NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Wednesday, January 22, 2025

Episode Date: January 23, 2025

Large new wildfire forces more evacuations in Southern California; Winter storm causes more chaos in the South; Deadly shooting as teen gunman opens fire in Tennessee high school, police say; and more on tonight’s broadcast.

Tonight, two major stories as we come on the air. The explosive new wildfire forcing evacuations in Southern California and the dangerous deep freeze across the South. First, that new inferno in Los Angeles County rapidly spreading to more than 5,000 acres in just over two hours. The race to escape, more than 30,000 under evacuation orders or warnings. The fast-moving flames threatening homes, buildings, even schools. Red flag warnings in effect. Our team in the fire zone. Also tonight, the deadly once-in-a-lifetime winter storm paralyzing the South. In Atlanta, vehicles abandoned, ice covering the roads.

New Orleans seeing a record-breaking 10 inches of snow. We're tracking it all. The deadly shooting in a high school cafeteria in Nashville, one student killed. The shooter, a 17-year-old, also dead. The chilling scenes at the latest school to fall victim to gun violence. The growing fallout from President Trump's January 6th pardons, the far-right leaders walking free. The head of the Proud Boys at Miami Airport,

his threat of retribution. The Oath Keepers founder seen at the Capitol. And on immigration, the president's plan to send more than a thousand troops to the border. This is NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt. Good evening and welcome. As we come on the air tonight, a new major fire is raging out of control in Los Angeles County. Within just a few hours, the fire in the Castaic area north of L.A. exploding to over 5,000 acres. Santa Ana winds generating gusts over 30 miles per hour with stronger winds forecast into this evening. At a local high school, a chaotic evacuation. Students rushing to safety against the ominous glow of the fast-moving inferno just

over the horizon. Mandatory evacuation orders are in place with many structures threatened. Aerial tankers have been dropping fire retardant on the advancing flames, while some residents arming themselves with garden hoses to protect their homes. This latest wildfire striking a region still reeling from the devastation of the deadly Eaton and Palisades fires. Liz Kreutz is on the fire line tonight with the latest in what they're now calling the Hughes Fire. Liz. Yeah, Lester, this is a fast moving fire. You can see the flames here coming down the hillside. It's been moving acres by the minute.

You can see the smoke right now, all fueled by these strong winds. This is what officials have been worried about and warning about all week. Let's get out. Let's go. Tonight, a new fast-moving wildfire torching the hills north of Los Angeles. Mandatory evacuation order. Forcing evacuations in the town of Castaic, including homes on both sides of Interstate 5, jails and schools, sending students running.

The Hughes fire igniting just after 11 and quickly exploding in size to more than 5,000 acres with zero containment. This neighborhood is under a mandatory evacuation order, but instead of getting out, many residents are doing this, hosing down their homes and property. My wife, my animals were ready to go. The fire fueled by single digit humidity, bone dry brush and strong winds, relentless conditions that have plagued Southern California now for more than two weeks. How worried are you about all this? Very, obviously. Since the devastating Eaton and Palisades fires demolished more than 16,000 structures, tonight new red flag warnings leaving the county on high alert.

As previous fire victims continue to struggle, now a new concern about identity theft. Judy and Stefan Zweig say they're the victims of FEMA fraud. Everybody over the weekend was saying, okay, you're at your lowest. This is it. No, we weren't quite at the bottom. Maybe now we are. When the couple went to apply for federal aid, they say they were told someone already had, using Stephens' name, address, and social security, leaving them locked out of the process and unable to access any disaster relief. You just feel sort of abandoned. You just feel like, you know, what more could happen? What else is going to happen next? FEMA telling NBC News in a statement that despite safeguards

in place, unfortunately, bad actors sometimes exploit disaster situations. Victims of fraud should contact FEMA's hotline. Just one more layer of anxiety for a state on edge that continues to burn. Liz Kreutz, NBC News, Los Angeles. And in the South, at least four weather-related deaths have been reported as snow, ice, and record-breaking cold create paralyzing conditions this part of the country rarely, if ever, sees. Priya Sridhar is in Atlanta, where millions struggle to get around today. Priya. That's right, Lester. Local officials tell me they've received thousands of weather-related calls. And even though traffic is moving right now, the concern is that temperatures are expected to drop below freezing, which could create more icy road conditions.

Millions in the South in the grips of severe weather in a region rarely slammed with snow just outside of atlanta slick roads stalled cars some hoping the sun would melt the ice get you a little spot and just wait it out you know i'm not saying it's simple but it's smarter drivers at a standstill on this highway in Georgia for more than 12 hours. We're going to be here in a minute. In DeKalb County, officials issuing a state of emergency, urging residents to shelter in place. We have also treated more than 500 tons of roads with sand, of course, salt and calcium chloride. So this is a very serious condition that we're facing. Atlanta's airport hit with just over one inch of snow.

Airport officials say some TSA officers struggle to get to work. Wait times for travelers up to 90 minutes. Passengers finally moving at Tampa's airport, where dozens of flights were delayed and canceled. Had a day, like it's been three days, and it's only been like a day. In Jacksonville, Florida, officials say three bridges are now open again after multiple crashes closed them. In Louisiana, cities are blanketed in snow. A historic 10 inches swept parts of New Orleans overnight. Tonight, tens of thousands remain without power along the Gulf, as many worry major disruptions could continue for days to come. Priya Shrether, NBC News, Atlanta, Georgia.

And Bill Cairns is here in Bureau. We're going to talk about the historic freeze in the South in a second, but let's start with the winds and the fire danger in the West. Horrible timing, Lester, for the Hughes Fire. Santa Ana winds are returning and they're going to get even stronger later on tonight. 10 million people included, including where the Hughes Fire is located, all the way down outside of San Diego. Specifically for the Hughes Fire, later tonight, the firefighters are going to be fighting this blaze with like a strong tropical storm winds around 50 to 65 to 70 mile per hour wind gusts. We're going to have extreme fire growth and hopefully they'll keep those aircraft in the air fighting the blaze. As far as the cold goes today, a lot of the snow melted, but it kind of got slushy. Tonight is going to turn to a rock once again. The ice is going to form very dangerous,

treacherous conditions, Lester, till tomorrow afternoon when it begins to finally melt away. All right, Bill, thanks for the update. Moments of terror today at a high school near Nashville as a 17-year-old shooter opened fire in the school cafeteria, killing one student and wounding another before taking his own life, according to police. Jesse Kirsch now has late details. These were the chaotic moments deadly gunfire erupted inside Antioch High School, followed by the realization of what had happened. Police say just after 11 a.m., 17-year-old Solomon Henderson, armed with a pistol, opened fire inside his Nashville area school's cafeteria,

killing 16-year-old Jocelyn Correa Escalante. Police say a bullet grazed another 17-year-old boy before the shooter killed himself. We believe there's some materials out there, and if maybe they were seen and said something, maybe more could have been done. Investigators do not yet know if this was a targeted attack but say there is no ongoing threat to the community. Hours after the attack students evacuated by the busload. This teen says the shooter was her classmate. He was not a kid that you would think would do something like that. He stayed on task. He did his work. He was quiet. One mother describing a call from her panicking son. He said, mom, they're shooting. I said, where are you? And he said, I'm outside now. I'm running. I said, just running high,

stay low. I'm on my way. They were later reunited. The son says he heard gunshots and screams. We ran behind the garbage cans. We saw people getting shot on the ground, bleeding and stuff. It's really heartbreaking because it's like just seeing someone, you know, just die like in front of your face like that. It breaks my heart that it's normal. It should not be normal. Police also say a student who was not shot fell and injured his face. Tonight, the search for a motive continues. Lester. Okay, Jesse, thank you. Now to President Trump. Announcing more dramatic changes tonight,

including ending federal government diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that he views as discriminatory. Here's Gabe Gutierrez. From the government agencies that oversee air travel to public health to criminal justice, the debate over diversity is exploding throughout the country. Making good on a campaign promise tonight, President Trump is slashing all diversity, equity, and inclusion programs across the federal government.

We will forge a society that is colorblind and merit-based. The president signing an executive order his first day back in the White House. It's a big deal. Merit. Our country is going to be based on merit again. Can you can you believe it? And overnight, this new government memo saying DEI policies result in shameful discrimination and directing federal agencies to place all DEI employees on paid leave by this evening. After the murder of George Floyd and the social justice movement it sparked in 2020, DEI programs flourished across private companies and the federal government. The values of diversity, equity, and inclusion are the core strength of America.

But since then, conservative activists have railed against the programs. And after Trump's re-election, major companies like Walmart, McDonald's and Meta, Facebook's parent company, have scrapped their DEI programs. It's one thing to say we want to be kind of like welcoming and make a good environment for everyone. And I think it's another to basically say that masculinity is bad. One of the president's executive orders directs the attorney general to submit recommendations for enforcing federal civil rights laws to encourage the private sector to end DEI. Another out today revokes an executive order signed by President Lyndon Johnson in 1965 that the Trump administration says mandated affirmative action. Tonight, the Congressional Black Caucus calling Trump's changes an attempt to take our country backward. Diversity, equity, inclusion programs is really

teaching us how to all work together in a positive way for a common goal. Former Facebook employee Bari Williams helped create one of the company's canceled diversity initiatives. People think that that equates to lowering the bar. It isn't lowering the bar. It's casting a wider net. It's not yet clear how many federal workers this will impact. Some career employees may have job protections that make it harder to fire them. Lester. All right. Gay Gutierrez at the White House. Thanks. And growing fallout from President Trump's pardons for the January 6th defendants. Two far right leaders convicted of seditious conspiracy walking free.

We're also learning new details about the president's crackdown at the border. Peter Alexander is at the White House. They're the haunting images of the armed assault on the Capitol four years ago that resulted in more than 1,100 convictions. Tonight, one of the most prominent, Enrique Tarrio, head of the far-right Proud Boys, who was found guilty of seditious conspiracy seen at Miami airport after his release under President Trump's sweeping pardons. Tarrio earlier with this ominous warning. I'm happy that the president's focusing not on retribution and focusing on success. But I will tell you that I'm not going to play by those rules. The people who did this, they need to feel the heat. Republican Lisa Murkowski tonight rebuking the decision to pardon violent offenders.

You just blanket pardon all of them without consequence. I think that that sounds sends a horrible message to our law enforcement officers. Spotted inside the Capitol today, Stuart Rhodes, head of the far-right extremist group the Oath Keepers, who was just released after serving less than two years of an 18-year sentence for directing his members during the riot. The federal judge at Rhodes' 2023 sentencing warning, the moment you are released, whenever that may be, you'll be ready to take up arms against your government. Retired Capitol Police Sergeant Aquilino Ganel was one of the officers injured. Telling NBC News it's a betrayal. They were doing the fighting on his behalf.

That's the only reason he pardoned them. President Trump telling us he strongly backs police. I am the friend of police more than any president that's ever been in this office. We pressed him yesterday. Vice President J.D. Vance, he said, if this is a week ago, he said, if you committed violence on January 6th, obviously you should not be pardoned. Why is your vice president wrong? Well, only for one reason. They've served years in jail. President Trump also taking new action to secure the southern border. The White House announcing the deployment of 1500 active duty military and National Guard House announcing the deployment of 1,500 active duty military and National Guard troops and the suspension of all migrant border crossings, including blocking

asylum seekers from entering the U.S. And Peter, we've just learned the first law President Trump will sign is also related to immigration. Yeah, Lester, that's right. The Republican House just passed the Lake and Riley Act, named after a Georgia nursing student murdered by an undocumented migrant. That migrant had previously been arrested for shoplifting but was not detained. The new law will require ICE to detain migrants who are arrested for burglary or shoplifting. Lester. All right. Peter Alexander tonight. Thank you. In 60 seconds, a legal battle over police and deadly force. Was the shooting of a Texas motorist justified? The arguments before the Supreme Court next.

All right, we're back now with a potential landmark Supreme Court case. The justice is hearing arguments over a deadly police shooting in Texas in 2016. Laura Jarrett now on the possible nationwide impact. It happened in just seconds. 24-year-old Ashton Barnes pulled over on the side of this Texas highway. The rental car he was driving believed to have outstanding toll violations. Officer Roberto Felix Jr. appearing on the driver's side door, soon drawing his gun, prompting Barnes to take off as Felix jumps onto the car's running board and fires, killing Barnes at the scene. Now, nearly a decade later, Barnes's mother, Janice Hughes, hoping the U.S. Supreme Court will change how courts treat these deadly police

encounters nationwide. I really honestly know that in my heart, Ashton did not deserve it out of there. Took a piece of me, an entire piece of me that I can never get back. I have to learn how to live with that missing piece. A grand jury declined to indict Officer Felix on criminal charges, but Hughes brought a civil lawsuit that has faced an uphill battle. Lower courts finding Felix did not use excessive force. Their inquiry into his actions confined. Focused only on the question of whether he reasonably believed he was in danger in the seconds before he shot Barnes. Felix saying this at the time. I got asked, why did you fire your weapon? Well, when it started to drive off, I felt that I was going to get run over.

In arguments today, the justices wrestling with whether to say courts must broaden their inquiry and consider all the events leading up to a shooting, which could include officers putting themselves at risk. Some of the justices appearing wary that could make it more difficult for police to do their jobs. What's an officer supposed to do when at a traffic stop and someone pulls away, just let them go? No matter the outcome, Hughes says she had to fight for her son. This could be anybody. I could be anyone's mother sitting here right now. Laura Jarrett, NBC News. We're going to take a break

here. Up next, the major legal settlement and reported big payout for Prince Harry as he ends his long-running legal battle with Rupert Murdoch's tabloids. Prince Harry declaring a major legal victory tonight after settling a lawsuit with Rupert Murdoch's tabloids in the UK. Megan Fitzgerald now with more from London. Tonight, Prince Harry settling his years-long legal battle with a British tabloid, winning a substantial payout and a rare apology. His lawyer calling it a monumental victory. Today, the lies are laid bare. Today, the cover-ups are exposed. And today proves that no one stands above the law. The settlement between the Duke of Sussex and Rupert Murdoch's newsgroup, Newspapers, came hours before a highly anticipated trial was set to begin over whether NGN-owned tabloid, The Sun, used illegal tactics to score scoops about Harry's life. As part of the

settlement, NGN offering Harry a full and unequivocal apology for the serious intrusion into his private life, including incidents of unlawful activities carried out by private investigators working for The Sun. NGN also apologizing to Harry for phone hacking and surveillance at a now shuttered tabloid and for intrusion into the private life of Princess Diana, his late mother. For Harry, the crusade against the tabloids has long been personal. The goal is accountability. It's really that simple. And Lester, tonight, Harry's attorneys are now calling for a criminal investigation into NGN.

Lester. Megan, thanks. And that's nightly news for this Wednesday. Thank you for watching. I'm Lester Holt. Please take care of yourself and each other. Good night.