Years eve in new yorks times square. Happy new year security tight on the street. In the subways. And up in the air. As excitement grows for a rockin new years eve. It truly is so much fun. The starstudded lineup. Just walk me now. And the take two for mariah carey as we get ready to ring in 2018. Good morning, everyone. Happy new years eve morning. Thank you for being with us on this thats morning of 2017. Dont say it like that. Are you sad about it . No, not at all. If theres one thing i know, paula loves trivia. We have fun facts about the ball drop that happens tonight in times square. Fun fact number one. This is a tradition that dates back to 1907. During that time, seven versions of the ball itself. Until 1995, the ball was lowered manually by six guys with ropes and another guy with a stopwatch. Can you imagine that . It weighs almost 12,000 pounds. Now. The original inception, it was 700 pounds. By the way lovely necklace. Thank you. I was inspished by the times square ball. Tonight, theyre not going to lower the ball. Theyre going to lower adrienne. One more fun fact. The first year the ball dropped it was that was automated was in 1995. It was two seconds late. Thats not good. Heres a decidedly unfun fact. When the ball descends tonight, its likely one of the coldest new years eves ever. We have the forecast and the look ahead to stars performing. And the unprecedented security. Reporter good morning. This is what times square looks like this morning. Where, there is a lot less foot traffic compared to yesterday. Look at the bare cads. As far as the eye can see. Officials work to secure this area ahead of the new years eve celebration. We have also learned that they have closed down the parking garages here. We have seen Police Officers heavily armed with tactical gear. New york city. This morning in the midst of an unprecedented security effort to protect more than 1 Million People expected for todays new years eve celebration. I want to see the ball in the new year. Now, its my dream coming true. Reporter people from across the globe now witnessing nypds security plan in action. Officers in the subways, on the streets, soon in the air. Monitoring the crowds. Abc news granted access to the Operations Center and the network of 10,000 cameras trained on the crossroads of the world. People from nypd. The state police. The fbi. People from amtrak. From new jersey transit. From any agency you can think of is going to be in the Operation Center that night. Reporter bombsniffing dogs will be there to protect the perimeter. That stretches for blocks. This couple visiting from south africa. Obviously its much more since the last time we came here. Because of the new years eve. But we come from south africa, where the crime rate is quite high. Its quite nice to see Police Officers around every single corner. You see them visible. Reporter officials hope these plans prevent a Las Vegasstyle attack from a high perch. The attack along the jogging path. And just this month, the shooting that could have killed 22 people. Officials will block off 2city blocks. They have never had a perimeter that large for now years eve. Also, for the very first time, dan and paula, the Police Officers will also be screening guests at the hotels and restaurants here in times square. Marcus, thank you. Despite all of the security and despite the freezing temperatures, hundreds of thousands of people will bundle up and hit times square. Its the Biggest Party of the year. And Erielle Reshef is right there at the ball. With all of the details on tonights big show. Good morning. Reporter good morning, paula and dan. I have to say, its surreal. Standardi i standing under the ball. The ball weighs 12,000 pounds. Can project more than 16 million vibrant colors. The tradition of the ball drop has been around 110 years. Say your goodbyes to 2017. The iconic times square ball is all set to drop on the big night. Three, two, one. Reporter the lights, and the last of more than 2600 waterford crystals now in place 141 feet in the air. More than 1 million revelers expected to pack these streets for the party. Are you ready tonight . Reporter plenty of star power to ring in the new year. Nick jonas. Kelly clarkson. And florida georgia line. Among others all in the lineup. And tonight, a doover for pop diva mariah carey. Taking center stage after the major technical snafu last year. I cant hear it. Ill just go through the motions. Reporter from that icy performance. We didnt have a check for this song. Reporter to promoting this years appearance on social media. The hitmaker seen sledding with her twins in aspen, a day before the big performance. Crowds bracing for the coldest celebration in decades. The balloons, now blown up. 3,000 pounds of confetti tested and tucked away until the clock strikes 12 00. 175 Million People are expected to tune in to watch the festivities, live on tv. But here in times square, with the big party comes big cleanup. Last year, workers picked up 50 tons of debris after the new years celebration. Dan . Paula . Thank you so much. As we said, likely to be one of the coldest new years eves on record. Not just here in new york city. Twothirds of the country in the grips of this diabolical deep freeze. Lets go to cindy fitzgibbon. From our boston affiliate wcvb. Shes in for rob. Good morning to you, dan. Paula, as well. Look at the map behind me. We see wind chill warnings and advisories in every state east of the rockies, except for florida. From the Canadian Border to the gulf coast. The cold is gripping a huge part of the country. Wind chills, all the minus signs. Got down to as cold as 56 degrees below zero in north dakota overnight. As we head towards midnight, many parts of the country dealing with sub zero wind chills. In new york city, the temperature expected to be 11. That would make it the coldest new years eve in about 55 years. The wind chill, of course, even colder. Dan and paula . Thank you. A new report about what might have sparked the fbis investigation into russia. The New York Times is reporting what a former Trump Campaign adviser is atloejd have told an australian diplomat during a night of heavy drinking. David wright is in west palm beachhimorning. How significant is this reporting . Reporter good morning, paula and dan. This times story is potentially significant. It suggests what launched the fbi probe into russian meddling was credible intelligence from a trusted foreign ally. It was at this london wine bar, according to the times, that a former Trump Campaign adviser first told a top australian diplomat that russia had political dirt on hillary clinton. May of 2016. Two months before hacked dnc emails started to emerge online. Former trump adviser George Papadopoulos reportedly made the startling revelation to australias ambassador to Great Britain during a night of heavy drinking. The australians supposedly passed that tip along to u. S. Authorities. That piece of intelligence prompted the fbi to launch its investigation. Papadopoulos, who recently pled guilty to lying to the fbi, was part of the Trump Campaigns National Security and Foreign Policy team. Seen here meeting with candidate trump. The president posted a picture of that meeting at the time. But later, disavowed it. I dont remember much about that meeting. It was a very unimportant meeting. Reporter as for papadopoulos, trump insisted few people knew the young, lowlevel volunteer named george who has already proven to be a liar. But papadopoulos was trusted enough to edit an early draft of the candidates first Foreign Policy speech. Where he outlined his America First approach. I believe an easing of tensions, and improved relations with russia, from a position of strength only is possible. Absolutely possible. Reporter papadopouloss fiance told George Stephanopoulos all of the work he did on behalf of the Trump Campaign was coordinated with top campaign officials. Never took an initiative without the blessing of the campaign. And, you believe that he can demonstrate that . Absolutely, yes. Reporter the president s lawyer declined to comment to abc news about the times story out of respect for the special counsel and his process. Now assuming that the t story is correct, it would mean that the match that lit the fuse of the russia probe was not the dodgy dossier compiled by an ex british spy and paid for by the democrats. But ratheras source inside the Trump Campaign itself. Dan and paula . According to the New York Times reporting papadopoulos fell out of favor with the mpaign shortly after that rertith the australian diplomat. What can you tell us . Reporter well in theru cpaign. Jut this point. The trump campgnsince he pled guilty, has been eager to portray him as somebody who was pretty much just a coffee boy. But his wife, as you heard talk to George Stephanopoulos and suggested that he was in touch with steve bannon and michael flynn, all the way throughout the campaign. Paula . A lot to flesh out. David, thank you. For more from the political sphere, lets bring in chief Global Affairs correspondent martha raddatz. Who is in washington. Shes busy getting ready to host this week a little later this morning. Happy new year to you, martha. I would be remiss if same to all of you. So much focus on the question of whether there was collusion between team trump and russia. Its often overlooked that russia continues to indiscriminately target american elections. How serious is the threat . It remains a very, very serious threat. Its something the fbi looks at. Others look at. They want to know what russia is up to. Whether theyre trying to influence people here. People who may not know theyre trying to be influenced. Whether theyre trying to hit social media and whether they continue to try to hack. Im pretty sure that is something the russians will continue to try to do with the midterms coming up. A lot of people worried about that. As you point out, not enough focus on it. Youre going to focus this morning on Foreign Policy. One of the huge issues looming right now on the Foreign Policy front is north korea. Over the holidays, on twitter, the president has been accusing china of secretly shipping oil to the north koreans. How do you see this crisis unfolding in the coming year . Paula and dan, this will be the single biggest year with the north korean conflict. Because, i think, there is no doubt that this year, you will see north korea perfect an icbm capable of carrying a nuclear weapon. This is what they have been trying to do for decades. And this will probably be the year that President Trump has to make decisions about what to do about that. Whether north korea tests or does an Atmospheric Nuclear test is something we have to watch. We have seen the last year, all kinds of threats from both sides. This is the year, i believe, that President Trump will have to make a decision about what to do. This thing could be coming to a head. The stakes could not be higher. Martha. We appreciate your analysis on this sunday morning. You bet. Happy new year. Thank you. Coming up on the show this morning, this week, martha goes one on one with admiral mike mullen. Plus, the powerhouse roundtable breaks down a wild 2017 and whats in store for the new year. All coming up on this week. Martha, thanks again. Over to ron claiborne. The last time well check in with you in 2017. This year. Not forever. Good morning to you, dr. Faris and dr. Harris and dr. Bankert. Not a doctor, by the way. Good morning, everyone. In las vegas. Two security guards were shot to death investigating a disturbance in a room at a hotel casino near the vegas strip. This happened on saturday. The gunman shot the male and female guards and fled on foot. Chased by police through a residential neighborhood where he shot himself in the head. Hes hospitalized in critical condition. Police dont know the motive. The incident was not terror related. In the city of troy in upstate new york, two suspects charged in a savage murder of two women and two children. The youngest just 5 years of age. Killed inside their home the day after christmas. Police say that one of the suspects knew one of the victims. They havent said what triggered the violence. In boston, officials are blaming operator error for the trolley collision that injured 16 people on friday. One train hit into the back of a train in front of it. Passengers were sent sprawling to the floor. The driver responsible has been removed from work until the investigation is completed. Theres no winner in last nights powerball drawing. The jackpot, sorry, paula. It goes to 440 million. Wednesday, the next drawing. But first, a bigger one. Well, one almost as big. Tuesday. The megamillions. Up t the odds of winning are about 1 in 259 million for the megamillions. And 1 in 292 million. For the powerball. Good luck. Theres always a chance. Someones got to win it eventually. And this from south carolina. Lottery officials there say a computer glitch on Christmas Day caused machines to spit out a stream of Winning Tickets in the holiday cash add and play game. Theyre not saying how many of those were created. It results in a 19. 6 million payout. E lottery has suspended the game. Theyre not paying out the winnings, at least not yet, while the programming error is being investigated. Finally, police in the upstate new york town of brockport, responded to a 911 call about an intruder inside of somebodys home eating cookies. Body cam footage shows the confrontation. Police going in and there he or she is. What is that . Its a squirrel. Its a squirrel. Lunging at the officer. A flying squirrel. They tasered that squirrel. You can hear the squirrel shrieking, dont tase me, bro. If you listen carefully, you can hear him saying it. Dont tase me, bro. Actually, they didnt tase the squirrel. They escorted him outside and let him go. Great shot though. Looked like a flying squirrel. If you live in new york city, you realize, squirrels will eat anything. Cardboard boxes. Bottom of your shoe. They might eat the snow and ice. Thats a seg. Thats a seg. Its what we call in the business a segue. Its a bump. A set. You can spike it. Lets remind everybody who you are. Cindy fitzgibbon from our boston affiliate. Filling in for rob. Happy to have you here. Thank you. Happy to blittle bit of snow the through philadelphia area first. Take a look at what it did on the roads in, it caused a big problems, you can see cars piled up there, we had a huge backup on the roads and take a look at that semi truck, the cab dangledded over the overpass. Just a mess. It doesnt take a lot of snow to cause big problems. Look at the map. Were not seeing much activity or precipitation. Winter weather advisory in texas, mississippi valley. Temperatures are freezing around Oklahoma City and dallas. So issa concern. If youre traveling on this holiday, thats the only concern we have. In terms of precipitation, obviously the cold is obviously going to be a big factor for a lot of country. So now we want to take a look at the local forecast. Reporter good morning, everyone, im meteorologist chris sowers with this accuweather update. The radar looks better than it did yesterday at this time. Lets get you outside, sky conditions are better, as well. Mainly clear skies, but its icy cold. The arctic front came barreling through last night. Get a load of this, accuweather issued weather alert today and tomorrow because of the bitter cold, 20 today, 19 tomorrow. Both days windchills in the Single Digits. There you go. And, im new here today. Filling in for rob. I came bearing gifts. I only have one pair. Oh. Well fight over two warmers. Sharing is caring. I only have two hands. That is plenty. These hand warmers, coming from the boston area. The patriots are playing the jets in foxboro. It could be the coldest regular season game on record there. On record . The Patriots Organization is handing out 65,000 hand warmers to the fans. Take these back and give them to tom brady. Do you think that any one of us is going to venture outside for any period of time . Never. Not going to happen. Do you think any of us will be up to see the ball drop . Maybe ron. Maybe adrienne. Lets go back to Erielle Reshef. Shes standing by the ball with important guests. E erielle, whats happening . I do have very special guests. Theyre braving the elements with me. Jeff straus. Coproducer of tonights festivities and Michael Craig from waterford. What goes into a night like tonight . A Million People are packing in. Theyre excited to see the performers tonight. We have plans for all year. We have a Million People there. Well all be wearing our fes tifr, fun hats. Well be entertained by the greatest entertainment. We have sugarland. Nick jonas. Camila cabello. Mariah carey coming back for a Second Chance. Amazing year. All ending with tarana burke. The founder of the me too movement. With the mayor. Pushing the crystal button. Lead us into 2018. What a beauty this is. You do so much work leading up to putting this together. What goes into this . And theres a special theme this year i understand. Exactly. We start the day after working on the ball for the next year. This year is special. The fifth year in a tenyear series of the greatest gifts. This year is the gift of serenity. You think about new years. The past. The past year. Looking forward the future. Everybody needs a little bit of peace, tranquility. Calmness. In their life. So this is really a great theme for th