in nebraska, mandatory evacuations are in effect as rivers overflow their banks after the bomb cyclone hit the region. the heavy rain mixed with snow melt has led to historic flooding. we'll go live to new zealand where leaders are vowing changes to gun laws in the aftermath of the mass shooting. new details on the black boxes from the downed ethiopian jetliner and boeing's 737 designs. the final battle against isis is taking longer than anticipated. we'll go inside syria for the latest. to the green hills of northern ireland where some think the soil could help provide miracles in medicine. it was another happy delivery for april over the

weekend. "early today" starts right now. >> good monday morning. i'm marlie hall. >> i'm frances rivera. across the midwest water levels have risen to record highs. at least three deaths have been blamed on historic flooding across the midwest. the missouri is expected to rise 2 feet above its major flooding level with water in some areas not expected to recede until later this week. nebraska department of transportation warned roads and bridges where the waters receded are under inspection. many road closures and detours are expected. nbc's dan scheneman is following the torrey for us. >> this is our entrance. >> reporter: across the heartland, heavy rain combined with melting snow. the result, floodwaters. in omaha, nebraska, the missouri river reached record levels. waste from one of the sewage treatment plants is entering the river. >> the recommendation is that you avoid being in the water, and hopefully people understand

what the quantity of water that's coming down the missouri river, that you stay out of the water. >> reporter: many residents in the area are stranded inside their homes by water, or they simply can't reach their homes. >> my mom is actually stranded in our neighborhood currently. she's by herself but doing okay. but cannot get in or out of the neighborhood. >> reporter: iowa's governor toured flood damage in the town of hornick. last week a mandatory evacuation order was issued for the town. >> a lot of water. we're looking at 111 homes in hornick. >> reporter: dozens had to leave their homes in central wisconsin as the crawfish river threatened to cut off entire neighborhoods. >> the water is still a little bit unpredictable, from what i understand. it seems like we're holding steady right now. >> reporter: residents in the path of the flooding can do little except wait. dan scheneman, nbc news. now to the tragedy in new zealand. the world is mourning the loss of the 50 victims killed in

friday's terror attacks in christchurch, new zealand. another 50 people were injured and authorities are ramping up their efforts to help identify the victims. but as some mourn, dozens more are holding on to hope. they are holding pictures of their loved ones in hopes that someone will recognize them. the country's prime minister hopes to have all the bodies released by wednesday, but timing is a major factor because islamic law calls for the bodies to be cleansed and buried as soon as possible. nbc's sarah harman joins us live from christchurch, new zealand. sarah, it's been three days since this horrific shooting. what's the latest on the investigation? >> reporter: the latest on the investigation is that new zealand police have just given a press conference and said, this is the largest investigation they've ever conducted, 250 officers, two crime scenes. and they do believe at this point it was a single attacker. now whether he had outside support will be one of the key components of the investigation going forward. meanwhile in this country the

conversation has turned very swiftly to gun control. new zealand is a country with a strong hunting culture. about one gun for every four people. that could change soon. the prime minister says gun control is on the way. she's promised to announce proposals within ten days' time. meanwhile here in christchurch, this is a community united in its grief. you can see these flowers behind me. i'm told the number of flowers has doubled since this morning. about ten feet deep. the smell is overwhelming. people are gathering here. there was a concert earlier as people came together to remember at least 50 victims. the youngest just 3 years old. marlie, this morning we also know there are about 30 people in the hospital, some of them fighting for their very lives as families wait for bodies to be released. marlie? >> all right, sarah, thank you. the boeing crisis is escalating, this time with u.s.

federal prosecutors getting involved. according to "the wall street journal," the prosecutors and u.s. department of transportation are scrutinizing the development of boeing's max jet airliners. the inquiries come amid probes of regulators' safety of the new planes launched in october when indonesia's lion air crashed into the java sea. it's ramped up after the second crash earlier this month with investigators pointing out multiple similarities between the two. here with the latest is nbc's morgan radford. >> reporter: thousands line the streets of addis ababa, 17 empty caskets the focus of a nation in mourning. remains of the victims of the doomed ethiopian airlines flight won't be recovered for months. but news that the black boxes pulled from the field where the plane crashed are already yielding information for investigators. the ethiopian transport minister says preliminary results show clear similarities with an earlier disaster, a lion air flight that went down just

months ago in indonesia. in that case investigators say the boeing plane crashed when an automated system meant to keep the 737 max 8 aircraft from stalling actually caused the plane to crash into the sea. >> this data's going to be carefully analyzed, and it will tell the tale of what happened. >> reporter: the faa saying the u.s. government has not yet validated the data. a preliminary report is expected to be released within 30 days. morgan radford, nbc news. . this morning the pentagon is defending the president's syria policy following a detailed new report from the "wall street journal." according to the article published hours ago citing u.s. officials, the u.s. plans to leave up to 1,000 american troops in syria to fight isis. it comes after the president's administration initially said american troops would be fully removed from the war zone. here's nbc's matt bradley. >> reporter: the islamic state's so-called caliphate is coming to an end. but it's not going down without

a fight. for two months the u.s.-led coalition has battered its last holdout from the air. as american-backed syrian democratic forces, the sdf, fight on the ground. people have been streaming out for hours and they tell us that there's many, many more left inside including women and children. more than 3,000 haven'tered in just the past few days, many badly injured. we spoke with anan, sdf commander. we're going to the first point his fighters have reached and after that it's isis. but our interview was cut short. >> go, go, go, go! go, go! >> we have to get out of here. our interview was interrupted. it looks like there was a counterattack by isis. >> reporter: as we race to safety, sdf fighters carried a young boy and girl, seriously injured, to a field hospital. when we returned he'd taken up a sniper position himself. there are conflicting reports but the commander told us two

female suicide bombers had pretended to surrender but detonated themselves instead. the two injured children, the son and daughter of one of the women. the u.s. military told us later the young boy survived, but the girl died. their mother willing to kill her own children for her dying cause. matt bradley, nbc news, bagouz, syria. a u.s. navy veteran is locked in a tense let's battle in iran. michael white was the first american known to be detained by tehran since president trump took office. according to us u.s.-based lawyer he was convicted for insulting iran's supreme leader and posting private information and sentenced to ten years in prison. nbc's ali arouzi is in london with those details. >> reporter: that's right, another harsh sentence handed down to an american in iran. but it's somewhat of an odd case. michael white, who's a u.s. navy veteran, had an iranian girlfriend whom he was visiting in iran, and not for the first time, either. he'd visited her in the city of

mashad in the northeast of the country at least twice before. now when we first heard of this case, it seemed to be a private or consular affair. now his u.s.-based lawyer says he's been sentenced to ten years for posting a private photograph online and insulting ayatollah khomenei, the country's supreme leader. however, that information didn't come from the iranians, it came from the state department which in turn received the information from the swiss who represent u.s. interests in iran in the absence of dib mattic relations between tehran and iran. official media haven't commented on white' sentence and the case is unusual because as far as i know, all the americans who have been jailed in iran over the past decade have faced espionage charges. that doesn't seem to be the case with white, although we can't be certain for sure because the iranian judicial system is notoriously opaque. what's for sure is this is going to be a very difficult period

for white and his family back home in the united states. frances? >> all right, ali, thank you. an out-of-control oil refinery fire near houston, texas, has forced a city-wide shelter in place warning for over 30,000 residents. traffic on state highway 225 has been shut down in both directions and this morning firefighters say they are not yet able to contain the flames. >> we know that as of yet, it is a developing situation. and we're watching very closely to make sure that our community is safe and that our community is informed. >> according to authorities the fire is being fueled by an extremely hazard husband petroleum chemical. officials say about 30 people were working at the refinery at the time the fire broke out early sunday morning, none have been reported hurt. >> so many communities dealing with flooding, especially after the weekend. let's check in with nbc meteorologist bill karins to see what's in store. >> all the way from the mississippi river back through the missouri, we've shown you the pictures at the top of the show. just incredible stuff.

all because of about 1 to 3 inches of rain, which wasn't that big a deal, but it was because of the rapid snow melt on frozen ground, those combinations just brutal. the pink dots are where we have majo flooding. missouri river has crested in omaha. a little bit, friday it crests in st. joseph's. the forecast in the omaha area, we're okay today, sunny, dry. wednesday looks okay. light rain on tuesday. does not look to be a huge ordeal. the next seven days, actually, less than 1 inch of rain over this horribly flooded area. so mostly just wait now for all those rivers to drai thatn.'s help some of our river levels although people don't appreciate the chilly air continuing. we don't have a lot of travel issues out there, just still dealing with flooding. >> all right, bill, thank you very much.

to a weekend of st. patrick's day celebrations. thousands gathered in the streets of new york city, london, and around the world for parades and other festivities to honor the patron saint of ireland, also to recognize irish culture and heritage. in dublin, ireland, there was plenty of green but the parade was full of other bright colors as well. the theme of this year's event was storytelling. the performances and floats featured irish mythology and defined historic moments. prince william and kate middleton spent the holiday honoring irish guards and their irish wolf hound mascot at a base in west london. after attending a marching drill the royal couple visited with the guardsmen at lunch and each toasted the day with a traditional pint of guinness. >> corned beef and cabbage and you're set. still ahead, dig into the medical secrets hid no one the irish soil. and an eye on 2020. the race for the democratic nomination heats up as candidates hit the campaign candidates hit the campaign trail.

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leading the news on this monday, the 2020 race hits the ground running in iowa. democratic nominees spent the weekend meeting voters and making their case to take on president trump. right now it is a packed field of 13, and it could get even more crowded soon with one big name slipping another hint. nbc's kelly o'donnell has the latest from d.c. >> reporter: on st. patrick's day -- >> hey, everyone! >> reporter: iowa holds its own electoral pot of gold for democrats. >> happy st. patrick's day. >> reporter: amy clone aassure from neighboring minnesota stepped out wearing the green and campaigning on it. >> on day one as your president, i will sign us back into the international climate change agreement. >> reporter: but first comes the party's electability test. >> i will do what it takes to win. >> reporter: for beto o'rourke -- >> i really feel the call of this moment. >> reporter: that test is about expanding the map. >> i want wisconsin to know that i'm here.

>> reporter: a state democrats still grimace about losing in 2016. >> when we don't show up, we get what we deserve. and that is to lose. >> reporter: the path to the nomination may be paved with selfies. >> how's everybody? >> reporter: and voters sampling the broad field. >> i think we need fresh face, we need somebody yuoung. i like the youth, i like the youth ideas. >> reporter: after exploring a run kirsten gillibrand made her entry official on video. >> we need a lead history makes big, bold, grave choices. >> that's why i'm running for president. >> reporter: while former vice president joe biden nearly tripped his way into the race with a slip of the tongue protecting his policy cred. >> i am the most progressive record of anybody running for the -- of anybody who would run -- [ applause ] >> reporter: and running at his own pace, the president, who typically goes to church on christian holidays, attended st. john's episcopal with the first lady. the first regular sunday service

he has attended in office. the president's upcoming campaigning is mixed in with his official duties. he'll be holding a fund-raiser this wednesday in canton, ohio. he's announced a rally for grand rapids the following week. and the campaign says that will mark the 18th visit to michigan for the president since 2015. and this really is a sign that both parties are going to give voters in the midwest a lot of attention. >> kelly o'donnell for us, thank you. up next, the half a billion reasons to pick up a powerball ticket this week. then a box office marvel. the sky-high haul for captain marvel over the weekend. playing "four on four" with a barbershop quartet? [quartet singing] bum bum bum bum... pass the ball... pass the rock.. ...we're open just pass the ball! no, i can't believe how easy it was to save hundreds of dollars on my car insurance with geico. yea.

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i'm going to end it. >> "captain marvel" soared to new heights in theaters. the superhero hit dominated the box office earning an additional $69 million in the united states, $120 million internationally. this brings global ticket sales to a whopping $760 million total worldwide. who wants to be a half billionaire? i do. there were no big winners in saturday night's powerball drawing, worth over $492 million. that means wednesday night's jackpot has yoen to $550 million with a lump sum cash option of $335 million. it's the drawing's largest

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the epic buzzer beater from deep propelled the clippers past the nets after a wild back and forth game. l.a. wins it at home 119-116. all right, bill karins is back. some game. >> a little march madness in the nba, right? let's take you through this week ahead. this is spring break time in florida. unfortunately this is going to be one of the worst weeks of weather in miami you've had all winter long. only in the 70s, chance of rain the next three days. much of the rest of the country is really quiet. by the time we get to wednesday a new storm system comes into california. a bit of rain and snow. there's still wet weather in florida. a little chilly in many areas. by friday just some snow showers up there in portions of northern new england. we bring a little heavy rain back into the southern flans on prd. as of now this looks to stay south of the flood zone, especially away from areas like omaha and kansas city. dry it out. >> thank you, we'll be right back. as heart failure. and a busy day ahead.

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scientists have made an incredible discovery in northern ireland. it's about the soil there and how it's used as an ancient folk cure and could help modern medicine fight infections. dr. john torres takes a look. >> reporter: an urgent warning about the alarming rise in deadly germs resistant to antibiotics. >> every year in the united states, 23,000 people at least die from an antibiotic-resistant infection. that's like a judge bow jet crashing every week. >> reporter: they're called superbugs and scientists say if new antibiotics aren't made soon, millions of people could be at risk. microbiologist jerry quinn believes the answer may be here,

county furmana, northern ireland, the land where the hills are dotted with sheep and the drink of choice is point of guinness. >> around this area there's a lot of still what we call ethno pharmacology, local folk cures, local medicine, cures around for thousands of years. >> reporter: one of those folk cures passed down from generation to generation uses plain old dirt. except they say the soil possesses special healing powers. >> you take the soil, just a small sample, and then you put it under your pillow. >> maybe sometimes in a handkerchief in a little bag -- >> you say a series of set prayers. >> it's a faith cure to cure all illnesses. >> a lot of times when there's cures for thousands of years, there's a basis behind it. there's some reason it works that we just don't know about. >> we can look at it and say maybe it's just superstition, or we can look closely and see -- we can actually investigate.

>> reporter: quinn tested the soil. what he found in the mineral-rich limestone was stunning. new strains of bacteria never before seen. he wondered, could they fight killer germs? the result was shocking. the new bacteria is able to kill some of the world's most deadly super bugs. could this be the cure for antibiotic resistance? >> yeah, well, it's part of the answer. >> reporter: the next step, testing it in humans. and perhaps this ancient irish secret could be the cure to what's ailing us now. dr. john torres, nbc news, northern ireland. >> wow, who would have thought, getting a piece of dirt and putting it under your pillow. >> some of the best cures are found in nature. in case you missed it, over the weekend april the giraffe, the world's most famous long-necked mom, gave birth to her fifth calf. the 17-year-old mom delivered a healthy baby boy calf on saturday at animal adventure park in upstate new york. nearly 300,000 tuned in to watch the livestream of april's second

delivery on saturday morning. april delivered a healthy baby boy calf and mom is doing fine as well. >> thanks for being with us. i'm frances rivera. >> i'm marlie hall. check us out on

flooding like some places have never seen. water cutting off communities and main roadways. thousands in shelters as rescues continue into monday. in new zealand revealing details on the sinister plot behind the mass shooting. plus the social media component that drove the suspected killer to act. the uproar over using undersea seismic testing to search for oil and gas that's got environmentalists pitted against the energy industry. president trump unleashes a tsunami-like twitter storm over the weekend targeting many, including the late senator john mccain. >> plus, bikinis in the midst.