good morning to our viewers in the west. it's tuesday, december 29th, 2015. ed with to "cbs this morning." a deadly storm system delivers a winter punch to millions across the country. blizzard conditions strand thousands of holiday travelers. the so-called after influenza is a teen is captured in mexico after weeks on the run with his mom. plus why it could take months to clear toxic gas out of a california town. but we begin this morning with a look at today's "eye opener." your world in 90 seconds. >> you're in a scenario that no one here has ever been in. we'll continue to fight floods down the mississippi river until

we get the water out of the show-me state. >> a massive winter storm batters the nation. >> flash flooding claiming dozens of lives. there is more pain ahead. >> some areas in the 70s a few days ago are now getting the first winter storm of the season. >> the manhunt for the affluenza teen is over. authorities arrest him and his mother in mexico. >> in cleveland, a grand jury decided not to indict the officer of involved in the shooting of a 12-year-old boy. >> a drone briefly flew near the president's motorcade. >> donald trump is taking aim at chris christie. >> he was like a little child, christie. >> disturbing new video of a massive gas like an in southern california, causing evacuation. >> it's making people sick. they've got to do something

about it. >> rock and roller lemmy of motor head has died. >> a local fire chief was able to im to safety. >> all that. >> another hoverboard going up in flames, this time the hoverboard was part of a display still in its box. >> and the broncos are in the playoffs! what a way to lose a football game. >> and all that matters. >> jeb bush says nobody wants his autograph anymore, they just want to take a sell ifvera self. >> it is a requirement that you take one. and i do it with great joy in my heart. >> on "cbs this morning." >> the titan cheer leaders set a world record by playing the world's largest game of cornhole. >> announcer: this morning's "eye opener" is presented by toyota. let's go places.

welcome to "cbs this morning." i'm anthony mason with margaret brennan. the east is facing the same blast of snow and ice that sparked flooding and tornadoes in the south and midwest. >> the snow has already buried some areas in snow. new mexico saw whiteout blizzard conditions and oklahoma is in a state of emergency following a storm. the system has reached western new york. overnight, rain and snow created slick roads in buffalo. ashley roberts of our minnesota station wcco shows us the conditions outside minneapolis. ashley, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. this city is under a snow emergency, bracing for a storm expected to hit with a one-two punch.

the first punch has brought around 3-1/2 inches of snow so far. while cities farther south are only experiencing rain. swollen rivers flooded dozens of homes in branson, missouri. people have voluntarily evacuated along table rock lake, which is approaching its highest ever flood stage. the mississippi river could crest at historic levels in missouri. governor jay nixon has declared a state of emergency. >> you're in a scenario that no one has ever been in. if that river hits targets that have been predicted, that's higher than the mississippi river has ever been. >> reporter: st. louis is under a flood warning, with 7 inches of rain since saturday. it's the city's wettest year on record. these men spent monday sandbagging, shoring up homes and businesses near st. louis. the swollen meramec river is expected to crest above flood stage. high water made this stretch of

interstate 70 impassable. freezing rain and strong winds set power lines twisting in illinois, everything coated in ice a quarter inch thick. strong winds struck a car and narrowly missing the people who pulled in to refuel. and along the shores of chicago's icy lake michigan, high waves made for a pretty picture, but it was not inviting. minnesota department of transportation crews are out in full force, treating roads for this storm. they're using around 800 plows, and drivers are working 12-hour shifts to keep up. >> ashley, thanks. the winter weather could ruin travel plans for thousands of people today. so far this morning, more than 770 flights have been cancelled. more than a thousand are delayed. adriana diaz is at chicago's o'hare airport where travelers

are looking for new ways to get to their destination. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. it is a "hezoo here in terminal. the line is wrapped around five times, extending the length of a football field. many people on this line are trying to get home to the west coast. but flights have been cancelled, including flights to los angeles, san francisco, and portland. part of the reason is because of the severe weather moving through the middle of the country that's causing a lot of the traffic chaos. more than 1300 flights were cancelled here yesterday and nearly 300 were delayed. passengers were stranded. many were scrambling to try to rework their travel plans here at the nation's second busiest airport. a similar scene at chicago's midway airport, where nearly half the flights were delayed. at texas, there were backlogs of

flights across the state because of the weekend storm. more than 1200 flights were cancelled and nearly 600 delays at airports in dallas, austin, and houston, causing a ripple effect in air travel across the nation. if you can believe it, there is some good news. almost all of the major airlines are waiving rebooking fees for travelers traveling in the path of the storm system. >> a little good news, thanks. the storm is delivering snow and ice this morning to parts of the northeast. the lonnie quinn of our new york station wcbs shows us the impact across the nation. lonnie, good morning. >> good morning to you, anthony. all this weather is related to the same system, it all depends on whether the air mass is cold or warm. you've got blues, pinks, greens. blue is the snow, pink is the ice, green is the rain, a little bit of everything. where does the system head from

this point forward? the low pressure will push to the east, taking the moisture with it. is it snow, is it rain? you have to go to the northern portions to find big snowfall amounts, places like the white mountains and green mountains as well. winter weather advisories for a good portion of the northeast and for portions of the midwest. these have been expiring throughout the day today. they'll continue to do so. every little flash of green you see, we have river flood warnings in effect. when you see them this prevalent, across this portion of the united states, this is what we see in the springtime, yet we're finding it here in the end of december. heading out west, it's exactly opposite of what we've been seeing so far this winter. pretty calm out there with the exception of moisture rolling in in the pacific northwest. other than that, a quiet day. this winter it's been all west coast. but today, it's a flip-flop, the east coast has the storms. >> good for skiers, i guess.

>> they'll get some today, but not enough to get them where they want to be. >> winter came late but it's finally arrived. >> thanks, lonnie. a teenager who sparked national attention by using the "affluenza" defense in a deadly crash has been found in mexico. he was fleeing with his mother from texas after possibly violating his probation. the two were missing from the dallas area for weeks but were fount monday in puerto vallarta. omar villafranca is outside the tarrant county courthouse in texas. omar, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the bizarre national search for the so-called after influenfl ad his mother is over. ethan couch and his mother are in the hands of authorities,

after the pair was apprehended on the pacific coast of michigan. this image shows him with an altered appearance. earlier this month the two disappeared after couch missed a meeting with his probation officer. ethan couch made headlines two years ago when he eluded jail time after killing four people in a drunk driving crash. a psychologist had testified on behalf of couch, saying the teen suffered from affluenza, suggesting his parents' wealth left him without a sense of responsibility. officials believe the pair may have fled because of this video which surfaced this month. it appears to show couch at a party where a drinking game was played. this could have violated his probation. even though he's 18, his case

hasn't been moved to an adult court, which means he will face punishment in juvenile court and at worst could be sent to a juvenile detention center. >> omar, thanks. cleveland officials are appealing for calm after a grand jury decided not to indict two police officers in a killing of a 12-year-old boy in a playground. a video shows tamir rice pulling out a pellet gun before last year's shooting. protests are likely today. demarco morgan has more. >> reporter: the dispatcher never told the officers that tamir rice could be underage or that the gun he was carrying could possibly be fake. protestors marched in cleveland on monday night, hours after

county prosecutors announced the grand jury's decision. >> given this perfect storm of human error, mistakes and miscommunications by all involved that day, the evidence did not indicate criminal conduct by police. >> reporter: enhanced surveillance video from the november 2014 shooting shows loehmann and garmback drive up to tamir rice. within seconds of exiting the cruiser, loehmannr" is presente tamir rice. he was pulling out the toy gun, possibly to show the officers it wasn't real. >> there was no way for the officers to know that. >> reporter: tamir rice's family said that the prosecutors hired expert witnesses to try to exonerate the officers.

>> do the right thing. indict the police officers. >> reporter: rice's grandmother, mildretta warner-davis, called the decision heartbreaking. >> this is a 12-year-old kid's life that was taken. and they're letting everybody know it's okay for the police officers to do whatever they want to do. them do officers and mr. mcginty, they're going to have to live with this just like i do. >> reporter: county officials say that all police officers will be wearing body cams and their vehicles will be equipped with dash cams. as for officer loehmann, his attorney released a statement saying, "this decision does not bring comfort to anyone. this has been a tragedy for both the rice family and the officers involved." >> demarco, thank you. republican presidential candidates are back on the stump this morning after a christmas break. this time donald trump has a new target. this one is not named clinton. the gop frontrunner rallied with supporters in new hampshire last night after the state's largest

newspaper compared him to the bully biff tannen in "back to the future," remember him? major garrett is in washington with trump's fiery response. major, i'm bracing for it. >> reporter: good morning. donald trump did have harsh words for the "manchester union leader" last night and the paper's endorsed candidate, chris christie. but after threatening to lead a republican charge into former president bill clinton's sexual history, trump apparently thought he had done enough for now. >> you have a very dishonest newspaper. you also have a failing newspaper. it's going down the "tubers." >> reporter: he called the publisher dishonest. >> he's a low-life. >> reporter: mcquaid used his paper on monday to call trump a

crude blow hard, and compared him to biff tannen, a bully and a fraud from "back to the future." but since starting the battle over sexism with hillary clinton, trump tip toed over the word he had used that started it in the first place. he warned allegations of clinton's past infidelity were fair game. hillary clinton's camp caused trump's words degrading. that outrage morphed into a campaign fundraising appeal. trump's online attacks were enough to force several gop rivals into his corner. >> every past president is fair game. the fact that one of them happens to be married to a presidential candidate doesn't change that. >> i don't think it's hillary's

fault that she's married to a man that does this. but it is a question about what kind of laws we should have and how you should treat women in the workplace. >> reporter: the clinton campaign announced bill clinton would campaign on his wife's behalf. trump tweeted that clinton, quote, failed badly when he has campaigned in the past. a man who flew a drone along president obama's motorcade in hawaii will not be charged. the motorcade did not stop or slow down. the aircraft was brought down after secret service agents approached its owner. they say he was completely unaware the president would be in the area. iraq's prime minister is reported to be in the city of ramadi this morning. this follows days of fighting where iraqi government troops drove isis militants out. ramadi is a key provincial capital located west of baghdad. elizabeth palmer is in london,

tracking the newest developments. elizabeth, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the final push to take ramadi followed weeks of preparation as iraqi troops have patiently surrounded the town, then cut off all the isis supply lines. finally, the symbol of victory. for the first time since may, ira iraq's flag was hoisted over government buildings. all week iraq has led the fight to retake ramadi. they won thanks to better equipment and more than 600 air strikes by coalition planes on isis targets. but the iraqis also won because they have been learning on the job. in ferocious battles in tikrit earlier this year, they managed to push isis out. in ramadi, they did it without major help from irregular shiite militias. for these soldiers, that was a big morale boost.

cbs news's national security analyst juan cerati. >> they have greater will and capacity. they are clearly fighting with more strategic intent and capability. >> reporter: the battle to retake ramadi, important though it was, it just preamble for what's coming in 2016. on national television, iraq's prime minister warned, "we are coming to liberate mosul next and deal isis a fatal blow." first, though, the government will have to repair damage and restore services in ramadi to lure residents back and keep them loyal so isis stays on the run. the iraqi army is warning that operations in ramadi aren't entirely over yet. there are still pockets of isis fighters in at least one suburb. and the city is heavily bobby trapped. margaret? >> elizabeth palmer in london, thank you.

a burning hoverboard forced police to evacuate a houston shopping mall. witnesses say the board was in its box. it caught on fire inside a kiosk at the deerbrook mall, filling the area with smoke. the fire was quickly extinguished. major new developments in the search for a methane gas like a that forced thousands of families from their neighborhood. ahead, we'll tell you why those families still have to wait months to return to their homes. but first, it's time to check your local weather.

they're bumping into things and people. >> we'll look at the spike in injuries from distracted walking and how technology is outpacing our ability to pay attention. >> the news is back in the morning right here on "cbs this morning." i like your style ♪

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anyand i'm at the les wihead of that class, knows that it's not just about the weight; it's about something bigger. you've been fighting with then wrong tools; you've been looking in the wrong direction. so every time i tried and failed, and every time i tried again has brought me to this most powerful moment. to say, if not now, when? are you ready? let's do this together.

>> a countries music singer goes missing on a hunting trip when a tornado rips through. ahead the latest on the search. plus kennedy centers honoree

george lucas and why he sold the are still without heat in discovery bay and byron. p-g-and-e cut housands of good morning. it's 7:26. i'm maria medina. more than 1,000 homes are still without heat in discovery bay and byron. pg&e cut gas service to thousands of homes sunday because of a mechanical problem. utility workers are going home to home to restore service but they can only do that if someone is at home. a popular train in the santa cruz mountains will be back in service today after a mishap injured eight passengers. the roaring camp railroads train came to a halt yesterday in the forest near felton. and in the next half hour of "cbs this morning" the hazards of texting and walking. i'm not guilty of that. and, of course, we have traffic and weather in just a moment. ,, ,,,,,,,,

good morning. welcome back to the traffic center. let's take a look at 680. we have an accident just reported on that north- and southbound side there at auto mall parkway. looks like chp is heading to the scene north 680 at auto mall parkway. it's light out there as far as traffic goes. not a lot of folks on the road this morning. they probably have the week off. when there are accidents they are clearing quickly. south 880 at marina boulevard, not a lot of people on the commute except for the spider there making a cameo. here's roberta. >> his name is izzy. good morning, everybody. it's a little thing in life that makes me so happy and this is one of them. it's our live weather camera towards the altamont pass. isn't that beautiful? look at that valley fog. it's been obscuring visibility to a quarter mile in some locations throughout the tri- valley. it's breezy in livermore actually even below freezing. later today sunshine in the 50s everywhere. captions by: caption colorado

comments@captioncolorado.com we call it share the love. during our share the love event, get a new subaru, and we'll donate $250 to those in need. bringing our total donations to over sixty-five million dollars. and bringing love where it's needed most. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru.

>> a fire chief risked his life to rescue a man trapped inside a car after it crashed head on into a utility pole. york, pennsylvania chief nate tracy ran to the car as flames surged from its back end monday. tracy leaned into the car, pulled the man out, dragged him to safety as you can see just as help arrived. the man suffered head injuries and smoke inhalation, but he is expected to be okay. what an amazing event that was. welcome back to "cbs this morning." coming up in this half hour, residents of a southern california neighborhood could be out of their home for months. harmful gas has been leaking into the community and making people sick. why it took so long to fix a well. a pioneer of heavy metal music

died. lemmy kilmister, we'll show you how his lifestyle influenced the songs he wrote. that's ahead. the "new york times" says police in belgium have arrested two people suspected of planning new year's eve terrorist attacks t. suspects were detained after searches on sunday and monday. prosecutors say the twoped to attack several targets in brussels. police found uniforms and isis propaganda but no weapons or explosives. the alleged plot is not related to last month's terrorist attacks in paris. the we'll journal reports on an agreement between south korea and japan over so-called comfort women. these were korean women used as sex slaves by japanese soldiers in world war ii. japan's prime minister apologized. and they visited foreign comfort women. japan will pay $8 million to

support the victims. it could reenforce their ties and help them to confront china. the search for country music craig strictland set to resume today. strictland and a friend chase moreland went on a hunting trip. ckly reopened. google is tracking more privacy experts. they are tracking children's

data in self targeted ads. more than half laptops or tablets bought by u.s. public schools for dradz k through 12 were chrome books. they run on google software. google says it is committed to keeping students information private and secure. a southern california gas company says it has pinpointed the location of a noxious gas leak in los angeles. the fumes captured by an infrared camera forced thousands of people from their homes in the neighborhood. the company says it could be months before the leak is plugged. we see the toll on families. >> reporter: an underground well in the hills of porter ranch is leaking. this infrared camera shows methane gas billowing into the air. it was shot by the environmental defence fund. a law firm representing several homeowners filing suits against southern california's gas utility company shared these

images. >> you could smell the gas inside the house with the windows closed. and when you walked outside, it just smacked you in the face. >> reporter: robin shapiro moved her family into her parents' home after she claimed the gas made them sick. >> i was getting headaches that were lasting days and days, migraine-like headaches. then my son started getting bloody noses and respiratory issues for both of my children. >> the leak started in october. so far, more than 6500 families have filed for help. but the gas company admits there is a backlog and only 2,200 have been relocated. students at two schools will move to other schools when classes a back in session next week. >> once the leak is stopped, we'll be able to evaluate what caused the leak and we will be able to evaluate how much natural gas escaped as a result

of the incident. >> reporter: the state agency that monitors air quality estimates nearly 70,000 pounds of gas is released every hour, but health officials say methane doesn't pose long-term health risks. music producer says the leak is affecting his health and his business. >> i can't work in here. i can't breathe in here sometimes. when that wind blows off that hymn, comes down that fireplace, i can't work. >> reporter: to fix the leak, the gas company drilled a relief well nearby, using magnetic technology, workers have located the leaking well some 4,000 feet below ground. they have to drill another 4,000 feet where they'll intersect the faulty well, then fill it with cement to seal it. a solution that can't come soon enough for homeowners like robin shapiro. >> we feel like this is never going to ends. we have nobody to thank but the gas company. and we want them to shut it down. >> for "cbs this morning."

quarter ranch, california. >> 70,000 pounds of gas. >> what a way the spends your holiday, not knowing when it will end. all right, the rock music world is mourning one of the personalities. lemmy kilmister turned 70 on christmas eve and had just been diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer a. long list of remarkers are offering tributes including billy idom, myles kennedy, lead singer of the brand altar bridge calls lemmy a rebel poet until the end. >> we are motorhead. we play rock 'n' roll. [ music playing ] >> reporter: with his gravelly vocals and signature style, the british rocker embodied the soul of heavy metal, influencing generations of performers. [ music playing ] >> reporter: lemmy formed motorhead in the mid-70s, the

banned produced music with a hard gutteral sound. ♪ the ace of spade". >> reporter: in 1980, "the ace of spades" cracked the charts. with his heavy drinking and wild antic, lemmy's lifestyle appeared to live up to the lyrics in the songs he wrote ♪ i'm coming home". >> reporter: he penned hits for mama and coming home for ozzie osbourne. oz bourne tweeted. i lost one of my best friends, a warrior and a legend. fans salem my will be remembered for staying true to himself and his music. >> i did it right. that's about as much as i can say. that's the biggest thing you can get. you did it right. >> lemmy's fan base expressed their shock and sadness on motor shhead's facebook fans.

they said play lemmy's music loud, have a drink or two, share the life this wonderful man celebrated so vibrantly himself. he would want exactly that. a ral surprise i think. he was only diagnosed a couple days ago. people were shocked about this. a student's distracted walking has skyrocketed. we'll show you the risk of a nation wide problem that could be much worse than hospital data suggests. that's ahead on "cbs this morning". if you are headed off to, who, set your dvr so you can watch "cbs this morning" any time. you don't want to miss the honoree george lucas on why he walked away from directing at the very top of his game. we'll be right back. . ,,,,

>> the risk of distracted walking is getting new attention this morning after an indiana man's deadly fall. witnesses say the 33-year-old wa

it's resulting in injury, in some case, even deaths. they believe this man took a picture of the sunset when he took a fatal fall onto the rock below. >> he juan watching where he was walking. looking more down on the device. >> people distracted by devices

like this woman seen on mall security cameras. focused on her phone, walking straight into a mound u fountain or this man talking into a phone and going right off a train platform. in a recent study, 78% of americans said storm tracker 2000ed walking is a serious issue. another study found people using tear phone while walking veered off course 61% of the time. overshot their target 13% more than when they were not storm tracker 2000ed by their device. >> reporter: a lot of people admit they don't do it. >> it's getting worse as we have more and more features on these devices we carry around with us that can distract us. >> reporter: while the number of e.r. visits doubled between 2005 and 2010 to more than 1,500, she believes the problem is actually much bigger. >> do you think the combination of texting and walk sack good safe combo? >> no, just like driving and

texting, biking and texting. >> reporter: researchers at ohio state found millennials are the most likely to be injured. nearly 80% stem from falls, half at home. we found kelly davis working on her phone as she walked to lunch. kelly, have you ever had a ways when you're walking, not down at your phone, anthony. >> chris, thanks. many of us are guilty of this. >> we all do it. >> i had an incident, i was walking down to the edit room. there was a low hanging pipe. i was looking down, six stitches later on the top of my head. >> my goodness. >> air travelers that want to

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captioning for you in realtime is linda macdonald. good morning. i'm frank mallicoat. it's 7:56. here's what's imagine. an elephant seal is now in a lagoon next to highway 37 in sonoma county. wildlife expert and the chp hope it stays in the water. yesterday the 500-pound female kept waddling on the highway causing a jam. hundreds of people without power. utility workers are going house to house to lee store gas but they can only do that if someone is home. coming up next on "cbs this morning," a look at the highest profile legal storage of the year. analyst rikki klieman is in studio 57. more on that plus. stay with us. traffic and weather in just a moment. ,, ,,,,,,

let's look at conditions on the peninsula. southbound 101 just before 92. it is over to the right shoulder. light conditions anyway as you work your way through there. now, taking the san mateo bridge out of hayward into foster city, we are not seeing any brake lights right now. drive times are clear. elsewhere though we are seeing a few sluggish conditions northbound 280 especially along the extension as you head into san francisco. 101 looks good though no delays and the bay bridge very quiet metering lights remain off and no delays off the eastshore freeway. >> valley fog has slipped into the eastern portion of the bay area. good morning. the tri-valley visit visibility a quarter mile in some pockets. the fog is stacked up next to mount diablo. temperatures are below freezing in livermore. it's 29 degrees in santa rosa. later today numbers from the 50s at the beaches through the bay to the peninsula and inland. ,,,,,,,,

good morning to viewers in the west, it's tuesday, december 29, 2015. welcome back to "cbs this morning." more real news ahead, including the year's biggest regal stories. we look at everything from freddy gray to bill cosby. but first here's today's eye opener at 8:00. this si is under a snow emergency, expecting it to hit with a one-two punch. 6. >> a storm in the middle of the country is causing a lot of the travel chaos. >> it's pretty calm out there with the exception that there's some moisture out there rolling around the pacific northwest. >> the so called affluenza team

is caught. >> we spoke with the officers from the day of the shooting who didn't relay important information. and preparations troops have surrounded the town and cut off all the isis supply lines. >> donald trump had harsh words for the union leader last night and for the union candidate, new jersey governor chris christie. >> when you're heading down here looking at your phone, you have a very limited field of vision, which means you may miss obstacles. >> we are under way at the military bowl, across the 20, into the open field, one man to beat, he could go! the 40, the 30, 99 yards! >> i'm anthony mason with charlie brennan, parts of the northeast are experiencing the

first taste of winter as a deadly storm system slowly moves toward the atlantic. the storms have already sparked other weather events, including flash flooding, swollen rivers flooded dozens of homes. the mississippi river could crest at historic levels. >> and in new mexico, highways turned icy and treacherous. high water in illinois made a stretch of interstate 70 impassable. freezing rain and strong winds caused power lines to twist and crack. >> let's bring in lonnie quinn at wcbs, good morning to you again. >> if you take a look at what that storm is doing right now, you still see all the colors out there, the blue shows you where the snow is, the pink, that is particularly hazardous, shows you where the ice is. the low pressure system is going to pull off to the east and take the snow and ice with it.

but this has been a funk of a season as far as the snowfall for the northeast. the numbers in pink, in vermont, they should have 21 inches, so far this year, 2.1. with boston should have nine inches, they have had zero. buffalo should have almost three feet of snow, 33.1 inches, so far this year, they have had officially an urge. who gets the most snow in this system? it's going to be areas well north, the white mountains, the green mountains sborks the state of maine. look at what the temperatures do, you get to the afternoon, new york city, you look across the country, you'll find a 26-degree high temperature in kansas city, the icebox, international falls, a balmy y degrees. 61 will be your high temperature for l.a. it's a flip-flop from what we

have seen so far this year. so far this winter, it's all about been the west coast. today the west coast is calm, it's the east coast that gets a bit of their action. for everybody on the east coast, it's the biggest storm we have had. it's not enormous, but it has proved to be a lot of ice and snow. people in the west have begun the painful process of assessing what was lost. tornadoes damaged or destroyed more than 1,400 homes, places in texas were the hardest hit. >> survivors share how they escaped the deadliest twisters. >> the couple that lived in this garland home was at a party on saturday night when the tornado rolled through, the house is a loss. across the city of garland, businesses and homes have either been damaged or leveled by this tornado. eight people died in the city of garland and all of them died in their vehicles, just about a half mile from here.

>> reporter: the largest of the nine tornados that tore through northeast texas was more than five football field wide. for 14. >> destroying homes, businesses and killing eight of the 11 people that died in dallas. perks tero was a 27-year-old mother of four, she was on her way home when the tornado tossed her vehicle. >> ruiz and several others died when their cars went airborne. before the tornado hit she made one last phone call to her husband. >> her phone went blank. i grabbed her wrist. she was cold. she was gone. >> are we standing on the roof? >> no this is actually the bathroom. >> reporter: the home of the

roach family is demolished. they said they hid in a closet when the storm hit and they said they could feel the house lift off the ground. >> we got down into the closet, literally within seconds of this thing hitting us. >> in less than 20 seconds, the home collapsed on top of them, neighbors heard their screams for help, but it took more than an hour to pull them from the debris. >> this is the closet we were in. it rained a little more, this was up a little more, but we were actually, they dug us out. >> and despite the fact that the home fell right on top of them, the roach family, mom, dad and the two daughters were checked out at a local hospital and had only minor injuries. >> thanks david. the severe weather is causing new travel headaches, cancellations and delays yesterday created long lines at airports. some travelers are turninging to startup companies for help. auctions away and flyers offer customers a way to hold specific flights for up to three weeks

for a small charge. customers can lock in lower rates and avoid change fees. therese jones is a travel reporter for u.sa today. the airlines made more than a billion dollars last year on these change fees which everybody hates. but how do these businesses help travelers avoid them. >> beautiful they put a hold on a flight for a specified amount of time for a very small fee. and you can go ahead and book the flight if you want and if you don't want you' ee're out t fee if you don't book the flight. >> what is the fee? >> it ranges from $2 to $50 so that's not a lot compared to $200 or $300 for the airline that offers the service. united airlines allows you to hold a flight for three days or seven days for $7 or $9 and

american airlines allows you to hold a flight for $7 for free. or you can go to american airlines or some of these other companies. >> does this overall actually in any way save you the cost of a ticket? i mean or is this helping to inflate prices by creating this sort of options market? >> the good thing about these middle men is you have a lot of different options, if you want to look at one carrier for one itinerary, that's two different fees, but it's like $10 or $15 that's compared to what you is have to pay if you have to rebook the flight and the change fee plus the fare, that's a lot for a lot of people. >> so you think this is worth the money in effect if you're nervous about having to change your ticket. >> things happen, work gets in the way, your partner that you're traveling with may have to change their plans. you want to have a little bit of flexibility to give you that level of comfort and you want to

lock in that fare when you find it. >> is this like flight insurance? >> that's if there's a problem, if there's a calamity, if there's a disaster where you are and you have to get back home. it's insurance on the front end, if you change your mind, you're not going to be out of hundreds of dollars because the airline hits you with that big price tag. >> if these companies are actually holding seats for potential travelers, does that in any way make the system even more gummed up? >> they're not really holding it. it's kind of a calculation and they're holding the seats, they're making a guarantee that they can hold this flight during this time at this price. if the fare goes up, they'll give you the difference. >> all right. >> it's an interesting idea. >> it's getting more and more complicated to travel. >> it is getting a little complex. >> george lucas transformed the way we watch movies. he brought "star wars" to the big screen and created a movie empire. charlie rose talks to lucas

about how the director wants to be remembered and his answer mi

big legal battles captivated the country in 2015, from sexual assault allegations against a popular comedian to a woman who went to jail for her beliefs. that's when we come back on "cbs

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,,,,,, who helped make slea difference last yearose for thousands of local foster kids. thank you for helping foster kids. thank you for the school supplies. thank you for the new shoes. thank you, secret santa. and thank you for donating money.

announcer: your generosity proves that while not everyone can be a foster parent, anyone can help a foster child. thank you. thank you. gracias por su ayuda. [baby coos] thank you. >> we reported earlier on major new developments in the tamir rice case. a grand jury decided not to bring criminal charges against cleveland police officers involved in his shooting death. >> that case is just the latest in a year filled with big legal news. we have a look back and the cases to watch for in 2016. good morning. >> good morning. >> there are these calls for calm in cleveland in the wake of the grand jury decision. were you surprised? >> ultimately, i don't think i'm surprised be i the decision,

because the material that went into the grand jury as it's become public as a story is very different than what we see in chicago with jason van dyke. in tamir rice, one thing we do know from the report is there was an enhanced video and that enhanced video supposedly showed this boy who had a pellet gun, having that gun in his hand at the time the police arrived. it was a case of complete miscommunication, misunderstanding and by the way, lack of training, which brings me to chicago because the case of the area in chicago, that is ending '15 an beginning '16 is police officer jason van dyke. why is his case so different? again, a video. but what sus this video show, it shows they have a report, that's a slight way of saying it if they talked about thisay from te

officer shoot him 16 times. >> this is the case you are watching most closely this coming year? >> i think jason van dyke is a case we must watch closely this year. it is, if you go to 2014 and ferguson, what happens with jason van dyke in chicago is not just jason van dyke. it creates a whole political atmosphere we must be aware of not only in chicago but nationwide, ultimately the lessons learned is training, training, training. we have got to take police officers and make them able to slow down both with people who present because their demeanor is enhanced by drugs, also people emotionally disturbed. >> these are emotionally fraught

cases. >> correct. >> in the d.c. area where i live, we are very focused on what's happening in baltimore with freddie gray. >> i think freddie gray has to be the case they will become most involved with for "cbs this morning" by virtual of six trials coming up here. the first trial as we know, william porter, the end of 2015. he is found nothing, not acquitted. not convicted. a hung jury, a big loss for the prosecution at that point. so where are they going next? we begin 2016 with the driver of the car caesar goodson. when have you officer goodson. he is the only one who is charged with murder not manslaughter, it's not a reckless endangerment. even though there are lesser included offenses. it is murder. he is the driver of the van where freddie gray dies. what we're going to find out in that case is, first of all, can

the government prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt and second of all, which perhaps is first, is can you get a fair trial in baltimore after the hung jury in the porter case the first of the freddie gray. these are going one after other after another for months. >> i want to get to one other case, there have been a prominent case, bill cosby is suing some of his accusers. what do you make of that? >> well, bill cosby was not going to sit idly by. it's all about defamation. his lawyers say you defamed me, okay, i'm defameing you. we're going to do this rounds and round. it's an aggressive defense. it will be a big case in the '16. >> interesting year ahead, thank you so much. from high drama to every day routine, the extraordinary photos that show the story of our world.

next the results of national geographic's 20s 15 photo contest. . ,,,,

♪ (vo) some call it giving back. we call it share the love. during our share the love event, get a new subaru, and we'll donate $250 to those in need. bringing our total donations to over sixty-five million dollars. and bringing love where it's needed most. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru.

. only on "cbs this morning," we are revealing the winners of national geographic's 2015 photo contest. the grand prize winner shows a tornado touching down in

colorado. amazing. australian photographer james smart called the picture simply dirt. he captured the dramatic image while chasing storms in the west. national geographic divided the contest into three concern is place, people and nature. >> a binghamton new york man won the people photo with a young man and his bicycle in a uganda slum. a pick showing a marsh damaged by radioactive waste. some of the honorable mentions include photos from iran, indonesia, taiwan and lithuania. the grand prize winner takes home $10,000 and a national traffic seminar. can you see all the pictures at "cbs this morning."com. >> a great shot national geographic brings out the best stuff. >> indeed. ahead, how an american ent tren

(newer in china is oakland believe the cause oa deadly fire was accidental. a good morning. i'm frank mallicoat. hitsive it's 8:25. time for headlines. investigators in oakland believe the cause of a deadly fire was accidental. a man and woman were killed early yesterday morning in a fourplex on east lawn street. neighbors say it was occupied by squatters. popular train in the santa cruz mountains will be back in service today after a mishap injured eight of its passengers. the roaring camp train came to a sudden stop in the redwood forest near fell torn. a american entrepreneur making money on nicknames in china. stay with us. traffic and weather in just a moment. ,,,,,,,,,,

good morning from the traffic center. it's been a nice ride so far this morning. we have not had any major accidents or incidents it speak of. here's a look at the san mateo bridge. it's very light. 14 minutes between hayward and foster city. peninsula ride looks good. earlier wreck along 101 near 92. that's cleared. in fact, your drive time looks good along 101 if you are heading from the south bay towards san francisco. elsewhere, 880 both directions near the coliseum, not a bad ride at all no delays to report northbound into oakland. southbound marina accident. south of there near alvarado

near fremont there is a pothole in the road that may cause a backup there just avoid it if you can. elsewhere through the south bay northbound 101 no delays right now out of morgan hill. you're clear 101 north if you are heading towards mckee or story road. 280 looks good. drive times in the green. guadalupe parkway 85 to 101 only a ten-minute ride. here's roberta. >> i have been featuring our weather camera out of the tri- valley quite often this morning because it really tells the picture. i have been talking about fog, people are saying what fog, there's no fog in my neighborhood but there in the tri-valley visibility is down today quarter mile on san ramon boulevard, bagging through foothill boulevard, as well. we are looking out from valley christian elementary school so we are up in elevation roughly about 500 feet but below that you can see that valley fog that's surged into the east bay. temperatures 29 santa rosa, 31 degrees in livermore. later today, everyone is in the cool 50s. east winds at 5. chance of rain on wednesday. ,,,,,,,,,,

>> welcome back to "cbs this morning." coming up in this half hour, a new approach for chinese people who want english nicknamed. meet the young american avoiding choices like ghost. >> you don't want that name make the? >> i kind of liked it. >> before "star wars" episode 7 became a global phenomenon, charlie rose traveled to skywalker ranch for an in-depth conversation with the series creator george lucas. how they created an entire galaxy on the silver screen. >> time to show you the headline the san francisco chronicle reports on a crackdown on sidewalk graffiti that promotes

justin bieber's few album "purpose." it's a part of a gorilla marketing campaign. the attorney said he will groat pursue all available penalties for those responsible. the label has not commented. "time" reports on a facebook post circulating this month. it says, in part, mark zuckerberg is giving away $45 billion of facebook stock, what you may not have heard is he plans to give 10% away to people leak you and me. all you have to do is copy it no a post immediately. facebook confirms, zuckerberg has no such plans. >> it is a hoax. all right. and the san diego union he had been feuding over

contract negotiations, you think he should be able to see his daughter dance. >> you would think. you would sometimes ask what is in a name? in shanghai china, it's a business opportunity for an entrepreneur, how an expat turned it into a service for young chinese people. >> reporter: good morning the lesson those lost in translation moments is calling for chinese to take an english nickname. sometimes those nicknames are unusual. i work with a girl hayes, haze. my chinese teacher is named echo. on the streets of shanghai, we met cheng and longjing, their names. >> el en. >> and your name? >> is jean. >> reporter: jo hung goes by dig. why do you have an english name?

>> everyone has one at work he told us. but many nicknames do not exactly translate well to native english speakers. we met a girl named king and at star bucks a government and a right as in mr. right. >> a lot of international restaurants around. >> reporter: american lindsey jurn gen was introduced to this phenomenon when she moved from washington, d.c. to shanghai and started meeting people. >> their names were boat, 11, apple. there were normal ones like edison eddie for short. >> reporter: what did you think of all these names? >> at first i was sort of confused, curious, why is this your english name? >> reporter: in all of this, she saw an opportunity an launched a website to help chinese find an english name. >> we have the name the origin. the target audience is 18 to about 30. it's people that are kind of

getting a little more serious about tear job of stgd abroad. >> users can take a quiz where for $45 get a 30 minute one on one consultation. jurnigenex plains the meaning of names and chinese often want one uncommon and similar to their chinese name. >> i like when chinese people say i don't have an english name. ly stick with my chinese name. but we're in china. >> yeah,tomily. so on our website, you never say they have to have an english name. it's very much a resource for people actively already looking for a english name. >> almost all of my friends have an english fame. >> reporter: meet this 28-year-old, formerly known as 11. the number of her favorite soccer player. >> reporter: when you told people my name is 11, what did they say? >> that's my trouble. they always say, seven, seven-11

is a famous comedian star in china. they go where is 7. >> caution another 7-eleven joke? >> right. >> after working with jurnagen, 11 became kira. >> it's not that common. it sounds smart. ti kira knightley. >> some names just don't work. >> you run into a name 14 or yellow and you have a name scarlet, violet, so i totally understand why it's confusing. >> reporter: there is a learning curve for all involved. this juice store manager was formerly known as ding, his new name courtesy of jurnigen took some practice for his father. >> evan. >> that's what your dad said? he couldn't pronounce it when

you told him? now this goes both ways, in japan, they have a hard time pronounceing the th in my name. here in china the ministry of foreign affairs has given me a chinese name, doan, it means much kindness. for "cbs this morning," seth doane in shanghai. >> i apt chinese nickname. that's by a want. >> what an amazing business modem. the force awakens is blasting to new heights at the box office, charlie rose asks "star wars" createdor george lucas about his biggest moments in hollywood an, that life is is lived.

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zblomplts ♪ >> "star wars" "the force awakens" continues to shatter box office records, the seventh installment in the franchise passed a billion dollars in ticket sales faster than any movie in history. it's been almost four decades since the first "star wars" hit theaters, changing hollywood forever, legendary creator george lucas spans a career 45

years now, his impact gave him cinematic honors. charlie rose met with him at his skywalker ranch in california he talks about what it means to be a director. >> a director is somebody who's got a fetish with making the world the way he wants it to be. saturday of nars cystic. >> that's you? >> all directors. >> they're not all different. >> all directors are vaguely like emmoreers, whiemmorers, emperors. he can do it with less money and say i will create a world where people can fly. >> reporter: george lucas didn't create a new society. he constructed an entire galaxy. [ music playing ] >> on its surface the "star wars" series, is a sci-fi space

odyssey with odd creatures and epic space battles. but its genius lies in the simple story beneath all of that. timeless elements like family. >> i am your father. >> is there a stronger? >> no. >> and the fight between good and evil. as its creator lucas has been called one of the most innovative film makers in history. in his heart, he considers himself a storyteller. >> didn't you intend to in the beginning create really three movies when you started? and then you decide only to take one part of that life story? >> yeah, i took the first affect. then the first act didn't really work. then i said, okay, i have to take the ending of the third film, put it on the first film. it's what you do, you have a bunch of stuff on your desk

while you are creating. let me stick that in here. i wasn't worried that much about the sequels. i was actually making it. i have make this the best film some when i moved onto the other once, ben kenobi is dead, i killed him. how am i going to fix that? and what do i do? i blew the deficit star. that's what the ending is. but part of it was simply when i got down to some of the other movies, i was able to create an environment in a world that wasn't possible when i started the first one, so to me getting yoda to do a sword fight, which i had always wanted to do, i couldn't do it. because he was a muppet. >> reporter: lucas became a pioneer in the world of special effects. >> it's dead ahead. >> reporter: his work forever changed the way films are made.

and he changed how they sound, too. ♪ 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, 4:00 rock"? his movie "american graffiti" lucas opted out of a composer and nar rated the entire story with popular songs. >> that's the clearest inpoint for a teenager is the music. half of what a teenager is, is music. yeah. the other half is trouble. or raging hormones or whoever we describe it. at the same time, that's what the movie is about. >> cars and music and rageing hormones? >> i should have called it that. we were looking for title, you finally fixed it out. the studioped to call it another slow night in mo deficito. with you cars, music and raging hormones would have been much better. it could have been a hit. >> reporter: the low budget film

was one of the most commercially successful films of its time. before he was 40, lucas went on to make the first three "star wars" and "indiana jones, raiders of the lost arc." and then, he walked away. >> i mean, i gave up directing in order to become a dad. you know, for 15 years. i just ran a company and was an innovator. but it was not doing what i really like to do which is actually make movies. >> reporter: that's because you wanted to be a dad? >> because, yeah, and i never, it was one of those things you don't expect it to happen. but once i was a dad, it was like a bolt of lightning struck me. >> reporter: lucas adopted his first daughter with his wife marsha in 1981. after they divorced, he adopted two more children and raised them as a single dad. everybody says the following

things, you are so -- in 2013, he married mellody hobson an executive investor and cbs contributor. >> we found out we are exactly the same. >> reporter: together they have a two-year-old daughter. >> it's a miracle. that's how i see it. it shouldn't have happened. somehow it did. >> reporter: here in skywalker ranch in san francisco, george is once again able to concentrate on being a father. three years ago, he sold his company lucas films to disney for $4 billion. who are you? >> no one. >> reporter: let me just talk about "the force awakens." how do you feel about it? >> well, it's, you know, i made the decision to sell the company "star wars." i made that decision because i looked at the future, i looked at the process, i was going to

get married, i wanted to build a museum, i was married. i wanted to make experiment am films. so my life was going on a different track. so that started that ball rolling. and so, in the end, when i sold it, they hired j.j. to come in. >> reporter: are you at peace with this? >> yeah. >> reporter: as much as you can be? >> look, i said, i'm fine. fortunate i am old enough to have been through this stuff before. i'm sure it will do a nag 95 se -- mag sen 95 sents oo magnificent business. >> george lucas, he's a path findered and a pioneer. >> reporter: at the awards, his good friend steven spielberger, plained the george legacy best. >> george lucas' movies changed life forever. >> he's insane, he makes three movies every year, stephen, when

are you going to retire? he said, i'm not going to retire. my ultimate dream is to die on the set and keel over in the middle of shooting. i said, gee, my ambition is to die in bed watching one of your movies on television. >> reporter: but that doesn't mean he's slowing down any time soon. because you have worn all these hats, though, film maker, director, storyteller, writer, technological innovator, what do you want the first line of your obituary to say? >> i was a great dad. or i tried. >> it's so interesting when somebody that successful walks away from something so monumental that they've created. fascinating. >> and to have such vision, to be able to see through all these different, you know, creations. >> i will never forget the night i walked out of the first "star wars" film. like in on air, amazing.

you can see george lucas and all the winners at the kennedy center honors tonight at 9:00, 8:00 central here on cbs. a fire fighter goes to a classroom with more than safety on his minds. see the surprise he had waiting for this kindergarten teacher next on,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

♪ >> a proposal. new york city fire leiutenant david royal gave a safety lesson to a kindergarten class last week. he asked the kids, if the teacher, to put on his fire gear. she did. and then he asked her to marry him. natalie and david have been together two years. she said yes. her students screamed out. i wonder if they knew it was

going on. >> that's it for us, tune in tonight ,,,,,,

announcer: sleep train thanks all those who helped make a difference last year for thousands of local foster kids. thank you for helping foster kids. thank you for the school supplies. thank you for the new shoes. thank you, secret santa. and thank you for donating money. announcer: your generosity proves that while not everyone can be a foster parent, anyone can help a foster child. thank you. thank you. gracias por su ayuda. [baby coos]

your realtime captioner is linda marie macdonald. it's 8:55. i'm frank mallicoat. here's some of the headlines. an elephant seal now in a lagoon by highway 37 in sonoma county. wildlife experts hope it swims out to san pablo bay. yesterday, the big 500-pound female kept venturing on the road backing up traffic. quite the sight there. defense attorneys for raymond "shrimp boy" chow are calling their final witness today. the san francisco chinatown figure is charged with murder, money laundering and drug trafficking. and the new study at california forest finds that 7 in 10 trees are stressed by the drought. 58million trees are experiencing major water loss and are at risk of dying. i don't think we have any rain in the forecast, do we, roberta? >> actually, we do.

>> we do? okay. >> only a slight minimal chance in the north bay tomorrow. but you're right about today. we have nothing but clear skies out there. look at that visibility unlimited from the transamerica period towards angel island and alcatraz. bundle up. it is cold. it is in the 20s in napa, sonoma and also in santa rosa. it's below freezing in livermore with visibility still an issue due to areas of fog. 34 degrees right now in san jose. it's freezing in fremont. 33 degrees in oakland. 41 san francisco. today's high temperatures from the 50s at the beaches to the peninsula to the santa clara valley. good morning, milpitas, at 52 degrees. low to mid-50s east of the bay, north of the golden gate bridge into the 50s. and the far reaches of the north bay 52 degrees in lakeport slight chance of rain on wednesday, less than .10" of rain expected. sunny skies for new year's eve and new year's day and then another chance of rain returning here to the bay area of rain showers on sunday. gianna has traffic coming up.

♪

(vo) some call it giving back. we call it share the love. during our share the love event, get a new subaru, and we'll donate $250 to those in need. bringing our total donations to over sixty-five million dollars. and bringing love where it's needed most. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. good morning. let's take you to 680 right now. northbound we have an accident right at mission. vehicle off the side into a ditch. chp just arriving on scene there. elsewhere, bay bridge still very quiet not a lot of problems.

you got the big deal of the day! jonathan: yeah, girl! it's a trip to bermuda! - bigger isn't always better. wayne: you won a car! - zonks are no fun. - big deal, baby! jonathan: it's time for "let's make a deal." now here's tv's big dealer, wayne brady! wayne: hey everybody, welcome to "let's make a deal." now, this isn't no regular old "let's make a deal," this is mega deal week here on "let's make a deal." if one of our traders wins the big deal of the day-- you know about the big deal of the day, right? if they win the big deal of the day, they are eligible then to win the mega deal. mega deal, what's the mega deal? every single merchandise prize seen on today's show will leave with that person, over $100,000 in prizes.