this morning on "world news now," the sudden passing of bob saget. >> there's new reaction overnight to his death from fans and fellow celebrities, plus the growing memorial outside the home made famous by "full house" in san francisco. also this morning, what we're learning about one of the deadliest fires in years, how this high-rise fire spread, killing at least 19 people. plus the nightmare for people on this ski lift suffering injuries after being blasted by freezing water. and this isn't a movie. it's a mall in texas, a hitchcock-worthy scene, it's monday, january 10. from abc news, this is

"world news now." good monday morning, everyone. there is so much news to get started this week, so we're going to dive right into the show. we're beginning with the sudden death of actor and comedian bob saget at the age of 65. >> saget was found dead in a florida hotel room. the cause has yet to be determined. he gained fame as tv dad danny tanner on "full house." >> and in san francisco, fans have gathered at the home that was used in the exterior shots for the show. will ganss joins us now. good morning, will. >> good morning, andrew, good morning, mona. bob saget earned the nickname "america's dad" playing danny tanner. he said his goal was always to make people laugh, something he did until the final hours of his life. on saturday night, playing his final standup comedy show, doing it there in jacksonville, florida. hours later, authorities were called to the ritz-carlton hotel on sunday where they found saget unresponsive. detectives say they found no signs of foul play nor of drug use.

the 65-year-old hosted "america's funniest home videos" from '89 to '97 and appeared in "entourage." but it's his role as america's dad that fans remember him most for. a makeshift memorial set up outside the house that served as the setting for his eight seasons as danny tanner. >> sort of touched everybody in my generation, my siblings, my cousins, all of my friends growing up, raised a generation throughout the country. he left a big impact on people as children at the tanner family and as adults as bob saget in his comedy career as well. he touched a lot of people and was a cultural icon. >> cast members from "full house" paying tribute, including candace cameron bure, saying i have no words, bob was one of the best human beings in my whole life. i loved him so much. we'll have much more later celebrating his life and tributes from friends like adam sandler and jim carrey. >> will, thank you. and another passing to note,

the actor known to baby boomers as dobie gillis has died. dwayne hickman played in a role that debuted in 1959 about a teenager's bumbling in life and love. hickman died of complications from parkinson's, he was 87. now to the deadly apartment fire in new york city. one resident called the scene traumatizing. 19 people dead, others hurt. some trapped in smoke. the fire commissioner called it unprecedented. the horrific scene is being blamed on a faulty space heater. the mayor and governor are pledging help for victims of the deadly apartment fire in the bronx. >> we are here for you. >> officials say the fire broke out around 11:00 a.m. sunday and quickly spread, a space heater , n 0 . ghters we sce, smhing oindows a

>> oh, there's fire there, too, look out! >> oh, my god. >> reporter: this man says his daughter woke him up telling him a mattress in their apartment was on fire. >> we were sleeping and my kids were screaming saying fire, fire. you couldn't see nothing. >> reporter: other residents heartbroken. >> this is like a family. we lost a lot of lives, which hurts really bad. especially children, and even elders, like, i see these people every day. >> reporter: new york city mayor eric adams calling it the worst fire in recent history. >> when something like this hits the city, it's going to take us a long time to recover. >> reporter: officials say a door left open may have contributed to the smoke spreading quickly throughout the high-rise. some firefighters ran out of oxygen battling the flames but kept working. this is the deadliest since '87. people died at the happy land social club in 1990. congresswoman alexandria ocasio-cortez has tested

positive for covid. her office says she's experiencing symptoms and recovering at home. she received a booster shot last fall. meanwhile, chicago school kids won't have class for a fourth straight day as teachers and city officials remain at odds over remote learning and other protocols. the fight continues as the staggering number of omicron cases climbs. abc's phil lipof reports. >> reporter: a record-breaking explosion of omicron infections pushing hospitals and frontline workers across the country to their limits. >> now we have the covid surge going on that's just pushing everything over. in my career, i've not seen numbers and volumes like this. >> reporter: at least one in every 70 americans tested positive for covid last week. that's nearly 5 million new infections. a pandemic record. and that number likely doesn't include all the people testing positive using at-home kits. >> i expect this surge to peak in the next couple weeks. it will peak in different places in america at different times.

once we get into february i do expect much, much lower case numbers. >> reporter: but for now, some hospitals converting storage space into emergency care rooms like here in wisconsin. and in new hampshire -- >> none of the people we've taken care of who got really sick from covid thought they were going to get really sick from covid. >> reporter: in new york, the state with the most covid cases, more than 40 hospitals ordered to stop elective surgeries to focus on those already packing emergency rooms. health care workers continue to test positive. the california nurses association blasting the state's latest guidance for health care workers which says those who test positive and are asymptomatic can return to work without quarantining or testing negative. >> if we are infected we put our patients at more risk of getting sicker. >> reporter: and the supreme court is getting ready to weigh in on this federal mandate any day now. it would require companies of 100 workers or more to be vaccinated or get weekly

testing. if the justices allow it to move forward, enforcement could begin in early february. phil lipof, abc news, new york. the memphis grizzlies ja morant usually puts people on posters with dunks. >> last night he did it on defense. out to l.a. for the lakers against the grizzlies. yeah, they pay dearly as morant rises up for the block. he hits his elbow on the backboard. you know what we call that, mona? >> what? >> he's got ups. he's got ups. you know what's funny about this is that a few hours before the game, they weren't sure he was going to play. meanwhile, that is the ninth straight win for memphis. >> that leap -- >> mm-hm.

>> -- was something else. >> morant is something else. >> you can jump like that? >> that guy is a superstar. >> i wonder if he did like hurdles in high school. >> you know lebron's got to respect that block. lebron's had some pretty epic blocks over his career. but two handed. >> don't get stomped on and don't get blocked. all right, coming up, the happy ending for a baby boy caught in the chaos in afghanistan. plus the nightmare on a ski lift, the fate of the skiers blasted with ice-cold water. and later, more celebrity tributes coming in overnight for bob saget. you're watching "world news now."

an afghan baby lost in the chaos of the u.s. evacuation of afghanistan has been reunited with his family. the boy's parents handed him to a soldier fearing he would be crushed in the crowd.

and they were airlifted without him. a cabdriver found him and was raising him as his own. he was turned over to his grandfather. they're working to get him to his parents in texas. two people remain in the hospital after a deadly tragedy in brazil. ten people were killed when part of a cliff broke off and slammed into four tourist boats in a lake. it happened saturday in southeastern brazil. at least 32 other people were hurt. investigators say heavy rains caused the rock to break loose. here in the u.s., a frightening scene, an extremely unusual scene at a ski resort in north carolina, what looked like a geyser shooting out of the snow directly onto skiers who were in the chair lift above. some jumped off the lift to get to the ground below. ike ejiochi reports. >> reporter: it was supposed to be a fun evening on the slopes. instead, this. freezing water shooting from a ruptured snow blowing pipe catching unsuspecting skiers and snow boarders by surprise.

emily pinto and her friends were on the lift and jumped. recalling the incident. >> all i remember is the metal bar flying up and then me flying up. i don't remember anything. and then i remember opening my eyes, belly first on the ground. >> reporter: elysse ivy was also on that lift. >> everyone was in shock. you're not going to jump from 25 feet if you don't think you have to. >> reporter: riley lamb was one scing out her cellphone the to record it. >> we told everybody to go tell the operators to stop operating the lift. people are getting hurt. it's dangerous. they literally fell down. the water was so high, it sprayed them so fast, they literally like fell on top of each other. and they had bruises on their faces. >> reporter: beach mountain resort says a skier triggered the incident after skiing over a snow-making pipe. they said staff did not give the instruction to jump.

adding that as soon as we became aware of the problem, we took action as quickly as possible to shut off the water and assist the remaining skiers disembarking at the top of the lift. two were treated for injuries. ike ejiochi, abc news, washington. coming up, the dramatic rescue in wisconsin. dozens of people stranded after the chunk of ice they were on broke free. but first, remembering one of america's favorite tv dads. how bob saget is being toasted by hollywood this morning. you're watching "world news now."

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and a special welcome to our special one-hour special. this is a salute to boneheads. thank you. one guy. how do you know if you are a bonehead, you might ask. well, you're watching this show, aren't you. >> whether you remember him best from "america's funniest home videos" or "full house", hollywood is remembering bob saget with a full heart. >> the tributes have been lighting up social media all night. our own will ganss is here with more on that. will, good morning. >> good morning, andrew, good morning mona. dave coulier reporting, i'll never let go, love you. one of many remembering america's dad this morning. in his days on "full house", bob saget was the quintessential family man. >> i'd like to get the girls to bed before "good morning america." >> ladies and gentlemen, bob saget. >> that just didn't happen, to

have someone on two tremendous hits on the same network at the same time. >> but his standup and later television appearances were slightly less family friendly. >> i just got divorced. ex-wife got the house in the palisades. no biggie, i got four other houses, i don't give a [ bleep ]. >> bob saget had fun poking fun at himself. he was one of the first comedians to really go out there and play a really satirical version of himself and make fun of that america's dad persona that he had cultivated, and people loved it. >> and this morning, the san francisco home from "full house", serving as a makeshift memorial. >> it is definitely sad news. he is the dad of the '90s, so, for everyone, you know, and just loved the show very much, and not just "full house", but everything else that he did. >> and his friends paying tribute to bob saget online. adam sandler writing great man, funny as hell, such a nice person.

love to bob and his whole family. and chelsea handler saying bob saget was the kindest, warmest male comic there was. i loved it when i saw him or heard from him. he was the guy everyone loved. love you, bob saget. you will be missed and loved for a long time. jim carrey writing he had a big, big heart and wonderfully-warped comic mind. he gave the world a lot of joy and lived his life for goodness sake. and this clip of the late norm mcdonald celebrating bob saget, touching many in light of his passing. >> bob has never had an unkind word for anybody. i love him. i hope everybody else does. i just want to say that. thank you. >> the olson twins also releasing a statement remembering their tv father saying in part, bob was the most loving, compassionate and generous man. we are deeply saddened that he is no longer with us but know he will continue to be by our side

to guide us as gracefully as he always has. >> he was doing what he loved there in florida. he had just performed in jacksonville as you mentioned there, will. really sad. >> he felt like he was 26 again. he was getting back into it, finding his voice once again. and it's something that we can all relate to, right? as time goes on, you feel with the changes you're trying to keep up. but you said it best whether you remember him from "america's funniest home videos" or "full house," there's so many memories there. so many of us grew up with him, the life lessons that we would get from danny tanner, raising the three girls, such a compassionate person. a genuine person. wouldn't you agree that exuded from him, not just his character but as a person. >> that's right. he had three daughters in real life. and one of the audience members at that show saturday night telling me that he was talking about his wife and daughters and how much he loved them. so even in his final hours, he was the consummate family man.

>> and we mentioned that tributes are pouring in. not just those who watched him on television. but people who knew him in real life. saying exceptional things about this man. policy you no longer need? now you can sell your policy - even a term policy - for an immediate cash payment. we thought we had planned carefully for our retirement. but we quickly realized we needed a way to supplement our income. if you have $100,000 or more of life insurance, you may qualify to sell your policy. don't cancel or let your policy lapse without finding out what it's worth. visit coventrydirect.com to find out if your policy qualifies. or call the number on your screen. coventry direct, redefining insurance.

♪ ♪ time now for "the mix," starting with a dramatic rescue on the ice in wisconsin. >> 34 people suddenly found themselves stranded when the giant slab of ice they were on suddenly broke away from shore. deputies believe a passing barge may have disrupted the ice, causing it to fracture and float away. >> the entire ordeal lasted about an hour and a half as rescue crews were forced to make multiple trips. the sheriff's department says it conducts rescues like this at least once a year. it is that time of year i guess. >> definitely is. next to a disney super fan and aspiring olympian becoming the first to sweep all four races at disney marathon. >> brittany charboneau, dressed as elsa from frozen winning the

5k. the next day she won the 10k, dressed as bong bong from "inside-out." >> then she took the top spot as joy from "inside-out" and won as cruella de vil with a time of 2:45. >> interesting choice for the end. over the course of four days she ran 48.6 miles in costume. okay. she's now focused on training for the 2024 olympic trials, real competition there. >> i would opt for -- even though it's not a disney character -- casper the ghost, because i wouldn't show up at the races. next to the ominous scene in texas that looks like it could be straight out of an alfred hitchcock film. ooh. >> you guys, this is a sign. i don't know what the sign is, but it's a sign. this frightening scene played out at a parking lot in frisco. thousands of grackles overhead and menacingly perched on cars.

>> grackles are known for being noisy, aggressive and prone to flying in giant flocks. yikes. needless to say, many of those cars needed to hit the car wash, too, if you get what i'm laying down there. >> i got what you -- i smelled it, too. this is not -- i'm sorry. i don't even know what superstition that is, but that smells like trouble. >> it was stormy, cloudy. >> coming out of the trees. huh uh. from brazen birds to menacing marsupials. >> this video was captured of a mob of kangaroos. i think i prefer this over birds. >> it shows a large group of roos occupying a front lawn and eating up the grass. the thing is, you don't want to

confront them about it, because if a kangaroo squares up on you, what do you do? >> run!

right now on "america this morning," remembering bob saget. >> you care about people, and that's why people care about you. >> known as america's dad for his role on "full house," he was found dead in a hotel room. what we're learning this morning, and the tributes from his co-stars. heartache in new york. nine children are among at least 19 people killed in a fire that spread through this high-rise. what caused it, and the decision one man made as his daughter was trapped on her burning bed. sick call crisis as covid cases surge. the growing problem everywhere from schools to supermarkets. the impact of the worker shortage, and a new prediction on the region of the country that could be hit the hardest in the coming days. breaking news. a judge's controversial ruling