on the broadcast tonight, monster storm. another blizzard about to hit with the intensity of a category 2 hurricane. 70-mile-an-hour winds, cold that feels like 30 below zero. and tonight, our look at what all that snow piling up is doing to homes. was it a hate crime? under intense pressure on authorities, the fbi is now involved. and the president is weighing in after the murder of three muslim college students sparks a movement. escape from isis. two young women live to tell the world about girls as young as 8 being sold into marriage. tonight, richard engel with a powerful nbc news exclusive. and, the mystery. a dead prosecutor, allegations of a cover-up and a case that could bring down a very powerful woman. "nightly news" begins now.

from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news." reporting tonight, lester holt. good evening. thanks for being here this friday night. the dead of winter isn't supposed to be a picnic, but let's face it, we don't often see them this harsh. dare we say it? yet another blizzard has its sights set on the northeast tonight. boston once again in the line of fire. some new england cities looking at close to two feet of snow later this weekend. but the winds may be the bigger story here. at times gusts reaching near hurricane speed. right now 16 states are under winter weather advisories. this weekend's storm follows on the heels of a dangerous cold snap with bitter windchills being felt tonight in cities from the mid-atlantic northward. we begin in boston with nbc's ron mott. ron, good evening. >> reporter: hey, lester good evening to you. as we head into the week nearly 35 million americans are under a winter weather advisory.

nearly 6.5 million will face blizzard warnings this weekend. for the folks who live around here after all of this snow and brutally cold air that's moved in they're resigning themselves to live with these rough conditions for the foreseeable future. what snow lumped in mo far as the eye can see, new englanders are steadying themselves for yet more. with few spaces left to put it all, some at their wit's ends. >> i'm freezing. >> i'm freezing. my fingers are numb. >> just staying inside as much as i can and trying not to ever go outside. >> reporter: a blizzard warning in effect. stores are crowded. snow supplies in demand. food and other essentials too, preparing to hunker down. >> if nothing else you end up cooking and not being able to get out of the house. >> reporter: one of the biggest concerns, wind. forecasts call for gusts approaching hurricane force. 40 to 50 miles an hour in new york and philadelphia, 50 to 60 along coastal maine, 60 to 75 on nantucket. the coast guard is warning mariners. >> a powerful storm will be

impacting new england water -- >> reporter: power outages a feared, dangerous road conditions likely. >> we will urge everybody to please stay off the road during the storm through saturday night, into sunday morning. >> reporter: boston's snow fatigue is hard-earned. snow falling 16 of the past 25 days, more than 42 inches in february, th nearly 80 inches this season striking distance of the all-time tally of 107.6. the national guard is deployed having cleared 700 fire hydrants and ready to respond this weekend. >> freezing. so cold. >> reporter: back in boston, the red sox are headed for spring training. a city hopeful they'll send some sunshine back. ron mott, nbc news, boston. >> reporter: i'm jeff rossen in milton, massachusetts, where the race is on to avoid this. total devastation. from gas stations to office buildings, to stores with people

inside. >> it all just fell right down. >> reporter: heavy snow taking down roof after roof. >> we heard this baboom! we looked up and the side had collapsed. >> reporter: you drive around the neighborhoods, you see this, crews on the rooftops of homes trying to clear the snow away to beat this next storm, deep into the night, all hours of the night. the danger is real. and here's why. one cubic foot of snow weighs about seven pounds when it's dry and powdery, 20 pounds when it's wet. so two feet of snow across a flat roof can easily be 150,000 pounds. in this part of the roof alone that's like three grand pianos crashing into your home. pitched roofs aren't safe either. two feet of snow up there is like nine heavy duty pickup trucks. so if i'm at home right now and i can't get my local roofer, do i climb out my window and do it myself? >> absolutely not. please don't do that? >> reporter: why?

>> completely unsafe. what you don't understand is under the snow is a sheet of ice. people fall kill yourself even. >> reporter: just look at al these videos on youtube. homeowners sent tumbling off their roofs in an avalanche of snow while doing it the wrong way. >> if you absolutely need to do it yourself, a, you need a ladder, somebody needs to be on the bottom anchoring it. >> reporter: and i need one of these. it's a snow rake. >> not everybody has one of those. shovel rake, anything you want. >> reporter: and pull it. and there's a new problem developing here tonight. ice jams. and look how bad they are on a lot of homes around here springing leaks. in fact, the family who lives here tells us water's already pouring in through their kitchen. good news, here's another tip for you, lester, you don't need special equipment for this. as weird as it sounds, you just need women's panty hose. cut one leg off, put some salt, sprinkle down and throw it on the ice. >> somebody had to think of it.

jeff rossen in boston. let's bring in dylan dreyer also part of our team in boston. dylan, what's the latest on this forecast. >> reporter: lester, boston's never seen two blizzards in one season, already we're gearing up for another one this weekend. so we have blizzard warnings in effect from the east coast of maine stretching all the way down into cape cod. and 4.5 million people are under this blizzard warning. it doesn't look like much right now. the storm is going to move through like a regular clipper, but it is going to develop into a stronger storm especially as into sunday morning. that's the height of the storm. and we could see those whiteout conditions, also the possibility of blizzard conditions in boston where one to two feet of snow is possible. up into maine we could also see one to two feet of snow. then we go after this storm, lester, we are looking for temperatures to really drop. right now windchills are at 4 below. we should be about 30 below by the time we get to monday morning. it is just brutally cold, lester. >> dylan, see you in the morning on "today." there are intensifying calls

tonight for authorities to declare a hate crime in the murders of three young muslims this week in north carolina. local police have said the killings stem from a dispute over a parking spot. now the fbi is getting involved. and the president himself is weighing in. the report tonight from nbc's pete williams. >> reporter: with passions still high a day after an emotional funeral in north carolina for three young muslims murdered on tuesday, muslim leaders led a prayer session on capitol hill and worked the halls pushing for a hate crime investigation. >> all numbers show that american-muslims are perceived in a negative light more than any other discriminated or oppressed minority in america. >> reporter: as the fbi said it will look at the evidence, stopping short of launching a formal investigation with local police in charge, president obama said in a statement that no one in the u.s. "should ever be targeted because of who they are, what they look like or how they worship." investigators say it appears that craig stephen hicks, the man charged with the murders, acted out of anger over

long-running disputes over parking spaces and noise at the apartment complex where he and the victims lived. all three shot in the head. deah barakat, a dental student, his wife of less than two months yusor abu salha and her sister razan, an architecture student. investigators say the suspect's postings on facebook show no animosity toward muslims. he called christians hypocritical for opposing a plan for a mosque near new york's ground zero, and he made fun of people who believe in the bible. the legal experts say attacking people because they're religious regardless of their faith could still be a hate crime. >> usually people think of that in terms of animosity towards one particular religion, but if you have animosity towards all religions, that would seem to fit within the statutory language. >> even if evidence is found that the killings were motivated by hate, that might not make a difference legally. hicks is charged with first-degree murder, that's a crime punishable in north carolina by death.

if the prosecutors choose to make this a capital case, lester. >> pete, thank you. it's been a wild week of drama in the state of oregon culminating tonight with the resignation of a four-term governor caught up in a scandal involving his fiancee. nbc's hallie jackson is in the state capital of salem. >> reporter: he hasn't been seen in public for days, and apparently saw no reason to face his constituents even this afternoon announcing his resignation only in an audio statement. >> nonetheless, i understand that i have become a liability to the very institutions and policies to which i've dedicated my career and indeed my entire adult life. >> reporter: in defiant remarks governor john kitzhaber blamed a media frenzy insisting he will be cleared involving two investigations of his fiancee sylvia hayes who he calls his first lady. >> i apologize deeply for my actions and omissions. >> reporter: the oregonian tried to personalize the relationship to make money from firms trying to do business with the state.

yet another controversial headline after the revelation she broke federal law two decades ago by accepting money for a green card marriage. >> there are serious consequences. i made a very serious mistake. >> reporter: the tipping point? a criminal investigation opened just this week that had even kitzhaber's fellow democrats reconsidering their support. >> i think the situation over the last couple days has indicated his inability to focus on his job and has undermined his ability to govern. >> reporter: now the governor's 35-year career in public service reduced to a single sentence as he steps down. secretary of state kate brown ready to step in. >> to the extent he's angry, frustrated, and he feels betrayed. i think there's a lot of that emotion going on both ways. >> reporter: secretary brown will take the oath of office on wednesday the 18th. and when she does, lester, she will become the nation's first openly bisexual governor. >> hallie jackson in oregon tonight. thank you. it is now well-known that

there's no mercy among the terrorists of isis, often the men and areas they overrun are viciously murdered. but the women face something worse than that, sold to slavery many times to suffer unimaginable brutality. tonight, two victims who escaped their monstrous captors share their story with us. the report from our chief foreign correspondent richard engel in northern iraq. >> reporter: the suffering of the yazidi people indelible images of men, women and children reaching out for help food, water, blankets dropped on the sinjar mountains by americans. but help didn't reach everyone. in the refugee camps of northern iraq, we met survivors of the horror that went on in the village of kuchu. its people seen here in better times couldn't reach the mountain, so they were still in the village when isis arrived. when they took the men, we

didn't know how many were going to be killed says 19-year-old farida who didn't want her face to be shown. in fact, isis killed almost all of the men. but they had other plans for the women. they were grabbed by the hundreds and sold off to isis fighters as the spoils of war. isis is reviving the barbaric tradition of the slave trade, proudly showing its fighters in this isis video yazidi women they're about to buy. we showed farida the video. she instantly recognized the men. i saw that one, and this guy, she said. i don't know their names, but i saw them. she saw them laughingly inspecting more than 80 yazidi girls, picking out the ones they wanted. all of the girls were screaming and crying because they didn't want to go with them, she says, so they beat the girls and dragged them away by force. farida was raped repeatedly for three months. they sold me from one man to next, she says. the ordeal was even harder for

the younger ones. they raped girls who were 9, 10 years old or even 8, she says. they would say the older ones know something about men while the younger ones know nothing. hweida is one of the innocents isis fighters sought out. she's 12. she didn't know what rape meant. only that she woke up bleeding. he was old, she says, about the man who bought her. he was 50. somehow she escaped, but she's so badly traumatized that only now three months later is she able haltingly to even speak again. she and farida are being coaxed back by this remarkable woman from a charity. the girls call her mom. their real mothers are still being held by isis. farida had never seen the video of the isis men. i see this, she says, and i think of all the girls they still have because they are doing everything imaginable to them. we just want justice. >> and richard engel joins us

now from northern iraq. this story, richard, leaves one almost shaking with anger. you've seen so much in war zones. how did you process coming face-to-face with this particular atrocity? >> reporter: well, frankly, lester, a word we don't use a lot in the news media, but it sits here. this is evil. it was absolute evil by design. this was not a war crime that happened by accident. this is isis policy. now, luckily these two girls amazingly managed to escape. they both walked away while their captors weren't looking. they had to walk for hours, knocking on doors until they found people who were willing to bring them to a safe place. now they are in a safe place here in northern iraq. and they're getting help. >> all right, richard, i know they are getting help. you've written a lot more about this. it's on our website. thank you for being with us tonight. still ahead tonight, a prosecutor found dead right before he was about to implicate a powerful woman in a secret deal with iran. a mystery that has gripped an

entire nation. and later, the weekend hot ticket that's already breaking records. records. the real question that needs to be asked is "what is it that we can do that is impactful?" what the cloud enables is computing to empower cancer researchers. it used to take two weeks to sequence and analyze a genome; with the microsoft cloud we can analyze 100 per day. whatever i can do to help compute a cure for cancer, that's what i'd like to do. (woman) caring for someone with alzheimer's means i am a lot of things. i am his guardian. i am his voice.

so i asked about adding once-daily namenda xr® to his current treatment for moderate to severe alzheimer's. it works differently. when added to another alzheimer's treatment, like aricept® it may improve overall function... and cognition. and may slow the worsening of symptoms for a while. (man) namenda xr doesn't change how the disease progresses. it shouldn't be taken by anyone allergic to memantine, or who's had a bad reaction to namenda xr or its ingredients. before starting treatment, tell their doctor if they have, or ever had a seizure disorder difficulty passing urine, liver, kidney, or bladder problems, and about medications they're taking. certain medications, changes in diet, or medical conditions may affect the amount of namenda xr in the body... and may increase side effects. the most common side effects... are headache, diarrhea and dizziness. (woman) all my life, he's protected me. now i am giving back. ask their doctor about adding... once-daily namenda xr. i take prilosec otc each morning for my frequent heartburn. because it gives me... zero heartburn! prilosec otc. the number 1 doctor-recommended frequent

heartburn medicine for 9 straight years. one pill each morning. 24 hours. zero heartburn. there was a case of international intrigue playing out tonight that is grabbing attention from argentina to iran and here in the u.s. it started with the death of a prosecutor investigating the president of argentina. it involves allegations of a cover-up and now conspiracy theories are running wild. we get our report tonight from our chief foreign affairs

correspondent andrea mitchell. >> reporter: argentina's controversial president cristina fernandez at the center of a mystery worthy of grand opera, or musical theater. ♪ don't call me argentina ♪ >> reporter: a prosecutor dead, a gunshot wound to his head, the night before he was going to present evidence implicating the president in a scandalous deal with iran. a month later his replacement. a new prosecutor now asking a judge to file charges against the president. the case, allegedly conspireing with iran for cheap oil in exchange for covering up iran's role in argentina's worst terror attack, the 1994 bombing killing 85 people at a jewish center in buenos aires. protesters demand answers. a country teetering on default is obsessed with conspiracy theories. >> the question for many is will it come to anything, will it end in anything, and will this

mystery of what happened to the prosecutor ever really get resolved? >> reporter: argentinians are asking if the prosecutor murdered, who ordered it. was israel's spy agency somehow involved? some people even blamed the nazis and their defendants who found haven in argentina after the war. argentina in an election year with a collapsing economy is already in crisis. >> fundamentally shakes the political landscape. >> reporter: a country in which 30,000 people just disappeared under military dictators in the past. now, again caught up in conspiracy theories about murder. andrea mitchell, nbc news, washington. we're back in a moment with a surprising admission from a member of the supreme court. why ruth bader ginsburg says she dozed off with millions of people watching. ns of people watching. ...and the wolf was huffing and puffing... kind of like you sometimes, grandpa.

well, when you have copd it can be hard to breathe. it can be hard to get air out, which can make it hard to get air in. so i talked to my doctor. she said.. doctor: symbicort could help you breathe better, starting within 5 minutes. symbicort doesn't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. symbicort helps provide significant improvement of your lung function. symbicort is for copd, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. it should not be taken more than twice a day. symbicort contains formoterol. medicines like formoterol increase the risk of death from asthma problems. symbicort may increase your risk of lung infections osteoporosis, and some eye problems. you should tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. grandfather: symbicort could mean a day with better breathing. watch out, piggies! child giggles doctor: symbicort. breathe better starting within 5 minutes. call or go online to learn more about a free prescription offer. if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help.

jack's heart attack didn't come with a warning. today, his doctor has him on a bayer aspirin regimen to help reduce the risk of another one. if you've had a heart attack be sure to talk to your doctor before your begin an aspirin regimen. there's nothing more romantic than a spontaneous moment. so why pause to take a pill? and why stop what you're doing to find a bathroom? with cialis for daily use, you don't have to plan around either. it's the only daily tablet approved to treat erectile dysfunction so you can be ready anytime the moment is right. plus cialis treats the frustrating urinary symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently, day or night. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain as it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long-term injury, get medical help right away for an erection lasting more than four hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision or any symptoms of an allergic reaction

stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. why pause the moment? ask your doctor about cialis for daily use. for a free 30-tablet trial go to cialis.com if you're suffering from constipation or irregularity powders may take days to work. for gentle overnight relief, try dulcolax laxative tablets. ducolax provides gentle overnight relief, unlike miralax that can take up to 3 days. dulcolax, for relief you can count on.

david carr was a warrior for the truth, our biggest champion, the best we had. that's how friends and colleagues at the "new york times" are remembering him today. carr was the "times" media columnist. a insightful writer and tireless reporter who survived cancer overcame drug addiction and went on to a remarkable second act. his chronicle of the media landscape was must reading. he collapsed in his beloved newsroom last night. he was 58. so much for being sober as a judge. supreme court justice ruth bader ginsburg reportedly told a crowd she was "not 100% sober" during this year's state of the union address. cameras caught the 81-year-old justice looking a little sleepy during the speech last month. apparently the justices had been pregaming it with a bottle of fine california wine which ginsburg says she couldn't resist. when we come back, the fantasy of millions of women has come true. this racy best-seller is now on the big screen. best-seller is now on the big screen. [ man ] i remember when i wouldn't

give a little cut a second thought. ♪ ♪ when i didn't worry about the hepatitis c in my blood. ♪ ♪ when i didn't think twice about where i left my razor. [ male announcer ] hep c is a serious disease. take action now. go to hepc.com or call 1-844-444-hepc to find out how you and your doctor can take the next step towards a cure. because the answers you need may be closer than they appear. ♪ ♪ i have the flu with a runny nose. [coughs] better take something. theraflu severe cold won't treat your runny nose. really? alka-seltzer severe cold and flu relieves your worst flu symptoms plus runny nose. [breath of relief] oh, what a relief it is. mommy! hey!

how much money do you have in your pocket right now? i have $40 $21. could something that small make an impact on something as big as your retirement? i don't think so. well if you start putting that towards your retirement every week and let it grow over time, for twenty to thirty years that retirement challenge might not seem so big after all. ♪ ♪ meet the world's newest energy superpower.

surprised? in fact, america is now the world's number one natural gas producer... and we could soon become number one in oil. because hydraulic fracturing technology is safely recovering lots more oil and natural gas. supporting millions of new jobs. billions in tax revenue... and a new century of american energy security. the new energy superpower? it's red, white and blue. log on to learn more. there is a movie out this weekend that's expected to have, how should i put this, dominate the box office. "fifty shades of grey" adapted

from the book series that has sold more than 100 million copies worldwide is now in theaters everywhere. it is released by universal pictures owned by our parent company. our kevin tibbles just had to see the guilty pleasure. >> anastasia. >> christian. >> reporter: and with that thi most-talked about film heads off in the direction of fantasy. >> how long ago did you get your tickets? a month ago. >> reporter: it's already expected to gross a record setting $60 million this weekend. the more guilty pleasures book club came on the girls night out. what have you been imagining all these years? >> oh -- let me tell you, fan me down, it's hot. >> learn a thing or two. >> reporter: and while some religious organizations and womens groups object to the subject matter, fifty shades with its seemingly unbelievable story line is selling out.

have you got fifty shades of grey? >> i've got hundreds. >> reporter: being a guy i took my queries to the local paint shop where love comes in many colors. you may think grey is a rather boring color, but fifty shades of it have got things all stirred up just in time for valentine's. you can now by fifty shades teddy bears or adult-themed products at target of all places. even spice things up at a san francisco hotel. and the verdict? no grey area here. are you on part two? >> i want more. >> it was the worst pile of [ bleep ] i've ever seen. >> reporter: some are even returning with their boyfriends. >> they better love that otherwise we leave them for you. >> you can leave at any time. >> reporter: kevin tibbles, nbc news, chicago. that will do it for us on this friday night. i'm lester holt. i'll see you tomorrow morning on "today." for all of us at nbc news, thank you for watching and good night.

lights camera access. north move goes south. i'm shawan robinson with the most star-packed fashion week ever and definitely the jolliest kanye. >> i have to show my