making news in america this morning, severe holiday weather. rain across the south forcing evacuations while others start the long road back following these deadly storms. tornadoes where we don't usually see them. then today's holiday around the world of the pope offering his christmas blessing before his message to the masses and the rather unusual christmas tradition being enjoyed in japan right now. is a crackdown coming against hundreds of immigrant families who have had their requests for asylum rejected? how much longer could they have in this country? something of a surprising admission from chipotle about an e. coli outbreak linked to some of its restaurants. what the company is saying coming up.

and we do say good morning to you on this christmas morning. this is anything but a white christmas for most of the country. heavy rain, of course, unseasonable temperatures and tornadoes. not exactly something for bing crosby song. >> not quite especially not in the south where christmas was ruined for many americans. abc's kenneth moton has the latest. >> reporter: holiday weather for the record books. this christmas morning the weather threat continues for parts of the south with heavy rain causing flood watches. >> we woke up to civil defense pounding on our door telling us we had 20 minutes to leave our homes. >> reporter: people evacuated their homes to escape floodwaters from the south the weather turned deadly. more than a dozen killed when 24 tornadoes. and one stretched 150 miles destroying homes and lives. >> if you look at the damage

here, it is as bad as any tornado that we've had and i've been through a lot of them. >> reporter: in wisconsin, crews are working overtime to restore power after strong winds wreaked havoc in other parts of the midwest, snow and lots of it. a heavy downfall in omaha, nebraska, caused a traffic nightmare before christmas. >> it's impossible for me to get there. it's insane. >> reporter: along the east coast it's not a white christmas but it's definitely a warm one. record highs from florida to vermont. in new york city, 70-degree weather had people in shorts and t-shirts. >> i'm loving it. everyone should have a hot holiday. i don't have to go to florida or california. i'm fine right here. >> reporter: those residents should enjoy the warm christmas because temperatures are expected to drop next week. kenneth moton, abc news, washington. there were several tornadoes in northern california east of sacramento. >> some roofs were damaged. trees and fences torn down. but there were no reports of

injuries. one traffic accident is plamed on the tornadoes though the driver was distracted by the storm. holiday travel could be a nightmare in other parts of the country. here's accuweather's cam tran, good morning, cam. >> well, happy christmas. good morning. it'll remain balmy out in the east so if you're looking for a white christmas you have to head out west. pressure will bring widespread snow utah and western colorado and will shift and brings it into the northern plains. could see poor visibility as well as drifting snow making travel a bit dangerous. the system will move into minneapolis by saturday morning but the big storm system we're talking about will be over the weekend. we have a major storm saling across the south that will bring blizzard-like conditions into new mexico, even into the texas panhandle and could see upwards of ten inches of snow in el paso, as well looking at heavy rain in east texas and severe weather possible in the lower mississippi so heading back home for the holidays could be a bit

dangerous. back to you, kendis and marci. breaking news from africa where more than 100 have died in a gas explosion. it unfolded when a tanker truck ignited an inferno at a gat plant in nigeria. hundreds of people were lined up to refill their cooking gas cylinders in time for christmas. witnesses described the horrible scene with many of the victims burned beyond recognition. and from the vatican, the pope sending a somber message during his christmas eve mass. >> noting the simplicity of jesus christ's birth pope francis condemned what he called society's intoxication with consumerism, pleasure and abundance and wealth and said jesus calls on christians to act in a way that is a little more simple, balanced, consistent and capable of doing what is essential and delivers his christmas message and blessing and he'll do that in 50

languages. fewer pilgrims in the holy land put off by a surge of violence between israelis and palestinians. the palestinian president joined christian faithful for midnight mass in bethlehem. yesterday was quiet. in north carolina chaos at a mall after gunfire erupted between two groups of feuding teenagers. police in charlotte say an off-duty officer shot and killed one of the gunmen. panic shoppers scrammed for cover and the officer was placed on administrative leave until an investigation is complete. there were black lives matter protests on christmas eve including in chicago. investigators released recordings of chicago police radio calls from the night teenager laquan mcdonald was shot and killed. the radio traffic shows only five minutes pass between a request for a taser and when jason van dyke opened fire.

>> shots fired by the police. shots fired by the police. >> you guys okay? >> everything is fine. roll an ambulance over here. >> reporter: the protest about that shooting 100 demonstrators marched along chicago's busiest shopping district but this protest appeared to have less impact on merchants and a bigger one held on black friday. the obama administration is getti ting to launch a new salv >> the department of homeland security is going to sent thousands of immigrants living here illegally. pierre thomas has the latest. >> reporter: they came from the southern border by the thousands. children and families, in some cases fleeing violence and persecution in central america. many bussed beyond the border inside the u.s. some facing angry crowds while the government determined their fate. now with illegal border crossings spiking again, hundreds of those families are being targeted for deportation

in a series of sweeps that could begin as early as next month if approved by the white house. >> i think what they're trying to do is send a message saying don't come and in order to do that, i think they believe their images of families being offloaded in planes in central america that it's going to deter people from coming. >> reporter: the families targeted had their requests denied but their removal is sparking controversy because the obama administration has typically focused on deporting criminals, not families. >> a very tough day for this news to break on christmas eve. >> reporter: some said the plan is symbolic window dressing that will do nothing to stem the tide of illegal immigration. in many cases these families will have to be tracked down but immigration and customs enforcement agents are confident they can be located. it's too difficult for families to hide, they say. opposition to this plan is already fierce. pierre thomas, abc news, washington. >> well, straight ahead, 2015 is

so over when it comes to your money. what wall street is looking forward to. fedex not making any friends this morning thanks to some deliveries that still need to be made. yeah, so what is the company doing about it. the americans who spent 444 days in captivity in iran, uncle sam offering up a healthy christmas gift to them.

well, if you have been waiting and waiting and the christmas gifts still haven't arrived, believe it or not fedex says there's still some hope. >> oh, good. >> the shipping giant will be delivering packages today and opening counters at its express offices so customers can pick up

gifts themselves. >> the bad weather in the south and last-minute surge of holiday shopping delayed some christmas eve deliveries. analysts agree the biggest bargains in stores tomorrow will be clothing. that's always true but this year's discounts may be even better because the warmer than expected temperatures has put a crimp in winter clothing sales. one analyst says the best deals will be at department stores which are struggling the most this year. two-thirds of us plan to shop the post-christmas sales. and when it comes to the money you have invested, those who manage it are already looking ahead to 2016. some mutual fund managers and analysts say you should expect lower returns from stocks many could the new year and a few economists are predicting a recession with one week of trading left this year the dow is in negative territory, nasdaq is up for the year. we may never know exactly what caused the e. coli outbreak at two chipotle restaurants. that's the word from chipotle which says it no longer has any

of the ingredients that might have been contaminated. health officials also acknowledge the problem, chipotle's emphasis on fresh, locally produced ingredients may work against it here. chipotle's sales have taken a beating in recent months. all right, when we come back, a shocker from janet jackson. some bad news for fans who might have been looking forward to seeing her back on stage. quite a surprise on the streets of the mile high city. it had nothing to do with elevation. let's put it that way. stay with us. od clot. what about my family? my li'l buddy? and what if this happened again? i was given warfarin in the hospital but i wondered if this was the right treatment for me. then my doctor told me about eliquis. eliquis treats dvt and pe blood clots and reduces the risk of them happening again. not only does eliquis treat dvt and pe blood clots, but eliquis also had significantly less major bleeding than the standard treatment.

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as we mentioned earlier one place having a white christmas is omaha. the 6 inches or snow of fell that fell weren't in the forecast. not only caught the meteorologists by surprise but the road crews, as well leading to accidents and traffic jams, but no major injuries. >> snowy roads likely in many more places this morning from the rockies across to the twin cities in the south flooding is the main problem with wet road as cross the ohio valley and possibly into the mid-atlantic states. if you're flying airport delays are likeliest in houston, memphis, washington and denver. 36 years after their capture the americans taken hostage in tehran in 1979 are set to receive millions of dollars in compensation. >> it's news that brought tears to the eyes of the former hostages. tom llamas has the details. >> reporter: more than 30 years after those american hostages

were paraded before the world, a measure of justice. the 53 americans seized by an angry mob that stormed the u.s. embassy in tehran in 1979. >> will spend at least another night imprisoned in the embassy. >> reporter: they became international pawns. their ordeal dragging on for more than a year, rodney sickman was one of them, a 22-year-old marine serving as a security guard at the embassy. >> being held hostage was 444 days of a bad nightmare where each day we woke up, we thought we were dead. >> reporter: finally on the day ronald reagan was sworn in -- >> they won freedom for 52 americans. >> reporter: in all the years since the former hostages fought for compensation and now it's finally come. buried in a budget bill president obama signed last friday, they will each receive up to $4.4 million. that's $10,000 for every one of the 444 days they spent in cap difficulty. sickmann calls it justice. tom llamas, abc news, new york.

some personals in the news this christmas morning. bristol palin gave birth to sailor grace. she hasn't publicly identified sailor grace's father but dakota meyer posted best christmas present ever. troubling news about pop star janet jackson. she posted on instagram that she is postponing her unbreakable world tour until the spring because of an undisclosed upcoming surgery but told fans to hang on to their tickets until her concerts are rescheduled. california governor jerry brown has given actor robert downey jr. an official pardon for that 1996 drug conviction that landed him in prison. brown's office says he has since lived an honest and upright life. the ironman's conviction will remain on his record but voting rights to him will be restored. five games on the nba christmas schedule including a rematch of last season's finals

between the warriors an cavaliers. >> as for the christmas eve football action, highlights now from espn. good morning, america. and especially those watching in utica who like john buccigross. >> merry christmas to my favorite utica viewers. there was a football game played on christmas eve, an nfl football game. >> nfl football game, a lot of college. it's the capital one bowl mania. >> charles woodson, final season in the nfl. final home game in oakland, saying good-bye from free month, ohio and will return to ohio into the hall of fame, canton, less than two months of free month and phil rivers in overtime incomplete. jankowski kicked a field goal and raiders win in his final home game as a raider. a balmy 82 degrees in the bahamas thursday for the popeyes bahamas bowl between western michigan, middle tennessee.

jamari bogan stealing the show, 215 yards rushing. four touchdowns, the kids from kalamazoo are happy and broncos win it, 45-31. i don't know what you got, america, but i got them those two highlights. >> merry christmas, utica. >> merry christmas, america. environmentalists delivering a buzzkill over christmas lights. while holiday light displays are just a small fraction of what we consume consider this. >> they burn up more energy than nations use in an entire year. cambodia as an example. up next, that surprise we mentioned in denver. it was all for a good cause actually. >> and the holiday treat, nfl locker room style light the fireplace, our christmas "pulse" is straight ahead.

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♪ quick change as we're making our way to the fireplace and christmas threw up on me on the way over here. a special christmas edition of "the pulse" and start with the traditional christmas meal in japan. >> christmas is not a national holiday there but having a meal of kfc fried chicken with the colonel is the way many celebrate the day there apparently. it is so popular that people start making reservations in october. >> that's insane. wait time by the way can be as long as six hours without a reservation. the tradition dates back to 1974. >> but why? how did that get started? >> i have no idea. >> i like it. >> it's a good idea. we should try it here.

>> agreed. the nfl team that is as hot as this fire burning behind us talking about the carolina panthers. >> as hot as this suit. they are undefeated, 14-0 right now with two games left in the regular season and they can wrap up home field advantage throughout the playoffs with a win on sunday. >> these panthers aren't all rough and tough, though. they have a seasonal musical side as we check them out right now. >> really? >> yeah. ♪ sleep in heavenly peace ♪ merry christmas to all of you ♪ ♪ all of you and we mean it ♪ merry christmas to all of you ♪ >> merry christmas, everybody. >> i love they were hitting the notes while completely stark

naked. >> the other guy there. >> i like it as well and i like when you sing along to it. >> that's panthers running back fozzy whittaker in his rudolph suit and his friend all nude hitting all the right notes in the carolina locker room after practice. a simple suggestion, guys, don't quit the day job. >> i'd give money to watch more of this. >> really? >> yeah. also hitting a high note on the way in to christmas, a nonprofit group in denver that gave free marijuana joints to the homeless and anyone else who wanted one. the group cannabis can says it's high time that the homeless had access to rest rooms and showers so the group is raising money. >> oh, by giving this to them. it's illegal to smoke marijuana in public, by the way, but giving it as a gift is okay. they wish everybody a happy kannimas. >> a lot of homeless guys with the munchies in denver. >> stay with us.

more news coming up. >> i'm going to burn this over there. just head around the corner to walgreens when you're searching for that perfect little something. walgreens has great gifts like toys, beauty gift sets, and photo gifts, and it's all just a hop, skip, and a bark away. most stores open 'til 10pm on christmas day.

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our top stories more than 100 people are dead fooling a gas explosion in nigeria. the disaster unfolding when a tanker truck ignited an inferno at a gat industrial plant. at least 14 people are dead after tornadoes ripped through the south. there was also heavy rain, flooding and at least one mudslide. search of the deaths were in mississippi. freaky weather also in michigan. a rare tornado there in detroit and several to northern california. the brief twisters east of sacramento damaged cars and property but there were no serious injuries. and look at today's weather chilly in the west a freeze watch for the bay area. snow across the upper plains. more rain moving into the ohio valley. and finally on this christmas morning let's take a visit, shall we to what's being called california's miracle manor. an apartment complex for families with children who are critically ill.

>> it is near what is known as c choc. children's hospital of orange county. >> reporter: bridgette unpacks new boxes. it may not seem like much but to them it's a miracle. >> our family is whole and that we can be a family and do what we need to do. >> reporter: when she was 1, doctors diagnosed sofia with hlh, an extremely rare disease that causes her immune system to attack her own tissues and organs and began intensive treatment including chemotherapy her family spending weeks at a time at the orange concussion hospital. taking a serious toll. >> is it the meds, is if the food? all those things add up. >> reporter: they nearly lost their home and the nonprofit asked them to be the first family to move into the miracle manor, an apartment complex less

than a mile when choc built for families with critically ill children. >> a place where they could feel safe and comforted. >> reporter: doctors continue to monitor sofia after a bone marrow transplant from her father and while the family doesn't know what to expect the 11-year-old's just enjoying her new home and the friends dealing with the same things. >> i like it very much and how it's for families so that way there's more kids to play with. >> reporter: the colbys manage the property for four other families and while they went to open their presents print said this new community is more than a gift, it's a miracle. >> this gives the ten years of what we've been doing a purpose and hopefully we can help them get through it a little easier than we did. >> reporter: construction under way on seven more units. miracles for kids hope to have families moved in by the spring. greg lee, eyewitness news. >> our thanks to greg for that.

>> i'm karen rogers. >> and i'm erin o'hearn. saturday/tonight on fyi philly. this is so cheerful! >> it's a celebration of the holidays! >> they are just so beautiful and bright. >> we'll have some last minute shopping ideas for you. >> it's really becoming a holiday tradition. >> and lots of fun things to do in the city and the suburbs. >> merry christmas! >> plus we get a recipe from rachael ray. >> oh, yeah! >> and visit some restaurants perfect for last minute holiday dining. >> hi everyone and happy holidays! >> we are at peddler's village in lehaska, pa. >> a perfect one-stop shopping place to knock off everyone on your list. >> if you're looking for a place in the city, there are 2 outdoor markets, this year >> one offering an old world taste of europe. >> the other all made in philly artisans.