hours ago russia began a new military offensive in the donbas region in eastern ukraine and vladimir putin says sanctions has failed to deter him. and a federal judge rules the cdc mask mandate unlawful. soccer star christiano renaldo's extremly personal posting about the death of his infant son and his twin sister who survived a growing list of states and cities will soon be posting.

"early today" starts right now. glad you're with us on this tuesday. i'm frances rivera >> and i'm cori coffman. the face masks are coming off after a federal judge struck mask man dalt. biden's federal brie, break it down for us >> reporter: the cdc's travel mask mandate struck down by the district court judge, a trump appointee and former clerk for supreme court justice clarence thomas she said the cdc did not have the legal authority to impose the mask mandate and that the government broke the law by doing it without first seeking public comment the ruling immediately setoff widespread changes the tsa released a statement saying it will no longer enforce

the mask mandate on public transportation and transportation hubs. airlines including delta, united, jet blue and southwest announced masks will now be optional on domestic flights new jersey transit and the mta said they're still going to require masks on trains in d.c. and philadelphia masks will be optional and amtrak says riders and employees no longer need to wear masks. so this ruling by the judge definitely having an impact widespread >> and many different companies choosing to interpreter it differently, and of course set their standards. the pentagon believes the u.s. will soon provide some military training to ukraine, showing forces outside the country how to use howitzer artillery systems. the help is needed as ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy

says the fight for donbas has begun. raf, good morning. what can you tell us about this new phase of the war >> reporter: frances, good morning. we've been saying for weeks ukraine was braising for a fresh russian assault all across the east president zelenskyy says now that attack has begun. it is a very long front going all the way from kharkiv to the north through the donbas and down to mariupol on the southern coast of ukraine this is a front that will stretch ukrainian forces and russia will bring its enormous advances in numbers to bear, but president zelenskyy says his forces will fight no matter how many russian troops are driven there. he says, we will fight now, this will be a very different battle from what we have seen so far especially around the suburbs of kyiv, ukrainian forces there extremely successful with guerilla-style

hit-and-run tactics. in the east it's going to be much more open terrain ukrainian officials say this will look more like the second world war with battles and tanks going up against each other. ukrainians say their lines are holding so far, the russians have only broke through in two places president zelenskyy says his forces can win this battle but only if they get the weapons they need from the united states and from nato allies president biden will be hosting a call with european leaders later today, and that will be one of the topics up for discussion frances? >> i want to ask you about the city you're in it was shot 24 hours ago by missile strikes. looks very, very different now what have you learned about that attack >> reporter: yeah, frances, you can see behind me people are out on the street here, the unis shining and quiet. as you said when we were on-air yesterday the sirens were blaring and a few hours before that vladimir putin's missiles

were raining down on the western city of lviv the governor says seven people were killed, 11 injured including one baby the missiles hit a number of military warehouses but also hit a car repair shop. we went there, that shop completely destroyed, a direct hit from the missiles. dozens of dozens of burned out cars all around, and it is a reminder that vladimir putin's missiles can hit every corner of this country including the relative safe haven of lviv. >> those images are reminder enough raf, thank you as this war drags on more families are waiting in limbo desperately searching for any sign of their missing loved one unsure where they are or what happened to them nbc's molly hunter has more of their stories. >> reporter: 26-year-old karina saves every message she receives i don't know why i save them, there the young police officer admits it's important to me, they're like my family now

the they she's referring to are the hundreds ofallies searching for loved ones, showing up at mass graves, the dreadful recognition. authorities say they counted 900 bodies so far sending them to different morgues across the kyiv region. it's complicated we're so overwhelmed, she said, but i want all the missing to be found. she's even sending out pictures of bodies on a telegram messaging group in hopes relatives can identify them. in bucha 42-year-old natalia is one of so many looking for answers. what are the numbers on there wall right here? are those your phone numbers on the side of the house she's written her phone number she says for when her husband returns. the russians came on march 17th, she says they accused her husband of being involved in the rusmilitay

they ordered her to say good-bye how long did they give you, how many minutes just a couple seconds, she says. i just knelt down, hugged him, touched his cheek, didn't say a word and then they took him away what's the plan where you go on who to ask she thinks he might have been forced to belarus. she's registered would the police, with the morgue, called all the hot lines and no body has turned up. you think he's still alive i won't lose hope to find him alive, she says. i'll help him overcome this when he finally comes home. nbc news, bucha. breaking overnight, officials iniberville parish, louisiana, have lifted a shelter in place order for residents after a chemical leak.

they said in a statement a fire at the site had been put out and chlorine response efforts continue no injuries have been reported and the company says there's no longer any off-site chlorine exposure nearby roads have reopened after earlier closures vice president kamala harris announces the u.s. has committed to ending the practice of anti-satellite missile tests the plans began last year when the russian military destroyed a defunct satellite. it created thousands of pieces of space debris at one point sending astronauts at the international space station diving for shelter >> simply put, these tests are dangerous, and we will not conduct them we are the first nation to make such a commitment. >> so far the u.s., russia, china and india have all destroyed sat satellites in the tests.

the last satellite destroyed was in 2008. tragic news for the family of christiano renaldo. the soccer star and his partner announced the death of the couple's newborn son, calling the greatest pain any parent can feel the couple was expecting twins the couple added the birth of their baby girl gave them strength in this moment. the sports world and beyond offered dawn dolences with renaldo's club team, manchester united, writing your pain is our pain a little egguication and a whole lot of hopping at the white house. the president oversaw a lot of excellent rolls. >> bill, the balcony chairs all

shuffling around, blown all over the place. i'm sure it's much worse in some areas. >> we just got a report of 13 inches of snow here this will be the biggest snowstorm they've had all winter long it's happening in the middle to almost the second half of april. incredible now up to about 80,000 people without power. it's a heavy, wet snow there are trees coming down from northern portions of pennsylvania and cooperstown if your familiar with that. those are the areas now getting this really epic heavy snow. we're going to see an additional maybe 2 to 4 inches in that area we're not completely done yet and still going to end up with 16, 17 inches of snow. the banding of the snow is heavy enough even in some of the valleys the warm air was overwhelmed. it will be windy this afternoon, so after the storm is gone and

the snow is over it'll be windy for your travel out of the airport and the big cies of ti getting the power back on with all that snow for all those line crews. yeah, we'll talk more about our next weather concern in the middle of the country coming up. >> wow, it is crazy what we're getting. just a little bit of everything. >> yeah. up next how a quick thinking teen scared off an armed intruder at their home and police arrests an arson suspect linked to last week's massive home depot inferno in california what goes on it... usually. ♪♪ in it... mostly. even what gets near your body. please please please take that outside. here to meet those high standards

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the store with flames visible from space the took over 100 firefighters several hours to get it under control. police will reveal the suspect's identity during a press conference later today less than four months back behind the wheel britney spears has been cited for speeding. in march she was pulled over by the california highway patrol and cited for unsafe driving speed for conditions that's according to court documents. spears is legally prohibited from driving alone during her conservatorship. some quick thinking by a teen helping catch the intruder who broke into her house with a pair of knives and a cellphone recording. >> police here >> somebody -- >> reporter: when when the 14-year-old heard someone in her house friday morning she says she initially thought her mom

had come home from work. >> i watched boots walk into her room and i'm like that's not her. that doesn't look like her >> reporter: that's when she ran into the kitchen grabbing a pair of kbiefb. >> i was like get out of my house, and he looked very shocked. >> reporter: meanwhile her younger sister woke up and called her mother who was at work >> what are you saying to me there's a man in the house and yeah he broke in >> reporter: with those two knives in hand she said she confronted the suspect she said who fled in a pickup truck thanks to her video massachusetts state police arrested the suspect 58-year-old joseph ridge, a short time later. >> the fact she turned the video camera on and captured him leaving that broke the case. i don't know if we'd be able to identify the individual any other way. >> reporter: we reached utto ridge's attorney but did not immediately hear back.

police praising her courage and quick thinking >> her weapons of choice >> reporter: but her mother not surprised. >> she's a brave kid she's a really brave kid >> reporter: police are describing that suspect as a, quote, career criminal he just finished serving a 15-year sentence for robbery and is now charged with breaking and entering, trespassing and disorderly conduct >> our thanks to priscilla thompson for that report wow, that is something else to be able to react that way. >> absolutely, incredibly brave. i would have run right out of the house. still to come for verizon, $15 an hour phoning it in. the wireless giant dialled up its minimum wage even higher plus now hiring but how much why more companies are requiring states show salary range in job postings ople saw 90% clearer skin at 16 weeks. the majority of people saw 90% clearer skin even at 5 years. serious allergic reactions may occur.

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in today's quick hits, preparations are under way for the radio city broadcast iconic

christmas spectacular. for the first time in three years the rockettes held an open call for dancers >> the 16 time emmy nominated actor, producer and writer was honored in a special ceremony. and kendrick lamar surprised fans with the announcement of a new album. he shared a mysterious link where an official press release shows the album will drop may 13th now to wall street and main street where it's all about the bottom line and what people are paid starting with big changes ahead at one of the world's biggest telecommunications companies. here with the details. good morning >> frances, good morning well, wages are certainly front and center when it comes to the u.s. economic outlook, and we've now heard verizon plans to raise its minimum wage to $20 an hour.

so new employees in customer service will be paid $20 an hour and retail and inside sales employees will receive $20 an hour when you include base salary target commission, existing employees who are on wages less than this will see their wages automatically raise to this new rate and it's adding a premium pay component for assistant managers who work holidays, sundays or are bilingual. on the wage front we are also seeing more states and cities require salary ranges to be posted in online job listings. starting january 1st in 2023 washington state employers will have to include a wage scale or salary range along with information about benefits and other compensation for each job posted washington joined colorado and new york city in requiring employers to disclose pay ranges in job postings. the idea behind this new legislation is that it should level the playing field for candidates and diminish

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♪♪ some uplifting news for the students at a florida school with a painful past. the surprise that was music to the ears o douglas marching band. here's kerry sanders >> reporter: how do you prove the worst day in your school's history is not who you are teachers at marjory stoneman douglas tell students every day never forget the 17 victims, honor their legacy by doing your very best. >> i have somebody special to introduce to you >> reporter: in parkland, florida, members of the marjory stoneman douglas marching band found out they're going to the

biggest stage in the world >> the stoneman douglas high school eagle regiment has been selected to represent the great state of florida and perform in new york city in the 2023 macy's thanksgiving day parade. >> reporter: stoneman douglas one of only six high schools headed to the macy's day parade. >> very excited. >> reporter: the kids say in this selfie generation they've learned you achieve as a team. >> results don't matter if you're not having fun with each other, if you're not loving each other, if you're not caring for each other i think that's first and most important thing. >> reporter: 3.5 million on the route and some of them 40 stories in the air and then over 40 million on television it's an experience unlike any other. >> drumroll, please. >> reporter: 17-year-old alea.

>> coming out of covid it was difficult for us but we're super excited to know we did something right. >> much of the nation knows this school, parkland, florida, because of this sadinize and now you get to turn the tables >> absolutely. >> reporter: this school's motto is first we have fun the kids from parkland in step and in tune to march right into america's hearts kerry sanders, nbc news, parkland, florida. >> they deserve a chance to celebrate and the perfect place to do it >> and work so hard, multiple practices a day. a new species of millipede has been named after none other than pop superstar taylor swift. the scientist who made the discovery happened to be a super fan so he decided to name it he said swift's music helped him get through the highs and lows of graduate school and naming it

after her was his way of saying thanks and probably getting noticed, too >> taylor's version of that little bug making it extra special. >> thanks for starting your morning with us. >> coming up on the "today" show, how the fashion industry focisus

>> just as we were getting ready to land they made the announcement that it was know longer in effect and we could take our masks off. >> right now at 4:30, mixed feelings on the overturned mask mandate for travelers, but there's a lot of confusion as to where you still have to wear one. we're going to walk you through the latest guidelines. >> plus life behind bars for a crime he didn't commit. a man exonerated for a wrofu