susan mcguiness reporting live for us from henryville, indiana.san, thanks a lot for that report. we're going to take a break and come right back. stay with us. >>> few people outside d.c. business and politics will know the name jeffrey thompson. he's raised big money for most of the city's mayors and councilmembers, even some democrats. last night the fbi and irs raided thompson's home in northwest washington. people close to him now believe he's under investigation because federal prosecutors want to know if all those dollars geared to local campaigns were legal. armando truell has been collecting reaction today. he talked to the mayor. reporter: jeffrey thompson has been very good to district politicians according to published reports. thompson, as many companies employees' associates and contractors have contributed over $730,000 in the past 10 years alone. at-large councilmember vince orange $100. mayor vince gray $90,000, council chair kwame brown $33,000. just about every sitting member of the council, except for tommy wells has gotten a t

we can see damage for miles here around henryville, indiana. certainly, the piece of the high school, we're talking about a deft being thrown and strewn in with a tree. there's baby's wash cloth here. sheet metal all throughout. and insulation everywhere. here's what i found interesting. pieces of the edifice. people ask me, does it matter what type of building your in. this is a little piece of brick at the was sheared off. i see a lot of them all over the place. it recall le doesn't matter. if you were in a basement, you were in the best place. the big question, why? i want to share with you the ingredients for what made yesterday a spectacular day, tornado-wise. you had so much warm water in the gulf of mexico. warmer than average. that warm, moist air rushes up, reaches the cold air. a strong jet stream. that low pushed across. the first stuff in alabama was a warm front. then it was an all-day event. as i went to bed last night, i kept thinking, i cannot believe this is still happening. this is a long, one-day event that will go down in hi

the results, overwhelming devastation. >> we're looking at henryville, indiana, total destruction up there, folks. this is very, very serious. >> reporter: in henryville the roof ripped off the high school. a bus, tossed on its side. but miraculously it appears that none of the 400 students were injured. one person died in henryville, and almost every landmark in this little community was destroyed. >> you could see it just flying as fast as we could. >> as soon as we come back to the door. >> you could see it coming -- it was like right coming -- >> we had to run in the house and go in the basement. >> reporter: at least 13 people were killed across the state of indiana. we started chasing these violent storms first thing this morning. so we're in louisville, kentucky, and we need to get west. already, thunderstorms popping up all to our west. what they will do is move east and northeast. and the attempt is to intersect of them. >> this is actually a serious situation. a tornado emergency for northern madison county. >> reporter: the first two tornados of the day touched down in the

terrell brown is in henryville, indiana with the latest. good morning, terrell. >> betty, good morning to you. it was the unseasonably warm air that triggered these deadly storms causing damage that you see here like this. would you believe three days later, snow is falling across the same region and their timing couldn't be any worse as thousands here don't have power. people in henryville, indiana, are working together distributing water and sifting through donated supplies, food and clothing as they start to rebuild their lives. >> we're a tight knit place and we pull together when tragedy. >> two tornadoes hit henryville friday. one of them packed winds in excess of 165 miles per hour. the cleanup is under way, but it's going to take time and henryville school officials are trying to figure out how they'll finish the rest of the year. the elementary, middle and high school complex was destroyed. and it's the weather that could complicate cleanup efforts. winter weather watches, advisories and warnings are up against indiana and kentucky

on the road into henryville, indiana, trees and homes have been stripped or destroyed. lives upended. more than a dozen people died in southern indiana. the national weather service's chief meteorologist is here. hoping to determine the size of the storm. >> looking at the damage, trying to figure out the width. >> reporter: today as the growl of chain saws replaced the roar, indiana's governor described the damage as incomprehensible. >> all the things that mere mortals can do aren't enough sometimes. >> reporter: among the harrowing stories, a 2-year-old girl found alone in a field. >> we put arm bands on the children. just to identify them and found out pretty quickly that nobody came with this little girl. >> reporter: word that the child's parents, brother and sister were all killed. she's in critical condition in louisville. in kentucky, at least 17 people had been killed. 300 injured. >> it chokes you up. you don't know where your family is. it chokes you. >> reporter: four were killed in west liberty alone. the town reeling from another deadly storm that hit 48 h

todd and julie money, from henryville, indiana. once again, we're really pleased both of you made it through this alive. thank you. >>> now we switch gears to paula faris who is in for ron this morning. with the headlines. good morning to you. >> great to be here. people have been saying you're by long lost sister. great to work with you. good morning, everyone. >>> we begin with one of the largest class action settlements ever. oil giant bp has reached an agreement with businesses and individuals affected by the massive gulf of mexico oil spill. bp will pay about $7.8 billion. they could end up paying more. that deal does not include the federal government, the biggest plaintiff in this case. >>> and more fallout from the burning of korans at a military base in afghanistan. at least five service members may face a disciplinary review for their involvement, which officials say was caused by a series of mistakes. the incident sparked deadly riots last month and led to the shooting deaths of six american troops. >>> and the nfl's new

on the road into henryville, indiana, trees and homes have been stripped or destroyed. lives upended. more than a dozen people died in southern indiana. across this area, the growl of chainsaws has replaced the tornado's roar. indiana's governor described the damage as incomprehensible. >> all the things that mere mortals can do aren't enough sometimes. >> reporter: among the most hartbreaking stories, that of a 2-year-old girl found alone in a field. >> we put arm bands and everything on the children just to identify them and found out pretty quickly that nobody came with this little girl. >> reporter: late saturday, word that the child's parents, her brother and sister were all killed. she remains in critical condition in louisville. in kentucky, at least 20 people have been killed, 300 injured. >> it chokes you up. you don't know where your family is. it chokes you. >> reporter: four were killed in west liberty alone. the town still reeling from another deadly storm that hit just 48 hours earlier. this church was over 100 years old. now a jumbled pile of lumber. >> ho

susan mcginnis begins the coverage tonight from henryville, indiana. >> reporter: first responders combed through the rubble searching for tornado survivors. >> we just hope that we've not left any stone unturned at this point. >> reporter: the crew in henryville, indiana picked up a photo album they hope to get to it owner. >> after the fact they'll say that's the only picture we found of the family we have left. >> reporter: the tornado demolished the townsending a school bus into a building, dropping a tractor-trailer on a gas station and shearing the walls off of homes. >> i've seen some of the most incredible and intense damage i've ever seener. >> it headed into eastern kentucky cutting a path of destruction 52 miles long. >> reporter: the national weather service is saying it's an f 4. >> it's in the violent category that most tornadoes never come anywhere near to. >> reporter: one young survivor is recovering in louisville. rescuers found the 2-year-old in a field near her home. in ohio a twister tore up the town of moscow killing two people and a few people died in alabama. back

susan mcginnis, cbs news, henryville, indiana. >>> and republican candidates are scattered across the country today. courting voters in three different states ahead of super tuesday. one of the 10 contests tomorrow will have a lot of attention on it. and that will be the one in ohio. the polls show that mitt romney is gaining ground, putting him in a virtual tie with rick santorum. today, the former pennsylvania senator reminded voters in the buckeye state that the white house will be one with ideas, and not dollars. >> but this race is not going to be won or lost in the fall on money. this race is going to be won or loss on someone who can capture the imagine nation of the american people. >> reporter: newt gingrich is focusing his attention on his former home state of georgia, while ron paul is headed to alaska. the first candidate to visit that state this year. >>> and an emotional plea for help from a local man who is desperate to lose several hundred pounds and apparently it is already working. representatives from the dr. phil show have reportedly contacted 23-year-old robert gi

kara joins us live from henryville, indiana with the latest. >> the forecasters were predicting ominous weather that was coming into southeast indiana, but nobody could have foreseen what happened next. we are standing in henryville indiana in front of what used to be henryville high school. it is almost leveled to the ground. there were students inside but they were given proper time to evacuate. about 20 remained in the building, there are no injuries. the image breathtaking. >> it is hard on everybody. everything ask gone. >> the forecast calls for severe weather. what followed early friday evening could not have been predicted. >> didn't really think it was going to happen because tornado warnings come out all the time and it never hits us. >> tornadoes leveled a small farming community. there were more tornadoes in the last 24 hours than in an average month of march. people are shocked about how devastating this was. >> noise -- it was like a dream. >> we're going to get through this. >> here in henryville, destruction as far as the eye can see. the high school roof ripped off. par

and again tonight, heads up our reporting from henryville, indiana. hey, lester, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening. i'm standing in the middle of the 52-mile-long path of the biggest tornado of that day, the ef4 churning at speeds of 175 miles per hour. what does that translate into? how about a power pole that snapped into thirds? reinforced metal bent like paper around that tree branch. and here's the attic of a house that simply collapsed on top of itself. this didn't take place over a matter of minutes. it happened in a matter of seconds. and survivors are finding that moving on presents a new and different challenge each day. three days after the tornado gutted this small indiana town, this morning, a blanket of snow, adding insult to injury. aaron zoman falls on the slick rubble of his home as he searches for family photos and keepsakes. he's unhurt. >> kind of makes you worry about the rest of the pictures that's left when all that snow melts. >> reporter: today, many of his neighbors who also lost their homes filed into a church t

apparent tornadoes destroyed the town of henryville, indiana. we will have a live report from the scene in just about five minutes. >>> more than 10,000 california college student will be ralliesing at the state -- rallying at the state capital tomorrow, raising awareness about tuition hikes, upset about paying more money for higher education while fact and staff members are being laid off. students want governor brown to reject any budget deal that includes education cuts or tuition hikes and supporting raising funds with a proposed tax hike on the rich. >>> and turning to our campaign 2012 coverage, mitt romney has won the presidential caucuss in the state of washington. providing more momentum as he heads into super tuesday, which is about 48 hours from now. now, with the votes in in all precinct, romney has 38%. not an overwhelming majority, but ron paul came in 2nd with 25% and rick santorum with 24% and newt gingrich has only 10%. this weekend romney has been highlighting his business background. >> with job so is badly needed, and with in

one of the hardest hit places, henryville, indiana.you are looking at is a glimpse of what was left behind. let's go to susan candiotti. the camera cannot capture the scope of what you are looking at there. >> reporter: david, having been here so many times in similar situations, that's right. especially at this hour because of the darkness. we can only show a small portion of the vast amount of damage in this area in clark county, h henryville. we have better motion here. take a look at this school bus that was tossed from across the street on its side. if you come over to the side of it, you can see that the bus itself was sheered off from the chassis. this black thing that you can kind of make out in the darkness. it's the chassis of the truck and the main portion is out that way. the chassis is exposing this gap. we are hearing reports in the area that natural gas lines because of leaks have been shut down. so they also have, as you can imagine, thousands of reports of customers being without service as well since the tornadoes hit

this is henryville, indiana, population 1,900. homes and businesses have been platenned. the same thing happened in nearby mariesville. a police officer there says the village is "completely gone. at least three people have been killed in southern indiana. the storms are massive, as we saw in downtown nashville. this is 11 minutes of video that we compressed to show you how the storm hit music city. the emotions of this evening were caught in this picture of one survivor in alabama after he found the one possession that he may have wanted to save the most. there were also reports of tornadoes across northern alabama. one ripped part of the roof off a maximum security prison. mark strassmann is in the town of new market tonight. mark? >> reporter: by mid-morning, scott, this house had been flattened. the good news is no one was home. and you see storm ruin just like this all over this neighborhood. now consider something else: this has been a long, frightening day of violent weather and it's not over. suddenly around 4:00 p.m. a black cloud wall menaced madison county. for

>> reporter: we're along state road 160 in the heart of henryville, indiana. arrived a short time ago and what we have seen is absolute devastation. take a look behind me here. that's what's left of henryville high school. what we don't know at this hour is whether or not there was anyone inside at the time that these storms rolled through. but i can tell you just from looking around there are piles of debris everywhere where houses once stood. there are cars overturned, power lines down. police and fire and emergency personnel are working very much to get the situation here under control, and just a short time ago we had a chance to talk to two survivors, one of whom saw very closely, firsthand, just how powerful a storm this was. >> my wife and i were up at the baptist church and we still had our young daughter who was remaining on the bus and couldn't find her. i seen this thing in the distance, there was two of them, and by the time we got to the basement of the church, all hell broke loose. >> the wheels came off, the seats were broken. >> reporter: and y

the east, and then you could tell it hit the school with all of the t turbulence. >> life in henryville, indiana may never be the same, and you can say that about so many communities in the path of these extreme storms. at least 37 people have died, 14 in indiana. we've learned that the tornado that hit henryville was an ef-4. that means sustained winds of up to 200 miles per hour. we're talking nascar speeds here. that's what we're talking about. it cut a path 52 miles long, and it was as wide as one and a half football fields. the damage, of course, is catastrophic. about 180 miles away from henryville, another town is oblig rated, west liberty, kentucky. it blew right through the heart of the small town. winds were as high as 165 miles per hour, and it seems no building was spared. the roofs are peeled off some. oers were instantly blasted to the ground. kentucky got some of the worst of it, 18 people died there. let's meet some of the brave people of henryville now. one police officer called the town complete destruction, and there a twist he were not only took away a family's home, it took

now we take you to henryville, indiana. you've seen the stories of devastation but nothing as incredible as the story of stephanie decker. jamie cost tell low joins us with the story. >> stephanie lost both of her legs from protecting her children from not one but two tornadoes. this is what's left of the decker home. nothing. after two tornadoes blew through henryville, indiana last friday night, decker moved to protect her 5 and 8-year-old boys, covering them with a blanket to shield the debris, but the wreckage did hit her, almost cutting off both legs. a second twister was headed right for stephanie's family. pinned down by the two children, she covered her two children. >> they were screaming. mommy, i can't live without you. please don't die. >> unable to move the heavy debris, 8-year-old dominic went for help. stephanie survived but both legs were amputated. the boys are okay. jamie costello, abc2 news. >>> the morning starts off with a scare in harford county, a chemical scare sent students to the hospital. jeff hag

and, a dramatic escape for a dozen students in henryville, indiana.ficials there say school was dismissed early for bad weather. bus drivers noticed the storms and turned around. the kids got to safety just moments before winds picked up a bus and threw it into a building. chuck bell is in the storm center now with more on these storms. >> when it comes down to tornadoes, the most important thing that you're up against is the intensity of the storm itself. what do i mean by that? well, we rate tornadoes on the ef scale. and only one to two percent of all tornadoes that occur land in that top one or two categories there. only one or two percent are an f4 or an f5. but those type of storms represent 65% of all of the fatal days that we see in tornadoes. yesterday, there were 98 storms reported and i'd be willing to bet that 25 to 30 probably came from only one or two of those 98 storms. for us, we don't have to worry about severe weather. just kind of a cloudy and cool sunday. but there's at least the mention of a snow flake still in the forecast. we'll

henryville now. there a twister took away a family's home, but took a father, a dad. >> reporter: here in clark county, indiana, in henryville, only one person didn't survive that killer tornado. he's 64-year-old wayne hunter. this is the hill top home wayne and lanora built to raise their family more than 40 years ago. this is how it looks now, flattened, blown to bits by a tornado. those front steps once led to their front door. now they lead to heartache. >> it's all right. >> reporter: how would you like your dad to be remembered? >> he loved nature, he loved people. he was a really good guy. he loved this community. >> reporter: they couldn't resist shooting some video of the twister heading their way, then ran for cover inside. >> they were in the safest spot in the house, the very middle of the house. there was no windows. they shut the doors and covered up with a blanket. >> reporter: but not safe this time. they were found about 30 feet apart. wayne hunter was dead. his beloved wife still alive. >> they went into a back room and just held onto each other, covered each other up and knowing them, they s

. >> reporter: overnight, a winter storm system moved into henryvil henryville, indiana. tornado ravaged members have to deal with snow. although the first baptist church was ravaged, neighbors dealt with debris to gather and we're ship. >> there's still a lot of chaos, a lot of loss. >> reporter: among the dead, the entire babcock family of peeken, indiana. mom, dad, two kids, 14-month-old ngel, foundndndndndndndndndndnd >>> making news in america this morning. more pain. >> a one/two punch. snow is now headed to the tornado zone. it is not getting any easier for the survivors in one storm-ravaged community and across that region, the death toll still rising. >>> tough talks from president obama about iran's nuclear threat. ahead of a critical white house meeting he said no actions are off the take. >>> the republican presidential candidates enter homestretch has candidates get ready for the super tuesday contest. will they be enough to finally thin the field. >>> and gas prices are still climbing. today, dozens of members of congress will say enough is enough. >>> and g

francis is choosing the latter. ♪ >> reporting from henryville, indiana, chris welch. >> the toddleround in an indiana field near her home has died. the little girl had been the only survivor in her family. she was taken off life support this morning. >> just ahead, the super tuesday battle ground, and the presidential elections in russia. we'll tell you who came out on top. >> more wet weather on the way. leigh glaser has the forecast. >> mike: a bigup set in the big game at stafford, at what cost for cal. and the a's get cespedes in camp and strucks up an instant friendship with manny ramirez. we'll tack to hum and h@ >> vladimir putin has claimed victory in russia's presidential election. he made a claim at a rally of tens of thousands of supporters, tallying 58% of the vote according to state television exit polls. opposition and independent observers say the election was marred by widespread violation. >> just a day and a half until super tuesday, when ten states vote in republican presidential primary. the race's front runner, mott mitt romney, told a georgia audience he will r

susan mcginnis reports from hard-hit henryville, indiana. >> reporter: utility crews are working to get the lights back on in henryville. thousands are still without power in the areas hardest hit by this weekend's tornados. at henryville high school, they used heavy equipment to scoop up the debris. courtney cummings is a freshman. >> i want to be there. i want to be there, i want to be in my classes, i want to see my teachers, and i want to be with my friends. >> reporter: school has been canceled for at least the rest of the week. just like the work crews and residents, volunteers are working overtime, taking in loads of donations and handing them out. >> it's going to take a long time to rebuild, but this is great community, and there's a lot of hope here, and we're going to get through it. >> reporter: 15-month-old angel babcock is the storm's latest victim. rescuers found her alone in an indiana field, but she died two days later. her father, mother, and two siblings also died. the whole family was laid to rest monday in salem, indiana. >> it's just a nightmare. everybody's just t

he joins us live from henryville, indiana. rick? esmerized this entire area, not just henryville and the neighboring towns but louisville is the biggest town next to her and everybody focusing on angel babcock, a survivor of the tornado. her family, mother and father took the three kids, the youngest infant strapped into a car seat, huddles into the center most part of their trailer and they all died except for angel. she survived. she was in critical care and yesterday at 4:10 in the afternoon, the extended family had to make the decision to pull her off life support so the entire family gone. obviously, a loss. take a listen to what one of the family members had to say. >> i wanted them to find something to keep as a memory for them. there's nothing there. it's hard. all of them's gone! they're no more! >> so they lose the family and then, of course, when you have the tornado and it destroyed the home, not anything to remember the family by. clearly, a loss. there are so many stories like that in these tornadoes. 13 fatalities now

. >> henryville, indiana, one of the hardest-hit communities in a deadly rash of tornados across 11 states. at least 36 people are dead. the number of missing impossible to know right now. hello, i'm don lemon. thank you for joining us in the cnn newsroom. the threat is not over yet from. this vicious storm system that just refuses to quit. let's get right over to jacqui jeras in the cnn severe weather center. what in the world is going on? >> it's been amazing what an incredibly strong storm going on for more than 36 hours right now. 98 reports of tornados yesterday. ten reports so far today. the severe weather threat out there with a tornado watch, meaning conditions are favorable for toesrnados to occur in southern parts of georgia and northern parts of florida. this is the line we are most concerned about at this hour that has a history of producing damaging winds and isolated tornados. thankfully, no injury reports today or fatalities. let's hope that continues to hold on true. the best thing i can tell you, there are no warnings in effect. when we tell you a warning, that means it's

weather channel meteorologist jim cantore is on the ground in henryville, indiana, the scene of some of the worst damage we've seen all day. jim, are you with us? >> reporter: i am, brian. it's awful. the same thing we looked at in harrisburg, illinois, in terms of ef-4 damage. look behind me here. complete destruction. houses blown off their foundation. there is the high school you've probably seen from the air, as well. what i've seen are trees stripped of their bark. the worst thing is to see the looks on the people's faces. they don't know what hit them. people taking things they have and walking out of town right now. it's very chaotic. obviously, police, fire on the scene. you hear constant sounds of ambulances. you know there are many, many people that have been injured in through here. very close to the heart of downtown, no question about it. this is going to be a tornado that is going to be probably producing ef-4 damage. winds 170 to 200 miles per hour here. again, you look back at the high school, you see a brick building, you see a roof that's been torn off. windows, com

tom costello, nbc news, henryville, indiana. >>> we'll take a break on this tuesday night as we do. when we continue, why are so many american preschoolers getting so many cavities? a trend that is making for a lot of difficult trips to the dentist. >>> it was a shocker when people first read the story in the new york times this morning. little kids showing up at the dentist in this country in the year 2010 with multiple cavities, or worse, in baby teeth. it's happening a lot. there are some very specific reasons for it. our report tonight from our chief medical editor dr. nancy snyderman. >> reporter: melody's 5-year-old son is at the dentist getting a cavity filled, his second. she said it's tough to see him in this position and vows it won't happen to her toddler hudson. >> hudson doesn't have cavities yet. with brushing twice a day and flossing hopefully we'll avoid that. >> reporter: like many moms melody has reasons to worry. according to the centers for disease control, tooth decay in children 2 to 5 years old is on the rise, a trend we haven't seen in 40 years. children in l

i'm lester holt reporting from henryville, indiana. don't forget, "datelin

let me set the scene for you in henryvil henryville, indiana. , a bus through this restaurant behind me. henryville high school is actually across the street. this bus had 11 children in it. was taking them home when they heard about the bad weather that was coming through. the bus driver made a smart decision, brought the bus back. got the kids unloaded to safety. and then as the bus was parked, the bus then was moved by the storm into this restaurant as you can see. everywhere you look here is total devastation. debris on the ground. they are slowly starting to clear the roads. and authorities are still conducting search and rescue missions. it has been a heartbreaking day here for the people here and in all of southeastern indiana. >> kara kneer, thank you for that report. >> you always wonder, in the trail of a disaster like that. what can i do to help? the two best things that you can do are donate either money to the red cross or the salvation army. those are the two groups that have boots on the ground and can do the most help. you are say

that's going to make us say, wow. >> and one place we've been talking about a lot today is in indiana, henryville with that tornado that was there spp some of the most powerful video that was there was from this ireport. take a look at this, with just west in borden, indiana. i'll tell you a little bit about this. this is from ireporter chad henson who tells us that he was let out of work early yesterday. that's one of the reasons i'm comfortable showing you this. in this case, they were told to leave the office and go home and take shelter. and he set up his camera as he was driving and he got this video. look how huge that tornado is. he estimated he was a couple miles away from it at the time. and as we know, that tornado there -- stay on this for a second. that tornado there went on to create a great deal of damage and destruction in the area. and this shot of it, because it's pretty much due west, a lot bit south and west of where that was of henryville, you're able to get a pretty broad sense of just how huge it was. as we're seeing images of damage and destruction from different parts of t

we'll go live to henryville, indiana, where lester holt has been reporting for several days now. take a look at the devastation just ahead. >> and we'll hope to save you money when we help you brush up on negotiating skills whether at the nail salon or a car dealership. you can ask for a discount and sometimes they will give it to you. how to get the best bargain coming up. >> and you know and love him as don draper on "mad men." he's in a new movie about how lives and friendships can change after the kids go. he stars with his real life partner who also wrote and directed the film "friends with kids." we'll talk to him. >> and also his second movie with kristin wiig and maya. >> lots to get to. natalie is at the news desk with the headlines. hi, natalie. >> hello once again. good morning, everyone. several inches of snow are on the ground in henryville, indiana, complicating cleanup efforts for resident there is hard hit by violent storms that ripped through the region last week killing 39 people. lester holt is there with more. lester, good morning. >> natalie, good morning. no