NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas - Monday, February 23, 2026

Episode Date: February 24, 2026

Record setting blizzard slams Northeast; Historic blizzard grounds nearly all air travel in Northeast; American tourists scramble amid cartel violence in Mexico; and more on tonight’s broadcast. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tonight, the blizzard of 26, one of the biggest snowstorms ever blasts the East Coast, dumping nearly two feet of snow across major cities. Power outages and flight cancellations piling up right now. The powerful winter storm crippling the northeast, blinding snow and hurricane force winds. Driver stranded. The ambulance trapped in the snow, more than half a million Americans without power. Coastal flooding swamping neighborhoods, Providence, Rhode Island, hit with the most no-fall ever on record. Air travel meltdown, thousands of flights canceled as major hubs are left paralyzed by the storm. Plus, Al Roker standing by tracking a new round of snow on the way.

Violence erupting in popular tourist spots in Mexico, Americans ordered to shelter in place. Cars and buses set on fire after the country's most want to be. drug lord is killed. We speak with a man who says his rental car was taken at gunpoint by gang members. Mara Lago intruder shot and killed. The new details about the 21-year-old who brought a shotgun and a gas can to the president's Florida home. Why was FBI director Cash Patel drinking and parting at the Olympics during an official trip on taxpayers' dime? Republicans now joining Democrats in calling for a Texas congressman to resign. What newly obtained text messages reveal about the relationship between Representative Tony Gonzalez

and his staffer who later took her own life, the son of Rob Reiner in court, pleading not guilty to killing his parents. And the heroes welcome home for the U.S. men's hockey team, the water cannon salute for the team as they landed and our interview with Jack Hughes on his golden goal and how many teeth he lost. Nightly News starts right now. This is NBC Nightly News with Tom Yamas. And good evening. We begin tonight with that historic blizzard that brought some of the biggest cities in the U.S. to a standstill. The record-setting storm measured not in inches, but in feet of snow. In New England, take a look, some parts digging out from nearly three feet of

snow, and it is still coming down. And you can see power lines down there. Hundreds of thousands are now without power in this freezing weather. In New York, the snow is stranding anything on wheels, including this plow truck that fell right through a New York City Street. And in New Jersey, a total white out across the state with the dig out just getting started. Officials bringing in heavy construction equipment to get that job done. And you can see just how massive the storm was as it ripped up the East Coast. And now the cleanup may be complicated by more snowstorms on the way. Out Roker standing by for that and our team, you see them here, spread out across the storm zone. We begin tonight with Emily Aketa live in New York and Emily, snow walls forming all across

this city. Tom, that's absolutely right. You'll find these massive snow piles across the northeast with some 2,300 snow piles working to clear the roads in New York City alone, which just experience one of its top 10 worst snowstorms in the city's history. Tonight, a record-setting blizzard bearing down on millions of Americans and turning travel treacherous in the northeast with zero visibility. Drivers pushing and pulling cars stuck in snow. You barely can make out this one and first responders braving brutal conditions. Overnight rare thunder snow lit up New York City. There was again.

Wow. While wind gusts topping 80 miles an hour wreaked havoc along the East Coast. Oh, it's getting strong here. Downing trees and power lines. More than half a million Americans without power today, from Virginia to Massachusetts. Look how these windows froze over. When it comes to power restoration,

the issue really isn't going to be crews. We've got the cruise. The issue is going to be access. So when does the wind die down enough so that it's safe for people to get out? in bucket trucks. Seven governors declared states of emergency as some plows and emergency vehicles struggled to navigate the snow falling at two, even three inches an hour today. More than two feet of snow has been recorded in parts of five states. Nicole Motor is in Rhode Island. Here in Rhode Island, this blizzard is shattering records. Providence getting more than 30 inches of snow,

the most it's ever seen. The nor'easter crippling air, rail, and roadway travel. in one of the most populated corridors of the U.S. I've got another scarf. I've got a two pair of pants. I have on a t-shirt, a sweater, and a coat. Evan Blair dug out his car from nearly 20 inches of snow in New York City. The road conditions are pretty slippery, pretty wet, so it would be very difficult to drive or even walk through any of the roads. Well, here's an unusual site in New York City,

quiet roadways because of a travel ban impacting part of today to make room for snow plows and emergency workers in these treacherous conditions. Our teams capturing similar scenes in cities across the region facing travel restrictions, including in New Jersey, where coastal residents are also contending with flooding as this February blizzard carves a path of destruction. Emily joins us now live. Emily, more snow on the way. Will cities and towns have enough time to clean up before the next round? Well, Tom, with snow everywhere you turn, it is a race against time for so many cities across. the northeast. And in addition to the cleanup, a big concern remaining tonight, power outages. Power crews, according to officials, are waiting for the roads to be cleared and the winds to die down to restore power to hundreds of thousands, Tom. It's going to be a long night for so many.

All right, Emily Aketa leading us off. In Massachusetts, there's seen hurricane force winds and more than two and a half feet in parts. NBC Boston's Bianca Beltrane joins us live. And Bianca, it's still snowing downtown where you are? It is, Tom. And normally, Quincy Market would be packed with tourists tonight. Instead, it's a ghost town. The only thing filling the streets around here are snow piles. And if you walk with me over here, you'll see some of them are already towering over our heads. Here behind us, you could see a plow doing the work that's been going on all day, but the city has been pummeled with two inches of snow per hour and peak wind gusts of 61 miles per hour. Officials warn that these snow piles

aren't going anywhere. The combination of heavy snow and wind mean that Boston will likely be dealing with the aftermath of this blizzard for days, if not weeks to come. Tom? So much snow there on the ground in Boston. All right, Bianca, we thank you. Parts of New Jersey are almost unrecognizable after this monster storm buried entire neighborhoods under two feet of snow. Valerie Castro is there with her team. And Valerie, as you made your way into one neighborhood, the sheer volume of the blizzard became clear. That's right, Tom. And tonight the cleanup is getting underway. You can see that plow truck behind me, but this region saw some of the most impressive snow totals out of this storm, 26 inches here in Freehold, burying cars like this one. That is a Kia

underneath that mound of snow. All of this wet, heavy snow causing a lot of power outages throughout the state at one point. More than 100,000 customers reporting they did not have power. We have seen utility companies out and about working to get things restored. But people in neighborhoods like this, they'll be cleaning up for the next several days and digging out. The family that owns this truck tells me it took two hours just to make this much progress today. Tom? Two hours and it still looks like it's stuck. All right.

Valerie, we thank you for that. This historic blizzard grounded virtually all air travel in the northeast. And that, of course, has a ripple effect across the entire country. Tom Costello covers aviation for us. And Tom, how's it looking tonight into tomorrow? Well, if you're flying out of Washington Reagan Airport, you can fly south. No problem. You're not going to be able to fly north.

In fact, nothing has been going into or out of the Northeast all day. Here are the latest numbers. We've at the moment got about 5,700 flight cancellations nationwide. That's according to Flight Aware. And then when you're looking at the delays, we're at about 2,900 delays. You add how many flight cancellations we had yesterday. We're now up to about 9,100 flight cancellations nationwide. And again, nothing going into or out of the Northeast.

So that means other airports are feeling the effect, right? Chicago, for example, Denver, Miami, any airport that feeds into or takes flights from the Northeast has been dealing with flight cancellations as well today. When will they be able to recover? Well, the airport say they got to dig out, and that's going to be not just the runways, but the parking lots as well. So at a minimum, we're talking 48 hours, maybe 72 before air travel resumes to normal operation. Back to you. And it's going to be a messy week from here. All right, Tom, we thank you for that. It's time to bring it Al Roke or Al historic amounts of snow and already we're seeing maybe two more storms coming through.

That's right. The good news, Tom. They're not going to be anywhere near as bad as this. As you can see, we've got 17 million people under winter storm warnings, blizzard warnings as well. Some of them expiry tonight, others tomorrow. You can see the system now moving away. But here comes that one system coming across. It's going to bring snow across the Great Lakes tomorrow into the northeast tomorrow night and Wednesday. And then we move on into Thursday. Another area comes in bringing icy conditions. to the Tennessee Valley, more snow into the northeast. Lighter amounts anywhere from four to eight inches of snow internally. But the good news, Tom, it's nowhere near as cold as it was with that last system. And so this should get a chance to melt relatively quickly. Okay, winter's

not going away easy. All right, Al. We thank you for that. We want to turn out to our other major story. Those dramatic images coming from Mexico, a wave of drug cartel violence, sparked by Mexican troops killing a notorious drug lord. And we're hearing from Americans at popular resorts there who scrambled the safety and are still stuck there. Here's George Solis. Tonight, those stunning scenes of destruction across Mexico. Buildings and cars lit on fire in a wave of drug cartel violence. Stores sprayed with bullets, including in Puerto Vallarta,

a resort popular with Americans. That white SUV in flames is Yoni Pizer's rental car, taken, he says, by cartel members. He approached the car, pointed his guns at my head. and said in Spanish yelling, get out of the car, get out of the car. He says the cartel members appear to want the vehicle as a roadblock. The cartel's unleashing violence after Mexican special forces killed notorious drug boss, Nemesio Ruben Osugera Servantes, also known as El Mencho,

who ran the Halisco New Generation Cartel. And tonight, Mexican officials revealing they learned El Menchel's location by tracking one of his mistresses. The U.S. also provided intelligence for the operation, according to the White House. At least 25 Mexican soldiers were killed. Just yesterday, this was the alarming scene in Guadahara Airport. Panicked passengers scrambling with their luggage. Telemundo's Julio Bakero is there tonight. Today, the Guadalajara International Airport is slowly going back to normal.

You can see operations coming back. However, you can also feel the tension hanging in the silence. American tourist, Adrian Moorfield, like so many others, eager to get. at home. The uncertainty of when all of this is going to clear up, it makes you question when we're going to be able to make it home to our loved one safely. Today, Mexico's president urging calm, but the U.S. State Department warns flights are still being disrupted and ask American tourists in areas that saw some of the worst of the unrest to continue to shelter in place. Tom? George, release for us, George, thank you. President Trump reacting tonight after that alarming

security incident at his home in Mar-a-Lago. Authorities say officers shot and killed an armed intruder who breached the security perimeter. Here's Gabe Gutierrez. Tonight, President Trump's speaking out after another alarming security threat. I don't know how long I'll be around. Got a lot of people gun inform me, don't I have? The president was at the White House early Sunday as law enforcement agents shot and killed an intruder at Mar-a-Lago. Two law enforcement sources identifying the suspect as 21-year-old Austin Tucker Martin from North Carolina. Now investigators are trying to determine why he allegedly breached the property's security perimeter around 1.30 a.m. carrying what appeared to be a gas can and a shotgun.

Police say he was ordered to drop them. He put down the gas can, raised the shotgun to a shooting position. At that point in time, the deputy and the two secret service agents fired their weapons. President Trump faced two assassination attempts in 2024. You read about all these crazy shooters, but they only go after consequential. presidents. While this investigation is underway, the FBI director is facing backlash for celebrating with the American men's hockey team in Milan. Cash Patel, a longtime hockey fan, can be seen drinking a beer and springing and in the locker room. Also, holding the phone, as President Trump addressed the players. Patel says he traveled to the Olympics to meet with his Italian counterparts since the U.S.

helped provide security, and that he was invited to celebrate a historic moment by his friends on the team. An FBI spokesperson says Patel would reimburse any personal expenses. Tom? Gabe, we thank you for that. We're going to stay in Washington because there are new calls tonight for Texas Congressman Tony Gonzalez to resign with the revelation of sexually explicit text messages between the lawmaker and a former aide who died by suicide. Here's Ryan Nobles. Tonight, some Republicans now joining Democrats calling for embattled Texas Republican Congressman Tony Gonzalez to resign. as we're now seeing sexually explicit text messages between the lawmaker and a member of his staff who took her own life.

The texts were obtained by NBC News and confirmed by the attorney for the husband of Regina Santos Havilas. In one of them, Gonzalez wrote, quote, Send me a sexy pick and mentioned multiple sexual acts. Santos Avillas replied, This is too far, Tony, and, Please tell me you didn't just hire me because I was hot. Gonzalez replied, no way. The texts are only from one day and do not address if there was a physical relationship. Gonzalez did not respond to our requests for comment on the texts.

Santos Avillas's husband has accused Gonzalez of having an affair with her. Gonzalez has previously denied the allegations of an affair, but now accusing his opponent in a hotly contested GOP primary of personal smears. Tonight, several Republican members of Congress have called on Gonzalez to resign or quit the race. We pressed House Speaker Mike Johnson. Do you still support Tony Gonzalez's re-election right now, Mr. Speaker? I endorse, Tony, before all these allegations came out, they're obviously very serious. It's too early for anybody to prejudge any of that, but we'll see how it develops.

The House Ethics Committee cannot review a report from the Office of Congressional Conduct on this matter until after the primary. It's against House rules for a member to have a romantic relationship with a staffer. Tom. Ryan Nobles. Ryan, we thank you for that. All right, when we come back, Lindsay Vaughn shares what almost happened to her leg after that horrifying crash at the Olympics. That's next. We're back now with former British ambassador to the U.S. Peter Mandelson arrested in the U.K.

on suspicion of misconduct in office. It comes after the release of emails that appear to show him leaking sensitive political information to Jeffrey Epstein. Mandelson has denied any wrongdoing. And in Los Angeles, in a courtroom, Nick Reiner pleaded not guilty in the court. the killing of his parents, Rob Reiner and his wife, Michelle. Nick Reiner is charged with two counts of murder, and the prosecutor is considering the death penalty in that case. And new tonight, Lindsay Vaughn, sharing an update on her broken leg following that catastrophic

crash at the Olympics, Vaughn sharing that surgery saved her leg from being amputated and that she's out of the hospital now, adding it will take a year for the bones in her leg to heal. When we come back in 60 seconds, the boys are back in town. Team USA, all smiles, and some with more teeth than others as they arrive in Miami from the ice in Milan. Stay with us. What a sight. We are back with that major victory on ice. The U.S. men's hockey team returning home wearing the gold medals they won, America's first in 46 years. Here's Stephanie Gossk. United States with numbers.

It's a victory 46 years in the making. Rock across it comes. A nail biter that went into overtime. Jack Hughes coming up with the golden goal. U.S. fans in Milan and at home jumped with joy. Even though earlier in the game he took a brutal stick to the mouth, Hughes proudly showed off the war wounds. Just so proud to be American, so proud that, you know, USA hockey has done what it's done. I caught up with him later at the team party.

of the teeth came out tonight. Count for me, Helly. One, two, three, four, maybe five. That's Connor Hellebuck standing next to Hughes, the other hero of the game, stopping 41 shots, including this wild save behind his back. Unbelievable. How lucky was that, honestly? Yeah, why did you do that, well, you think you got the whole net, but you really don't, you know? In the moments after their historic win, the team took time to honor Johnny Goodro. Tragically killed. while cycling with his brother in 2024. Players held his jersey and his children in the team photo.

Johnny's widow, Meredith, watched from the crowd. You know, the kids got to be a part of it, and to me that means everything. I think it would mean the world to him. It's just a memory that I'll cherish forever. Tonight, the team is back home, routed through Miami because of the snow,

they got a water cannon salute. The reality of what they pulled off, their own legacy, just sinking in. for the first time since the 1980 miracle. Stephanie Gosk, NBC News, Milan. All right, that does it for us tonight. That's nightly news for this Monday. I'm Tom Yamas.

Thanks so much for watching tonight, and always we're here for you. Good night.