right now on "america this morning," the new warning that russia may be setting the stage to use chemical weapons in ukraine. what we're learning about vladimir putin and the setback suffered by the russian military. the civilian death toll mounting. a school and community shelter coming under attack, and now an american citizen caring for his ukrainian partner killed while reportedly trying to find food. what we're learning about the conditions he faced in the war zone. breaking overnight, a wildfire engulfs a small town in texas. several historic buildings going up in flames. new details about two devastating crashes. this one in foggy conditions. the death toll rising. and word that a 13-year-old was behind the wheel before this crash that killed several

college athletes. plus, the new accusations against supreme court nominee ketanji brown jackson. how the white house is responding. a transgender swimmer makes history winning a division 1 title reigniting afierce debate. and march madness. the you will mountain upset. kentucky falling in a bracket busting stunner. plus, the cheerleader who had all the right moves to get everyone out of that jam. >> give her the mop. no, she's got it. oh! good friday morning, everyone. i'm mona kosar abdi. >> i'm ike ejiochi in for andrew. let's get right to the breaking news from the war in ukraine. reports of a missile strike near the western city of lviv. >> smoke was seen in the distance after a reported strike near the airport in lviv. russian missiles hilt an aircraft repair facility, the first attack in that city.

>> meanwhile, an american citizen has been killed in ukraine. his family says he was trying to find food. we'll hear from them in a moment. we're also learning more about vladimir putin's state of mind and major challenges confronting the russian army. >> the question now, will russia turn to china for help? that issue is high on the agenda at the white house this morning. today, a high stakes conversation, president biden will speak with chinese president xi jinping amid growing concerns that china may be willing to help russia's war effort in ukraine. the white house saying it speaks volumes that china has not denounced the russian invasion. >> this is an opportunity for president biden to assess where president xi stands. for any country it's a question of where you want to be as the history books are written. >> reporter: the biden administration says china is considering supplying russia with military equipment after moscow requested help, and now bloomberg reports there are signs that china is seeking ways to soften the blow of sanctions imposed on russia. the russian military is meeting

fierce resistance in ukraine making no progress towards kyiv in the last week. sources say russian casualties could be as high as 10,000. a senior official says high ranking members of the u.s. military are simply astonished how poorly the russians have performed, but the pentagon is reportedly growing more chemical weapons. ssia using - >> we believe that moscow may be setting the stage to use a chemical weapon and then falsely blame ukraine to justify escalating its attacks on the ukrainian people. >> reporter: russia is now relying more on long range missiles fired into ukraine from inside russia where they're safe from ukrainian attack, but the long range missiles are also more expensive and could be in short supply. it comes as more ukrainian civilians fall victim to indiscriminate bombing. multiple people were killed when a suspected russian missile hit this apartment building in kyiv, and it's still unclear how many people may have died when this theater being used as a shelter was bombed.

ukrainian president zelenskyy visiting with wounded civilians thursday including this family recovering after a shell hit their car, and now a powerful message from one of the biggest celebrities in russia. >> the strength and the heart of the russian people have always inspired me. >> reporter: arnold schwarzenegger speaking directly to the russian people in a new video spreading on russian social media. >> the destruction that russian bombs are raining down upon innocent civilians has so outraged the world that the strongest global economic sanctions ever taken have been imposed on your country. this is not the war to defend russia. the ukraine fathers, the great ukraine fathers fought. this is an illegal war. >> reporter: a source says vladimir putin has made direct appeals to china for help and is growing more worried about shortages of military equipment. as hardships grow for ukrainian civilians, newborn babies are among those gathered in shelters. abc's ian pannell visited a basement shelter where 20 babies

just born to surrogate mothers are being cared for by nurses. one nurse said they're under the constant threat of explosions. >> reporter: well, just incredible scenes down in this basement. you can see these women caring for the babies, 24 hours a day barely getting any sleep. and if you want to know what russia's invasion of ukraine has done, nothing represents it more than these babies hiding underground from bombs. >> only a handful of adoptive parents have braved the war zone to pick up their children. we're learning more about the u.s. citizen killed in ukraine reportedly killed in a russian attack while searching for food. abc's faith abubey is here with more. faith, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, ike. his name is jimmy hill. his family says he was stuck in the war zone caring for his ukrainian partner. this morning, loved ones are remembering an american killed while trying to find food in ukraine. >> he helped anybody that passed his -- crossed his path that he could to a fault. he was somebody that the world

needs more of. >> reporter: family members say jimmy hill died in northern ukraine. he had traveled there in december to find treatment for his ukrainian partner who has multiple sclerosis. this past sunday, the minnesota native posted on facebook about the conditions at the hospital saying, quote, we are trapped. they bomb here every night. and on tuesday in his final post he said, quote, intense bombing, still alive, limited food. the next day hill's family says he was killed in a russian attack as he was out looking for food. >> my brother was the one that was going out to the store to bring back what food he could find. >> reporter: according to his family, hill and his partner irina were trapped inside the hospital for days, sometimes without power or running water. with the situation growing more desperate and the aerial attacks escalating, they say jimmy would still venture out risking his life trying to help those in need. >> at one point he said he was in the store, he bought some cookies so that he could bring cookies back to the nurses that

were helping and couldn't get out to the store. and he had a stash of chocolate that he was keeping so that he could hand out chocolates when somebody was being depressed. my brother was the helper that people find in a crisis. >> irina's mother was also trapped at that hospital. hill's family says they've been unable to contact them. mona. >> faith, thank you. new details about u.s. basketball star brittney griner's detention in russia. a russian court has extended her imprisonment for allegedly transporting drugs until may. the state department has not been allowed to see her, but a source says the wnba star is okay and has met with her legal team. meanwhile, dozens of russians have arrived on the mexican border heaping to enter the united states. some have been sleeping outside for days after flying to mexico to escape vladimir putin's russia. a fast-moving wildfire has engulfed a small town in central texas. several downtown buildings in

ranger, texas, were damaged or destroyed including a 100-year-old church. heavy winds fueled the fire which may have started in the barbecue pit. investigators in west texas say a 13-year-old boy was behind the wheel of a truck when it blew a tire, crossed the center line and slammed head-on into a van. both vehicles exploded into flames killing nine people. the van was carrying members of a college golf team. a massive pileup on interstate 57 in southern missouri has left at least six people dead. the chain reaction crash involved dozens of cars and big rigs triggered by one driver hitting the brakes under foggy conditions. health officials are warning of a possible surge in covid cases this spring. that's mostly due to a new subvariant of omicron spreading overseas. dr. anthony fauci says americans should be flexible if mask wearing rules return. >> what happens to us is we generally follow what goes on in the uk by about two to three weeks, so we better pay close attention to what's going on there.

>> meanwhile, moderna has now followed pfizer in asking the fda to authorize a fourth shot of its covid vaccine. all right. time now for a look at your friday weather. good morning. we have to be careful of severe thunderstorms with large hail and wind into friday morning from oklahoma down to the gulf coast. could be some flooding rains out there too. speaking of flooding rains, a large storm makes its way across our nation's midsection on friday. a few inches of snow on the north side. thunderstorms in the ohio valley down to the gulf coast and on friday some of those could be severe, especially near pensacola where tornadoes are possible. meantime, in the northeast the sun will shine, and it'll feel like spring with highs in the 70s. i'm accuweather meteorologist kevin coskren. coming up, james bond now works for amazon. the big news in the movie industry. also ahead, the fallout from record high gas prices and the relief some drivers may get.

and later we hear from the cheerleader who saved the day as march madness got under way. >> the cheerleader saves the ♪ ♪ whether someone is across the neighborhood, across the street, or across the room, you have the power to make them feel right at home. ♪ ♪ ritz. a taste of welcome.

how about this? mgm is now part of amazon. the tech giant has closed the $8 billion deal to acquire the iconic movie studio. amazon prime video now has even more content for its streaming service, including all 25 of the james bond movies, and of course the legally blond franchise. it looks like next week supreme court confirmation hearing for judge ketanji brown jackson could get ugly. republican senator josh hawley has been tweeting new accusations claiming that jackson has a long record of letting child porn offenders, quote, off the hook.

hawley accuses jackson of being soft on crime. the white house says hawley is taking jackson's record out of context. we turn now to the pain at the pump. we all know the cost of gas has been rising to record levels. so is the anxiety that millions of americans face each day. here is andrea fujii. >> reporter: this morning proof of the heavy toll gas prices are taking on americans. thousands of drivers in chicago waited in line for hours thursday to get a free fill-up. >> i've been out here since 5:00 this morning. >> reporter: a local businessman donated $200,000 in gas to stations across the city, and he says he'll do it again next month. >> he is a blessing. i thank everybody that put their effort to help, you know. >> reporter: it comes as americans brace for even higher prices at the pump. oil prices climbed 8% thursday due to growing supply concerns stemming from the war in ukraine. the international energy agency warns by april, global markets

could see the biggest supply crisis in decades. in california, gas prices now average $5.78 a gallon. to offer relief, some state lawmakers are now proposing a $400 rebate for every taxpayer. high gas prices also affecting how kids get to school, with some districts now relying on a limited number of hybrid and electric buses. >> having those options really allows us to continue on. >> reporter: and days after uber and lyft announced fuel surcharges, amazon flex drivers, who use their own vehicles to make deliveries are now demanding higher pay to offset the pain at the pump. experts say if prices stay this high, the average u.s. household could spend an extra $1300 this year on gas. mona, ike? coming up, a major development after a woman loses her life getting stuck on a rising drawbridge. also ahead, a transgendered

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we turn to a major milestone for transgender athletes. one young swimmer has just made history. this morning, victory. >> thomas wins the ncaa championship. >> reporter: and controversy. [ crowd chanting ] >> reporter: lia thomas, a swimmer on the university of pennsylvania women's swim team has become the first openly transgender athlete to win a division 1 ncaa championship. >> i try to focus on my swimming, what i need to do to get ready for my races and just try to block out everything else. >> reporter: outside of the arena dueling protests. >> this isn't about hate. this is when identities do not play sports, bodies play sports and lia thomas will always have a male body. >> this dog whistle for transphobia. if we are going to allow lia to compete, we have to give her a chance to win. >> reporter: this one holding up a sign reading, save women's sports.

thomas competed on the men's team for three seasons before undergoing years of hormone therapy, but critics argue thomas still has an unfair advantage. nancy hogshead-makar is a woman's rights attorney and former olympic swimmer. >> lia thomas has been through puberty, so that's ten years of having testosterone making broader shoulders and bigger lungs and strength. >> reporter: hogshead-makar wrote a letter to upenn last month signed by 16 athletes on the swim team saying, quote, lia holds an unfair advantage over competition in the women's category as evidenced by her rankings that bounced from 462 as a male to number 1 as a female but another trans swimmer isaac hennig of yale who recently competed against thomas argues otherwise. >> trans athletes have always existed. we will continue to exist, and we deserve to play the game just as much as everyone else. >> reporter: earlier this year, the ncaa changed the rules on the participation of trans athletes allowing each individual sport to make its own regulations. some true march madness last

night. a stunning upset. number two kentucky was taken down by st. peter's university. the number 15th seeded peacocks handed john calipari his first loss in the first round as the wildcats coach and set off a wild celebration on st. peter's campus in new jersey. >> i'm just glad we won. this is the best upset in college basketball history. >> what does this mean to the school? >> this means a lot. this is just the best thing that's happened to t sllion bras were filled out on espn's website, and after st. peter's upset, only 743 of them remain perfect. >> well, coming up, the cheerleader who saved the day. also ahead, a giant leap forward for the next mission to the moon. i'm so glad we did this. i'm so glad we did this. i'm so glad we did this. i'm so glad we did this. i'm so...

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and we begin with nasa's slow roll overnight. >> slow because it involves one of the largest rockets ever. the artemus rocket is over 320 feet tall. it was moved on a crawler toward a launchpad in florida overnight. >> the rocket is meant to power an unmanned mission beyond the moon and back. after testing, nasa hopes to complete the flight by july, ultimately the goal is to land the first woman and person of color on the moon this decade. and pete davidson is no longer heading to space. the "snl" star was set to join blue origin's flight on march 23rd, but it was just postponed until the 29th, and davidson can't make it. next dolly parton may want to keep it country, but the rock & roll hall of fame disagrees. >> so earlier this week we told you that she asked her nomination be revoked, but the hall has respectfully declined and dolly remains on the list of nominees because it is too late to remove her name from ballots and the voting has already started. next a casting call for the

next season of "the crown." >> that's right. the netflix series is looking for two male actors and they're look are for some prince william and harry look-alikes to play the royal brothers as teens. and guess what, they're accepting video applications. and now the cheerleaders who saved march madness. >> okay, so it happened at the indiana/st. mary's game and the ball got stuck on the backboard 13 feet above the ground after a referee tried to knock the ball down with a mop handle. some cheerleaders from indiana jumped into action. >> this is how you do it. give her the mop. no, she's got it. oh, what a play. the cheerleader saves the day. >> oh, she got it. cassidy and nathan are the dynamic duo who got the job done. >> i jokingly was like, put me up. i can go get it and it actually happened. >> i'm glad she wasn't nervous because i was. i was like, oh, i really need to catch this one right here and

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area. >> russian forces firing missiles on lviv. president biden preparing to confront china over the war in ukraine. >> grief counselors at a local middle school after a deadly crash involving a student. neighbors are talking about the intersection where it happened. >> teachers making moves towards a strike today. good morning. it is friday, march 18. >> and julian and with us this morning. julian: friday is shaping up to be great. tomorrow, we are tracking wet weather. right now, basically in the 40's. 49 in the city. 47, san jose. not terribly chilly this morning. a live look right now, fog free

generally