a vigil was held in altadena in honor of rodney nickerson. officials estimate more than 5,000 homes, buildings, vehicles have been destroyed by the palisades fire alone. this 3d map will show how widespread the impacted area is. it is spread out over 37 square miles. that's an area larger than the city of concord. and our kelsi thorud is live in pacific palisades where she got a look at some of the devastation upclose. kelsi? >> reporter: hey, ryan. yeah, i mean the devastation here is just really hard to comprehend once you get on the ground and you actually see it yourself. but the good news is the recovery effort is slowly inching forward. now those who live here, most of them are not allowed back in this area. first responders are going through all these houses. what they're doing, they're looking to make sure water, gas, power, all of that is turned off and the structures are somewhat stable. so when people come back, they're not walking into debris and having things fall. but only local person that we saw here all day today was a local

another victim has been identified as rodney nickerson. his family says the 82 year-old altadena resident felt he would be ok, waiting it out at home. he had told his daughter he felt the danger would pass and that he would stay at the house. nickerson reportedly found dead in his bed. and 83 year-old earlene kelly died after refusing again to evacuate. her family says she did not leave because previous fires had never reached her altadena home. the grandmother being remembered as the a perfect neighbor. and that death tokens, 10 ewing to rise. governor newsom ordering an independent investigation into the la department of water and power. this follows reports of no water pressure to fire some places, water resources in fire zones. also a huge problems and that hampered obviously the firefighting, the governor's office says it has ordered los angeles county officials to prepare a full review of the water system. well, they exhausted firefighters at the southern california wildfires getting some help from colleagues and 8 other states. also

like victor shaw and rodney nickerson. >> great person. funny. the life of the party. loved people.y intelligent man. loved to read. >> reporter: and there is randy, a malibu sur officer who lived on the pacific coast highway in his well known red crab shack. he was found there according to hi mom who said his last words were, pray for the palisades and pray for malibu. i love you. >> the sad reality is that officials say the death toll could rise in the coming days? >> reporter: that's right, tom. and some areas they say are still too dangerous to go into. authorities say it will take time to go home to home with cadaver dogs to make sure no one is left behind. tom. >> dana griffin for us tonight. thank you for that. >>> and as the winds are picking up tonight here e we will have much more from los angeles coming up, including the fires scrambling the nfl playoffs. how a rival team helped fly the l.a. rams to their game. plus, special counsel jack smith has resigned, but what's in his report about president-elect trump? it could be released at any moment. used my flame. untii got c

in the aftermath of the eaton fire 83-year-old rodney nickerson's remains were found after his home burned to the ground in altadena according to his daughter who said he chose to stay behind. >> he went to bed at some point because he's used to getting up at 4:00 a.m. when he was going to lockheed. so at some point he went to bed because he was in bed. >> reporter: it was text messages or you couldn't get through to him? >> the text messages stopped. after a while. the text messages stopped probably at about 11:00 p.m. at about 11:00 p.m. the text messages stopped and the last phone call when i talked to him last was about 9:30, 9:40 and he was walking around with his lantern in the house. chase and i were talking to him. we were on facetime and he was in there with his lantern gathering his stuff and putting stuff up. he had just took his medicine and that was it. >> so sad to think about that. >>> look at this. in the palisades fire a ring camera caught the moment a home was overtaken by flames. this is from tuesday night. all those flames suddenly came up and the smoke made it nearly i

. >> and 5 people have died in the eaton fire, including 82 year-old rodney nickerson and altadena his daughter cameco says he had been through fires before and thought he could survive this one to you said that he felt this was not pass over and that he would be here. he's been out >> as long as i've been living my whole life. came here home as a child. born in kaiser permanente and sense that they brought me here to this house. and i've been here my whole life with him. i heard a commotion, oakland native and now los angeles resident shane reagan was keeping a close eye on the neighboring fires when a fire sparked wednesday close to his home near the hollywood hills and literally a mile from here on the hill. >> are just shy in flames. just be an increasingly thankfully. fire crews stop the spread of the sunset fire. reagan says this put him on high alert. >> and out of precaution, he's staying with family members elsewhere. so you can do is really just stay attentive in. try to adapt quickly consider. >> you know, evacuating yourself. >> you truly never think it's going to happen to

medical examiner, the fires have now killed eleven people, including 83-year-old grandfather, rodney nickersonaltadena, and the number of dead is still expected to rise. >> there are still a lot of people unaccounted for. we don't know where they are. i think this toll is likely to go up, whether it's significant or not, pray god it's not. >> ms. white lost her father, anthony mitchell and younger brother justin who had cerebral palsy. in the pacific palisades, actress jennifer garner's home was spared. she's dealing with the loss of her own. >> i'm pointing to a street where a friend of mine lived and she died in the fire. coming down here and seeing t it's very very real. >> reporter: amid miles of destruction, the national guard now standing outside fire zones to prevent looting. today, governor gavin newsom called for an independent investigation into the loss of water pressure in fire hydrants. this as outrage is growing and questions remain about what impact l.a.'s mayor, karen bass's budget cut to the city's fire department had on the response. our local station, nbc los angeles, pressi

. >> reporter: 82-year-old rodney nickerson died in his bed. daughter, kimiko, says he wanted to stay. >> he said altadena has been through some stuff and i will be all right. >> reporter: these are before and after images of altadena. it was an emotional journey for many, who came home to find only rubble. >> i was holding onto every thread of hope i had that god would save my house. >> reporter: this is what it looked like when nira chow left her home. when you saw this, what went through your mind? >> i've lost everything. yeah. pictures. memories. >> reporter: sifting through the ashes today, a small treasure. this ceramic church survived the fire. >> ten years ago, when my husband passed, we bought this house so we could start again. and now it's almost like deja vu. >> reporter: firefighters have been going block by block, wetting down potential hot spots because that dangerous wind is back in the forecast tonight. l.a. sheriff expects those numbers of damaged or destroyed homes to grow before this is over. tony? >> tony: kris van cleave

. >> reporter: 82-year-old rodney nickerson died in his bed.e said altadena has been through some stuff, and i'm going to be all right. >> reporter: these are before and after images of at dona. it was an emotional moment for those who came home to find only rubble. >> i was holding on to every bit of hope i had that that would save my house. >> reporter: this is what it looked like when mira chow left her home. when you saw this, what went through your mind? >> i've lost everything. yeah. pictures, memories. >> reporter: sifting through the ashes today, a small treasure, this ceramic church survived the fire. >> ten years ago when my husband passed, we bought this house so we could start again. and now it's almost like deja vu. >> reporter: firefighters are going block by block, looking for hot spots and wetting those down because high winds are again in the forecast. l.a. sheriff says he expects the number of damaged or destroyed homes and injuries to grow before the danger passes. kris van cleave, cbs news, altadena, california. >>> and los

. >> and 5 people have died in the eden fire, including 82 year-old rodney nickerson in altadena. his daughter kim ago says he had been through fires before and thought he could survive this one to you said that he felt this was not pass over and that he would be here. he's been out >> as long as i've been living my whole life. i came here home as a child. born in kaiser permanente and sense. they brought me here to this house and i've been here my whole life with him. i heard a commotion, oakland, native and now los angeles resident shane reagan was keeping a close eye on the neighboring fires when a fire sparked wednesday close to his home near the hollywood hills and literally a mile from here on the hill. >> are just shine. flames just be an increasingly thankfully. fire crews stop the spread of the sunset fire. reagan says this put him on high alert. >> and out of precaution, he's staying with family members elsewhere. so you can do is really just stay attentive in. try to adapt quickly and consider. >> you know, evacuating yourself. >> it's getting to the point where just as

. >> reporter: kimiko nickerson says her father, 82-year-old rodney kent nickerson, also didn't evacuate. >> and he said he'll be fine. i'll be here when you come back. >> reporter: his remains were found in the rubble of their family home. local officials warn the number of dead is likely to rise as crews move in to search for more victims of these tragic fires. and the impact of these fires is affecting sports. the l.a. rams' wild card game against the minnesota vikings has been moved to arizona. the l.a. lakers and l.a. kings have also postponed games. michael? >> all right. danya bacchus in pacific palisades. thanks, and stay safe out there. >>> some residents are furious that more could have been done to prevent this disaster. and l.a.'s mayor is facing questions over the timing of her trip to africa which he cut short to return to a city that's already burning and also about cutbacks the city made to its fire department. cbs' jonathan vigliotti has more. >> reporter: when you see these images over pacific palisades, it's clear, the extent of loss is horrifying. what's also coming i

another victim identified as rodney nickerson.adena resident wanted to wait out the emergency at his home. he had told his daughter he felt the danger would pass if your son was reportedly found dead in his bedroom, another victim, 83 year-old earlene kelly. she refused to evacuate and died. her family says she didn't leave because previous fires had never reached her home in altadena. the grandmother is being remembered as the perfect neighbor. the death toll is expected to rise in the coming days. and something landmarks are among the thousands of buildings damaged and destroyed in the fires. reporter olivia de torre has that story. >> thousands of families have lost their homes this week also gone in the devastating wildfires are pieces of hollywood history with a number of historic houses and sets used in iconic tv and film. brian de palma's 1976. adaptation of perry starring spacex as the outcast teen quickly became a cult classic. >> the main scene from nashville where kerry ultimately takes revenge on her classmates was fil

another victim has been identified as rodney nickerson. his family says the 82 year-old altadena resident felt he would be okay waiting it out at home. he would not go. he told his daughter he felt the danger would pass and that he would stay at the house. nickerson reportedly was found dead in his bed and then another victim. a 83 year-old earlene kelly. she died after refusing to evacuate. her family says she did not leave because previous fires have never reached her home in altadena. the grandmother being remembered as the perfect neighbor. the death toll is expected to begin to rise and coming hours and days. the exhausted firefighters at the southern california wildfires getting some help from colleagues and 8 other states. also canada, mexico, the neighboring states which are helping you see marked in yellow. they are already providing some critical support and a lot of firefighters on the scene from across the bay area. they could be there for up to 2 weeks. mexico's president shared photos of the mexican firefighters shortly befor

they said he was lying near a garden hose 82 year old rodney nickerson lived less than ten miles away from victor and altadena. nickerson's daughter said all that was left of his remains were his bones. >> he said, he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. he was in his bed when i found him. >> in that same community, the family of 67 year old anthony mitchell believes he died trying to save his son's life. >> he was such a jewel. so this is going to be a great loss. >> rita cook is mitchell's cousin. >> i happened to him. he was with his son, who was bedridden. >> yes. >> mitchell's son, justin, had cerebral palsy, and mitchell was an amputee who used a wheelchair. another family member told the washington post the two were waiting for an ambulance to rescue them. the family said authorities told them mitchell was found by the side of his son's bed. they both died in the fire. >> do you realize covering these stories is that when the smoke clears and the sun comes out, the nightmare is just beginning. >> for those who survived, many returned to this apartamento aqui. >> ok

. >> and 5 people have died in the eaton fire, including 82 year-old rodney nickerson in altadena. his daughter cameco says he had been through fires before and thought he could survive this one to you said that he felt this was not pass over and that he would be here. he's been out >> as long as i've been living my whole life. i came here home as a child. born in kaiser permanente and sense. they brought me here to this house and i've been here my whole life with him. i heard a commotion, oakland, native and now los angeles resident shane reagan was keeping a close eye on the neighboring fires when a fire sparked wednesday close to his home near the hollywood hills and literally a mile from here on the hill. >> are just shy in flames. just been increasingly thankfully, fire crews stop the spread of the sunset fire. reagan says this put him on high alert. >> and out of precaution, he's staying with family members elsewhere. so you can do is really just stay attentive try to adapt quickly and consider. >> you know, evacuating yourself. i'm sara stinson reporting kron. 4 news. >> 7.1

. >> and 5 people have died in the eaton fire, including 82 year-old rodney nickerson in altadena. his daughter cameco says he had been through fires before and thought he could survive this one to you said that he felt this was not pass over and that he would be here. he's been out >> as long as i've been living my whole life. i came here home as a child. born in kaiser permanente and sense. they brought me here to this house and i've been here my whole life with him. i heard a commotion, oakland, native and now los angeles resident shane reagan was keeping a close eye on the neighboring fires when a fire sparked wednesday close to his home near the hollywood hills and literally a mile from here on the hill. >> are just shine. flames just be an increasingly thankfully. fire crews stop the spread of the sunset fire. reagan says this put him on high alert. >> and out of precaution, he's staying with family members elsewhere. so you can do is really just stay attentive try to adapt quickly consider. >> you know, evacuating yourself. i'm sara stinson reporting kron. 4 news. >> well, i

amna: rodney nickerson was a grandfather of four and known as a leader as it -- at his baptist church told reporters "the last thing he said to me as we encouraged him to leave was, don't worry, i will be here tomorrow." nickerson was 82. 32-year-old rory sykes overcame so much in life. he was born blind and with cerebral palsy. after numerous surgeries, he regained partial eyesight and learn to walk with help. his mother, shelley, wrote, "despite the pain, he is still enthused about traveling the world with me." geoff: asphalt are with those families and all of those who suffered losses in the fires. that is the news hour. i am geoff bennett. amna: i'm on none of oz. on behalf of the news hour team, thank you for joining us. >> major funding for the pbs news hour has been provided by -- >> in 1985, 2 friends set out to make wireless coverage accessible to all. with no long-term contracts, nationwide coverage, and 100% u.s.-based customer support. consumer cellular, freedom calls. >> carnegie corporation of new york, working to reduce political polarization through philanthropic suppo

. >> and 5 people have died in the eaton fire, including 82 year-old rodney nickerson in altadena his daughter kim ago says he had been through fires before and thought he could survive this one to you said that he felt this was not pass over and that he would be here. he's been out >> as long as i've been living my whole life. i came here home as a child. born in kaiser permanente and sense. they brought me here to this house and i've been here my whole life with him. i heard a commotion, oakland, native and now los angeles resident shane reagan was keeping a close eye on the neighboring fires when a fire sparked wednesday close to his home near the hollywood hills and literally a mile from here on the hill. >> are just shine. flames just be an increasingly thankfully. fire crews stop the spread of the sunset fire. reagan says this put him on high alert. >> and out of precaution, he's staying with family members elsewhere. so you can do is really just stay attentive try to adapt quickly and consider. >> you know, evacuating yourself. i'm sara stinson reporting kron. 4 news. >> well,

at least 11 people dead including according to "the new york times" 82-year-old rodney nickerson, retiredy technician erliene kelley, and 66-year-old victor shaw, who stayed to fight the fire. >> and i opened the front door and i just yelled in, victor, we got to get out, the fire is here, and i didn't hear him say anything. i heard him say nothing. >> reporter: authorities warning they won't know the true toll until they can safely enter those ravaged neighborhoods. in altadena and pasadena, the eaton fire blazing on, the hurst fire, the lidia fire, the kenneth fire and the newest fire to break out, the archer fire, also all still burning. more than 150,000 people under evacuation orders, and more than 12,000 structures, homes, and businesses damaged or destroyed. >> this is just a devastating view as we fly over pacific palisades. you can see down there how quickly they spread. >> reporter: the extent of the destruction, entire city blocks erased from the landscape. streets lying silent in the aftermath, burned out husks, the only things left standing. these before and after images pain

. >> and 5 people have died in the eaton fire, including 82 year-old rodney nickerson in altadena. his daughter cameco says he had been through fires before and thought he could survive this one, too. he said that he felt this was not pass over and that he would be here. he's been out >> as long as i've been living my whole life. i came here home as a child. born in kaiser permanente and sense. they brought me here to this house. and i've been here my whole life with him. i heard a commotion, oakland, native and now los angeles resident shane reagan was keeping a close eye on the neighboring fires when a fire sparked wednesday close to his home near the hollywood hills and literally a mile from here on the hill. >> are just shy in flames. just been increasingly thankfully, fire crews stop the spread of the sunset fire. reagan says this put him on high alert. >> and out of precaution, he's staying with family members elsewhere. so you can do is really just stay attentive try to adapt quickly and consider. >> you know, evacuating yourself. i'm sara stinson reporting kron. 4 news poin

rodney nickerson lived just a short walk from victor shaw home. rodney lived in his house for more than 50 years. he raised his two children there. the last comment to his daughter, i'll be here tomorrow. he was 82 years old. arlene kelly, she was 83. she didn't evacuate from her home in altadena with the rest of her family. she told them it's in god's hands. she lived in her house for more than 40 years. people nearby called her the perfect neighbor. annette rossilli. she was 85. she was encouraged to evacuate her pacific palisades home, but stayed behind with her pets. her dog greatly her canary pepper her two parrots and a turtle. anthony mitchell was 67, and his son justin was in his 20s. anthony was an amputee who used a wheelchair, and his son justin suffered from cerebral palsy. on wednesday morning, anthony was speaking with his daughter in arkansas when he told her he had to go because the fire was in the yard of their altadena home. he was later found by justin's bed. their families believe that anthony was trying to save his son, saying

meanwhile, a son is mourning his father, rodney nickerson, another eaton fire victim, eric nickerson, remembers every word of their last conversation. they were extremely close and spoke every day. and finally, rory callum sykes, an australian former child star, died when wildfire ripped through his family's malibu estate. he appeared on the 1998 british tv series kiddy kapers. his mother, shelley, describes him as beautiful and wonderful. president joe biden says he and the federal government are making every effort to aid california's firefighting and provide support in what will be a difficult aftermath. cnn's julia benbrook reports from the white house. >> the biden administration says it is in constant communication with california governor gavin newsom and los angeles mayor karen bass. >> those two leaders were a part of a briefing where biden was updated on the efforts to suppress the fires across l.a., and how federal resources are being used to assist with the response on the ground. >> following that briefing, biden said that his team would continue to work 24 over seven wit

take a listen to this one woman who lost her dad, 83 year old rodney nickerson, in this fire here in eden. the eaton fire. >> this is where we've been our whole life. and my son tried to get him to leave. >> and my neighbors and myself. >> and he said, he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. and he said his house would be here. his house is here. and he was here, too. >> he was in his bed when i found him. >> just the ultimate loss. there were a lot of people who were dealing with the fact that they've lost everything. they've lost their homes. but other people are also dealing with the fact that they've lost loved ones. it's just unbelievable the amount of loss that we've seen here in january. we don't normally see fires like this in january. it is just unprecedented. the amount of loss at this time of the year. it just goes to show you that things are changing here. the climate is changing. we're very dry after two very wet winters where we have all this brush that has grown up. then it dried out and now we are off to this driest start to a wet year ever on record. thi

the stories of the disabled and the elderly who couldn't get out, and we've heard the story of rodney nickerson. he was a grandfather who lived in his house, raising two generations, his children and his grandchildren. his family told us that he was very attached to the house and the neighborhood. he was 82 years old, a retired aerospace engineer who worked at lockheed martin. he lived in the neighborhood for more than 50 years. now, his son spoke to him on tuesday morning, as the two usually did. they were very close, but he said that as the day went on, he was not able to get a hold of him. he said that he was going to stay behind and that he'd be there when they returned. our affiliate in los angeles spoke to his daughter. take a listen. >> this is where we've been our whole life, and my son tried to get him to leave. and my neighbors and myself. and he said, he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. and he said his house would be here. his house is here. and he was here, too. he was in his bed when i found him. >> so, jessica, just imagine you return to your house and you're actu

rodney nickerson been here since 68. >> my son tried to get him to leave and my neighbors and myself. he said he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. >> a multicultural community that took 50 years to build, ripped apart in just hours. >> catherine you've been here since 1972. >> i put down $300 and i bought my home on mcnally. if you want me to say it, i will say it. it was called white flight, and they moved out of the neighborhood, and the black people were able to buy homes, and they've been there ever since. until the fire. just destroyed everything. >> it's a large black population, but it's not all black, man. it's mixed. i know people from every race that lives here and they're happy and they get along. it's nice. it's almost a perfect community. >> donnie kinsey filmed its destruction. >> i'm really afraid to see what's going to happen to my neighbors. and you know who's going to stick around after this? >> brian perry, a middle school principal, moved here for community. >> it was, to me the ideal place to raise my son, because he got to be around people who wer

one of those fatalities was a beloved father and grandfather, 82 year old ronald rodney nickerson said. he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. and he said his house would be here. his house is here. and he was here, too. >> he was in his bed when i found him. >> the last thing he verbally said to me was, i'll be here tomorrow. some californians have been able to return to what's left of their homes, and what they've seen has been horrifying. >> it's armageddon. i'm driving through a war zone right now, and i don't even know what to say. i'm speechless. i'm shocked. i'm just so sad for our devastated community. >> former fema administrator brock long joins us now. sir, thanks so much for being here. obviously, we're still in the disaster response phase of the or, you know, the active firefighting phase of this. but as this continues, this rolling disaster is just getting bigger and harder to recover from. i mean, what other types of disasters have we as a country has? fema and the entirety of our government coped with in the past? and do you think we're prepared to deal wi

and we also learned the story of rodney nickerson, an 82 year old grandfather who raised an entire familyin the house, which is now burned to the ground. he lived in the neighborhood for more than 50 years. as the fire approached. his family says he refused to leave. our affiliate in los angeles spoke with his daughter. >> this is where we've been our whole life, and my son tried to get him to leave, and my neighbors and myself, and he said, he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. and he said his house would be here. his house is here. and he was here, too. he was in his bed when i found him. >> and rory callum sykes, an australian former child star, died when the wildfire ripped through his family's malibu estate. he appeared on the 1998 british tv series kiddy kapers. his mother, shelley, describes him as a beautiful and wonderful person. for more information about how you can help los angeles area wildfire victims, go to cnn.com. slash impact or text wildfires to 70 7070 to donate. tonight, a special hour on the deadly fires in los angeles and the residents facing unthinka

rodney nickerson been here since 68. >> my son tried to get him to leave. my neighbors and myself. he said he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. >> a multicultural community that took 50 years to build. ripped apart in just hours. catherine, you've been here since 1972. >> i put down $300 and i bought my home on mcnally. >> if you want me to say it, i will say it. it was called white flight, and they moved out of the neighborhood, and the black people were able to buy homes, and they've been there ever since. >> until the fire just destroyed everything. >> it's a large black population, but it's not all black, man. it's mixed. i know people from every race that lives here, and they're happy and they get along. it's nice. it's almost a perfect community. >> donny kinsey filmed its destruction. >> i'm really afraid to see what's going to happen to my neighbors. and you know who's going to stick around after this? >> brian perry, a middle school principal, moved here for community. >> it was to me the ideal place to raise my son, because he got

we learned the story of rodney nickerson. he was a grandfather who raised an entire family in the house, which is now burned to the ground. he was 82 years old, a retired aerospace engineer who worked at lockheed martin. he lived in the neighborhood for more than 50 years, and as the fire was approaching, he refused to leave. his family said that he was very attached to the neighborhood and the house where his children and his grandchildren had grown up. his son spoke to him tuesday morning, as he did on most days, he told us. but as the day went on, he wasn't able to reach him. our affiliate in los angeles spoke with his daughter. take a listen. >> this is where we've been our whole life, and my son tried to get him to leave. and my neighbors and myself. and he said, he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. and he said his house would be here. his house is here. and he was here, too. he was in his bed when i found him. >> she was able to find him in bed. the remains of his body. we're also learning about anthony

we also heard the story of rodney nickerson, a grandfather who raised his family in the house, whichs now burned to the ground. he lived in his altadena neighborhood for more than 50 years. as the fire approached, family members say nickerson refused to leave. our affiliate in los angeles spoke with his daughter. >> this is where we've been our whole life, and my son tried to get him to leave, and my neighbors and myself, and he said, he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. and he said his house would be here. his house is here. and he was here, too. he was in his bed when i found him. >> and rory callum sykes. a former child star from australia died when the palisades fire ripped through his family's malibu estate. he appeared in the 1998 british tv series kiddy kapers. his mother, shelley, describes him as beautiful and wonderful, and we turn now to what one family is calling a glimmer of hope found amid the fires destruction. while searching the rubble of a home burned by the palisades fire. these firefighters found a family heirloom a ring that's been handed down thr

their homes from flames where they raised families and lived for decades, like victor shaw and rodney kent nickerson. >> great person. funny. the life of the party and the people, very intelligent man. >> reporter: and there's randy niod, a surfer who lived in his well-known red crab shack. he was found there. his last words to his mom were pray for the palisades and pray for malibu. i love you. officials say the death toll could rise. some areas are still too dangerous to go into. officials say it will also take time for them to go home to home with cadaver dogs to make sure no one is left behind. back to you. >> dana, thank you. >>> now to the senate about no kick off a weeks of high-stakes job interviews for the next administration. confirmation hearings begin tomorrow for president-elect trump's cabinet nominees, including pete hegseth for defense secretary. and then on wednesday, marco rubio for secretary of state and pam bondi for attorney general. nbc's chris ollone joins me from d.c. pete hegseth's nomination is one that has faced the most scrutiny. >> reporter: yes, good morning to you. pet

early anne, louise kelly, rodney kent nickerson, ambos de 83 aÑos, y vÍctor shaw, de 66, se negaron aeste sÁbado, la fuerza del viento dificulta apagar las llamas que amenazan mÁs zonas residenciales y por consiguiente, podrÍaa provocar mÁs pÉrdidas de vidas humanas. tenemos cobertura en equipo con erica flores y carlos robles, que estÁn en diferentes puntos del condado de los Ángeles. y alejandro godina en mÉxico, paÍs que ofrece ayuda. pero comenzamos contigo. erika. erika quÉ es lo Último? cuÉntanos. >> por quinto dÍa, los Ángeles arden llamas. el incendio es el mayor siniestro en el condado. avanza ferozmente tierra adentro, consumiendo todo a su paso, incluyendo cientos de estructuras adicionales. y amenazan nuevas comunidades como encino, westley y brentwood. albino se quedÓ sin empleo. el restaurante donde habÍa trabajado por dÉcadas como mesero fue devorado por el fuego. >> mi corazÓn estÁ acÁ. mi corazÓn estÁ aquÍ. mi vida estÁ acÁ. he crecido a mis hijas y mi familia trabajando en este bonito lugar. >> mientras en el segundo incendio mÁs devastador, los residentes han estado

as we now know that rodney nickerson, who was an 83 year old grandfather, was found by his family inthe rubble of his home in altadena. kimiko nickerson said that her dad lived in the house since 1968, when he purchased it for $5. >> said, he'll be fine. >> i'll be here when you guys come back. >> and he said his house would be here. his house is here, and he was here too. he was in his bed when i found him. the last thing he verbally said to me was, i'll be here tomorrow. >> our thoughts are just with the nickerson family for their loss tonight and for so many others who are grieving the loss of loved ones or their homes or everything they have. that's why this is such an important story for us to keep following, to remember the people who are at the heart of all of this. bill weir is on the ground for cnn in malibu tonight. and bill, just to to hear that story of her, of her father saying, you know, i'll be here tomorrow and then and then having to to find this and to find that he was in his bed. i mean, you're seeing, you know, what you're seeing in real time on the ground. and we

rodney nickerson been here since 68. >> my son tried to get him to leave and my neighbors and myself. he said he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. >> a multicultural community that took 50 years to build, ripped apart in just hours. catherine you've been here since 1972. >> i put down $300 and i bought my home on mcnally. if you want me to say it, i will say it. it was called white flight, and they moved out of the neighborhood, and the black people were able to buy homes, and they've been there ever since. until the fire. just destroyed everything. >> it's a large black population, but it's not all black, man. it's mixed. i know people from every race that lives here and they're happy and they get along. it's nice. it's almost a perfect community. >> tony kinsey filmed its destruction. >> i'm really afraid to see what's going to happen to my neighbors. and you know who's going to stick around after this? >> brian perry, a middle school principal, moved here for community. >> it was, to me the ideal place to raise my son because he got to be around people who were like

as we now know that rodney nickerson, who was an 83 year old grandfather, was found by his family inthe rubble of his home in altadena. kumiko nickerson said that her dad lived in the house since 1968, when he purchased it for $5. >> said, he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. and he said his house would be here. his house is here. and he was here, too. he was in his bed when i found him. the last thing he verbally said to me was, i'll be here tomorrow. >> our thoughts are just with the nickerson family for their loss tonight, and for so many others who are grieving the loss of loved ones or their homes or everything they have. that's why this is such an important story for us to keep following. to remember the people who were at the heart of all of this. bill weir is on the ground for cnn in malibu tonight. and bill, just to hear that story of her, of her father saying, you know, i'll be here tomorrow and then and then having to to find this and to find that he was in his bed. i mean, you're seeing, you know, what you're seeing in real time on the ground. and we're ge

we also heard the story of rodney nickerson. he's a grandpa. he was a grandfather who raised his family in the house, which is now burned to the ground. he lived in altadena, in his neighborhood, for more than 50 years as the fire approached. family members say that nickerson refused to leave. our affiliate in los angeles spoke to mr. nickerson's daughter. >> this is where we've been our whole life, and my son tried to get him to leave. and my neighbors and myself. and he said, he'll be fine. i'll be here when you guys come back. and he said his house would be here. his house is here. and he was here until he was in his bed. when i found him. >> and then there is rory callum sykes. he's a former child star from australia. he died when the palisades fire ripped through his family's malibu estate. he appeared in the 1998 british tv series kiddy kapers. his mother, shelley, described him as beautiful and wonderful. and we want to thank you for sticking around and watching those tributes. i'm polo sandoval. our breaking news coverage continues afte

like victor shaw and rodney kent nickerson. great person. funny the life of the party and love people. very intelligent man. loved to read. and there's randy mario. a malibu surfer who lived along the pacific coast highway and is well known. red crab shack. he was found there, according to his mom, who also told nbc news his last words to her were pray for the palisades and pray for malibu. i love you. that was dana griffin reporting. since the palisades fire broke out, we have heard about hydrants running dry, leaving fire crews helpless to douse the flames. we spoke to one man who spent the night protecting his home. he says his family used water bottles and water from the toilet to try to save their home. after the water stopped running in their neighborhood. i mean, they cut the water off on us, so not only did they not send any relief, they took the resources away from me to protect my neighbors and myself. and that family says they think the majority of their home is still standing, but they have nott been able to go back to check it.

like victor shaw and rodney kent nickerson. >> great person.he life of the party and love people. very intelligent man. loved to read. >> and there's randy millard. a malibu surfer who lived along the pacific coast highway and is well known red crab shack. he was found there, according to his mom, who also told nbc news his last words to her were pray for the palisades and pray for malibu. i love you. >> that was nbc's dana griffin reporting, and we're all praying for the people in this area. coming back to washington now, president elect donald trump has formally been sentenced in his hush money criminal case. on friday, judge juan merchan handed down the sentence of unconditional discharge in new york state criminal court as trump appeared virtually for that. the sentence means trump will see no formal punishment for his crime. judge merchan noted that trump was spared only because he's due to take the oath of office next week, and that his impending immunity does not mitigate any of his criminal convictions. audio of the proceedings was rele

nickerson. he, his father, rodney, died. he died in the eaton fire and the altadena home that he had owned.had lived in for more than 50 years. and eric, it is an unthinkable, unthinkable loss that you are facing. i'm so sorry to even have this conversation with you. days ago, we never would have even crossed paths. and now we are talking about this. i know you spoke with your dad every single day. you were so close. at what point did you realize that something was wrong when you can't get phone communication, which is normally usual, you can't get a text message which is normally usual. >> um, when you can't reach friends and family, which is normally usual, that live in the same neighborhood, which is a daily thing that we do, you know, it's just saying good morning or sending a heart text or the praying hands, which everybody in america and around the world does. >> yeah. and those, those just small touch points that connect you to a person. i know you actually spoke to your dad on tuesday afternoon, and that was just hours before this happened to you. yes. do you remember every word of

eric nickerson lost his father, rodney, who lived in altadena. he told cnn's erin burnett he can remember every single word of their final conversation on tuesday morning. >> it was a normal conversation, like most mornings, you know, i'm sitting at work. yeah, a good coworker of mine, sean donahue, and i'm talking about football and asking dad who he likes and how are you doing, how you feel? yeah. and, dad, i love you. i'll talk to you later. and before we hung up, he said, son, the winds are picking up really, really bad. i said, dad, i talked to you later, and sometimes i'll talk to him later, and then sometimes i'll talk to him the next morning. but that night i didn't talk to him. that night i talked to him. i tried to talk to him the next morning, and the next morning i couldn't talk to my dad. >> this is a tragedy that will continue to grow. fire officials say it's not safe enough to assess the true number of deaths in these fires. and new this morning, ucla is asking its students to be ready to evacuate the campus at any time. they stres

homes from flames, where they raised families and lived for decades, like victor shaw and rodney kent nickerson funny the life of the party and love people. very intelligent man, loved to read. >> and there's randy millard, a malibu surfer who lived along the pacific coast highway and is well known red crab shack. he was found there, according to his mom, who also told nbc news his last words to her were pray for the palisades and pray for malibu. >> i love you remembering all of the victims. that was nbc's dana griffin reporting. i mean, joe, just so terrifying. the stories that are coming out of people being left in their cottages, and then poor mother who just couldn't move her son, it's unthinkable. >> it's just horrifying. it's unthinkable. and it also the scale of the damage for those that weren't with us this morning. read from the new york times lead story today, talking about how the devastation in los angeles now is larger than the combined areas of, of san francisco, boston and miami. and when you hear people that are talking about what's happened to their communities, and jacob sobo