? ? ? captioning sponsored by cbs >> o'donnell: a race against the flames. >> go, go, go, go! >> o'donnell: wildfires turn deadly in the great smoky mountains. thousands run, hotels and homes burn. >> this is a fire for the history books. >> o'donnell: also tonight-- ( cheers ) a soccer team's cinderella story ends in tragedy. dozens were killed when their jet went down, but there were survivors. donald trump makes more cabinet picks, including the man who intends to blow up obamacare. and, why would they put a mop bucket in a museum? >> it seems like the proverbial drop in the bucket to do it once, but when you do it 17 million times, it really has

this is the "cbs evening news" with scott pelley. >> o'donnell: good evening. scott is off tonight. i'm norah o'donnell, and this is our western edition. the worst fire to hit tennessee in 100 years has killed at least three people and sent more than a dozen to the hospital. 14,000 fled, as a wall of flames closed in on gatlinburg. one resort was destroyed. the dollywood theme park, named for dolly parton, was spared. demarco morgan is in tennessee. hit the gas! >> reporter: you're watching cell phone video taken by two brothers as they escape from a vacation resort area in the mountains of gatlinburg, tennessee. they say they had no warning as the wall of flames surrounded them last night, and their only choice was to ride through it or die. >> please, lord, let us get off this mountain. >> reporter: by early evening, wind speeds suddenly doubled, turning into hurricane-force winds that topped 87 miles per hour.

burning embers blew and toppled trees ripped down power lines. this community is at the edge of great smoky mountain's national park, the most visited national park in the country. >> the smoke is really bad in here. >> reporter: logan baker was at the vista hilton hotel when flames came right up to the building. >> they're keeping us in here for now. >> reporter: bruce wilson is the sullivan county fire chief. what is it like to actually be there? >> it's horrible. i mean, it's devastating to-- you know, all the people lost their homes and business and everything else. i mean, things they worked hard for. >> reporter: this is what's left, more than 100 businesses and homes were destroyed. just take a look at this. it was once an apartment building. neighborhoods were left in smoking cinders. at this red cross shelter, more than 1,000 showed up, anxiously waiting to see what's left. greg lanham and his family escaped with their pets and the

>> you know, possessions are possessions. as long as i've got my family, that's all that matters, really. >> reporter: norah, unfortunately, dozens of families will be returning to places like this behind me. this home that was completely destroyed. but firefighters may get some help tonight as heavy rains and thunderstorms are expected. >> o'donnell: let's hope for that rain. demarco morgan, thank you so much. now to the tragedy in south america. a soccer team that had won the hearts of brazil was on its way last night to play for its first championship, but the chartered plane crashed in the mountains of colombia. 71 were killed. here's anna werner. >> reporter: video taken after the crash showed little remained of the jet. workers carried body bags over hilly terrain. the pilots requested a priority landing at 15,000 feet while flying over a mountainous area of colombia in poor weather. the plane was carrying most

team, as well as 20 journalists flying from bolivia to medellin. six people survived. this morning, the soccer club's vice president said, "for a tragedy like this to happen, it is very difficult. the sadness is great, but we will have faith in god." the chapecoense real soccer team represented a cinderella story in brazil, a team that rose from the minor leagues to make it into this year's sudamericana championship finals. video posted to facebook live on monday showed team members checking in for the flight, and some seated on board the plane minutes before taking off. "it's going to start," player felipe machado said. "the trip to colombia is going to begin." another player seen in video yesterday, helio zampier neto, was one of only three players to survive the crash.

social media today appears to show a few team members who did not go on the trip. and on the team's twitter page was this, with the heading, "let this be the last image of our warriors." three players, a journalist and two crew members survived. in a tribute to the players who died, the colombian team that was set to face them in play on wednesday has asked that the brazilian team, norah, be declared tournament champion. >> o'donnell: wow. anna werner, thank you very much. late today, president-elect trump settled on four more cabinet picks. major garrett is covering the trump transition. >> reporter: cbs news has confirmed that hollywood financier stephen mnuchin will be president-elect donald trump's nominee for treasury secretary. he has also donated to democrats in the past. this will be mnuchin's first government position. the president-elect also intends

the commerce department. >> this is a system that's not working for the american people. >> reporter: mr. trump's pick to lead the department of health and human services is a leading congressional critic of obamacare. georgia congressman tom price was an early trump supporter and drafted the most comprehensive alternative to the affordable care act. >> we want a system that's affordable for everybody, that's accessible for everybody, that's of the highest quality, and provides choices for patients. >> reporter: price's plan woul abolish the expansion of medicaid under obamacare that has provided insurance coverage to 15 million americans. price would also roll back guaranteed coverage for patients with preexisting medical conditions. he would use tax credits and promote health savings accounts to help americans purchase insurance. the president-elect also named elaine chao as transportation secretary. chao served eight years as labor secretary under president george

>> the love of my life, your senator, mitch mcconnell. >> reporter: --to senate majority leader mitch mcconnell. for secretary of state, mr. trump continues to deliberate among mitt romney, retired general david petraeus, and rudy giuliani. senate foreign relations committee chairman bob corker was also at trump tower today. the president-elect is dining tonight with mitt romney, their second meeting in as many weeks. the president-elect also took to twitter this morning to denounce burning of the american flag and said it warranted prison citizenship. norah, the supreme court ruled in 1989 that flag burning was symbolic protected free speech. >> o'donnell: all right, major garrett, thank you so much. tonight, there is growing evidence that the somali-born student behind yesterday's car and knife attack at the ohio state university was inspired by terrorists. 11 people were injured before a police officer killed the attacker. dean reynolds is in columbus. >> reporter: hours before his

went on facebook to praise radical muslim cleric anwar al- awlaki, whose sermons still inspire attacks even though he was killed by a u.s. drone five years ago. saying he had reached a "boiling point," artan wrote, one of his victims yesterday, senior, anderson payne, was trying to help car crash victims when he was slashed. >> when i initially saw him, i thought he was just angry because he had just wrecked his car, but then when i saw him starting to swing and i saw the knife, i knew there were-- it was not just an accident. >> reporter: hisham ouhammou says he was a regular customer at his market as recently as sunday. >> he seems a very, very nice guy. i never suspected anything from him at all.

>> reporter: it certainly seemed that way at artan's graduation last year from a local community college, but his neighbor, louann carnahan, recalled seeing him with people she hadn't seen before and noticed some unusual behavior. >> the last interaction my family had with him was on thanksgiving day, and he had a gopro on his head and he had made a comment about the people that he was going into that house with, that if something was to happen to him, you know, the gopro was in hindsight, you sort of look back at that and it's like, "what?" >> reporter: now, cbs news has learned that artan purchased the knives he used in the attack just hours before he carried it out. and while no direct ties to terrorist organizations have been discovered so far, federal authorities are increasingly confident, norah, that he used the internet to help him inspire his actions.

in less than two months, donald trump will inherit america's war against isis. the u.s. is training and assisting iraqi and kurdish forces in the liberation of mosul. now, that is the last major city in iraq that is controlled by isis. this operation is now six weeks old. holly williams surveyed the battlefield with a top general. >> reporter: lieutenant general stephen townsend served here in northern iraq during the u.n. occupation 10 years ago and now he's back. the commander of the u.s. coalition against isis, visiting troops manning a battery of howitzers in the desert. >> here's inside the city right here. here's the east side of the city. >> reporter: a new generation of americans in iraq, this time around, aiding iraqi troops who will do most of the fighting on the front line. how tough a battle is this? >> um, this fight would challenge any army.

ed >> reporter: but then he broke off our interview. they're about to fire over there? >> i think we might be about to fire. >> reporter: should we just have a look over there? because his men had isis in their sights. there are now around 6,000 u.s. troops in iraq-- >> man, that's motivational, isn't it? >> reporter: --supporting over 40,000 iraqi fighters in the battle for mosul, an offensive crucified by president-elect trump for its lack of secrecy. >> whatever happened to the element of surprise? okay? we announce we're going after mosul. i've been reading going after mosul now for, how long is it, hillary, three months? >> reporter: is a battle that size something you can keep a secret? >> no, i don't think so. it's hard to move 40,000 troops and all their tanks and trucks and artillery into position and it not be noticed by somebody. it's really hard to do that. >> reporter: donald trump's stated solution to isis is to "bomb the hell out of them." but at this command center where

senior officers. >> do they look like people to you? about center screen? >> reporter: it can take minutes or several hours, and sometimes they're refused permission. captain matt lyles explained why. >> we need to get it right for us. we need to get it right for them. >> reporter: you want to avoid killing civilians at all costs. you don't want to destroy a house if you don't need to. >> correct, correct. >> reporter: american airpower is playing a decisivle beating back the extremists, but the simple truth is there is no easy solution to isis. and, norah, the battle for mosul will be long and deadly. >> o'donnell: holly williams, thank you. there was emotional testimony today in charleston, south carolina, when former police officer michael slager took the stand in his own defense. he is charged with murdering walter scott, a man he had just pulled over for a broken tail light.

>> reporter: michael slager's voice cracked at times as he described the events that led up to the death of walter scott 19 months ago. >> reporter: a day that began with this routine traffic stop. >> your license and insurance card. >> reporter: and ended after a chase and scuffle and a burst of gunfire. it was capture video by someone passing by. >> i was tired. >> reporter: slager's argument is self-defense. >> i was on the fight, on the ground. mr. scott was coming after me with the taser twice. you know, my mind-- i don't-- my mind was like spaghetti. >> reporter: prosecutor bruce durant: >> from watching the video, sir, do you concede at the time you shot mr. scott he did not have your taser? >> yes, after learning

>> reporter: one of the lingering questions is what slager may have picked up and dropped near scott's body. >> i don't remember dropping the taser. i don't remember anything. >> well, you have a pretty clear recollection of what went on here. it seems like you're just not remembering the things that are bad for you. >> we need justice for walter. >> reporter: scott's brother, anthony, says the video leaves no doubt. >> to me, it's a man being shot in the back by a coward police officer. >> reporter: slager used his now, the scott family was in the courtroom as slager testified. the family declined to comment. norah, the jury starts deliberations tomorrow morning. >> o'donnell: all right, jericka, thank you. coming up next on the "cbs evening news," cuban dissidents hope for a new cuba after fidel

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>> o'donnell: four days after fidel castro's death, some who opposed the dictator are already dreaming of a better future for cuba. manuel bojorquez in havana spoke with one. >> reporter: while thousands of cubans mourned, antonio rodiles was being hassled outside his havana home by a man he says was a government official, a warning not to use fidel castro's death to promote change. when you found out fidel castro was dead, how did you react? >> reporter: rodiles hosts an opposition talk show that is distributed on dvds through an underground network. he says he was detained 50 times last year, and in 2014, was beaten and jailed after opposing the u.s. deal to reopen relations with cuba. he says it failed to address human rights abuses here and is hopeful president-elect trump

>> reporter: you think trump would do that? >> i think so. >> reporter: not all cubans feel that way. the society is slowly opening up, and interaction with the u.s. is generally welcome here. economic opportunity could be the strongest catalyst for cubans to turn the page from the castro era. >> reporter: but do you see a free election happening here, say, in your lifetime? you do? that will not be easy, judging by this crowd. norah, tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands of cubans have gathered here at revolution square, joining heads of state for a massive tribute to their late leader. >> o'donnell: manuel bojorquez, thank you. when we come back, pipeline protesters ignore the weather

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>> o'donnell: protesters near the dakota access pipeline in north dakota are ignoring orders to leave their camp, despite bitter cold and snow. michelle miller is there and filed this a short time ago. >> reporter: norah, the conditions here are simply brutal. that's why the governor of north dakota says he has issued a mandatory evacuation for the more than 5,000 people who are camped out here at the ochochee sakoin camp. what we can tell you is some of the people we spoke with say they're not budging. the governor's order comes just days after the u.s. army corps of engineers, which is managing the site, set a december 5 deadline for the protesters to leave the area for a safer location. norah, with that evacuation deadline just six days away, the army corps of engineers and the sheriff's department here say they will not forcibly remove

camp, but as they like to be called, these water protectors, if they do stay, the sheriff's department says they stay at their own risk. >> o'donnell: incredible. michelle miller there. thank you. today, the world's oldest person celebrated her 117th birthday. emma morano, who lives in italy, is believed to be the last person alive who was born in the 1800s. get this-- she eats few fruits or vegetables, but she says she biscuits a day for 90 years, along with a glass of brandy. all right, next, out of this bucket, came an ocean of good.

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freeze warning! >> o'donnell: today is giving tuesday, so it's fitting that today an icon of altruism was given a new home. here's jan crawford. >> reporter: it was a social media sensation. 17 million people, our friends and coworkers, along with presidents, billionaires, and celebrities, all braving tce bucket challenge that raised more than $200 million to fight a.l.s. and it really got started with this-- a blue plastic bucket jeannette senerchia used to mop her floor. she did the challenge for her husband anthony, who suffers from the degenerative disease. >> that was the first documented connection between a.l.s. and the ice bucket. >> reporter: bonnie lilienfeld is curator of a new exhibit at

in america." >> you look at this and you think why would the smithsonian collect a mop bucket? you know, it really helps us tell the story that, you know, objects can really help us understand our history. >> reporter: it's displayed next to an alms box from the 1800s that people would have used to raise money for charity. >> and then we have the march of dimes can, that someone would have marched around their community going door to door asking people to contribute to the march of dimes. that money they collected would go do a much bigger pool of money collected from their community into a bigger pool and to a bigger pool, and in some ways, it's not that different from the ice bucket challeng >> reporter: it shows that one contribution when put together with so many can make a huge difference. >> yes. it seems like the proverbial drop in the bucket to do it once but when you do it 17 million times, it really has an impact. >> reporter: drops in a bucket or from a bucket, become a deluge of good. jan crawford, cbs news, washington. >> o'donnell: and that is the "cbs evening news." for scott pelley, i'm norah o'donnell. i'll see you tomorrow on "cbs

clark county overnight. what you can do now to keep your pipes, plants and pools safe. ((denise valdez)) those colder temps are good for getting into the holiday spirit. we'll show you some of the top spots around town turning the las vegas desert into a winter wonderland. ((dave courvoisier)) a man is sentenced in the shooting death of a teenage girl. we'll hear from the victim's family. ((denise valdez)) plus, what caused a plane team to crash? we're looking into it that... as well as some remarkable stories of survival./// and i'm denise valdez. we begin tonight with team coverage. consumer advocate michelle mortensen joins us with a look at what you can do now to protect your home from tonight's

exactly what to expect with meteorologist katie boer... who looks to be having a lot more fun than us here in the studio. katie? ((katie boer)) good evening...i'm tracking some of the coldest temperatures of the season with our first widespread freeze arriving overnight and early tomorrow morning across portions of clark county. ................. that freeze warning remains wednesday with widespread minimum temperatures 28-32 degrees expected for the first time this season across portions of central and northeast clark counties in nevada and the high desert zones of san bernardino county. temperatures are expected to remain slightly above freezing