breaking overnight. firefighters battle a five-alarm apartment building fire. late details coming up. and a bombshell statement. explosive response. pressure building on the president to provide evidence of wiretapping. and nature's fury. europe's largest volcano erupting all over visitors. it had residents scrambling. march madness, complete with upsets and one of the worst fouls in tournament history. and celebrating st. patrick's day around the nation. "early today" starts right now. so great being with you. i'm frances rivera. >> glad to have you. we start with a lack of evidence. for the second day in a row,

bipartisan congressional leads shot down accusations that president obama tapped trump tower during the elections. the white house isn't shying away. they are bolstered doubling down on the president's allegations. we have more. >> reporter: a bombshell statement, triggering an explosive response. >> hold on. hold on. hold on. i'm making a point. >> reporter: after the committee president trump wanted to investigate his accusation of spying found there's nothing there. based on the information available to us, we see no indications that trump tower was the subject of surveillance by any element of the united states government either before or after election day 2016. no surveillance. not even a wiretap, according to the top democrat and republican on the senate intelligence committee. the president, not convinced. not backing down. >> he stands by it. again, you're mischaracterizing what happened today. the bottom line is, the

investigation has not been provided all of the information. >> reporter: that's not what the senate intelligence committee says. >> we have seen no evidence at all about the president's tweet of 13 days ago that somehow obama tapped trump tower. and that somehow this was affecting part of the presidential race. >> reporter: the president's press secretary refused to say whether the president accepted the findings. >> let's go through what we do know. >> reporter: instead, for a full eight minutes, sean spicer cited a series of news reports accusing reporters of cherry-picking a narrative. reports the president himself points to to bolster his unproven accusation president obama broke the law by spying on him. >> i've been reading about things. i read in, i think it was january 20th, a "new york times" article where they were talking about wiretapping. >> reporter: that article had the word wiretapped in the headline, but referred to targeting russians and did not mention president obama.

any classified information would have been shared by fbi director james comey with top lawmakers. one by one, they've said they've seen no evidence to back up the president's claim. >> fbi director james comey could put the entire wiretapping claims to rest monday when he's scheduled to appear before the house committee. want to turn now to the big budget showdown after the president unveiled his first $1.15 trillion proposal. while his budget blueprint is an example of how the administration looks to govern, it's what's not being funded that's making the news. trump may be keeping his campaign promise when it comes to military spending adding nearly $60 billion on defense, homeland security and veterans care. he's make deep and unprecedented cuts. the state department slashed by 29%. the epa, slashed by 31%. and the national institutes of health cut by nearly $6 billion. critics say low-income americans

would be the hardest hit with sweeping cuts to affordable housing and job training. eliminating federal aid to programs like meals on wheels, that are a godsend to those most in need. here's what budget director mick mulvaney said when pushed on the need for that program by nbc's peter alexander. take a listen. >> we can't spend money on programs just because they sound good. meals on wheels sound great. that's a state decision to fund that particular organization. take the federal money and give to it the states. we want to give you money for programs that don't work. i can't defend that anymore. >> one other area on the chopping block, the arts and public broadcasting, which would be entirely eliminated under trump's plan. and artists are firing back using the hash tag right to bear arts. actor mark ruffalo, an ardent anti-trump activist, posting -- ignorant, unskilled, sick, hungry, cruel, and violent. what trump's budget could do for america. and josh gad said, without science and arts who are we?

and billy eichner said, at what point will you be telling your children that your father killed snuffleupagus. the budget plan would still need 60 senate votes to come to fruition, meaning several democrats would need to be on board. many have voiced a strong opposition. in raleigh, north carolina, 130 firefighters battlinged a massive blade in a five-alarm fire burning down. it was severely damaged. hundreds lost power. the fire engulfed this large sky crane knocking down power lines and crushing structures below. no one was trapped in the building. debris hit a person, puncturing their chest. the cause is under investigation. now to this stunning

explosion caught on camera. at least ten people were injured when europe's largest volcano erupted. it blasted shards of rock and boulders. here's gabe gutierrez. >> reporter: this is what a near-death experience looks like. italy's mt. etna erupting. spewing ash and steam. heart-pounding moments captured on camera. as bystanders scrambled to safety. pelted by molten rocks. authorities say about 35 tourists and their guides were on the volcano. at least ten people were injured. one of the guides said hot lava hitting frigid snow caused a violent explosion. etna is one of the most active volcanos in the world. drone video showed its explosive reawakening last month after a quiet few years. the volcano is still active. and the survivors are recovering.

after the escape of a lifetime. gabe gutierrez, nbc news. now turning to peru. where there's massive flooding and mudslides. they have led to over a dozen deaths this week, with some harrowing rescues caught on tape. this woman emerged from debris covered in mud. you can see her right there. she struggled to free herself but managed to crawl over large pieces of wood towards the dry land where onlookers helped her to safety. another man made an escape after a fast moving mudslide toppled his truck completely on its side. a few moments later, the driver climbs out of the window just seconds before the raging waters swept his truck away. more now on the wet weather in the northwest on this st. patrick es day. let's check in with bill karins. >> unfortunately, we had a nice day yesterday in the northwest.

look at the clouds in the pacific. we are going to stream this in in the afternoon especially the evening hours and all of northern california and the coastal area. another round of rain, wet st. patrick's day. it will last until the beginning of the weekend. as far as rainfall totals go, a quarter to half inch. some areas up to 1 1/2 inches in northern california. for the or more wet weather. evening hours. dry south of sxhent sxhen toe, where the warmth continues. almost 80 in fresno. this move is either brave or stupid. this is at the arnold palmer championship. walk up to the alligator on the

sixth hole, casual as could be and slaps it on the tail. we'll show it to you again. the gator is surprised and shocked and scurries into the water. what if he had spun around on him. >> the alligator seemed more scared than he did. >> couldn't believe it. >> exactly. >> what is this guy doing? >> suave points there. >> might as well have a drink in his hand. thanks, bill. just ahead, developing controversy as the u.s. strikes a mosque and dozens are killed. a look inside the dark web. security warns of the threat to millions of us here. we can't stay here! why? terrible toilet paper! i'll never get clean! way ahead of you, big daddy. aww charmin ultra strong. it's washcloth-like texture helps clean better.

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vandy's matthew fisher-davis inexplicably fouls the wildcats' bryant mcintosh, mistakenly thinking his team was behind. mcintosh hits both foul shots. northwestern is on top. the commodores' final attempt for the win falls short. northwestern alum julia louis- dreyfus, whose son plays for the wildcats, celebrating in the stands. also in the locker room. head coach chris collins getting a victory shower from his team. you have to be soaked to mark your win. villanova and gonzaga both won. they move to the next round. two bracket upsets. number 11 xavier beat sixth-ranked maryland, 76-65. you know who was watching? bill murray cheering on xavier right there from the stands. and 12th seed middle tennessee state defeated number five, minnesota, 81-72. hope your brackets are doing okay. >> in full swing. there you go. speaking of basketball, on nbcnews.com. defense, defense! have you ever screamed that at a game before.

>> defense. >> exactly. the pentagon has asked employees not to watch march madness. the pentagon issued their annual reminder to pentagon workers not to stream the games from the tournament. the reason? eating up valuable internet bandwidth could slow the computers running the u.s. military. >> national security is the priority. the u.s. military is denying that it bombed a syrian mosque after human rights activists said at least 42 people were killed in one. ali arouzi, what can you tell us about the latest conflicting reports here? >> reporter: that's right, frances. conflicting reports indeed. the white helmets said 42 people, mostly civilians, were killed in an air strike in a rebel-held village in northern syria. the raid was carried out by unidentified planes in a province in aleppo. u.s. central command says u.s. forces carried out a strike on

al qaeda in syria killing several terrorists, but they didn't target or strike a mosque. they struck a meeting of al qaeda in a place called idlib. the centcom commander says the mosque was 30 or 40 feet away but was still standing after the air strike. witnesses said the mosque was hit when it was full of people praying there. mostly men at a very, very busy time. centcom says they're looking into the possibility of civilians injured or killed in the strike on the building. they keep saying the mosque was not hit. frances? >> keeping an eye on a clarification there on what happened. nbc's ali arouzi. thank you. >> still shocking to see that video. still ahead, did chris christie's new jersey pull a fast one on donald trump? plus the world spends $80 billion a year fighting cybercrimes. but hackers still have the upper hand. we'll tell you why next.

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fast forwarding today. president trump is scheduled to have his first face-to-face meeting with german chancellor angela merkel at the white house. they're expected to discuss funding for nato and relations with russia. and chris christie is set to sign or veto a bill that requires presidential candidates to release tax returns to appear on the ballot. the bill is in response to

president trump's refusal to do so. we should note this is also world sleep day. a day to raise awareness about sleep disorders and the importance of shut eye. may not be a big deal for you. for our team here at "early today" this is a major, major event. because we just don't get sleep. >> and we need some. people watching probably do, too. nearly every week for months, there's been a significant development in cyberespionage. including this week's development of russian spies involved in the yahoo attack. >> cybersecurity experts are warning of a specific target, utilities that millions count on every day. tom costello has more from london. >> reporter: there's a reason it's called the dark web where nearly every computer server is masked, making them almost impossible to trace. a dark alley that can facilitate massive hacks, like the recent attack on ya loo, now blamed on

russian agents. it almost feels like a losing battle. >> it's become a top priority for police and intelligence agencies all over the world. >> reporter: james lyne showed us hackers no longer have to write their own programs. >> hold my hands, i'll make you rich. >> reporter: they can buy it all prepackaged. hackers advertise on the dark web. among big corporate names knocked offline. amazon, netflix, paypal, "the new york times." even wikipedia. the world spent $80 billion responding to cyberattacks last year. the focus is more on detecting and responding than actually preventing attacks. and cyber experts are warning of another imminent threat. 13,000 telecom, power, utilities in the u.s. that believe have lax cyber security. >> hackers could walk right in. it wouldn't require high-tech tools. >> reporter: meanwhile, a growing concern in a big jump in ransomware attacks. hackers gain control of a computer, hold the network hostage until they're paid off.

it's happened to hospitals, community colleges, police departments, and the st. louis public library. hackers locked up 1400 computers and demanded $35,000. >> it basically turned every computer at the st. louis public library into a brick. >> reporter: because the library backed up its system, it refused to pay. an attack likely plotted on the dark web, where anything goes with hackers leaving few tracks for law enforcement. tom costello, nbc news, london. just ahead, spending over $5 billion celebrating st. patrick's day. and tons of great deals. from whiskey to doughnuts. we'll tell you about it next. ...i'm on... ...and on... ...and on. that's why i... ...make time for myself... ...and give my body some love... ...with aveeno® daily moisturizing lotion. its active naturals® oat formula... ...locks in moisture to improve skin wellness in just one day. i really needed that.

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except this one, who has an outlet for a face. i thought i would share some of my favorite march dadness tweets. the first one is at the king slayer. i asked my dad where my sunglasses were, he said, i don't know, where are my dad glasses? >> jimmy fallon bringing it to a new level with dadness. check it out. "snl" wanted to let the entire country in on their jokes at the same time. you have to love this. for the first time in 42 seasons, the show will broadcast live across the entire country, coast to coast. the new simulcast debuts in april 15 with jimmy fallow returning to the studio to host. other upcoming hosts -- chris pine. melissa mccarthy. and dwayne "the rock" johnson on may 20th. >> i always feel bad for the

people on the west coast. you want to avoid everything we say or tweet. they are spoilers. on a day when we're all a little bit irish. the green celebrations are everywhere. including the white house fountain. and the statue of christ in rio de janiero. and the green river in chicago. here in new york city, 2 million spectators are expected to join in the st. patrick's day parade. the national retail federation says americans will spend $5.3 billion in holiday celebrations. catholics will be happy to hear that even though the holiday falls on a friday during lent this year when you're skipping out on meat, the church makes an exception for corned beef on st. patrick's day. here is what we have for your sweet tooth. krispy kreme, tgi friday's, dunkin' donuts, baskin-robbins and mcdonald's also offering festive treats. get your green on in some way or another. >> i'm hungry after that list. keep it here, everybody. you're watching "early today." t. but grandma, we use charmin ultra soft so we don't have to wad to get clean. mmm, cushiony...and we can use less.

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otters at chicago's shed aquarium were treated to a snow day. the handslers brought in the fresh snow that fell a couple days ago. the little guys, like a kid in a candy store. let's get you updated on the forecast. the wet weather comes in in the pacific northwest. it's not going to be with you all weekend. it's northern california northward. saturday, we continue with the damp, showery-type threat. in areas of los angeles, okay. sunday, we get a reprieve. nice. we should see a return to sunshine, seattle down to portland. cooler in san francisco as the cool system hangs up there.

clouds and showers in northern california. next week is the stormy place. we'll talk about that after the weekend. >> thank you. the tragedy in new york city killed by her own ambulance. they charged jose gonzalez with grand larceny. they say she stopped the vehicle. police say gonzalez jumped in and tried to jump away and hit her partner. the ambulance crashed into a snow bank where witnesses were there until police arrived. the city lost a good woman. >> started her day or shift today like every other day, then senseless act of violence takes her life. >> her partner suffered minor injuries. thoughts going out to her family. this morning, questions about trump's national security adviser after documents released by the leading democrat on the house oversight committee show

russians paid tens of thousands of dollars the year he became trump's campaign surrogate, then head of nsa. one of the largest sums, $45,000 payment to speak at the tenth anniversary gala. seated at the same table as vladimir putin. flynn requested access to data from the former nsa. an arkansas teen found a gem at a state park. the lifelong dream of visiting the state park. he found what he's holding. it may not look like a big deal. that is a 7.44 carat diamond, one of the largest found in the state park since it opened in 1972. he shares his name with superman, they named it the superman diamond. a bit of polishing. >> only ten bucks to get into that park.

just ten bucks. have a gat weekend. re rhnowt 40 -anherhoong thfreay i

right now at 4:30, another shooting on the freeway. this time in the south bay. a teenager is hurt, rushed to the hospital. we have the details about the suspect and what we are learning this morning. good morning. i'm scott mctpwragrew in for sa brock. >> it is st. paddy's day. >> events all around the area for the whole weekend. we may see green on the radar. that is something we will be watching into tomorrow. 51 in oakland. 49 in san francisco. and looking now at san