And surprise, an incredible story of two girls who became friends at college and looked so much alike, they joked they could be sisters. Well, guess what, they are, and theyre here live today, friday, january 24th, 2014. Announcer from nbc news, this is today with matt lauer and Savannah Guthrie live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. And good morning, welcome to today on a friday morning. Im matt lauer. Im Savannah Guthrie. Alongside al roker and Natalie Morales. Two weeks from today, Opening Ceremony in sochi. And yet, we continue to hear about these new threats. Its like a drip, drip, drip. And governor romney is here. Well be talking about that with him. He is the guy who had to handle the games in Salt Lake City which came shortly after 9 11. He knows a thing or two about security and well talk to him in a moment. This is our top story today. That newly discovered threat against the winter Olympic Games in sochi. Lets get right to Richard Engel. Richard, good morning to you. Reporter good morning. This threat was actually first posted online earlier this month but gaining traction now. Its from a group with a proven track record, and its part of a growing trend where Islamic Militant groups are adopting sochi as their cause. And thats a problem. Reporter the terrorist threat appears to come from a known branch of al qaeda with fighters from russia, the caucuses, central asia and pakistan. The tone is smug and mocking. Saying the olympics have already been tarnished, that russia is trembling, and ominously that violence is coming. Thats not the way russian officials see things. At the ice rink, the new 12,000seat hockey stadium, the venue manager told us that sochi is the safest city in the world. Im sure everything will be okay because you can see in that security procedures are real tough. Reporter two messages, one threatening, the other confident. But is there room in between for much olympic spirit at a games where russia and islamic extremists have something to prove . This is the center of the main olympic park medals plaza on a rainy day. You can hear them warming up for the Opening Ceremony. The stadium radiate out from here like folks on a bicycle wheel. In one sense, its very convenient because you can walk to the different venues, but also all brand new. There arent bars and restaurants, you cant bring in outside liquid. Russia puts so much effort into turning this into a secure bubble that in the end, it feels somewhat sterile, kind of like a Convention Center thats been sealed off. The security perimeter may be a necessity. Radical Islamist Groups are making sochi their cause. But why . Russia has a dirty little secret, the Ongoing Military Operations in the caucuses, mainly in dagastan. Russian Security Forces often conduct Counterterrorism Missions there, sometimes very aggressively, according to human rights groups. Now, russias insurgency at home is becoming a battle over sochi. Reporter in a sense, these games are caught between russia, which wants to show how strong it is that it can organize a safe games here, which is not very far from the caucuses and the militants themselves who want to prove they can hit vladimir putin, the russian strong man. All right, Richard Engel in sochi for us this morning. While security was a focus of the 2002 winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, which were held months after 9 11. And the man in charge was former president ial candidate mitt romney. And he joins us this morning exclusively. Good morning. Thank you. Good morning, savannah. You see the results as well as we do, as the person who was once in charge of delivering and executing a safe Olympic Games. How secure do you feel . Well, of course, theres never been a games i know of that has been so targeted for specific threats as youre seeing in sochi. At the same time, the level of security preparations appears to be at an unprecedented level. I think people can recognize that the hard sites will be safe. The athletes will be safe, spectators in the venues will be safe. But its the soft places you cant be 100 certain will be entirely safe. But my guess is the russians have done everything humanly possible to protect the games. I guess the gut check question is, would you go to sochi . Would you send your own family to sochi . The answer is yes. I believe the games will be safe. But that doesnt mean theres a 100 guarantee in anywhere in the world today. The threats leveled suggest this is going to be an area that could be targeted. And therefore, theres a degree of risk associated with, well, frankly life today in a world where terrorism exists. You mentioned what a dangerous neighborhood this is. You have never minced words when it comes to russia. You have a couple of memorable lines in the campaign. I wonder what you think of Vladimir Putins decision to stage these olympics in the backyard where hes been staging battle against militants for years. Terrorists can move almost anywhere they want to go. And only takes one person to go through. So a place like sochi can be surrounded, if you will, the intelligence work is the key to keeping the games secure. Yes, the hardened targets can have fences and patrols and so forth. But, frankly, in order to protect an area as large as sochi, you need extraordinary intel work. And thats what happened with our games that gave me confidence theyd be safe. Well hear reports of an individual theyre looking for, that suggests they have good intelligence. All in all, seems to be a very Effective Security program. Again, no 100 guarantee. Very quickly, you said during the campaign that russia was a geopolitical foe that lined up with the worlds worst actors. What do you think about the Olympic Committee to let russia host the olympics . Well, i dont think you hold off particular countries based upon their politics, but theres no question in my mind. Russia has been and continues to be a geopolitical adversary, not a military foe, but a geopolitical foe. They line up with assad, kim jongun, their friends are some of the worlds worst actors. Mitt romney, its always good to get your perspective. We have a lot to talk about this morning. Theres a new documentary mitt, a look inside your two campaigns and well talk to you about that in a couple of minutes. Thanks, savannah. Over to matt. Now to treacherous conditions on the roads this morning. Youre looking live now in michigan city, indiana, outside chicago where crews are still working to clean up a massive and deadly pileup. That accident caused by a sudden snowstorm. Nbcs john yang has the latest on that. Good morning to you. Reporter matt, right now, workers are clearing the last of the debris getting ready to reopen the stretch of 94. It took nearly 16 hours to clear the vehicles involved in the crash that left three dead and 20 injured. At the time of the accident, visibility was almost zero. The horrific one i have seen. Reporter whiteout conditions lead to a massive Chain Reaction collision outside michigan city, indiana, trapping motorists in their cars beneath the wreckage. The treacherous conditions make it difficult for emergency responders. Its not only for everybody out here, but for the families. Late thursday, Police Released information about those killed. A husband and wife from grand rapids, michigan, and a 66yearold chicago man and his pet golden retriever. Witnesses said they could hear the crash from two miles away. Sounded like a train coming off the rails. Reporter police say 40 vehicles including 15 semis were involved in the pileup bringing traffic along the interstate to a standstill. The backup stretched 15 miles. Complete whiteout. Reporter dixie was in the middle of the mangled mess and spoke by phone with nbc station wmaq in chicago. Its like a parking lot, wall to wall cars and trucks. Reporter one of the injured spoke by phone from his hospital bed. A semi coming towards us, i thought i was going to die. Reporter school buses brought in to warming stations and to transport injured to hospitals. It goes on for miles. Reporter motorist mike carpenter was going westbound and sent this cell phone video. Theres so many cars that inside, i couldnt see anything. Thats a nightmare, i promise you. Reporter officials tell us the dead were all in their 60s. They say it will take weeks, even months to figure out what happened. Matt. All right. Thanks very much. Thats indiana. Meanwhile, down south, bad day to be on the roads, as well, al. Absolutely, guys. A real treacherous situation going on. Lets show you what weve got. Last 24 hours, temperatures dropped 21 degrees in dallas, houston at 31, 24 degrees below where it was 24 hours ago. Charlotte at 10, 11 degrees below where its been. And heres whats going on. We are looking at a big change in the jet stream. Again, another big drop, clipper comes down, a little bit of that arctic express will blow on in here. You can already see, we are looking at an icy mix, stretching between Corpus Christi on into houston. That blue line, the freezing line. And so we are looking at more frozen precipitation coming in to that part of the country. Sleet will be falling. Were looking at ice pellets accumulating on the ground. Freezing rain, this is our big concern. The rain will freeze upon contact, causing severe icing conditions, dangerous travel on roads and overpasses. Tons of roads already have been closed. Downed trees and power lines. And, in fact, up to 400 Airline Cancellations. Lets go to houston right now where its a real mess. Thats where Janet Shamlian is. Janet . Reporter al, good morning, we have a mess in Southeast Texas from sleet and rain here in houston to snow in huntsville. When you get these conditions this far south, it shuts everything down. To give you an idea, the last time we had any measurable snow in this region was 2009. The massive Houston School system has closed for the day, a rare snow day in this region. Hundreds of other schools have closed, as well. And last night, the airlines started canceling flights into houston. This is a major hub for united airlines. Thats going to have repercussions across the country today. There is ice in san antonio, snow in Corpus Christie and beaumont. And its just getting worse because the temperature is dropping. Al. Thats right. That 32degree line is right there. They dont have salt spreaders, putting down rock for traction. Ill give you an idea for airlines for january. 33,000 Airline Cancellations this month. Thats more than 2012, 2013 combined. Were not done with january yet. My goodness. Long, hard winter. Thank you. And natalie is following a sad story from canada. And a really sad story out of canada. Such a tragedy this morning. The search is still on for dozens of people unaccounted for after a deadly fire at a senior home in quebec. Katy tur in quebec with more. Good morning. Reporter good morning. Five are dead and 30 are missing. It is a block of ice because of the sub zero temperatures. There is no word when the authorities will be able to get in there. By morning, the scene was devastating to behold. A Senior Citizen home encased in ice, only an elevator shaft left recognizable. This horror only matched by the images just hours earlier. A fire in a threestory complex filled with the elderly. By the time help got there, little could be done. The fire chief called it a night from hell. The archbishop was nearly speechless. Tragedy. Its a big number of people who died. Reporter Officials Say most who lived here were over the age of 85 and only five could get around on their own. This man drove all night from montreal to look for his 99yearold mother. He fears is now gone. Shes still there. I cant believe it. Reporter dozens are still missing, and family members were urged to contact local police as they try to figure out who was inside. It doesnt mean those people are dead. Maybe they are at some other residence, a family vacation. All members of the government express our condolences for this terrible loss of life. Reporter condolences poured in across canada for the families of la verte as they chipped away at the frozen remains to figure out what went so wrong. Central cairo today kir people and injuring dozens of others. The Early Morning blast sent smoke rising over egypts capital. Damaging the security building and museum across the street. Witnesses said gunmen opened fire on the building after that explosion. Hours later, there were two smaller blasts killing at least one person and injuring 15. Well, if you take vitamin d supplements, theres Surprising Health news. A new study is revealing the popular supplement provides Little Health benefits. Previous studies have suggested vitamin d deficiency is linked to a variety of Health Problems and that supplements could be beneficial. But now researchers in new zealand have found vitamin d did not prevent heart attack, stroke, cancer or bone fractures by more than 15 . Supplements are taken by nearly half of u. S. Adults. Speaker of the house john boehner says he has no interest in running for president. He sat down with jay leno thursday night to talk about a variety of topics. He told jay that he gets along fine with president obama but they approach their jobs from different perspectives. And he says he definitely doesnt want the president s job. Listen, i like to play golf, i like to cut my own grass. I do drink red wine, i smoke cigarettes, and im not giving that up to be president of the United States. Okay. That response did get a round of applause from the audience. At least you can cross one more potential candidate off that list. For now. He likes what he likes. Cant give up golf. Come on. A lot of president s play golf. Yes, they do. Like president obama. Its been a rough one, its going to get rougher. We want to get right to your local forecast. [ kelly ] my days start early. And so do mouth germs. But now i have the protection of colgate total® mouthwash. It works just as hard and just as long as i do. [ man ] rolling in 5 [ male announcer ] colgate total® mouthwash. It kills germs on contact and has a germkilling shield that keeps working for 12 hours. It doesnt quit even after eating and drinking. Hi [ male announcer ] colgate total® mouthwash. 12 hour Germ Protection even after eating and drinking. Good morning to you. Were seeing partly cloudy skies around the south bay now. 41 degrees in san jose. Those are part of mid level clouds around an area of low pressure which is going to move away from the bay area. Top some high clouds into the afternoon and evening and watching for the offshore winds giving us the red flag warning through mid afternoon. Well see highs in the upper 60s to near 70s. San francisco mid60s. Mid to upper 60s around the peninsula. Low 70s in the north bay and the trivalley. Hello to carson daly over in the orange room. Nice to see you. Happy friday. Good morning. A story this morning that got online lit up. Yesterday an editor for the New York Times tweeted out a sneak peek for the cover art this weekend New York Times magazine that features Hillary Rodham clinton. Lest give you a bigger shot. Once this hit, people didnt know what to make of it. It was supposed to be hillarys influence on the people in her political universe. Well this spawned all sorts of parodying. E. T. Gravity, good night moon. There was a blog about the history of where this came from. This was the initial sketch here. They got the illustrator who had done this golf digest piece of donald trump. They made their way through, and they get to the very end there, the thats what youll see this weekend. Thats whats going online. People having so fun with that. Back to you. I like the wrecking ball one of miley cyrus on there. When i first saw that, i thought it was a joke, i didnt actually realize what the real cover. Amazing. Now you really want to read it, right . And they get on shows all across the country. Carson, thank you very much. Coming up, where does Justin Bieber go from here . The fallout from that arrest. The fun had at the pop stars expense. First, this is today on nbc. [ bell dings ] [ coughs ] hi. Yo. Cold . Nasty cold. Dayquil severe. Nyquil severe. Thanks dude. [ female announcer ] walgreens. Get in. Get out. Feel better. Select dayquil severe and nyquil severe. 11. 99 at walgreens. Coming up, we have a lot more with former president ial candidate mitt romney including how he really feels about that new documentary on his run for the white house. Were going to ask him. And then on trending, watch what happened when savannah and i sat down with andy cohen on his bravo show. We did have a little bit of liquid. But first your local forecast. [ male announcer ] bring your style to life with a new vanity for just 179 at lowes. With a new vanity for just 179 at lowes. Milk vs. Breakfast burrito ding ooh, my scallions winner milk always protein never greasy got protein. [prof. Burke] at farmers,we believe what you dont know [bell rings] can hurt you. Like what if you didnt know to get coverage for uninsured drivers . [robot] uh oh. [prof. Burke] talk to farmers and get smarter about your insurance. 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