now "good morning maryland." do you have more holiday shopping to do? you are in luck as many stores extend their hours due to the holiday. the story coming. today is the busiest day for ups employees. a number of packages they are expected to deliver in time for christmas morning. it's been almost a year since phylicia barns went missing. she was found dead. i am linda so what police are saying about progress in the case. >> it's 5:40 -- 5:30, 49 degrees. let's check in with meteorologist justin berk for a check of the forecast. we start off over the severn in

annapolis and it was a cloudy sky now most of the day we held off the rain but we did have showers and especially during the dark hours where it started to roll in. in our tribute to mount airy this is one of our favorite camera shots because it shows the skies. you can see the texture of the clouds rolling through and yes we had some showers and rain building in especially in the evening. in the area, 49 eye amville and back towards the bay it's milder at 52 in arnold and 5 # by the water in and -- be 52 by the water in annapolis. we will break up the clouds but this surge of rain could mean severe weather in the south and means rain for us by tonight. we will talk about that coming up. and aim for of 0 -- 60 some sun and rain coming in tonight. how about the traffic with angela. >> reporter: all right. on the roads we are following a couple of accidents including one in pasadena that has the roadway shut down at 648. and almond and north of baltimore in har forecounty police are on the -- harford county police are on the sceneof a collision in bel air. rain factory road and emmerton road so be prepared for

slowdowns. on i-95, we are looking good traveling through howard county. all lanes opened in both directions. a little light volume. and it should be a quiet drive so far on the beltway. as we get a live look at 695 and baltimore national pike, west side traffic flowing freely. charley, back to to you. new for you this morning, two fires to tell you about in baltimore city. most recent happened an hour and half ago in mount royal. neighbors could smell the smoke and called for help and firefighters found a transformer caused the fire inside the business. no one was inside the building. also new for you this morning a. fire barreled through several businesses late last night. this video. [audio not understandable] happened above the restaurant. [audio not understandable] witnesses say one person sprained a ankle. good news if you are last- minute shopper. retail stores are extending their hours and many of them going to 24 to 48 hours.

corinne redman is standing by and what retail kers expect this morning have people been shopping overnight? corein. >> reporter: not yet because the 24-hour time frame has not started. so macy's is closed and they are one of the stores that are expected to stay open for 24 hours starting friday. starting today into friday. 24 hours to lure in last-minute shop he is for the holiday which is now three days away. so stores are pulling out out the -- all the stops to get last minute deals. toys r us, old navy, will stay open for 24 hours and close at 10 p.m. on christmas eve. and then other stores like kohl's j.c. penney and sears are staying open until at least midnight on friday to gib you a chance to come in to get last-minute shopping. and many retailers say they decided to stay open and he can tend hours in hopes of pulling in last-minute profits like here at macy's. and according to one report, by december 14th corks-could --

consumers completed 46% of the holiday shopping. so that gives plenty more time to make up and also this time,last year, many shoppers bought gifts for themselves on black friday and put off the holiday shopping so they have to make that up. customers we spoke with say they have mixed opinions over the extended holiday shopping hours. >> just stay a little bit later is fine but to stay open 24 hours e. think it's -- i think it's unnecessary and it's not with the spirit of the holidays. >> there's going to be a bunch of us last-minute shoppers weep don't have the money so we will get a couple extra dollars and feel we can get the extra gift, that's what we are going to do. >> reporter: now also in addition to the extend hours, many stores will mark down prices. reporting live from towson, corinne redman, abc2 news. looks like president obama's a normal guy. he also is waiting for the last- minute to shop. president and the first dog ducked out of the white house to get holiday shopping done. this is for his daughters sasha

animallia. president picked up a video game he can play with him. just dance for the wii. >> the girls beat me every time on the various dance gamesyou guys will never get a picture of me doing it. because i get grated f every time. >> so the first leady and her daughters are vacationing in hawaii. the president is still in dc trying to hash out a deal with the house and the senate on when asked by the president if he is going to head to hawaii for christmas, the president didn't answer. the holiday season is more about giving. it's trait digs folklore and myth but which is fact and which are fiction. lamont william went to get to the bottom of the christmas ideas. >> reporter: through the ages, christmas has evolume toughed what we know it as -- has evolved to what we know of today. what is fact you and what are the smiths? >> there's so many questions that i think had fascinating

answers and i will write a book which i ask 50 questions. >> reporter: that raised from the birth of jesus christ to kwanza. joe says early christians didn't originally celebrate the birth of jesus. but they don't get to this-- >> but they don't get to this until the 4th century and no one speculates for when jesus is born until around 200. it doesn't matter. it's not in matthew or luke. no notice of christmas is a holiday as a celebration until the 4th century. >> reporter: what about the jolly old elf santa claus? how did he get in christmas. >> st. nicholas who lived in the 4th century ad santa claus is the invention of a handful of people in 19th century new york. essentially, they take old dutch center cloth who is derived from st. nicholas, and they essentially resuscitate him. they are the one who is come up with the sleigh and santa claus flying through the air and gift giving as we know it and what

he looks like round guy with the big beard and all the fur. >> reporter: and the reason weplace things under the tree. >> if you look at nativity count there's no association in gift giving. it's a roman pagan idea especially birthday gift giving. >> reporter: professor says tv increased the hype of christmas but as far as the true history we don't know what is myth or truth. >> it came to be more and more and how did this get in and where did this come from? and the fact it's so complicated and there's so many streams that have come into christmas, that's part of what makes it so fascinating. >> reporter: in baltimore, lamont williams, abc2 news. 9-year-old cory boyce was plows supposed to fly from nashville to new york to visit relatives but when the plane stopped at bwi an airline

employee took her off and rebooked her and they didn't notify her parents. they found out when another relative called and said her daughter didn't get off the plane in new york. >> someone took her off the plane anyway probably because she is a child and she is is not going to say know you -- no you can't rebook me. >> chloe's mom called southwest and it took an hour to straighten it out. a spokesman says the situation was not handled well. and the family has been reimbursed for a ticket and issued another travel voucher. >> come on. >> go. >> come on. >> come on. >> you can't see us come on down. >> hold on. >> come on down. >> come on. >> oh. >> they had to make a decision as the home caught fire. tay and wait or jump they decided to jump and it was a joint decision. it happened tuesday in detroit. luckily the man is okay but the woman whom you heard crying at

the end of the sound bite has been taken to the hospital. a bridge damaged by hurricane katrina is making the environment better. coming, how the recycled parts will is going to help out with the fishing industry in southern louisiana. the latest on the payroll tax cut fight and what it could mean for you. and now to new york for the latest in this morning's tech bites. >> reporter: in today's tech bites microsoft says this will be the last year at the big consumer electronics show. they are following in ael's and plans to stage its own media events to lawnp their products. the ad-- launch their products. the administration is not -- transportation secretary ray lahood says it's not a major problem hand-held phones and texting is. a third of us talk on the phone while driving. we are not ready to use phones as wallets. less than a 4th of us are willing to make payments. it will take another 2 to 4

years for widespread adoption of mobile payments. and researchers have found it's easier to lie in a text message than face-to-face or a phone conversation because there's less personal involvement when it's word on a screen. those are your tech bites.

now "good morning maryland." welcome back a bridge damaged during hurricane katrina is being put to good use. crews started to build the second three wreaths wednesday using concrete from the highway bridge that spanned the lake. new bridge was built to take the place of the old one. wreath are expect to restore part of the lake's ecology and a third will be built next year nothing like putting the material from katrina to good

use across lake ponchartrain. >> they could have severe weather down there and we will show you in a couple minutes. headlines for today, winter has begun. it officially kicked in with that solstice at 12:30 this morning. really? hard to imagine. it's 62. high temperature yesterday that was the record for baltimore. reset it's also the coldest record high temperature for the month of december. when you look at the records for each day of the month, yes, 62 stands out as one of the lowest and how about the christmas snow. is there a chance of getting it and kicking that system into gear? we will talk about that. this morning, we have pushed the rain out of here and we have breaks in the cloud and we will actually thin them out and get partly sunny sky. we are at 49 degrees here in town. and quickly want to show you the forecast that pushes us back up mid-50s lunchtime and near 60 this afternoon and more rain this evening and tonight. we will talk about that next 5:42 and here's traffic with angela. >> reporter: thank you. and good morning. we have your alternate route to get around the accident in pasadena.

we are shut down at route 6 48 at b and a boulevard. you can take mcafee bridge road that's probably a best alternate to get around the closure. and in the meantime, no troubles to report on u.s. 29 as traffic patterns are building. so far no backups making the drive between i-70 and route 32. and your drive times not requiring any extra time as you get a live look at the beltway. 695 and harrisburg expressway. drive times will not require any extra minutes. we are at a normal pace. going to take about five minutes to get through could cockeysville to the top side of 695. a band puppies rescued from a mill are safe this morning in dc. where the puppies came from and what the future could hold. linda. >> reporter: are police any closer to making arrest in the phylicia barnes place. what police are saying about the-year-old investigation.

a group of lucky puppies are resting covers play in washington. 102 pure breads arrived wednesday rescued from a kennel

in arkansas. they were living in filthy conditions and suffering from serious medical problems. a lot need to be treat for pair sides and -- parasites and skin issues. >> when we make sure they arespade and neutered and dewormed and healthy to go out, they will be available. >> we will probably take care of them here for the christmas holiday but maybe right after christmas. >> i saw a pug i would take and show me the do xin again. woib a sucker for the doxin. if you are interested, the washington animal rescue league is take care of them. the number is on the screen. well it's been nearly a year since phylicia barnes a north carolina teen disappeared many her body was later recovered in the susquehanna river. linda so is here with new information. >> reporter: we learned police are making progress in the case but can't release details at this point because it might compromise the investigation.

an arrest was never made in the murder. the 16-year-old disappeared from her sift are's baltimore department and her body was found in the susquehanna river four months later. police never publically released how she died for fear it might jeopardize the case but they are working the case and progress has been made. if you have any information that might help police regarding phylicia barnes murder. call-1-855-223-0033. your call can be kept confidential. linda so, abc two news. another young girl has been found safely. a missing kansas university student has been found. she disappeared last friday. officers found her around 11 last night. police say she was not abducted nor was she held against her will. last friday when the sister drove to get her, she found only her book bag and cell phone. here at home 950 acres of land in talbot has been donated to the open space program.

it it was approved yesterday by the board of public works. the donation is the first public access donation in history of the program. it's donated by a former county executive and the -- a donation will help preer is of the forest land in the area. congress is going to have until december 31st to reach an agreement on the payroll tax cut extension. if not the typical american will lose $40 per paycheck. most law makers have gone home and senators passed a two-month extension before leaving but house republicans refuse to allow the vote on the measure. they want the year long extension that the president originally said he wanted, too. they will have a conference committee on this hopefully to negotiate what they are going to be a compromise. a big news deal involving big bank. bank of america offered to pay $335 billion because of discrimination charges and stemming from a federal investigation of countywide financial a lender they

purchased in 2008. the justice department says the lender steered african american and hispanic borrowers into high interest loans. justin. 5:50. we look at the eastern 2/3 of the nation and one band of rain pushing out of here. that frontal boundary extension kind of wrapping itself just back to the west straddling the ohio mississippi river valley and we focus on the south. issued by the national weather service, across the gulf coast, there is a tornado watch until one this afternoon portion of louisiana and mississippi. why mention the tornado watch when we are focus on baltimore and mid atlantic weather. because the energy from the storm is going to ride up towards the north and east. the residual energy will mean heavier rain and we could have rumbles of thunder as it passes to the northwest. we are active energetic weather pattern. cold air to the northwest and there's snow and winter to be had for half the nation but not for us. on the wrong side of the

pattern if you want snow. and the cold air filters in behind the system. but check this out, midnight we have ourselves a bull's eye with heavy rain and that should subside as we head in through daybreak. tomorrow we get the cold air to filter in diminishing the threat of the storm but since christmas night it could bring us snow showers thea. hope. 60 today a -- showers there's hope. christmas looks colder upper 30s to low 40s and christmas night through monday morning, there could be snow showers around town. angela. on the roadways right now, we are dealing with yet another accident. this time we are in howard county where they have briefly shut down the roadway on route 144 frederick road near woodbine with accident cleanup there. in the meantime, traveling in howard county on i-95 no troubles to report at maryland 175. you should find a relatively easy drive. and here's the beltway at

harford county. as we checked the drive times are in pretty good shape but especially on the top side of 695. drive times look pretty good as well as on the west side of 695. >> we have had fed -- fed ex and another shipping service is calling today as the businessitiyest shipping day of the year. who has more compassion for the needy the rich or poor? we will tell you when "good morning maryland" continues on this thursday, december 22 2 -- 22nd.

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the mayor will deliver remarks at 2:30 at the baltimore police headquarters in that auditorium. going over governor o'malley's recommendation for maryland state district boundary lines recommended by the grac reportedly reflect the demographics of the state and population trend that occurred during the past decade. and tonight, it's all about the guys beginning at 5:00. locally owned shops in downtown towson offering specials and

promotions for what's called men's shopping night. staff will be on hand to help guys pick out perfect gifts. some are offering free gift wrapping. first fed ex and then post office but what brown will do for the holiday season. u.p.s. is predicting today as the business iest of the calendar year. privately owned shipping company expects to deliver 26 million parcels what was that? 300 a second? amazing. who has more compassion, the upper-class or the lower class? well a new study of 300 students by the university of california berkeley shows those who came from upper middle class backgrounds were less likely to recognize the hardship of others. it's winter. ask the people along the southern plains. winter blast cut right through our nation's mid section. could this be be headed our way? justin -- could this be be headed our way? justin is tracking the system. police say attackers exposed a man who want a place

to rest his head. and the royals william and kate are giving back to charity. the special meaning this charity has for prince william. all of that is coming up in the 6:00 hour of "good morning maryland" and we are back in a bit.

you are watching the station that -- station that works for you "good morning maryland. and good morning. thursday december 22nd and we have got a lot going on. linda so is here telling us about a recall involving baby formula. and corinne redman is live where stores are going to be staying open around the clock trying to lure in the last- minute holiday shoppers. and growing frustration as lawmakers continue the fight over the payroll tax cut. but first we started off with meteorologist justin berk and check of the thursday forecast. 5:59. yesterday, it was fall. and we hit 62 in baltimore. and that was the easiest record high temperature to reach from the month of december. i say that because yes, we had co