russia continues its brutal assault on varsities in ukraine this morning even as moscow says there may be a pause in bombings from certain cities for humanitarian reasons we're live in ukraine. gasolinerices in the u.s. soaring. as we speak, prices jumping by the hour across the country. cnbc's hadley gambel is with us on the latest of sticker shock 1.5 million refugees and counting the exodus in ukraine now the largest since world war ii we're in poland on the front

lines telephone growing humanitarian crisis. and violent tornadoes rip through iowa, killing at least seven people where the severe weather is expected to hit next more cities unmasked new york, once the epicenter of the pandemic, prepares to lift vaccine and mask mandates. "early today" starts right now >> good morning. thanks for joining us. i'm steven romo. >> glad you're with us i'm frances rivera we begin with breaking news in ukraine where another attempted ceasefire was announced by russian officials, set to take place this hour. ukraine has not confirmed this new development but as the fighting stretches into its 12th day, a ceasefire could allow a path to get civilians out of danger residents in a village north of kyiv were caught in a deadly shelling by russian forces the mayor says he witnessed the russian military shoot and kill a family of four, including two small children the u.n. now says that over 1.5 million people have fled the

country. it is the fastest growing humanitarian crisis on the continent since world war ii ukraine president volodymyr zelenskyy is again pleading with the west to provide more support, saying the leaders have a humanitarian duty to help. nbc's molly hunter joins us now live from lviv, ukraine. molly, what is the latest on a possible ceasefire agreement to help civilians get out of the line of fire >> reporter: that's right. this would be the third day in a row an attempted ceasefire has possibly been put into effect. this morning we have only heard from the russian ministry of defense. they list four cities, kyiv, mariupol, kharkiv and sumi they say they will be opening 10:00 a.m. corridors we haven't heard anything from the ukrainian side, from the minister of interior, from the city council, from the mayors of these cities we also hasn't heard anything from the icrc. the red cross facilitates these humanitarian headquarters. we should say yesterday and the day before, a similar ceasefire

with humanitarian corridors failed because of russian shelling >> i want to ask you president zelenskyy has specifically had leaders to send the country fighter jets is he getting any closer to getting that >> that's on topics of debate in international diplomatic levels right now. according to a white house spokesperson, the white house is in talks with poland in a deal where basically poland could give its soviet-era mig fighter jets to ukraine and purchase much newer versions f-16s from the u.s. >> watching that and the potential for a ceasefire. molly, thank you well, the civilian toll is mounting as hundreds of ukrainians try desperately to escape the shelling from russian forces our tom llamas is in ukraine with the latest.

>> reporter: in ukraine, another prospect of peace shattered. plans for a ceasefire to evacuate civilians collapsed for the second night in a row amid intense shelling by russian forces in the besieged city of mariupol that according to ukrainian officials. mariupol's mayor saying russians are trying to create a humanitarian crisis there. civilians also caught in the crossfire outside of kyiv. video posted shows people evacuating on foot, coming under fire asthey try to escape. ambulances and vans rushing people to safety as explosions can be seen in the background the mayor says at least eight civilians were killed, three from a single family it comes as russiaassault on thf fighting entire neighborhoods decimated by air strikes airports completely destroyed. ukraine also announcing that the largest power plant in europe, which suffered heavy shelling

friday night is now officially under russian control. and now all eyes turn to odesa, ukraine's third largest city, on the coast of the black sea, now preparing for an all-out assault. ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy saying missiles targeting odesa will be a war crime. russian leader vladimir putin doubling down in a phone call with turkey's president, saying the fighting will not stop until russian demands are met. inside russia, resistance is also growing protesters east of moscow beaten by police. thousands already arrested back in ukraine, acts of defiance ukrainians boldly protesting near the coast in nova ka are r all over lviv we're starting to see signs like this one. they let people know who are fleeing the war zone can come inside, get a warm meal and all for free at faces restaurant, this family is busy in the kitchen

even 14-year-old violetta. >> it's scary time and my family want to help >> reporter: for the next ten days, they are serving anyone who needo proud of ukrainians and the people i would like to say thanks a lot. >> because they've come here and helped you >> yes, yes. >> reporter: and on the battlefield, this touching moment when soldiers laid down their arms to celebrate a wedding. vowing to fight until the end. on sunday night, president zelenskyy gave a fiery speech signaling he was growing impatient with the west, u.s. and nato at one point seeming to say the u.s. was hiding from this war. as for the russians, he is vowing revenge, saying this. you will not find a single peaceful place on this earth except a grave reporting from lviv in western ukraine, tom llamas, nbc news. gas prices are skyrocketing across america, reaching highs not seen since weight. the national average topping $4

a gallon we tern to hadley gambel who joins us from dubai for a closer read on the growing costs. what can americans expect in the coming weeks ahead >> good morning, frances this is all about the lack of spare capacity globally. just to give you a sense of what's happening at this point, we're seeing oil prices topping the highest that they've been since -- in the last 14 years. we're talking about they're up 10%. we've got wti and brent crude around 128 and 124 a barrel at this point we saw it over $130 earlier in the morning in trade what this means for americans at the fump is right now gasoline prices at the highest level in years. we're talking between $4 and $5. we're talking 5 plus in some areas like california there is a lack of spare capacity globally. what does that actually mean at this point, the united states produces around 11.6 million barrels per day. when we talk about the shale capacity, essentially, it will take months to get that shale

production up to a level that would actually help us in this current energy crisis. who has spare capacity not the united states. certainly not russia spare capacity is right here in the middle east in the uae where i'm sitting and saudi arabia they have spare capacity, but whether or not they're able to access it to bring prices down is the bigger question it all is going to rely on the decisions of opec, the so-called cartel that considers itself the stabilizer of the world's energy markets. and also whether or not the biden administration is going to really come to the mattress, if you will, and challenge saudi arabia and the uae to do more. now we have heard that there is a possibility that the biden administration might take that conversation to saudi arabia axios on a story earlier suggesting we could even see president biden going to saudi arabia and asking mbs himself to make a move here this would be a huge reversal for a white house that hasn't allowed the president to speak

directly to saudi arabia's crown prince as we say, we're going to continue to see oil prices as they go forward if they are on the table as antony blinken has now suggested. and also we've seen the oil markets pricing this in as late as last week 70% of russian oil guys couldn't even find a buyer on friday. >> really going see some drastic measures come out of this one. hadley, thank you so much for the breakdown. to more staggering numbers now. more than 1.5 million people have fled ukraine, and that number is sure to increase ellison barber is in southeast poland with the latest on that growing humanitarian crisis. >> reporter: the u.n. says more than 1.5 million people have fled ukraine since russia launched their invasion less than two weeks ago we've been to six different border crossings, and we have met people fleeing who are young. people fleeing who are very old. and they don't know if they will ever be able to go back home to ukraine. we met one woman just the other

day who had come from eastern ukraine all by herself she said she didn't know anyone in poland, but she knew she had to leave to get somewhere safe at the same time, she said she was arguing with friends of hers who live in russia who didn't believe that her home, her neighborhood had been bombed >> my acquaintances from russia, they're telling us oh my god, there is nothing like that don't tell us we are bombing you. it's impossible. and i'm telling them then why are our houses being exploded >> reporter: the majority of the people who have fled ukraine have come here to poland the european union decided unanimously that they're going to grant temporary protection to refugees that means that refugees fleeing ukraine, ukrainian or third country nationals who had refugee or protected status in ukrainian or permanent residency, they won't have to

apply for individual asylum. instead, they will be eligible for housing, education, social welfare benefits under this protection for a year. they can extend it up to three years. this is a directive that went into effect after the balkan wars and it is something that really has not been used in decades but here they are preparing for the potential of up to four million refugees around europe because of what's happening in ukraine. back to you. >> ellison, thank you so much for that report. now to the storms that overtook iowa. the deadliest to occur since may of 2008. 17 children including two children were killed on sa saturday officials from the national weather service were still trying to determine the size of the tornadoes. but meteorologists said some of the damage suggested wind speeds of more than 135 miles per hour. >> wow let's bring in nbc meteorologist

bill karins with the latest on that good morning, bill >> yeah, good morning. a very destructive and sad weekend with severe weather. 35 tornadoes reported on saturday we had four reported yesterday in arkansas. but it was really iowa that was hit by far the worst we still have the chance of isolated tornadoes during the day today. we're still under a tornado watch until 7:00 a.m we're watching areas from greenville, mississippi all the way up to memphis. and now they extended back up towards paducah and areas of western kentucky we'll continue to monitor that threat and during the day today, this line of thunderstorms will roll right through tennessee, kentucky, into west virginia we'll have a squall line going through pennsylvania, portions of west virginia, v, north carolina, and even northern atlanta area that's a lot of cities that's why 48 million people are at least under a threat of seeing severe weather today, including isolated tornadoes we do not expect it to be a tornado outbreak like we saw on saturday, but isolated tornadoes are possible and then the flooding threat we have about 12 million people

under flash flood watches that goes back through southern missouri, back to columbus and a little portion of northern vermont. and as far as the rainfall totals go with some of these thunderstorms, we could get some of those heavier rainfall, maybe 1 to 2 inches in isolated areas from louisiana all the way back up through areas of tennessee. so a very active weather weather map with record highs on the east coast and th areas of the great lakess we go throughout the show. and also, tomorrow watch out for the cold air in the south. thankfully, today is the worst weather day, guys, that we're going to see all week long but it's a rough one this certain spots. >> bill, thank you vice president kamala harris helped commemorate a dark day in america's history during the

civil rights movement. she visited selma, alabama to mark the 57th anniversary of bloody sunday. that's more than 500 black demonstrators were met and attacked by dozens of state troopers as they cross selma's edmund pettus bridge to fight for voting rights. during her visit, the vice president met with civil rights leaders, gave a powerful speech and joined the symbolic march. we're back in a minute with the shocking find about denver police about what was stolen the trucker convoy protesting covid-related mandates hits the d.c. beltway stay with us simply shake and spray to unlock the breakthrough power of touch-activated scent technology. that lasts, even hours later! that's because febreze touch stores scent in your fabrics so you get bursts of freshness with every touch. your whole world will come alive. welcome home to fresh with febreze touch.

la, la, la, la, la a jelly bean that's good for you? nature's bounty introduces new jelly bean vitamins. good-for-you nutrients in a tastier for you form. more sweet dreams. more flavorful immune support. new nature's bounty jelly beans. live bountifully. one prilosec otc in the morning blocks heartburn all day new nature's bounty jelly beans. and all night. prilosec otc prevents excess acid production that can cause heartburn. so don't fight heartburn, block it with prilosec otc. leading the news this morning, the convoy of truckers protesting covid mandates made its way to the nation's capital over the weekend the people's convoy slowed traffic around washington, d.c. on sunday. the group circled the capital bellway, calling for an end to pandemic restrictions. workers called it a peaceful,

law-abiding group and said the group plans to return today. new york city, which was one a major hot spot in the coronavirus pandemic is saying goodbye to two covid mandates. starting today you'll no longer have to show proof of a covid vaccination to enter bars, gyms, theaters and other indoor businesses children in kindergarten through 12th grade will have the option to go maskless in school the week comes during the week of a pandemic anniversary. this week marked two years since the world health organization declared covid-19 a pandemic a shocking theft in colorado a box containing human heads was stolen from a parked freight truck in denver. that container was being transported for medical research purposes the blue and white box was marked exempt human specimen investigators are asking anyone who finds the box to call police >> so morbid "snl" secures two fox news hosts in the latest show in one

of the most talked about opens of the season. for fast acting sore throat relief ♪ahhh!♪ wooo! vaporize sore throat pain with truth is... i've never really known how to care for my hardwood floors. then i found swiffer wetjet wood. these soft microfiber-like pads absorb dirt and grime deep inside. and it prevents streaks and haze better than my old mop. wetjet wood. also try sweeper wood cloths. ♪ together forever and never to part ♪ ♪ together forever we two ♪ ♪ and don't you know i would move heaven and earth ♪ ♪ to be together forever with you ♪ is now a good time for a flare-up? enough, crohn's! for adults with moderate to severe crohn's or ulcerative colitis, stelara® can provide relief, and is the first approved medication to reduce inflammation on and below the surface of the intestine in uc.

you, getting on that flight? back off, uc! stelara® may increase your risk of infections, some serious, and cancer. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu-like symptoms, sores, new skin growths, have had cancer, or if you need a vaccine. pres, a rare, potentially fatal brain condition, may be possible. some serious allergic reactions and lung inflammation can occur. lasting remission can start with stelara®. janssen can help you explore cost support options. better skin from your body wash? try olay body wash with skin care super ingredient collagen. olay body wash hydrates to improve skin 3x better, from dry and dull to firm and radiant. with olay body, i feel fearless in my skin. do you struggle with occasional nerve aches with olay body, in your hands or feet? try nervivenerve relief from the world's #1 selling nerve care company. nervive contains alpha lipoic acid to relieve occasional nerve aches, weakness and discomfort. try nervivenerve relief.

we got into a little bit of trouble for all the nice things we said about russia and the mean things we did say about ukrainian. >> we did sound off showing hindsight and foresight. >> why do we hate putin? aren't liberals in america worse? >> and i called the president of ukrainian pathetic he stayed and fought with his people in the war and i called him pathetic. >> after being tribute last week, "saturday night live" kicked off this weekend's show with a mock fox news special calling out hosts laura ingraham and tucker carlson for their views on the russian invasion. we're at that point now where it is still so, so tough to watch what is going on but with a little bit of humor like that from "snl," it might be something that some of us need >> they still have tucker in a bow tie.

got to mention that. up next, bill is following some snow on the forecast. we'll have more on that. > cong up, playing for piece. the music that is bringing hope to ukrainians. taking metamucil everyday can help. metamucil psyllium fiber, gels to trap and remove the waste that weighs you down. it also helps lower cholesterol and slows sugar absorption to promote healthy blood sugar levels. so you can feel lighter and more energetic metamucil. support your daily digestive health. and try metamucil fiber thins. a great tasting and easy way to start your day. living with metastatic breast cancer means being relentless. because every day matters. and having more of them is possible with verzenio. the only one of its kind proven to help you live significantly longer when taken with fulvestrant, regardless of menopause status. verzenio + fulvestrant is for hr+, her2- metastatic breast cancer that has progressed after hormone therapy. diarrhea is common, may be severe, or cause dehydration or infection.

at the first sign, call your doctor start an anti-diarrheal and drink fluids. before taking verzenio, tell your doctor about any fever, chills, or other signs of infection. verzenio may cause low white blood cell counts, which may cause serious infection that can lead to death. life-threatening lung inflammation can occur. tell your doctor about any new or worsening trouble breathing, cough, or chest pain. serious liver problems can happen. symptoms include fatigue, appetite loss, stomach pain and bleeding or bruising. blood clots that can lead to death have occurred. tell your doctor if you have pain or swelling in your arms or legs, shortness of breath, chest pain, and rapid breathing or heart rate, or if you're nursing, pregnant or plan to be. every day matters. and i want more of them. ask your doctor about everyday verzenio. ready to shine from the inside out? say "yes" to nature's bounty. the number one brand for hair, skin and nails. with our signature blend of health and beauty nutrients to bring out more of your inner beauty. nature's bounty. live bountifully. -dad, what's with your toenail? -oh, that...? i'm not sure... -it's a nail fungus infection. -...that's gross!

-it's nothing, really... -it's contagious. you can even spread it to other people. -mom, come here! -don't worry about it. it'll go away on its own! -no, it won't go away on its own. it's an infection. you need a prescription. nail fungus is a contagious infection. at the first signs, show it to your doctor... ... and ask if jublia is right for you. jublia is a prescription medicine used to treat toenail fungus. its most common side effects include ingrown toenail, application site redness... ... itching, swelling, burning or stinging, blisters and pain. jublia is recognized by the apma. most commercially insured patients may pay as little as $0 copay. go to jubliarx.com now to get started. lactaid is 100% real milk, just without the lactose. so you can enjoy it even if you're sensitive to dairy. so anyone who says lactaid isn't real milk is also saying mabel here isn't a real cow. and she really hates that. ordinary tissues burn when theo blows. so puffs plus lotion rescued his nose. mabel here isn't a real cow. with up to 50% more lotion, puffs bring soothing relief.

a nose in need deserves puffs indeed. america's #1 lotion tissue. welcome back to "early today. only a few days ago, kansas city was 80 degrees it's snowing currently this morning. the wild swing continues now the back side of our storm shows in blue. it's snow showing in chicago, towards milwaukee, especially areas of northern michigan and central michigan we get the most significant snow additional snowfall. we still could get 2 to 4 inches of snow out of this. and areas of southern wisconsin, north of chicago to saginaw, not a lot from kalamazoo to areas of detroit. and then the contrast of this is the record highs on the east coast, especially the midatlantic. look at d.c. today, 81 for a forecast high. and new york city has a chance of hitting 70 before the rain moves in later today >> wow all right, bill. thank you. the growing list of

companies who say no more to ckn miteruiass ba ia nu ll flip the way you cl'. introducing dawn platinum ez-squeeze. it's a new, upside-down bottle... with no cap. you just grab and squeeze. platinum's upgraded, more powerful formula breaks down and removes grease 4 times faster. nice! no flip, no mess. platinum is also a go-to grease cleaner for your sink, your countertops, and to pre-treat stains on laundry. faster. easier. new dawn platinum ez-squeeze. flip the way you clean dishes. up at 2:00am again? tonight, try pure zzzs all night. unlike other sleep aids, our extended release melatonin helps you sleep longer. and longer. zzzquil pure zzzs all night. fall asleep. stay asleep. what makes febreze air effects different? while cheaper aerosols rely on artificial propellants... febreze uses a 100% natural propellant. check it out! pressure created by what's in your air makes the bottle spray. which means freshness everyone will love.

febreze. more and more companies have severed ties following the invasion with ukraine. netflix ramped up sanctions on russia, announcing it's suspended its service throughout the country. the move comes after netflix pallet halted production on upcoming projects. tiktok adding it will continue to monitor the situation in ukraine with safety as a priority and american express says their globally issued cards won't work in russia after suspending operations in russia and belarus. amex joins visa and mastercard

who both said over the weekend they would suspend operations in russia visa's chairman said in a statement the move comes as a result of russia's unprovoked invasion of ukraine and the unacceptable events we have witnessed. toyota says they are putting a halt to its factory and production in russia this comes as vehicle imports into the country have already been suspended according to firms kpmg and price waterhouse, coopers both announced they are exiting russia due to the invasion kpmg added that its firm in belarus would also leave its net network stoly is rebranding its name to stoly. as ukrainians flee the violence at home, signs of hope. lester hotel islt is at the pol border >> reporter: they come by the

thousands, the weary, desperate to escape russia's relendless attacks, pouring into this city. and outside the train station, finding this ♪ a young woman at the piano, playing a song whose lyrics are a defiant expression of hope amid so much horror. what a wonderful world ♪ >> reporter: and at dusk, ukrainians uniting to sing folk songs in lviv's city square. ♪ while at the border crossing in poland, parents and children listen in.

perhaps imagining a time when this all might be over >> and our thanks so much to lester for that story that we all need to hear thanks for waking up with us

breaking news overnight. russian officials announce a ceasefire, potentially clearing the way for desperate refugees to escape the violence as the humanitarian crisis reaches levels not seen since world war ii financing the firepower. congress fast tracks millions in aid. plus, the push to stop buying russian oil as gas prices soar here at home caught in the diplomatic crossfire. the growing concerns for the wnba superstar now detained in moscow wicked