this morning on "early today," hard hit. the death toll rises from the punishing line of tornadoes that struck the nation's midsection. glacial meltdown. cameras are rolling as a massive ice wall collapses in argentina. and last man standing. a river of lava evicts the one remaining resident of a community in hawaii. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. welcome to our viewers across the nation, including the pacific time zone. i'm lynn berry, and today we begin with the strike zone. a daunting task of clean-up and recovery awaits many midwest and

mid south residents this morning. at least 39 people lost their lives in the recent rash of devastating tornados, including an indiana toddler found alive in a field saturday. nbc's jay gray reports. >> reporter: this morning across tornado alley, battered communities are preparing for anything but a normal monday. the message seems a bit obvious. like so much here, henryville high school has been torn apart. there are, though, other signs of survival. sunlight brings the steady rhythm of crews working to pull away and pile up what they can. others sifting through the rubble by hand to find anything they might be able to save, evidence of their lives before the storm. >> she's probably 70, and she lost everything except what we can pull out. >> reporter: more than three dozen families already know they won't find any help or hope in this debris. they lost loved on iesthis storm. one of those gone, 15-month-old

angel babcock. after the storm, first responders found the toddler fighting for her life in this field. her mom, dad, and two brothers already dead. yesterday angel passed away after being pulled from life support. her grandfather shared his emotions just before he made the agonizing decisions. >> my pastor's going to go in with me, and we're going to pray. we're going to pray there, and i'm going to tell that little girl that -- i'm going to tell her that it's time for her to meet her mommy and daddy. >> reporter: while those left behind now fight through their overwhelming grief as they face the difficult struggle to survive. jay gray, nbc news, henryville, indiana. well, elsewhere, tomorrow is super tuesday with 424 delegates at stake in 11 states. a new national nbc news/"wall street journal" poll shows the combative primary season has taken a toll on the republican party. 40% of all adults say the long

republican nominating process has given them a less favorable impression of the party. 70% of respondents describe the gop using negative comments, including unenthusiastic, painful, poor choices, and depressed. president obama's approval rating is up to 50%, his highest mark since the death of osama bin laden. in a general election matchup, president obama leads his closest competitor mitt romney by six points, 50% to 44%. and in the latest nbc news/maris poll in ohio, the biggest prize on tuesday, rick santorum leads mitt romney by only two points. and just a reminder for you, nbc news will have special super tuesday coverage. that's beginning at 10:00 p.m. eastern, 8:00 p.m. in the west. that's right here on this nbc station. president obama meets with israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu today, this, of course, after saying yesterday that if necessary, the u.s. would not hesitate to attack

iran to keep it from developing a nuclear bomb. the president spoke at apac, the american israel public affairs committee, vowing to defend israel. nbc's brian mooar has the story. >> reporter: speaking to a powerful pro-israel group one day before a critical meeting with israel's prime minister, president obama sent a forceful message on iran. >> iran's leaders should understand that i do not have a policy of containment. i have a policy to prevent iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. >> reporter: president obama and prime minister benjamin netanyahu are at odds on how to keep iran from developing a nuclear weapon. iran refuses to abandon what it insists is a peaceful power program, despite mounting evidence and biding international sanctions. israel says it can't wait and is threatening a military strike. president obama says military action is an option but asks for

israel's trust and patience. >> now is not the time for bluster. now is the time to let our increased pressure sink in. >> reporter: in washington, a showdown with israel over the showdown with iran. brian mooar, nbc news, washington. and now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. in colorado a chilling video shows an armed robber storming into a pizza parlor, ordering the owner to hand over cash at gunpoint. police think the same man is responsible for ten other robberies. construction workers in kansas blew up a pair of bridges above a highway overpass this weekend. it took just seconds for the sections to come crashing down. the biggest concern was protecting the interstate below. crews poured dirt on interstate 435 ahead of time to make sure it wasn't damaged by debris. in hawaii it is paradise lost. flowing lava from the kilauea volcano finally meant the end for a house belonging to the

last resident of a neighborhood of the south side of hawaii's big island, but it wasn't without warning. the homeowner knew the end would come one day after the molten rock first began pouring out nearly 30 years ago. and, finally, it's time to yell mush. bill, that was your cue. come on. the 40th annual iditarod trail sled dog race is off and running in alaska. 66 teams powered by hundreds of man's best friend kicked things off with a symbolic start to the race in anchorage, but it will be a very real track of more than a thousand miles over the next eight days. >> all right. let's wake him up. now for a look at your national and regional weather, we check in with nbc meteorologist bill karins. he has your weather channel forecast. good morning. thanks for joining us. >> we have to rehearse hese things. the big story through the weekend was the tornado outbreak. right now, it appears to be

somewhere around 79 total tornadoes. by the way, the largest march tornado outbreak ever had 74. if this number holds true, it will be the biggest, which is incredible, since it was the beginning of march. so far, the national weather service has confirmed 43 of those. what an incredible period and what a long recovery it will be for those areas hit hard. in the northwest, strong cold front blowing through. you already see the rain increasing here. the temperatures will drop along with the snow levels as this cold front drops to the south. this storm system is going to move all the way to the south down through the southwest over the next two to three days. behind it, some windy conditions are expected tomorrow, especially areas around las vegas. a lot of blowing dust. probably high wind warnings tomorrow. today, you're okay. that storm system is heading due south in the days ahead. that's a look at your national .

cooler air is on the way. well, unlike the last storm that was in the west that cause the all the tornadoes when it headed east, this one will not. >> that's good news. bill, thank you so much. coming up, wall street eyes job numbers, the new united airlines has a bumpy takeoff, and despite his apology, rush limbaugh loses yet another advertiser. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, the mysterious naked photos twist in the latest celebrity phone hackings. kobe gets his revenge. plus, tiger roars back with the best final round of his career, but was it enough to win? you're watching "early today." ar

good morning and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry, and here are some of your top headline this morning. vladimir putin will become president of russia again. putin, the current prime

minister, got more than 60% of the vote to return to the office he previously held. he'll serve another six-year term. an explosion at an armed storage depot in the republic of congo killed 206 people on sunday. the shock waves from the blast shattered windows in a three-mile radius, and more than 1,500 people were injured. amateur video captured an avalanche rolling through a ski resort in france. snow demolished the ski lift pylons, trapping dozens of skiers, but no injuries were reported. in argentina, dramatic video of huge chunks of a massive ice wall on a glacier collapsing sunday. large pieces fell into the water from the glacier, which covers 97 square miles near the southern tip of south america. and in sweden, pippa middleton, sister of kate, the duchess of cambridge, competed in a 56-mile cross-country ski marathon. who's that? pippa, who claimed she hadn't done much cross-country skiing before, finished the course in

just over seven hours. the event raised money for a charity that delivers free healthy breakfast foods to hungry children at schools in england. and now here's an early look at how wall street's going to kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,977 after losing two points on friday. the s&p lost 4 points. the nasdaq was down 12. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo the nikkei fell 78 points, while in hong kong the hang seng dropped 296. on wall street, all important monthly jobs figures due out friday could keep some investors on the sidelines this week. expectations are high for february's jobs report after weekly claims data has steadily improved for nearly two months. traders will also have an eye on the price of oil, which bubbled up over $110 a barrel at one point last week. crude traded around $107 this morning. after a year-long drilling moratorium, the "new york times" reports bp and other oil

companies are stepping up exploration and production in the gulf, this as bp announced friday it expects to pay $7.8 billion to settle a wide range of disaster-related claims. meanwhile chrysler and gm will announce production of pickup trucks powered by natural gas this week. however, gm is pausing production of its plug-in hybrid volt for five weeks due to slow sales. over the weekend united airlines angered thousands of customers when technical glitches during its merger with continental caused widespread problems. >> aig is selling $6 billion of asian life insurer aia to help repay its u.s. bailout. proflowers.com is the seventh advertiser to drop conservative radio host rush limbaugh despite his apology for derogatory comments about a law student who testified about birth control policy. and, finally, cigar sales in

cuba are on fire. six hand-made humidors sold for just under a million bucks. well, coming up, the celtics rally in overtime, a record game for the nets, and a new top dog in the world of golf. plus, the masked avenger strikes again. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. after all the chaos last week from the tornados, we're off to a nice start this week, nice and tranquil weather. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." and in sports, yesterday's top nba matchup was no match at all as kobe bryant and the lakers easily extinguished the red-hot miami heat. here's nbc's mario solis with an early look at all of your sports headlines. hi, there. good morning. when dwyane wade broke kobe bryant's nose in last week's all-star game, the lakers knew they had an immediate chance for revenge against the heat, but instead of getting physical with miami, the lakers they simply outplayed them. to los angeles, kobe bryant wasting no time getting back at flash and the heat. 18 points in the first quarter. lakers led by a dozen at the half. miami without chris bosh, and the laker bigs taking advantage. andrew bynum and paul gasol dominating down low. and if the seven-footers were not scoring, the masked mamba was.

kobe finishing with 33. lakers doused the heat, 93-83. rajon rondo has been the subject of trade talks, but if he keeps playing the way he is, there's no way the celtics will get rid of him. listen to these stats. 18 points, 20 dimes, and a career-high 17 rebounds against the knicks. to the fourth quarter, boston down three in the final seconds, and paul pierce delivers, ties the game, forces overtime. then the celtics pull away for good. rondo to ray allen. boston wins, 105-101 in o.t. deron williams put on a show against the bobcats, scoring 57 points. that's right. 57. he was a perfect 21 for 21 at the charity stripe. net fans haven't had so much to cheer about this year, but they had to love this. new jersey wins, 104-101. nascar denny hamlin led for 61 laps and took the checkered flag in phoenix. it is his 18th career sprint car run. tiger woods has done just about everything on the golf course, but he's never done this, shot a 62 for the best final round of his career. tiger rallied from nine strokes

back, but it just wasn't enough. rory mcilroy led club shot after club shot to keep the lead. he took the honda classic by two strokes and is now the number one golfer in the world. and that's your look at sports on "early today." i'm mario solis. this weekend's box office champ had the biggest opening of the year so far. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, florida's key west is known for its unique gatherings and contests. we'll show you the latest coming up. you're watching "early today."

welcome back to "early today." hope you had a wonderful weekend. weather-wise, it was a nice weekend with record highs in portions of southern california. today a strong cold front is coming into the northwest. this is going to be on the move as we go throughout the day today. now it's up near seattle. it will be by portland later today. snow levels will drop dramatically. temperatures will be much cooler as we go throughout your tuesday. the wind will kick up too. if you're watching on king 5 news in seattle, washington, explore the pacific northwest's unique form of communication with native cultures. that's your pacific event of the day. >> bill, thanks so much. and now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. there was only one surprise at the box office this weekend.

the dollar signs taken in by the winner. the 3-d animated family film, "dr. seuss' the lorax," took in a much higher than expected 70 million bucks. easily scoring the year's biggest box office debut. it was also the biggest ever opening for a dr. seuss movie, topping the $55 million made by "how the grinch stole christmas" in 2000. coming in in second on high expectations was the r-rated teen party comedy "project x" with just under $21 million. the year's best picture oscar winner, "the artist" jumped 34% this weekend making almost $4 million in tenth place. >> and, finally, christina hendricks, one of the latest celebrity phone-hacking victims, confirms several personal shots were stolen, but she insists one shot on the web allegedly showing her naked is a fake. interestingly, sources tell tmz the other victim, olivia moon, says exactly the same thing. many shots were stolen, but one

said to show her nude is a fake. and this comes to us from key west, florida, where tooting your own horn is not considered immodest. that's right. that was one of more than 50 contestants who took part in the conch shell blowing contest. he didn't win. it's always known as the conch-conch. the conch shell is a symbol of the florida keys. in the end only one could win. he did it by blowing two horns. take a listen. i don't know. apparently that was good enough to win. i don't get it. i'm lynn berry. this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

a small town in portugal indulges the eyes and pallets of chocoholics. dark, milk, and white chocolate took over the town for the 10th annual international chocolate festival. stunning sculptures crafted by skilled chocolatiers featured characters and themes to go along with the disney theme. it will continue through the month of march, hosting exhibit tastings and even a fashion show. women in mexico city donned some unconventional footwear for bike riding. about 300 women strapped on sets of stylish high heels and took to their bicycles as a way to promote safety between bike riders and motorists. they want to make the statement that it's less dangerous to bike in heels than it is to ride

through the city on a daily basis. and, finally, in new york, competitors get bent out of shape to be the next yoga champion. opponents compete five different poses plus two of their choice and are evaluated on technical execution, difficulty, and balance between transitions. practicing competitively in 24 countries, organizers want it to become an olympic sport, but it must spread to 75 countries before it's even possible. that just makes my head spin. i do yoga. i look at that, and i feel like a complete slacker. >> i can't even touch my toes. >> oh, you can. come on. that's the easy one. >> i'm so unflexible. it's time now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day on nbc. vice president joe biden is in in mexico on the start of a latin america trip where he's expected to face unprecedented pressure from political leaders exhausted by the violence and

costly war on drugs for the united states to consider legalizing certain substances. in alabama the reverend al sharpton will lead a five-day march commemorating the historic 1965 march from salma to montgomery for voters' rights. the march will also promote nationwide efforts to defeat new voter identification laws and reverse anti-immigration laws in the state of alabama. and actress eva mendes turns 37. all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch "nightly news" with brian williams. finally, here's look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. the very latest on this weekend's killer tornadoes. plus, hear from a tornado survivor live in his hospital room. and details on the bitter divorce battle between former supermodel christie brinkley and her ex peter cook. now, keep it on this channel for continuing news, weather, sports, and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early

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