or an ingrown toenail, it's the end of the world digging out from the deadly storm that included thundersnow. one teacher was struck by lightning as thousands wake up today with no power while digging out from the heavy nor'easter blizzard. donald trump facing a tough battle on steel a aluminum tariffs fliz own party. plus the president's lawyer tries to silence stormy daniels with a gag order. as confessed florida high school killer nikolas cruz is officially indicted on the same day the state legislature sends new gun bills to the governor for signature. celebrating international women's day in the u.s. and around the globe today. and has the mystery of amelia earhart finally been solved? "early today" starts right now.

good to be with you on this thursday morning. i'm frances rivera. >> and i'm phillip mena. for the second time in less than a week the east coast is under siege from another ferocious nor'easter. this time bringing heavy wet snow well over a foot in some areas from boston to philadelphia he. at its peek the nor'easter could unload snow at a rate of up to three inches an hour. it's also giving way to a rare sighting. thundersnow. you heard it there. numerous instances of this booming thunder captured in several areas. >> reporter: zbl the storm is crippling travel as well. more than 2,000 flights are canceled, nearly 1,000 more delayed. officials are urging drivers to stay off the roads due to the dangerous whiteout condition that's are stranding hundreds of vehicles. even this plow vehicle, one in new york city, got stuck in the snow not once but twice. hundreds of thousands are now entering a sixth day without power and caught on camera, a transformer explodes into flames in dover, new jersey putting an entire neighborhood in the dark. in coastal areas like massachusetts still inundated

from the last storm residents are gearing up for even more flooding. the plot thickens in the case of adult film actress stormy daniels and her alleged relationship with donald trump. we're now learning president trump's lawyer obtained a secret restraining order against daniels just last week, warning she would face consequences if she publicly discussed the relationship. according to a copy of the order obtained by nbc news, trump attorney michael cohen was granted the restraining order on february 27th by a private arbitrator. he then e-mailed it to daniels' former attorney the next day saying the document itself was to remain confidential per the judge's orders. this new information coming just a day after a new attorney for daniels filed a lawsuit claiming the original non-discloech agreement on the alleged relationship with mr. trump is invalid. nbc's hallie jackson has more. >> reporter: for stormy daniels in south carolina another meet and greet. but headlines aren't coming from this strip club. instead from court. with a new lawsuit centering on a mysterious $130,000 payment.

daniels' lawyer says it's hush money to guarantee the adult film actress would never talk about what he describes as a sexual relationship with donald trump in 2006 and 2007. now daniels is arguing that non-disclosure agreement is not valid because it was never signed, she says, by president trump. the contract was signed on october 28th, 2016, just a week and a half before the election, with hillary clinton leading in the polls not long after that infamous "access hollywood" tape surfaced. the president's lawyer says he did facilitate that six-figure payout but hasn't said what it was for. and while michael cohen says neither the trump organization nor the trump campaign reimbursed him he has not said whether the president himself personally did. >> there's no question the president knew about it at the time. >> reporter: the white house denying the allegations of a relationship. as for the money -- >> did he know about the payment at the time? >> not that i'm aware of. >> have you asked the president this question?

>> yeah, i've had conversations with the president about this. there was no knowledge of any payments from the president, and he's denied all of these allegations. >> reporter: legal experts say the fact daniels accepted the money could hurt her case. >> even if stormy daniels returned the money now, a court could conclude that when she accepted it originally she intended to be bound by the contract. >> reporter: and today, phillip, nbc news is learning that about two weeks ago the president's long-time lawyer michael cohen obtained a temporary restraining order in a private arbitration proceeding intended to keep daniels from talking about this non-disclosure agreement. neither cohen nor his lawyer have responded to our requests for comment. phillip? >> all right, thank you, hallie. hope hicks hacked. an nbc news exclusive report reveals that one week before her resignation the outgoing white house communications director reported one of her e-mail accounts was compromised. hicks told the house intelligence committee that she could no longer access two e-mail accounts and believed one had been hacked.

it is unclear the account she was referring to was her personal account or one she used as part of president trump's campaign team. her claim raises questions about who may have compromised the account and what information may have been obtained. as president trump prepares to impose new tariffs on imported steel and alum nooum, the international outcry continues. canadian prime minister justin trudeau spoke out against the plan after a phone call with mr. trump earlier this week. trudeau saying the tariffs appear to be linked with ongoing nafta negotiations and experience shows he must wait and see what the president will ultimately do. >> we're going to continue to both make the case against tariffs and move forward diligently to try to improve nafta as canadians expect us to in a way that stands up for canadian jobs and canadian interests. >> this as the white house signals there could be some exemptions to president trump's tariff proposal. nbc's tracie potts joining us now with the very latest. good morning. >> phillip, good morning.

and now it looks like wee not going to see that nuancement today before steel workers and steel executives as president trump had planned to do. a senior administration official says, while we've seen it nowhere on the president's schedule and that administration official says the president's taking a step back, he hasn't made a decision yet, he needs more time. his spokeswoman, sarah huckabee sanders, says it looks like they will make some exemptions for canada and mexico. listen. >> we expect the president will sign something by the end of the week, and there are potential carveouts for mexico and canada based on national security and possibly other countries as well based on that process. >> pressure came from congress. 107 republicans signing a letter urging the president to reconsider and not make these tariffs so broad, to focus on china. the tariffs they say should be targeted. meantime, it was gary cohn, the

president's chief economic adviser, who resigned over this issue. the white house says that cohn will still be supporting the president and his initiatives although he will not be doing so from the white house. we'll wait to see when the president signs these tariffs and how long it may take him to make those exceptions for mexico, for canada, and as sanders said possibly for other countries as well. >> following a lot this morning for us. tracy, thank you. the confessed gunman behind the deadly parkland school shooting now faces 34 counts of murder and attempted murder. a florida grand jury indicted 19-year-old nikolas cruz yesterday three weeks after a valentine's day massacre left 17 dead. cruz will remain in the broward county jail awaiting his arra n arraignme arraignment. prosecutors have not said whether they will seek the death penalty. gun legislation reaches the florida governor's desk. a bill approved by the state house of representatives would raise the age to buy all firearms to 21, impose a three-day waiting period pour

most gun purchases and potentially arm some educators. and a new nbc news survey monkey online poll shows that 56% of americans disagree with president trump's proposal to allow featurers to carry concealed weapons to improve school safety. 42% support arming some educators. u.s. education secretary betsy devos deferreded the president's plan to arm teachers during a visit to marjory stoneman douglas high school'll yesterday. devos held a press conference on the first full day of classes since the attack. her visit was denounced by some survivors who took to twitter claiming her presence was a publicity stunt. meanwhile, another visitor was met with much more fanfare. miami heat star dwyane wade also dropped by to show support for students. he snapped selfies and posed with some fans. the nba icon later tweeted he had a great conversation with students and he's looking forward to being more involved with the change they create. the man who allegedly stole actress frances mcdormand's best actress oscar has pleaded not

guilty to a charge of felony grand theft in a los angeles court. 47-year-old terry bryant had been in police custody and was being held on a $20,000 bond. after police say bryant took the statue from mcdormand's table at an oscars afterparty. you can see him posting this video of himself holding the trophy in celebration. he's due back in court lars this month. washington, d.c. police need the public's help tracking down a group of burglars who used a stolen truck to smash into a convenience store earlier this year and steal the atm inside. he after they crashed through the store they cleared the wreckage and soon put the atm in the bed of the truck and then they just die off. the whole crime took thieves just about four minutes. they are unsuccessful in this second attempt and they flee without the atm. police are offering up a $5,000 reward for information leading up to the arrest of the criminals. nbc meteorologist bill karins joins us now. what's the latest with the nor'easter? >> still coming down in maine, new hampshire, portions of central new england.

philadelphia had six heavy wet inches of snow. prints-ton, new jersey up to 17. highest totals in interior sections ever central and northern new jersey. one area montvale almost 27 inches of snow. monroe, new york had 26. a little higher elevations outside new york city. boston so far 2 1/2. it's still knowing in areas, sfleeshlt the northern half of new england, really heavy snow. the red is eight inches in maine. the rest region two to four inches s ahead a big recall to

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stop your children from wearing them. target is also offering a full refund for anyone who bought the jeans. just go to your local store. you can also consult a product recall page on target's facebook page or on their main website. the mystery winner of a $560 million powerball jackpot has finally claimed her prize. but we still don't know who she is. a lawyer accepted the payout wednesday on behalf of a trust set up for the winner from new hampshire, who is suing to keep her identity secret. her lawyer says she will be donating up to $50 million to charity. right now the mega millions and powerball jackpots are a combined $675 million with the mega millions drawing tomorrow night and powerball on saturday. so go get the tickets. it is a new twist in a case right out of a cold war spy novel. british investigators reveal a former russian spy and his daughter were targeted on uk soil for assassination with a nerve agent. a poison so powerful one of the first responders is also still in the hospital.

we get the latest from nbc's keir simmons. >> reporter: scotland yard make the stung announcement. former russian spy sergei skripal seen here in a store a few weeks ago was deliberately targeted, poisoned along with his daughter yulia. >> this is being treated as a major incident involving attempted murder by administration of a nerve agent. >> reporter: that nerve agent so powerful investigators are still wearing has matt suits. a police officer first at the scene hotized in serious condition. and skripal and his daughter critically ill. these images are said to show them sunday just before the attack. the video not independently confirmed by nbc news. that surveillance video was recorded here. the couple made it across this bridge to a park bench before collapsing. police not revealing the nerve agent used and have not named any suspects. >> the fact that a nerve agent was used strengthens the likelihood that this was a state sponsor of some sort and russia

is the chief suspect of course. >> reporter: skripal was jailed by russia for secretly assisting british intelligence, then sent to the uk after a spy swap. his case echoing the deadly radioactive poisoning in the uk of another former russian spy, alexander litvinenko. the kremlin again denying any involvement. keir simmons, nbc news, london. coming up, we have news involving one of the nfl's biggest names. plus former president bill clinton goes shopping and you will not believe how much he paid for trousers. you're watching "early today." w. ( ♪ ) mike: i've tried lots of things for my joint pain. now? watch me. ( ♪ ) joni: think i'd give up showing these guys how it's done? please. real people with active psoriatic arthritis are changing the way they fight it. they're moving forward with cosentyx. it's a different kind of targeted biologic. it's proven to help people

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♪ it's "saturday night live." with. beck bennett. >> sterling k. brown is hosting this weekend's "snl" with musical guest james bay. and he is such a fan of the show that he decided to create his own version of the opening credits. >> musical guest james bay. and your host, steve martin! crap. sterling k. brown! >> i dig it. i like it. for a while i couldn't even tell it's the voice. >> i thought it was the regular announcer. that's going to be a great show. former president bill clinton took time to visit his nephew tyler in new york and do

a little bit of shopping. tyler clinton, a 23-year-old model who works at lifestyle brand kit store in soho, after meeting his co-workers uncle bill snapped up a pair of waterproof olive green pants. see them right there. guess how much. $747. yeah. a kit employee told gq magazine the former president will most likely wear them golfing. that's in soho. how much you pay for pants. total hipster cazhwear for 23-year-olds. but of course the former president too to go golfing. >> this kid's waiting in line -- i don't know how they buy all these things. but nice pants. could the seattle seahawks and outspoken cornerback richard sherman be parting ways? the nfl reports the team could release sherman in the last couple of days with sherman already starting to say his good-byes to teammates. however, sherman told espn he hasn't been told anything about

his future with the team. sherman has recovered from surgery on both his achilles. this is the leader of the team other than russell wilson for many years including the championship run and now he might not even be with the team. >> that is tough to know you're in limbo. just like you that don't know which direction you'll take. firsthand look at what it's like to get caught in an avalanche. look at this point of view. you're watching "early today." with zero dollar copays on select plans and reward points on prescriptions. so no matter where you're going or who you are, it's worth the trip. we'll help you find low cost prescriptions including zero dollar copays on select medicare part d plans. walgreens. trusted since 1901. before discovering nexium 24hr to treat her frequent heartburn, claire could only imagine enjoying chocolate cake. now she can have her cake and eat it too. nexium 24hr stops acid before it starts for all-day, all-night protection. can you imagine 24 hours without heartburn?

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getting buried alive under an avalanche in the french al ppz dramatic footage carpeted from his helmet cam. you can see the snow breaking free. this lebanese snowboarder says he was able to launch his avalanche air bag that allowed him to float above the fast-moving snow and saved him from being buried alive. >> whoo! >> good thing he had the air bag, right? well, we are watching the storm system. not much on friday. everything's kind of quiet on friday throughout much of the travel throughout the country. by the time you get to saturday we start watching a new southern storm. we could even get some thunderstorms to the south and also some much-needed rainfall. notice we're quiet throughout much of the northern half of the country. bit time the storm gets to sunday it could be in the northern appalachians you'll get a little snow and also virginia. it looks to be just far up enough up the coast to avoid another nor'easter in new england. >> one theater in san francisco is going to the dogs. whoops. sorry.

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is. danger on the roads. this morning, you could face an icy commute as the cleanup from the snowstorm continues. we have team coverage tracking all the impact. halting the pipeline. the neighborhood problem that forced state officials to temporarily shut down a controversial project. and joining the birds. the new addition that has eagles players excited and what he could add to the team. >> as john clark says, going after another big super bowl win. >> big trade. good morning, this is "nbc 4." and i'm tracy davidson.

>> i'm via sikahema. we'll start with the forecast and meteorologist brittney shipp. >> good morning. things back to normal. you see the camera where we've dealt with a lot of canceled flights. things are much better. a closer look at the clouds. mostly cloudy skies. temperatures will feel cold especially with our winter gusts staying strong. right now, seeing gusts at 21 miles per hour in wildwood. 17 in easton. you combine the two with our chilly temperatures this morning, feels-like temperature e temperature is going to stay down for us today. 35 in philadelphia now. two degrees above freezing in wilmington, dover, millville close to freezing. 34 in atlantic city. you do want to be careful. we have a few locations that are close to freezing, around the threshold with all the moisture that's left over on the roadways. we could see areas of black ice, slippery conditions. again, you want to be careful as you head out the door. a closer look, we'll see gusts staying fairly strong. when you add the two together, our feels-like temperatures over the next 12 hours or so will stay in the 20s at 8:00 a.m.

by 10:00 a.m., feeling like 30. toward the afternoon, it's only going to feel like low 30s for today. i'm tracking the full details. the forecast coming up in a bit. now to jessica and traffic. watching the schuylkill expressway, the schuylkill expressway was a big mess yesterday. much better now. at least the report around girard avenue. both directions, you see it looks a little shiny on parts of the road. shiny means a little slippery. watch getting on the on and off ramps, watching lingering precipitation or frozen roadways either direction. watch merion at 422. and 55 at 49 in millville. not too bad. you can't see the roads as much because there's not a lot of cars moving through. when one does come it's often to the center medians and shoulders. watch the on and off ramps.