>> gabe gutierrez there for us tonight, thank you. >>> al roker is tracking it all for us tonight. al, a very busy night on the radar across the country. what are you watching first? >> lester, thanks so much. the remnants of this storm out west, it's going to have a bit of a legacy as it dumps snow into the rockies, but as we continue east, heavy snow upwards of eight inches in minnesota all the way into wisconsin. here in the east, we've got a big mess along the interstates as this nor'easter makes its way up the coast. the low pressure system deep enough to be a category 1 hurricane, and look at the airport delays. boston nothing, but that's going to change as the night wears on. as we push into the evening, look at these wind gusts. we're talking 35 to 45 to 55 miles per hour, but as we get into tomorrow, a little bit less but still problems for the airports as you make your way up into boston. this system pushes up, got a lot of heavy rain with it. one to three inches on the coast. look for a mix of snow and sleet and freezing rain, and look at this by tuesday. upwards of eigh

gabe gutierrez, thank you very much for that update. joining me now is representative lewis frankal whose district includes ft. lauderdale. it's good to have you with us. i want to get your reaction to sh shooting considering the limited information we're getting from officials. what do you make of the senseless tragedy? >> thank you for having me with you today. i feel like i'm sure most people who have heard about this, we are hear, we're grieving, we feel so sad for the victims and their families. i want to say ft. lauderdale, florida, is an exciting, beautiful city. that's why so many people come here and the people in the community have really stepped up to help the many thousands of people who got stranded here. >> congresswoman i know we don't know a whole lot about the investigation whether it's terrorism or mental health. it's going to have a lot foelks asking questions is this the new normal? anyone who wants to commit an act of terror or violence, they can use knives, vehicles, is this the new normal for us in this country, n

gabe gutierrez shows us the damage from hattiesburg, mississippi. >> reporter: the destruction in mississippi is overwhelming. >> you can hear, like, glass shattering. you can hear the roof caving. i feel like i'm blessed to be alive. >> reporter: donna thompson says the terrifying tornado was over in seconds. >> it was dark. people were everywhere. i didn't know who was still alive, who wasn't. i was scared. >> reporter: at least four people are dead, more than 20 others injured. search and rescue teams are looking for more. >> i know what the families go through when they say tornado. it's devastating. it really is. >> reporter: near downtown hattiesburg, william carey university is shut down, students evacuated, cars tossed, dorms damaged. >> we got everybody into the bathrooms, and it got pretty bad out there. just wind and power went out, lightning striking all around us. >> reporter: overnight, howling winds knocked out power to thousands. the fast-moving storm system spawning more than a dozen tornadoes, leaving a trail of damage across three states. and flooding communities in alabama

nbc's gabe gutierrez is at the fort lauderdale airport. gabe, good day to you. let's talk about the brother and what he's saying. >> reporter: hi there, alex. good afternoon. yes. as you mentioned, the brother of esteban santiago, bryan santiago is in puerto rico and he spoke with reporters, putting some of the blame, at least, at the u.s. government for letting his brother go despite knowing that he had mental issues as we have been reporting, alex. back in november esteban santiago went to the local fbi office in alaska, in anchorage, alaska and complained of mental issues and was sent to a mental health facility and complaining that the u.s. government was forcing him to watch isis videos and was controlling his mind. of course, the brother spoke in puerto rico. here's some of what he had to say. he says it was a call for help and that the system failed his brother. >> he go to the fbi saying that he is hearing voices and the cia are saying that he need to join isis, that the cia is fighting with fbi because they have a fight that nobody sees. i don't know if

gutierrez who joins us from adel, georgia. gabe. >> reporter: kate, good evening. just a short time ago, this neighborhood had to take cover yet again as another line of thunderstorms ro roared through. last night a tornado ripped this neighborhood apart and residents are still in shock as the full extent of the damage is still being tallied. tonight new powerful storms are sweeping across the south. >> look at the rain clouds -- there's a really strong motion. >> reporter: the latest this largest rain-wrapped twister near albany, georgia. hours after a devastating tornado ripped through the small town of adel. >> it was terrible. awful. >> reporter: barely escaping her home collapsed around her as her husband scrambled to pull their daughter to safety. >> i stood behind the door and the debris was coming through the front window. he went to her, she was screaming for him. and he was hollering for her. right about the kitchen is where she went to get the stuff of of him. when he came out the get her, everything on the back of

gabe gutierrez joins us now with reaction from chicago, gabe, what was notice to believe me at least in that clip we just played, you had loretta lynch and the city's mayor rahm emanuel standing right next to her as she unveiled this report. >> yeah, it's exactly right, steve. now the reaction to this report is range from vindication from. critics of the chicago police department who felt there were systemic problems within the department for decades. and criticism from the head of the police union who says this was a politically motivated rush job right before inauguration day. as he mentioned, one of the big questions we had going into this morning is what would mayor rahm emanuel say? he stood next to her. and last year enacted reforms before the results of this d.o.j. report came out. let's listen to some what have he had to say this morning. >> i want to be clear, the chicago police department, the city of chicago is already on the road to reform and there are no u-turns on that road. it is my fefr rant hope that this report does not lead to another round of finger pointing or m

nbc's gabe gutierrez is at the airport for us. gabe, with a good morning to you. first up, let's talk about the charges against santiago, what he's facing, and then what we're hearing from his brother. >> reporter: yeah, that's right, alex. that brother and other family members saying that esteban santiago had a variety of mental problems leading up to this shooting, but let's get to those new charges from federal authorities. esteban santiago is now charged with committing acts of violence at an international airport as well as other weapons charges. he faces the death penalty, if convicted. he is scheduled to go before a federal magistrate here in ft. lauderdale at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow. now, in the charging documents, we got a little bit more detail about what federal authorities say happened here. they say that esteban santiago got to baggage claim on friday afternoon and then he picked up his gun, which was in checked baggage, went to the bathroom, and took it out of the checked baggage in a stall, put it in his waistband, then came out and started shooting, fi

gabe gutierrez, nbc news, georgia. >>> a mississippi woman is lucky to be alive as a tree was tossed on the house. she was pinned to the bed by the tree and alone and was able to grab a cell phone and call 911 an crews had to cut the tree in pieces in order to free her. she had broken bones but going to be okay. >>> an apparent tornado is blamed for this damage at a south florida high school. officials closed the campus. the storm threw roofing material, siding and plywood around the school. the baseball field was also damaged with a bleacher thrown in the street. >>> look that the video of a car being washed away by floodwaters in southern california. the woman driving the car got out moments before that car was swept away. the car tumbled and slipped through the water. >>> flooding has also washed away this road in central california. a sinkhole just opened up after streams overflows. california has been hard hit by these storms. forecasters say this could be the strongest storm to hit the region in seven years. >>> we are under a first alert for a nor'easter that's going to be wit

gabe gutierrez, thank you very much for that update. we now know the alleged gunman apparently retrieved a firearm from his checked baggage before opening fire. it's bringing in a lot of new questions and a set of concerns about airport security. joining me now kenneth hoenig. he was the commanding officer at jfk and laguardias in new york. great to have you with us. >> good morning. >> i hate to say it takes tragedies like this to kind of expose some of the vulnerabilities that we have at our airports, but airport security obviously coming a long way in the last couple decades. where do you see the holes and what are your concerns after seeing what we witnessed yesterday? >> as the security at the airports has functioned or targeted the attack on aircraft, and put a hard perimeter around the aircraft and protecting people on the aircraft, we've pushed that perimeter out. now the soft areas are the ticket areas and baggage claim areas and train stations, bus stations have become relatively softer targets. what we need to do is keep secu

gabe gutierrez, thank you so are. maria in a attencio is outside the broward medical health center, a couple of miles from the scene of the shooting. give us an update. what do we know about those killed and the others wounded in the attack, any updates? >> reporter: peter at least five people still remain hospitalized here after friday's deadly shooting. i just spoke to broward medical center ceo who confirmed four of the five were gunshot victims and at least two remain in critical condition. at this hour, we can also confirm one of the five deceased is shirley timmons from ohio. the family also telling us her husband, steve, is one of the two people fighting for their lives in this hospital. shirley and steve timmons traveled to south florida, peter, to meet up with their family for what was supposed to be a cruise vacation. the couple had been married 51 years, and the family released the following statement saying "shirley timmons was an amazing daughter, wife, mother and grandmother. for shirley it was all about

. >> joining me is nbc's gabe gutierrez outside the federal courthouse. the stories from the survivors and some of the other witness explanations of what happened are just incredible, horrifying. >> reporter: yes, that's exactly right, andrea, simply incredible. you just heard from that survivor, who barely made it out with his life after that bullet got lodged in his laptop. we've heard others walking by calmly picking up their bags as this rampage unfolded and we saw from that video obtained by tmz just how calmly the gunman was walking down that terminal. now today just a few minutes ago here in ft. lauderdale, the suspect, 26-year-old esteban santiago was charged and read his rights. he faces one charge of committing an act of violence at an international airport, as well as other weapons charges and he faces life in prison if convicted. he was in the courtroom, his hands were chained to his waist. he was in a red jump suit. didn't say much other than to answer the judge's questions about his finances to be able to qualify for a public defender. he al

nbc's gabe gutierrez is in hard-hit alabama. >> reporter: tonight rehoboth, alabama, is torn apart. >> it's crazy. really powerful. >> reporter: j.p. kellie live next door to the mobile home where last night four women include, 27-year-old amanda blare and her hunt were killed. >> they did what they were supposed to be doing? >> they did. they went to a safe area. one was in the tub. that's the area with tree went down on. >> reporter: three others barely escaped. they gathered to watch the sugar bowl before the night turned tragic. across the south a dozen reported tornadoes, storms cutting a path of destruction from louisiana to florida where one man drowned near a submerged car. >> it's like a hurricanenado. >> reporter: in mississippi, flash floods stranded drivers. all the tornadoes are unusual across the northern two-thirds of the country in january. here in the south the gulf of mexico provides warm and humid air. two of the necessary ingredients for the development of storms and twisters and the national weather service is still surveying this destruction to see how many torna

gabe gutierrez, thank you for the update. i want to bring in senior policy adviser at the national alliance on mental illness. ron, we wanted to check in with you because there's been so much about this story that sort of points to mental health issues as being a part of all this. we learned the alleged gunman showed signs of violence and erratic behavior, that coming from his own family. they're telling us that. they say he began to act strangely. he then went to the fbi where he was living in anchorage, alaska, and told authorities that he was hearing voices. they put him in for observation somewhere at a facility, but he was released four days later. when you hear all of that, is there a disconnect between the way we're treating mental health issues in this country and the gun control laws we have? because he was given his gun back after that four-day stay. >> well, kate, there -- you know, there are -- there's both federal and state laws that prohibit certain people with mental illnesses from having guns. the problem is i

>> gabe gutierrez, thank you. >>> now to the west where an unforgiving storm, the kind not seen in more than a decade is hammering a region already water logged with flood waters. so-called atmospheric river continues to dump steady rain and snowfall in a region that can't handle much more. tonight this deadly storm is still pushing its way across a drought stricken area now slammed with a deluge. nbc's miguel almaguer is in the thick of it. >> reporter: rain is falling, rivers are rising and hillsides are crumbling and vineyards are under water and so are homes. >> we're just watching to see if everybody else got out. >> reporter: the russian river surging above flood stage in this historic town. bonnie and her neighbors are losing ground by the hour. >> watch and wait. that's about all you can do. >> reporter: with 13 million under a flood threat, the roads are dangerous. in ridgefield, washington, a 4-year-old girl and her family rescued by firefighters. in oregon, breaking through a sheet of ice just to see the road while some struggle to walk on it. in colorado, i-70 shut down by a

gabe gutierrez bring us up to date. >> hi there, good afternoon. as you mentional attorney general loretta lynch announcing the department of justice found the chicago police department had systematically violated citizens' constitutional rights and also unfairly targeted minorities for use of force. they found that the department did not give proper training, failed to have proper accountability and did not adequately review use of force cases. now for the first time today, chicago mayor rahm emmanuel announced that the city had agreed in principle to begin negotiations on an independently monitored and court-enforced consent decree. there are a lot of questions about this moving forward. donald trump has said that he favors aggressive police tactics but his nomination for attorney general jeff sessions has also shown a reluctance to use federal courts to bring about local police reform. however, the mayor of chicago today said that he had not spoken with the trump transition team, that he had been briefed on this yesterday so there are questions

we expect to get more information later today. >> gabe gutierrez, thank you very much. msnbc law enforcement analyst, retired atf special agent in charge and hostage negotiator. good to have you with us. break down the legalities of traveling with guns and ammunitions. people questioning why was an individual with a known mental health past or questions about his mental health past allowed to have a gun and more importantly not on any no fly list? >> right. first of all, he's not prohibited under federal law from having a gun if h has not been committed by a court for a mental issue, adjudicated as a mental defective is what the law says. he's not been committed bay court. he had a voluntary admission after bizarre bethey've he exhibited at the fbi office. the app reported in january of 2016 he strangled and assaulted his girlfriend but that will case was still pending. if he had been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence he would not be allowed to have a gun. those kind of trip wires might have prevented this guy from having a gun because we don't know

gabe gutierrez, nbc news, austin, texas. >>> still ahead, slashing your grocery bill. the apps you can download to save big at the supermarket check out. one mom says she's saving $5,000 a year. >>> also, experience over youth. the older set of tennis stars showing the youngsters a thing or two at the australian open. >>> we're back now with our series, the price you pay. groceries getting ever more expensive. what can you do? we want you to meet what you might call a super shopper, who uses apps, no clipping coupons, to save big. how about half off your bill? >> reporter: for jenny martin and her husband, feeding five daughters on a budget is a full-time job. >> it can be overwhelming to keep enough food stocked in the pantry. >> reporter: she turned to one of the well-known apps to cut her grocery budget. >> we save between 4 to $5,000 on our groceries. >> really? >> yes. >> reporter: she comes prepared with a list of the best mobile app deals. she combines them with store discounts and sometimes can make money on a purchase. >> you went from 1.99 to -- >> making 50

gabe gutierrez, this was striking to see loretta lynch standing before the cameras making this assessment. what does it mean for the chicago police department right now, and moving forward into the future? >> hi there, peter, good afternoon. there are many questions regarding that considering that the trump administration will be taking over, and its nominee for attorney general, jeff sessions, has said that he's not a fan of using federal courts to bring about local police reform. the local from term order of police, the head of the fop is also calling this a rush job but let's take a look right now at some of the things found in this report, if we can put those up. the attorney general loretta lynch said there was a pattern or practice of using force including deadly force in violation of the fourth amendment by the chicago police department. also a failure to collect adequate data to determine whether force was used correctly and that there was low officer morale and low officer accountability and also severely deficient training within the chicago police department, including that dur

nbc's gabe gutierrez joins me from chicago. let's reset this for a minute and tell me what prompted this probe and what it means for the city. >> hi, ali. good afternoon. as you'll recall, it was the release of the laquan mcdonald dash cam video back in september of 2016 that caused an outcry in this city and across the country, which is what prompted this 13-month federal investigation you just heard loretta lynch talk about some of the findings. let's go through some of them. there was a pattern or practice of using force, including deadly force in violation of the fourth amendment. you heard attorney lynch say there was also a failure to collect adequate data to determine whether force is used correctly, there was low officer morale and low officer accountability, and also severely deficient training mechanisms. among those, according to the report, they were watching training videos that were decades old, that they used lethal force and shot suspects and tasered suspects that posed no immediate threat. certainly, there's a

nbc's gabe gutierrez is live outside the hospital. he's been there all day getting more accounts of some of those victims. gabe, is there an update on the condition of the victims? are we expecting some of those to be released today? >> yes, ayman, good afternoon. we're learning from hospital officials that one of those six gunshot victims is expected to be released later today. but as you mentioned right now there are six gunshot victims being treated here at broward health medical center. three of them are in good condition. three of them are in the intensive care unit. we just heard from the ceo of the hospital a short time ago. here's some of whate had to say. >> six shooting victims, they range in terms of their prognosis, but they're being supported by their loved ones and the staff members. and everyone who came through our doors has their life today and we're making sure that they enjoy the gift of life. >> now, we have heard from the eldest daughter of one of the victims who was killed, this was 62-year-old terry andrees of v

steve. >> all right gabe gutierrez down there in ft. lauderdale, thanks for that. >>> still ahead, donald trump praising ford and fiat in their plans to build more cars in the united states. but is the president-elect responsible for the newly announced investments? we are live out at the detroit auto show. he actually talked about the big announcement with the ceo of ford. what he is saying about their surprise plans. that's next. >>> plus as jared kushner is now poised to join his father-in-law in the white house, more questions being raised about his business ties and potential conflicts of interest. coming up i want to talk to the author of a new cover store in new york magazine. deep dive into trump world. and where exactly jared kushner fits in it. that's ahead, stay with us. it's beautiful. was it a hard place to get to? (laughs) it wasn't too bad. with the chase mobile app, jimmy chin can master depositing his hard earned checks in a snap. easy to use chase technology for whatever you're trying to master. has been a struggle. i

gabe gutierrez sla explains how it would impact the way you shop. >> reporter: she prefers too her shopping at home. >> you're ordering something online every day? >> yes. >> wow. >> reporter: she's a loyal amazon prime us user. $99 a year for unlimbed two-day shipping. >> if it takes a week to get to me, i feel like that's ancient. that's way too long. >> reporter: walmart is swooping in now offering free two-day shipping to all customers on more than two million products after a minimum purchase of $35. the retail giant is scrapping its previous subscription service amid fierce competition from amazon. >> we feel like we're a first mover here. we think this will be a trend in the future. >> reporter: still online, walmart has a long way to go. amazon hit $107 billion in sales in 2015. walmart's internet sales just 14 billion. for the best deal, retail experts urge consumers to check the minimum thresholds for free shipping. for example, target.com is $25 in purchases. less than walmart's but shipping takes three days. >> free shipping is very important to shoppers. that's one of the highe