there was a line of modular homes through here. you can see two of them still standing here. but on the other side of that there was another five or six that you can't even tell they were there. >> breaking overnight, the death toll rising in the aftermath of a treacherous tornado in the south. we'll have the latest. to a snowy start to your week in many parts of the nation. meteorologist michelle grossman is here with>> the president wie week on defense as house democrats ramp up the investigations to a whole new level. and taking in one of the coolest symphonies. we'll take you to the italian alps and the snowdrift transformed into a concert hall. "early today" starts right now.

breaking news. deadly devastation dozens more. the worst of the destruction is near the town of beauregard. the powerful winds ripped buildings down to their foundation and knocked out power for thousands. the state's governor has declared a statewide emergency amid fears that as the sun rises, so will the death toll. >> at this point we're going to organize a more organized search in the morning. we're going to have different agencies coming in. we're having personnel from literally all over the state and from our partners over in georgia. >> the sheriff says more people are still unaccounted for. nbc's in lee county with a closer look at the devastation. >> reporter: i am in lee county where two tornados touched down. this is the buck wild saloon, or what's left of it. if you take a look around me, utter devastation. i just spoke with the owner and he tells me he does not think there's a lot that can be

salvaged here. the roof was ripped right off of this building here. i'm told there's numerous homes and businesses here tt look the exact same, just utter devastation. it is going to take a long time for people to begin to piece back together their lives here. a number of deaths, a number of injuries, among them an 8-year-old girl who was killed. i'm told rescue crews are still on the ground going house to house, making sure that there is nobody still trapped inside. this is going to be a long, slow, painful recovery process. frances? >> wow. it's going to be tough for them. tammy, thank you. as cleanup continues in the south, winter storms are wreaking havoc from the midwest to maine. in colorado, drivers were nearly buried by an avalanche along i-70. >> it's not going to come down here, is it. >> no, that is. >> is it? it's slowing down. holy [ bleep ].

>> it's over that car right now. >> oh my god. >> that's amazing they captured that. authorities say nobody was hurt. the winter blast also hit st. louis. snow buried the gateway to the west then crept northeast, blanketing millions across the region. let's turn to meteorologist michelle grossman. >> it's going to be a rough day for many in the south. to the north we're looking at the snow. still 61 million at risk for some snow this morning, some sleet mixing in too, where we're seeing the warmer temperatures. that will git later on this morning. philadelphia, new york, bangor, maine, a rough commute for many this monday morning. that storm will exit out of here, then we're going to be left with some very bitterly cold air in the middle of the country. once this storm exits we're going to talk about the cold. we're looking at temperatures well below normal for this time of year and bitterly cold windchills. the cold returns. frigid highs all the way down to

the south. they are going to be seeing below-normal temperatures throughout the day. let's look at temperatures for today in minneapolis, 9 below zero. the windchill, you factor in the winds, that's what it feels like on your body. .t's going to feel like 22 beloe wichita 8 degrees. dallas 25. that's going to be a tough day there. louisville, we are looking at 25. so we're looking at cold weather, snow and sleet, and luckily we're looking at that severe weather out of the south now. >> wow, what a start to march. all right mark she will, thank you. house democrats are getting ready to ramp up their investigations into president trump this week. but there is some good news for the commander in chief this morning. nbc news/"wall street journal" poll shows his approval rating at 46%. that's up 3 points from january. still the president is facing fallout over his failed summit with the north korean leader. nbc's geoff bennett has more. >> reporter: the president' adv defending the dramatic collapse of mr. trump's second summit

with kim jong-un. >> i don't consider the summit a failure, i consider it a success. >> reporter: john bolton downplaying concerns that the president walked away empty-handed. >> he's not desperate for a deal. not with north korea, not with anybody. if it's contrary to american national interests. >> reporter: hoping to ease tensions, the u.s. now abandoning its annual spring joint military exercises with south korea. the democratic chairman of the house intelligence committee calling that a major concession. >> of course the president did give up a great deal by going to that summit, by enhancing kim jong-un's prestige on the world stage, by giving up those military exercises in the last summit, and getting nothing for it. >> reporter: and bolton brushing off the bipartisan backlash after president trump appeared to hold kim blameless in the death of otto warmbier. >> he tells me that he didn't know about it, and i will take him at his word. >> when he says i'm going to take him at his word, it just -- it doesn't mean that he accepts it as reality, it means that he

accepts that's what kim jong-un said. >> reporter: warmbier was retun a coma and died after 17 months in a north korean prison. mr. trump on saturday said warmbier's dith made the nuclear negotiations uncomfortable. >> i'm in such a horrible position. because in one way, i have to negotiate. in the other way, i love mr. and mrs. warmbier. and i love otto. and it's a very, very delicate balance. >> reporter: the warmbier family contacted sunday by nbc news chose not to comment on the president's latest remarks. now today president trump faces more heat as house democrats plan to request documents from more than 60 people and organizations connected to him. democrats say it's an opening salvo in new and wide-ranging investigations. frances? >> all right, geoff bennett for us, thank you. a space x design capsule is one step closer to ferrying

astronauts to and from the international space station after successfully docking with the iss on sunday during its test flight. nbc ace dan scheneman has more. >> reporter: another day, another milestone for the crew drag gone, the spacex built capsule docked smoothly with the international space station sunday morning. it is the first u.s.-made spacecraft capable of carrying a crew to dock at the space station in eight years. >> i think we should show off the newest space vehicle. >> reporter: american astronaut ann mcclain toured the 27-foot-long spacecraft. >> welcome to the new era in spaceflight. >> reporter: the only passenger on board, a mannequin named ripley, wired with sensors to gauge the stress a real astronaut might experience. >> ignition, liftoff. >> reporter: the spacecraft began its journey early saturday morning when it successfully launched from the kennedy center. americans have traveled to the space station aboard russian rockets. but if this six-day test flight

is a success, the crew dragon could carry american astronauts into space this summer. >> that would definitely be the culmination of a lot of people, me ask a lot of people at spacex for sure. can't wait. >> reporter: at long dream now closer to reality. dan scheneman, nbc news. now to that frightening scene in missouri where a gas line pop line -- gasoline pipeline exploded. fortunately nebraska w lly no or hurt. it happened near a stretch of highway that had been undergoing construction. massive flames and thick smoke into the sky. this morning crews confirmed that pipeline has been shut off and the fire is out. the community as you can imagine is rattled. >> i've never heard something that loud before. it shook everything inside of me, literally sat me back in my seat. >> several highways ofhw

kansas city, missouri, can come in and make repairs. according to state troopers the pipeline is oned by panhandle eastern pipeline company based out of dallas. this is not the first devastating explosion cot has pipelined. >> over two dozen migrants from central america returned to the border between mexico and california this weekend. their aim, to be reunited with their children who were separated from them during the trump administration's controversial zero tolerance policy last year. nbc's mariana atenseo is following their journey. >> reporter: it took elmer six months and 2,500 miles to get back to this point. "since i left my goal was to be with her. i'm finally at the moment which is the final point, a dream of being with her." traveling fromh his pregnant wife, he hopes to be reunited with his 15-year-old daughter in the u.s. separated under the trump

administration's zero tolerance policy, he was deported. his daughter remained in the custody of health and human services for four months and now lives with a relative in wisconsin. "every day i think about her. i tell my daughter, please forgive me, it was not my intention to leave you here." gomez is not alone. he is joined by 28 other parents from central america who were deported without their children and are now demanding to get them back. >> the vast majority of these parents were deported without ever having the chance to seek asylum in the united states. >> reporter: e a lawyer working with the family, says the government has an obligation to reunite them,eder last july. >> the government has stated th making efforts to reunify these families and we're here to make sure the government complies with their obligations. >> reporter: border patrol officials on site tell us they are at capacity and the parents

will have to wait. elmer gomez and the others vow to stay as long as it takes. >> that was mariana atencio reporting. let's check back in with michelle grossman. it looks beautiful across the map. >> messy in new york city, we were talking about the puddles this morning. snow and sleet in the northeast. this is moving out this morning. we're going to be left with bitterly cold in that's going to trail in behind it. 8 in minneapolis. 21 in st. louis. look at dallas, just 35 degrees. and then to the west we're omhat as wes head up to the nortasld, well below normal for this time of year. temperatures in the 30s. we are so ready for spring, right? but it's still feeling like winter across the ea lindsey vo traded snow for ice last night

in minnesota. the recently retired gold medalist walked the red carpet and dropped the ceremonial first puck at the minnesota wild/national predators game in st. paul. vonn has a connection to both teams as a minnesota native and girlfriend of predator star p.k. subb subban. the controversial death of a contestant in "the voice" and the controversial issue of reporting sexual assault and a high-tech tool that's helping victims and the justice system. ♪ ♪ walgreens... battle beautifully are confusing quilted northern are confusing quilted northernf. for a bouncy castle. they're both durable, flexible and nice to have at parties.

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offering their support to freeman's family. new thinking about how to report the crime of sexual assault. about every three minutes, someone in the country is sexually assaulted. and many of those attacks go unreported. but now some survivors are finding the strength to begin a search tools. recicia loved playing soccer and lacrosse. but he had a secret it would take years to share. what happened to you? >> so i was essentially sexual abused by one of my best friend's older brothers when i was in elementary school. >> reporter: like so many abuse survivors, ryan kept quiet. >> when i brought this up years later with my friend, the response i got was, my brother would never do that to anyone. so i ultimately buried it. >> reporter: it's all too common. survivors afraid of being shamed or not believed at all. but years later, when ryan found out a group of his friends had also been abused, he decided to do something. he created an app called jdo.

it leds survivors post anonymous reports and links them to lawyers so they can pursue civil litigation. it also matches reports against the same alleged offender. >> each one of these circles re. >> reporter: it's funded in part by lawyers who pay $1,000 or more per year to sign up and take on cases. people might wonder whether this would lead to false reports or people being accuse hot didn't really do anything wrong. >> when people choose to pursue action, lawyers are going to vet their claims. we're not a decisionmaker in who's true and who's false. >> reporter: jdo is one of a growing number of tech tools designed to let users confidentially document or report sexual assault. the website ka less stow has been around longer and partners with universities. survivor jess ladd created the nonprofit in 2018. >> being able to go to an anonymous website at the time and miss that's best for you that won't judge you, that will give you, that will give you information about what to do. >> reporter: now in use at 13

universities, ka less stow lets users save a time stamped report or actually send that report to the school's title ix office which leads investigations into campus assaults. clis stow's database also recognizes multiple reports against one person. calisto says more than 9,000 reports have been filed so far. >> our goal is to eventually be able to detect any serial sexual predator in the country and connect their victims with one another and with their options for taking action. >> both companies say they encrypt the data entered by someone reporting an assault to protect their privacy, and the person making the allegation has control over who sees their information. still to come, we'll take you to a concert hall high in the alps. and live from new york, it is the cohen congressional hearings. the hilarious highlights from "saturday night live." "saturday night live." that's next. that's because your home is filled with soft surfaces that trap odors and release them back into the room.

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mr. chairman, you're right that i'm angry. i'm angry that i have to sit her through this ngry, i couldn't en wear a jacket today! you've been working in some of the sleaziest circles in america for years. what other criminals and lowlives have you worked for? >> i was the deputy finance chairman for the republican party. >> what? is that true? oh, dammit! i yield the rest of my time. >> that is great how ben stiller just nails michael cohen. i mean, accent and everything. >> he's so good at everything he

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for all of the freedom to move their way. in pampers cruisers. only pampers diapers are the number one choice of hospitals, nurses, and parents. the italian alps where an american artist is carrying out a vision many called crazy. it began 20 years ago with the idea of making warm sounds from ice. nbc's sarah harmon tells us how it turned into a sam donny. >> reporter: high in the italian alps on a glacier, mysterious music echoes from inside these mountains. what looks like a snowdrift iso.

it's so incredible and you can feel how much work it must have been. >> no, you can't. sorry. it's way more woorr: the brain tim linhart, american artist from new mexico who for years dreamt of making music in the ice and from the ice. when you had this idea, people must have said that guy tim is crazy. >> yeah, i got a lot of that. i got a lot of that. i was living in an igloo when i built the first orchestra up on the top of the mountain, so they already kind of thought i was crazy. >> reporter: maintaining ice instruments is tricky business. the worst-case scenario, a literal meltdown. for tim, the musicians and the audience, that's not the only struggle. getting to these majestic mountains is an epic journey. it is a lot of work to get here. but the payoff is worth itienc.

0 cic meters of snow and ade of holds 200 visitors. white snow llghts, the ambiance. ♪ a bundled audience t stay warm frigid 18-degree air. >> just the whole experience, the instruments glowing, everybody has this -- walks away with this feeling of, wow, that was a magical experience. >> reporter: maestro tim isn't done dreaming yet. he hopes one day ice music will be heard beyond these magnificent peaks all over the world. sarah harmon, nbc news, in the italian alps. >> that is so cool. it sounds just as beautiful as it looks. over the weekend dozens of couples braved the wind and rain to take part in the annual uk wife-carrying championship. so last year's winners chris

hepsworth and tynesha prince, defended theirrpsed his partner marriage proposal. they plan to compete as a married couple at the world is new film "triple frontier" and his road

tornados in the south claim dozens of lives and leave a path of destruction, including totally destroyed houses, mangled cars, and other structures. but is the worst over? millions in the northeast waking up to snowy conditions while other parts of the nation are facing rising waters and flooding. spacex's dragon rocket ship had just one heck of a weekend, giving even more promise to an increase in manned space exploration by summer. a busy week ahead in washington as investigations will come raining down on the white house. plus a glimpse at one of the most beautiful and dangerous

sights on earth. "early today" starts right now. good to be with you this monday morning. breaking news, a deadly devastation across the south.