right now at 11:00, serving up sweets for decades. tonight, a landmark bakery destroyed just minutes after closing time. a proposal to remember, we

were there as a local firefighter creates quite the emergency to pull off an engagement. good evening. i'm jacqueline london. it definitely does not feel like christmas eve. 70 degrees today. a picturesque view of center city from our camera on top of the adventure aquarium. it's never been this warm on christmas eve, ever. first alert chief meteorologist glenn "hurricane" schwartz is here. you'd think we were in california or florida with these temps. >> and we have the florida humidity helping to create some fog out there. that may be an issue first thing in the morning. but we've set records two days in a row, last night, we got up to 70 before midnight. that was a record. today, 71 for a record. tomorrow, near 70. the record is 68. we smashed records all across the area today. our old record was 64. last year, we got up to 71. allentown beat the record by 9 degrees.

other parts of the country beat records by as much as 19 degrees today. and look at the current reading. it's 64 degrees. at 11:00 on christmas eve. one of the cool spots, 51 in allentown. it is plenty warm. it's dry in most of the area. but we have some heavy showers, even thunderstorms coming through southern delaware going across delaware bay and right into cape may. so it's going to be stormy for a couple of hours there. and we have more rain on the way that is going to be moving up in our direction. it's going to affect us by christmas afternoon. we'll talk more about the timing of all this and just how bad the fog is going to be in the morning with the rest of the seven-day in just a few minutes. >> we'll have a few more presents left to open when it comes to our record temps. people walking around philadelphia in shorts on this christmas eve. keith jones reports on the miracle on south 13th street. >> reporter: talking about some home-grown holiday lights.

if you grew up around the region, you can't remember a single christmas like this. take a look behind me, the warm weather, not stopping these people from spreading some holiday cheer. >> nice to see you. >> reporter: they call it the miracle, no, not the weather, though it was warm enough for flip-flops. shorts and, oh, yeah, fake icicles among thousands of holiday lights. 94-year-old teresa has seen it all here but nothing like this weather in late december, no less. >> it's the hottest year. i'm enjoying it. i like the warm weather. >> reporter: she's lived on this block, coined the miracle on south 13th street, all her life, watching people stroll through this south philly holiday staple. >> i miss this about south philly, all the neighbors are out, enjoying the lights, fun times. >> reporter: mike and his 11-month-old daughter were among the hundreds of people we saw on the sidewalk tonight. some of them like perry put these lights up. >> tradition started about 20

years ago and we started with a few lights in the street and from there it got bigger and bigger. >> reporter: perry says this year, lines of cars and people are longer than ever, partly thanks to the weather. >> we wanted to bring some happiness to the people in the neighborhood. >> reporter: now it's a miracle. >> sure is. we have snow and everything on this block. >> reporter: just not today. >> not today, yes. >> reporter: we've seen people out for walks and countless people running in shorts and t-shirts. one gentleman told us, this is christmas in miami. in south philadelphia, keith jones, nbc 10 news. and it doesn't feel like christmas eve at the jersey shore either. a damp and gray day on the boardwalk in ocean city. but hard to complain when you're in shorts and a t-shirt in late december. more than 2,000 people were in the dark in camden county this christmas eve after a serious crash, a car slammed into a pole along route 70 in cherry hill around 7:30. the crash knocked out power to

about 2,100 people in the area. the power company hopes to have everyone back online by 11:30. a dark christmas eve and it could have been a cold one, too, if not for our unseasonably warm weather. it's the place to go for your sweets in delaware. these pictures posted on serpe and son's facebook page from this morning. you see the long lines out the door. the landmark has been there for decades. but tonight flames started shooting through the roof. here's what this bakery meant to the community. >> reporter: it was minutes after closing time, firefighters got the call that flames were ripping through the roof of serpe's bakery, gutting the business on one of the busiest days of the year. >> i'm heartbroken right now, to have it happen on christmas eve is horrible. >> reporter: a crowd of people lined up along kirkwood highway as six different fire companies doused water on the bakery and

cut holes in the roof. >> it's a big mess right now. people lost everything. even the ceiling caved in. >> reporter: you can see firefighters tossing debris outside. >> there was significant fire inside when they got in there. >> reporter: parts of the ceiling collapsed and the glass windows shattered, just hours earlier, the place was packed with people. photos on the serpe's facebook page show the line stretching out the door as people picked up their christmas eve orders. >> oh, yeah, it was way busy. they had police out here to escort the traffic and the people. >> reporter: the owner watched as firefighters put out the remaining hot spots as a business known as an institution in this part of delaware. he didn't want to talk on camera but his longtime customers did. >> everybody knows of serpe's. i hope they can put it all back together and i think they will. >> reporter: firefighters will keep an eye on the bakery overnight and make sure the flames don't reignite. fire investigators are also trying to figure out why this

started. drew smith, nbc 10 news. with the help of norad, we are tracking santa for you as he delivers gifts to boys and girls around the world. he arrived in the united states just a short time ago. right now, we're being told he's in augusta, maine, then he will loop around canada. so far, he's handed out a lot, more than 5 billion presents and more to come. in less than an hour, many in our area will attend midnight mass. ♪ nbc 10 at the cathedral basilica of st. peter and paul, this was one of several services held here tonight. the 9:00 mass was in spanish. ♪ nbc 10 and universal city this evening, philadelphia episcopal cathedral held its eucharist

celebrating the birth of christ. christians from across the world have gathered in the biblical town of bethlehem for christmas eve celebrations. midnight mass was held here tonight at the church of the nativity. christians consider bethlehem the birthplace of jesus. if your presents did not arrive tonight, fedex says it will deliver tomorrow. fedex plans to ship packages in some markets and will also keep fedex express locations open for a few hours tomorrow so you can pick up those packages. the shipping giant says it had slight delays today because of the weather. and we found plenty of procrastinators out searching for that perfect gift tonight. this is the scene at the target store in voorhees. a lot of people waiting till the last second to finish that shopping. new at 11:00, nbc 10 in center city for a christmas eve tradition. the feast of the seven fishes.

served up by davio's northern italian restaurant. it's a time-honored holiday celebration for many italian americans. the feast of the italian fishes commemorates the wait for the midnight birth of jesus. christmas came early for nearly half a dozen local families today. city and community leaders playing the role of santa's little helpers in south philadelphia. ♪ better not pout i'm telling you why ♪ ♪ santa claus is coming to town ♪ >> the non-profit unity in the community delivered some holiday cheer to a few families in need today, donated gifts courtesy of a toy drive from kappa high school. all five families were lucky enough to receive the christmas surprise. the group hopes their generosity ñ lasting impression. >> it's like an each one, teach one. my family taught me to do this. we have to teach the younger generation the same thing.

if you pay it forward, 20, 30 years from now, they'll be doing the same thing. >> this is the sixth year for unit in the community's operation holiday help program. ♪ pope francis celebrated christmas eve mass at the vatican. children were at the heart of today's service at st. peters basilica. pope francis visited philadelphia threely three months ago but a local family continues to feel the love even after the pope has come and gone. michael keating has cerebral palsy. he was famously blessed by pope francis moments after the pontiff's arrival at the airport. since then, letters of love and support from parents of other special needs children continue to pour in from around the world. and a social media campaign was started to help the family buy a much-needed new van. >> the most lovable boy you

could ever imagine. >> chuck and i, our eyes are wide open to try to see what else we can do to help others. >> this christmas, like every other before, they're counting all their blessings. the biggest donation to the family came from j.j. abrams. today, we are hearing from three philadelphia police officers who saved a life and the rescue was caught on video. nbc 10 was there as the officers pulled a man out of his car and began cpr. he was having a medical issue on diamond street near broad in north philadelphia yesterday afternoon. by the time the rescue squad arrived, the man was revived and talking. two of the officers have only be on the street for three weeks. >> they waved us down and said, there's a guy in the car not breathing. >> the guy wasn't breathing and needed help. we were trained to help people. >> this isn't the academy, this is real life, it's our job. >> the man is expected to survive. the officers say they are now ready for anything they see on

the beat. next at 11:00, a fire truck, a fake emergency and a diamond ring, nbc 10 is there for the proposal. plus, we're keeping track of santa's every move thanks to norad. we'll let you know which town he's landing in next. the warmest december ever recorded. what's in store for the rest of your holiday weekend? any first alert forecast is next.

earlier this week, we toeld you about a delaware family who lost everything in a fire. this is viewer cell phone video as their home in newark burned to the ground. a total loss for the family, leaving five children facing a bleak holiday. today they found out the true meaning of christmas thanks to the support of their delaware community. >> merry christmas and thank you so much. thank you so much. >> it's overwhelming. and you saw tears but they were

tears of joy. >> the firefighters put out a call on social media after the fire. donations came from people in several states. tons of christmas spirit at a montgomery county hair salon today. for the fifth consecutive year, they closed their doors to the public and gave away free makeovers to women from a local homeless shelter. they also received a stylish gift bag. tonight, a fourth generation firefighter went on a call that will change his life. he had a plan. tonight on christmas eve, it was the perfect time to propose to his girlfriend. nbc 10's reporter takes you for the ride in newcastle. >> reporter: fire station number 28, william hughes is preparing to respond to one of the most important calls of his life. >> i'm going to propose to my

wonderful girlfriend, soon-to-be mother of my two baby boys. >> reporter: his girlfriend is six months pregnant with twins. a fourth generation firefighter, only fitting that he include a fire truck in his plan. >> guys, merry christmas. >> reporter: all suited up, he headed to amanda's brother's house where the entire family is gathering for christmas eve. he's going to pretend like he's responding to a call there. it's a moment he's been preparing for more than two years. >> merry christmas! >> come on in. >> reporter: i have something in my pocket i've been meaning to give you if you'll take it. will you marry me, baby? >> yeah, i'll marry you. >> is that a yes? >> reporter: that's a yes from amanda. even after coming outside to see the whole set-up, she's still in shock.

>> i feel excited, surprised and loved. >> reporter: on this holiday, there's even more to celebrate. >> we wish you nothing but the best. fall back on being best friends. >> cheers! >> reporter: nbc 10 news. santa came for her and santa is making the rounds right now according to norad, he is in upstate new york headed all over to visit your house. glenn, warm weather for him. he's going to have to shed the big, heavy coat. >> that's right. it's almost like going to florida. and we have more of this on the way. this is not the end of the warm pattern, just because we set a record for christmas eve. the warmest christmas eve ever recorded in philadelphia area and much of the east coast. the records smashed, dozens and dozens of cities having that. we have some rain coming in for christmas day and we have some changes coming next week. some actual cold air is going to be coming in.

looks like it's getting a little foggy out there. and that fog is going to become more dense. 64 degrees. the wind is going calm now and so the humidity is very high. we're going to be seeing that fog in the morning. 51 in allentown. but in the 60s across most of the rest of the area. 58 in pottstown. another one of the ones in the 50s. but as you can see, the rest of the area in the 60s. 66 degrees at this hour in dover, delaware. so we've had the records yesterday at 70, just before midnight. today, 71. tomorrow, close to 70. the record, 68. we're not setting a record on saturday. different kind of day. but sunday, we have a pretty good chance of setting a record. ten things change. dense fog in northeast philly, mt. holly and wilmington, atlantic city, not too bad in philadelphia now. but that's going to change. and there are going to be airport delays tomorrow in the morning at least.

you can see the showers and thunderstorms coming across central delaware and extreme south jersey. cape may county getting blasted right now. the area that's coming to the rest of us is down here near atlanta, coming right up the eastern united states. and here it comes. it's not coming in the morning, it's generally in the afternoon. it's going to cover a good bit of the area for the later afternoon and into the evening hours. then we have another disturbance coming across for saturday. so we've got some wet weather to get through here. and then on sunday, we may be able to stay dry. this is the time the eagles would be playing. so there is a chance of some rain. i don't think it would be especially heavy. but there is that chance. and then sunday night, we get some more showers as a cold front comes through. once that comes through, it gets cold around here. more like wintertime. and for the game saturday night, it's mild.

starting off at 50 and maybe even going up during the game. you don't see that very often. and a chance of some rain, not much wind. so the wind shouldn't be a factor in the game. tonight, unseasonably warm with those showers and also pretty foggy. 58 for the low in philadelphia. 50 north and west. during the day tomorrow, some early fog, near record warmth. then the rain comes in in the afternoon. near 70 degrees. 68 would be the record. and then we drop a good bit on saturday, then start to climb saturday night to perhaps another record on sunday. then we're back down again on monday setting us up for a storm on tuesday with some heavy rain, maybe even sleet north and west as we get colder next week but nothing brutal. i'm ron burke. coming up in sports, see if the eagles try to play mind games with deshawn jackson.

and the 76ers make a trade. and the surprise one nba player gave to his mom. that's next.

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ron burke with you once again. this is christmas eve, tomorrow will be eagles/redskins. while you may be welcoming family to town, washington's cousins is on his way, as well. kirk cousins will bring with his version of dasher, desean jackson, eagles fans know him well. jackson didn't play in the first meeting between the first two teams because of a hamstring injury. but had four catches for 120 yards in week 16 last season,

the game that eliminated the eagles from playoff contention. john clark sat down with malcolm jenkins to get perspective on his former teammate. >> we saw when desean jackson came back here, he was fired up. is there a way to get in desean's head? >> i don't know. i don't know if there's a specific way to get in his head. but i think just like anybody, he's going to come in fired up. but we're going to be fired up as well. we're not thinking about getting caught up in a taunting match or see who can yell the loudest. but we want to be able to play. we'll let our pads do the talking. if something we do gets in his head, great. >> john clark will have more with malcolm jenkins on a special live edition of eagles gameday kickoff. and join us after the game for gameday final right here on nbc 10. key eagles still nursing injuries in advance of saturday's game.

byron maxwell did not practice today because of a shoulder injury. and defensive tackle benny logan did not go as well because of a calf injury. now to the 76ers who made some interesting roster moves. the team reacquired ishe smith from the pelicans in exchange for two second-round draft picks. smith played 25 games for the sixers last season. the club has waved tony wroten. glenn robinson iii couldn't wait till christmas to give his mom a present she will never forget. >> oh, my god! shut up, shut up! >> that's pretty, isn't it? it got real quiet. so everybody listened to mom. they shut up. he posted this on instagram. he got his mom a brand-new white mercedes for christmas. not a bad gift, is it? not bad at all! have a very merry christmas. we'll be right back.

here's a church that knows how to show its christmas spirit. they all do, we're showing you this one in particular. it's the victory new castle church. we checked this display out and were not disappointed. very beautiful. wow. and a warm evening. >> an incredibly warm evening for this time of the year. and we've got another super warm day tomorrow and another one of those on sunday. in between, a cooler and rainy day on saturday. and then things get closer to normal next week with a storm on tuesday. >> santa claus is on his way. here's a look at santa's location right now. he's in grand rapids, michigan. kids, if you are still up, it is time for bed! santa will not deliver if you're still awake.