our updates are always on www.kpix.com. we will see you at 6:00 ♪ ♪ ♪ captioning sponsored by cbs >> sargent: tonight, staggering surge. omicron rages, burning hot in nearly every state, new infections smashing pandemic records, many hospitals swamped by the unvaccinated and confronting critical staff shortages. this man waiting 17 hours in a chicago-area emergency room. >> reporter: i'm lilia luciano in los angeles, where new cases hit a record high as california calls in the national guard for help. >> sargent: also tonight, schools struggle as absences and closures add up. plus, president biden joins democrats in tribute to harry reid, while his administration negotiates to defuse tensions with russia over ukraine. shoot to kill-- khazakstan's president orders security forces