right now on "america this morning," new punishment for russia. are vladimir putin's daughters next to face sanctions for the war in ukraine? the announcement expected today. plus the new arms race. how is the u.s. is stepping up development of hypersonic weapons. the shocking new images. we hear from a ukrainian man hiding underground for weeks. what he says russian soldiers did to every man under age 50. new video as more severe storms slam the south. a twister approaching this highway. the storms turning deadly. and today big cities like atlanta in the bull's-eye. plus a father and daughter who survived being struck by lightning describe what it felt like. america's fentanyl crisis. overdose deaths now surpassing deaths from car crashes and gun

violence. what's being done about it. a missiystery surrounding charles darwin's notebooks. where they just showed up. your upcoming vacation getting more expensive. just how high airfares are rising and a crucial tip for your summer travel plans. and later, something that could finally speed up major >> announcer: from abc news in new york, this is "america this morning." good wednesday morning, everyone. we begin with several new developments in the war in ukraine. the u.s. is announcing new sanctions on russia today. >> the u.s. military is also sending new weapons to ukraine, $100 million worth. it comes as a top u.s. general warns this conflict with likely last for years. >> 11 million ukrainians have now been displaced from their homes or have fled the country altogether. those left behind are describing unthinkable atrocities. and we warn you, the latest images are disturbing. >> abc's em nguyen is here now

with the detalils, including th announcements expected today. >> reporter: good morning, andrew. as the u.s. prepares new sanctions against russia today, vladimir putin's children could be next to face punishment. this morning, little is known about the women, both in their 30s, and putin has never publicly acknowledged their identity. the possible sanctions could include travel bans and freezing any assets they have outside russia. the white house only saying new sanctions being announced today will include family members of russian officials along with a ban on all new investments in russia. >> it's a part of the continuation of our efforts to put consequences in place, hold russian officials accountable. >> reporter: it comes as people in ukraine slowly emerge from their hiding places now that the russians have withdrawn from towns around the capital, kyiv. in this video circulating

online, every building in borodianka appears heavily damages. the governor says the town is almost destroyed. in nearby bucha, this man says he was forced to live in the basement of his apartment building as russian soldiers moved into the apartments upstairs. he tells abc's james longman the russians made all the men go outside and check their pars everyone under age 50. he says his friends were murdered in front of him. >> you're 53, so you made it by three years. >> reporter: in mykolaiv in the south, ukrainian officials released video showing tside a . en went into gruesome detail about the alleged war crimes when he spoke to the u.n. security council yesterday. hours later, zelenskyy with a searing indictment of the u.n. itself, demanding the u.n. remove russia from the security council, saying otherwise, there

will be only one institution left in the world to guarantee the security of states, namely, weapons. back here in washington, we've learned the u.s. military will now send another $100 million in javelin anti-tank missiles to the ukrainians. andrew. >> em, thank you. the u.s. and the uk and australia are now working together on the development of hypersonic missiles. the move comes amid growing concern about advancing military technology in china and russia. hypersonic weapons can fly many times faster than the speed of sound, and they cannot be intercepted by current missile defense systems. joint chiefs chairman mark milley issued a wake-up call to congress yesterday. >> we are now facing two global powers, china and russia, each with significant military capabilities. we are entering a world that is becoming more unstable, and the potential for significant

international conflict between great powers is increasing, not decreasing. >> u.s. officials confirm the pentagon conducted a successful hypersonic missile test last month. at the same hearing on capitol hill, defense secretary lloyd austin got into a heated exchange with florida congressman matt gaetz. they clashed when gaetz said the military was too focused on so-called woke ideas such as diversity and equity, and he accused the pentagon of strategic failures in both afghanistan and ukraine. >> you guys said that -- that russia would overrun ukraine in 36 days. you said that the taliban would be kept at bay for months. you totally blew those calls, and maybe we would be better at them if the national defense university actually worked a little more on strategy and a little less on wokeism. >> has it occurred to you that russia has not overrun ukraine because of what we've done and our allies have done? >> but that was baked into your flawed assessment. >> reporter: gaetz also accused the military of embracing socialism, a claim austin

rejected. we turn now to the new warning about america's fentanyl crisis. overdose deaths are surpassing those from car crashes and gun violence. this epidemic is affecting everyone, young and old, rich and poor. a sobering new warning from the head of the u.s. drug enforcement agency. she says the threat from illegal fentanyl is now more deadly than ever. >> there's just a prevalence that we're seeing throughout the country that we have never seen before. >> reporter: the agency seizing an unprecedented amount of fentanyl in recent months. more than 20 million fake pills, enough of the drug to give every american a deadly dose. the fake pills are made to look like xanax, oxycontin, or percocet, but instead they're laced with fentanyl, which is 80 to 100 times stronger than morphine. >> there are more overdose deaths than car accidents and gun violence. so we have to be really expansive in understanding that it's not just teens. it's, you know, americans of all ages. cuts across every single demographic. >> reporter: in response, the cdc is raising awareness about

tools that can help addicts, including treatment, fentanyl test strips, and narcan which can reverse the effects of an overdose. >> we don't know what is mixed in drugs. you want them to be safe. if their friends are using, come talk to you. if they are having a problem controlling drugs and might becoming addicted, there's treatment for it. >> reporter: some concerns mothers in san francisco say they've had enough of what they call the open drug market in the bay area. the group, called moms against drug deaths, spent $25,000 on this billboard, welcoming tourists to the city, saying san francisco is famous the world over for our brains, beauty, and now dirt cheap fentanyl. san francisco's mayor says the city is working hard to crack down on drug use. former president trump's daughter, ivanka, spent nearly eight hours before the january 6th committee on tuesday. on the day of the capitol riot, she was with her father at a rally and at the white house. sources say she urged him to stop the violence.

abc's jonathan karl is following the investigation. >> reporter: everything she said in today's closed deposition was videotaped and will likely become part of the public record. as for what she said, the committee chairman said that unlike some other white house witnesses, she did not take the fifth. she did not invoke executive privilege. she answered their questions. >> the house is set to vote today on whether former trump advisers peter navarro and dan scavino should be held in contempt of congress for refusing to comply with the committee's subpoenas. new images of the severe storms that slammed the south, killing at least two people. a funnel cloud was spinning near savannah, georgia. and nearby a possible tornado is blamed for one woman's death. her mobile home was destroyed. the storm scattering debris for miles. lawmakers had to flee to the basement of the statehouse during a tornado warning. earlier a man was killed by the same system in texas.

drivers on interstate 35 got too close for comfort to this lightning strike during another tornado warning. meanwhile, we're hearing from a father and daughter who survived being struck by lightning at a baseball game in tampa, florida. they say there was a bright flash and then a loud boom. >> i saw my dad flying through the air, smacking his face on the ground. >> i wake up with my face in the mud, my feet laying in the parking lot, and i cannot move anything. i can't even pick up my face out of the mud. so i thought i had a stroke. >> he broke his cheekbone, and she suffered burns on her neck. let's stay on weather and check your wednesday forecast. >> it was a stormy day with tornadoes on tuesday and tuesday night across the south. there were dozens of tornado reports, and there were fatalities. wednesday and wednesday night, another round of severe storms, flooding rain, large hail, and again tornadoes will be possible for us, folks, including right

there in atlanta, georgia. meantime, very windy for the next two days on the plains. wednesday and thursday, gusts over 50 miles an hour. travel disruptions widespread. i'm accuweather meteorologist kevin coskren. still to come, remembering a teen idol turned movie star. also ahead, another state looks to pass a so-called don't say gay bill. critics say this one goes even further. what supporters are saying. and a mystery surrounding charles darwin's notebooks. where they just showed up.

♪ just like birds of a feather, a rainbow together will find us ♪ ♪ volare ♪

>> that's bobby rydell. the 1960s teen idol who starred with ann-margret in "bye-bye birdie." he died yesterday at age 79. we turn now to ohio and a new push to change the rules in school classrooms. it comes on the heels of florida passing the law dubbed by critics as the don't say gay law. here's abc's andrea fujii. >> reporter: this morning, lawmakers in ohio introducing their version of a parental rights in education bill or what critics call the don't say gay law. it would ban teaching or providing instructional materials on sexual orientation or gender identity to students in kindergarten through third grade. >> what legislation like this does, it singles people out and says if you're lgbtq as a student or have gay parents that you are treated as an other in our system. you know, this is just

completely the wrong direction. [ applause ] >> reporter: the language similar to florida's law signed by the governor last month. republicans who introduced the bill in ohio saying parents deserve and should be provided a say in what is taught to their children in schools. the intent of this bill is to provide them with the tools to be able to see what their child is being taught. the ohio bill though goes further than florida's forbidding teachers in grades 4 through 12 from teaching or using instructional materials on sexual orientation or gender identity in any manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate. the bill though not defining age or developmental appropriateness. critics say they're concerned about the toll these laws could take on the mental health of lgbtq children. >> when we think about lgbtq youth in particular, we are concerned that 40% of lgbtq young people are considering suicide each year. >> reporter: ohio isn't the only

state considering a law similar to florida's. the lieutenant governor of texas now saying he will prioritize passing such a bill. the ohio bill would outlaw the teaching of divisive or inherently racist concepts. it mirrors a new south dakota law banning instruction that promotes critical race theory. mona, andrea. >> sandhythank you. a decades old history involving charles darwin's notebooks. cambridge university says they showed up in the school's library last month. they had been missing since 2001 when they were being photographed. no word on who took them or who returned them. the books by the way are worth millions. >> glad they're back in the right hands. coming up, what's next for tiger woods now that he claims he can win the masters. but first the change that could be looming in the airline could be looming in the airline industry as airfares take off. my moderate to severe plaque psoriasis... ...the itching... the burning. the stinging.

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back now with a fiery crash in connecticut. this suv slamming into a gas station knocking over the pump. police say the driver was passing cars on the wrong side of the road. big changes could be coming to the airline industry. and it could mean higher prices the next time you book a flight. this morning, a potential shake-up in the airline industry. jetblue now offering to buy spirit airlines for $3.6 billion throwing a wrench into spirit's agreement to merge with fellow low cost airline frontier. >> spirit airlines is currently in talks with frontier to create an ultra low cost carrier megacarrier so jetblue's bid is seen by many as either an attempt to slow down that merger or to potentially actually acquire it. >> reporter: any deal would face antitrust scrutiny. just last year the justice department sued to prevent jetblue from partnering with american airlines arguing it would drive up prices and reduce competition. experts say the same thing could

happen if jetblue acquires spirit. >> consumers may be looking at higher air prices as we've seen the airline industry consolidate when a merger happens routes get cut, planes get put on routes that are more profitable. >> and that could spell more trouble for travelers already enduring frequent delays and cancellations. just last weekend more than 10,000 flights were canceled due to bad weather and technical and staffing issues. the problems compounding by spring break and postpandemic travel demand taking off. that demand and skyrocketing jet fuel prices mean ticket prices are also taking off. domestic airfares are up more than 40% since the beginning of the year and that's only the beginning. >> we do expect airfare to continue to rise all the way into june. it will increase by about 10% so $30 more per ticket. >> one other note if you're planning a summer trip, experts say book your flight by early may.

tiger woods says he'll play nine more holes at augusta national as he gears up for a comeback at the masters. he says it will be a game time decision tomorrow and says the biggest challenge will be walking the hilly course with his surgically rebuilt leg. >> as of right now i feel like i am going to play as of right now. >> do you think you can win the masters this week? >> i do. >> and what have you seen in your preparation that leads to you believe that? >> i can hit it just fine. and i don't have any qualms about what i can do physically from a golf standpoint. >> the 46-year-old admits it will be a tough challenge. coming up, a way to speed up baseball games. also ahead, just how rich elon musk is. i'm on a mission to talk to people about getting screened for colon cancer, and hear their reasons why. i screen for my son. i'm his biggest fan. if you're 45 or older at average risk, you have screening options, like cologuard. cologuard is noninvasive and finds 92% of colon cancers. it's not for those at high risk.

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and we begin with a high tech change in major league baseball. >> it's called pitch com. it's an electronic communications system between the catcher and pitcher that's meant to reduce sign stealing and speed up the game. the yankees used it during spring training. it allows the catcher to signal the next pitch by using a pad with buttons on his wrist. the signal is then transmitted to his teammates through receivers in their hats. next, elon musk has joined the board of directors at twitter, and changes are already being made. >> one day after asking people if they like the idea of an edit button, it's becoming a reality. twitter plans to begin testing the feature soon. it would allow you to edit tweets after posting them without losing the replies you got. meanwhile, elon musk is now the richest man on the planet. >> he dethroned amazon founder jeff bezos on forbes list of the world's richest people. musk is worth $290 billion, about $100 billion more than bezos and more than twice as much as warren buffett.

rihanna made the billionaire list for the first time with $1.7 billion. lord of the rings director peter jackson is just behind her. and another new billionaire is leo rad vin ski, a stakeholder in the porn site onlyfans. former president obama returned to the white house for a health care event. >> but obama brought some jokes. >> thank you. vice president biden, vice president -- that was a joke. that was all set up. i heard some changes have been made by the current president since i was last here. apparently secret service agents have to wear aviator glasses now. there's a cat running around, which i guarantee you bo and sonny would have been very unhappy about. >> jimmy kimmel had fun with this moment. everyone crowded around obama

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shooting in sacramento. what we have learned about two of the suspects. kumasi: a slight uptick in covid cases. bay area county announcing the highest rates of anywhere in california. reggie: booster shots and looking forward to -- i head to another wave in the fall. reggie: look who is back! drew: it was so much fun last week. reggie: we had a blast. drew: my family cannot stop talking about you three? >> really? drew: i see why you guys have so much fun in the morning. today, big warm up coming our way. the next three days out there -- we are waking up to the 40's and 50's right now. 53 in pacifica. 47 in fremo