it's the final countdown, we're in the last hours of winter before spring arrives in the morning. what you can expect for the start of spring. all new at 6:00, several police officers were hurt after running into a burning home in south jersey. people are ready to shake off the winter chills and welcome a sunny spring and we caught up with some people getting a sunny start at ritas, starting tomorrow you can free water ice. and speaking of ice, all that leftover snow and ice from

tuesday's snowstorm is making for a nice day. all of that snow pushed off roads and sidewalks. and we're now just a little more than 12 hours away from the beginning of spring which arrives at 6:29 tomorrow morning. and a live look at camel back mountain where it was a perfect day for hitting the slopes. let's kick things off with first alert meteorologist erika martin with what you can expect for that first day of spring. >> we're so excited about that, just hours away, but i would like to say, mt. pocono, as close to a blue bird day for skiers. look at this today with that march sun angle, ideal for skiers so i'm glad you got out there to enjoy. 46 in pottstown, philadelphia, 50 degrees for you. north and northwesterly winds right now, but we do have really comfortable, mild conditions right now.

>> okay, erika, we'll pick it up from here. we're live at the philadelphia flower show which wrapped up just a few hours ago. and andrea klein thomas were soaking in the sights and smells of spring. >> reporter: that's right, it smells beautiful in here. we're told an estimated 245,000 people showed up and that snowstorm may have made coming out to see these beautiful flowers even more necessary. the snow on the sidewalks continues to melt outside of the pennsylvania convention center. stacy davidson is visiting from boston and was hoping for warmer weather. how excited are you to ditch your coat? >> i'm very excited. i happen to like this coat but i'm ready to shed it and have some warm weather.

>> reporter: while many people are holding on to their cold weather gear outside the flower show, they're thinking warm thoughts. >> for me this is just a breath of fresh air. >> reporter: last week the storm kept people away from the show, but the attendance rebounded after the streets were cleared. >> i try to get here as often as possible to see the pretty flowers and get ideas for my garden. >> reporter: with so many flowers, there wasn't a shortage of inspiration. >> a lot of people found out about what's great for their gardens this year, they learned about sustainability. it's all about holland flowering the world. >> reporter: it's just a day away, and soon enough the flowers will be in full bloom. and it is still too cold to plant in your own garden right now. you're going to have to wait for things to warm up, for the earth to warm up and that still could take a few more weeks. reporting life from the convention center, andrea

kline-thomas. police in delaware county are looking for the first who fired the shot that hit a police officer's car this afternoon. the officer was in his personal car when it was hit by a bullet near ninth and tilmon street in chester. the officer was not hurt. also new at 6:00, four people were taken to a hospital after a fire broke out at an apartment building. it happened at the sycamore bridge apartment building in stockton. two of the injured were police officers who were looking for people inside the building. the officers and a resident were treated for smoke inhalation. coming together as one. members from local muslim and jewish communities held a discussion this morning after the emanuel at mt. laurel. and that wasn't the only focus on unity and justice today. drew smith is live at st. peter's basilica. so many people are mobilizing today, drew? >> reporter: it will begin right

here. it's very important to immigrants and refugees, the archbishop dedicating a service just to them. you can look at the first song on the program, titled all are welcome. ♪ >> reporter: arrethe archbishop reminded catholics of the welcoming of a stranger. he called for immigration reform. >> immigrants and refugees, even those here legally and for a long time have had a steady diet of anxiety and confusion in these last months. >> reporter: over in a mt. airy book stop -- >> so i ask philadelphia, is this what we have become? >> reporter: historian harry bowman talked about history in a jewish burial ground. >> that change has to do a lot with social media.

>> reporter: in delaware it was a stand of solidarity for the jewish community, threatened and evacuated several time this is year. >> i remember having to reach over here the first time and pick the kids up. >> reporter: a big difference today as people from different backgrounds signed a letter against hate. >> i am moved, i am touched, i am inspired. >> reporter: one lawmaker personally asked investigators in washington to catch those responsible for the threats. >> we are just people, delawareans and we are not going to let people be bullied. >> reporter: and they spoke of an interfaith network to come out of all of this, and back here at the church, they're touting their immigration department that will help immigrants that may be undocumented or run into trouble. new details into an assault arrest. a 36-year-old man was taken into custody where he allegedly

pistol whipped another man on jerome street. police say they also found chemicals to grow marijuana and weapons inside. police need your help to find a teen police released these surveillance images during the fight. at least eighteens were wanted in connection with that arrest. it sent one teenager to the hospital. investigators say the fight started after a group of teens threw ice at another group of teens. this cell phone video shows a group of a dozen teens on cell phone video. parents of the victims tell us their kids suffered bruc eed br broken bones. anyone with information is asked to contact police. we have a first alert traffic alert to you for people who use the easy pass lanes

closed in both directions at the 276 interchange. the lanes are closed so crews can upgrade overhead electronic polling equipment. during the closure, drivers can still use lanes that are next to the express lanes. forced out, we'll tell you where wildfires are threatening thousands of homes, sending people scrambling for somewhere to go. and going to the dogs, the canine members of the philadelphia police department are getting attention tonight.

more than 1,000 homes have been evacuated due to a wildfire burning in boulder colorado. the fire is moving south and estimated to be as large as 50

acres. fire crews have made no progress in putting out the fire. fire crews say there's no evidence of homes or structures being damaged. president trump says he would like the gop health care bill -- house leaders are making fine-tuning improvements to reflect people's concerns. a house vote is scheduled for thursday. and jury selection begins tomorrow in the trial of former penn state president grant spaniard. charges that students were put at risk during the trial of jerry sandusky. lots of sunshine for today with mostly clear to clear skies. for tonight, we do have a chilly tonight, so coming up i have the most accurate forecast, including bundling up tonight, and of course a forecast for the first day of spring tomorrow.

i'm lauren mayk in washington, d.c. tonight at 11:00 we're talking to local lawmakers about the answerings they're looking for.

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an afternoon of food and fun in northeast philadelphia. it was a dog gone good time for the fourth annual police canine unit fund-raiser. on top of the great food that was served up today, folks got a chance to meet the four legged members of the police force. what a gorgeous day to be outside shopping, our own deanna durante was at the philadelphia premium outlet in limerick. a great day to get that wardrobe in order. you still see some hands in the pockets, people dressed up.

even though it was nice and sunny out there. >> even though it was nice and sunny, temperatures still topped out only in the 50s. here's the deal, i kind of want to use that line that you just used, a dog gone nice day, lots of sunshine and we did see a lot of that snow pack melting. we do have a clear and chilly night in the forecast. be sure you bundle up. you'll see those overnight lows in just a moment. a great night for sky gazing, with mostly clear to clear skies, a quarter moon and also a comet, and if you follow us on social media, i'll have more updates on the comet because it will be pretty good viewing for those with mostly clear to clear skies. on the bottom of the screen you'll see your most accurate forecast. for the workweek, we do have a few chances of some showers, but a great warmup by the end of the week, a live look outside, we're just seeing a few cumulous

clouds, we call those fair weather clouds, a very nice day, i certainly hope you enjoyed it. current temperature for all allentown 43 degrees, the average high is 54 degrees, so that means we are currently nine days out with temps below average for in time of the year, the record high 78 set back in 1918. sun set at 7:12 people, and sunrise tomorrow morning for the first day of spring, 7:04 a.m. lots of upper 50s, chesnutt hill, 49 degrees, a pretty mild evening, but we have a pretty chilly night ahead. a wider perspective here, we have an area of high pressure that will develop across the ohio valley and that will be our weathermaker through at least late monday into tuesday, i'll

time it out for you, hour by hour forecast, you can see a few clouds, that's all we're seeing right now, but by late monday into tuesday, we start to see some greens on the screen, a couple of showers moving through into parts of burks county, lehigh valley, chester county, and notice by early tuesday morning everything clears and for tuesday, a mainly dry day, with those scattered showers early tuesday morning. overnight lows, be sure you bundle up, we're seeing lots of low 30s and 20s. mt. holly, your expected low is 32 degrees. happy spring almost, about time, temperatures for tomorrow, will be not quite average, 51 degrees, overnight lows again by tomorrow into tuesday will be warmer, and notice we do have a gusty wednesday in the forecast, and this is why we're expecting a little bit of a kick up there,

but for the most part, we have a cold front sweeping through, so we go 58 to 42, and then we stay in the 40s, but then we climb into the 50s on friday. saturday 60s, i did add a chance of showers late saturday into sunday and kept some showers mobile around saturday into sunday. but happy spring. >> we're saying good buy to winter. >> if you want to get your neighborhood forecast, go to the nbc10 app. here's danny pommells with your sports. >> the sixers and celtics squared off against south philly, a team they hadn't beaten in 11 tries. we'll tell you how dario.

good to see you, sixers and celtics on the front half of a double-header. baltimore going for their season. dario doing it for the sixers. look at that long pass to robert covington, drains the three. one of dario's four assists on the day, mid to go in the sixth. and shards take s dj mcconnell, in rhythm. call him jack tripper, that's right, because three's company. celtics fall 36-39d. clets go to the college hard wood, villanueva fans are still

coming to grips with the fact their team is no longer playing basketball. here's nova returning from buffalo late last night. >> we're still hurting. you know, it's part of being a player, you know, there's a lot of great ups, you know, when you're really feeling great, and downs are tough, but it's just part of being an athlete, part of being a college basketball player, we have to deal with it. our guys have handled it well, but they're down, they probably will be for a few days. >> tomorrow marks exactly two weeks from the baseball season. jeffrey hellickson will start.

he was set to leave. phillies playing against the rays this afternoon, jared icoff, pitched well. the bullpen got hammered. stop me if you have heard that one before. that leads to an 8-0 win. the orange and black have a dozen games remaining, including the hurricanes out in south philly. steve mason will start between the pipes against carolina tonight. fliers sixth loss last night. of course you can tune in right here for highlights at 11:00. until then, that's your look at sports. i'm danny pommells, csn sports. time now to check in with kate snow for a look at what's coming up on nbc "nightly news."

good evening, kate. >> coming up tonight, north korea tests a powerful new rocket engine as u.s. rhetoric turns harsher towards that regime. plus we'll visit one american city in pennsylvania ma that welcomes refugees who have brought new vitality to that town. also a new attempt to crack down on all those annoying row bow calls which costs millions in phone scams. and millions paying tribute to a real life version of the giving tree. one of my favorites when we see you in a few minutes for nbc "nightly news." >> okay, kate, we'll see you in a few minutes. we'll be right back.

a final check on the forecast on the eve of spring. >> it's exciting, isn't it? we're really looking forward to this. temperatures close to average. 54 for this time of the year. above average on tuesday, a

little gusty on wednesday. notice that temperature dip, that's a sign a cold front will sweep through, then we get a warm front for friday and saturday. and we do have a couple of chances for showers, overnight monday into tuesday, then possibly late saturday into sunday, i'm going to leave mostly cloudy for saturday right now, with some showers on sunday and monday, but overall, i think this is a pretty decent stretch of weather considering we have been seeing well below average. >> i'm really taking note of next weekend. >> 65, that's all she sees. but the good news is, we're going to warm up nicely. >> and the snow on the ground and what's left on the side of the road will be out of here. >> that's it for nbc10 news now, we'll see you tonight at 11:00. nbc "nightly news" the next.

on this sunday night, testing the limits. north korea fires a powerful new rocket engine as its leader watches. the latest provocative display as the u.s. warns patience is running out. fire and floods. a growing wildfire threatens thousands of homes in colorado while rain increases flooding in california and the northwest. finding a home. we go to one city where refugees are the life blood of the community, paying taxes and gladly accepting hard to fill jobs. stopping the calls. the federal government about to crackdown on scammers making cell phone robo calls. and the giving tree. how a neighborhood came together creating its own real version of a beloved