the things that matter most happen one morning and one cup at a time. ♪ ♪ we are currently dealing with an unprecedented situation in new zealand. it's very grave, it's very serious. we have dealt with a active shooter situation. we have multiple fatalities. at this point i can't say how many, but it is significant. >> tragedy in new zealand. a mass shooting at two mosques. multiple people are in custody. we'll have the latest for you. in like a lion for sure, but march is still roaring big-time in many parts of the country. airline operations disrupted from coast to coast with the grounding of one of boeing's

most popular planes. new details this the morning involving the supposed mob hit of a reputed boss of a powerful organized crime family. beto mania sweeping the nation as the failed senate candidate from texas sets his sights on 1600 pennsylvania avenue. get ready for teen students to skip school to protest a lack of action to combat climate change. "early today" starts right now. >> good friday morning. i'm philip mena. >> i'm frances rivera. a horrific mass shooting at two mosques in christchurch, new zealand. >> i tell you that as of 7:00 p.m. tonight, we believe that 40 people have lost their lives in this act of extreme violence. ten have died at linwood avenue mosque, three of which were outside the mosque itself.

>> for more on what we've learned in the past hour, ali arouzi joins us from london. >> good morning. it's a massacre in new zealand. prime minister jacinda arden who gave a press conference said 40 were killed and more than 20 seriously wounded in what seems to be new zealand's worst mass shooting. arden described the attack of unprecedented violence as one of the country's darkest days. let's take a listen to more of what she had to say. >> it is clear that this can now only be described as a terrorist attack. from what we know, it does appear to have been well planned. two explosive devices attached to suspects' vehicles have now been found, and they have been disarmed. >> the shootings occurred at two mosques in the christchurch area during friday afternoon prayers. the busiest time for muslim worshippers.

now witnesses describe multiple deaths at the al noor mosque in central christchurch with bodies being brought out on stretchers. four are in custody, three men and one woman. new zealand police say they're not aware of other suspects beyond the four who have been arrested but they can't be certain. one witness described a gunman as white, aged in his 30s or 40s, and wearing a uniform. we also know a man claimed responsibility for the shootings and left a 74-page anti-immigrant manifesto where he explained his actions for the mass shooting. frances? >> horrific to hear those detail. ali, thank you. investigators in france are looking for clues as they examine the heavily damaged black boxes from the mysterious plane crash in ethiopia that took 157 lives, leave nothing survivors. this morning the boeing max 737 models remain grounded worldwide as critical new evidence in the latest crash emerges.

nbc's tom costello has more. >> reporter: at airports nationwide today, every 737 max sat out the day after one last nonpassenger trip. without the max in their fleet, southwest had to cancel 39 flights, american 85. 20,000 passengers potentially affected. >> when i heard that it was canceled, oh, great, you know. we're going to still be able to get on a plane but a different plane that should be safer. >> reporter: meanwhile in paris, investigators have now received the black boxes, badly damaged, from the ethiopian airliner that crashed. ethiopia chose france as a neutral third-party since boeing is an american company. the faa says there are similarities with the lion air max 8 crash in indonesia last october. satellite data shows that plane experienced erratic vertical speed readings after taking off, up and down for seven minutes, climbing at 1,500 feet per minute, then descending at 1,500 feet per minute. data from the ethiopian plane is similar, up and down, then up again over a volatile two

minutes. the faa also says it found new evidence in the ethiopian wreckage. investigators looking closely now at the position of the jackscrew that moves the stabilizer on the tail which could indicate if the nose of the plane was being forced down, much like lion air. >> the flight recorder and the cockpit voice recorder data is absolutely critical to understanding what happened in ethiopia, and if there is commonality with the lion air tragedy. >> reporter: still, the faa remains under fire for only grounding the plane after every other country in the world acted first. did your close relationship with boeing and with the airlines in any way lead you to delay the decision to ground these planes? >> absolutely not. we're linked to them for safety. 100%, we're linked to them for safety. and that's the conversations that i had with boeing and with the carriers since sunday. but other than that, there is no linkage. >> reporter: meanwhile, at the crash scene, anguished families gathered again today to remember

the 157 lives lost. a team of investigators from the ntsb, three of them, arriving in paris this morning. they will assist the french in cracking open those black boxes. they're very concerned about how damaged the data may be. they want to be careful retrieving that data. however, every expert i've talked to says, listen, trying to get the data out, analyzing the data, then deciding if there is a common problem and what the fekds may be, this could take weeks or months which means those planes could sit idle for weeks or months. some airlines now talking about sending boeing a bill for those planes sitting idle. meanwhile boeing is pausing deliveries of all new planes coming off the max line. >> all right, tom, thank you for your report. millions of people have been impacted by a massive storm that has brought blizzard warnings and spawned tornados. major damage was reported in kentucky where a tornado just missed hitting the national weather service forecast office in paducah.

here's nbc's gabe gutierrez. >> that's a funnel cloud. >> reporter: this tornado in west paducah one of several slicing through kentucky. >> spun my car to the side. just kind of put my head down and covered my head and just kind of prayed for the best. >> reporter: the twister tore the roof off this church and damaged this preschool, about 40 children inside. >> we took all the kids from the nursery, played games, kept them distracted. >> reporter: all escaped safely. >> the almighty hand of god has provided safety to our community and these children. >> reporter: the severe weather part of a massive system known as the bomb cyclone, also bringing flooding to the midwest where roads have turned into rivers, rising creeks cutting off towns and forcing evacuations in nebraska. >> oh my goodness! >> reporter: in 24 hours the national weather service logged about 350 wind gust reports of more than 50 miles an hour. cancelations and delays building at airports across the country. denver withstood punishing blizzard conditions for six straight hours. in minnesota the roof of this barn collapsed under the weight

of all that snow. >> snow and water in general weighs roughly eight pounds per gallon. >> reporter: while in texas -- >> oh my god. >> reporter: wind gusts violently blew over a semi truck. the fast-moving system now threatening more communities as it marches east. gabe gutierrez, nbc news. to a murder involving one of the most notorious organized crime families in new york. gambino mob boss francesco "frankie boy cali" gunned down outside his home in new york wednesday. the shooting has sparked a massive manhunt with police searching for the gunman. with the latest is anne thompson. >> reporter: this suv with bloody handprints is where authorities say francesco "frankie boy" cali tried to hide while being shot at least six times outside his house last night. >> units respond to shots fired. >> confirmed. >> reporter: the brazen crime caught on surveillance video, starting authorities say when cali's suv was rammed by a pickup truck. >> his car is involved in an accident with the individual

that winds up shooting him. >> reporter: cali, police sources say, was a leader in the gambino crime family. left to die as a blue pickup truck fled. >> mafia was in his dna. >> reporter: selwyn raab wrote about the new york underworld's five families. does the nature of the murder tell you anything about who did it? >> well, it tells you one thing, it was done so viciously that normally mob murders are done more quietly. a bullet in the back of the head. >> reporter: it's been more than three decades since the last mob boss was assassinated. paul castellano of the gambino family, a hit organized by the flamboyant crime boss john gotti, the so-called dapper don. cali was the complete opposite say workers at his staten island neighborhood deli. >> he didn't come in and say, i'm the boss of a mafia family. he came in and said, i want a sandwich. >> reporter: cali's only mob-related conviction more than a decade ago for an extortion conspiracy. he served 16 months. what does frank cali's death mark?

>> it marks -- cali's death obviously marks the end of an era of peace and harmony. >> reporter: now the question is, what does it start? anne thompson, nbc news, new york. in chicago cameras were rolling as actor jussie smollett pleaded not guilty to 16 felony charges. the "empire" star is accused of staging a racist and homophobic attack in january to drum up publicity for himself. smollett is due back in court in april. the largest case of college admissions fraud in u.s. history has now snowballed with the fallout trickling down to students who were denied admission. they are filing a class action lawsuit against some of those universities involved alleging those schools didn't take the proper steps to safeguard against fraud. meanwhile the 50 parents involved are facing their own set of troubles with disintegrating tv deals and disappearing sponsorships. here's the latest from nbc's miguel almaguer. >> reporter: new fallout from the massive college cheating scam.

actress lori loughlin dumped by hallmark after being accused of paying $500,000 in bribes to get her daughters into usc. >> highlight palette with sephora collection. >> reporter: her youngest child, youtube star olivia jade, also dropped by cosmetic company sephora. as the scandal unfolded, the freshman happened to be in the bahamas on this yacht, owned by billionaire rick caruso, the usc board of trustees chairman. >> she doesn't even need college, to find out she's paying to get into a selective school she doesn't even want to go to is kind of irritating. >> reporter: outrage growing, a lawsuit filed comes from a student at stanford university. kyliyah wood says her degree from the prestigious college won't be worth as much as it was before the cheating scandal, suing the eight universities involved and william singer, the alleged mastermind behind the scheme. wood says she never knew the admissions system was an unfair rigged process in which parents could buy their way into the university through bribery and

dishonest schemes. it could become a class action suit involving more than 1 million students. >> i'm jane buckingham. >> reporter: among those indicted tv career coach jane buckingham, who isn't camera shy but has made no comment. last may on instagram she wrote, don't cheat, apply it to all aspects of life. about a month later, prosecutors say she agreed to pay a harvard grad $50,000 to take the a.c.t. test for her son. investigators fear nearly 800 parents with deep pockets tried to cheat the system. perhaps a disturbing lesson on the real price of higher education for some of the ultra-rich and famous. miguel almaguer, nbc news, los angeles. >> looks like it's going to be a butchy friday weather-wise before we get into hopefully a calm weekend? >> yeah, you kind of have to decide, northeast, if you would rather warmer conditions but

clouds? they're going to be in place today. a few showers also still tracking a few cells making their way from alabama to jackson. these showers will continue throughout the afternoon leading up to our evening hours. we could see a little bit of lake enhancement for saturday across the great lakes here int theo the south and southeast throughout the afternoon. so it's been a rough week here, but change is on the way for the weekend. >> like to hear that, thank you so much. congrats are in order for our own "snl's" adi bryant. the comedienne will star in a comedy series "shrill," based on the memoir of activist lindie

west. "shrill" is available to stream starting today on hulu. still to come, details on president trump's first veto straight ahead. teens by the thousands will be walking out of class today. why? to protest a lack of attention on climate change. stay with us here on a very busy friday morning on "early today." family vacation on a travel site? at hilton.com, i get the price match guarantee. and i can choose from their 14 different hotel brands, so i get the right hotel for every member of my family. like a doubletree for my cousins who love their warm chocolate chip cookies. a homewood suites for my uncle who likes a long stay. a hampton for my sister and her kids. that's a lot of syrup and the waldorf astoria beverly hills for me. but i thought your family vacation was in miami? it is. i hear they're having a great time. book at hilton.com and get the hilton price match guarantee. if you find a lower rate, we match it and give you 25% off that stay. ♪ when you have nausea, ♪ heartburn, ♪ indigestion, ♪ upset stomach, ♪ diarrhea... girl, pepto ultra coating will treat your stomach right.

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republicans join democrats in a vote to block his emergency declaration over the border wall. the vote marked the first major division in congress. >> yeas 59 -- >> reporter: a republican rebellion, embarrassing blow to president trump on his signature issue. 12 senators in his own party joining with democrats to try to block the national emergency he declared to get more money for the bored are wall he wants. >> reporter: for republicans it's about reining in unfettered presidential power and swinging the pendulum back toward congress. >> it's a question about the balance of power that is core to our constitution. this is not about the president or about border security. >> no president's ever used what's called the national emergencies act in this way. >> i think that we can be very supportive of border security and the president's priorities without ceding our authorities under the constitution. >> reporter: still, for all the talk, there's no teeth since the resolution's set to die on the

president's desk with a, as he put it, veto. for the first time ever president trump will be forced to use that power to kill something congress wants, since there aren't enough votes to override him. >> it doesn't matter, i'll probably have to veto. and it's not going to be overturned and we're going to have our whole thing. >> reporter: the president also previewing a 2020 strategy. fire up his base by arguing he's fighting the establishment on border security. >> and i think it's going to be a great election issue. >> reporter: president trump will have ten days to veto that measure once it makes it to his desk here at the white house. >> hallie, thank you. just ahead, big things going on right now at the international space station. plus your weekend weather coming up on "early today." ust lovely. i'm here to let all these folks know how easy it is to save money on their car insurance with geico- oi oi oi set the pick! kick it outside!!

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♪ ♪ the things that matter most happen one morning and one cup at a time. ♪ ♪ and liftoff. we have liftoff. >> a russian-made soyuz rocket lifted off from kazakhstan thursday. on board two american astronauts along with a russian cosmonaut. after a six-hour journey they successfully landed and will be docked on the international space station for the next 6 1/2 months. they'll be conducting the first-ever all-female space walk later this month. perfect timing, march is women's history month. >> space walk like a girl, i'll do it. can beto o'rourke spin a senate loss into a white house win?

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let's check in with willie geist to see what's coming up on "sunday today." >> good to see you. this week on "sunday today," my guest is woody harrelson. woody and i got together in austin, texas, to talk about his new movie "the highway man." his big break on "cheers" and the pitfalls of that early fame. how elvis presley inspired him to get into show business one day in woody's high school library. our sunday sit-down with woody harrelson, plus the latest news and politics this weekend on "sunday today." you can catch us in the morning or set the dvr and watch us any time. for you back to you, frances and philip, and we'll see you on sunday morning. >> all right, willie, see you then. hanging out with woody harrelson

in austin, that's bucket list stuff. >> yeah, it will be crazy to see how that turns out. you know willie's also going to talk about probably the 2020 race. it's getting more and more crowded and there is a new contender aiming to take our president on in 2020. beto o'rourke, who leapt to the national stage with his texas senate bid last year, is officially joining the crowded democratic field. nbc's kristen welker has the details. >> reporter: a big bet from beto o'rourke, the former texas congressman in iowa calling for unity. >> we're all americans and we're all human beings and we'll do everything within our power for one another, for this great country, for every generation that follows. this is democracy. >> reporter: after making it official on social media. >> i'm running to serve you as the next president of the united states of america. >> reporter: nbc's garrett haake in iowa. >> what do you uniquely bring to the table? >> we're able to put texas in play. frankly for the next nominee, 38 electoral votes in play. >> reporter: the 46-year-old father of three lost that senate race to republican ted cruz.

still, he became a darling of the democratic party with his grassroots fund-raising and those massive crowds. during the campaign, o'rourke talking about texas with lester. >> obviously a fast-growing place. >> everyone's coming out. and they're standing up to be counted. >> reporter: but critics question o'rourke's readiness for the job. he had few accomplishments during six years in congress and has struggled on policy questions. asked recently about a major immigration issue, what to do about people who overstay their visas, o'rourke telling the "washington post," "i don't know." although it's something else getting president trump's attention. >> your reaction to beto o'rourke's announcement today? >> i think he's got a lot of hand movement, i've never seen so much hand movement. is he crazy or is that just the way he acts? >> reporter: since his announcement o'rourke's campaign says he's raised money in all 50 states. >> talk about a boom or bust candidate. >> we'll see it all happen.

meanwhile, they're taking up less and less oxygen for all of them. we'll see how they all get a chance to breathe. >> we haven't even heard from joe biden yet. >> have a great friday and a better weekend. better weekend. i'm frances new lysol wipes are crazy strong. don't believe us? we got this workout class to compare them to clorox. wow! feel the strength of new lysol wipes. dude! are you looking at this? can i take those? no. lysol. what it takes to protect.® mucinex cold & flu all-in-one. fights...

...sore throat, fever, cough, sinus pressure, chest congestion, headache, nasal congestion, body pain... all in one. did you really need the caps lock? get tough on cold and flu symptoms. mucinex cold and flu all-in-one. terror in new zealand - 49 killed after as gunmen opens fire at two mosques. right now at 4:30, terror in new zealand. 49 killed, as a gunman opens fire at two mosques, and now, mosques around the world and here in the bay area on high alert. "today in the bay" starts right now. a very good friday morning to you. thanks for joining us. i'm laura garcia. >> and i'm kris sanchez in for marcus today. we'll get to the developing story out of new zealand in a few moments. first we want to get to your weather forecast with vianey. >> good morning. we'll notice clear skies right now. it's a little dark out there but you'll feel the temperatures are chilly once again. 40 degrees in san jose. wind speeds very light, 5 miles per hour in through t