Good Morning El Paso 12.24.15

deadly tornados tore through the middle of the country–we’ll show you the damage after a day of severe weather. one year later—family and friends gather in east el paso to remember 3 victims of a deadly crash… and we are just one day from the big party leading up to the sunbowl game this weekend, we have all you need to know for the family friendly event downtown. / a very good morning el paso, las cruces, and juarez. i’m stephanie valle. a live look at stormtrack doppler radar is showing… currently around our region… here’s your day planner for today… expect skies, winds and temperatures in the by 8 am, by noon and for your drive home around 5 pm. we’ll talk more about what to expect for the rest of this work week and the weekend ahead coming up in your full forecast. a dangerous and deadly storm system swept through the country sparking tornadoes, killing several people in several states. officials are still searching for missing residents. abc’s kenneth moton has the latest from washington. / caught on camera overnight… nat “oh! i thin that’s a tornado a-blowin’ up!” a strong line of powerful and deadly storms churned up tornadoes from the midwest to the south last night. indiana, iowa, mississippi and tennesee survived nearly two dozen confirmed twisters that left 8 people dead and 40 more injured. natsot – “i can’t stic around here – gotta go find some cover.” in holl springs, northern mississippi, a 7 year old boy was among the dead. this region was under the biggest threat…about 4 million people took cover as a massive funnel cloud tore across the area. drivers were caught on the roads trying to figure out how to escape. sot – “back it up no! you ain’t got time to turn around!” natsot – woman – “there’s a tornado in front of us.” man – “settle down.” nat chainsaw tennessee, the work to clear vital roads began overnight after those strong winds threw vehicles around, ripped down power lines and destroyed homes. tornado damage here…but out west, more severe weather. the roads were a snowy mess in utah impacting traffic. 80 mile per hour wind gust in mojave california tore the roof off this building and toppled tractor trailers on this major freeway. sot – it’s scary. i don’t like this truck rocking big rigs were banned from that california highway until the winds died down. in the midwest and south, there are states of emergency as residents try to pick up the pieces on this christmas eve. kenneth moton, abc news washington. back here in el paso — it’s been one year since three people were killed in a crash on christmas eve. brothers — joshua and isaiah deal along with shannon del rio were driving to their mother’s house when police say joel garcia was driving drunk and crashed into them. he’s currently out on bond. in a dimly lit spot off of loop 375-the crowds gathered. friends and family of the deal brothers lit candles in their memory. in the center ricardo and dee cisneros they are joshua and isiah’s mother and father. ” “first it’s shock because yo don’t believe it then you grieve then it’s constant ups and downs” the parents also lit candles by the roadside memorial only yards away from the crash that changed their lives. and even though many have come in support and offer hugs of compassion they say there isn’t a day that goes by that they don’t rember the boys. ” “songs that come on. smell movies” “i miss isaiah laugh..he had a very infectious laugh” “anything.. everything is a reminder” but as much as this vigil is to reflect on the joshua-isaiah and shannon it’s also a stark reminder to everyone about the danger of drinking and driving. garcia is facing three counts of intoxicated manslaughter seven people are alive and well following a plane crash in colorado. the plane took off from el paso and crashed as it attempted to land in telluride colorado. five passengers and two crewmen on board survived the crash after the twin-engine plane struck a snow plow. the snow plow driver estimated the plane was still traveling about 100 miles per hour when it struck him from behind. he too was ok. these pictures come from the san miguel county sheriff’s office in colorado. we don’t know the names of the passengers — but the sheriff’s office says there were no injuries. still no word on what caused a woman to crash into a home in east el paso. the woman was killed. it happened yesterday morning on the 18-hundred block of dale douglas near trawood. police say 35-year- old amanda hopkins — lost control of the car she was driving and slammed into the home. she also struck a vehicle that was parked in the driveway. hopkins was taken to the hospital where she later died. meanwhile… new information on the man hit by an 18- wheeler on the freeway on tuesday. el paso police say the man was trying kill himself. he remains alive, hospitalized in critical condition. it happened on i-10 west near the mcrae exit in east el paso. traffic came to a standstill and the freeway was shutdown for about 3 hours. the family of a man killed in a motorocycle wreck on monday — is asking for help to pay for his funeral. a “go fund me” account has bee set up for 23-year- old eder rene romero. romero was riding his bike when he was hit by the driver of a car who failed to yield the right of way to him. it happened just after 10 o’clock monday night on the 18-hundred block of zaragoza. at this time the driver of the car is not facing any charges. it’s going to be a somber christmas for the university of new mexico football team. university officials say a member of the team died in a car crash. a u-n-m spokesman confirmed today 20- year-old markel byrd was killed in a single-vehicle accident near gallup when one of his car’s tires blew out on i-40. byrd and his girlfriend were thrown out of the car. the woman has not been identified, but is reportedly in critical condition. byrd — a sophmore — played safety for the lobos and tied for the team lead in interceptions. head coach bob davie says byrd was an outstanding person and student- athlete. now it’s time to take a look at the tx-dot traffic cams… we’re just a couple of days away from the sun bowl… and there’s still more to come before the game for sun bowl week! abc-7’s andrew j. polk is live with a preview. good morning andrew. good morning stephanie. remember, the sun bowl is a different day this year, saturday the 26th… which means the fan fiesta is tomorrow! nats – bands and from years past, we know there’s a lot going on. there will be the battle of the university bands with miami and washington state’s best in a blowout before the big game… and there will also be fireworks, food, fund and more. events will be starting at 4 pm tomorrow at the downtown convention center… going all the way until 9 pm. you can find all the details linked on our website, k-v-i-a dot com. you may also be wondering about the date for this year’s event – christmast evening. but coming up in the next half hour… what the sun bowl president has to say about the plans and why you sholuld plan on coming out. stephanie? we have much more to come here on good morning el paso —- another mission to mars is being postponed—why a problem with the rover is causing the set back that could be longer than expected. and later— beijing is tightening security today as embassies warn of possible threats this chrsitmas. / stormtracker iris lopez has your detailed forecast. krystal… and this is abc-7, where news comes first!