chipotle sauce. [doorbell chimes] thank you. [puck scores] oooow yeah!! i wasn't ready! you want cheese to go with that whine?? the effort to vaccinate as many americans as possible as quickly as possible just got a whole lot more complicated with the south african variant in south carolina straight ahead. barrier-breaking actor was 96 this morning an wall street fo trading sites like robin hood to put the brakes on the stock. thousands of california

residents impacted by evacuations leading to heavy rains. >> we'll introduce you to the kansas city chiefs super fahn living in enemy territory. welcome to friday. "early today" starts right now good morning i'm phillip mena. >> and i'm frances rivera. the battle against coronavirus may have got even harder while the number of covid cases seems to be trending downward after the holiday surges, there is another variant to contend with the strain first fought in south africa has now been found in the united states. here's nbc's jay gray. >> reporter: as the fight against covid-19 continues, a dangerous and disturbing revelation in south carolina. >> two cases associated with the covid-19 variant that first emerged in south africa have been detected in our state. >> reporter: the discovery means the doctors have now identified at least three new foreigns in s

suggesting any are more dangerous or deadly, but scientists warn they have the ability to spread much faster than the wave of coronavirus the uk variant has already been identified in nearly two dozen states and the cdc believes it will be the predominant form b adding pressure to get the vaccine to as many people as possible as quickly as possible. >> it all come downs to this, everyone supply, supply, supply. >> reporter: the biden administration is promising to step up the supply and fema is offering up to 10,000 service members at 1,000 vaccination sites across the country still, newly appointed task forces say it will be months before it' the general public. >> every state has its own

strategy for distributing the vaccine and there are fears in california that some essential workers may be left out now that the state is prioritizing age. nbc's antonia hylton good morning. >> reporter: since the very earliest days of the pandemic, they were told they were essential. but since the vaccines have rolled out, they don't feel treated like they are. california is still focused on treating the elderly so people 65 and 75 years of age and up in communities where many are from yung la tino immigrant families, they're not being captured in that age-tiered ugh they're high-risk workers going out to the field every single day. in fact, i visited a farm this week where four of the 12 workers recently caught covid, and that brought down about a third of their work force.

i want to have you take a listen to this conversation i had with this man who's a son of farm workers and now owns an independent farm himse we work together, and i hope that they get that same value as someone else because just as you need a doctor or just as you need a firefighter to protect you, you need to protect your food source, you know. and so i really hope that they don't get forgotten. >> reporter: you know, something fascinating i learned from a nurse who works at a clinic close to his farm, many workers who come off the farms, they may be in their 30s but they present with health problems you see in people in their 70s because they're in contact with

pesticides and other dangeroushe misconception of what agricultural work looks like and it pushes the boundaries of who may be considered the most essential and who should be at the front of the line. >> great point thank you. tensions are high within the european union where some countries are being forced to suspend vaccination programs because of dwindling supplies. nbc's molly hunter has more. molly, what's made this vaccine rollout so rocky >> hey, frances, good morning. that's right we're talking specifically about the oxford astrazeneca vaccine, and the uk not only approved that vaccine faster than the eu, they did a deal with astrazeneca long before the eu did they're set to approve it today, but what's happening is in the european factories that's producing the astrazeneca vaccine, there are delays.

that's delaying the rollout in the eu there are not delays in the uk factories and production facilities here, so what the eu is saying is, hey, astrazeneca, why don't you divert some of the vaccines meant for the uk to the eu of course, uk is saying no way and the eu is threatening legal action. >> tension upon tension there. let's switch gears to one of the tightest covid lockdowns in the world. what can you tell us about the situation unfolding now in lebanon? >> that's right. take a look at these pictures. this is kind of the fourth night of protests in trip olie, lebanon. tripoli in one of the tightest lockdowns, a 24-hour lockdown, much tighter than where i'm at in london. and they're in one of the biggest economic crises in history. they're tired and fed up and can't see their families so they're protesting. >> molly, thank you. in the wake of the january

6th insurrection, distrust is running deeper in d.c. they've sowed a deep divide with the speaker over the house going so far as to say the enemy is within tracie potts joins us with more. tracie, there are few signs of unity here. >> reporter: well, phillip, that's right it looks like the fortress around the u.s. capitol may stay indefinitely that's what the new acting capitol police chief is asking for, that the fencing stay essentially indefinitely around the capitol and that there's also a force nearby to respond to any threats or violence there's also growing anger now from democrats about a freshman republican, mar superiory taylor green of georgia cnn reports some of her social media comments, liking online comments about violence against democrats, claiminr pelosi was treason,

punishable by death, and also information on a shooting death. they're leading for a push to have her expelled from the house. >> she's incited in the past to storm the capitol go, after nancy pelosi i believe she is a clear and present danger to the house of representatives. >> we will probably need a supplemental for more security for members when the enemy is within the house of representatives. >> what exactly did you mean when you said the enemy is within. >> it means we have members of congress who want to bring guns on the floor and have threatened violence on other members of congress >> reporter: the republican leader in the house kevin mccarthy called green's comments deeply disturbing and wants to

have a conversation with her about it. >> all right our tracie potts with the very latest from capitol hill tracie thank you. thousands of other evacuation orders in california this morning after heavy rains caused mudslides >> reporter: the natural beauty of california's central coast shredded by devastating mudslides. a series of powerful winter storms pounded the mountains with a deluge of rain and snow, sen sending debris cascading down into rivers. 25 structures were damaged in monterey county. one person was injured thousands remain under evacuation orders and without power. the severe weather spawned by an atmospheric river or massive rivet of moisture that's cause deed caused a destructive climate change effect.

a network of bun scars left over from a year of worst fires on record could lead to catastrophic landslides. steve patterson, nbc news. will california get any kind of break any time soon let's bring in meteorologist janessa webb hey, janessa, good morning >> i wish i could say today, but it's not going to happen we have moisture filtering in for the next 24 hours. then we'll get a slight brrea. right now you can see most of california dealing with rain and snow, and this will transition into our next large storm system that will go coast to coast. today even the southwest getting about a half inch to a quarter inch of rain, but it's the higher elevations that could see about 9 inches this system will make its way to the midwest and northeast for your weekend into needed some r

air, it's the deep south to the southeast where temperatures are still in the 60s the deep freeze is moving in we'll take a look at that forecast coming up. >> you see how bitter it will be all right, janessa, thanks. the miami heat welcomed fans back in the stans for thhe denv nuggets. ticket holders were screened by covid-19 detection dogs chl they can often detect the virus before a person is symptomatic they walk past each person when they get there if they detect covid, the dog will sit down and the fans will not be allowed into the arenach they're still required to wear masks and social distae. > we'll look back at the groundbreaking career of cicely tyson. made with plants? plants

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as black woman, cicely wasn't offered as many roles as her tent commanded but she had resome of she once said when i became aware of the ignorance that existed, i made a conscious decision i couldn't afford to be just an actress. i had important things to said and i would say them through my work. >> cicely tyson was a trail blazer we're mourning her loss today. tyson was a legend her portrayals electrified the screen, and she did so while paving the way for countless others trib poured in there the's this first iconic photo from "roots. angela bass set wrote, from all of us black and brown girls, we deceived to be seen and loved.

tyson empowered the black community beyond acting. as an activist, leader and cultural icon. our rehema ellis takes a look back at her remarkable career. >> reporter: cicely tyson captivated and inspired audiences on stage and in film. >> now starting now starting now >> reporter: she made her mark in groundbreaking productions. "roots." >> i must give him a very good life. >> reporter: and the autobiography of miss jane pittman and combined civil rights with her career but tyson was always an unlikely star born in 1924 in harlem, she grew up in poverty, the daughter of caribbean immigrants, deeply rooted in the church. when she quit her job as a

secretary to pursue modeling and acting, her mother kicked her out of the house. >> she really thought i was going to live in a den o. >> reporter: she shot to fame first as ae of the first black models and appeared in the television show "eastside westside." >> as an actor, i felt i could play any role. i felt during the latter part of the 1960s it was a luxury i could not afford and i chose to do more. >> reporter: she was the first black actor to win an emmy for a best actress in a drama. in '56 she married miles davis she later described their seven-year marriage as tumultuous, but she focused on her work in 2013 she won a tony for best leading actress in a play in "a

trip to bountiful. later the highest civilian award, the medal for freedom, a tribute to a woman who played her part as an uncompromising role model on stage and off. rehema ellis, nbc news, new york. >> cicely tyson was and screen,o many actors now look up to and say this is the reason why they're there. >> what a life story from harlem to this iconic influence. coming up, senator bernie sanders turns his meme into big bucks for charity. and itti's sll not game over for the game stom saga why the stock is surging again this morning freshness and softness you never forget, with downy. these are both satisfying snacks.

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volatility is rocking wall street this week the dow surged 300 points yesterday after the biggest selloff in three months on wednesday, but the roller coaster showing know signs of slowing down with futures pointing to another selloff at the open. and adding to that volatility is the stock that investors around the globe are talking about. the investing and has many fat cats crying about a reddit form of investors. yesterday the fat cats turned the table around yet again to make sense of all of it is

cnbc's karen tso hey, karen, good morning. >> good morning to you it's been the wild west on wall street particularly around a handful of stocks and an army of bettors have hedged against the hate funds they've managed to coordinate trades what we've now witnessed, a secret pleasure. the small investors have had one up on the investors, but that said, we're entering dangerous territories. it could be risky particularly if the market falls. i don't think they're setting up for a market slump this morning on wall street one of their biggest concerns is what they'll focus on yet and whether there's fresh regulation one of the main tradinvity of some of these bets and then

reversed that decision we all wonder. in the meantime, what is targeted next. frances and phillip. >> it's funny that wall street is now worrying about risky bets now that they're not the ones lining their pocketsyou. janessa is back with your weekend forecast ght be to blame. looks like a great day for achy, burning eyes over-the-counter eye drops typically work by lubricating your eyes and may provide temporary relief. ha! these drops probably won't touch me. xiidra works differently, targeting inflammation that can cause dry eye disease. what is that? xiidra, noooo! it can provide lasting relief. xiidra is the only fda approved treatment specifically for the signs and symptoms of dry eye disease. one drop in each eye, twice a day. don't use if you're allergic to xiidra. common side effects include eye irritation, discomfort or blurred vision when applied to the eye, and unusual taste sensation. donafter using xiidra,tip to your eye or any surface. wait 15 minutes before reinserting contacts.

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in today's top stories, the columbus, ohio, police department will soon have a new chief. the city's mayor announced the current chief thomas quinlan will be stepping down amid multiple controversies including the shooting of 47-year-old andre hill and 43-year-old casey hill the mayor also said quinlan could not successfully implement the change and form he expected, adding columbus residents have lost faith in him. in a statement to wcmh quinlan said while he hoped to continue

in his role, he respected the decision and was proud of his work as chief. as if we need more proof how amazing dogs are, we have one peac pooch and his owner. >> i was trapped. >> the dog was given to her when her son passed a i way last year king is definitely a hero. >> la cree fahad lied down after working a graveyard shift when her home caught fire she said king was tugging on her, scratching her until she woke up, leading him to safety. it looks like we'll continue to see a mask bernie sanders sitting in a folding chair with, of course, the mask and mittens. the senator has announced sales have reached nearly $2 million to a charity in vermont and now a dallas pinata maker is looking to continue the popularity

100 bucks for just bernie or 150 bucks if you want that bernie pinata on a chair, making sure the hair is perfect. right there, parka, mittens. super bowl lv is a week away the chiefs will not be without some of their most loyal fans. we take a look at a chiefs fan living in enemy territory. >> reporter: joey lowery was born and raised in chiefs kingdom but is now in buccaneers territory. in november he and seven friends purchased tickets to the super bowl hoping they would run it back lowery said the city is transforming he said more chiefs shirts and jerseys are being spotted around town and he expected more people to be cheering on the chiefs whether they're a lifelong fan or not. >> there's a lot of transplants and there are teams who made it

like the bills or browns or ravens, and you find them literally backing patrick mahomes around every corner when you have somebody at the table talking to tom brady. talking to tom brady. they finally get a hom hie , i'm mike. jack hired me to tell you about his bagel breakfast sandwiches with bacon or sausage. jack i thought you hired me to be the spokesperson! why choose one when you can have two? my 2 for $5 bagel breakfast sandwiches.

hi, sausage. why choose one when you can have two? whoa, mark. jack hired me! i got a contract. you mean like this one? why choose one when you can have two? my 2 for $5 bagel breakfast sandwiches. right now at 4:30 breaking news. mother nature's wrath continues to hold on northern california. landslide overnight in santa cruz county sending a pg&e truck down an embankment. we have new video just into the newsroom. look at the radar which is lighting up right now as more rain still lingers here at home. plus the war of words intensifies between the governor and teachers over the return to the classroom. >> hopefully this is going to help increase our revenue so we can hav