good morning. thanks for starting your weekend with us. the trip home from the holidays could be a rough one for millions. >> flight cancellations and delays are expected with severe weather across the south. it's december 28th. this is "today." danger on the horizon.

>> oh, my god. >> new round of devastating tornadoes from texas to georgia as the post-christmas rush takes over roads. angie will have the forecast. lifeline for tiktok? president-elect trump now asking the supreme court to press pause on that law that could ban the social media app taking effect one day before he takes office. mega winner. someone in california is waking up more than $1 billion richer this morning after just one winning mega millions ticket was sold in the northern part of the state. many happy returns? the rush to bring back the unwanted christmas and hanukkah gifts is now on, but it might cost you. what you need to know before you send back those gifts that just weren't right. all that plus vegas jackpot. >> viava. looking left.

throws the slant. caught. touchdown. >> usc trojans down by 17 mounting a furious comeback to win the las vegas bowl in the final seconds. college football fans in a frenzy. the nfl gears up for three big games of its own. today, saturday, december 28th, 2024. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with peter alexander and laura jarrett. live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. welcome to "today." thanks for joining us on saturday morning. i'm joe fryer joined by vicky nguyen. peter and laura are deserving time off this weekend. did you visit a gas station in california the last couple days? >> i wish. i did visit a convenience store in the new york area. no dice.

>> we are like many people waking up with disappointment on the east coast. there is exciting news for someone out west. that's where friday night's mega million ticket was sold. if you bought in cottonwood, california, stay tuned. you could hold more than $1 billion in your hand. >> can you imagine? we begin with the severe weather threat. check out the map. 17 million people could be impacted by tornadoes and high winds and hail. this comes with airports and roads packed with people spending time with family and friends. >> we will get angie's forecast in a minute, but first let's get to britt adrienne broaddus at t airport. >> reporter: good morning, joe. things are running smoothly at o'hare with the average wait time ten minutes. with the record travel numbers and weather interruptions, getting home may be more

stressful than some folks expected. this morning, the rush to return met with turbulence. people's tempers.e lines, it's stressful. >> reporter: as millions are expected to hit the roads and take to the skies between now and new year's day. according to aaa, 150 million people are expected to travel 5 miles or more from home during the holiday period. >> oh, my god. >> reporter: friday, severe weather caused chaos. twisted reported in mississippi and alabama. >> on the water right now. >> reporter: in el campo with a state of emergency with nd gusts and a ground stop in dallas. >> our plane was canceled. >> reporter: leading to cancellations and delays for already frustrated passengers. on the roads, nine of ten travelers are expected to drive. aaa saying the best time to hit

the road today is before 1:30 p.m. the worst time when the traffic is bumper bumper. tsa is screening 40 million passengers through january 2nd. for one delta flight heading from seattle to hawaii this week, the problem wasn't weather, but a stowaway. a woman managed to board without a ticket or boarding pass. with a record number of people flying, security is under scrutiny. this morning, only a handful of deaf delays and cancellations across the country. the holiday travel rush is far from over. monday is expected to be the busiest. joe. >> adrienne, thank you so much. >> let's turn to angie. there is severe weather that could affect travelers, but people in the country?

we have a thunderstorm watch that has gone into effect a little while ago. this will expand as we get through the day today. here is what we have in parts of texas, oklahoma and arkansas. the thunderstorm watch last until noon central time. we also have rain stretched from the east coast to the gulf coast. that is part of all of the same system. here is the system we will watch. notice the big swath of moisture shifts to the east today. we have plenty of rain associated with this. we also have the potential for multiple threats as far as severe weather. along the eastern seaboard, that will cause problems on the roadways. if you are traveling tomorrow, we have that working farther east and bringing potential snowshowers across the great lakes. we will see the long line of thunderstorms march east through the next two days. today, the bull's-eye with the weather with strong tornadoes is

the gulf coast. it really extends from nashville to the gulf coast and out to east texas as well as in places like atlanta and knoxville. it is the greatest chance we will see the largest tornadoes. the ef-2 or greater. this will stay with us in the evening hours. we know how dangerous the nocturnal tornadoes are in that area. something you have to watch through the entire day today. by tomorrow, that threat not as impressive, but it does focus from roanoke to atlanta and charlotte and columbia. all of the locations are airports that have to watch for delays. folks should keep an eye on the weather today with the severe threat. >> angie, thank you so much. let's turn to the potential ban on the social media app tiktok. it is expected to take effect next month if the chinese owner doesn't sell.

now president-elect trump is asking the supreme court to put the ban on hold. we have allie raffa with more. >> reporter: good morning. president-elect trump asking the supreme court to put a hold on that ban. in a legal filing on friday, mr. trump not taking the side on the question at the heart of the case. whether congress violated the first amendment bypassing the ban. the lawyer and pick for solicitor general arguing in the brief the timing of the law interferes with the incoming administration's ability to negotiate a resolution. this is the latest move in mr. trump's long and comely indicated history with the app. attempting to ban it in 2020 and program ices in the 2024 campaign to save it. tiktok claims that banning the app would violate free speech. the justicice department defendg

the law with bipartisan support in congress citing national security concerns. the supreme court is still slated to hear arguments on january 10th leaving nine days to issue an opinion or indefinitely block the law. joe. >> allie, a drama with the rift with advisors with elon musk and vivek ramaswamy. what more can you tell us. >> reporter: is issue is the h1-b visas and skilled workers. pick to cut spending, elon musk and vivek ramaswamy support the use of the visas. their position now generating backlash among trump supporters in favor of the hard line approach to all forms of immigration exposing cracks in the relationship with maga supporters and tech bros before the president-elect takes office.

joe. >> allie raffa in florida. thank you. now to overseas where one of the last hospitals operating in gaza. we have hala gorani with more. >> reporter: good morning, vicky. israeli forces raid the last remaining medical complex in the northern part of the enclave. they forced the evacuation of the remaining doctors and staff and set fire to parts of the facility. video posted online shows men stripped of their clothing with their hands up being marched out of the building you see there with doctors warning that vulnerable patients could die if evacuated without proper care. the israeli government claims the hospital was used as a terrorist center. it didn't provide evidence of

this and their forces have been active in that area for well over a year, vicky. >> hala, the israeli military is taking on houthi rebels in yemen. what is happening there? >> reporter: these are the iran-backed houthi. they launched more rockets toward israel in the last few days. israel has infrastructure sites in yemen and including the main airport which happened on thursday as the head of the world health organization was getting ready to board his plane. two people died on the ground. he wasn't harmed. the exchange of fire between these two sides has really steadily escalated since the group entered the complex last year. many of our viewers will remember the houthis attacked tankers in the red sea disrupting shipping routes. with that group now the only one launching attacks on israel.

>> hala gorani, thank you. the u.s. is expected to announce $1.25 billion aid package to ukraine next week. u.s. officials tell the an associated press is pushing for more aid before biden leaves office in january. the u.s. has provided $60 billion to ukraine since russia invaded three years ago. now to the crash this week of the azerbaijan arms irlines e caught on camera. officials now say it looks like russia may have been involved in bringing the plane down. we have courtney kube with more. >> reporter: this morning, new information and new images as the investigation into the fiery azerbaijan airlines crash moves forward. this video shows confused passengers after oxygen masks dropped and something tiered through the cabin peeling away.

this man heard a loud bang and began praying. this survivor saying she felt two explosions and saw a man injured by the blast and panicked. the plane was headed to the chechen capital of grozny. dazed passengers emerged from the fiery wreckage. now intelligence may have information it was an incoming drone and may have shot it down according to u.s. officials. hours earlier, russian air defenses shooting down a ukrainian drone 70 miles away. >> in the district which includes chechnya why defending against a drone attack. that involved air defenses used to shoot down drones. >> reporter: holes like these in the fuselage could be the result of the air defense missile exploding near the aircraft.

russian officials initially attributed the crash to the apparent bird strike. but said friday that ukrainian combat drones were mounting attacks on civilian infrastructure in the area. azerbaijan airlines said the jet crashed after physic interference and suspended flights to several russian cities as the investigation continues. the statement from the airlines mentioned technical external interference. that could be a reference to jamming equipment that the russian military is known to use to confuse ukrainian drones. some of that equipment, however, is powerful enough to impact commercial airlines overhead. joe and vicky. >> courtney kube, thank you very much. back at home, janet yellen will warn that the u.s. will hit the debt limit within the next few weeks unless the government takes extraordinary measures to avoid default.

the fight to pay the nation's bills will happen in the early months of the trump administration. in the recent battle to avoid a government shutdown, trump said he was in favor of eliminates the debt ceiling. if you are waking up on the west coast this morning, check your mega millions ticket right now. that's because there was just one winner in st night's 1.2 billion jackpot. george solis is here. it wasn't you or me. what do we know? >> it wasn't you or me. i'll pause for the groans. we do have a mega millions winner. single winning ticket that matched six numbers sold at the northern california gas station. the life changing numbers. 3, 7, 37, 49, 55 and the power number is 6. if you are wondering who the luck number is, it won't be too long before we find out. california is a state that does

not allow for anonymity of lottery numbers. five winning tickets sold five numbers to win the second tier prize. the jackpot winner can go with the one-time lump sum of $549.76 million or annuity payment followed by 29 annual payments. this jackpot is the fifth largest in history. y of the $1.6 billion in 2023. adjustments to the cost of tickets and mega millions and powerball have been a contributing factor to big winners. it will increase ticket sales from $2 to $5. if you happen to be the lucky winner, advice is write your name on the ticket immediately to establish proof and keep it quiet and hire a team to manage all that cash. if you are not, that goes for

all of us, better luck next time. >> i can't believe it. the jackpot would be $3 billion. >> getting our money faster. people say would you go back to work? >> no, would you? >> you have to go back to work a little bit. you can't go back to work. everybody knows it's you. >> brag. >> how about normalcy? >> angie? >> i'm not coming back to work. i will to vicky's point find something fun or meaningful to do. >> yeah. >> a long cation. donate to charity. you won't see me here doing this. for now, i didn't win. let's get into what you need to know with the weather and airports and roads. those are the couple spots that we will watch across the southeast and stretching up to the east coast. we have have new york, washington, d.c. and atlanta. you will see delays there. give yourself extra time. especially if you live along the gulf coast. new orleans likely seeing delays

there. we talked about the severe weather across that area. texas stretches to mississippi. we will see trouble spots there. out west, seattle, san francisco, denver, you will see difficulty there with mountain snow and rain. that will leave us with wet conditions and slick roads across that area, but also stretching again from dallas to new york. we wake up to rain across this region and that will essentially continue especially farther south through the day today. looking ahead tomorrow, chicago is the spot you want to watch for possible delays. we very likely delays with the line of thunderstorms shifts to the east. new york, washington, d.c., charlotte are the areas to give yourself extra time. out west, same locations. seattle with the biggest chance of delays as well as san francisco and denver. the middle of the country looks great. most of the east and parts of the west will see difficulty when it comes to hitting the roads and in the air.air. that's a look at the weather

across the country. day of the year, and we can barely see a thing through san francisco. very dense fog, and you might be met with some drizzle as well. as we wake up with another weekend storm, most of that activity still to the north. there are some spotty showers right now in through parts of marin, napa and sonoma counties. as we move a little bit to the heart of the bay through san francisco and parts of hayward down 880. the good news is we're and that's a like at your forecast. guys. >> we still don't believe you are coming back to work. >> at least a little bit. >> a day or two. >> fine. still to come, why wait until sunday? the nfl is taking over the sports world with three games jessie

we are back on saturday morning with the "weekly download." >> among the headlines this week, a contentious court appearance for a man accused of killing a top healthcare executive. luigi mangione pleaded not guilty to new york state murder and terror charges for the fatal shooting of unitedhealthcare ceo brian thompson. his attorney complained. >> he's a young man and he is being treated like a human ping pong ball. this was the biggest stage perp walk in my career. it is unnecessary.

>> the house ethics economy released the findings of the investigation of former congress member matt gaetz. the report claims there is evidence that gaetz violated house rules related to prostitution, statutory rape and special favors and obstruction of congress. gaetz repeatedly denied wrongdoing. >> former president bill clinton was hospitalized after developing a fever. the 78-year-old was treated for the flu and released. the spokesperson said mr. clinton is in good spirits. >> massive waves plunged part of the santa cruz, california wharf into the ocean. three people were thrown into the water. all survived. >> no serious injuries involved in that and we believe everyone who went into the water is accounted for. >> thank you for saving my life.

>> two brothersout snowmobiles in utah got caught in an avalanche. he saved his brother just in the nick of time. >> you felt like you were in a washing machine and tumbled in concrete. >> avalanche beacons they were carrying allowed them to find each other. >> i saw his hands s and glove and poking out waving. his head was two feet under snow. >> finally a surprise. a girl came home to a huge gift box. it was s her big brother home f the holidays after six months away. her parents said it was her big christmas wish come true. >> what i love is scenes like that played out all over the world day after day as people reunited for the holidays.

>> she jumped as high as that box to get in there. >> like the olympics. still to come, the rush to return is now on. what you need to know before you bring back those holiday gifts. then in pop start, deep thoughts by matthew mcconaughey. how you can get weekly words of wisdom from the oscar winning actor. but

us on this saturday, december 28th. i'm kira klapper. we begin with a difficult end of the year for people displaced when their apartment complex caught fire. it started at this apartment

complex on gemelli way in san jose, not far from capital square mall. investigators think it started in a downstairs apartment around 5:00 yesterday afternoon. four units were damaged by the fire. another four units may be deemed uninhabitable due to smoke and water damage. a total of 14 people have been displaced. mayor matt mahan says the red cross is helping them all find a place to stay in san mateo county. rescuers launched into action along the coast after getting a call about a hiker in trouble. this is video near devil's slide on highway one. a chp helicopter crew was able to rescue that hiker. thankfully uninjured. a number of teams collaborated to make it happen, including cal fire, san mateo county fire, and pacifica fire. we're going to turn now to the forecast with cinthia pimentel. hey, cynthia. good morning carol. good morning everyone. well, it's our final weekend of the year and we're starting it with some rain once again. but right now the activity is light

and i expect it to stay that way throughout the day. so if you have any last minute new year's eve kind of errands to run, you'll be in good shape for today. we go up to the north bay seeing some spotty showers right now through parts of 101 santa rosa, rohnert park, petaluma. and it's very light as we make our way into napa county as well, coming a little bit down into parts of the richmond bridge, we see just some light scattered rain and through parts of pinole as well, down into southern marin and down into parts of 880. not only do we have those spotty rain right there, but you see the eye of the gray on your screen highlighting some of those thicker clouds as you maybe have to head out the door. just be careful with those changes in visibility and other cars kicking up water in front of you. as we talk about the coast this weekend, remember that we still have that high surf advisory until tomorrow morning. we already see some of those buoys registering those wave heights upwards of 13, 16, 18ft. and that will continue on into tomorrow. so just avoid that area if you can, so that we

don't see any trouble and keep everybody safe. now there is some more rain on the way, but that will happen as we go on into tomorrow. stronger storm. i'll give you the details on that. coming up at 7 a.m. kira. all right, cynthia, thanks. coming up also at seven this morning on today in the bay. new details emerging about that santa cruz wharf collapse. what authorities are now sayin on whether repairs will ever be made. we'll have that. plus all your top stories coming up at seven. we hope you join us. in the meantime, we'll take you back to the today show.

♪♪ we're back on saturday morning, december 28th, 2024. take a look at the times square ball. in just three days, it will drop with hundreds of thousands of people looking on. >> mr. worldwide on friday.

rapper pit bull was there to install the triangles. it was 12,000. >> just like my ornaments on the christmas tree. 12,000 pounds of lights. >> have you seen it drop live? >> no. you have to be there for so long. i'm not prepared. maybe some day it's on the bucket list. let's begin the half hour with the check of the head lines. shking body cam footage released friday by the new york state attorney general. a warning, this is disturbing. nbc did edit the incident for lengths. it shows the police officers pinning the patient on the infirmary bed and kicking and stomping him. he died in the utica hospital the next day. the medical examiner said brooks' deaths pth death was ca

asphyxia. the cdc is warning the samples of the bird flu virus shows sign of transmission. the centers for disease control and prevention says it appears the virus mutated inside the louisiana patient who contracted the nation's first severe case of the illness. the agency suspects the patient became ill from exposure or sick birds in the backyard flock. the risk to the general public has not changed and remains low. switching gears to college football. bowl season is in full swing. there were thrillers. the university of southern california came down from 17 points and with the last minute drive by usc in the vegas bowl on. >> maiva.

throws the slant. touchdown. >> the trojans with the go ahead td with eight seconds remaining at that point. after the extra point, 35-. in the armed forces bowl in texas, oklahoma scored a touchdown with six seconds remaining bringing them within one point of navy. the sooners opting to go for the win instead of the tie with the two-point conversion attempt. the midshipmen sacked the oklahoma qb. >> a lot of last minute excitement. let's turn from college to the pros and three big nfl games later today. it doesn't matter what day of the week it is, there is an nfl game to watch. we have jesse kirsch with more from jesse, good morning. >> reporter: you don't need to make plans anymore. just assume you have a game to watch at night. this season has already been record setting and now the

playoffs are right around the corner. christmas may be over, but the nfl is not done handing out gifts with three marquee match ups later today. first, the chargers led by justin herbert. next, denver broncos and bo nix head to cincinnati to take on the bengals who only have ight hopes despite joe burrow's play this season. the rams look to clinch the nfc west despite the struggling cardinals. these games are days after the nfl went head-to-head with the nba on christmas day. the two match ups with the chiefs win over the steelers and

the ravens come nation dominati the texans drew in 65 million viewers. ♪ down, down, down ♪♪ >> reporter: bolstered by a halftime show by queen bey. >> christmas is our day. >> reporter: it was a win for the nba as more than 8 million tuned in to watch lebron james out duel steph curry delivering the most watched nba christmas lineup in it five years according to espn. it is part of the push to grow its audience on virtually every day of the week. the nfl is dominating the television ratings. last year, the league claiming 93 of the top 100 tv shows, proof that no matter what day it is, nfl is the undisputed champion. the remember season wraps up next week and then come, drum roll, the playoffs.

some might argue we've already seen the main event which is its own stand alone netflix show dubbed the beyonce bowl. we will see who can put a ring on it. >> jesse with the beyonce reference. i love it. >> reporter: thank you. >> the biggest game on sunday nights. you can watch the falcons take on the common anders tomorrow night. >> i feel we're destined for tuesday night football. wednesday morning football. friday midday football. around the clock thing. let's check in with angie. >> that is a lot of morning. i would not be mad about that midday football. perfect timing for me. let's stick with the football and talk about the forecast with the falcons. not the best. not the worst. rainy and breezy conditions. temperatures in the upper 50s. the ponchos will be out for fans

headed to the game there. big picture look. it oesn't look like winter. temperatures running 20 degrees above normal in a lot of spots. denver at 55. nashville at 67. 70s in jackson. 80s in texas. pittsburgh can with the high of 620 degrees today. that continues into tomorrow. up per 50s for new york. we have 70s new orleans. a couple of layers needed, but not all of that especially considering this time of year. temperatures are moderating arrests we as we get into next week. 40s in fort wayne to the middle of the week. atlanta in the mid-50s by wednesday rolls around. a bit of a roller coaster ride. new york city, 57 degrees and low 50s by tuesday and

and some spotty rain. not too bad, and it won't be too bad if you're headed for napa. let's take a look at our day planner. aside from those early morning sprinkles, we'll stay mostly cloudy, but a chance to get outside. enjoy wine country. bundle up the highs only at 58 degrees down here in the south bay. we will have a cloudy start, but more peeks of sunshine into the afternoon and fe and that is a look at your forecast. guys. >> angie, thank you so much. just ahead, ready, set, return. what you need to know to bring back the unwanted holiday gifts as painless as possible. but first these messages. my moderate to severe ulcerative colitis symptoms kept me... out of the picture. now i have skyrizi. ♪ keeping my plans, i'm feeling free. ♪ ♪ control of my uc means everything to me. ♪

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morning with day's holiday consumer. malls and stores are expected to be packed this weekend with people bringing back gifts. >> business correspondent brian cheung has tips before you head out the door to make the most of the returns. >> reporter: after a record-breaking black friday weekend, many gifts that ended up under the tree are headed back to the cash register. >> $300 of returns. >> reporter: be it the wrong color. >> i got the sweatshirt. wrong sizes. >> reporter: some companies offering more options for refunds or exchange. amazon allowing returns at whole foods. and some work with a network to process for free at ulta. >> you come here and it is easy. we take care of the other stuff. >> reporter: that can be anything. >> did you think you would bring scrubs to a cosmetics store?

>> yes, because i did this before. >> reporter: with what? another pair. >> yeah. >> reporter: with more returns heading back to stores, retailers facing rising costs are punting those costs back to the consumer. j crew and h&m are charging for returns. best buy charges a restocking fee for some items. >> i think retailers are looking for a way to correct our behavior. especially for us who buy many things at once. >> reporter: return in the store to avoid fees and after the new year to avoid crowds. as always, hold on to the receipts. if you are headed to the mall or store to make a return, reminder you probably have an extended window of time to bring that stuff back because retailers like amazon and walmart, you have as long as january 31st to bring those back if it was purchased over the holidays.

i want to point out for electronics, it could be earlier. joe and vicky. >> brian, thank you so much. love the person who wanted the black sweatshirt and not black and gold. this is your beat if you watch the show. what if you don't have a set ret and don't ask? >> that is my first tip. you can ask and they send it to you or email to you. if you purchased the item, do you have the store app or online account? you could look it up or the credit card, the store can find the item. worst-case scenario, you may have to take a store credit. if it is a store you don't visit often, donate or regift it, joe. >> make sure you don't regift it to the person who gave it to you. >> put a libl abel on it. you gave me awesome coffee. >> love it.

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and longer when you need it most. its non-habit forming and powered by the makers of nyquil. we're back with "popstart." this is exciting. angie, i'm passing the batonto you this morning. >> i'll do my best. first of the holiday weekend box office, the period from christmas to new year. mufasa leaves the past after a luke warm opening last week, the sequel brought in $12 million bringing the haul to $76 million. and it is clear the kids are responsible for the box office choices in the with the sonic the hedge hodge" coming in the number two spot. the film rounds out the top three becoming the biggest

opening ever. expected to bring in $40 million this weekend. >> it looks so terrifying. bravo for pronouncing that word. it's a classic. >> it's a remake on a classic. i don't know who wants to see the terrifying vampire movie. >> up next, the "batman." that's because the sequel to 2022's superhero flick has been delayed a full year. warner bros. say fans have to wait until 2027 to see robert pattinson in the suit again. in the meantime, his latest movie hits theaters in january. >> and then shaboozey with his own smash hits. ♪ double shot of whiskey ♪

♪ gets me ♪ ♪ the party downtown ♪ ♪ near 5th street ♪ ♪ everybody at the bar ♪ ♪ getting tipsy ♪♪ >> that is the bar song. shaboozey has tied the record for longest number one on the country chart this decade. the track has topped the chart for 27 weeks hitting the milestone in may. it is up for four grammys in february including the best country song and song of the year. >> and matthew mcconaughey launched a free newsletter the newsletter is a collection of notes, tips and inspiration that mcconaughey gathered decades over life. it will be available in weekly installments and in audio format. it launches next friday, january 3rd. i'm personally very excited about this. i loved his book. >> his memoir was so good.

joe? >> as long as he is reading the newslett to me, that's all i care about. >> all right, all right, all right. we love it. >> great job. >> i didn't disappoint. still to come, we look back at the most memorable saturday morning boosts of the year, including sweet surprises and the most adorable

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wetjet absorbs and locks grime deep inside. look at that! swiffer wetjet. my moderate to severe crohn's symptoms kept me out of the picture. now i have skyrizi. ♪ i've got places to go and i'm feeling free. ♪ ♪ control of my crohn's means everything to me. ♪ ♪ control is everything to me.♪ and now i'm back in the picture. feel significant symptom relief at 4 weeks with skyrizi, including less abdominal pain and fewer bowel movements. skyrizi helped visibly improve damage of the intestinal lining. and with skyrizi, many were in remission at 12 weeks, at 1 year, and even at 2 years. don't use if allergic. serious allergic reactions, increased infections, or lower ability to fight them may occur. before treatment, get checked for infections and tb. tell your doctor about any flu-like symptoms or vaccines. liver problems leading to hospitalization may occur when treated for crohn's. now's the time to take control of your crohn's. ♪ control is everything to me. ♪

ask your doctor about skyrizi, the #1 prescribed biologic in crohn's disease. good morning. thank you for joining us on this saturday, december 28th, i'm kira klapper. a search is underway for thieves who crashed their car into a san leandro gamestop. it happened in the early morning hours yesterday on this gamestop on east 14th street and san leandro plaza. despite a security gate, police say the burglars rammed that white nissan straight through the front of the building. they reportedly tried to use a cutting tool to steal other items from a secured room. no word yet on how long those repairs will take or cost. san jose is on a new list, ranking cities with the fastest growing home prices in 2024. anaheim and southern california saw the most growth, with home prices up

12.5%. this is according to redfin. newark, new jersey and new brunswick, new jersey rounded out the top three. san jose came in at number nine, with home prices going 8.5% higher this year. even with high mortgage rates discouraging buyers, home prices still climbed. according to redfin data, median home prices in the 50 largest u.s. cities were up more than 5.5% through novembe woo! well, cinthia pimentel, as we say, we pay for this weather, but not today. look at that. it's iconic. either way, we can barely see a thing through all of that densese fog rig now in san francisco. we do have those morning showers passing on through right now, mainly towards the north. you'll see a few sprinkles as we move towards the heart of the bay. i think i did have a cell right there to show you through parts of oakland airport approaching san leandro, so parts of 880 are definitely slick. let's stay there in the east bay. take a look at our day planner in

oakland. maybe you are visiting some friends and family. it is still the holiday season. of course, we stay under mostly cloudy skies as the afternoon goes on. maybe you'll feel some drizzle on your head, but that will be about it. temperatures will warm into the low 60s now as we go on into the rest of the day and the rest of the bay, expect mostly cloudy skies with just a few returns of rain, mainly towards the north bay. we do have a chance to dry out today before another storm comes in, and this one looks like it could pack a punch, but that will be into tomorrow morning, sweeping on through the rest of the bay. we'll get a closer look at this. coming up at 7 a.m. kira back to you. all right. cynthia, thanks. also coming up at 7:00 this morning on today in the bay. this is the final weekend to attend enchant christmas in the south bay. and it won't be back for a while. we'll have a live interview on what you can expect this final weekend. that plus all your top stories coming up at seven. we hope you join us right now. back

to the today show. good morning. travel troubles. millions heading home today after spending a holiday week with family and friends, but dangerous weather could cause big problems nationwide. this morning, everything you need to know before you hit the roads and the skies.

royal reflections. a look back at the year that was for the british royal family. princess kate and king charles going through cancer treatment and prince william saying it was a brutal year. now a look ahead to a better 2025. and saturday smiles. the past year's morning boost made us laugh, brought tears to our eyes, and made us feel warm and fuzz as y inside. >> i love you, my best friend. >> share the stories behind our favorite boosts of the year. today, saturday, december 28th, 2024. good morning. welcome back to "today" on a saturday morning. what's better than one boost? five boosts. >> condensed boosts overload.

>> vicky nguyen with us and peter and laura are off. the severe weather threat could have an impact on post holiday travel today for millions. we'll get angie's forecast in a minute. let's written with adrienne broaddus at o'hare airport. adrienne, good morning. >> reporter: joe, good morning. so far this morning, we have seen a lot of families. good news for the families passing through owe 'hare. they are not waiting long. the average wait time is ten minutes for all security check points. with a record number of travels and weather disrupting plans, the journey home could be a bit more challenging than some expected. this morning, the rush to return met with turbulence. >> crowds, the lines, people's tempers. it's stressful. >> reporter: as millions are expected to hit the roads and take to the skies between now and new year's day according to aaa, 120 million people expected

to travel 50 miles or more from home during the holiday period. >> oh, my god. >> reporter: friday, severe weather caused chaos in parts of the country. twisters in mississippi and alabama. >> on the water right now. >> reporter: in el campo, a state of emergency following wind gusts, rain and hail and a ground stop for flights in and out of dallas airports. >> our plane was just canceled. >> reporter: leading to hundreds of cancellations and delays for frustrated passengers. on the roads, nine out of ten travelers are expected to drive. aaa saying best time to hit the road today is before 1:30 p.m. the worst time? between 2:00 and 7:30 p.m. when traffic could be bumper-to-bumper. back in the skies, airlines are bracing for packed flights as tsa estimates to screen 40 million passengers through january 2nd. but for one delta flight heading

from seattle to hawaii this week, the problem wasn't weather, it was a stowaway. officials say a woman managed to board without a ticket or boarding pass. with the record number of people flying, security is under scrutiny. and if you are flying this morning, you should check the status of your flight. let's take a look at some of the numbers across the country. we are seeing delays. more than 1,000 right now. a little more than 00 cancellations. with new year's eve just days away, the holiday travel rush is far from over. joe, monday is expected to be the busiest travel day. >> all right. adrienne, thank you so much. let's toss over to angie with the severe weather. >> guys, it is an active morning. we'll see this ramp up as the day goes on. we have a thunderstorm wah in effect through noon central time. i wouldn't be surprised if some of the thunderstorm warnings get going the next couple hours and

this afternoon and evening hours. across the east, you are waking up to a bit of rain. washington, d.c. stretching to the carolinas and gouchlt.ulf c. this is part of the same system that will chug along the next couple days. if you are traveling, we see snowshowers take shape across the great lakes and more rain for the east coast. the biggest impact today is the threat for severe weather and it is fairly large and rare for december for to us see this tornado threat stretches from houston to nashville. the bull's-eye is jacksonville and stretching to lake charles. this is where we see the potential for the strong tornoes. this is going to ramp up in the afternoon hours and stay with us through even after dark. the nocturnal tornadoes are possible. tomorrow, not as possible, but roanoke to georgia and including atlanta and airports like

charlotte with the potential for the severe weather. we will see wind gusts and a couple of tornadoes and hail. big picture, look for the rain with 1 to 2 inches with localized flooding the next day or so. guys, back to you. >> we will get to the full forecast in a few minutes. to sad news. greg gumbel passed away after a battle with cancer. the cbs sports anchor and sports anchor broke barriers in the 50 years in the industry. gumbel hosted biggest events in sports and two dozen march madness college basketball tournaments and two super bowls and winter olympics. he was in the broadcasting booth at nbc in the '90s. greg gumbel was 78 years old. coming up next, meagan fitzgerald has a look back at the tumultuous year for the royal family. >> guys, a tragic year for the

royal family. the palace has hinted that 2025 looks better. coming up, we'll take a look back at the year and what's in store for the royal family. (vo) t-mobile has a gift for everyone 55 and up this holiday season. two lines of unlimited for just 30 bucks a line. that's a 45% savings compared to verizon and at&t. (cynthia) the price, it is a phenomenal value. (vo) unwrap savings on america's largest and fastest 5g network. (tom) while we're out doing the fun things we like to do, (vwith t-mobile i get reliable's lacoverage. it's great.network. (vo) customers 55 and up get an exclusive rate plan for just 30 bucks a line. (robert) t-mobile has been such a savings for us. (mireya) we love it. (vo) switch today. ♪ i told myself i was ok with my moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis symptoms... ...with my psoriatic arthritis symptoms. but just ok isn't ok. and i was done settling. if you still have symptoms after trying a tnf blocker like humira or enbrel, rinvoq works differently. rinvoq is a once-daily pill that can rapidly relieve joint pain,

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now mom has a trusted companion who cares about her. ♪ visiting angels ♪ ♪ america's choice in home care ♪ we're back on saturday morning looking at the year that was for the royal family. it was perhaps best summed up by prince william who called 2024 a brutal year for the royals. >> prince william talking about the cancer diagnosis for his wife and his father. they were out on christmas day and we are hoping brighter days are ahead. we have meagan fitzgerald with more outside buckingham palace. >> reporter: good morning, guys. it has been an unprecedented

year for the royal family. no doubt they are hoping 2025 is better than the last. look, as you mentioned, we saw the family together on christmas morning in sandringham. they were smiling and looking well. a possible sign the year ahead is looking better. after a rough year, the royal family is ready to ring in a new one. >> unprecedented year. turbulent year and worrying year and a year that exposed the royal family for being vulnerable. >> reporter: the difficult year started in january. prince of whales admitted to hospital. the king going for a prostate procedure. then in february, everything changed. the palace announcing the king had cancer. one month later, another shock. >> it has been an incredibly tough couple of months for our entire family.

>> reporter: the princess of wales diagnosed with cancer as well. both stepped back from public duties leaving the monarchy in crisis. >> this is not a deep bench lined with substitutes. >> reporter: in june, in time for e birthday celebration, the princess of wales made a surprise appearance joining the king on the iconic balcony. >> the journey is complex, scary. >> reporter: it was this intimate and deeply personal video released in september with the princess of wales told the world there's life in the darkest of times. >> i cannot tell you what a relief it is to finally complete my chemotherapy treatment. >> reporter: the princess is attending events as she feels well enough and the royal family celebrates the holiday season and they'll be hoping the coming year is better than the last.

the prince and princess of wales announced the mental health initiative in 2025. the palace hasn't announced the king's schedule, they confirmed to us that they are already planning a pretty full and robust schedule that's close to normal for 2025 that will launch in the spring. guys. >> good to see them in the spotlight. meagan, thank you so much. >> we wish them of the best. it is time for a quick check of the forecast. angie. >> 2025 is almost here. let's get you the forecast for the plans to ring in the new year. it will be chilly across the middle of the country, but sunshine out west. at midnight, wet for the ball drop. we may be dealing with showers across the area. rest of the country looks dry. we will need, of course, hats and gloves with temperatures in the teens across the plains. as we look at 2025, another storm for the pacific northwest.

you will see plenty of sunshine across the southeast. we remain unsettled as we kickoff the new year across new england. temperatures for chicago into the 30s and we will see nice cans for folks across the southwest. that's the look at the weather of the year. mostly cloudy right now. those overnight showers starting to fizzle out. we'll stay cloudy in san rafael. it will be a cool day as well, but just keep the rain jacket in hand in case you have to wear the hood for a second. we go out towards livermore. maybe you have some holiday returns to do. you'll get some more breaks of sunshine out there into the afternoon and temperatures not and that's a look at your forecast. guys. >> angie, thank you so much. coming up, stories to put a smile on your face. our favorite saturday morning boosts

all right. the moment you have been waiting for. the saturday morning boost. >> normally joe shares one sweet story that caught our attention for the week. >> today, we are going bigger with the boost recapping the top five favorites of the past year. coming in at number five, a high school senior whose college dreams came true. that's her and her sister and mom jumping for joy after she read the email saying they was accepted at yale university. she had been nervous about

applying, but got into columbia, duke and ucla. >> in fourth place, the nurses at atlanta children's hospital pulled off a sweet surprise for one of their patients preparing for scolio surgery. >> the nurses serenaded may with all her favorite taylor swift songs and swirling her around in the halo device. she has a smile that can light up this whole town. >> our third favorite boost of the year is a heartwarming reunion in the most unlikely of places. an uber ride. >> what's your name? >> danny. >> i know you. >> wait a minute. man, yeah! >> driver danny was thrilled to discover the passenger he just picked up was his pal

john johnson. they worked at a dallas bar 24 years ago. they spent the ride catching up anand exchanges numbers in the end. >> coming in at number two. the 9-year-old who blew the competition out of the water with the seagull imitation. cooper wallace flew from england to appear in the gull screeching championships in belgium. he was inspired after he was bit by one after a visit to the beach. cooper came in first cementing his place among the top seagulls. >> finally, the boost that beats all the rest showing big brother knows best. new york city mom caught her 4-year-old son curled up for a sleepover in his sister's crib. it was the conversation caught

on the baby monitor that brought her to tears. >> i love you, my best friend. you be a big girl? no crying or pulling hair or no screaming and tell mommy the truth. >> big brother listing the requirements she must meet to be his bff and lil sis happily agrees. >> just show that to your kids. this is how this is supposed to go. >> i like the list of requirements. >> he needs to be a professional negotiator. if you want this, here's what you got to do. you got to do. dad: a perfect day with the family! shingles doesn't care. but shingrix protects! only shingrix is proven over 90% effective. shingrix is a vaccine used to prevent shingles in adults 50 years and older. shingrix doesn't protect everyone and isn't for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients or to a previous dose. tell your healthcare provider if you're pregnant or breastfeeding. increased risk of guillain-barré syndrome

was observed after getting shingrix. fainting can happen so take precautions. most common side effects are pain, redness, and swelling where injected, muscle pain, tiredness, headache, shivering, fever, and upset stomach. ask your doctor about shingrix today. ♪febreze♪ love your plug-ins but wish you had more scent control? introducing the new febreze plug scent booster. enjoy the same 50 days of continuous scent as febreze plug, including a cord for flexible placement options... and a boost button for extra scent. new febreze plug scent booster. ♪ lalalalala. ♪ luis fonsi: in this family, we take care of every kid at st. jude like they are our kid. because at st. jude, we believe all children deserve a chance to live. but one in five kids in the us still won't survive cancer. and globally, that number is even higher. in this family, we won't stop until no child dies from cancer. this holiday season, join our st. jude family. we need you. please donate now.

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it was so great to be with you. that will do it for us saturday morning. >> as we leave you this morning, we want to give you a look at the names of the incredible people behind the scenes who make the show shine every saturday. enjoy your weekend and have a healthy and happy new year. >> bravo to all of our people. ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪

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good morning. thank you for joining us on this saturday, december 28th. i'm kira klapper a difficult end to the year for people displaced when their apartment complex caught fire. it started at this apartment complex on gemelli way in san jose, not far from capital square mall. it started in a downstairs apartment around 5:00 yesterday morning. you can see the flames there. several people had to be rescued. four units were damaged by the fire, another four deemed uninhabitable due to smoke and water damage. a total of 14 people have been displaced. mayor matt mahan says the red cross is helping them all find a place to stay. and it was this multi-agency response to save a hiker in trouble along the

coast. it happened yesterday afternoon at devil's slide on highway one. this is video from san mateo county, just south of pacifica state beach. a chp helicopter you saw there was able to rescue the hiker uninjured. a number of teams helped in that cliff rescue, including pacifica fire. the coastside fire protection district. cal fire and san mateo county fire. we're going to turn now to the forecast with cinthia pimentel. and it's best to continue avoiding the coast until tomorrow. we do still have that high surf advisory kira with those large breakers coming in. as we see those weekend storms right now, we see the bay bridge toll plaza. the roads are doing okay. there's just a little bit of moisture showing up on our cameras. and we see overall on satellite and radar that that activity is starting to die down through parts of oakland into the north bay as well. we just have some cells remaining as you make your way, maybe south on 880 through parts of san leandro down into union

city, and that's about it. we should go throughout the day today, seeing those skies starting to calm down for a little bit. we could see some, maybe some pop up showers into the north bay, but that activity really starting to die down for our last saturday of the year. it won't be until we go on into tonight where i am looking at another stronger storm and gusty winds at times that will take us into at least the morning hours and then starting to dry out for the second half of our day. that will include with some chilly mornings after that front. so lots to talk about here as we get ready for the final days of 2024. i'll wait for you at 7 a.m. keir, back to you. all right, cynthia, thanks. also coming up at seven this morning on today in the bay. new details emerging about the santa cruz wharf that partially collapsed earlier this week. we'll explain what city officials are now saying about whether repairs will ever be made to the end of ththe wharf. we'll have that. ps all your top stories coming up at seven. we hope you join us. in the meantime, enjoy the final

nbc news with lester holt kids edition coming up, let it snow. the science behind snow explained. then, keeping time. kids in chicago are embarking on their own personal journeys, making time capsules as part of a very special project. time capsule open!