we're on top of two stories in the bay area. first an investigation into whether someone shot at a tampa police officer. then a fire tears through a tampa condo complex. moments ago we learned how many people are going to be left without a home. good morning, thank you for joining us on this very busy monday -- monday? very busy thursday morning. let's not do that. >> we're getting the latest from investigators, fire stories. we'll go for live reports throughout the morning. first let's help you plan your day. during the commercial break shay said we're in for a glorious day today. >> soak it up. that is the massachusettsage of morning are about 5 to 10 degrees warmer than what they were yesterday. i think you'll notice the

be pretty comfortable, to 51 tampa. 41 bartow. brooksville 42. citrus county some upper 30s. i think it's still a morning where you want that extra layer as you head out, or as you get your kids ready for school, but you'll be shedding the layers later on because check this out, we're making it to highs in the low 70s today. not bad at all. i a gorgeous winter day for dramatically the next 24 hours. more on what nasty commuting weather we could see tomorrow. at least for this morning the commuting weather is fantastic. janelle, any issues now to speak of? nothing to really slow you down if you're heading out the door early this morning. corey dierdorff behind the wheel of our live drive cam. he's on i-4 heading eastbound out of of tampa. lakeland or orlando? getting there. no breakdowns or accidents reported heading eastbound.

20 minutes from lakeland to downtown tampa. 9 flashing lights you see behind me, 275 south, leftover lingering construction in the northbound lanes. to the side not causing problems, just make sure you slow down and move over if you pass those construction workers working out there. a live look at 275 north of wears, no crashes or breakdowns, bearss. no crashes or breakdowns. traffic very light. hardly any cars on the road here. let's check the drive times. 13 minutes from the apex to i- 4. back to you. to the breaking news. after arrest made as police investigate whether someone targeted an officer overnight in tampa. police say an officer on patrol followed a truck leaving a bar in a soho neighborhood. after the truck pulled into a driveway on south new jersey avenue and the two people inside got out the officer heard a gunshot. the department says that officer wasn't hit, never saw a

bullet casing in the home's front yard. police arrested one person for discharging a firearm in a residential neighborhood. seven families are now without a place to live after a fire ripped through a tampa condo complex. it happened at the we -- west chester manor. adam winer there is now. what is the fire department saying? >> a moment ago we watched them climb to the second story apartment building. you can see where the ladder is. i'm told it's where the fire started. firefighters there now trying to figure out the big question of how this fire started. dan, you mentioned this is the west chester manor condos. it's right next to the walmart here in sulfur springs in tampa. neighbors telling me that around 2:00 this morning they woke to police and firefighters on their doors knocking, telling them what is going on,

that they needed to leave. the man i was talking to, apparently one of 14 people who escaped, i'm told, all of them doing ok this morning. they all may be getting help from the red cross. as for the firefighter i talked to, i talked to a spokesperson with the tampa fire department. they tell me as soon as firefighters got here they called for reinforcements because the flames were so intense. >> it started on the second floor. and went up to the attic and a lot of these buildings have a common attic so it spreads quickly. that becomes a challenge, so that is why we have the multiple units here to get in there, get water on the fire, get it knocked down so we're spreads further. >> reporter: you may not be able to see it now, firefighters in the attic of this apartment building trying to piece together exactly where

try to figure out what exactly caused it. i'm also told that tampa police are on scene interviewing the woman who lives in the apartment where this fire started, as they too try to create a narrative as to what happened. of course we'll have updates through the morning but nor now live in tampa, adam winer, abc action news. time now 5:05. a st. pete family says they've been terrorized for years. it started when a dui driver crashed into their yard, ever since they claim the suspect vandalized their cars and home. three weeks ago they woke up to find their car covered in white paint. it's the second time he paid a massive bill for paint splatter on his vehicles and also shelled out thousands for tires 15 times. >> it's been thousands and thousands of dollars along with police reports and everything else involved. >> police still haven't made an arrest. crime stoppers is now offering a $3,000 reward to anyone that

to an arrest. 5:05. new developments in the case that continues to make national news. we have learned that joseph walsh is going to be in court next month for the first time since learning his wife, kristen bury will be testifying against him in the death of their infant son. [crying] >> bury collapsed in court as she pleaded no contest to failing to protect her baby chance walsh. prosecutors say she watched as her husband joseph walsh beat the baby and stuffed a baby wipe down his throat. the parents left chance to decompose in his crib eventually burying him in the woods. a judge sentenced him to 25 years in prison. chance's grandmother told a judge her daughter deserves a harsher punishment. >> understand i will always love my daughter, she's my flesh and blood, as chance was to her.

mother instinct so this is extremely difficult, mother is supposed to protect her child at all costs. and that was not done. >> joseph walsh's trial is expected to get underway sometime later this year. retired tampa police detective fighting cancer is back home this morning thanks to thousands of dollars in donations. some of that money coming from you. people at home. we told you earlier this week, jose feliciano needed $30,000 to pay for an air ambulance from puerto rico to tampa. thanks to family, friends, complete strangers, that money was raised. family members are hugging each other, when seeing him for the first time after his plane landed at the tampa international jet center. >> i never thought i was going to be able to get him back home. >> tampa police posted this photo on their facebook page of feliciano hugging his former partner. he can now start treatment at

condition. games going. the ceo of the florida seminole tribe gambling operation was to get lawmakers to renew the gambling agreement between the state and tribe. the table games portion of the deal expired in october. so far the tribe ignored a state request to close those the casino is still offering a -- casinos are still offering blackjack and poke her but if lawmakers don't renew the tribe could be forced to shut down those card games. the tribe says 3,700 jobs depend on the tables staying open. >> these particular individuals, people that are buying houses and cars an children in school do not know where they stand. and i take that responsibility very seriously. >> governor scott tells us he will sign the deal if it clears the legislature. this morning it appears the legal battle over the florida senate districts now coming to an end. senate leaders now say they will accept a new map approved by a judge last month.

groups sued over the existing senate district saying they benefited political parties or incumbents. a trial on senate maps was scheduled for september but in court filings the senate says it's settled the case. time now 5:08. this is fun, today marks the start of the eighth annual palm harbor citrus festival opens today 5:00 p.m. florida and georgia aches in historic downtown palm harbor. festivities include rides, games, food and live music, runs from today until sunday. maybe today is the better day shay to get it in if people are thinking about friday? today is the best day of the week. so whatever you have in mind to do outside, if you can get it in today i think you'll be really happy. the temperatures are more comfortable this morning, still cool though, most of them in the 40s to low 50s by 8:00 a.m. at noon we're in the mid-60s and topping out today in the low 70s. talk about a gorgeous winter day in tampa bay. the winds out of the southeast

gorgeous day for a round of golf. i'll show you the 7-day forecast and all the changes to come along with our next cold front coming up in a moment. 5:10. also coming up -- the system headed for the bay area is part of that same one that could bring up to 2 feet of snow in the northeast. we're finding out how far that storm can stretch. some cities getting a taste already of what is to come. >> a kent state professor shooting down accusations he has ties to isis. what he has to say about the

5:14 now. on this thursday morning. right now millions of americans are preparing for what is expected to be a major winter storm. some 15 states could see snow, sleet, ice storm warnings and blizzard watches are already posted across some of the most populated real estate in the country. anywhere from a foot to 2 feet of snow could fall in parts of the northeast and they've already got a taste of what is to come. ice and snow covering the and grinding the afternoon commute to a halt. reports of more than 100 traffic accidents there. even the president couldn't conditions. president obama returning to the white house from joint base andrews in suburban maryland. drive. you can see his motorcade there on the roads. he couldn't fly on marine 1

shay joins me now. it's expected to reach as far south as north carolina. some crews are heading there in an hour to assist with what is expected to be a lot of power outages there. >> these are places that don't normally have that much snow. so they don't have the machines and so farming to help out. >> some affect us? >> yes, we have the chance of storms as the cold front rolls through. look at the map and you can see just how far the span is, from the central u.s. on up into the northeast and through the mid- atlantic states. that is where there's a potential for some heavy snow over the next 24 to 48 hours. so this area of low pressure is to blame for this system that is going to start cranking throughout the day today. but it's the lower part of the system, the southern side that we are going to see passing through our area. so here's what we're looking at as we move a little closer to florida.

place -- what we're looking at is for the showers to move across the panhandle over the next 24 hours bringing chances for very strong and even potentially severe storms to that area, but the weaker side of the system what is we're going to see giving us a chance of showers and storms tomorrow. but, it does look like we're not going to see a significant risk for any organized severe storms. we'll continue to monitor this, any change in the path of that low pressure system could significantly change the impact and intensity of those storms. so, this morning we're starting off on the mild side, 51 degrees in tampa. 55 degrees in st. pete. 41 bartow. 36 in inverness. so we have some temperatures in the 30s to the north. here in our area this afternoon we are going to see highs in the 70s. how awesome is that? a beautiful day ahead and warmer from start-to-finish. tomorrow the temperatures are going to be on the mild side to start the day.

is looking pretty good, until about 8:00. chance for showers. we'll get a line of heavy rain that moves through, and even behind it, even into saturday are so strong we may get a shower or two out of it. then on sunday we're drying out, winds start to calm down but the temperatures remain on the cool side. all right, good morning, janelle. >> corey dierdorff found an accident in brandon. providence road and brandon boulevard. he tells us two westbound lanes are blocked, one westbound lane is getting through so no need for a detour, just might take you a few extra minutes to get through that intersection. corey says it's just a minor crash but you still may see flashing lights so leave yourself extra time. a crash in hillsborough south 50th street closed completely at 17th avenue south, from a crash that happened earlier this morning but 50th street or

expressway. so you have several options. you can use neighborhood roads or just take south 56 on up to make your way around that intersection. i'll keep an eye on this and let you know as soon as it clears because as the morning commute pushes on this could cause some trouble for the morning drive. this is what it looks like at the tampa side of the howard frankland bridge. not a lot of cars on the road, less than 10 minutes to get across this and the other two bridges this morning. a live look through downtown tampa, traffic up to speed, just six minutes from here to the howard frankland. 5:18. this morning the central florida teacher is out of a job after reportedly being caught lying about her credentials. officials say bonnie dixon claimed to have a masters degree from the university of florida. but uf officials say she doesn't have that degree, in fact never even attended classes there. dixon has since resigned from her teaching job.

that kent state professor under investigation for potential lie ties to isis. professor julio pena is giving his side of the story after a investigation broke in the school newspaper. the editor confirmed fbi agents interviewed her asking questions about the 55-year-old associate professor that converted to islam. he says he did nothing wrong. >> everything i've done is perfectly legal. i fulfilled my duties as an american citizen with some issues people of course find controversial. >> in 2011 he shouted "death to israel" during a lecture given by an israeli diplomat. he believes this outburst may investigation. rapid transit says they will be replacing all fake ones, after the shooting death of a passenger. the decision comes less than a the majority of the security

questions about whether the cameras work arose after bart officials refused to say if security cameras captured the january 9th killing of a passenger on board a train. the transit agency has working surveillance cameras on station platforms and at fire boxes and again says it will replace all the fake ones with real ones. still ahead -- fresh screbts that could have -- screbts that could have a dangerous side effect. scents. >> encouraging, inspiring, loving go getter. there's nothing stopping her. nothing brings her down. >> this little girl's message of bravery has gone viral and now the hope and courage she spread all coming back to her as she continues a difficult

good thursday morning, 5:24. we have a health alert. we're taking action for you. a lot of us have scent thed scandals, they smell great but there's a side effect. citrus scented candles can pose a serious health threat releasing cancer-causing agents into the air. new research says they can react with other chemicals causing that cancer-causing agent. the study looked at chemicals

five days. homes with scented candles and cleaning products had the highest levels of that chemical called limonene. it reacts with the ozone and creates formaldehyde associated with several types of cancer. researchers say house plants can reduce formaldehyde levels. a young fire survivor in upstate new york is making a big mark literally around the world. this is the 8-year-olds little girl, this is her work, sapphire terry lost her family in the fire in december but still wanted to get christmas cards and they came in from all over the world. >> from iceland, australia, russia. just about everywhere big that you can think of, we have stuff. >> sapphire says she can't believe so many people showed this kind of compassion for her. she's in boston now for reconstructive surgery. one of many she will undergo until she stops growing. her aunt says this entire experience has taught sapphire no matter what you go through

5:25. coming up -- an arrest overnight after a gun goes off at a tampa neighborhood. too close for comfort to a tampa police officer. authorities now trying to uncover if that shot was fired at the officer. live report from lindsay logue, checking with authorities about what they know. then flames consuming several condos overnight leaving families without a home. we're looking at the scene as firefighters try to fog out