it closed, open, with jeans, sweats, and this is from old navy, and it looks so good on her. she's in the other room. it's so funny. >> well done. tell harlow thank you for us, and to our other models nicole and angela as well. melissa garcia, we appreciate

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thank you all for watching. i realized i forgot something. >> what day is it? >> happy hump day. >> hump day. robin would be proud.

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building a better bay area for a safe and secure future. this is abc 7 news. good morning, everyone, i'm kumasi aaron from abc 7 mornings. eventbrite is cracking down on new year's eve parties that violate covid-19 health orders, removing listings for two parties in the bay area. the ads for events at 620 jones in san francisco, and fort mckinley restaurant and bar in south san francisco encourage people to wear masks and social distance, but current health orders do not allow for gatherin gatherings like that. here's mike with the forecast. hi, everybody, we still have several hours before our storm arrives tonight after the sun sets. light rain showers, up to 2/10 of an inch of rain through 5:00 this evening to 5:00 tomorrow morning. once we move past that, dry for a few days and dry until next year. now it's time for live with

kelly and ryan. we'll be back at 11 for midday we'll be back at 11 for midday live. it's live with kelly and ryan! today, we catch up with leslie jones. plus, actor rainn wilson shows us his pet zonkey. also, stranger things star noah schnapp and chef michael symon teaches us some cutting edge kitchen skills. all next on live. and now, here are kelly ripa and ryan seacrest. thank you! well... it's almost over. almost! 2020 is almost over. it's wednesday, december 30th. we're just having a great debate over here about who has the best pretzel bun in new york city because laurie told me that she had a double patty bacon pretzel burger at a place called emmy squared, and my stomach was growling when you were telling me about it. it's so funny, like, what occupies people's brains.