good morning. and happy valentine's day. coming up on "early today." free at last. some 4,000 passengers stuck aboard a carnival cruise ship with no toilets and no power since sunday are pulling into port now. pope benedict's sendoff has the faithful on their feet. mayor bloomberg's latest target. plus, the world's largest airline. and 1 million are calling women around the world. "early today" starts right now. >> announcer: this is "early today" for thursday, february 14th, 2013. good morning, i'm mara

schiavocampo. 4200 passengers are hoping to set foot on dry land this morning after a disaster at sea. carnival's triumph cruise liner lost power on sunday, causing it to become stranded with little food and even few you are working bathrooms. nbc's jay gray is live in alabama where the ship is set to dock. jay, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, mara. yeah, passengers have described it as a difficult and disgusting trip, one that should end this afternoon has the ship is pulled into the cruise terminal here. a third tugboat joined the slow tow pulling the crippled cruise liner toward this dock at the port of mobile. >> we've been doing a lost work to try to activate the terminal again. we've been doing a lot of logistic security to make this experience not be one that's cumbersome for the passengers. >> reporter: more than 3,000 passengers who suffered through the fire on sunday suffered

through lack of air conditioning and bathrooms. >> worst part is the bathrooms. there's no water. you can't really flesh so everyone's going in little plastic baggies and putting it outside their room. >> reporter: the stench is described as overwhelmingly disgusting. the cruise line has canceled the next 12 voyages scheduled for triumph, but family members of passengers don't care about future trips they just want this one to end. >> it's awful. we just want our mom home. we want to know she's safe. >> reporter: as cell phones lose communication, those on board communication becoming more difficult. >> you just want to keel over in a fetal position and go why? why now? >> reporter: she's waiting to pick up her 10-year-old daughter on the ship with her husband. >> and i'm going to hold like like i've never held her before.

>> reporter: and if all goes as planned that embrace are should come sometime this afternoon. now you along with family members, medical teams will also be waiting on hand waiting for this ship to dock to provide any help that passengers or cruise members may need, any care as they come off the ship. that's the latest live here in mobile. if you're looking for a flight anytime soon your choice of air carriers just got smaller. american airlines and us airways will be formally announcing their merger at 6:30 this morning eastern time. the deal caps a half century of bankruptcies for the airline industry. the organization will be the world's largest airline. police in california say the manhunt for a fugitive ex-cop is over. but many questions surroundeds case still linger. the county sheriff's office says the fire was not intention.

this was the coroner looks to find the remains inside the structure. dorner is believed to have taken hort attaches, a married couple says dorner tied them up and put pillowcases over their heads before fleeing. >> i really thought this could be our -- i -- i never even knew my reaction would be the one that it was. i actually saw him somehow. >> meanwhile, wednesday, a funeral was held for one of dorner's alleged victims. officer michael crain was shot and killed last week. he was a veteran of the police department and leaved behind a wife and two children, 10 and 14 years old. in south africa, paralympian oscar pistorius has been arrested after a woman was shot in his home. police say pistorius was taken

into custody earlier this morning. south african can media outlets are reporting the 30-year-old victim was pistorius' girlfriend and he may have mistaken her for a burglar. pope benedict has only two weeks left as head of the roman catholic church. during ash wednesday services, the 85-year-old pontiff celebrated his final mass at st. peter's basilica at the vatican. he prepares to step down on february 28th after the leader of more than 1.2 billion catholics. well, you probably know that it's valentine's day, but you may not know that today is the 15th anniversary of v-day, a worldwide movement to raise the awareness about violence against women. one in three women on the planet will be victims of rape or violence in their lifetime. they're asking women around the world to dance to the song.

break the chain." thousands are already showing their support with their feet. and now for a look at your valentine's day weather, he's bill karins. are you going to do a little dancing today? >> i should do a little dancing. would be a nice thing to do, take the wife. >> i was thinking about that. you're thinking about romance? >> it's early. good morning, everyone, here's a look at what we're dealing with today. we had that mini storm go through areas of washington, d.c. evening, baltimore, philadelphia, new york. the cities itself can experience accumulations but some of the suburbs did report about an inch of snowfall. all gone. cape cod, a little snow left over. but even temperatures there aren't too bad. so what are we dealing with in the future. right now, we're watching cooler air pooling up through the hudson bay. right now, we're not seeing cold weather anywhere in the country. it's really not that bad for the middle of february. but this shot of cold air comes down.

see that purple color highlighted there. it sneaks down from the north. it's not like that blast we saw three or four weeks ago, but it will have cha chunk of air with it. as far as the storm, because of that cold air off the east coast, that's where the storm is going to go. chilly in areas like detroit, with temperatures only in the 20s over the weekend. but we quickly warm it up. that's a look at your national forecast. now here's a look at the weather outside your window. sunshine today in birmingham, alabama, much more like it, after all that rainy weather we've seen lately. and also sunshine in texas. austin should be beautiful. 70 degrees. >> so we're looking pretty good heading into the upcoming weekend. >> that's good to hear. president obama is already laying out his post presidential plans. we'll tell you what he said. plus, members of the kennedy clan arrested outside the white house. details coming up next. plus, the ivillage sex quiz.

whose more satisfied when it comes to sex, men or women? we'll have the answer in two minutes.

welcome back. now to some other stories that caught our eye this morning. the pentagon will roll out medals for members of the military who contribute without action on the front lines. it's called the distinguishing warfare medals. a kennedy was back at the white house but this time in handcuffs. r.f.k. jr. was there. his 18-year-old son connor and darryl hanna were also taken into custody. president obama is laying out plans for life after the white house. he told the crowd in alabama he's looking forward to playing a little golf, firing and bash coug. and new york mayer bloomberg wants a permanent ban on plastic

containers. overseas to georgia where things got heated between two politicians during a debate on live television. you can see two members of parliament clashing on the set. the topic of the debate, ways to reduce political violence. the irony. the new website pendet tracker.com raises predictions on everything from sports to politics to finance. if you're there, don't put your money on pat buchanan. and inews is out with a new survey own sex and relationships. it turns out 68% of the men say they married the best person they've had the sex of their lives with. and only 40 of women. a new study finds more women are using the pill after. up from 4% a decade ago. experts say the increased popularity is likely the result

of the pill getting easier to get. >> announcer: "early today" health is brought to you by vagisil cream. over on wall street, we'll see if investors are in the mood to love any stocks. historically, stocks have been been up only 39% of the big companies reporting earnings, general motors, pepsico. last inside, nvidia and whole foods. new numbers out today show for closures dropped 7% in january. that's down 28% over last year. the u.s. postmaster general urged congress yesterday not to force mail on saturday calls senators quote the postal service is losing $25 million a day. >> time warner is reportedly in talks to sell "people," in style

to the meredith corporation. microsoft's bill gates is teaming up for world hunger. j.b. power and associates says lexus, porsche and lincoln are the 2013 most dependable vehicles. they sell 00 million roses and another 100 million to it on valentine's day week. if you're looking for a romantic getaway, these are trip advice areas top five picking. napa valley's bard da season know, hawaii, new mexico's innerof the five. and history making. original works from one of the first known african-american writers. plus if you're a packrat or

hoarder, this story is for you. and a skier with a wildly exciting back flip. we'll have the story. you're watching "early today."

welcome back. now to some other stories that caught our eye this morning. in texas packrats beware. one houston home went up in smoke after an unintended grill sparked a fire on the property.

firefighters said the home was heaped with several feet of clutter. elsewhere in texas a doctoral student was shocked to find a forgotten poem by one of the earliest african-american writers jupiter hammon. it gives a new look into his beliefs into slavery. no time for ashes? no problem. congregations some several areas indicatored to the busy patrons by drive-by blessings so people don't have to get out of the car. drivers in boston have found creative ways to save their parking spaces after last week's blizzard left so many without spots. parking savers have evolved from cones and chairs to christmas toys. tony parker drove down the lane and kicked it out to k.y.

leonard who made a three-point shot. 96-95 spurs win over cleveland. and upsetting college basketball, number 6 syracuse fall towns ranked uconn. in the last regular season meeting in the big east before syracuse leaves for the acc, the connecticut huskies had a strong second half and got the 66-58 victory. and duke made a come back in the second half and pulled out a 73-68 win over north carolina on coach k.'s 66th birthday. and there was internet buzz of a photo on twitter of the duke and mascot's head displayed on the north carolina campus. the mascot head was returned to duke before the game. mitchell marcus, a special needs student who is manager for the basketball team at coronado high school in texas was true sportsmanship. his coach put him in and a member of the other team passing the ball so he could make the

shot. swedish golfer daniela holmqvist was bitten at the women's australian open. she used a golf tee to puncture out the venom and then went on to play. and the skier's cup race in switzerland has an amazing run which includes a dangerous avalanche and a risky back flip as the mass of snow wishes to bury him but he makes it out and finishes the run. just ahead, one very cool moment for a high school basketball player. plus, one time at band camp, alyson hannigan fighting back against an alleged stalker. you're watching "early today."

well, welcome back. today, we're looking at a pretty quiet forecast. exceptions will be light snow heading through wisconsin and rain showers in chicago this morning. also, heavy rain will develop in the front stalled out in florida. could be downpours especially lake okeechobee and miami. your forecast, pretty quiet, stays that way into friday. again, colder air coming down from the north, though. look at minneapolis. 17 on friday. one more warm day before that cold arrives for the weekend. what do you do with your spare time were you're a rich and famous actor? well, if you're will ferrell, you don a security guard's

uniform and kick out shaquille o'neal. alyson hannigan has obtained a restraining order. according to the court filings the man was recently released from a mental hospital. justin bieber wanted to thank "snl" and lorne michaels from the show and did it with the instagram. only problem, he thinks lorne's name is lauren. since home improvement ended in 1990, j.t.t. has been keeping a low profile. this new gig marks his first time on tv since 2005. i always thought he was adorable. >> wow, we're going back, 1999. i watched home improvement. >> i'm looking forward to seeing them together again. >> and hopefully, justin bieber learns how to spell. and this next one comes to us from kvsa in denver,

colorado. in aurora, colorado, one little boy made it home seven months late. a car crash left him paralyzed after in the hospital, he was able to make it home. after friends and complete strangers came together to make over davin's home. it's great to see people come together. >> they didn't need a "home improvement." they did it the old-fashioned way. like a barn raising. that's cool. >> yes, that's cool. >> i'm mara schiavocampo, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

be careful as you head out. slick roads. we'll have more on the forecast coming up. breaking news after the famed blaze runner of the london olympic games is arrested. the incident that has sprinter oscar passepastorius behind bar. good morning, everyone, i'm aaron gilchrest. >> i'm eun yang. we begin with breaking news.

a 94-year-old plman is dead and people are looking for answers. he was found on holly street. megan mcgrath has the latest on the situation. megan, good morning. >> reporter: you can see behind me here the police officers who remain on the scene watching over this house, making sure that no one goes inside. later this morning, we are expecting investigators to return to this home on holly avenue to take a look at the scene in the light of day to try to find any clues that would let them or give them information about how this 94-year-old man died. police are calling it a suspicious death. they say that just before 7:00 last night the man's stepson came home and made the grim discovery. he found his stepfather dead inside the house, suffering from trauma to the upper body. this is a very quiet street in the del rey section of alexandria. not much violent crime here. oddly, i should mention that about ten years ago or ten years ago not far from here, there was a murder, the murder of n