in iowa." now on to season is here. we're keeping an eye on the plus... flames shooting into the sky as an eastern iowa business catches fire. and -- one iowan gets to enjoy thanksgiving dinner -- from outer gallagher. ally is off let's check on your weather now with storm track 7 meteorologist eileen loan.

from the kwwl stormtrack 7 weather team. see the screen information from the kwwl stormtrack 7 weather team: not much is happening out there right now, although we may still have a temperatures are holding in the mid 30s this morning. west winds are 5 direction all day. we should see some clearing this afternoon with mostly clear skies overnight. today will be mainly afternoon...especially to the west. highs in the low to mid for thunderstorms to the state... i'll have the details coming up. sunshine for the afternoon...especially to the west. highs in the low to system bringing the potential for thunderstorms to the ou years -- right now is the time people would be lining up to shop the black friday sales. while some stores opened last night -- others waited until this morning. kwwl's amanda gilbetr joins us

i'm outside the menards in waterloo and already you can see behind me people are already starting to line up outside the store this black friday morning. the store doesn't open until 6 today but already there's at least 5 people in line. this scene is very different from the scene earlier in target... open since yesterday. so at 3 am... things were quieter. i spoke with several people who said because they meet the early morning rush.. their black fridays were very calm... "well it's been really fun. it hasn't been anything crazy. i know a couple years ago it was a lot, but right now it's pretty chill and everyone's just doing got an apartment this year so we got our first christmas tree for the apartment so and we got it for half off plus 20 percent off so yep" workers at target tell me for

things were packed yesterday evening. back to menards.. workers here tell me they are preparing for big crowds today. they even have caution tape up to keep people away from the front doors. we'll keep an eye on that line throughout the morning. lindale mall in cedar rapids, crossroads mall in waterloo, kennedy mall in dubuque and the coral ridge mall in coralville all open this morning at six. thanksgiving day shopping is becoming an even bigger event for many people. shoppers packed aisles across the country to grab t- vs and other electronics on sale. the competition is driving some stores to open even earlier on the holiday. online shopping continues to grow --

the job. a new study by career-builder shows more than half of all workers say they'll spend some time shopping online at the office - and most are using their phones. continuing coverage -- fueling the fire. an oil recycling business catches fire -- and a firefighter has to go to the hospital. it happened in central city --- the smoke could be seen for miles. 12 fire departments battled the fire for many hours people told us they heard an explosion -- then saw flames. "it's sad, what can you do, i hope they, this is one of the more enjoyable places that i worked at" this morning, the cause of the fire is still being investigated. we'll keep you updated as new information comes in today. the onions inside a new york onion packing plant are now fried

the time. the cause of the fire is unknown, but firefighters say it does not appear to be suspicious. the fire caused more than a million dollars in damage and the building is considered a loss. missing for three weeks -- a mother is reunited with her family. but as yasmin amer tells us, the search for the suspected kidnappers is just beginning. a family's prayers answered. 34-year-old sherri papini was found alive early thanksgiving day morning. the mother of two went jogging in northern california. police say she had been freed by her captors and left on that's about 140 miles from where she was last seen. according to police, went missing...her husband keith papini broke down as he spoke about what it was like to live through this nightmare. community members who helped search for her were

it was just a rush of relief.and a lot of tears.and realizing it quite over. shasta county sheriff tom bosenko says the alleged kidnappers are still at large. "we're looking for a dark colored colored suv with two hispanic females armed with a handgun." police don't know the identities of the two women...and they still don't have a possible motive. but for papini's family...all that matters is that she's finally i'm yasmin amer reporting. the sheriff says she was treated for some injuries -- but did not say what they were or how severe they

the search is on for two inmates who escaped from jail. california deputies say four inmates cut through the bars of a second story window. deputies caught two of them immediately outside the jail. the two still missing are being called "dangerous and desperate." "no tool has been discovered at this time. so we're still actively searching for what may have cut those bars, but nothing was recovered in the cell or outside on the ground." both men were in jail on burglary and weapons charges. a man is accused of stabbing both his parents on thanksgiving. deputies in florida say he got in a fight with them, put his mom in a headlock -- and when his dad tried to help her -- he put is dad in a headlock too. then he allegedly pushed his dad to the ground and stabbed him repeatedly. mom tried to help dad -- and he supposedly then turned the knife on her. both are now in serious condition. don't you think holidays

argument was -- if there was an argument -- it just got out of hand. the son now faces two counts of attempted murder. this morning -- six families in tennessee are grieving the loss of a child after a bus crash this week. as michelle heron shows us -- many people are taking time to stop by a memorial over this long holiday weend it took every ounce of courage for misti nash to come here. "for her to lose a child is heartbreaking. she's trying to be strong." somehow, she found the strength to see the place where her nine-year-old daughter zoie lost her life. her brother antwon mcclain says despite their pain, today his family is thankful for a lot. "she lost a child. thank god

made it out of the icu ok." eight-year-old zecheriah was one of the dozens of children hurt in monday's crash. nats - "going to be in heaven with my brother." "i couldn't make myself come until today because it's thanksgiving." the pain still resonates through the woodmore community -- like rosie russell, a substitute teacher at the school. "because the first thing i thought of this morning was the fact that their and have mine later on today." nats - "six teddy bears. she picked them out herself." lamont solomon knows the pain these six parents feel. he lost his son in a crash four years ago. "everyday when i pick my daughter up, we go the same way -- this way to get to my shop. but for some reason, god sent me instead of turning right to talley road, god sent me to the left." we may never know all of the answers,

is that they are loved. and for mcclain that means a lot. "it really has given me a life to see the support from the people and see how much people really care and showing that we can come together as a community." the n-f-l's tennessee titans are reaching out to the families affected by the crash. the team's foundation will donate 25-thousand dollars to the created to support the families. the titans also plan to wear decals on their helmets for law enforcement gives out a phone alert -- warning people in north dakota of pipeline protestors over the thanksgiving weekend. protests have intensified in recent weeks. more than 500 people have been arrested since august. yesterday protesters gathered at an intersection and disrupted traffic as some shouted "shame on you, north dakota!" the four-state pipeline would

two of the six- member space station crew are nasa astronauts from the u-s - including peggy whitson, an iowa native. nasa releasing this picture of their holiday meal. the menu sounded like a traditional thanksgiving dinner, but it may have lacked some of the touches of home. have, our foods a little different so, here's our turkey right here, so it's in a pouch we're going to heat this up and it's going to you're having at home." also on the thanksgiving menu in space - dehydrated cornbread dressing, green beans and mushrooms, and mashed potatoes. many people stress out about cooking one turkey for thanksgiving -- but a cedar falls business owner -- cooks six in just a few hours. he's been doing it for 20 years. todd steil starts frying the big birds every thanksgiving morning for friends, neighbors, and employees -- and he's all done by the afternoon. but you won't have any flare-ups make your own dressing and

turkeys are awesome." of course -- todd follows the safety guideliens -- always deep-frying your turkey outside, making sure it's thawed allowing at least 45 minutes per bird. it's coming up on today in iowa.... planning the trip -- then plans fizzle out due to a fire. disappointed nature lovers this thankg plus...he can't drive himself -- but loves nothing more than to ride in the sidecar. "you're watching kwwl, we've got you covered! with jerry gallagher, ally crutcher and meteorologist eileen loan.

let's go to storm track seven meteorologist eileen loan now for your forecast forecast. from the kwwl stormtrack 7 weather team. see the screen for your complete weather information. here is additional forecast information from the kwwl stormtrack 7 weather team: stormtrack7 live weather network cameras are showing the low clouds this morning and we may keep them much of the day, but they will break up by will end up with lots of sunshine saturday... and a pretty strong storm system tracking into the area on sunday. temperatures this morning are running mainly in the mid 30s in our area with mid to upper 30s to the west... we are supposed to be in the low 20s, so we already have a head start on the day. winds are westerly and will stay around 5 to 10 mph today with a more southwest flow taking over tonight. today, clouds coat much of the

plains states... that will head our way later today, clearing us out for tomorrow. but a system will track in from the west for the last part of the weekend. temperatures aim to be mild, though.. today 30s to 50s over the region with a lot more 50s and 60s tracking through tomorrow. we will be in the low to mid 40s today with west winds at 5-10 mph and mainly cloudy skies at least for the first half of th. will become mostly clear tonight with light winds and lows stalling in the upper 20s to low 30s. south winds will help push us into the upper 40s to low 50s tomorrow with mainly sunny skies. winds and rain track in for sunday afternoon through monday with the strongest winds sunday night. rain could include thunder sunday afternoon and night with locally heavy rainfall up to an inch in many areas. some rain may track through on tuesday with

north carolina -- drought conditions are drying up water sources as wildfires continue to burn. dozens of people trying to hike the appalachian trail can't continue hiking. the forest fires, it was rough,

here from maine and now those 70 or 80 miles are going to be taken away from me." some hikers say they will hike up to the closure... shuttle around it and then hike the rest. another probelm they're dealing with -- a burn ban. no campfires for warmth on cold nights. it's comi in iowa.... an iowa dog enjoys riding in the you're watching kwwl, we've got you covered.

delays. an iowa man takes his dog out on his motorcycle -- elias johnson followed them on the road. piston rings spend a few minutes watching willl'y sears tinker away nat: it has a couple extra leaks that need tended too a painter by trade and marine by choice nat: i got a lot of miles under willy sears "oh, i probably spend four hours a day out here and most of davdison sportster willy sears "it's my baby - it will be the one that one of my grandsons gets to inherit." nat - garage door open by the time he starts making progress, willy's best

willy sears "he badgers me to go on rides, every day" nat - pulling out bike and just about every time... willy sears "he's a 150lb guy - he's just not cabable of riding by himself" elvis, get's his way nat - hey elvis, come here buddy! nat - dog feet nat - atta boy, attay boy, you wanna go for a ride? c'mon, tuck your tail in there's one rule the four year old great dane has to follow willy sears "my wife thought is was an important pice of safety equipment we had to have, he them in order to ride." nat - motorcycle starts and willy and elvis cruise down the road looks like something that would have taken months of professional training --- turns out... willy sears "last year, it just kind of refurbished and when i had it taken apart, off the bike he was

--- all over town willy sears "we ride to the lake, saylorville lake, we run aroudn town a lot. you can see him perk up and he just thinks he's the thing. elvis isn't the first big dog willy's called his buddy willy sears "we've had 30 great dane's and they're just the gentlest creatures you'll ever know" over the year's, he's needing a good home --- with the biggest hurdle being the breeds longevity. but willy know's no matter how many years he and the king have together --- every moment will likely as memorable as this. willy sears "becasue they become such a big part of your life, they're such a big presence, its something you really miss. so, i'm not sure if the next great dane will

elvis. willy says a lot people stop and take pictures when they see their motorcycle out on the road. here's a live look at the mall of america -- which was closed yesterday -- people already there now this morning storm track seven meteorologist eileen loan has

the butterburger is made of just three cuts of fresh midwest beef. nothing more, nothing less. so we got the sirloin, the chuck and the plate. no fillers; that's it. all prized cuts,

wonderful cuts of beef come together. you can just tell that blend is working in there. and we sear them, and that seals in the juices of the burger. it doesn't get any better than that. and that's the culver's butterburger.

eileen loan is back with another check of your storm track seven forecast. mostly cloudy today with sunshine for saturday. rain tracks in on sunday and we could have some thunderstorms late. rain could be heavy sunday night and again on wednesday. temperatures will be mainly mild through the next week. it's coming up on today in iowa.... today the hawkeyes taake the field -- an honor heroes -- including two from eastern iowa. plus -- the big story of the day -- black friday shopping -- are looking at.

now on today in iowa, fireball after fireball shooting into the air. a major fire at a business in eastern iowa. plus - whether it was the catchy theme song... or the family her. and this morning, theyr'e remembering a television icon who has died. stores busy overnight. good morning, i'm jerry gallagher. ally is off storm track seven meteorologist eileen loan is here now with your storm track seven forecast. eileen on camera not much is happening out there right now, although we may still have a flurry or two to deal with early... mainly just cloudy. temperatures are holding in the

and will stay about that same afternoon with mostly clear skies overnight. today will be mainly cloudy this morning with more sunshine for the afternoon...especially to the west. highs in the low to mid 40s... but we warm up potential for thunderstorms to the state... i'll have the details coming up. the west. highs in the low to friday is here -- shoppers are out ready to grab the best deals they can. kwwl's amanda gilbert is live in waterloo-- amanda, menards doesnt open for another 30 minutes it's a crazy morning in front of menards in waterloo. there's a huge line that stretches done the front of the store. people started lining up around 4:30 and the store doesn't open until 6

first people in line who showed up. the super early birds told me they're here for everything from a pressure cooker to a kayak to a propane heater. i spoke with one lady who says she's just excited to be here long it takes us, and who's all here." menards is one several stores that decided to wait to open until this morning. they are opening in less than half an our now... but people are having fun out here.. they're naming to music.. drinking

the mall of america among those choosing to stay closed yesterday they opened at five this morning -- a live look now off to make a statement. they're boycotting chicago's magnificient mile on the busiest shopping day of the year. organizers say they're protesting after the city refused to set up a council made up of regular, every-day people who can help review police. the city has seen so much violence this year... many are not happy with how police have handled some of those investigations. other people will spend the day outdoors... not waiting in line at the store... but enjoying the outdoors with family and

a row r-e-i is closed. the business enoucrages people to get outside today -- and their movement -- called opt-outside -- is growing. millions of americans say they will. some national and state parks are offering special deals today. continuing coverage this morning of a huge fire at an eastern iowa business. firefighters spent most of the day in central city -- at an oil recycling business. one firefighter was sent to the hospital with what was called a serus kwwl's elizabeth amanieh spoke with people who live nearby. fire crews working from morning into dusk to contain a relentless fire at iowa gold distributing. "the smoke was just billowing, i mean it was unreal" "the smoke got darker and darker and all of a sudden there was an explosion." thick black smoke engulfing the area. creating a safety concern for those who live nearby.

grandchildren inside. "no, because i didn't want them to run out in the street or inhale that black stuff...no" crews urging residents to stay indoors with their furnaces off for the majority of the day. "they came knockin on the doors saying kinda keep your windows shut, shut stuff down, kind of just keeping an eye." but those flames not letting down "and the flames were so high they were burning into the high wires. leaving neighbors wondering if that backyard. firefighters eventually containing the fire. "and more than twelve hours after the fire started, the debris still that the fire doesn't spark back all twelve fire departments who poured in to battle the fire. family and their loved ones and helped out and it was nice to firefighters are still looking into what caused the fire.

here's a look at what we could see yesterday on storm track seven live doppler radar. as we learn more about the investigation into the fire today -- we'll have updates for you on air and family out of their home. the fire on briarwood drive happened wednesday night. a woman we spoke with was visiting family across the street for thanksgiving. she says her mom started yelling -- the neighbors house was on fire. the family says they'r the neighborhood stepped in with an offer for thanksgiving. here, so my mom was like 'they can always come over to our place.' the neighbors are really good around here. so, i know they would be taken in with whoever." right now -- the family of five -- is staying with relatives nearby. two people have died -- and four others wounded -- in a shooting at a park. a man was out recording a facebook live video in louisville when

you can see people dropping to the ground -- taking cover. hundreds of people were at the park to celebrate thanksgiving when it happened. police say a man who led them on a chase caused a fiery crash that killed three people. officers in pittsburgh tried to get the man to pull over yesterday. he was wanted in a drug case. the suspect kept on going -- hitting two other cars before his crashed. three people were killed in one of the cars hit. suicide bombing in iraq. the attack happened at a gas station on a major highway. it destroyed the business and several cars also burned. isis says it's reponsible for the attack. a young girl in syria recorded video of the destruction in her she's from aleppo. the video shows her walking around what's left of her hometown.

the child also caught the attention of harry potter author j-k rowling. she tweeted the famous writer -- asking if she could get a book. this week -- she received one. syrian refugees in utah celebrated their first thanksgiving in america this week. catholic community services cares for hundreds of refugees who have resettled from other countries. "i'm still like..i think i'm in a dream. i always dreamed to come but we never think how we going to come and live our life here,o still like as a dream in my mind." she hopes people in america see refugees are regular human beings with hopes and dreams -- just like they are. a big thank you this morning from all of us -- to those who serve overseas. u-s troops in afghanistan celebrated thanksgiving yesterday. they had traditional turkey

airfield south of mosul also got together for the holiday. that base is just 40 miles from the last isis stronghold in iraq. iowa senator joni ernst spent the holiday with u-s troops overseas. she met with the 211th aviation battalion and the 185th combat support sustainment battalion of iowa. she called it a tremendous honor to spend thanksgiving with iowans who are sacrificing so much in defense of our freedoms - so far from home during the holiday time with our outstanding iowa servicemembers. she thanked them - as well as their families - for their faithful service to our grateful nation. the president spent much of his thanksgiving on the phone talking to service members. he made several calls -- wishing them a happy thanksgiving and happening today -- a very big rivalry in this part of the country. iowa hosting nebraska today at kinnick.

regular season strong. the hawks have bounced back with two straight wins after losing two in a row. nebraska still has a chance to play in the conference title game next week... but they need some things to happen. the road team has won the last four games in this series. today's game starts at two- thirty. this rivalry is called the heroes game. at halftime -- two eastern iowans will be honored as heroes. fireifghters cree saving a woman trapped in her cedar rapids home after an explosion in jne. they shut off the gas and used a three people from nebraska will also be honored. we all know how tough driving can be in an iowa winter. law enforcement in one county is now better suited to deal with the snow. the winneshiek county sheriff's office updating their fleet of cars for the winter.

be four wheel drive. "we don't get to take a day off because of weather, and we don't close down because of weather. so we still have to work in the worst kind of conditions, and typically, that's when we become the busiest, in the bad weather conditions." having four wheel drive means they'll be able to get where they need to go faster. one of the most recognizable t-v moms in history is being remembered today. florence henderson. she died yesterday -- surrounded by family and friends. she was best known for her role as carol brady from the brady bunch. millions of people watched that show in re-runs over the years. carol brady was 82 years old. this morning, a very special reunion to show you. amanda ober saw a woman in the air force return home at the airport -- and learned -- she had a trick up "i'm home for about 25 days so

young airman and her beau caught our eye at the airport. 19 year old terra ford was returning home from boot camp in texas. "i am ecstatic!" but the story gets better.... "your family doesn't know you're home?!" "no ma'am they don't' i'm really excited to surprise them." terra and marcos graciously agreed to let us go with them to terra's grandmothers house where her family was having thanksgiving. she called her family from down the street pretending to still could be home today." terra even told her mom she was on her way to have thanksgiving with a family who adopts lonely airman for the holidays! "all right let's go." but...little did her family know what was about to happen.... "what!? oh my god! oh my god! are you kidding me?! oh... terrraaa!" terra's mom was overwhelmed. her tears were followed by hugs

family. the only one who wasn't surprised was terra's dad... he was in on the secret so he could make sure everyone was corralled on the back porch when terra entered. "i missed you too baby... i always do." terra's visit very meaningful -- because she's about to leave for italy for two years. it's classic toys are getting an upgrade for christmas. santa's red hat that's getting a lot of attention right now. it's a different hat some are buying as an ornament. these stories and eileen loan's storm track seven forecast

forecast on kwwl." let's go to storm track seven meteorologist eileen loan now for your forecast forecast. from the kwwl stormtrack 7 weather team. see the screen for your complete weather information. here is additional forecast information from the kwwl stormtrack 7 weather team: stormtrack7 live weather network cameras are showing the low

day, but they will break up by tonight and we pretty strong storm system tracking into the area on sunday. temperatures this morning are running mainly in the mid 30s in our area with mid to upper 30s to the west... we are supposed to be in the low are westerly and will stay around 5 to 10 mph today with a more southwest flow taking over tonight. today, clouds coat much of the midwest with our way later today, clearing us out for tomorrow. but a system will track in from the west for the last part of the weekend. temperatures aim to be mild, though.. today 30s to 50s over a lot more 50s and 60s tracking through tomorrow. we will be in the low to mid 40s today with the first half of the day. it will become mostly clear tonight with light winds help push us into the upper 40s to low 50s tomorrow with mainly sunny skies. winds and rain track in for sunday afternoon through monday with the strongest winds sunday night. rain could include thunder sunday afternoon and night with locally heavy rainfall up to an inch in many

will be in the low to mid 40s today with west winds at 5-10 mph and mainly cloudy skies at least for the first half of the day. it will become mostly clear tonight with light winds and lows stalling in the upper 20s to low 30s. south winds will help push us into the upper 40s to low 50s tomorrow with mainly sunny skies. winds and rain track in for sunday afternoon through monday with the strongest winds sunday thunder sunday afternoon and night with locally heavy rainfall up to an inch in many areas. some rain may track through on tuesday with some light

in mind as we look ahead to the holidays. year-end tax tips to help you save money. plus -- toys we loved as kids are making a comeback... with some new features.

we're serving as bell ringers to help raise money for the salvation army's red kettle campaign. tomorrow -- i'll be at the cedar rapids hobby lobby on collins road northeast -- along with eileen -- so sto we have such a giving community. so many of you support the salvation army -- or other charities -- during the holidays. if you do -- and you'd like to report it come tax time -- the i-r-s has some good tips. make sure you have it documented -- either from your bank records or in a statement from the charity. also, if you're planning to give things like furniture or clothing -- get a receipt from the charity so you can claim a politics is spilling over into

great again" christmas ornament is making a splash online. the ornament is finished in 24 karat gold, and is selling for 149 dollars. with the holiday shopping season here -- you will probably get the question -- what's on your list? brian mooar tells us if toys are -- you might notice many are new twists on old favorites. this year's hottest tech toys might they're packing new technology under the hood. hot wheels is rolling out the next generation of toy racing supercharged with artificial intelligence. "so the ai technology allows these cars to stay on track and go at really high rates of speed" who doesn't remember play doh? now there's an app for that! "play doh one of those age old toys kids just love updating with use of smartphone app" even barbie is getting an upgrade - a smart home - the high-tech hello dreamhouse "there's an elevator inside it that's something that's new the toilet

flushes and you can manipulate things by using an app on your phone" the flybrix set allows kids... and kids at heart... to build a drone out of classic legos "the lego drone is a perfect example of how you take a brand that we grew up and we loved growi ngpu and kind of updated it with today's technology". tamagotchi pet toy crazes of the 90s?? "hatchimals" are a hybrid of "the hatchimals are the biggest craze this year, i talked to a manager at toys r us and other analysts and you just cant find them anywhere!" a surprise pet hatches right in your hands.... that is, if you can actually get your hands on one. brian mooar, nbc news. many of these toys aren't cheap... the barbie dreamhouse is 300 bucks! we'll be right back with another

from iowa. now, we're learning the christmas for the first family will include a tree from another wisconsin eileen loan is back with another check of your storm track seven sunshine for saturday. rain tracks in on sunday and we could another round of light rain/snow conditions monday and again on here's a live look outside at

iowa coming up right here on kwwl. a police involved shooting in

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now on today in iowa... dinner's done -- now the shopping season is underway. we're keeping an eye on crowds this morning. plus... flames shooting into the fire. and -- one iowan gets to enjoy thanksgiving dinner -- from outer space! here's a live look at our good morning it's 6 a-m -- today