Tonight lester holt. Good evening. It just keeps coming. Winters parade of misery from snow bound new englanders at their wits end to snow and ice in the normally mild south. And now the next shoe, or should we say snowshoe to drop. The rush of arctic cold sweeping from the other side of the north pole through the great lakes. Tonight, places like chicago and milwaukee are already in the single digits. And the northeast and south wont be far behind with temperatures 25 to 35 degrees below average tomorrow. In so many places life as people know it is frozen in time. Paralyzed transportation its knocked out power and put a lot of people in some very real danger. Nbcs tom costello is on it for us tonight. Reporter from a frozen niagra falls and lake erie in the north to snow in the south, the eastern third of the country is locked in the deep freeze with even colder temps on the way. In eastport maine theyve had a record of 109 inches of snow in just 23 days. Its pretty much overwhelming. And we have another storm coming soon. Its going to be difficult. Its going to be tough to handle. Reporter all of that snow is pulling down roofs and flooding homes. Outside of boston roofer rich mellows phone is ringing every three to five minutes. And youre running the gamut of people suffering a little leak to severe leaks all throughout their homes. Reporter in baltimore today a water main break froze a car to the street. In chicago where theyre shivering through the coldest february since 1875. Black ice very dangerous. Reporter letter carrier Nicole Easter is still on her appointed rounds. Its a nuisance sometimes trying to maneuver this cart through the snow and ice like this. Reporter meanwhile, more than 100 record lows forecast for the morning. Minus 15 in marquette, michigan. Minus 12 in lexington, kentucky. Even minus 2 in nashville where ice has been pulling down power lines and shutting down much of the deep south. The last 60 hours its been chaotic. Reporter the weather channels mike bettes. The frigid air comes courtesy of siberian express. Cold arctic air from russia traveling 5,000 miles over the north pole over cold snow pack and going as far south as the gulf coast. Reporte for millions of americans snowed in something called snow stress depression can set in. Day after day after day it becomes chronic stress. And it begins to deplete the bodys resources. Were not as strong. The immune system begins to fail a little bit, and we get sick. Reporter one warning tonight from the mayor of boston. There may be record amounts of snow on the ground but dont try this at home. Here in washington were going down to 10 degrees tonight and then the bottom falls out. Overnight with windchill 10 below zero. And then friday 20 below zero. Were also expecting dangerous conditions on the road. By the way amtrak has already modified service in the northeast because of the extreme cold lester. Tom, thanks very much. Bottom falls out. Al rockker, that doesnt sound good. No it doesnt, lester. Its not going to get better for a while. Temperatures 50 below in siberia where this cold air is banked up. What happens between low pressure up at the pole a high strong western high that will pump in that air, that frigid bitterly cold air makes its way, the siberian air, funneled into the u. S. So for tomorrow morning weve got windchill warnings windchill watches from the dakotas all the way down into florida. Detroit will get down to 4 below, probably tie a record. Louisville will break a record most likely. Philly washington, d. C. Down in the midatlantic states. As far south friday morning as florida, miami will see a low of 39 breaking an old record of 42 degrees. Clipper coming across now bringing some light snow. More misery to new england. By tonight between bangor and portland we could see a foot to a foot and a half of snow lester. And theres another big storm developing saturday night into sunday with Severe Weather and heavy snow possible. See you in the morning on wake up with al and on today. Investigators on the scene of a massive explosion at an oil refinery in southern california. It happened just before 9 00 this morning in torrance joe fryer is working the story for us tonight. Reporter the thunderous explosion at the exxon mobil refinery was so strong. My house shook. Reporter many thought they were in an earthquake. You could just feel the vibration. It literally felt like just a pulse going through your body. A sonic boom going. Reporter the blast ripped apart buildings and damaged cars on refinery grounds. Four workers received minor injuries. It was a gasoline processing unit where the explosion occurred. Reporter but its unclear why it happened. Exxon mobil says we will conduct a thorough investigation of the cause of this event. Its pretty good size flareup there. Reporter after the explosion a giant flame burned atop the refinerys flare stack. Its like a safety valve releasing pressure when theres a problem. Neighbors see the flares on occasion but say this was bigger than normal. I just saw the flames going up and the refinery. And i saw some ash starting to drop. Reporter many noticed the ash falling from the sky. This car coated in soot was two and a half miles from the refinery. No harmful air emissions have been detected but officials did issue a smoke advisory. You can see the big clouds in the air and i thought, yeah this is a good time to come in and close the doors and windows. Reporter students at 13 schools were initially told to stay inside but that order was lifted within three hours of the blast. Tonight, the refinery is still operating, but state investigators have shut down the unit where the explosion happened until a cause is determined. Right now it is unclear whether this will have a big impact on production and gas prices in this part of the country. Lester. All right, joe. Thank you. Fire continues to burn at the site of that Train Derailment in west virginia. Over 48 hours since it happened. The train was carrying 3 million gallons of crude oil when it flew off the tracks on monday. Initial tests do not show any water contamination, but some people remain under a boil water advisory just in case. Turning overseas to iraq where isis launched another wave of attacks only to be met with fierce resistance on the ground. But isis is relentless both on the battlefield and in the atrocities it commits on videotape for the world to see. We get the latest tonight from our chief Foreign Correspondent richard engel. Reporter isis is spreading like a virus. And months of u. S. Led air strikes dont seem to be containing it. In libya, isis has been showing its strength. The group beheaded 21 egyptian christians. One of the executioners speaking in english with an american accent. Recently seen us reporter egypt hit back with its own air strikes. Isis says italy will be next. Securitys already been beefed up at st. Peters. But the biggest advances and reportedly the worst atrocityies have come where washington claims to be making the most progress in iraq which is starting to look like a failed state. In the north we saw firsthand last week how Kurdish Forces have been under attack. Today, near the city of irbil they turned back a major isis assault. In central iraq where isis captured the town of al baghdadi iraqi officials claim as many as 48 of their fighters were burned alive by militants. Its unconfirmed by u. S. Officials, but it reportedly happened just five miles from a base where hundreds of u. S. Marines are deployed as advisers. But why the spread . Isis is moving into all the cracks in the middle east the unresolved conflicts in iraq libya, the sinai, syria and gaza. This is not a problem that can be droned away. The isis virus is consuming the middle east infecting europe and showing no sign of stopping there. Richard engel, nbc news. The threat from this type of violent extremism has prompted officials from 60 countries to gather at the white house for a threeday summit. And in his remarks today president obama appeared to choose his words very carefully. Our Chris Jansing is at the white house for us tonight. Chris, good evening. Reporter good evening, lester. Late today the president announced an extensive defense at linking terrorism to the muslim faith. He does not use the term islamic extremism, even though critics say thats at odds with reality. Al chi al qaeda and isil and groups like it try to portray themselves as religious leaders. Holy warriors in defense of islam. They are not religious leaders. Theyre terrorists. [ applause ] and we are not at war with islam. We are at war with people who have perverted islam. Reporter the president also acknowledged the success terrorists have had in recruiting including here in the u. S. He used the term brainwashing. Today, Community Leaders from minneapolis, boston and los angeles talked about their pilot programs to intervene before young people are radicalized. Some muslims though say theyre being unfairly stigmatized and they suspect the program could be just a cover to spy on them. One example of the complexity of fighting this war even in american cities. Lester. Chris jansing tonight, thank you. One more note from washington the president has picked interim secret Service DirectorJoseph Clancy to lead the service exclusively. He was selected despite the recommendation of an independent panel that someone choose someone from outside the agency. Following a series of embarrassing Security Breaches in recent years including an armed intruder who got over the fence and deep into the white house. Despite a fragile ceasefire in ukraine, a violent struggle over a key railroad hub has forced ukrainian defenders to retreat, leaving the city in the hands of prorussian rebels. Fighting has raged in that city even after the truce agreement was supposed to go into effect at midnight monday. Now to the american sniper trial and the first full day for the defense to lay out its side of the case. Trying to convince the jury that the man accused of gunning down chris kyle was legally insane at the time of the shooting. Nbcs jacob rascon is covering the trial for us in stephenville texas. Reporter the days leading up to the crime were bizarre. Eddie ray rouths former girlfriend told the jury he threatened her with a ninja sword and called her a demon. He heard voices and saw things and even asked her to marry him the night before the killings. In the morning they fought and routh smoked pot with his uncle until chris kyle showed up. Routh shot kyle and chad littlefield at a texas gun range and drove to his sisters. The person who came to my house, his sister told the jury was not who i know is my brother. Routh told her, he killed two guys and sold his soul for a pickup. Before routh drove away leading police on a chase, his sister told him i love you, but i hate your demons. All evidence the defense hopes will convince the jury routh is not guilty by reason of insanity. Standard is high and it should be if you think about it. I mean theres really no issue about whether routh murdered these two young men or not. Its whether he was insane or not at the time of the offense. Reporter rouths sister also told the jury she begged her brother to turn himself in but he had other plans telling her he wanted to escape to oklahoma. Next up the jury will hear testimony from Mental Health experts. And closing arguments are expected to be given as early as monday lester. All right, jacob, thanks. In yet another hint hes going to run for president in 20106, jeb bush gave a major speech about the dangers confronting america around the world. But it wasnt just about that. It was also an attempt to set himself apart from two other men named bush who have served in the oval office. Nbcs Peter Alexander with more now. Reporter in chicago today jeb bush juggled dueling themes on Foreign Policy and dpamly legacy blasting president obamas leadership. Under this administration we are inconsistent and indecisive. Reporter and trying to distance himself from bushes before him. I love my brother. I love my dad. I actually love my mother as well. I hope thats okay. But im my own man. And my views are shaped by my own thinking and my own experiences. Reporter but its george w. Bushs experience invading iraq more than a decade ago that still casts a long shadow. Aides say jeb bush is consulting with 20 veterans of past bush adds adds administministrations administrations, jeb bush outlined a muscular Foreign Policy including a fight against isis. Taking them out is the strategy. Theres no talking about this. Thats just not going to work for terrorism. Reporter until now the former florida governors been mostly on board with his brothers policies. Im the only republican that was in office when he was in office as president that never disagreed with him. And im not going to start now. Reporter the bush bloodlines run deep. After barbara bush said this to nbc news two years ago. Theres other people out there that are very qualified. And weve had enough bushes. Reporter last week she insisted she changed her mind, skyping into an event while her son was speaking. [ inaudible ] reporter today jeb bush acknowledged mistakes with his brothers iraq policy but he credited his brother for the surge in iraq calling it one of the most heroic acts of political courage by any president. Peter alexander, nbc news chicago. There is a lot more ahead here tonight. Cars flying off the road all over the place as tens of millions deal with conditions they rarely encounter. Were behind the wheel with the surprising things you should and shouldnt do when you lose control. And later, were along for the victory lap today after an upset victory. The new queen of westminster takes new york. Introducing danceallyouwant bladder leak protection. New always discreet underwear for sensitive bladders from always, the experts in feminine protection. New always discreet underwear absorbs heavy bladder leaks faster then the leading brand, so you can feel comfortably dry. Plus always discreet has a discreet fit that hugs your curves. You barely feel it. 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Liberty mutual insurance. When so much of the country is sitting at below freezing as we mentioned earlier, getting from point a to point b can suddenly become a death defying feat. You may only have a split second to react when your car skids on an icy road. But your first instinct isnt necessarily the right one as nbcs jeff rossen is about to demonstrate. Reporter frightening moments behind the wheel, fishtailing, no control. Just as scary, when the wreck is coming right toward you. From sedans to semis, this truck skidding out. Missing other cars by just feet. And thats the danger too. Swerving into traffic. Look at this car spinning all over the road. Seconds later an oncoming car smashes into it. This week icy roads are wreaking havoc again. Were driving, the car starts spinning out of control. Reporter so what do you do if youre caught in a skid . Were in maryland at the specially designed ice driving course. Whoa. Our instructor tom pecoraro a former Police Officer and certified driving instructor. Oh boy. Were spinning right now. Yeah. So that was 16 miles per hour. Reporter when we start driving again, i hit another patch of ice and make a classic mistake. Two worst things you can do. You jammed on the brake and you jerked the wheel. What am i supposed to do . Get off the brake, get off the accelerator, straighten the wheel and ride it out. It goes against conventional wisdom i want to stop the car. Thats the worst thing you can do. Reporter flat roadways are dangerous enough covered in ice, but how about when youre on a hill. What happens if my car starts sliding down backwards . Stay off the brake. Reporter stay off the brake . Stay off the brake. Roll back look over your shoulder and steer to a safe location. Reporter important tips especially this winter when the ice and snow just wont stop. Whoa. Whoa. Jeff rossen nbc news germantown maryland. When we come back caught on camera. 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Email messages everything. Its overwhelming how much were getting. My phone keeps dying. Reporter today, a winners tour of new york city from the top of the Empire State Building to tv appearances. Even a brief encounter with the today show pup wrangler. And lunch at world famous sar she faced the paparazzi with patient. Until it was chow time steak on a silver platter. She always thought she was the one, but she didnt know she was a star. Reporter i think she knows it now. Oh she knows it. Reporter next miss p heads home to British Columbia retirement and mother hood and a chance to breed another best in show. Rehema ellis, nbc news new york. That will do it for us tonight on this wednesday night. Im lester holt. For all of us at nbc news thank you for watching and good night. Bruce jenning facing possible man slaughter charges. Does new Video Evidence prove he caused the deadly wreck . Now, on extra. Bruce jenners car crash caught on a bus cam the video recreation today. 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