daily vitamin e supplement. thanks for joining us, "nightly news" is next. we'll be back at 6:00. see you then. on the broadcast tonight, the gathering storm, as a big part of the country braces for a major winter blast, with tens of millions in its path. the impact on travel already being felt as americans head home from the holidays. high times. as they line up to buy marijuana legally in the first state to permit it. we're in colorado where on this first day there was no shortage of buyers. it's the law. the big changes that take effect today from everything from light bulbs to smoking and having a drink. and the trail blazers. they played a role in world war ii. how they were honored today after all these years.

nightly news begins now. from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is nbc nightly news with brian williams. good evening and happy new year. the holidays may come to an early end for a lot of people trying to get home now as a major snowstorm blankets a wide swath of the country, potentially snarling a lot of travel plans. tonight that storm system is picking up steam across the great lakes region in cities like chicago and detroit. and several inches of snow starting tomorrow. flights have been canceled, including 600 at o'hare airport. we've got it covered tonight. and begin with nbc's kevin

contin >> reporter: this heads east and people are getting prepared for a lot of snow and cold. dangerous sub zero temperatures made for miserable work as emergency crews battled an apparent gas explosion and fire in minneapolis. 14 injured, six critically. some residents had to be rescued by firefighters. >> you can imagine if you're trying to advance a heavy hose line on an ice skating rink. >> reporter: in chicago, a half foot of snow, and it kept on coming. temperatures in the 20s had those working outside dreaming of warmer clooims. >> i'm going to go home and get me a nice meal and try to watch me a nice football game. >> reporter: still, some decided to break the ice with a new year's plunge into lake

michigan. on the other side of the leak in detroit, the first snowstorm of the new year. >> the visibility very low on the roadways. >> reporter: near whiteout conditions too, at the big house in ann arbor, where more than 100,000 shivered at the nhl classic. >> you got to do what you got to do to be hockey fans. >> reporter: the snow made for tough hockey playing. some good old-fashioned ice cleaning techniques put to use. and the arctic blast is heading east to places like maine where thousands of residents are still recovering from a christmas ice storm. the forecast sent new yorkers scrambling to stock up. >> my fear is we're going to have a foot of snow. >> reporter: while residents went in search of shovels and snowblowers. >> hopefully this is the only one, the only one for 2014. >> reporter: more than 1,000

flights at o'hare airport were affected by today's weather. already points east, they are preemptively canceling flights for tomorrow and friday in a anticipation of the storm. and one other point, schools in boston will remain closed on friday. >> we're joined by weather channel meteorologist the kelly cass. >> reporter: this is going to be a classic nor'easter, brutally cold tim turps and lots of snow. several inches, in fact, more than a foot of snow for many across the interior sections of the northeast. we do see a stripe of snow across the midwest. detroit a couple inches and chicago a couple inches. it's been all rain in places like jacksonville florida. the two combine, we get a very strong low pressure, all that mose tour coming into that cold air, and we are talking about at

least a foot of snow for the albany area. we've got winter storm warnings in effect, even blizzard warnings in effect for long island. we're talking about gusty wind, reducing visibility. high temperature, only 24 degrees in boston. not even getting above zero in parts of new york state and northern new england and still colder than average as we head toward the weekend. keep in mind, a lot of folks are still traveling. it's a holiday week. and there's a look at what we can expect on friday. back to you. in colorado today, the start of a brand new industry, as that state became the first in the country to make it legal for most people to buy marijuana. and on this first day of pot sales, business was booming. nbc's gabe gutierrez is in denver for us. >> reporter: good evening. the line behind me is still going strong. many customers here calling this

a historic day. colorado now has the most regulated system to sell recreational marijuana in the world. under a flurry of white they wait for green. >> i wanted to be ferks because i've been waiting 34 years for this. >> $59.74. >> reporter: in a photo op, this was the first customer, an iraq war veteran who says pot helps relieve his ptsd. what is the best misconception? >> that we're just lazy. >> reporter: and this one drove all the way from georgia and slept overnight in their car. >> the world's watching. >> reporter: colorado residents now 21 and older can buy an ounce of marijuana. people out of state up to a quarter ounce. taxes are expected to bring in $67 million in revenue. much of it set aside for

building schools. >> it's a whole new world not to have to be underground about it. >> reporter: you can't light up in public. no pot at the denver airport or carried across state lines. and police warn, you still can't drive high. >> we're still going to do the old yes, ma'impairment, the sta field sobriety tests. they worry that it will attract the wrong kind of tourists. >> our kids are sort of the barometer. >> reporter: so far there are at least 17 recreational waern sellers open. the denver post has even hired a full-time marijuana editor. >> i'm a very proud colorado native, a snowboarder, all of that stuff that comes along with being from here and yet now this is a part of that legacy. >> reporter: tonight a mile high experiment is under way. and the world is watching.

this is not just an issue in colorado. washington state plans to roll out its recreational marijuana sales in late spring. and we could see ballot initiatives in other states over the next few years. after months of frustration and confusion, today marked the beginning of a new era in health care in this country as the affordable care act went into effect and millions of americans began to be covered by health insurance. the government says more than 2 million have now signed up. the white house hopes millions more will enroll in the coming months before everyone is required to have insurance by the end of march. but even today, the obama administration found itself dealing with another issue. we get more on that from nbc's tom costello. >> $30 in network. after deductible. >> reporter: in delaware, this family has been wait being for this year. both of them artists, cathy was stuck in an expensive policy because of a preexisting

condition. but after persisting through all the obamacare website trouble, they are covered under one cheaper policy effective today. >> this means a lot to people like us, being self-employed having access to a good health care plan. >> reporter: the new law means no more denying coverage because of pre-existing conditions. no more lifetime dollar caps on insurance claims. but millions haven about kicked off their policies that didn't meet the minimum standards and computer errors persist. the question today, how will it all work? >> does it work? do the people that managed to sign up, can they go to the doctor, go to the farlsy and get the health care coverage they didn't are before? >> reporter: late tuesday, an injunction giving several catholic groups an exemption to part of the law that requires coverage for contraception. while the administration has issued rules that it believes address religious concerns,

several challengers are working their way through the courts. meanwhile, troubling science in michigan where the second largest insurer says customer confusion is the big reason why very few uninsured haved up there. >> i think everyone was hopeful this would make a difference, and i think the adjustments are critical to make it be successful, the way we wanted it to be. >> reporter: still, supporters of health care reform believe today is a start. >> we'll begin to move toward a country in which most everyone has health insurance coverage instead of a country of with large numbers of uninsured. >> reporter: there are many trouble spots. people who signed up or haven't received their id cards, confusion over premiums and benefits, but tonight, millions of americans are insured under the obamacare system, and the number of people signing up is expected to increase over the next year. thanks. >> we have an update tonight on

that russian ship stranded off antarctica stuck in the ice since christmas eve. australian officials say weather conditions have improved and a planned airlift is now likely to begin soon, perhaps tomorrow. a helicopter will carry more than 50 passengers, a dozen at a time, to a chinese shep about 12 miles away. former first lady barbara bush remains in a houston hospital tonight being treated for what is described as respiratory related issue. she was admitted to the hospital on monday. the bush family says she's in great smirts. she's been visited by her husband, former president george h.w. bush. she is 88 years old. michael shchumacher was described in stable but serious condition. they said his condition had not changed since doctors reported a

small improvement yesterday after a second operation. schumacher who was wearing a helmet fell and struck his head on a rock while skiing on a family vacation. still ahead tonight, from the kind of light bulbs we use to the growing use of drones, we'll look at new laws for a new year. and later at a new year's day tradition, honoring the women who played an important yet underappreciated role in world war ii.

had in case you missed it, the beginning of 2014 last night as it played out here in new york in times square where more than 1 million people came to ring in the new year. it all went off without a hitch. the start of the new year brays a range of new laws from limit on the use of drones to a new source of light.

>> reporter: starting today in illinois, police huss get a court order before they can launch drones to spy from the sky. it's the latest response to the rapid development of teeny aircraft that carry camera, a prospect that worries civil libertarians. >> the drone can be up there silently, marking your every movement, including movement in your own back yard. >> reporter: under a new california law, children from kindergarten through high school must be able to choose whether to play on the boys or girls teams and which school bathrooms to use based on their gender identity rather than the gender they were born with. they say it will cut down on bullying. >> this is not for people looking to get a thrill by going into the opposite gender bathroom. these are for people who feel they have belonged in the opposite bathroom all along. >> reporter: florida passed a new law effective today offering more chances for early voting. also starting today, connecticut

becomes the latest state to allow online voter registration. the last phase of a ban on incandescent light bulbs. it's illegal to make or import them. once existing stocks disappear, they'll be ban earned from shelves. a ban on secondhand smoke. rolling down the window won't make it legal. illinois makes it against the law to flick cigarette butts off the window with a stiff fine for repeat offenders. >> if i accidently were to throw it out the window, i think a $1500 fine is a bit excessive. >> reporter: and texans will pay more to toast the new year with a new 8.25% tax on drinks. another set of new laws brings welcome news to about 2.5 million low income workers across the country. their hourly pay will climb in

13 states that increased the minimum wage. other states will consider a minimum wage hike in their legislatures this year. and the boy scouts of america will accept openly gay scouts for the first time in its 104 year history. this historic shift in policy has the organization bracing for potential complications. there are close to 3 million scouts, and 70% are sponsored by religious organizations. we're back in a moment with an important changing of the guard.

it has been called the second toughest job in america, being the mayor of new york. and today, this city got a new one for the first time in a dozen years. the first democrat in more than two decades. his name is bill de blasio, and as stephanie gosk reports, his influence is likely to be felt far beyond the city.

♪ >> reporter: the mayor of new york may only be in charge of the city, but this job has always had the power to push the national agenda. democrat bilodeau blaus ois already thinking big. >> we are called to put an end to economic and social inequalities that threaten to unravel the city we love. >> reporter: today at his inauguration, the brooklyn native was sworn in by his one-time boss, president bill clinton. few new yorkers knew who he was a year ago. but it changed following the compelling story of his mixed race family with his unapologetically liberal platform. >> bill de blasio will be forever a new yorker. >> reporter: he's working with animal rights activists to get rid of these horse-drawn

carriages. his predecessor, michael bloomberg undoubtedly changed new york. he banned smoking in bars and restaurants and famously tried to outlaw big sugary drinks. there was a dramatic drop in crime, a record 333 murders in 2013, down from 2,245 in 1990, which bloomberg in partcredited the stop and frisk policy. de blasio has made a point of separating himself from bloomberg. >> if we can do things well, that their town, their city can do them well too. so everybody will be watching this guy. >> reporter: a new local leader who will succeed or fail on a national stage. stephanie gosk, nbc news, new york. and the city of detroit got a new mayor today.

mike duggan was sworn in as the 75th mayor. he is the first white mayor of detroit in 40 years. he inherits a bankrupt city and must share power with a city manger trying to get detroit out of $18 billion in debt. high honors for a group of women from world war ii.

finally tonight, there was a special float today at the annual tournament of roses parade, and on it were some pioneering women who were aviators during world war ii and whose contributions have often been overlooked. we get the story tonight. >> reporter: the rose parade is a long ways away from the farm flora bell grew up on during the great depression where she first told her father she wanted to fly like the birds in the sky. >> and he'd always shake his head and say flora bell, that's not something women usually do, but if you can figure out how, more power to you. >> reporter: her dream became a reality when more pilots were

called to combat overseas, leaving women to fill the void at home. so you proved them wrong? >> yes, i did prove them wrong. i did get to fly. >> reporter: they were called wasps. women air force service pilots. 25,000 women applied. only 1,000 got their wing, including margo demoss. but attitudes were tough to change. >> the air force wants to get a little muscle on those pretty arms. >> the pilots that were training us, at first they were very cold. then they realized we patriotic. we were good pilots. >> reporter: for two years they ferried planes to military bases. flora bell now knew how it felt to fly. >> like you're looking at the world that god made the beauty that you see. >> reporter: but the dream ended with little warning. >> they just came in and said girls, the men are coming back

and want interest jobs back, and you've got to leave. and i said we'll do it for nothing. we don't care about getting paid. we'll do it for nothing. we're needed. >> reporter: three decades would go by before they were granted military status. another three decades would passion before they received the congressional gold medal. but in that time, the wasps paved the way for women like captain linda stanfield to become military pilots. >> if it wasn't for them, i probably wouldn't be doing what i'm doing now. >> reporter: so this morning, the female pilots of today joined the pioneers on a float dedicated to the wasps, thankful to women like nor what bell who never stopped dreaming about the sky. nbc news, los angeles. that's our broadcast for this wednesday night. thank you for being with us. i'm lester holt in for brian who will be back tomorrow. for all of us here at nbc news, happy new year and goodnight.

tonight, a young mother is dead and her baby boy is in critical condition. good evening. the new year is beginning with sadness for a family now mourning the loss of a young mother and praying for her 3-month-old son. they were hit by a pickup truck in fremont around 10:00 last night. a 17-year-old relative was injureds well. chris sanchez join us us from fremont where a vigil is set to begin soon. chris?

>> hi there, diane. folks are already set to gather. lots of people who remember this young woman as a woman who cherished mother hood and only had 11 weeks to mother her 3-month-old son before the tragedy that struck them both last night. >> he has the fa oif an angel and a name that means savior. but his great ant says he's the one in need of saving tonight. salvador is fighting for his life after the pedestrian accident that claimed the life of his 19-year-old mother and sent his 17-year-old aunt to the hospital. >> it's just -- oh. it feels like a bad dream and we're going to wake up and it's going to be over. but obviously we woke up and it's not over. >> fremont police say the 19-year-old mother was holding her infant soon when she and her 17-year-old sister got out of the car they were riding in and attempted to cross the street outside a crosswalk. >> we believe that there was a