tonight on "world news tonight," relentless. the deep freeze gripping the country. more than 200 million americans shivering into 2018. life-threatening wind chill alerts. dangerous driving conditions. and a new winter storm that could be lining up to strike. when will the bitter cold end? ginger zee standing by. vacation horror. a passenger plane nose diving just after takeoff. ten americans among the dead in the fiery crash. tonight, details about the families onboard and the investigation into what went wrong. deadly police ambush. a suspect unloading more than 100 rounds, killing one deputy an

were warning signs missed? the takeover. after a sexism scandal rocked the miss america pageant, a former beauty queen who went public with her own sexual harassment story stepping in. and high times and long lines in california. as the golden state ushers in legal marijuana. but is there a downside, as the nation's biggest state goes to pot? and good evening and welcome to "world news tonight," i'm tom llamas, in for david. and we begin tonight with the relentless cold gripping the country on the first day of 2018. more than 200 million americans shivering into the new year. hypothermia warnings and wind chill alerts from texas all the way to maine. chicago, take a look at this, looking more like a tundra this morning, with temperatures that feel like 29 degrees below zero. here in new york city, a million people huddling in times square to watch the ball

degree temperatures. the coldest celebration in a century. ice and snow causing several holiday accidents. you see them right there. on the roads, including this 30-vehicle pileup on a michigan interstate. the life-threatening deep freeze expanding tonight into the deep south. and a new system that could bring a round of snow later this week. more on the forecast with ginger zee in a moment, but we start with abc's arierielle reshef. >> reporter: tonight, 2018 is off to a bone-chilling start. spectators at philly's famous mummers parade bundled from head to toe, as a deep freeze grips nearly two-thirds of the country. the extreme cold responsible for at least five deaths, as records fall from the midwest to the northeast. in st. paul, minnesota, ten people taken to the hospital for carbon monoxide poisoning. authorities believe a faulty boiler is to blame. firefighters battling this house fire in lincoln, nebraska, in negative 10 degree temperatures. spraying water that quickly turned to ice. in times square, crowds brin

minus 4 wind chills as the ball dropped. 29 people taken to the hospital. the coldest new year's celebration in a century. at this hour, wind chul alerts stretching into the deep south. in the dallas/ft. worth area sunday, this scare for a police officer, slipping on the ice and then narrowly missed by a sliding car. and the whiteout on the roads in michigan, leading to this multi-car pileup. >> you're afraid to stop because someone could hit you. you're afraid to keep going because you don't know what's up there. >> reporter: the final week of 2017 bringing seven feet of lake effect snow to erie, pennsylvania. >> the roof is too much weight. >> reporter: this weekend, workers using massive tarps and a crane to lift snow off the roof of this shopping center and into the parking lot below. >> incredible images from all over the country. and erielle joining us live now from the west side of manhattan. and erielle, new york is chasing a record of their own tonight? >> reporter: that's right, tom. it has been in the teens here in new york all day. and hasn't been above freezing since christmas.

we're on pace to have one of the longest stretches of sub-degree temperatures on record. tom? >> erielle rechef for us tonight. thank you. and new york is not the only city chasing winter records. for more on that, we turn now to ginger zee. >> reporter: so many people feeling it, all the way to the gulf coast. but sub-20 degree temperatures have been in place in boston for seven days, as of tomorrow. that will tie a record. it goes back to 1917 or '18. but look at this. i have actually air temperatures on the map. and you're seeing hard freeze warnings from del rio, texas, all the way to waycross, georgia. it gets deep in there. you get the wind on, the wind chill, what you feel is this. it will feel like 19 below in chicago. and maybe you heard some rumblings of this storm. there's a storm coming out of the gulf. a light snow and windy mix for wednesday evening for south and north carolina coast. then it goes along the mid-atlantic and northeast. right now, it's about 100 miles away.

we'll have a much bigger story on our hands. what i can promise you is another giant blast of cold air, dangerous cold air by the weekend. >> we'll keep our eyes on that storm. ginger, thank you. moving on now to that vacation horror unfolding in costa rica. a passenger plane crashing in that central american country, killing ten american passengers and two pilots moments after takeoff. tonight, the ntsb is joining the investigation, as we learn new details about the american families involved. here's abc's adrienne bankert. >> reporter: tonight, investigators from the ntsb are on their way to costa rica to join authorities investigating why a routine charter flight crashed, killing ten americans and two crew onboard. >> oh, my god. >> reporter: that plane smashing into pieces just minutes after takeoff for the capital of san jose on new year's eve. an american tourist saw it all from a nearby restaurant. >> it made a really hard left-hand turn and was totally

sideways, and then nose-dived straight into the ground. >> reporter: the plane operated by nature air, the largest carrier in costa rica. the airline has a good safety record but, had one crash last year, killing one passenger. onboard this flight, two costa rican pilots, american tour guide amanda giesler and two american families. bruce and irene steinberg on vacation with their three sons from scarsdale, new york. the family shares on facebook, "we are in utter shock and disbelief right now." outside their home today, their babysitter, inconsolable. >> i don't understand what happened. >> reporter: also killed, mitchell and leslie weiss and their teenage daughter and son from tampa. >> you never want it to happen to somebody that you know. and they were a good, good family. >> reporter: costa rian authorities say the pilot was experienced, but the winds in that area are so strong, especially at that altitude. that same plane was delayed in landing a day before because of those winds.

>> adrienne, thank you. next, to colorado, and new developments in that ambush that killed one deputy and injured four more. the suspect in that deadly shooting identified as 37-year-old matthew reel, an iraq war veteran that had ranted online about law enforcement. tonight, new details about those messages, and questions about whether warning signs were missed, here's abc's clayton sandell. >> reporter: in highlands ranch, colorado, 2018 is beginning with a life ended. >> shots fired, shots fired. >> reporter: five officers responding to a disturbance call early sunday and two civilians in a violent ambush. >> the person with the gun is inside the apartment still. >> reporter: 29-year old deputy zackari parrish, married with two young daughters, was killed. >> we have one deputy down inside the apartment. >> reporter: tonight, the wounded officers are in stable condition. >> libertarian candidate for sheriff of douglas county. >> reporter: the gunman, 37-year-old matthew riehl, was killed by

he was already on law enforcement radar for rants against police. >> lying scum bag. >> reporter: riehl posted these photos last year shooting a rifle. he graduated law school at the university of wyoming. but after several nonsensical facebook rants against the school and staff last fall, the assistant dean issued a warning telling students and faculty if they saw riehl or his car to call police. >> in this day and age, law enforcement has to consider indicators of somebody having mental health issues and factor that into whether they are either planning to commit a crime or are capable of committing one. >> reporter: riehl also served in the wyoming national guard deploying to iraq in 2009 and honorable discharge in 2012. and tom, you can see just how untension this fire fight really was. if you take a look up here, this apartment building is absolutely hitled with bullet holes. the windows broken, not just here, but some of the buildings around it. over an hour and a half, the suspect fired more than 100 shots. tom? >> clayton sandell with us tonight. thank you. turning er

fifth day of deadly protests in iran. president trump in one of his first new year's tweets, saluting iranians for demanding change. now questions about how long those clashes will continue. abc's james longman reporting tonight from london. >> reporter: the fire is spreading in iran, now in its fifth day of protest. 12 dead and scores injured, around 400 arrested so far. demonstrations began thursday over alleged corruption and economic hardship. authorities responding, trying to cut off some social media access to stop crowds organizing rallies. but they've since morphed into a wider anti-regime movement. president rue manny accepting marches, while warning against violence. but in iran, both civil and religious authorities rule, and the clerics promise an iron fist. president trump adding fuel to the fire, tweeting, "the great iranian people have been repressed for many years. they are hungry for food and for freedom. time for change." with no clear leadership, it's hard to know

protests can go. but this is the most unrest iran has seen since the so-called green revolution of 2009. tom? >> james longman for us tonight. james, thank you. back here at home, and president trump returning to washington tonight after his florida holiday, facing a fresh threat from kim jong-un. the north korean lead er the president calls little rocket man, touting his arsenal, and warning the button is on his desk. abc's david wright is in west palm beach. >> reporter: tonight, as president trump heads back to the white house, the new year brings plenty of big challenges. he acknowledged last much last night at mar-a-lago, obtained by cnn. >> we have some pretty good enemies out there, but step by step, they're being defeated. they're some bad people. bad people. but that's okay. some day, maybe they'll love us. >> reporter: hard to imagine the young leader trump has belittled

come around. north crekorea's kim jong-un. his new year's message included a threat. "the u.s. should know that the nuclear button is on my december," he said. "the entire u.s. mainland is within our nuclear strike range." that may or may not be true. president trump was asked about that. >> we'll see. we'll see. >> reporter: if the recent past is any guide, trump won't take kindly to any overt threats. >> they will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen. >> reporter: the former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff offered this grim assessment to martha raddatz this weekend. >> we're actually closer, in my view, to a nuclear war with north korea and in that region, than we've ever been, and i just don't see how -- i don't see the

opportunities to solve this diplomatically at this particular point. >> reporter: the u.s. has long considered north korea's nuclear ambitions to be a threat to national security, and kim jong-un now insists that his country's nuclear readiness is a reality. a huge test for president trump. tom? >> david wright for us. david, thank you. moving on now, and the me, too, movement that began in 2017 reverberating in the new year. gretchen carlson, the former fox news host who shared her own story of sexual harassment, taking over as chair of the miss america pageant, after a sexism scandal rocked that organization. abc's linsey davis with the details. >> miss america is gretchen carlson! >> reporter: here she is, miss america's new chairman, former fox news anchor gretchen carlson. the 1989 winner is taking ore the pageant, after the former ceo, sam haskell, resigned over leaked e-mails exposing alleged crude, sexist and derogatory comments. 2013 m

belittled for her weight and love life. >> having someone bully you, belittle you, demean you, degrade you in any way is not ok okay. >> reporter: both she and carlson among the 49 former miss americas who demanded haskell and others step down, describing a toxic environment. something carlson says she experienced first-hand at fox news. >> you fear you're not going to be believed. you're going to lose your job. >> reporter: well before the #metoo movement, carlson famously went public about allegations of sexual harassment at fox news and settled a lawsuit for $20 million against then fox news ceo roger ailes. >> we have to make it a safer environment. >> reporter: also today, the announcement of a new initiative called times up. 300 women working in hollywood all coming together to provide legislation and a legal defense fund to help less privileged women protect themselves against sexual misconduct. tom? >> a lot of people talking about that tonight.

next, to the green rush in the golden state. california opening 2018 with its first legal recreational marijuana sale. but not everyone is celebrating the new cash crop. abc news senior national correspondent matt gutman reports from southern california. >> reporter: tonight, in california, they're lining up to light up. >> we've been looking forward to this day for a long time, haven't we? >> reporter: marijuana today became legal to buy and possess for anyone 21 and over. lines forming outside dispensaries from oakland to di. >> reporter: we were here at about 5:00 this morning. it's history. >> reporter: and business is set to boom in what's expected to be a $7 billion industry in the state. and tonight, dispensaries are bracing for the rush. >> we're getting ready, we have five new registers circumstances new bud tenders. >> reporter: these stores offer cookies, candy, and even dog treats. but easy access makes the california highway patrol

that have legalized it and they've seen an uptick in collisions and fatal collisions. so it's definitely a concern for us. >> reporter: tom, with legality come taxes. the california pot industry is expected to generate over a billion dollars in taxes. now, some of that is already earmarked towards marijuana res research, education and drug treatment programs. tom? >> matt gutman tonight, thank you. there's still much more ahead on "world news tonight" this monday. officers down when a gunman opens fire at a new year's gathering. we'll tell you where. and if you are secretly plotting an escape to warmer climates, coming up, the cheapest dates to fly when fares could be as much as 40% off. plus, the life and death moments after a driver ends up in the water. we'll take you inside theless rue, all caught on camera. stay with us. ney on your medicare part d prescriptions? at walgreens, we'll help you save more with copays as low as $0 and reward points on prescriptions.

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>> reporter: tonight, if the post-holiday blues have you dreaming of that perfect winter getaway, the time to book a flight is now. >> i think you're going to see a lot of deals through the month of january that will extend through the spring and right up until the edge of summer. >> reporter: the cheapest dates to fly? january 9th through most of march. tickets now discounted 16% to 36% below average prices. we found cross-country flights from new york to san francisco on virgin airlines for just $119 each way. this trip on united, chicago to orlando, florida, less than $150 roundtrip. even international destinations on sale like providence to dublin on norwegian air, one-way tickets now as low as $99. to find spot the best fares for you? >> hitmoneying is great, hopper is great. google flights is really simple. you could sign up for like travel zoo, that

favorite. >> and rebecca jarvis joins us now in studio. you were just telling me about one more way we can save? >> reporter: that's right. you can often save money by booking two one-way flights on separate airlines and those sites that are expert mentioned tonight, hitmoneying and hopper are great ways to look for them. >> all right, rebecca, thank you. and up next, when we come back, the fire racing through a parking garage. take a look at this. destroying 1,400 cars. what may have started it? and have you seen this man? he could be behind the abduction of two little girls. police asking for your help with the urgent manhunt tonight. nd-ns of diabetic nerve pain, these feet... grew into a free-wheeling kid... loved every step of fatherhood... and made old cars good as new. but i couldn't bear my diabetic nerve pain any longer. so i talked to my doctor and he prescribed lyrica. nerve damage from diabetes causes diabetic nerve pain. lyrica is fda approved to treat this pain, from moderate

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strings and a broken bass board one last song. the video going viral. grammy-nominated singer vanessa carlton noticing, tweeting, "this story is so important, i'd like to get him a replacement piano if this one doesn't make it." nearly four months later, just as the hardings are finishing rebuilding their home, the final touch, that new piano, delivered this week. >> it's been hard to just kind of stay mentally hopeful through the whole thing. >> reporter: his son already practicing. >> the message is that there's hope past the moment you're in. >> reporter: for the hardings, that is the sound of resilience. gloria riviera, abc news, washington. >> we thank gloria for that story, and we thank you for watching. i'm tom llamas in new york. david muir will be right back here tomorrow. happy new year. have a good evening. good night.

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