breaking overnight. a tornado strikes in florida. details are still coming in to nbc news. we'll have the latest as record cold temperatures are striking sections of the country from part of the polar vortex that broke away. to an nbc exclusive. kate snow speaks to directly to a number of undocumented workers recently fired from trump owned and managed properties. today in court, the two men arrest for involvement in a road rage incident that reached point? miles an hour will face the judge. race and the nfl. most of the coaches recye black their replacements so far are white. what the nfl has to say about it. plus, the big w moments fro.

awards. "early today" starts right now. good morning. i'm marlie hall in for frances rivera. >> and i'm phillip mena. officials are confirming that a tornado briefly touched down in miami-dade county, florida. the winds were powerful enough to topple over a large truck and knock trees to the ground. homes in the area suffered minor damage. as of 10:00 p.m. last night, nearly 800 households across broward and miami-dade counties were without power. severe weather wreaked havoc in south florida causing flight delays at the ft. lauderdale international airport. as of this morning no injuries have been reported. florida is expecting cooler than average temperaturesed the as the midwest and northeast brace for record cold temperatures. let's go now to nbc meteorologist bill karins tracking it all for us. good morning. >> germany. in many cases, this will be the coldest since the 1990s a long time ago. we're seeing an expansion of our watches and warnings in the area. now kansas city isof

windchills. and couldo few spo today is kind of the warm-up act. then we're going to really plunge by the time we get to wednesday. this morning fargo. in the negative numbers from chicago happens tuesday morning. fargo negative 51. lacrosse, negative 34. and then the coldest for the midwest will be wednesday morning. some spots could be near negative 55. right now we're predicting negative 45 in chicago and negative 51 in madison. ridiculously cold and dangerous. >> unbelievable temperatures. thank you so much, bill. well, cracking down on illegal immigration is a cornerstone of president trump's platform, but now there is new evidence that another one of his golf clubs was employing undocumented workers, this one just 30 miles outsi ma forward to tell their >> reporter: for 14 years,

gabriel sodanon >> like painting, plumbing. everything we had to fix there. >> reporter: in the three kids, he showed us his uniform and years of pay stubs. maria priego was a seasonal housekeeper at the trump club for three years, both from puebla, mexico, they crossed on foot. why did you come here illegally? >> to have a better life. >> reporter: you wanted to work. >> i wanted to work. >> reporter: they both say they presented forged green cards and social security cards when hired. they didn't ask any questions. >> not any questions, no nothing. >> reporter: did anyone at the trump golf club direct you to get false documents? >> no. >> reporter: but gabriel told us he thinks people at the highest levels of theuncumented workers money, paying low wages and no benefits. do

false? >> that's what i think. because they need employees, and, like, they don't check like really good. >> our jobs are being stripped from our country like we're babies. >> reporter: gabriel says president trump spoke with him during his years at the club and suspects the president also knew there were undocumented workers on staff. >> i cannot be sure about that, but he got to know. >> reporter: you think the president must have known? >> he must have known. >> reporter: we spoke with six former club workers on camera and others who didn't want their faces shown. a dozen say they were fired on january 18th. margarita cruz recorded her meeting. >> the club must end its employment relationship with you today. >> reporter: in a statement to nbc news, the trump organization's eric trump says we have tens of thousands of employees across our properties and have very strict hiring processes. if any employee

circumvent the law. that will be terminated immediately. we take this issue very seriously. this is one of the reasons my father is fighting so far for immigration reform. the system is broken. now the workers' attorney is taking some of them to capitol hill to meet with democrats. >> the trump organization is a criminal enterprise. there is a federal crime here, and these people who were fired are >> our thanks to kate snow. this morning that attorney is calling for a federal and state investigation. the white house had no comment on the suggestion that the president knew about undocumented workers. the government is back in business this morning. for now. hundreds of thousands of federal employees will return to work today in the wake of the longest shutdown in history. national monuments reopened over the weekend after president trump signed a measure to fund the government but only for three weeks, which means we could go through all of this all over again. nbc's tracie potts joining us from d.c. with the latest. tracie, good morning. so the president has threatened

to resume the shutdown on february 15th if he does not get funding for the wall, correct? >> exactly, phillip. so we've got a three-week reprieve here for the president anemd he would not do. he reopened government without a promise to fund this wall. and the white house says even though he doesn't want to do it, a national emergency is still on the table for the pentagon to pay for it. democrats say they've always been for border security. they are willing to talk about some sort of barrier, but it's a lot more than that. how and when these negotiations resume, we don't know. but we do know that one of the president's closest allies, roger stone, an early campaign adviser, is now speaking out about his arrest last week. >> so that show of force which cost the american taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars was designed to pick me as public enemy number one, like the og.

i'm not el chapo, but they sent more men after bin laden. it's a gestapo tactic. it really reeks. >> stone faces seven counts from a federal indictment making false statements to congress to a house committee, witness tampering, and obstruction. he is due in court tomorrow. >> all right, tracie potts joining us from d.c. this morning. tracy, as always, thank you. the manhunt for a suspect accused of a killing spree in louisiana has come to an end. authorities in virginia announce the arrest of a 21-year-old man wanted for the murder of his parents and a young woman some say was his girlfriend, although her family strongly denies they were dating. the motive behind the killings remains a mystery. well go now to nbc's tammy leitner for the latest. >> reporter: this is the man police believe led them on a multi-state manhunt following a louisiana shooting spree. >> we do not have a motive. >> reporter: and they're now investigating why 21-year-old

dakota theriot might have killed three people. >> i lost my baby brother. i lost my niece and my nephew. my heart's so pained. >> reporter: the three members of one family. this woman, summer earnest was reportedly dating the suspect. her aunt said the family recently met theriot and did not approve. >> something was desperately wrong with this boy. >> reporter: but police say theriot's shooting spree did not end there. he then drove to a neighboring county where he allegedly shot and killed his mother and father. >> we was able to get a dying declaration from him and only enough information to let us know it was his son that committed this act. >> reporter: a manhunt followed before theriot was finally captured more than one thousand miles away in virginia, but heartbreak and questions remain. >> i don't want to be here no more. i can't take the pain. >> reporter: as loved ones try to find the why behind this

tragedy. tammy leitner, nbc news. >> meanwhile, flared tempers led to an extreme case of road rage, and it was all caught on camera. one man clinging to the hood of a car while the driver hit speeds of up to 70 miles an hour. it was all over a sideswipe. police have arrested both men. they're scheduled to appear in court today. and nbc's kathy park has more. >> get off my car! >> reporter: it's not a movie scene, but real life road rage after a fender-bender, 65-year-old richard kemrauski jumped on the hood ofscene. ghe driver speedin rush hour. >> he kept going fast, slow, massachusetts turnpike during fast, me to getting off the car. >> reporter: he managed to hang on for miles as an onlooker captured the dangerous highway ride. at one point, looking down at his phone, lp >> kind of like just survival

mode. >> reporter: the driver finally hit the brakes when good samaritans blocked him in. one bystander drawing a gun. police arrested the driver, mark fitzgerald for assault with a dangerous weapon, among other charges. >> he took my water bottle out of my car. he smashed my window. >> reporter: police also arrested kamrauski. he is charged with disorderly conduct. two men on one wild ride that started with a minor crash and ended with major drama. kathy park, nbc news. >> a wild ride indeed. >> that's a lot re bill. going get so cold. >> let's try to explain why it's all because of this polar vortex. we've known about the polar vortex for the last seven years. it's nothing new. it's a circulation up around the north pole. it expands during the wintertime, and it has some of the brutalest, coldest air on our planet. the circulation that usually contains it keeps it to the north. but occasionally pieces can break off, head to up.

>> siberia, or this time north america. a potent petr piece has broken off, heading to the hudson bay. it's going give us some of the coldest temperatures we've seen 20 toin areas like chicago and grand rapids. in the northeast, the coldest air for you willwe'll talk abou >> thank you so much, bill. we'll check in a bit later. coming up. well, quite the commotion in new york after eight boats broke loose and detach themselves from their cables, thanks to these massive chunks of ice on the hudson river. five barges, one tugboat, one mini barge, and one dinner cruise could be seening floating chaotically down the river. the dinner cruise named captain jpiii then got caught on a rail

rey bridge. no harm was done to the river or the structure of the bridges. >> but their dinner was ruined. ahead, heroic feat for comic book movies and nfl questions. some say they have not done enough. i can't tell you who i am or what i witnessed, but i can tell you liberty mutual customized my car insurance so i only pay for what i need. oh no, no, no, no, no, no, no... only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ special k has iron, protein and b vitamins..

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(man) nice. (vo) proven to double your chances of getting pregnant. clearblue connected. the real game here. both teams arriving atlanta's hartsfield jackson airport last night. but before heading down to atlanta, tom brady and the patriots getting a huge sendoff from the blue man group there, f fans at gillette stadium. meanwhile, this is not the first time the patriots and the rams have faced off in the big game. they previously played each other back in super bowl xxxvi in 2002. that was brady's first title. leading the news, as we count down to the super bowl 53, the nfl continues to grapple with diversity amongst its head coaches. it's now in the spotlight after a majority of head coaches let go this past season were african american. now diversity groups want the league to strengthen its minority hiring practices by adding more entry-level positions. nbc's ron mott has the latest.

>> reporter: for years, the nfl has worked on an issue that's prompted difficult questions. why is a league with 70% of its players african american led by head coaches who have been predominantly white? when teams began making coaching changes at the end of the 2018 season, the blatark contrast. five of the eight fired coaches were black, and so far none of the coaches hired to replace them is black. steve wilks was fired in arizona after just one season, winning only 3 of 16 games, replaced by a white college coach who was fired after earning a losing record over six seasons. >> well, the league is kind of going backwards. each year league officials talk about the need for improving diversity, increasing opportunities for people of color. a lot of them former players. >> fritz pollard was the first black nfl head coach in 1921. just two black head coaches are on rosters today. pittsburgh's mike tomlin and anthony lynn of the los angeles

chargers. it's something the league addressed back in 2003, creating the rooney rule under the threat of a lawsuit. it requires teams to at leasty for each head coach opening. over time, though, critics said the rule was just a public relations move. the group that works with the nfl to address minority hiring says there is still a lot of work to be done. >> we feel good about where we're going in the long run, even though we can say we feel disappointed a little bit what happened in this last hiring cycle. >> reporter: in a statement, the nfl has said it has made great strides in advancing efforts to promote diversity and inclusion throughout the lead, including at the head coaching position. one eek before the super bowl and race is once again an nfl headlines as its sidelines have turned whiter. ron mott, nbc news. hotel room on those travel sites but there was always a catch. like somehow you wind up getting less. but now that i book at hilton.com, and i get all these great perks. i got to select my room from the floor plan... very nice... i know, i'm good at picking stuff. free wi-fi... laptop by the pool is a bold choice...

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the midwest. notice the weather map is quiet for travel. by the end of the week, a little lying snow and rain in areas of south. >> bill, thanks. chicago bitterly cold. when we come back, what motivated these brave souls here to take the plunge in that bitter chicago cold? le everywhee are confusing quilted northern are confusing quilted northernf. for a bouncy castle. they're both durable, flexible and nice to have at parties. but quilted northern is not a bouncy castle. it's just really nice toilet paper. ok, i...is it...? clearblue digital pregnancy test... ...with smart countdown, gives unmistakably clear... ...results written in words. over 99% accurate. absolute clarity, when you need it most. (whisper) karen, karen you've got to try this l'eggo your eggo essentially enriched body lotion... with 2 x the almond oil it deeply nourishes skin for 48 hours

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churches authorized as part of a warming between cuba and the vatican. samsung says it will replace the plastic packaging with ecofriendly materials in the coming months. that includes paper and recycled and bio-based plastics. in today's top story, two kentucky teens were taken into custody yesterday. they are accused of throwing a large rock through the windshield of a deputy's squad car early sunday morning. authorities say the rock crashed through the windshield, causing done philip dean's vehicle to crash and flip over several times. dean was responding to reports that someone was throwing rocks at semitrucks on lexington road in the danville, kentucky area when he was hit. officials say he suffered broken bones and cuts, but is resting at home and is expected to be okay. the boyle county sheriff says two teenagers are facing charges, including assault on a police officer. a fire inas families to evacuate. this video here shows the sign

of lions head mountain burning. local suburbs in that area. winds calmed down monday morning, and that allowed crews to gainer are not been any repo of lives or structures lost. the cause of the fire is still unknown. cape town is facing a drought that in early 2018 almost left the city without water. hundreds of people in chicago got to freeze for a good cause. the 18th annual polar plunge, which benefits local families in need, was nearly postponed due to bitterly frigid temperatures in the single digit, but through the bad weather, the festivities carried on. swimmers in all sorts of gear plunged into freezing lake michigan to help raise money for those in need. i'm always amazed by people who do that. >> i'm glad it's for a god cause. i was in chicago this weekend too. i had to uber two blocks because i couldn't handle it. and there they are jumping right. >> in i don't blame you. celebrate some birthdays today. "lord of the rings" i like

gentleman woods turns 38. nick carter 39. n'sync singer joey frat to fato. alda received a lifetime achievement award at last

welcome to monday morning. hope you're coming off a great weekend. let's start our morning with a peek outside from walnut creek. good morning, east bay. good morning, actually, entire bay area. it was gorgeous around here. good morning. i'm laura garcia. >> and i'm marcus washington. right now, let's get a check of what it's like when you walk outside this morning. >> the good news is that our nice weather continues for the next couple of days at least. a live look in san jose as we start out with a milder morning, right now at about 51. we're going to be in the upper 40s. there will be more clouds in the

mix today but still warm up into the 60s again this afternoon. as we head over to mike, you're tracking