NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Sunday, March 30, 2025

Episode Date: March 30, 2025

Search for earthquake survivors enters critical phase; 70+ million under threat of severe weather in the South and Eastern U.S.; Musk visits Wisconsin ahead of critical election; and more on tonight��s broadcast.

Tonight, the urgent race to find survivors after that catastrophic earthquake in Southeast Asia. With time running out, a glimmer of hope. Look at this man, pulled from the rubble. But the search for more people, complicated by new aftershocks today. Our team is there as the American military arrives to help. Severe weather threat, intense rain, flooding cars, an ice storm sending this truck off the road. And tonight, millions at risk for hail and tornadoes, with at least one already reported down south. What to expect as this major system moves toward the East Coast.

Elon Musk bringing big money into Wisconsin, ready to cut million-dollar checks tonight to voters in a key special election. All as growing anger over his cuts to the federal government boil over at a Republican town hall. An NBC News exclusive, President Trump says he's not joking about a third term in office, which would be unconstitutional. What he's considering now, plus why he's so angry at Russia's president. Bracing for so-called Liberation Day, the folks who say Wednesday's long-anticipated tariffs rollout could hurt their businesses. The new warning tonight about so-called stealth cholesterol, nearly undetectable and potentially deadly. What you need to know. And there's good news tonight

about this bird's eye view for a new generation discovering an old fashioned hobby. This is NBC Nightly News with Hallie Jackson. Good evening. We are coming on the air tonight with the race against time to find survivors of that devastating earthquake in Southeast Asia, with new aftershocks today sending people again scrambling for safety. The window for rescuers is closing fast as they're trying to find people alive, managing to pull some survivors out of the wreckage, as you can see incredibly here. But a staggering 1,600 people have been confirmed killed already, and officials are warning of the potential for more devastating news after that 7.7 magnitude quake crumpled buildings like this one. In Myanmar and Thailand, so many families living a nightmare tonight, grieving those they've lost

and fearing the worst for those they can't find. Our Janice Mackey-Frayer is on the ground in Bangkok. In Myanmar, time is running short to reach survivors stuck beneath debris. Here, a woman is pulled from a heap of concrete, dazed but standing. Rescuers finding this man trapped, yet able to wave. Across the quake zone, the devastation is staggering. Many without shelter, food or water in blistering heat. A magnitude 5.1 aftershock today adding to the terror, forcing this Chinese rescue team to clear out and wait. Field hospitals are being set up to treat the thousands of wounded. Roads have buckled, religious sites in ruins.

Every rescue here requiring tools and time, both in tragically short supply. It took us 24 hours to save this man, he says. The ruling military junta is appealing for international help, but there are challenges in getting aid to a country wracked by civil war. Here in Bangkok, crews worked through a third night to find dozens of construction workers who remain trapped in a mountain of rubble. Earlier, officials here said they detected signs of life in one zone, but hours later, clearing concrete and steel by hand yielded nothing. For families of the missing holding vigil here, it's too much to bear. This woman's husband was working on the first floor.

I can't talk about it, she says. It's unspeakable. A U.S. Air Force team has now arrived here from Japan. It's taken days to recover fewer than a dozen of the 79 missing workers here, and the window to find anyone alive is closing. Janice McEfrayer is joining us now live from Bangkok. And Janice, the World Health Organization is calling for more help tonight. There's need for everything, Hallie. Medicine, blankets, shelter, food. Much of it has been depleted during the Civil War. And there have been airstrikes on rebel areas,

even with this catastrophic disaster. There is a little bit of hope here tonight, though. Officials say they've detected signs of life from that mountain of rubble. So they're doubling down on recovery efforts tonight. Hallie. A race against time. Janice, thank you. Back here at home tonight, tens of millions of people are at risk of extreme weather from Texas up through Michigan in a major system that could mean flooding, hail and tornadoes now set to head east. Priscilla Thompson is tracking it all from Memphis. A weekend of dangerous weather ripping across the country. This is insane. Tonight, Miami, the latest city getting hit with storms. In Louisiana, neighborhoods near Baton Rouge

underwater after this weekend's torrential rain. Icy roads in South Dakota, no match for this massive semi that slipped right off the interstate, tying up traffic for hours. Misery in the Midwest, too. Look at this. Frozen branches snapping and falling onto power lines, sparking flames. Power out for hundreds of thousands across the Great Lakes. And you can see why. This power station completely covered in ice. These storms, part of a one-two punch, now threatening more than 70 million from the southern plains to the Great Lakes with possible tornadoes, strong winds, and get this, tennis ball-sized hail. The storm expected to march east into tomorrow.

It's going to feel like June throughout the day. It's been a weekend of extreme temperatures, too, with New York City hitting a high of 81. Head north to Vermont, digging out in below freezing temperatures in the 20s. Weather whiplash as millions brace for more treacherous storms ahead. Priscilla is joining us now from Memphis. And Priscilla, the threat where you are is set to intensify tonight. That's right, Hallie. Already we're hearing reports of a possible tornado in southern Mississippi, and there is a high risk of tornadoes here in Memphis into the night.

Hallie? Priscilla Thompson, thank you. Also tonight, President Trump telling NBC News he's not joking about a possible third term, despite the Constitution limiting presidents to just two terms in office. And it comes as one of his closest confidants, Elon Musk, is set to wield his wealth in Wisconsin tonight in a campaign for a key special election, with some critics now concerned Musk's trying to buy the seat. Yamiche Alcindor reports. Tonight, Elon Musk holding a town hall in Green Bay, Wisconsin, under fire, accused of trying to buy an election. Up for grabs, a state Supreme Court seat that could determine the outcome of major issues from abortion rights to congressional redistricting.

Musk and President Trump backing the conservative candidate Brad Schimel in his race against Susan Crawford, the liberal candidate. We're trying to stop the Democrats from gerrymandering Wisconsin to remove two House seats. The billionaire super PAC has offered $100 to Wisconsin voters to sign a petition to oppose so-called activist judges. And tonight, Musk saying he will be personally handing out million dollar checks to two people who signed the petition. The state's Democratic attorney general has asked the state Supreme Court to block Musk from awarding the million-dollar prizes. Wisconsin voters now sounding off. He's trying to buy the election. He's trying to pay people to vote. It's illegal.

I don't think that Musk is doing anything that the left hasn't done for many years. And the difference is, is average people are making a little bit of money. Anger at Musk spilling over into town halls, like this one for Republican Congresswoman Victoria Sparks in Indiana. So that's what is Doge is doing. Doge is actually trying to figure out how to make his voice to work harder. And all of this comes as President Trump told Meet the Press moderator Kristen Welker that he is serious about running for a third term. He said, I'm not joking, and that there are several, quote, methods to do so.

But a third Trump term would violate the U.S. Constitution, which says, quote, no person shall be elected to the office of the president more than twice. Yamiche Alcindor joins us now from West Palm Beach. And Yamiche, given what you just laid out about the 22nd Amendment explicitly saying no president should be elected more than twice, does President Trump have a plan for what he'd try to do? Well, when Kristen asked whether one method could be the vice president, J.D. Vance, running for president and then passing the role on to President Trump, he told her that would be one way and added, quote, but there are others, too. But he declined to share what those could be. Hallie.

Michelle Sindor, thank you. The president labeling Wednesday Liberation Day when he's set to roll out a new round of punishing tariffs. But as some small business owners tell our Vaughn Hilliard, they fear the president's economic policies may be anything but liberating. Tonight, American businesses bracing for uncertainty. We have Liberation Day, as you know, on April 2nd. President Trump saying this Wednesday he'll unveil reciprocal tariffs on a vast number of products from other countries. A tax that he said will be the same amount that other countries put on U.S. goods sold in their respective countries.

This machine does 180 bottles a minute. Port City Brewing Company in Virginia relies on ingredients and supplies from Canada and Mexico. In the Canadian Pilsner malt, there's just no substitute. And obviously we need to have bottle caps and those are produced in Mexico. Somebody will say, wait, do we have bottle caps in the United States you can turn to instead? Well, we don't. Founder Bill Butcher says a pint in his tasting room could go from eight bucks to 12 bucks and a six pack at the store from $12.99 to $18.99. How closely have you been watching these tariff developments? Well, we've been paying, it's been on everybody's mind here,

and we're very, very concerned about the tariffs. Chef Victor Albizu says he expects to soon have to pay more for paper products and items like avocados. But as for raising prices on his customers? If it gets untenable, we'll have to consider it, just like anybody else, any other business. This is the little potato just starting to hook. We first met fourth-generation Idaho potato farmer Rad Orr back in 2018,

during Trump's first trade war. It's our livelihood here. At the time, Mexico, the biggest international importer of Idaho's famous potatoes, retaliated with their own tariffs. Has there been greater effort to export potatoes? Always, yes. And now, like in 2018, Mexico could do it again. Are you supportive of President Trump's this pending trade war? Yes, I am. Short term, it's going to be hard. And long term, it's just hoping that the

manufacturing gets back in this country. Frustration for others. This just makes it impossible for us to plan our business. With a future full of uncertainty. Vaughn Hilliard, NBC News, Alexandria, Virginia. A new warning from the White House aimed at Russia as the president makes clear he's not happy with Vladimir Putin right now. Danielle Hamamjian joins us from London tonight. Danielle, good evening. Good evening, Holly. When Vladimir Putin called for Ukrainian President Volodymyr

Zelensky to be removed, it didn't go down well with President Trump. In his call with Kristen Welker, he said, quote, you could say I was angry, pissed off when Putin said that, you know, when Putin started getting into Zelensky's credibility, because that's not going in the right location. Trump also said that if he was unable to strike a deal with Russia on the war in Ukraine, he would impose tariffs on Russian oil. Trump later adding, if Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine. And if I think it was Russia's fault, which it might not be, but if I think it was Russia's fault, I am going to put secondary tariffs on oil, on all oil coming out of Russia. Hallie. Danielle Hamamjan, thank you.

A key ruling in the case of a missing college student in the Dominican Republic after Sudeikia Kananki disappeared there earlier this month. A judge in the D.R. has now issued a ruling officially closing the case against Joshua Reby, who's believed to be the last person to have seen her alive. He was detained on the island for two weeks, but not charged with any crime. Sad news out of the entertainment world today with the news Richard Chamberlain has died. An Army veteran, the actor starred in the miniseries The Thorn Birds and the original Shogun series. Representatives for Chamberlain said he died Saturday after complications from a stroke. Richard Chamberlain was 90 years old. We're back in a moment with the new research tonight sounding the alarm about a dangerous new type of cholesterol and the promising drug that could treat it.

A health alert tonight about what's being called stealth cholesterol, possibly affecting millions of Americans right now who have no idea they even have it. But as Erica Edwards reports, help may be on the way. It never occurred to 61-year-old Donald Kosak that his heart was at the brink of failure. He never smoked, always exercised, and had normal blood pressure readings. Until eight years ago, when he became short of breath. Long story short, three weeks later, I was getting open heart surgery. I had a quintuple bypass, and the right artery was 100% blocked.

Donald learned he had up to five times the amount of lipoprotein A, a type of cholesterol known to clog arteries and increase blood clots, undetectable in routine blood tests without any known treatment. This stealth cholesterol really could have killed you. Yes, very much so. But new research being presented at a conference by Dr. Steve Nissen, a Cleveland Clinic cardiologist, could offer hope. This will be a major therapeutic advance for the 64 million Americans that have this disorder. Would this be a game changer when it comes to cardiology? It is certainly a really major breakthrough. It's a drug that when injected

reduces levels of lipoprotein A by 94% for six months. The drug called lepidicerin targets the mechanism or mRNA in the body that makes this type of cholesterol, essentially shooting the messenger, promising research for patients like Donald Kosek without any other options. You know, my hope is if I can do everything I can and keep it at bay and then the drugs come on the market, it'll be that much better. And offer hope for millions of Americans who don't even know they're at risk for heart disease. Erica Edwards, NBC News. When we come back, there's good news tonight about the videos giving a whole new meaning to bird's eye view.

There's good news tonight about a new generation discovering an old fashioned hobby with a high tech twist. It's a caught on camera reality show, thrilling a new generation of bird watchers, so-called smart feeders with cameras connected to your phone, offering a front row seat andclose and personal window into a world we don't always see. Florida mom Melissa Kirkland got hers this past Christmas. This is not something you've been obsessed with your whole life. It's nothing I'd ever been interested in before. As soon as the smart feeder connected to my phone and I was getting those notifications that a painted bunting or an eastern bluebird would land on my feeder. It just was such joy. Melissa started sharing her videos online and soon her friend Jennifer Malzacher wanted one too. There we go. Now they're both hooked. All right, that's good. Calling this new hobby a game changer for their families.

What was your reaction when you first started seeing these pop up? It actually made me feel really happy that I was providing them food and like a safe place to come. My kids got a really huge kick out of that, too. The apps even giving stats on the types of birds and recognizing repeat visitors, like Melissa's favorite, the painted bunting. Jennifer honoring her loved ones with names like Dennis for this cardinal and that eastern blue bird. That's Penny. Do you feel like it's part of sort of this environmental push for both of you or making you more interested than you used to be in the environment? I mean, absolutely. It just

makes you more aware of nature overall. When I see these birds, I think to myself, as long as the birds are coming to my feeder, something good is happening in the environment around me. And I want to contribute to that. Golden crown kinglet right here. It's an awareness giving new hope to old school bird watchers like Todd Winston. He's New York City's Bird Alliance urban biodiversity specialist. In this moment, the natural world is under attack all over the world from climate change, from loss of habitat, pollution. It's so important that people understand the beauty of nature around them, come to know it, to love it, and to want to protect it. And now, some high-tech help for folks flocking to make new connections.

It has become a big source of comfort for me. I feel like, especially within my little orbit, people are wanting to get back to the basics and nature, and it's really special. And that's Nightly News for this Sunday. I'm Hallie Jackson. For all of us here at nbc news thanks for watching and have a great week