e there is breaking news on this tuesday, november 23rd. >> a military clash between north and south korea breaks out overnight. fighter jets fill the sky. our reporter in seoul has reaction. across the u.s., rare, late-autumn tornadoes tear apart homes, while snow snarls traffic. and there is more to come. and with hours to go before tonight's dancing finale, america weighs in on what is behind bristol palin's popularity. and good morning, everyone. breaking news this morning. the powder keg of tension on the korean peninsula exploded in a deadly military clash this morning. a diplomatic emergency that is still unfolding.

>> it began when the north fired dozens of art tillry shells own a south korean island near the western border. at least one marine was killed. and dozens of homes were set on fire. then, the south fired back and scrambled fighter jets in response. >> our reporter in seoul, joohee cho, says this came as a major surprise. >> reporter: the president has convened a national security meeting at the underground bunker. so, this is a pretty big deal here and a shocking, surprise attack. aiming at the military is one thing. but firing at civilian residents is a different story. and this does take a toll on south korean's people's sense of security here. >> this latest incident comes just days after north korea claims it has a new enrichment facility. a little over a month ago, kim jong un was chosen as his father's successor. we'll continue to watch the situation throughout the day. and our other main story on this tuesday morning, some peculiar weather that is wreaking havoc on pre-thanksgiving travel. >> the main culprits are wintry

storms that are packing massive amounts of snow in the west. and some unseasonable conditions in the upper midwest. >> emily schmidt has all the details. >> reporter: on the busiest travel week of the year, bad weather is making for extremely slow-going. >> i knew it was kind of snowing yesterday. but i had no idea that it was going to be everywhere. >> reporter: in seattle, rare pre-thanksgiving snow and strong winds caused accidents that brought monday's rush hour to a standstill. major highways tied up in all directions. in california's sierra region, tow truck drivers have been on duty three days-straight. trying to dig people out from five feet of snow that covered the roads and toppled power lines. >> we got a lot of snow in a short amount of time. i think the trees are very dry. and the snow is really well. and it looks like artillery shells went off all over the place. >> reporter: the midwest is accustomed to snow this time of year. but tornadoes are a rarity. so, in illinois, jim grabbed his camera, when he saw a funnel cloud outside of his door.

>> i stood out there, like the smart man that i am, and filmed it. >> reporter: the storm spared his house. others weren't so lucky. a school bus driver and at least five students were slightly injured when a tornado blew over their bus 80 miles outside of chicago. while the storm ripped the roof off an illinois home, with a woman inside. >> the whole house was just shaking. she heard the freight train that everyone talks about. >> reporter: the sound people dread. kicking off a season now causing worries of its own. >> i'm not looking forward to this winter. it's probably going to be a long one. >> reporter: those storm systems in the east and west will continue to haunt thanksgiving week travelers. just as more people than last year are expected to hit the roads. emily schmidt, abc news. >> awful timing for all that weather. as for today's weather, showers from seattle to san francisco, reaching l.a. by tonight. up to two feet of snow, meanwhile, in the sierras. blizzard warnings in utah and colorado.

heavy snow into the western dakotas. thunderstorms from houston to the carolinas. showers into d.c., philly, new york and new england. >> 60s in boston, new york and baltimore. a drastic drop in the midwest, with 35 in chicago and 23 in the twin cities. a frosty 6 degrees in billings, 27 in boise and 23 degrees in seattle. rescue workers in cambodia are searching for anyone who might have survived a deadly stampede. more than 370 people died when a panicked crowd tried to flee over a small bridge. some of the victims were trampled. others fell into the river. thousands had gathered for a festival marking the end of the rainy season. tomorrow will be a national day of mourning. it's like something out of a spy novel. there are reports that a taliban leader who was involved in high-level peace talks with afghan leaders wass an imposter. it was supposed to be mullah akhtar muhammad mansour. one of the most senior leaders in the taliban movement. the fake leader was not only a security threat. the u.s. paid him lots of money. this morning, the afghan

president is denying he ever met with mansour. americans appear evenly divided on those new airport security measures. our new abc news poll finds 50% say they go too far. meanwhile, 48% say they are justified. the tsa is now asking for patience as we all head toward the busiest travel day of the year. here, now, is sharyn alfonsi. >> reporter: on one of the busiest travel days of the year, we fanned out to ten airports across the country, to find out how long passengers are waiting to get through security. in denver, 16 minutes. chicago, seven. atlanta, five. and boston, just two minutes. on average, about nine minutes. where is all that chaos we were expecting? well, the tsa says, of the 2 million passengers who fly every day, less than 3% are getting patdowns. 3%. and less than 1%, are being pulled aside for even more screening. meaning, millions of passengers are moving through security swiftly.

viral videos, like this one, of an 8-year-old boy getting screened with his shirt off, have been fueling the ire of those passengers who say the tsa is going too far. but what's really going on here? the tsa says the boy set off an alarm and did have to go through a secondary screening. but they say the boy's father, not the tsa, removed his shirt in an effort to expedite the screening. tsa agents receive just eight hours of training on how to perform those new patdowns. but the tsa says, of the more than 30 million passengers that have flown since the new procedures have kicked in, only 700 have filed complaints with them. still, real concerns remain. especially about the safety of those scanners. the ts a-main tans they are safe and only emit a minuscule amount of radiation. still, some in the scientific community aren't convinced. >> the dose is still low.

but they're rather higher than the tsa is saying. >> reporter: sharyn alfonsi, abc news, new york. qantas airlines is putting two of its massive a-380 jumbo jets back in the air. all six of the carrier's a-380s had been grounded since that midair engine blowout three weeks ago. qantas has been checking and replacing the engines ever since. and they say now, they are good to go. we told you yesterday morning about that delta airlines flight that had to return to new york's jfk airport. an engine failure forced that moscow-bound plane to turnaround. actor leonardo dicaprio and more than 200 others were onboard. investigators now say there's no evidence that a bird strike caused that failure. they're now looking into other causes. and when we come back this morning, for some drivers it is a dream come true. the new car that gets nearly, get this, 100 miles per gallon. and we continue to monitor breaking news from asia. south korean homes burning out of control, after an attack in retaliation from south by the north.

overseas markets are lower this morning. reacting to the news out of korea and renewed concern about ireland's debt crisis. japanese markets were closed for a holiday. but hong kong's hang seng is sharply lower. in london, the ftse opened lower. on wall street, the dow fell 25 points yesterday. the nasdaq added nearly 14. if you're hitting the road for the holiday, be prepared to pay a little more at the pump.

gas prices are now averaging $2.88 a gallon. that's up about 24 cents from last thanksgiving. analysts blame the increase on taemp rir shout junes at refineries and weakness in the dollar. it won't take a drop of gas to go anywhere in the nissan leaf. government testing finds the electric car can travel 73 miles on a fully-charged battery. that's the equivalent of 99 miles every gallon. the estimated yearly electricity cost for the leaf is about 560 bucks. compared to almost $1,700 in gas for a similar sized standard car. walmart is trying to guarantee that it has the lowest prices for the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season. the retail giant says it will match competitor prices beginning on thanksgiving day and running through the weekend. the offer is only good in stores. netflix is putting another nail in the coffin of the dvd. it's announced a new streaming-only plan that allows members to watch movies and tv shows online for about $8 a

month. dvds aren't going away anytime soon. but netflix expects them to make up just a fraction of its business 20 years from now. netflix subscribers already watch more hours of streaming video each month than dvds. >> a new report says during peak times, 20% of traffic is on the netflix website. >> that's amazing. a lot of changes. coming up next on this tuesday morning, does bristol palin belong in tonight's finals? she will respond to the controversy. and "monday night football" action from espn. one team is charged up and on a roll. ♪ [ female announcer ] keurig has over 200 varieties of gourmet coffee and tea to choose from. ♪ keurig is the way to brew fresh, delicious coffee in under a minute. way to brew. [ female announcer ] so with keurig, every cup tastes like it's brewed just for you. ♪

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our family-owned company makes daisy... with 100% natural farm-fresh cream. no artificial ingredients. no preservatives. and no added hormones. ♪ daisy, do-do a dollop another look, now, at that fierce tornado that ripped through northern illinois. the half-mile-wide twister damaged homes, knocked out power and flipped over a school bus filled with children. amazingly the driver and several kids only suffered minor injuries. and now, let's take a look

at this morning's road conditions. wet on i-95, from maine to the carolinas. and on i-10, from pensacola to houston. snow-covered on i-5, in the pacific northwest. on i-90, from seattle to bismarck. and on i-15, 80 and 84, in the rockies. >> if you are flying today, expect airport delays in san francisco, los angeles, salt lake city, denver. and from boston to atlanta. in other news, now, an attempt to rescue those 29 miners trapped underground in new zealand is not making much progress. meanwhile, though, we are getting a first look at the moments right after last friday's massive explosion. these closed-circuit images were taken just after the blast. those miners, have not been heard from since. a robot that was testing toxic gas levels inside a tunnel has now broken down. new jersey may have the toughest anti-bullying law in the country. state lawmakers approved legislation that would allow

public schools to develop anti-bullying programs. the bill was already in the works before the suicide of tyler clementi, the rutgers freshman who killed himself, after his roommate streamed his liaison with another man live over the internet. sarah palin hits the road today to promote her latest book called "america by heart." she kicks off her tour with a book signing in phoenix tonight. they're expecting such a huge turnout that fans will need to arrive early enough to get wristbands to see the former governor. her tour is taking her to 12 other states in the heartland and the south. meanwhile, the death threats aimed at sarah palin's daughter, bristol, led to extra security for the "dancing with the stars" showdown. >> in a new abc news poll 54% said bristol palin made it to the finals because she was backed by her mother's supporters. wabc's lucy wang reports on what could be the most controversial show yet. >> reporter: they danced their

hearts out. a whole season worth of sweat and tears. riding on their final performances. the show is about turning celebrities into ballroom stars. it's supposed to focus on rhythm and presence. this season has had so much more. cries of conspiracy. and even death threats. when brandy was tossed by viewers last week and bristol palin got to stay, immediately many began screaming no fair. accusing the tea party movement of voting for bristol because they like her mother, sarah. the palins have denied any organized get out the vote drive. we spoke to brandy's dancing parter the, maks chmerkovskiy. >> if they voted from what they thought dancing level was, it's fine. >> reporter: it's a three-way race between kyle massey, "dirty dancing" star, jennifer grey,

and palin daughter, bristol. >> i had to led it roll off my back and focus on dancing. >> i want people to sit back and say, look. how about we cut all the crap and vote for the dancers. and let the better dance erwin? >> jennifer grey goes into tonight's final show after impressing the judges with two flawless performances with a combined perfect score of 60. >> kyle massey earned 56 points. and bristol palin got 52. we'll find out who gets the trophy in tonight's two-hour finale, beginning right here on abc. charlie sheen is suing the woman who was locked in the bathroom of his hotel sweet last month. the actor accused capri anderson of extortion, saying she wanted $1 million to remain quiet. on monday, anderson appeared on "good morning america," saying she went on a tirade that night. throwing lamps and using racial slurs. six nfl teams are in a short nfl practice ahead of their

thanksgiving day games this week. as for last night's football action, here's max bredos on espn news. >> on monday night, they were looking to even up the records. they have philip rivers. first quarter, they're trailing 7-0. finds malcolm floyd. it's tied at 7-7. second quarter, 14-7, charges. finds patrick crayton in the flat. beats brian dawkins. goes 40 yards with the convoy in front of him. he would injure himself on the play. it's a 21-7 lead. then, it's darren sproles. load it up. 28-7, san diego. fourth quarter, philip rivers finds jacob hester. rivers, 15 of 24.

233 yards. ties a personal high with four touchdowns. dwyane wade back from a sprained wrist. while away, the heat have lost on saturday, facing the pacers monday. second quarter, danny dwranger hits the three. pacers up 14. then, brandon rush, chipped in with 20 with a basket. wade, underneath the basket, blocked by solomon jones. he's upset with the play when you shoot 1 for 13 on the night. gets the technical foul. wade, frustrated. three-points on the game. late fourth quarter. granger, for three. big win for the pacers. they win it 93-77. this has been your espn news update. back to you in the studio. oprah winfrey has wrapped up her two-day favorite things giveaway, in true oprah fashion. >> how about if we give each person in your audience the brand-new totally redesigned

2012 volkswagen beetle? >> the car has the "o" stamp of approval. oprah herself owns and drives the 2011 v.w. beetle. >> i just want one of her favorite things. >> let's call oprah. coming up next, we'll update this morning's breaking news. a north korean cross-border attack. south korea retaliates. we'll have the latest. thanks. please remove all metal objects out of your pockets. with chase freedom you can get a total of 5% cash back. fun money from freedom. that's 5% cash back in quarterly categories and an unlimited 1% cash back everywhere else. and this too. does your card do this? i'm going to need a supervisor over here at gate 4. sign up for this quarter's bonus today. chase what matters. go to chase.com/freedom.

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now, a look ahead to the stories we'll be watching on this tuesday. the u.s. is closely watching the escalating tension after north korea fired on a south korean island. the artillery barrage prompted south korea to return fire and scramble fighter jets. president obama takes his white house to main street tour to coke mow, indiana. president obama and vice president biden will greet workers there and visit a chrysler portland. we should learn if a jawbone found in aruba is that of natalee holloway's. and with shopping getting into high gear, the public interest research group has released its toy safety survey. it will call on the government to expand its regulations on small toy parts, which could cause children to choke. coming up later today on "good morning america," guess who is turning 50? our own robin roberts is celebrating the big 5-0.

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now, "good morning maryland." come up with a better plan. that's what parents are telling the harford county school board to do instead of shuffling students around. -- around. 16 years owled and missing. the outcome was not good for the teen found near boston. tornadoes in illinois, snow in other parts of the midwest. all the store yes ahead on this tuesday morning, good morning, i am mega pringle. >> i am charlie crowson. let's look at forecast. here in the maryland region and for that justin berk. >> good morning. we have a active weather pattern. we will watch it and we are in the waiting game for our turn. patchy fog this morning. we had a beautiful afternoon. we are looking at a mild morning. but there are areas of patchy

thick fog. a shower this afternoon. cool with scattered showers and colder as we go in towards the weekend. this morning, it's all about patchy, thick fog. in parts of the baltimore, it's clear and a bright moon lit night and in the outlying areas, it's interesting if you see the moon on the canopy of low fog in some of the valleys. 54 is the temperature in baltimore. but 37 up towards york, pa. mid-40 -- 40s to mid-50s. afternoon showers and a mild 66. here kim brown with traffic. >> reporter: thanks. we are off to a nice quiet start around the beltway. no problems on the west side looking at liberty road on inner and outer loops. 695 hooks good as do 83. no problem on 95. we are working the final stages of a crash up in finksburg that has westbound lanes of route 140 closed at route 191. they hope to have that reopened very shortly. ll