it's christmas eve and millions are traveling to be with loved ones most have covid omicron on their minds as the spread is surging and people are desperately trying to find testing without the long lines guilty of manslaughter the jury says kim potter is guilty of all charges in the manslaughter death of daunte wright during a traffic stop police on this holiday are warning motorists to be extra vigilant behind the wheel.

avoid excessive speeds every year for collectors since 1964 and this year, the hess truck is stronger than ever a christmas reunion for a family traveling halfway around the global today is december 24th "early today" starts right now. >> good morning, i'm phillip mena >> i'm vinita spbs nair. due to the omicron variant, the cdc has shortened the covid isolation period for workers under these revised guidelines, healthcare workers who test positive and are asymptomatic will be allowed to go back to work after seven days the covid grinch is putting a damper on the christmas holiday. here's nbc news' miguel almaguer. >> reporter: before christmas, these are not the traditional lines americans are used to waiting in, holiday cheer

turning to frustration as the anxious wait for testing >> i did one yesterday where i waited for two hours. >> reporter: with testing sites overwhelmed, new york city was a gift for the few some 10,000 at-home test kits handed out for free. a city of more than 8 million. >> a very tiny amount for all the people that want to touch you for the holidays it's sad and broken. >> reporter: americans are getting tested for a good reason for a third day in a row, omicron has fueled more than 200,000 positive cases but as the u.s. death toll tops 2,000 a day, there appears to be hopeful views in the united kingdom. the u.s. health agency says omicron are 50-to-70% less likely to require hospitalization than those with delta. the fda authorized a second pill for use this one from merck. >> in marpatients at high risk f

covid, there was a 30% risk in hospitalizations and deaths. >> reporter: that's less than pfizer, but an additional tool as delta devstates hospitals. >> we have seen so many deaths. >> reporter: doctors and nurses simply can't keep pace with the patients coming through the doors. >> we have patients waiting hours and days for beds upstairs >> having eclipsed the surge, some believe omicron can trigger a million new cases a day. who ill the separation will go on in time's square, this new year's will be different travelers need to be fully vaccinated and wear masks outdoors as the crowd shrinks from 58 to 15,000. as our nation looks to the future, we take with us lessons from the past. the pandemic taking no break for the holidays >> miguel, thank you

a minnesota jury found kim potter guilty of first degree manslaughter in the death of daunte wright. the white former police officer maintained she intended to use a taser on wright during a traffic stop, instead, accidentally drew her gun and shot the 20-year-old black man to death >> reporter: the reaction here in minneapolis was swift from a group of a few dozen supporters outside the courtroom who listened to the investigators from within. guilty on first degree manslaughter, we saw kim potter escorted from the courtroom in handcuffs. for the people outside, some people outside of the courtroom each and every day of this trial, they say that this came as a surprise to them. this is a jury that spent more than 27 hours duplicate behind closed doors for more than four days submitting three different questions to the judge one of them signaling that they were struggling to reach a

consensus, but in the ends, they found kim potter guilty for the death of 20-year-old daunte wright and outside of the courtroom, we heard from katie bryant, the mother of daunte wright who thanked the demonstrators outside for their support here in minneapolis. definitely, tensions are eased after the conviction of kim potter holiday shoppers shot by gunfire in an illinois mall. two people who knew each other began shooting inside a mall one was taken into custody, the other to hospital. meanwhile, another chaotic scene in a crowded store, police officers fatally shot a suspect. the witnesses said had been fleeing some kind of a chain and attacking customers. a 14-year-old girl was later found dead inside a dressing room officials believe an officer's

round went through a wall. the california department of justice is now investigating heavily hit, the crunch time in holiday travel, several airlines are blaming the coronavirus for grounded dozens of flights combined. saying the omicron variant is spreading through its work force. delta also attributed bad weather to the west to some of the cancellations. this as the holiday travel rush kicks into high gear on the ground and in the air. nbc news' tom costello has the latest. >> reporter: eager for christmas escape, americans have been on the move from i-95 to i-5 east to best, i-90 to i-10 north to south. madison crews opting to drive several hundred miles to avoid covid exposure for flying. >> the potential of taking it home to our families coming from different places, it's too much of a risk. >> reporter: gas prices higher than last year, coming down, unled averaging 3.29 a gallon.

a 500 mile trip from dallas to kansas city costing $66 in gas, $2 cheaper than at thanksgiving. in virginia, a state trooper on watch, a top concern nationwide distracted and paired driving and speed. speeding surged 11% last year pushing a big spike in fatal crashes. virginia drivers recently ticked for doing 106, 115, even 140 miles per hour the trooper who stopped a speeder escaped injury after his car was hit by an allegedly impaired driver the same happened to a trooper hit by a distracted driver. >> he rolled his vehicle upsidedown and landed next to me him luckily, he had minor scratches. >> reporter: meanwhile from clogged roads to clogged airports, the tsa reports screening 2 million passengers wednesday, slightly more than prepandemic 2019. >> we're all got a our boosters.

>> reporter: a new york officer hailed as a hero a veteran emt climbed over a tsa belt no perform a heimlich and save a choking baby. >> reporter: thank goodness with fast thinking tsa officers n. northern virginia, police were in a chasing, a suspect hit a trooper vehicle with an officer inside and rolled the vehicle. other officers gave chase. they eventually caught up with a suspect. the officer taken to a nearby hospital in good condition we are told it really underscores the exact risk we have been talking about with speed, distracted driving, programs impairment being something that's a constant concern for troopers out on the road nationwide. >> it can be a dangerous time of year, tom, thank you a fourth woman has come forward accusing actor chris noth of sexual assault a singer/songwriter alleged the star assaulted her in 2002

at a virtual press conference with her lawyer, she said she was afraid to come forward saying he called her the next day threatening to ruin her career if she told anyone. her attorney says statutes are preventing her from taking legal action they are calming on the governor to allow victims of a one-year lookback period to file charges against their perpetrators nbc news has not spoken to any of the women a representative for the actor has not responded to requests for comment. dozens of families got the perfect gift just in time for christmas. 45 troops who were stationed in the middle east were reunited with their families on thursday at an airport in nebraska. the soldiers had spent the past ten months working as military police officers protecting a joint military base in jordan.

>> all right let's turn to weather and see what is in store for christmas eve. bill kierans is in for janessa good morning to you, bill. >> great to see you, guys. we're looking at a complex forecast for the west. most areas of the east were great. i will caution people in the northeast, a little snow careful on the roads, especially in northern and central new england. as far as the west goes, heavy rain moves through los angeles overnight. it's even moving towards the deserts of arizona, phoenix will get some rain today. this will be the biggest rain storm this season for many in this area. we have a flood threat and the heavy rain is exiting southern california we will focus on the next storm. which will be the storm moving in as we go throughout the holiday weekend. it will be very rough to travel through christmas. the day after christmas into sunday look at these amounts of snow, some areas could be up to seven-to-eight feet. that'slmos a the pacific northw

temperatures are chilly. there could be downpours, even with occasional thunder. we'll give you that christmas even christmas day forecast coming up, guys. >> we are looking forward to that, thank you. now a scary site after an 18-wheel amazon truck was left hanging over interstate 35 in san antonio, texas the driver lost control of the vehicle on the wet roadway luckily the driver was not injured. no other vehicles were involved in that crash. also it doesn't appear gifts will be delayed either it is the biggest direct-to-consumer toys sold in the world. you can es what it is? >> we are celebrating and remembering the honored author

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in the news, one of the great american writers has died. joan diddion journalist passed away from parkinson's disease. she was known for her incisive and deeply personal work her book won the national book award in 2005. she was 87 in maine, a state trooper goes above and beyond the call of duty that is timer harrington rescue an elderly man with alzheimer's. he carried bernard perry back to his vehicle and waited for paramedics to arrive perry wandered away from his home and fell into a ditch he was taken to the hospital and is being treated for hyperthermia and frost bite. a holiday family reunion two years in the making. nt,upex why a half century

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nothing says christmas like the hess truck it's one of the longest running toy brands in america and most sought after collectibles. this year things are looking a little different >> when we see that first commercial on tv, that's how you know it's the holiday season the hess truck started in 1964 as a gas station children's toy. now it's the biggest direct-to-consumer toy in the world and a widely popular checkable released just once a year in 1964 the very first hess toy, it have here on the table. it was an oil tanker we've produced a new truck every year, a single new model.

>> reporter: the first toy was originally sold for $1.30 at hess gas stations on the east coast this year's toy goes for $39.99 it is only available on the toy's website. >> it became a huge hit selling out before he became a direct e checker. >> some sites have a tanker priced at over $2,000. tankers and trucks aren't all they korea it. >> we have everything from police cars to race cars to nasa-like shut him, spaceships and, of course, airplanes this year. >> reporter: so how did a spipg i single toy truck stand out at a traffic of toys? >> in 1964, it had working lights you fill it up with water and empty out of its hose here that was innovative at the time. we evolve what we do with products we have all sorts of different technology that allows our toys to have motion but real

i motion in some cases. >> reporter: he says they're made for the roughest of image native play. >> we make them really durable you want that collection to be handed down to the next generation >> in fact, they test the toy's ability every year dropping a 300-pound toy on top every year, we come up with something new and different, it enables that new play. >> reporter: for a little boy to have a truck whose headlights turned off and on, i thought it was cool to shut off all the lights, turn the lights on the truck and drive it around the furniture. >> reporter: frank is a long-time hess toy collector >> i was probably five-years-old my grandmother lived in the bronx. there was a hess gas station down the street. i recall getting one every christmas and subsequently every

christmas i'd get one. at the time they weren't for collecting they were more as gifts. so i started to purchase them again, probably in the late '80s/early '90s. >> with more than 7,000 followers, frank runs one of the largest hess collector, on facebook they had meet and greets for seven years before the pandemic. >> it's amazing the variety or array or spectrum of people from super hard core checkers to people, grandmas who buy these for their grandchildren every year it's really kind of opened up the world for us it takes you back to a simpler time that's what i enjoyed most about it >> if you are curious about next year's pay close attention >> our thanks to erin gilchrist for that report. i get it i see why they go for upwards of

thousands of dollars there on the retail market. >> i don't think people realize. we were gifted them donated it with everything else >> like all the baseball cards when i was younger after a short break, bill kierans is back thwi your forecast what about a tv that you can taste? you heard of scratch n sniff stay with us zblmplgs zblmpls deeply penetrates fabrics to eliminate trapped food odors as it dries. spray febreze fabric refresher when you clean up after meals to ensure your entire home smells fresh and clean. try febreze fabric refresher. brand power. helping you buy better. i wonder where froot loops come from? follow me! ♪♪ just follow your nose!

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try wejet with a money back guarantee. . well, if you have ever wanted to taste what's on your tv screen, you may be in lick, in luck. a japanese producer is the create or of the tv. it supplies chemicals and sprays the screen replicating what you see, letting you lick the display. they think the taste the tv could retail for $875. >> i was reading that he was saying it can later be used for

somaliers and chefs. that's his vision. i don't know if i see that coming to fruition >> i don't know if i can get there yet, and $1,000 to pay for the experience grab the tissues, after being separated more than two years due to the pandemic, one texas family got the best surprise gift for the holidays they got to get together our station in ft. worth, texas, has the story. >> reporter: over the last couple of years it's hard to know just how many moments like this one her family has shared through windows and over screens. >> we've celebrated birthdayf over facetime, my dad's death over facetime. >> reporter: these spring shots the only way her sister could be with their family as their dad died from covid-19 they moved to australia, where borders have yet to fully reopen that is until just a few weeks

ago. >> hi! mom, come here. >> i always knew once the borders in australia were opened and i could travel back into the country, i would be on the first flight out. >> reporter: making a surprise around-the-world reunion possible just in time for christmas. >> when the pandemic started, you never think your family will be separated for two years sorry. i get emotional. so it's been a hard two years. i was excited she's here. >> why are you guys crying happy tears? >> reporter: like so many of these years, the sisters say on one hand they haven't missed a beat on the other, time feels lost. so this holiday season, they'll spend time reconnecting, grieving and celebrating a christmas finally face-to-face >> definitely the longest i've ever gone seeing my family i hope we never have to go that long again knock on wood. >> the best hugs

>> all of cuss relate to that. today's shot of the day coming from a hot hand of a 3rd grade teacher.

right now at 4:30, a soggy start to your christmas eve. the rain coming down hard in parts of the bay area. meteorologist, kari hall, is timing out whether your outdoor holiday plans could be washed out. and then firefighters pulled a car out of water with a body inside. lots of questions linger. who came to the rescue to make sure a grinch did not ruin their holiday display? this is "today in the bay."