interav show, getting answers. we'll be here every weekday at 3:00. i'm dion lim. see you on the news tonight, several developing stories as we come on the air. the holiday travel fears, as more than 80 million americans defy warnings to stay home. will christmas gatherings fuel another deadly surge in the new year, as the nation records 3,000 lives lost in 24 hours. and tonight, concerns about yet another new variant of the virus in the uk that may spread even more easily. new york city orders all travelers from the uk to quarantine or face stiff fines. and news tonight on the vaccine rollout. pfizer confirms a deal with the u.s. government for 100 million more doses by july. also new tonight, president trump threatening to veto the $900 billion bipartisan stimulus deal, demanding congress increase payments to americans. relief on hold, as millions of americans struggle through the pandemic. the holiday weather alert.

blizzard conditions tonight, as the dangerous storm sweeps east. high winds, heavy rain, more snow. and what's behind it all? rob marciano standing by with what to expect christmas morning. new tonight, the pictures coming in. a roof explosion at a baltimore high rise, causing a scaffolding collapse. the dramatic rescue ten stories up. nearly two dozen taken to the hospital. also developing, the deadly police involved shooting in columbus, ohio. the first body camera video from the incident. the officer already relieved of duty. and the surprise gift. the beloved u.p.s. driver and the community that showed up in force to say thank you. good evening and thank you so much for joining us on a busy wednesday night, i'm linsey davis, in for david. just two days before christmas, but no shortage of headlines

tonight. the covid relief bill that congress spent six months negotiating is now on hold. president trump says it doesn't go far enough. and it comes as december is shaping up to be the worst month in this pandemic. majority of counties in this country are now considered sustained hot spots for covid-19, as millions of americans are now on the move, despite pleas to stay close to home. raising fears of a bigger surge than after thanksgiving. but there is encouraging news on those vaccines. pfizer confirms that they will sell the u.s. government 100 million more doses within the next six months. the first medical personnel with the new york city fire department got their shots today. but new concerns about those variant strains that are now appearing in the uk. will the vaccine protect against those, as well? and are children more susceptible? dr. ashish jha is standing by, but we begin with abc's stephanie ramos. >> reporter: despite dire warnings, nearly 85 million americans are expected to travel for christmas, sparking fears of

another catastrophic coronavirus surge, worse than what we saw after thanksgiving. our gio benitez at new york's laguardia airport. >> tsa screening more than 5 million people since friday, a record during the pandemic. and they're going mostly to rural areas, not big cities, raising concerns about a possible surge in vulnerable communities. >> reporter: and tonight, that alarming new headline out of the uk about yet another variant of the virus. officials identifying two people in the uk infected with a variant known to be circulating in south africa, just days after announcing a different version is spreading rapidly in the uk. >> this new variant is highly concerning, because it is yet more transmissible and it appears to have mutated further than the new variant that has been discovered in the uk. >> reporter: experts ur s urgin caution, saying it's common for viruses to mutate, but officials now investigating exactly how and why the uk variant is spreading more easily amongst children and adults.

new york city taking action, ordering all travelers from the uk to quarantine or face daily fines of $1,000. >> we are going to have sheriff's deputies go to the home or the hotel of every single traveler coming in from the uk. >> reporter: scientists say the variant is likely already in the u.s., but believe the newly authorized moderna and pfizer vaccines will work against it. and today, pfizer announcing a deal with the u.s. government providing 100 million more doses of its vaccine by next july, doubling the initial amount. the cdc saying more than a million americans have been vaccinated. today, those brave fdny paramedics who responded to countless calls during the brutal spring surge receiving their first shots on the same day they learned a 12th member died. >> we've been on the front lines of this terrible and very contagious virus. we have lost people along the

way and today's the first day that we start saving the lives of the first responders. >> reporter: december on track to be the deadliest month of the pandemic. more than 3,400 lives lost on tuesday. the cheatham family in kentucky losing three family members since thanksgiving. first their grandfather, then both their parents. >> i could've went one christmas without seeing my parents, but now we have to spend the rest of our lives without ours. >> reporter: while the cdc recommends staying home for the holidays, the lowest risk travel is a short trip by car with members of your own household and no stops along the way. this way, you avoid other people and contaminated surfaces. linsey? >> stephanie, thank you so much. and we want to get right to dr. ashish jha, dean of the brown university school of health about that latest variation discovered in the uk. dr. jha, how concerning is this, and is it likely that it's already here in the united

states? >> yes, good evening and thank you for having me on. one of the reasons we're discovering them in the uk because they're doing really extensive testing of their viruses in a way that we are not. so, we don't know if it's in the u.s. or not. it is concerning that we have now several variants that seem to be spreading more easily. but we do need to start looking for it more aggressively here in the united states. >> and are children more susceptible to infection from these mutations that we're seeing? >> there's a lot we're still learning about this. it does appear from preliminary data that kids may be more susceptible to being infected. doesn't necessarily mean they're going to get any sicker. one of the highlights of this disease is that kids don't usually get very sick. i think that will be true for this variant, as well. >> okay, dr. jha, thank you so much. next tonight, we're on the front lines with paramedics at the epicenter of this pandemic right now, in orange county, california. six potential covid cases in just 30 minutes, risking their own lives to answer each and every call. abc's kaylee hartung is there.

>> reporter: tonight, this is the battle on the front lines. paramedics in orange county responding to a relentless surge. this man has apparent covid symptoms and is being taken to the hospital for testing. his family's on high alert, another relative in critical condition. >> the last couple weeks have been some of the things we've never seen before. call volume, just the number of acutely ill patients. >> reporter: in just a half hour during our ride-along, six potential covid 911 calls coming in. it's a scene playing out across the country. more than 117,000 americans are now in the hospital, a new record. captain lee cabrera and his crew waiting up to an hour with patients because there's no room. >> having a critically ill person in your care in the back of an ambulance and being unable to get into the hospital is definitely challenging and concerning. >> reporter: here in orange county, 5% of firefighters are sidelined. the department pushed to the brink. >> right now, it's like all rules are out the window. we just have to keep guys and gals on our rigs and responding

to, you know, to calls and helping out the citizens. >> reporter: because those calls are going to keep coming. >> they're not stopping. >> reporter: and linsey, the latest numbers here in california reflect the stress that these firefighters are under. the state surpassing 2 million cases and half those infections came in just the last six weeks. linsey? >> kaylee, thank you so much. and now to the president's stunning move on the covid relief bill that congress took months to know gauche yat. the president is calling the bill a disgrace, demanding congress more than double the amount of those checks sent to most americans. the president's own treasury secretary said those checks could arrive as soon as next week, but the president's move now puts that all on hold. here's abc's white house correspondent rachel scott. >> reporter: tonight, with relief for millions in jeopardy and the nation at risk of a government shutdown, president trump leaving the white house, heading to florida for the holidays. behind closed doors for days, the president last night posting this message on twitter, blasting

that massive bipartisan stimulus package, demanding congress increase direct payments from $600 to $2,000. >> send me a suitable bill or else the next administration will have to deliver a covid relief package. >> reporter: members of his own administration had promised money would be in americans' pockets before the new year. >> people are going to see this money the beginning of next week. >> reporter: even one of the president's closest allies, senator lindsey graham, calling the bill imperfect, but saying the sooner the bill becomes law, the better. democrats say the president should have weighed in earlier. >> they didn't get any feedback from the president. people are hurting right now. >> reporter: also uncertain, federal unemployment benefits and eviction protections set to expire at the end of the year. lisa mistretta was waiting for months for congress to act. she told us that $600 wouldn't go far, now saying any further delay would be catastrophic. >> we will have zero income coming into our households, because this package is being held up right now. >> and rachel scott is joining

us now live. the president leaving washington today for the holidays, but not before vetoing the defense spending bill. and this now sets up veto override in the house and senate. >> reporter: yeah, that's exactly right, linsey. and president trump has been threatening to veto this defense bill for months. tonight, he is calling it a gift to both china and russia, but leaders on both sides of the aisle say that funding for the military is absolutely vital. and now lawmakers will have to return back to washington to try an override the president. and if they are successful, it will be the first veto override for the trump administration. linsey? >> rachel, thank you. next, backlash tonight after president trump announced a controversial list of pardons. among them, two linked to the russia investigation and four blackwater military con track guards convicted in the killing of iraqi civilians including children. let's get to abc's chief justice correspondent pierre thomas. and pierre, after that backlash, you are hearing there are more pardons on the way? >> reporter: we are expecting

the pardoning spree to continue, the day after president trump ga granted clemency to two people involved in the russia investigation. our expectation that the president may try to purge the prosecution legacy of special counsel bob mueller. some names being considered for pardons include roger stone, whose sentence the president already commuted after he was convicted of witness tampering and lying to congress about the russia probe and paul manafort, his former campaign chairman, who was convicted of bank and tax fraud. more to come, linsey. >> more to come. we're standing by. pierre, thank you so much. and we move on now to that major winter storm barrelling across the country this holiday week. more than 150 million under weather alerts at this hour and this is what it sounded like in steamboat springs, colorado. that is thundersnow, as an intense snow squall moved through the ski resort. whiteout conditions and dangerous driving in parts of the plains. tonight, the massive system he'ding east, threatening

flooding and power outages for christmas day. abc's senior meteorologist rob marciano is tracking it all. hey, rob. >> reporter: hi, linzie. this is a storm deepening and expanding, as are the impacts. 63-mile-per-hour wind gust measured at that resort. we've got wind watches and warnings all the way from texas all the way to the northeast with the flood potential, as well. watch the front move mostly a rant event tomorrow from chicago down to the gulch coast, but i'm worried about the carolina and virginia coastlines. not just thunderstorms, but the potential for seeing tornadoes and heavy rain with damaging winds across the northeast. could see power outages in some of the big cities. then here comes the old air on christmas morning. temperatures below freezing all the way down to florida. linsey? >> frigid just in time for the holidays. rob, thank you so much. next, police in columbus, ohio, releasing body cam video of the fatal shooting of andre hill, an unarmed black man who

they say approached officers with a cell phone in his hand. this comes on the same day as the funeral of casey goodson, a man shot and killed by a deputy two weeks ago. here's abc's marcus moore. >> reporter: this newly released video from a columbus police officer's body camera showing moments after 47-year-old andre hill was shot. >> put your [ bleep ] hands off to the side! >> reporter: according to authorities, the officers responded to a disturbance call early tuesday morning. >> got a grey suv in front of this location, keeps starting up and running. >> reporter: authorities say officer adam coy, a 19-year veteran of the force, and another officer arrived to an open garage door with hill inside, hill walking towards the officers with a phone in one hand and the other hand not visible. officer coy opened fire, shooting hill, who authorities say was unarmed. >> to see him lying in the driveway, minute after minute after minute, with no attempt to render aid -- that is a stunning disregard for

life. and in this case, black life. >> reporter: hill would later die at the hospital. the officers involved not activating their body cameras until immediately after the shooting. investigators will be examines the crucial moments captured by the cameras look back feature, which prerecords 60 seconds of video from the moment it turns on. but it does not capture audio, so it is unclear what was said between hill and the two officers. >> marcus moore joining us now. marcus, what do we know about any disciplinary action taken against the officers involved? >> reporter: well, linsey, officer coy has been placed on administrative leave and this police shooting comes just weeks after another man was shot and killed in columbus, casey goodson jr. was laid to rest today. linsey? >> marcus, thank you so much. and news now from the transition. president-elect joe biden introduced his nominee for secretary of education. miguel cardona is a life-long educator and currently the education commissioner in

connecticut. his parents wi s are from puert rico. he would face the most urgent education crisis in decades, with so many children studying remotely in this pandemic. and when we come back, dramatic new images from that volcanic eruption in hawaii. and the warning tonight to tourists. and the high rise explosion in baltimore today. the blast triggering a scaffolding collapse. window washers stranded ten stories up.

to customizes yourcan gocar insurancetual.com so you only pay for what you need? really? i didn't-- aah! ok. i'm on vibrate. aaah!

only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ next tonight, the high rise explosion in baltimore that caused a partial roof collapse and left workers stranded on scaffolding ten stories up. several injuries have now been reported. abc's trevor ault has the latest. >> reporter: tonight, stunning images and a daring rescue after a massive explosion rocks downtown baltimore. >> two male hanging off scaffolding. >> reporter: two men whoed been cleaning windows helplessly dangling on scaffolding this morning ten stories up the side of the baltimore electric and

gas company his rise. the force of the blast knocking a second scaffold off the building. baltimore's elite special operations team performing a highly technical rescue. >> one of our members had to step out on the scaffold, climb up the scaffold, climb through the window of the 11th floor and bring him through the 11th floor. >> reporter: with part of the roof collapsing, firefighters clearing the high-rise floor by floor, and evacuating two neighboring buildings. in total, 21 people taken to the hospital. nine of them now in critical condition. the cause of the explosion is under investigation, but the company says construction to the air and boiler system is likely to blame. thankfully, because of the pandemic and the holiday, this building was mostly empty, otherwise this could have been a lot worse. linsey? >> trevor, thank you so much. when we come back, covid concerns strike on just the second night of the nba season. why the league decided to postpone one of tonight's games. n inflammatory conditions. because there are options. like an "unjection™". xeljanz. the first and only pill of its kind

that treats moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, or moderate to severe ulcerative colitis when other medicines have not helped enough. xeljanz can lower your ability to fight infections. before and during treatment, your doctor should check for infections, like tb and do blood tests. tell your doctor if you've had hepatitis b or c, have flu-like symptoms, or are prone to infections. serious, sometimes fatal infections, cancers including lymphoma, and blood clots have happened. taking a higher than recommended dose of xeljanz for ra may increase risk of death. tears in the stomach or intestines and serious allergic reactions have happened. needles. fine for some. but for you, there's a pill that may provide symptom relief. ask your doctor about the pill first prescribed for ra more than seven years ago. xeljanz. an "unjection™". come out of the dryer wrinkled? next time try bounce wrinkle guard dryer sheets. the world's first mega sheet with 3x more wrinkle relaxers. the wrinkle guard shirt has less wrinkles and static, and more softness and freshnes*á

bounce out wrinkles with bounce wrinkle guard dryer sheets! ♪ still warm. ♪ thanks, maggie. oh, alice says hi. for some of us, our daily journey is a short one. save 50% when you pay per mile with allstate. pay less when you drive less. you've never been in better hands. allstate. click or call for a quote today. you've never been in better hands. your lips have a unique print. ...and unique needs. your lips are like no others and need a lip routine that's just right for you. chapstick® has you covered. chapstick®. put your lips first®. on all the food that makes you boogie. (upbeat music) get the food you love

with perks from- - [crowd] grubhub. - grub what you love. d(drumroll noises) another dud. i'll check the turkey. jiggle it. jiggle it. -just jiggle it. arrgh! ♪ ('hallelujah chorus') ah ha ha! incredible, dad! wow! ha ha ha! i used to have a mustang, back when cars made sounds. the all new, all electric mustang mach-e. thinking about your fi...so are we... prudential helps 25 million people with their financial needs. with over 90 years' of investment experience, our thousands of financial professionals can help. go to prudential.com or talk to an advisor. can you tell me the story again? every family has their own unique story. give your family the chance to discover theirs this holiday season,

with ancestry. to the index now and dramatic new images from the volcanic eruption on hawaii's big island. the usgs has released this video of lava fountain spewing from two vents. the park remains open, but rangers are warning visitors to stay on marked trails and keep covid-19 social distancing. and another pardon tonight, this one in a 2009 case that became known as the balloon boy hoax. they claimed their 6-year-old son was inside a gas-powered ufo-shaped balloon that took off from their colorado home. but all the while, the child was actually hiding in their attic. both parents were convicted and served jail time for what authorities called a publicity stunt. tonight, the colorado governor has commuted their sentences. and cyrus concerns have caused the nba to postpone a game on just the second night of

the season. the rockets/thunder game on hold after three houston players returned positive or inconclusive tests. james harden was already acve ng covid-19 protocols. and when we come back, the beloved u.p.s. driver and how one community came together this one community came together this holiday season to say thank you. yeah!? i switched to geico and got more! more savings on car insurance!? they helped with homeowners, too! ok! plus motorcycle, boat and rv insurance! geico's got you covered! like a blanket! houston? you seeing this? geico. expect great savings and a whole lot more.

geico. want to eliminate odors without heavy, overwhelming scents? we get it. introducing febreze light. it eliminates odors... with no heavy perfumes... in light scents you'll love. new febreze light. and still going for my best. even though i live with a higher risk of stroke due to afib... ...not caused by a heart valve problem. so if there's a better treatment than warfarin,

i'm reaching for that. eliquis. eliquis is proven to reduce stroke risk better than warfarin. plus has significantly less major bleeding than warfarin. eliquis is fda-approved and has both. what's next? i'm on board. don't stop taking eliquis unless your doctor tells you to, as stopping increases your risk of having a stroke. eliquis can cause serious and in rare cases fatal bleeding. don't take eliquis if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. while taking eliquis, you may bruise more easily- -and it may take longer than usual for any bleeding to stop. seek immediate medical care for sudden signs of bleeding, like unusual bruising. eliquis may increase your bleeding risk if you take certain medicines. tell your doctor about all planned medical or dental procedures. ask your doctor about eliquis. and if your ability to afford... ...your medication has changed, we want to help. new aveeno® restorative skin therapy. with our highest concentration of prebiotic oat intensely moisturizes over time to improve skin's resilience.

aveeno® healthy. it's our nature™. finally tonight, america strong. he is a constant in one virginia community, but this beloved

u.p.s. driver had no idea just how much he means to them. what they did that brought him to tears. anthony gaskin drives these suburban virginia streets every day. but on this occasion, his route was anything but routine. >> i wasn't quite sure what was going on at first. it felt like my heart was going to jump out of my body. >> throughout the pandemic, this 16-year veteran u.p.s. driver has been a constant in this richmond neighborhood, delivering more than 180 packages a day. >> he kept being an uplifting, positive, warm, and caring part of our lives without even walking in our doors. >> in the spirit of the holidays, patty had an idea. >> maybe i could get a few people to get together and we could surprise him. so, i sent a note out, what do you think about maybe thanking him? >> the response was overwhelming. more than 100 people with signs to pay tribute to the man known for his comforting wave and smile.

the man who always delivers. >> anthony! >> on the receiving end on this day an overcome with emotion. >> you could say i was in shock, really. my heart was just overjoyed. >> today, anthony was back on his route with this message. >> people realize that regardless of what's going on, that people still genuinely care. >> anthony and patty are both urging everyone to do what they can to help those in need, especially those who are hungry. on behalf of david and the whole team, i'm linsey davis. thank you so much for watching. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow. good night.

all of our numbers are going the wrong direction. as you can see, the surge that we're in right now is so dramatic it almost appears as though we hadn't had two prior surges. >> rising covid cases just before christmas and now today a dire warning from south bay officials. good afternoon and thanks for joining us. i'm larry beil. >> i'm dion lim. we begin now in santa clara county where officials are asking people to stay home. >> this is the time when we want to come together. we need to come together, but we cannot come together in person. we cannot come together in person. it's just not safe this year. >> a grim and clear message from officials in santa clara county just two days before christmas. officials say the region is at a breaking point from a thanksgiving surge of covid-19 cases. and they are pleading with the public not to gather for the coming holidays.

>> if we have a surge on top of a surge, we will definitely break. we cannot afford that. we cannot afford another surge on a surge. the surge we're in right now is so dramatic. >> now this chart shows deaths from the recent surge of covid-19 cases in santa clara. those are the blue bars on the right. deaths are nearly one-third higher than what they were in the two previous surges. 632 people have died from covid-19 in the county putting it as the third leading cause of death behind cancer and heart disease. let's take a look at the statewide numbers. there have been 39,069 cases up from yesterday but still down from the peak on the 15th. california set new records with hospital ieszized patients, morn 18,000 are