tonight, breaking news, the death toll rising in the california warehouse inferno. more than two dozen killed, the numbers expected to go even higher. new details about the staircase that went up in flames. were warning signs missed? now desperate families waiting for word. >> please just call us. also breaking, twin air scares. the first pictures coming in now. and injured passengers after

emergency landing. the controversial dakota pipeline access halted. and winter wallop. snow is on the way. good evening. thank you for joining us on this busy sunday. tom is off. i'm death toll and the mounting questions in what is now the deadliest fire ever in oakland, california. this is all that remains. today, investigators sifting through the rubble. what was once a crowded warehouse party, going up in seconds. the blaze overwhelming that building, trapping people inside.

painstakingly slow. families fearing the worst. and tonight, the first clues the fire might have been prevented. here's neal karlinsky. >> reporter: tonight, as the number killed grows into the dozens, the search goes around the clock. questions mounting about whether it could have been stopped. >> do you feel like a was turned? >> as far as preventable, absolutely. i'm not going to make excuses for the city, because we've documented, called it in. >> reporter: the building went up fast. people weren't supposed to be living here, it only had permits as a warehouse. it was a well-known artists'

>> i watched it burn for four hours. >> reporter: that's the back of the warehouse. the first responders are just about a block away. most of the dead were on the second floor. a maze of art studios before the fire. >> it's tragic to watch so many people perish from a fire fatality i and have to be stoic and professional and make sure to honor the victims and families to bring them safely out of the building. >> i think we were surprised at first to find that many bodies where we found them. and we are leaning towards, based on the facts that the

from a fall. >> reporter: they were on the second floor and it caved in. crews working methodically to recover victims with dignity and make sure what's left of the building doesn't come down on them. google earth pictures shows piles of and the mayor vowing to find out if this was preventable. >> i have teams going through every public record of the building. >> neal, you're hearing it could still be another day before investigators reach all of the victims? >> reporter: that's right. it could be another day, possibly even more. it's very slow going, and to give you a sense of it, the wood

they can shore up the walls to make sure the rest of the building doesn't cave in on them. >> thank you. and as the search continues, making the weight excruciating for the families, awaiting word on young ones. kayna whitworth has this part of the story. >> reporter: tonight, the agonizing wait for family and friends, as authorities attempt to find tragic fire. >> please just call us. we're all looking for you. can you just call any of us. if you're around, something happened, we don't care, we just want to know if you're alive or not. >> reporter: the silence, deafening. no phone calls, no texts, mothers who can't find their daughters. >> she's not answering her phone, he's not answering his phone. no one can get in contact with

like her to not respond to a text. >> reporter: dan vega, awaiting news of his brother alex. max orr made it out alive. >> i barely made it to the door, i was trying to get people out, yelling so people could have a light to come towards. >> reporter: tonight, officials say the process of identifying victims will be ch >> they may be unrecognizable. >> reporter: authorities calling this loss astronomical. two people telling me they lost five friends in one night. >> thank you. and we're also hearing stories of survival from inside that blaze. >> i was just getting ready to paint. and all of a sudden, we saw some

the fire. and i was just, it was just like a mad scramble. trying to find a fire extinguisher. i wasn't able to get it to work, and that's when i ran into my roommate. he was a larger gentleman, and coming down he broke his ankle, is an and needed me to pull him out. the fire was getting too hot. and i felt my i couldn't breathe, and i had to leave him behind. i know that he didn't make it. it's just, i just, i yelled and i just ran out after that. screaming his name. >> just one story of survival in this tragedy. >> we do want to turn to our other breaking story, in san antonio, texas. the passenger jet forced to

landing gear. passengers forced to evacuate by the emergency chute. gloria riviera has the late pictures coming in. >> reporter: tonight, a united flight in san antonio crash landing, its nose gear collapsing. >> there could be multiple impacts. >> reporter: passengers hearing the warning from the cockpit of an imminent evacuation. then moments later, sliding down crews working to rush people to safety. >> it's usually a fairly minor emer emergency. you land the airplane. >> reporter: another scare, a qatar airways flight, rocked by turbulence.

seat belt was up in the air for a few seconds. >> reporter: passengers sent flying in the air. the flight making an emergency landing in portugal. tonight, we know the ntsb will investigate. >> thank you. protesters camped out for months at the dakota pipeline. word that the u.s. army corps is denying to allow the work to continue. this will delay the pipeline. next to politics, and what

for the president-elect. donald trump facing backlash for that call with the president of taiwan. and once again, trump is turning to twitter to sound ouff. here's david wright. >> reporter: tonight, the president-elect insists people are making too much of the talk with taiwan. >> it's a little mystifying me that president obama can reach out to a murdering dictator in cuba in the last year, and be hailed as a hero. but donald trump takes a courtesy call from a democratically elected leader in taiwan, and it's a controversy. >> reporter: david petraeus says he's convinced donald trump has

abroad. >> what i enjoyed most, frankly, was the discussion of issues. >> reporter: high on trump's agenda, the issue of protecting american jobs. even if that means interfering in the free market. today on twitter, trump went on a rant, warning people against making what he calls an expensive mistake. any company that leaves this country its product back into the u.s., there will be a tax of 35%. trump also took aim at another pet peeve. >> this week, tweeted the best tweet. wow, what a great, smart tweet. >> reporter: alec baldwin's parody on "snl." just tried watching saturday

baldwin's impersonation, sad. tonight, trump getting a vote of confidence from vladimir putin. cecilia? >> thank you. i want to head overseas to cuba, where the ashes of fidel castro were laid to rest. capping a his ashes next to a hero of cuban independence. the ceremony attended only by family. until today, the location, one of the most tightly-kept secrets. next, millions at home facing severe weather. at the same time, snow is falling tonight in the midwest.

time for the monday morning commute. rob marciano is here tracking it all. what are you looking at, rob? >> take a look at the piece. the snow is heavy across the north. and last night, across texas and louisiana, have a look. tonight, gulf coast residents bracing for more of this. heavy rain galveston getting a record. and over a foot of rain swoampig these cars. others forced to abandon their vehicles. >> i was watching tow trucks one after another. >> reporter: flood water stranding this driver and her

firefighters having to use a ladder to pull them to safety. meanwhile, winter blanketing shelbiville, montana, with snow. >> and rob is here with the forecast. how much snow has falling so far? >> over six inches in some spots. we have the snow across the northeast, and flooding in the south. and another round of expected in texas and louisiana. flooding an issue there. and the snow here, north of i-80, i-84, it will be a slick go, a few inches. and this week, 23 degrees in memphis, it slides east on friday and saturday, by far the coldest air of the season. get ready. >> thank you.

ahead on "world news tonight" this sunday. witnesses coming forward in the deadly road rage attack. what one woman says she saw. and the latest offer from a music superstar, stepping in to help her neighbors. and cracking a hot car cold case. how this mystery was solved. it only took 40 years. [burke] at farmers, we've seen so we know how to cover almost almoanything.hing, even a rodent ride-along. [dad] alright, buddy, don't forget anything! [kid] i won't, dad... [captain rod] happy tuesday morning! captain rod here. it's pretty hairy out on the interstate.traffic is literally crawling, but there is some movement on the eastside overpass. getting word of another collision. [burke] it happened. december 14th, 2015. and we covered it. talk to farmers. we know a thing or two because we've seen a thing or two.

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>> reporter: ronald gasser admitting shooting joe mcknight. >> he was like this at the window. once he moved from the window, he walked around to the front part after the car, kept his arm liked. >> reporter: and pointing? >> pointed at the front of the car. >> reporter: at the windshield? >> yes, the hood and the windshield, kept his arm in place. >> reporter: many tonight still asking why gasser hasn't been charged. >> if he was man enough to pull the trigger, he should be man enough to take his licking and still be in jail. >> when we shoot and kill somebody, the question is, it's a homicide. the question is, is it justified or n or not?

c -- injury selection begins tomorrow in new orleans for hayes. he has been behind bars since. cecilia? >> thank you. when we come back, the cell phone one man says caught fire. it was. and, we've got the college football lineup. do you have your picks ready to go? and providing local support to those living with the disease and their caregivers. but we won't get there without you.

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goes missing, we put our john donvan on the case. >> reporter: here's how to help a kid feel lousy at christmastime -- steal her santa. >> she tells it good night every night before going to bed. and we say he's sleeping during

her. >> reporter: so this year, santa returned to the lawn until somebody decided to swipe it. >> i pulled in the driveway and she told me, santa claus is gone. >> reporter: her mom felt moved to tell her about it on facebook. >> it just touched my heart, and just wanted to do something for the family. tracy showed up with a perfect match. so, if you want to be the one who makes a kid feel great again, be like tracy. >> now i have a little friend. >> reporter: be a santa giver and not a santa stealer. >> no santa stealing. "gma" first thing in the morning. david muir will be back here tomorrow. i'm cecilia vega. have a great sunday.

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>> now abc 7 at 6:30, on your side. >> reports of a man armed with an assault rifle at a business in northwest. police shut down part of connecticut avenue. a short suspect was arrested. we're on the scene with the latest on the story. >> right now comet ping-pong is surrounded by police tape. there is also a police crews are on the outside. officials are stressing this incident was not terrorist related. at this time, the suspect name has not been replaced -- release but we know he is in his late 20's. >> this afternoon, and adult