susan powell went missing in 2009.is believed that this residence is that of josh powell and the two children that he had been fighting for custody of were visiting him today. and this explosion took place shortly after the children's arrival. did residents -- had any resident said anything about the smell of gas or anything suspicious surrounding that home prior to this explosion? >> no, fredricka, here is what i understand from reports given to me here at the scene. a cps worker had apparently brought the two josh powell children to this house for a supervised visit. and as she brought them to the door, the door opened, she saw mr. powell, she allowed the children to come in and as soon as the children came in, apparently he closed the door in a way that prevented her from entering this building. she tried to get back in, there was no answer, no reply. she also began to smell gas. what kind of gas, i don't know. all i know is that she reported a smell of gas and then moments to minutes later this house exploded and s

he was the prime suspect in the disappearance of his wife, susan powell, missing over two years now. just before 12:30 sunday afternoon, the two boys were escorted to josh powell's home by a caseworker for a court-orred visitation with their father. police say they locked the caseworker out and ignited two five gallon cans of gasoline, sparking an explosive fireball that levelled the house, killing both boys and powell. there were signs he had been carefully planning his final act. he donated their toys to a local charity over the weekend. and sent good-bye e-mails to several people. >> we've discovered multiple e-mail also he sent to his pastor, his cousins and he sent to other people that are a bit longer in length. they dictate what to do with the utilities. what to do with his money. what to do with certain aspects of his life. >> reporter: he said nothing about his missing wife. powell's story to police was that the last time he saw susan was at their home in utah just before taking the boys on a midnight camping trip. a story that never quite added up. >> he's disturbed. disturb

the flames were huge. >> josh powell is a person of interest in the 2009 disappearance of susan powell in utah. >> i did not kill my wife as has been alleged. >> powell claimed he was off camping with his sons the night susan vanished. he managed to keep custody of his kids until last fall when his father was ared for voyeurism and child pornography. just last wednesday, a judge denied powell's request to regain custody of his children. >> i think this was just an opportunity to hurt the people that he was angry at. >> powell's lawyer tells the associated press minutes before the explosion powell sent an e-mail simply saying i'm sorry, goodbye. bigad shaban, cbs news. >>> take a quick break on a monday. coming up on the morning news, 11th hour talks to keep greece from going bankrupt. >>> plus the final score wasn't the only story at the super bowl. find out why nbc is apologizing for madonna's halftime show. . but not your wrinkles? neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair. its retinol formula visibly reduces wrinkles in just one week. why wait if you don't have to. neutrogena®. ♪ [ gong ] st

which caught the attention of the preschool people, of course. >> shepard: susan powell's parents say police told them they were actually getting ready to arrest josh powell. just days ago a judge ruled he couldn't have custody of his kids, but yesterday he got one last visit. the two boys walking right in front of a social worker up to the door they went to see the father they, by all accounts, adored. the kids in first, dad slammed the door, locked it tight. and as that social worker banged and begged and called 911, she smelled gas. then saw and felt the explosion. and watched in horror as those little boys burned to death behind that locked door. >> we heard the boom. and we ran outside and you see this big black smoke coming up in the air. >> i hope nobody was in there. >> shepard: she hoped nobody was in there. of course, josh powell and those two little innocent children were. charlie and brayden dead now. and perhaps with them any chance of finding what happened to mom, figuring out what really happened the night susan powell disappeared. dan springer with this news. he is liv

powell's wife susan has been missing since 2009. investigators say they believe powell had been planning the fire for some time. they found two five-gallon gas cans inside the house, one near the bodies. >> detected boxes of toys and boys and donated them to the good will sometime over the weekend, so this was definitely a deliberate planned out event. >> reporter: the home exploded after a social worker brought 7-year-old charles and 5-year-old braden for supervised visitation with their father. powell was a person of interest in his wife's missing persons case. the children lived with susan powell's parents who say the boys were reluctant to visit their father on sunday. >> they seemed to be losing interest in going to see him. >> reporter: a judge denied powell's custody of his sons on weekend. investigators say powell sent several e-mails to his pastor and family members telling them how to handle his affairs moments before the house exploded. in one note to his lawyer, powell said, quote, i'm sorry, good-bye. >> it's just sensel

susan powell in utah. thorities saying her husband josh powell blew up his house with his children inside. it happened after he sent an e-mail this morning to his attorney saying quote, i am sorry, good-bye. police saying a social worker took the boys to the home for a supervised visit. powell forced her out the door and locked it keeping the children in the home. moments later the house blew up. susan powell we have been reporting has been missing since 2009. he is a key person of interest in her disappearance. in the race for the presidential nomination mitt romney looking for the next best contest. he is off back-to-back victories in nevada and florida. newt gingrich is renewing his vow to campaign until the convention this summer. >> man well another yinoriaga hospitalized hypertension with a possibility of a stroke. he's 77 taken from his prison sell to a hospital in panama. he is serving time for crimes committed while in office. >>> egypt plans to send 44 including 19 americans to trial. among them t

susan powell's private fears in her own words. it's the genuine belief of a good many people that you killed her. >> her husband speaks a final eerie interview. >> i love my sons more than anything. i put them first. i put my family first. inside "a family's story". >>> welcome to "dateline." i'm lester holt. the details are heartbreaking, the disappearance of a mom and what befell her two little boys. tonight we have new information in the susan powell case never revealed before, about her own fears for the safety of her family. did she see this coming? and could anyone else have stopped it? you'll hear from her loved ones tonight searching for answers and justice. you'll also hear from her husband josh powell in his last in-depth interview, words that are even more haunting now. here's keith morrison. >> reporter: it is so sad to look at them now, this apparently perfectly normal family. just a young father and his two young sons walking a postcard shore, skipping rocks across the surface. but under the surface, the man's own sk

arrest, custody of the powell children, who had been living in the same house as steven powell, was given to susan's parents. just days ago the judge denied josh powell's attempt to regain custody of the children. now a tragic end with no real answers and a community and family in mourning. frances kuo, nbc news. >>> well, now here's a look at other stories making news today early today in america. it's hard to believe no one was seriously hurt after a small plane crashed into a montana home. three people were aboard. witnesses say the plane hit some trees before slamming into the house. the homeowner was there at the time, but everyone walked away from the crash. >>> in wisconsin a propane explosion was captured on video. >> oh, my god! >> it happened at a propane facility near mad i sop after a truck driver filling his tanker had a malfunction which caused the hose to break loose. the blast shook the ground for miles around, but no one was injured. >>> in california, a car dealership left the motor running on a toyota camry and then left it alone. a man walking by took full advantage making sure n

susan's parents. in the raid, steven powell was charged with possession of pornography. >> susan was very -- very sexualtious. i mean, i'm her father-in-law. we interacted in a lot of sexual ways. >> reporter: steven powell even wrote love songs about her with lyrics like this. ♪ i can love you in a secret way." >> do you think a part of you started falling in love with susan? >> yeah, i would say so. and there's no question in my mind that the feelings were mutual. >> and you knew about that. >> she's a very flirtatious person. >> reporter: but josh powell was still the only person of interest in his wife's disappearance. both her family and his now worried that the mystery of her whereabouts may have died with him. >> we'll never get those answers now. >> he could at least left a note behind. >> susan powell's parents issued a statement through their attorneys sunday telling abc news that they were always fearful that their son-in-law would hurt his boys. they're devastated at losing a daughter but grandsons. >> let's bring in the host of nancy grace on hln from atlanta. nancy, you're a lawyer. you kn

like a sonic boom another thought it was an earthquake the other lady who followed the case of susan powell very closely and what has been going on with the powells was very upset to find out josh was living right down below her. she has young children and the fire, the flames came up just to the back part of her trees. she was disturbed to find out what happened here. many people here today upset about what they are calling a tragedy here. >>> i know that a lot of the neighbors who have been able to talk to tonight and we are so glad that you are able to join us. david, tell us what the neighbors are saying and whether or not there was any sort of mood or telegraph can that this was going to happen? >> some people might have thought based on what happened in court last week the judge ordering he get psycho sexual evaluation because of the child porn the detectives found from the house several miles from here that belonged to josh's father steven when they did the raid on the house last summer. steven powell is in jail tonight, in fact he is on suicide watch right now. detectives tell us th

you may recall susan powell, the utah mom who vanished under mysterious circumstances, now, we are learning the two young children she left behind died today in an explosion at their home. the police in washington state where the little boys were living with family say a social worker had just dropped the the kids off for a supervised visit with their dad josh powell earlier today. and police say powell shoved the social worker out of the door and then fled inside the home with the boys. and that social worker reportedly smelling some kind of a gas, and called for help. and moments later, the house blew up. fox news correspondent dan springer joining us on the phone from seattle. and dan, this is unreal. we've been following the story since the mom disappeared in 2009 and now the little boys are gone. what have you learned? >> oh, harris, it's so tragic and the key and lead in, it was a supervised visit and that case worker was supposed to be inside that home while the two boys, ajts seven and five were with their father, josh powell. that never happened as you said she was forced out and t

she's never been found. >> reporter: december 6th, 2009, the last day any ever sees susan cox powell,hundred and her children. her friend has dinner at the family's home. >> from what i saw that day, looked as if things were kind of going pretty good. he was being very nice to her. >> reporter: shortly after midnight, susan's husband josh says he sees his wife go to bed. he then leaves to go camping with his son, braden and charlie, just 2 and 4 years at the time in sub freezing temperatures in the utah desert. the next evening when he returns, josh claims his wife has vanished. >> reporter: do you have any idea what happened to her? >> no. >> reporter: immediately, authorities hone in on powell, he's interviewed multiple times by police, and on december 9, a search warrant b is served on the family home. december 10th, authorities begin looking for clues in the area where powell claimed to be camping with his sons. december 16th, after another interview, police named josh powell a person of interest in the disappearance of his wife. he maintained his innocence in the "cbs early show"

they went to the grandparents, to the parents of susan powell. josh powell was trying to regain custody of his sons. last week he went to court. the judge denied it asking him to go through psychological evaluation and taking a polygraph test, but at that point authorities say he became very disspon dent at losing his son and -- or his sons and losing that custody and right before -- >> i just didn't want to interrupt you but i have to say all the way through this case josh powell has acted in such a bizarre way. he has avoided investigation. he has refused to speak to police officers on so many instances in the disappearance of his wife, susan. his father has acted in a bizarre way. they launched a website to diminish susan suggesting she probably ran off with some man. there's been sort of whisper rumors all along that josh and his father may have acted complicitly in the death of susan. so are the investigators now with the death and the tragedy -- the death of not only the father but his two sons, are they looking at steven, josh's father now,

father had been spying on women for approximately a decade, and one of those women would have been susan powellly josh powell was under a tremendous amount of pressure. >> now, the spokesman for the sheriff's office seems to have no doubt it was powell who killed his wife. listen to this. >> he set this up, he did it, he is the one who started the fire and didn't tell anybody. >> those seem like strong words. but what do we know about josh powell and his mental state at the time all of this unfolded? >> well, we are learning that the boys ran to him for the supervised visit and he immediately closed the door on the person from social services that was supposed to be supervising the visit, the social worker. she immediately called her supervisor and heard the home explode. our understanding at this point is he was under a tremendous amount of pressure, but certainly i don't believe that anyone expected him to take the lives of his two small children. >> all right, sunny, thanks. that's sunny hostin. >>> a huge development in the case of 19 americans forbidden to leave egypt. one of them is relat

gregg: rod, did the answers to what happened to susan powell likely die with josh powell. >> they likely a whole lot of more information the police can learn pep maybe they can find susan's body at some point. they never have found her body. yesterday's event was more tragic. the more interesting question here, tkpw*eg is whether or not the courts missed the warning signs with josh powell. gregg: were there? >> i think they did. i think there were a number of warning signs actually. last week at the hearing there was a custody battle last week on wednesday of last week and the police testified that they were concerned about the welfare, gregg, of the two little boys. whenever a police officer or an investigator says that they are concerned about the welfare, what they are saying is the fact that they believe these kids could be in danger of this individual, even if it is a parent. so instead of the court saying, don't let the kids go back to the house they allowed visitation, and as we saw yesterday it ended up very horrificly. gregg: finding pornography on josh powell's computer and bei

now, you may remember his wife, susan powell cox, who went missing in 2009. police are saying that two of the victims are believed to be the powells young children. and that video, look at that, unbelievable, that house just really wiped away right there. i'm joined now by graham washington deputy fire chief gary franz, the deputy fire chief in washington. what's the latest on this? two bodies believed to be the children and a third body found. >> yes, that's correct. that third body appears to be an adult, can't tell at this point if it's male or female, but, you know, everything that we have, we have very credible reports of, you know, a person working with the powell children who brought those children to this house just prior to this event and then after the children were let inside, she was prevented from going inside herself. she smelled some gas and tried to get back in but as i understand it, but she just couldn't do it. she saw mr. powell, and she brought these two powell kids to this home. so within moments to have minutes after those kids were let i

. >>> new details in the case of susan powell. josh powell killed himself and two sons in a murder-suicide two weeks ago. late word stayed josh powell's father is invoking his fifth amendment right and will not answer any questions about how all this began. in 2009, when daughter-in-law, mother of those children, wife of josh powell. steven powell has been considered a person of interest in the case. now, we are learning new details about -- the image we have all now seen which killed josh powell and his sons. the sheriff's office says powell actually may not have even lived there. >> kind of believe he was using that mostly as kind of a prop. >> joining me now is miguel marquette, from los angeles. let's start with josh powell's father, steven. now that he's pleading the fifth, does that mean we might never know what happened to susan powell, the woman at the center of this horrible tragedy? >> it is possible, but he may still talk to investigators yet because keep in mind, a resident he's listen arrested on pornography charges af

police trying to figure out what happened with susan powell. there's also reporting -- again not cnn -- saying josh was upset after being ordered to undergo a psycho sexual evaluation recently. >> there were court hearings this last week and he was trying to do custody and it was determined the kids would stay with susan's parents and that he needed to go through some different type of evaluations, counseling. but the supervised visits were to continue and there was no warning or he has not told anybody that this is part of the plan or was going to do this. the kids have been here for visits before without a problem. this is all on him. he set this up. he did it. he is the one who started the fire. and didn't tell anybody. we're in fact now informing his parents. i'm sure a lot of family members, people are learning this from the media because it became so big and so -- such a big incident so fast that it was reported what was going on here before we were able to notify everybody. >> you just spoke to his family to let them know. >> yeah. we've

josh powell was the focus of an investigation into the disappearance of his wife... susan cox-powell. cox-powell. roaring flames, thick smoke and sh.the aftermath of an explosion -- one that authorities say josh powell ignited, to kill himself and his two oung sons.sheriff's deputies say it appears powell sent an e-mail shortly before the fire, saying, quote "i'm sorry, good-bye.""this is ll on him. he set this up. he did it. he is the one who started the firr." investigators say a fosserrcare case worker brought powell's two boys to this pierce couuty, washington home on suuday, for a supervised visit.as the children got lose to the door, powell dragged them inside, and locced the case fiery blast leveeed the hoose. "when we first came out, there was, um, white stuff flying around everywhere."it happenee just days after powell was denied custodyyof his boys by a washington judge, who ruled they should remain with their grandparents.police say powell was a pprson of interest in the case of his missing wife. susan cox-powell hasn't been seen since december 2009, in &putah.a

the sons of susan powell the woman from utah who vanished two years ago., josh powell, was considered a person of interest in her case. he'd recently lost custody of the boys they were staying with susan's parents. we told i you last sunday as the story was break can a social worker had taken those children to the home for supervised visit with their dad. he locked that social worker out and now we know attacked them with a hatchet then set fire to the house killing all three of them. the social worker was not hurt. casey is live in west coast news hub. a painful goodbye for that family and community. >> harris, painful may be understatement. the pastor of the church saying that today was not about the adults, it was not about any type of a police investigation and it was not about assigning blame. instead he said today was about celebrating the two precious lives that were cut tragically short last weekend as we were just telling you, the little powell brothers eulogized by their teacher as two boys who loved the outdoors. we're thrilled to work alongside

the sheriff's spokesman says powell's wife susan disappeared two years ago. lost custody of his two boys. the brother-in-law of this man, kurt graves, said he believed that something just might have pushed josh powell over the edge. >> we're in shock. we are simply -- it's beyond belief. we had had suspicions of varyious things josh was capable of, but i for one, didn't think he was capable of this. i think this proves it. this is his admission of guilt and couldn't handle it anymore. >> our thelma gutierrez is live in pierce county, washington. there are so many layers to this story, thelma. two years ago the woman going missing. her husband saying i was just out camping at midnight in 20 degrees in a snowstorm with my toddler boys. nothing passed the smell test in this case, and yet police never arrested him. it's been two years of suspicion under which this man has been living and now this. do police feel like they are anywhere close to at least closing the case against susan or is this opening up a whole new kettle of fish? >> reporter: ashleigh, they say

we're going to talk live to susan powell's parents in a moment. >> reporter: good morning, robin opinion finally some insight into josh powell's last few moments before he burned his house down, killing himself and his two young sons. these may be the last words from josh powell that the world ever hears. >> hello. this is josh. and i'm calling to say good-bye. >> reporter: he left this message for his cousins, brother, and other family members. >> i am not able to live without my sons. and i'm not able to go on anymore. i'm sorry to everyone i've hurt. good-bye. >> reporter: and now, abc news has learned the white hot flash of flames and horror that killed the two innocent little boys inside wasn't the worst of it. while their case worker pounded on the door, locked out. source say josh powell corralled his kids in a room behind the garage where two five-gallon cans of gasoline had been readied. sources say powell lit the flame and then attacked them. >> we believe he attempted to murder them before the fire and didn't quite succeed. the brutality is just shocking. >> reporter: investig