you. if you're looking at the weather. you can see showers and thunderstorms dropping out of pennsylvania. these are not severe, but you will see a little thunder and lightning. i think everybody will get rain this morning to start with. so i don't think anybody will escape this first patch. but by lunch time, we get sunshine and then it will be hazy, and humid. we'll talk about what you can expect this evening for the fireworks displays in a few minutes. >> our big story this morning, the latest in the statewide power outages. >> bg&e is still working to bring power back to those affected since friday night. currently 100,000 are out of power still down from 170,000 meaning nearly 60,000 customers

have been restored with power. and more than 580,000,000 customers in total have been restored with power but they are still working as fast as possible. live at the bg&e staging area with the latest on that joint earth, we have jennifer franciotti. >> good morning. in a short amount of time bg&e has been able to get 4,000 crews up and running from florida, texas, we had a contractor fly in even from california. so the work is hear. they are working as fast as they can and i'm standing hear with rob gould. you told me how many power lines are down. >> 67,500. with hurricane irene we had upwards of 10,000. so we're fast approaching that number. if you look at every metric related to hurricane irene. we're pretty close, give or

take some reasonable numbers. we're approaching that storm in terms of damage and whether it's wires down or people we're bringing in, it's significant. >> one thing that frustrates people is the not knowing. you're starting to be able to give some people a timeframe. how are you doing that? >> on a very limited basis, we're going to endeavor to give customers feedback on when we're able to have them expect restoration. but we can only do that when we have people on the scene and have eyes on the problem and have a high degree of confidence that we're going to meet the timeframe we tell them. each site and job will be looked at individually. but the big concern we've had from the git-go is we do not want to give out false expectations. that will only anger customers. >> and you don't want people to

re-call you because they think they should have power because person next door has it, you're saying they should call? >> yes. we also will have situations where we restore power and if all your neighbors have power but you don't you may have perhaps a limb on top of a wire at your house and nobody knew it, including yourself. >> and then you would just be very unlucky in that situation? >> yes. we're actually knocking down the 200 customer feeders. then we go to the home-to-home engagement then every 5-10 individual customers. and if you're one of those, you're not necessarily in the priority queue, so we have to look at that. and that's something to

consider. >> thank you. jennifer franciotti wbal-tv 11 news. >> as bg&e continue their efforts to restore their power to everyone, employees at the wal-mart handed out free water to those without power. most live in towson and overly. some residents have also been spending time at cooling centers. 34 say the worst part is not knowing when things will get back to normal. >> it's hot. it's sweaty. there's limited water. there's limited everything. like, i have no patience. >> on my block, we don't have no lights. next block across the street, they got lights. up the street, they got lights. i'm going in hear now to see if i can buy me another fan. >> because of the code red heat alert and the power outage of 18 city cooling centers will be open and the city pools will

open an extra holiday for today. you can go to www.wbaltv.com and download our apps on your smartphone device for more information. >> new this morning, a major water main tpwhreak cockeysville. that main broke on york road at beaver run lane. it caused part of that road to lift up causing them to close down the road in both directions. drivers heading south on york road can take shuwan and those heading north can take i-83 to shuwan as well. >> and the baltimore county fire department is looking at parts of a river after a jet ski driver was being looked

for. >> no celebration for the utility crews in our area trying to get back power after friday's storms. firefighters trying to get wildfires under control. >> the weather is affecting independence day celebrations cost-to-coast today. the latest. >> severe weather is approaching the capital. you are instructed to leave the area. >> rehearsals for today's capital celebration was cut short due approaching storms leaving visitors hopefull. >> we came from new jersey. we are planning to go to the national mall. >> more than 1 million people across seven states in d.c. are still without power after last weekend's storms. >> i had a lot of family back home call and say, are you all right? >> utilities say it could be friday or later. >> every time i call them over

the last four days, they act as if it's the first time they have heard this ffings. >> we went out and bought a very expensive generator today. >> it's very, very vaccine very uncomfortable. >> forecasters forecast triple digit heat across the plains and thunderstorms with damaging winds and hail possible in the midwest and northeast. firefighters have been battling raging wildfires, as well. residents thankful for making progress. dry weather forced some areas to cancel today's fireworks. a national celebration amid a nationwide scorcher. >> of course the big concern today is so many peep knockouts this tifling heat. we've already seen 24 deaths. if i believes are concerned if people aren't careful, we could see more. >> tracy potts, wbal-tv 11 news. >> that brings us to our water

cooler question of the day, what are your plans for celebrating today's fourth of july? you can send us your response to watercooler@wbaltv.com. >> city police lay out their plan in place for the celebration at the inner harbor. visitors can expect to find a fenced in harbor. last year's fourth of july celebration was marred by violence and stabbing of a tourist and 4-year-old boy. but this year police insist they have a plan to quiet the trouble. >> the cops will be as professional as they always are and be deployed. we have some intelligent men and women that are going to monitor the event, and we're set. >> a mobile police deployment will help get ahead of the rowdy crowd. the command center will have

surveillance of the entire harbor. >> the time now 5:08 on tv hill. when it comes to the fourth of july, even the most powerful man in the country is having a party. >> you can watch big-time displays from the comfort of your own home when we cover the nation. >> and a live look of traffic at i-83 and shuwan road. you will have to juggle around york road to get back on i-83. more on weather and traffic

>> welcome back.

the time is 11 minutes after 5:00. it's dry in downtown baltimore. that will probably change soon. 80 degrees. thunderstorms, but not anything severe. we'll see a nice little thundershower in westminster right now. these are drifting down to the south and east. so they will be moving into the city within the next half-hour to 45 minutes. so everybody will have rain to start the day but then it will go away. by this afternoon you get sunshine. it will be warm and steamy but dry in the afternoon with a high of 95. when we come back we'll detail the forecast for the fireworks displays and check your seven-day. >> covering the nation this morning, the presidential candidates will join americans around the country in celebrating independence day.

the first family will have a barbecue and concert and fireworks on the south lawn. mitt romney will march in the fourth of july parade in new hampshire where his family has been vacationing this week. and some of the biggest displays of fireworks are macy's display who spent tuesday loading shelves along the waterfront. the capital display along the national mall in washington will provide a spectacular backdrop. both will be televised and macy's fourth of july fireworks will air right hear on wbal-tv 11 news and nbc. >> while many americans celebrate they are also remembering andy griffith. he passed away peacefully at his home. he rose to fame playing the sheriff on the andy griffith

show. he was 86 years old. >> 5:13. 76 degrees on tv hill. for those of you planning trips, now is probably a good time to fill up your gas tank. prices are low. >> and more on the cost of your >> and more on the cost of your cookout want to start the day with something heart healthy and delicious? you're a talking bee... honey t cheerios has whole grain oats that can help lower cholesterol. and it tastes good? sure does! right... ♪ wow. delicious, right? yeah. it's the honey, it makes it taste so... ♪ well, would you look at the time...

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>> now, your 11 insta-weather plus forecast. >> it's not going to start out great.

we have train start out the day but as we head towards the afternoon, it will dry out and fireworks should go off without a hitch. now storms are weakening a little bit. don't be surprised if you hear a little thunder and see a little lightning. if it's not raining at your house yet, it probably will be short limit and it will only stick around for a couple of hours. i think the rest of the afternoon will be just fine. you can see that on the satellite imagery. we're going to get some hazy sunshine this afternoon. that means it will be uncomfortably hot again. we had a warm front go through last night. most of you start to feel uncomfortable when the dew points get in the mid to upper 60's. could be steamy later on this afternoon. 76 in the airport. 71 in taneytown. it's already started raining there.

today a chance for thundershowers then becoming partly cloudy and humid with a high of 95. if you're going to take the boat out, be careful this morning. watch for the thunderstorms. then this afternoon a 1-foot chop and bay temperatures around 80. for fireworks this evening, as we get into the heat of the day, i can't rule out scattered thunderstorms redeveloping, but you won't have to cancel the fireworks displays. temperatures will still be in the 80's around 9:00 p.m. then we'll really crank up the heat. upper points in to -- upper 90's to 100. then the temperatures will go back down into the 80's by monday and tuesday. >> in this morning's "consumer alert," millions of americans say they have already made

plans to celebrate the fourth of july today. >> a survey found more than 160 million people or 67% of americans plan to hold or attend a barbecue picnic. some 150 million people plan to attend a fireworks or community celebration andos plan to go to a parade. the national average for gas sits at $37.33 and better news in the -- sits at $3.33 a gallon and near baltimore, it's 23 cents cheaper than this time last year. when it comes to barbecue, it doesn't get any bigger than the fourth of july. the burgers, hot dogs and fixing that go with it. >> but this year it's a mixed basket when it comes to the cost of cooking out. karen takes a look. >> summertime, and the grilling is easy.

>> i like to do due can i anies, peppers, things like that. >> i'm aburg guy. cheeseburger is fine. >> crab. i'm a crab fanatic. >> every fourth of july we do the brisk on the smoker for 10-12 hours then eat it up and watch the fireworks. >> the overall cost will be a little easier on the wallet. according to a big inside survey, americans will pay $59 .00 full of burgers, beer and fixings, down about $2 from last year. but there's been an uptick on the burgers and steak. beef prices are up more than 5% over last year. the american farm bureau says drought conditions last year are still affecting prices now. >> the drought had to down says

to herds and those situations take months around sometimes a year to work its way through the market. >> but cutting the price is packaging and fuel prices. good news for consumers and perhaps a reason for more cookouts between now and labor day. from washington, i'm karen capea. >> all right thank you. americans are firing up the grill today, but what they cook may depend on where they live. >> why starbucks wants to spark up conversation with a free cup of coffee. we go to the bloomberg business report. >> gas prices are cooling off. gas is headed back to $3 a gallon back in april. now consumers are getting relief as the peak summer driving season gets into full swing. down 15% from their april peak.

mostly because of concerns about slowing global growth. as millions of americans gather today for the fourth of july are going to be firing up the grill. what's cooking? burgers and hot dogs. that's a favorite. but turns out almost half backyard chefs will be grilling brats and sausages and more than half will be having chicken according to the char broil study which also finds a quarter plan to spend all day grilling. starbucks hoping americans will reflect on important issues in an open letter posted on starbucks blog, free tall coffees are being given away to help spark jobs among coffee lovers, he says it's the starbucks way to give a voice to those solutions and markets are closed today for the independence day holiday.

at the new york stock exchange, i'm ellen braitman with the bloomberg business report. >>oes that include iced coffee you think? >> i don't know. >> i'm going after the show. >> it's 5:23 and 76 degrees on tv hill. coming up, i'll tell you about the local fourth of july parade going on today. >> and the brand-new superhero movie.

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catonsville parade begins and thein belair begins tonight at north main streets. if you don't want to deal with the heat on this fourth of july and are looking to enjoy a nice, cool theater, that sounds good. why not fly high with a superhero? >> the avengers kicked off with anything may now the amazing spider-man will try to keep things going. mark barger has a preview. >> ahh! >> five years after toby mcgwire said farewell is to the spider-man suit, another the trying it on for size. >> it's uncomfortable and spandex and it's like you're practically naked and it's digging into your kiester. >> but a little discomfort with us a small price to pay. he had to sweat out the audition process. >> i convinced myself i didn't need it. i thought if it doesn't happen,

it doesn't happen, but then there's the 3-year-old beside me literally waiting by the phone. >> 'em astone plays the girlfriend to his alter ego, peter parker. >> immediately acting with him felt great. i could understand the relationship right away, so it made it easy. >> and if this spider-man relaunch scores with moviegoers, it could spark a hollywood trend. >> people will feel like hey, we don't have to wait 10 years to reboot a franchise. we can do it three years later. it worked for spider-man. >> and the producer mark webb, it's his first blockbuster film. >> when you're last name is webb and you're doing a movie about a web-slinging superhero,

that opposed well. >> does look like it could be uncomfortable. >> somebody's got to do it. >> still ahead in the next half-hour of 11 news today, the latest on the power outages after the storm. plus -- >> and the morning shift arriving at the glen burnie staging area for bg&e. i'm jennifer franciotti. we're going to talk with some contractors straight ahead. >> one business that's not suffered, the casino. why lotteries say it's all aces for the new slots palace. >> even in the heat that feels good. weather-wise we have thunderstorms to talk about this morning. but it will clear up later but it will clear up later today.

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>> good morning. i'm -- welcome to 11 news today. >> who are you? i'm in for mindy. >> lisa robinson. with stan stovall. >> superhero, tony pann. minus the suit. all right. well, be a superhero and tell folks it's going to be a nice day for cookouts. >> not in the beginning. we'll probably get rain far couple hours, but then it will clear up. there's a look at the h.d. doppler radar. you can see thunderstorms dropping down from pennsylvania. these are dying storms. they were strong but moving from the southeast. so just north of baltimore city. frederick county. got move from the southern suburbs. the forecast for today, to

start out we'll see a chance for thunderstorms then a mixture of clouds and it will be humid with a high of 95. we'll check your seven-day forecast in a few minutes. stay with us. >> our big story this morning remains the more than 100,000 maryland residents still without power since friday's storm. >> bg&e crews have been working around the clock to help restore power. since the power first went out on friday, bg&e has restored power to more than 580,000 customers, but there is still plenty of work to do. 11 news' jennifer franciotti is live at the staging area at b.w.i. thurgood marshall errant which is the staging area for bg&e. >> i'm standing hear with guys from the i.b.w. 1390 mike team

in wilkes bury, pennsylvania. we have corey, lee and harry. how are things going out there? >> it's pretty tough. a lot of trees and wire down. >> does it pretty much look like a war zone? >> some places you go to, yes. just widespread damage. >> we have a really nice breeze blowing hear right now. but you know in the heat of the day how awful it is. what have the working hours been like, harry? >> as soon as the sun comes out, it really takes a toll on the guys. we wear rubber gloves and cover up. please be careful. a lot of nice people are out there offering us water and anything you can imagine and we ask that you please, be

patient. >> one guy said he had a family show up. a mom and two kids cookeded them stuff on the grill and brought them water. have you guys had nice experiences like? >> not as nice as that. but very nice people offering us water. >> no mean people, is that right >> some people get irritable, but it's day five. so you expect that. >> how does this compare to other places, say irene from last year? >> well, this is definitely in the top three or four as far as damage. >> we heard a number, 7500 wires down. have you seen a lot of wires? >> yes. there's a lot of sections that when you come into a new area, bg&e, you've got to get there and bg&e will assess it. then we'll come out with our crews and assess it. and we have to make it safe for

us because sometimes with storm damage, you can have crews overlapping each other so another crew could come by and not know you're there. but bg&e has a great safety program, because if you throw something in and get a burst of voltage, it can be dangerous. so like i said before, just be patient. >> thank you for joining us. very nice to meet you. and you know it's the 20% bg&e is focusing on. you've heard numbers thrown out. they have restored power to 80% of customers without electricity. so it's the next 20% that will be their push and really the nitty-gritty and toughest areas to get to. so as these gentlemen have been saying, patience, patience, patience. >> and the effects of friday's storm has also been deadly. so far six people died from the heat alone, two in baltimore city.

and things could get worse prompting a reminder from health officials. >> it's important that the governor mentions to check on vulnerable neighbors and friends, because as the heatwave goes on, the risk goes up. >> at least 22 people across the nation have died as a result of the storm. but officials are also concerned about the improper use of generators which can yield deadly results. >> we recommend placing these generators at least 20 feet away from your home and make sure it's not ventilating towards your house that would cause carbon monoxide to seep in through your windows. >> it's lethal because you can't see it or smell it or taste it. symptoms are similar to the flu. naudsya and headaches, so be

careful. >> maryland took in $28 million in its first 24 days of operation and paid $19 million in state taxes. it's considered a huge boost to maryland's slots programs. even though it took some business away from cecil county. >> with the opening hollywood casino perryville was down. we thought there would be a reduction because of the excitement and intensity, people may have decided to shift their habits. >> the governor and house speaker met privately yesterday to discuss holding a special session to let voters decide on expanding, but consensus did not reach those. >> i know it seems odd to celebrate a national holiday

right in the middle of the week. >> and that will be the challenge making plans to celebrate the fourth. >> it's you have to plan things in the middle of the week and have one day off. so i had monday off. >> i think we're going to hang out at my girlfriend's deck and watch the fireworks. >> many opted to get away for the fourth this year. >> for those who decide to be put, they got an early stop for festivities. b.s.o. and its star spangled celebration land the will also be a b.s.o. star-spangled spectacular starting at 9:30. >> there are metropolitanny of other fourth of july events going on. american chesapeake celebration starts at 4:00 at the inner harbor. and you can see displays at the inner harbor and other places

around the area. 76 degrees and 5:38 on tv hill. whether you're going to cook at home or go to a fourth of july cookout at stan's house, the weather is big news. >> can a bobs, brats, you want to make sure stood cooked properly. >> and email us your water cooler question of the day answers, what are your plans? share your response at watercooler@wbaltv.com or send watercooler@wbaltv.com or send us an email or it's the perfect match for the perfect moment -- oreo the dunkin' way. introducing the new oreo coffee coolatta and new oreo vanilla bean coolatta. taste the fun today.

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>> welcome back. the time is 5:41. 80 degrees downtown.

dry in baltimore city, but that will probably change for a few hours. then after that it will turn out to be a pretty nice afternoon. hot but dry. we see showers and thunderstorms drifting down from pennsylvania. they were strong but are derivativing away and will continue to move southbound. so south of the city you will probably get rain over the next hour, too. so we will start out with a thunderstorm or two then clear up. it will be a hot day with a high near 95. when we come back we'll take a look at your seven-day forecast going through the weekend. >> in this morning's "medical alert," state officials estimate there are 7,500 people in maryland who don't know they have the h.i.v. virus. >> now there's a better way to

find out if you dear virus but now the first approved h.i.v. test will be available come tuesday. f.d.a. officials say it should be used as a screening tool and a positive test should be confirmed bay doctor but it will be 92% accurate. and experts at the f.d.a. have provided tips to help you enjoy your fourth of july. food poisoning cases spike during the hot weather. when grilling out, experts say bring hand sanitizer and cleaning supplies to keep your hands and cleaning and cooking supplies clean. use meat thermometers to make sure meat is 160 degrees and

poultry is 165 degrees, and food should not be left out for more than an hour. >> at 5:44. >> pitchers dual in seattle. the orioles ready for a change. keith mills will tell us if it's a perfect beginning. >> calling all antique enthusiasts, baltimore holding a toy and collectibles show. details right after the break. >> and we're in for another hot day. but

>> i remember that name from a long time ago.

but she's doing well. we know that. your seven-day forecast. take a look at the radar. we'll do that in a few minutes. but let's check in live with ava marie. >> yes. ava marie live at the maryland state fairgrounds where we're talking about a very fun event happening next weekend. it's not just antiques but also a car show and flea market. you've got some antique toys hear. >> that is 1960, what we call a battery-op. it is working. we'll see if it's -- if we can get it going. >> it's called the naughty chimp. >> it's in really good condition. he'll probably sell for about $ 40 or $50. >> incredible.

this thing looks even older and looks like it might be more money? >> it's about $400 for an old horseracing game from the 1800's and it's mechanical. it has a little device hear. it's not in perfect condition and missing some parts, but these are lead jockey figures. what you will see. i have 90 venders coming from all up and down the east coast. and you just don't know what you're going to run into. when you walk in the door, it's not like wal-mart where you know what's available. you have no idea what will be hear. >> and there will be a muscle car show and also a flea market? >> yes. all in conjunction with the bat more county 4 h fair and

saturday is the toy and collectible show and car show and sunday is a huge flea market with, like, 250 vender spaces. >> to know these toys were at one time used and now still in good condition. today is a holiday. we're in the mid 90's. if you plan to be out, drink lots of water. that really helps you to stay hydrated. stay in the shade and if you don't have air-conditioning, maybe you can head to a place that does. especially if you plan to do any strenuous activities. >> tony, you're going to give details on the heat but aren't these toys neat? to play with a happy, naughty chimp? >> i love seeing that old stuff. i might check this out myself. and thanks for the hot weather safety tips.

that will come in handy. tomorrow and friday will be the hottest days. appreciate that. we'll talk to you again in the next half-hour. see if we can find sandra, too. why not? is she at the beach? we have a little rain to contend with this morning. nothing of consequence. these were big storms in pennsylvania but are now dying off and drifting into the northern suburbs. it will be moving into the city within the next half-hour or 45 minutes. you can see on the top side of it, it's clearing across pennsylvania. we'll get sunshine going on. it will be a hot and steamy afternoon, but it will be mostly dry once we get beyond this morning. 74 at parkton and 70 in emmittsburg where we've already had some rain to start the day. so becoming partly cloudy and

uncomfortable this afternoon. humid with highs in the mid points in. -- in the mid 90's. forecast for the fireworks displays this evening. in the heat, can't rule out the possibility of a thunderstorm developing this afternoon. but those will be hit and miss. temperatures will still be in the 80's at 9:00 when most of those fireworks displays begin. then the hot stuff really starts to come in tomorrow and friday. in the upper 90's with the heat index over 100. but relief is in sight. temperatures will go back to the 80's monday and tuesday of next week. >> 5:51. 76 degrees on tv hill. the orioles squeeze out a win. that's next in sports. >> and hear are last night's

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>> good morning, everybody. i tell you what, it wasn't easy, but a win is a win, and the orioles need every win they

can get leading with the pitcher flirting with a perfect game. jim johnson's 24th save to beat the mariners. a wild finish to a game that wayin chin dominated for six innings. he struck out the side in the fifth and retired in a row before casper wells homered in the seventh. it's not the perfect game. that's casper. in the sixth the orioles scored six runs. a shot up the middle. adam jones scored. looked like the birds would cruise, and then the base hit there. adam jones drove in the second run. the mariners tie it in the eighth. pedro hit all kinds of trouble. walks in the tying run but in the ninth robert with a home run off charlie. first home run for him since

may 10, the orioles win, 5-4. their 43rd win as they teach halfway point on the season and pick up a game on the yankees who lose to the rays. lined shot finds a hole. b.j. upton scores and the game is tied at 3-3. shawn rodriguez. 2-run home run. the orioles trail yankees by five games heading into tonight. as this afternoon it's a 4:00 p.m. start. the tennis, it's the wimbledon action. serena williams heads back to the semifinals. she beat the defending champ. and that was in straight sets. she was extremely impressive in this one. the first set, she showed all of her game. power and finesse. the ace and then the drop shot. in the near court.

then serena finally closes it out by beating the defending champ, and she is moving back to the semifinals. she has won wimbledon four times in the past and on this fourth of july we want to say happy birthday peter angelos and morgana, the kissing band it. >> ok. can't miss her. that's for sure. >> but you can kiss her. >> and she does a lot of kissing with the ballplayers, too. coming up in the next half-hour of 11 news today. back in a moment.

>> here it is, before the july and thousands of workers from the ge are hitting the road to