when they could return to the skies. also tonight, two urgent searches, the young brother and sister vanishing from their own yard in florida. >> we haven't slept. we haven't eaten we worried about our babies. in texas the mother and her two--week-old daughter missing for four days. what her boyfriend is saying. disturbing surveillance, a school resource officer body slamming a student the deputy fired and the charges he could face. the tape revealed, the footage a patriots camera man was caught recorded during a rival team's game and the confrontation with a security guard. the price you pay, amazon versus fedex in the shipping wars. what it could mean for your holiday packages >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. a massive deadly storm is ripping through several parts of the country today a dangerous night expected in the deep south where numerous tornado watches and warnings are in effect at least one person died after an apparent tornado hit in louisiana. the violent storm destroyed a cool,

toppled trees and power lines. miguel almaguer has late details. >> reporter: tonight in louisiana and mississippi a tornado emergency near alexandria in central louisiana, a near disaster, a school turned debris field incredibly no injuries with roofs ripped off gas stations, reports of twisters slicing through communities, the path of this tornado stretching some 63 miles. at least one storm fatality reported with mangled trees covering homes, roads and buildings. with so many at risk in the south. >> four plows. >> reporter: 11 million remain in the grip of dangerous snowstorms in the midwest to the northeast. at least nine died in weather-related crashes. parts of missouri still digging out after whiteout conditions. >> i was not expecting this weather it was crazy i woke up and snow everywhere.

>> reporter: with snow and reported tornados delivering a deadly blow, tonight the forecast calls for more misery ahead. miguel almaguer, nbc news. >> all right al roker is tracking this huge storm. what are we looking at here >> lester, we've all already got a moderate risk of severe weather. 11 million people and the second time we seen a weather emergency. the storm continues tonight, but then tomorrow we're looking at a travel nightmare and an icy mix and snow from boston to new york city. ice accumulation up to a quarter of an inch snowfall from 6 to 8 inches of snow in parts of upstate new york and the northeast. airport delays from boston down to atlanta. the next 24 hours will be a bit of a travel nightmare. >> a lot of us in the bull's eye. al, thank you. a major development on air travel breaking. boeing announcing it is temporarily shutting down production of the troubled 737 max as the faa suggests, it could be some time

before the plane is approved to fly again. tom costello covers aviation for us. what have you learned? >> the plane is grounded after two fatal crashes. boeing has been working on multiple software fixes for the plane and pressured the faa to reapprove the plane for flight by the end of this year the faa repeatedly has said it will not be rushed, and suggestions the plane may not be approved until march. with 400 brand-new 737 maxes sitting in the parking lot outside of seattle with nowhere to go, the company has been forced to temporaril halt production but not laying off or furloughing employees. it's also hoping that the 600 companies in the supply chain won't furlough employees since they will be needed when production starts up again in probably two to three months lester. >> we'll watch the impact of that, tom, thank you. the country is just 48 hours away from a historic decision by congress a vote whether to

impeach a president for only the third time in u.s. history kristen welker has late details. >> reporter: as president trump braces for impeachment, the democratic-led house is gearing for a vote on wednesday, on two articles - abuse of power and obstruction of congress the house judiciary committee reports overnight arguing that th president betrayed the nation by abusing his high office. now some democrats in swing districts are feeling the heat like michigan congresswoman slotkin, who faced mixed reaction when she announced she's voting yes. >> i made this decision out of principle and out of a duty to protect and defend the constitution i feel that in my bones. >> reporter: that after democratic new jersey congressman jeff van drew signals he plans to switch parties. his constituents sharply divided. >> he's lost my vote. >> i think it's a very good thing he believes in what donald is doing. >> reporter: if the

president is impeached, the matter goes to the senate for a trial where trump allies are making their position clear. >> i think what's best for the country is to get this thing over with. >> reporter: and tonight, minority leader chuck schumer pushing for witnesses to testify including acting chief of staff mick mulvaney, and former national security adviser john bolton >> if leader mcconnell doesn't hold a full and fair trial, the american people will rightly ask, what are you, leader mcconnell, and what is president trump hiding >> reporter: meanwhile tonight, president trump is defending his personal attorney rudy giuliani, who was recently back in ukraine investigating the bidens >> he sees the hoax, impeachment hoax. the russian collusion delusion >> reporter: tomorrow the house rules committee will hash it out details of how this will all play out, and on wednesday the full house will vote with democrats in the majority, it is highly

likely that they wil formally impeach president trump. lester >> kristen welker, thank you. this evening we're following two urgent searches, first in florida where there is an effort to find two young children, a brother and sister who disappeared from their backyard in jacksonville let get more from nbc's sam brock. >> reporter: tonight a massive search team of 150 investigators is fanning out in jacksonville desperately trying to find 6-year-old braxton williams who has autism and his 5-year-old sister bria. >> we haven't slept. we haven't eaten. >> reporter: the children's grandparents saying both parents were home when the kids went missing sunday morning. >> the family has been and remains cooperative with every effort of the investigation. we're working multiple scenarios. foul play could be a factor obviously at this points. we just don't know >> reporter: the children were last seen around 11:30. their father told police he was setting up a barbecue and noticed his kids missing around noon.

after searching himself, family called authorities at 1:30. today the parents didn't speak to reporters. >> they are trying to get a little rest right now because they was also up all night. >> reporter: neighbors spotted a car speeding away sunday afternoon. >> there was two kids in the backseat and the little boy had his hands on the window. >> reporter: the sheriff would not comment on a possible connection, as he pledged for an all-out search for the missing brother and sister sam brock, nbc news. as that plays out in jacksonville, in austin, texas a second desperate search for a mother and newborn daughter who disappeared last thursday evening catie beck has more as the boyfriend speaks out. >> reporter: it's been four days since shane kerry's girlfriend heidi broussard and their 2-week-old daughter vanished. >> she's a great mom she needs to be back. >> reporter: kerry who spoke to ktbc yesterday says his last call with broussard ended with an i love you. that was last thursday morning after broussard dropped their 6-year-old son

at school. she was last seen there in this image released by austin police smiling and wearing a purple sweatshirt. >> i'm hopeless and that's the worst feeling in the world. >> reporter: kerry says he arrived home that afternoon to notice broussard's unlocked car parked outside. her purse on the front seat missing her keys and cell phone their apartment empty and undisturbed. no sign of broussard or their precious baby margo. after hours of waiting kerry tells our affiliate that he called police. kerry denies early rumors about involvement in the disappearance and now is calling on the public to help find his loved ones and bring them home. >> we're just keeping our eyes open and posting and sharing and liking. >> reporter: austin police plan to update the public on the case tomorrow catie beck, nbc news. a school resource officer in north carolina is out of a job tonight after video showed him body slamming and injuring a student. as morgan chesky reports, it's the latest incident

involving a school officer's use of force. >> reporter: tonight, it's the video capturing a stroll down a north carolina school hallway ending in an alleged assault. a school resource officer caught body slamming an 11-year-old boy to the ground not once but twice. >> as a school system, as an administrator, as a district, we're disappoint disappointed as a community, we're embarrassed. >> reporter: the surveillance video not capturing audio but giving the department enough evidence to fire the officer. >> i never seen anything like that in my life. >> reporter: the boy's grandfather says the impact of the body slam left the 11-year-old temporarily unconscious and stresses firing the officer isn't enough. >> i asked a similar question, do you have children would you like me to grab your son and throw your son against the wall and slam him head first on hard concrete he could have killed my grandson. >> reporter: just the latest of several assaults on students by school staff. just last month in florida.

>> it's embarrassing, okay. >> reporter: video caught a deputy grabbing a 15-year-old girl later taking her down the officer charged with child abuse just as this boy's family is now fighting for. >> we ask that he be charged, whatever they can charge him with. >> reporter: tonight that officer in north carolina faces a misdemeanor at minimum with potential jail time and if that boy has lasting injuries, a more serious charge could come lester >> those images tough to look at thanks, morgan tonight please in new york are going door to door searching for another teen in connection with the death of a college student as the young woman's family blasts controversial comments from a police union official ron allen has more. >> reporter: as the memorial grows for barnard student tessa majors, comments by a new york police union leader, not involved in the investigation, are igniting outrage >> what i'm understanding is she was in the park to buy marijuana. >> reporter: majors' family calling it deeply inappropriate and irresponsible public speculation

investigators tell nbc news they have yet t determine whether a marijuana sale had any role in the murder the sergeant later apology giantsed to majors' family >> my heart breaks for you. >> reporter: intense emotions as details emerge about what police call a robbery gone wrong and the 13-year-old suspect facing murder, robbery and weapons charges. nbc news is not naming him because he's a juvenile according to court documents, the boy told a detective he saw two friends stabbing majors as feathers flew out of her jacket and she bit one attacker's finger. the suspect's attorney says there is no allegation that he touched the victim or took anything from her. near the crime scene community activists have been demanding better lighting and more police in city parks. >> if the police or community patrols, whatever have you, had been in this park, tessa would not be dead >> reporter: tonight law enforcement sources say the search is underway for another teenager wanted for questioning as that 13-year-old suspect heads back to court tomorrow. >> ron allen, thank you. perhaps you've seen the image, the

symbol from the army/navy football game that has people debating, were the looking at a hand gesture they spotted or a prank or a symbol of hate? nbc's stephanie gosk is at west point tonight. >> reporter: tonight, west point and the naval academy are investigating the intent behind this hand sign flashed by west point cadets and at least one midshipman on live national television. the game on saturday attended this year by president trump hadn't kicked off a quick report was being broadcast from the stands there was no doubt they were on camera. at one point it looked like a cadet pushed it much down the incident triggered an angry debate. the antidefamation league classifies similar gesture as a hate symbol. co-opted by white sum supremacists. >> we shouldn't rush to judgment and realize this symbol carries a certain significance and that the intent was, again,

to communicate the message of intolerance, we need to call that out. >> reporter: it's used in the circle game popular on social media. whoever flashes the sign can punch anyone who sees it. so is this a childish prank or as some described it a disgusting hate-filled gesture? at the u.s. military academy a press officer tells nbc news they are looking into the intention behind the symbol and both the u.s. naval academy and west point say if necessary, they will hold those involved appropriately accountable. until then a celebrated annual tradition caught up in the culture wars crossfire. stephanie gosk, nbc news, west point. another controversy involving football we're getting a look at the video, a patriots cameraman was caught recording during a rival team's game and his confrontation with a security guard here is ron mott. >> reporter: come on, guys >> reporter: the evidence is clear, a new england patriots cameraman reportin

an opponent sideline breaking nfl rules in footage obtained by fox sports it was supposed to be a feature on a patriots employee. >> this is your advance scout? >> yeah. >> i don't see advance scout in the footage. >> it's not. we were trying to get to get a different perspective. my bad >> i don't know why you would think you can't tape that. >> i didn't know, but i can delete this right here >> the damage is done, my friend. >> reporter: the patriots later acknowledged the footage turned over to the nfl for investigation was inappropriate. the videographer suspended. >> the football team, the football staff and coaching staff had nothing to do with what happened, nothing. >> reporter: 2007 spygate. coach bill belichick apologized for misinterpreting the rules, after taping opponents during a game he was fined half a million dollars and in 2015's deflate-gate, quarterback tom brady, who denied direct

involvement, was ultimately suspended >> this seems to be a cultural thing with the patriots, that it's engrained within the franchise that rules can be bent. >> reporter: given the cincinnati bengals have the nfl's worst record this season, some are asking if the risk was worth the taking for a game the patriots easily won on sunday. >> touchdown new england. >> reporter: ron mott, nbc news. there is a lot more to tell you about as we continue the holiday shipping wards. news tonight about amazon and fedex, and what it means at the height of the shipping crush to the top for a christmas hit, number one on the charts 25 years after mariah carey released her holiday classic.

next for us tonight, the holiday shipping wars this time it's amazon taking a shot at fedex. nbc's jo ling kent explains how it could impact your holiday packages and the price you pay. >> reporter: tonight, amazon is making a sudden change to your holiday shipping during the busiest time of the year the company is no

longer allowing third-party sellers to ship amazon prime orders with fedex ground this season citing a drop in delivery performance third-party sellers make up 58% of amazon's offerings this change could impact their customers now. >> it's likely this package may not arrive in one or two-day prime time frame >> reporter: toy seller is furious. >> it causes us to pay more per shipment and forces us to raise prices for consumers >> reporter: the swift change comes as amazon ramps up its own delivery system. the ceo jeff bezos broke ground on a new 1.5 billion air hub in kentucky the company already delivers about half of its own packages in the u.s. fedex tells nbc news amazon's decision limits the option for those small businesses on some of the highest demands shipping date in history and may compromise their ability to meet customer demands and manage their businesses the shipping wars leveling up with just

nine days to christmas. jo ling kent, nbc news, los angeles. up next, 25 years in the making a christmas classic finally tops the charts

it's hard to believe that a holiday song we've been listening to for the last 25 years is finally a number one hit. here is gadi schwartz. ♪ don't want a lot fo christmas ♪ >> reporter: for the quee whose voice has come to herald the holidays, christmas has come early this year mariah carey's song debuted 25 years ago is finally reached the tiptop of the music chart. number one on the billboard hot 100. the only other time that happened to a holiday hit was in the '50s with the chipmunks, but but fast forward to today, mariah is everywhere >> a electsa play the queen of christmas >> reporter: don't take our wort for it here is moment with her kids that could not get more 2019. she's on the radio on tiktok

down here in the depth of the new york city subway line, complete strangers serenading each other and telling mariah all we want for christmas is you ♪ all i want for christmas is you ♪ >> reporter: gadi schwartz, nbc news, new york. >> yep, you'll be singing it all night coming up, the starring role for a young trailblazer.

finally tonight, "inspiring america" and the girl who has danced her way into history this holiday season here is rehema ellis. >> reporter: at 11 years old, charlotte is making history by breaking tradition ♪ >> reporter: in the 65

years that the new york city ballet has been producing "the nutcracker," charlotte is the first black ballerina playing the role of marie. >> now that we're living in such a progressive time, i was surprised there hadn't been one before. >> reporter: this sixth grader undaunted at center stage of the world famous lincoln center charlotte's confidence came early she knew she was destined to dance. when did you start dancing? >> before i was born i was in my mother's tummy. >> reporter: ballet historically dominated by white dancers is diversifying. >> it's unfortunate it hasn't happened sooner but we have in this moment the absolute right young girl that embodies everything that this role called for. >> reporter: others in the production with charlotte are on point with the changes. >> in the next few years, you can see multiple people of color and different ethnicities getting into the company. >> reporter: it's already happening. in this year's production, there are dozens of other children of color in the cast when the children see you in "the nutcracker," what do you want them to

think? >> that they can do that, too. >> reporter: a holiday message worth celebrating. rehema ellis, nbc news, new york what a great young lady she's going to go far. that's "nightly news." i'm lester holt. for all of us at nbc news, thank you for watching and good [cheers and applause] ♪ >> kelly: i know y'all know this! singh, everyone!

♪ jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock ♪ ♪ jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring ♪ ♪ snowin' and blowin' up bushels of fun ♪ ♪ now the jingle hop has begun ♪ jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock ♪ ♪ jingle bells chime in jingle bell time ♪ ♪ dancin' and prancin' in jingle bell square ♪ ♪ in the frosty air ♪ what a bright time, it's the right time ♪ ♪ to rock the night away ♪ jingle bell time is a swell time ♪ ♪ to go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh ♪ ♪ giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet ♪ ♪ jingle around the clock ♪ mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' feet ♪ ♪ that's the jingle bell rock ♪ jingle bell, jingle bell, ♪ that's the jingle bell rock

♪ what a bright time, it's the right time ♪ ♪ to rock the night away ♪ jingle bell time is a swell time ♪ ♪ to go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh ♪ ♪ giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet ♪ ♪ jingle around the clock ♪ mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' feet ♪ ♪ that's the jingle bell ♪ that's the jingle bell ♪ that's the jingle bell rock [cheers and applause] give it up for my band! [cheers and applause] all right! merry christmas! welcome to another kelly clarkson holiday show! let me introduce you to my backup singer, that is jesse lu who and nikki lou who!