breaking news. an early morning house fire in tampa breaks out with four people and a dog inside. the latest from the scene coming up in a live report. >> also that sexting scandal at a bay area middle school goes from bad to worse. now involved. we're taking action for you this morning with tips on how to talk to your kids about the very real consequences that they likely don't even know they could face. >> breaking overnight -- president obama will be in florida in just a few days. what he hopes to accomplish here in the sunshine state. good morning, thank you for joining us. it's tuesday. >> let's go to the breaking news we've been covering since we first came on the air at 4:30. one person is injured after a fire broke out at a house in tampa. >> abc action news reporter corey dierdorff talks to us live . good morning. >> reporter: the 1300 block of east sitka drive in tampa still blocked as firefighters are still hard at work.

firefighters got to the home this morning, just a little before 4:00 a.m., about 50% involved, the fire. they were saying flames shooting from the front of the house and took a defensive attack. that means the fire was so severe that no one entered the home to fight that fire. while fighting that fire a firefighter came across three possible victims sitting at the started giving aid. one of the victims was rushed to tgh with burn wounds, tampa general hospital, but is expected to recover. we were able to find out there were four people and a dog in the home when the fire broke out. everyone got out including the dog. firefighters now in the process of removing smoke from the home, mopping up hot spots. the fire was brought under control as firefighters searched the home two more times for additional victims. none were found. coming up at 6:00 a.m., you're going to want to tune in, as we spoke with a person that lives next door who was praying at the time, heard cussing outside of her window, sprung into action. hear her incredible story, how

this home alive. live in tampa, corey dierdorff, abc action news. we have changes. i know we've been used to the sunshine and nice weather conditions through last week but today will mark the beginning of the next couple of days, a little rough. especially tomorrow. mid-60s now, mostly cloudy. you're stepping out this morning and you're going to notice not only that it's milder but also more humid. that is going to set the stage, heading into this afternoon and into tomorrow. 60s widespread at this point. we're going to be talking about temperature in the mid and upper 70s by later on. titan doppler radar quiet now, a few showers later today, 20% to 30% coverage. not too concerned about that, but it's in houston, that is where the storm system is taking shape. it's going to be a big deal for the northern gulf states. i think still for us, by the time it gets here much weaker but not weak enough where we prevent potential for damaging winds. that should be still in the cards for tomorrow.

low to mid-70s by lunchtime. then watch this, after 12:00 we're game for showers, again not widespread, nothing severe, and not looking at thunderstorms but keep in mind may need to dodge a couple of these as temperatures climb back up into the upper 70s, i'll be back in a few minutes and we'll timeline exactly when the line of stronger storms begins to roll through as we head into tomorrow. janelle, quiet so far? >> pretty quiet. roads are try. let's look outside behind me here, i-75 in the brandon area around highway 301, you can see traffic still light, up to speed now in both directions. if you're heading out the door in the apollo beach area it's taking about 15 minutes to get to i-4. let's talk about construction during the day. places you might want to avoid. lois and macdill at 275, some single lane closures there for road work between 9:00 a.m.

also road work at linebaugh avenue at the veterans from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. this is all week long, not during rush hour but you may want to avoid these areas around lunchtime. breaking overnight -- we just learned president obama is coming to florida this weekend -- this week, rather, on friday he'll tour a lithium ion battery plant in jacksonville that received funding through the stimulus package. advisors say the president will use the jacksonville trip to talk about tough choices he had to make during his first term. meanwhile, the president trying to handle funding for the fight against zika. we'll soon learn if $2 billion will be used to fight its spread in florida and beyond. president obama officially asked congress for that money yesterday, as we told you earlier this month it will go towards more mosquito control programs and work on developing a vaccine. meanwhile florida's top health official will head to washington tomorrow to let lawmakers know exactly how our state is responding to the

we found out yesterday two more cases were confirmed in florida. happening today -- a major development concerning the pentagon possibly closing its detention center in guantanamo bay, cuba. pentagon officials will pitch a controversial plan to congress to close the facility and transfer dangerous detainees from guantanamo bay to a facility in the united states. it calls for up to $475 million in construction costs. count on us to let you know if that plan advances. a sexting epidemic, how school administrators in highlands county are describing what has become an out of control problem at a local middle school there. we're hearing 20 girls at lake placid middle school sent nude pictures and videos to boys there. abc action news unreporter rodney dunigan brings us up to speed. were parents shocked to hear so many kids were involved? >> reporter: they were. and with good reason. this is a pretty serious situation. the local sheriff's office is investigating and there's a good chance that the students

charged with a felony. many of the parents at last night's meeting were simply shocked to find out what their kids were doing on their cell phones. administrators with the school district say students have to be proactive and have to be the first line of defense to stop the sort of thing from happening. the highlands county sheriff's office started their investigation with one cell phone, that number has gone up to 20. the investigation involves kids from 12 to 14. the principal of lake placid middle school held an eye- opening presentation for parents warning them of the dangers, parents no doubt disturbed to hear what's going on. >> it's sad. i feel like it shouldn't have happened, now we have to pay close attention to our kids and watching them on the phone, seeing what they are doing. >> reporter: the national society for the prevention of cruelty to children says to explain the dangers of sexting to your child, tell them it's not only dangerous but it is against the law. also reassure them that you

understanding and you should also contact police if they've received a nude picture. back here live, something else parents need to make sure they do, take the parental controls on that cell phone to keep you're kids safe. one great thing to do, look for apps like this one we found on- line. teen safe. with this application parents can view text messages their children send as well as view those incoming and outgoing phone calls. again this is just another measure that parents can take to ensure they know what their kids are doing on-line and to ensure they are safe. for now reporting live in the feed room, rodney dunigan, abc action news. happening today, in polk county. parents of school kids there are waiting to find out who is in line to replace the superintendent who recently resigned after accusations of sexual harassment. two weeks ago the school board accepted superintendent katherine leroy's resignation.

that she sexually harassed a supported that the and created -- subordinate and created a hostile work environment. the state attorney's office wants to charge a 15-year-old panhandle boy as an adult for the shooting death of his 10- year-old sister. the deputies say frederick lockridge admitted to shooting his sister while teaching her how to shoot a rifle. isabella was reported missing sunday morning, hours later investigators found her body in a field behind her home. the report says frederick moved her body and changed her clothes. he's now charged with murder. police are investigating a las vegas hotel where a woman was found dead at the bottom of a laundry chute. staff at the d las vegas hotel found her early sunday morning. the 27-year-old was in town with her husband from birthday. detectives say surveillance video shows her at one point walking into a maid's closet, so far police are calling it a suspicious death, not a homicide. meanwhile, nevada will also become center stage for

republican voters will caucus to pick their party's nominee for president. right now donald trump is the favorite to win that state but florida senator marco rubio is making some big strides now. after picking up two big endorsements yesterday from indiana senator dan coates and former minnesota governor tim pawlenty. on the democratic side bernie sanders and hillary clinton are now looking towards saturday's democratic primary in south carolina. with super delegates included clinton is leading sanders in delegates 503-70. has people now questioning if the vermont senator can still win the democratic nomination. sanders says the short answer he's pledging to stay in the presidential race and believes he can win massachusetts on 5:39. the death toll in fiji continues to climb after it was hit by a powerful monster officials now reporting 29 people are confirmed dead. a government spokesperson says the coral island is virtually

are left after the storm. about 4,500 people live there. winds from the cyclone topped 185 miles per hour making it the strongest storm in fiji's recorded history. the state of emergency is in effect for 30 days as a major clean-up operation gets underway. right now officials say the top priority is getting emergency supplies to the islands. new details coming into the newsroom as testimony continues over that cargo ship that sank in a hurricane off the coast of the bahamas last october. we now know the coast guard put the el faro on its list of vessels with most potential for risk. that designation would have triggered more safety inspections. the coast guard was preparing to release that list when they learned the 40-year-old el faro had gone missing during hurricane joaquin. all 33 people on board that ship died. nice stretch of weather comes to an end. today with a few showers, not a terrible day. we'll have temperatures in the upper 70s, rain coverage at 20% to 30%. it's tomorrow i'm more concerned about. a line of strong to severe

i'll have the timing on that and what you can expect coming up. coming up -- one governor is calling a city's decision public safety. the change that has him now up

good tuesday morning. 5:44. we're looking live at breaking news we've been following since very early this morning. this is the 1,300 block of east sitka street. it's closed now after a fire at

person. we have a crew on the scene now, corey dierdorff is there getting more information. also janelle is coming up in a second, she'll tell you how it's affecting traffic. right now we've got new video overnight from california to show you. firefighters battled a massive fire that consumed a 150-foot tall commercial warehouse near los angeles. flames burned through the building's roof. crews managed to keep the inferno from spreading to adjacent buildings. they expect to remain on the scene throughout the morning mopping up hot spots there. the cause of this fire is under investigation now. fire officials say no injuries were reported. fire is the theme in this new video, it shows a giant crane on fire at a construction site. you see that structure comes crashing to the ground, collapsed in melbourne, australia. sending at least 13 fire trucks to the scene. an electrical problem apparently sparked a fire at the motor, at the base of the crane spreading all the way up to the top of the arm there, then crashed on to the street

there is more damage to that construction site but crews haven't yet been able to get to it. they are now trying to figure out how to safely dismantle that crane. this morning an outpouring of support in a michigan community after an entire family died in this home. from carbon monoxide poisoning. we first told but this tragic accident yesterday morning, police say that area lost power friday night during high winds and the family was using a generator inside the home. they were all found dead sunday. a gofundme page to help cover the final expenses was closed less than 24 hours after it was set up because of the overwhelming amount of donations. that page raised more than $47,000. as flint, michigan, tries to recover from and clean up its lead contaminated water the state's governor says he plans on releasing thousands of staff e-mails related to the crisis. there's no exact timeline but governor snyder says the e-

office in 2011 and will come relatively soon. first lawyers are sifting through them and removing any documents that would be exempt. as officials work to identify and remove any lead pipes we're learning flint may have more than 8,000 of them in its water system, researchers will start the removal process once the analysis is done. the city's mayor says the estimated cost $55 million. good morning. we're waking up with temperatures in the 60s here, mostly cloudy skies. i woke up this morning and walked the dog, sidewalks a little wet, light showers overnight. really for the morning commute you're not going to have an issue with the wet roads or any showers coming down. that is going to change as we head through later this afternoon. our temperatures going from the mid-60s to the upper 70s. so titan doppler radar will be able to see some pop-up showers. by the way the green you see, just ground clutter, not rainfall. so we're staying dry through the morning, then things begin to change as we head through the afternoon with light showers. you so saw them moving through

and then the storm system i've been talking about the last couple of days in texas, that is the one that is going to give us potential for severe weather tomorrow. so let's futurecast this. the morning looks good. then again clouds build through the afternoon. some showers. the best chance of showers 20% to 30%, inland. if you're along the beaches i think you'll be in much better shape with drier conditions though it's not going to be a completely sunny day. then there's this, the line of showers and storms tomorrow that has the potential to embed some thunderstorms here. which could give us 50 mile-per- hour, 60 mile-per-hour wind gusts, not out of the question. the timing here is better than what we have had through the overnight hours. so at least a lot of us are going to be awake at that time. we'll be able to track this for you not only here but on stormshield and abcactionnews.com. check this out, pensacola and points west, towards new orleans, a moderate risk for severe weather. that is a big deal there. then of course this shifts further east so that then we're

and again my main concern, 7:00 to 11:00 a.m., damaging winds with isolated tornadoes. we'll keep you posted. the roads looking good so far. i checked out the fire that corey talked about on east sitka street. no problems there. pretty residential area so it's really just affecting that 1,300 block of sitka. the interstates now looking great. i-275 through downtown tampa, traffic still pretty light, just six minutes to get from here to the howard frankland bridge. we're going to take a virtual drive from the apex down i-275 through hillsborough. a quick stop at mlk. again traffic flowing nicely there in both directions. continuing on to downtown and the junction, all the traffic indicators in the green. that is going to take you 13 minutes to make that drive. the average speed is 68 miles per hour. back to you. big decision coming down in north carolina.

a call that the state's governor calls a threat to public safety. they passed a law expanding protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity. the measure would allow transgender people to choose public bathrooms that correspond to their gender identity. 7-4 vote came after nearly 150 people spoke up either for or against the vote in the meeting. the governor was mayor of charlotte for 14 years. he said the e-mail changing the policy on restrooms would "create major public safety issues." bathroom rules taking a very different turn in south dakota. we told you first last week how the state is on track to become the first in the nation to tell transgender students which bathroom they must use. the state senate there approved a bill requiring transgender students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that correspond with their sex at birth, not the gender with which they identify. the south dakota governor has

there's something so many kids want, american girl dolls. how is the company celebrating its 30th year anniversary? a child living within arm's reach of an arsenal. other scary discoveries made in the home with a 5-year-old

mild start. mid-60s. by later on we cloud up, 76.

20% to 30% coverage. tomorrow. more on that in the next hour of abc action news. we learn what happened during a several hourslong deposition with bill cosby's wife. in massachusetts, camille cosby answered questions about a defamation lawsuit filed against her husband bill by seven of his accusers. much of the meeting was a back and forth between lawyers about answer. judge. while the attorneys are keeping quiet about what they asked camille they say camille is in a unique position to know a lot about bill from their 52-year marriage. also has been his business manager. despite attempts by her lawyers to block the deposition it's going to continue next month. meanwhile, jury selection continues for reporter and tampa native erin andrews. she and her attorneys spent monday in a nashville courtroom for the start of her lawsuit against marriott for $75

in 2008 a man named michael david barrett rigged peepholes pictures. a new american girl doll is sure to get little girls across the country excited when it hits stores this summer. this is melody, she was created to celebrate sell the company's 30th anniversary. in her story she lives in sing. 1960s. she comes with a recording studio. she will retail for $115 when she hits store shelves. still ahead -- a basketball game comes to blows. parents and elementary school students rushing a court and beginning to brawl. what sparked this chaotic sight and the trouble some parents could be in now. >> breaking in tampa, overnight house fire with two dogs and four people inside.

5:58. on the scene of a early morning house fire in tampa that left at least one person hurt. >> it was a close call for everyone inside. corey dierdorff is on the scene now live on east sitka street. corey, is the fire under control yet? >> reporter: yeah. good morning. that fire is under control, but firefighters still hard at work in the 1,300 block of east sitka here in tampa. here's what we know so far -- that home is going to be a total loss. let's go to video when we first arrived, just before 4:00 a.m., firefighters arriving here reporting that the home was about 50% involved with fire and flames shooting from the front door. firefighter found three victims

trucks, with possible injuries. that firefighter calling for medics to check the three out. one victim was transported to tampa general hospital with burn wounds. we've learned at the time of the fire there were four people in the home and two dogs. everyone was able to get out before firefighters arrived. a neighbor said she was praying earlier this morning and heard cussing outside her window. she looked up and saw the flames of the homeowner trying to put the fire out. she grabbed her cell phone, started to call 911, rushed outside the home and here's what she said happened next. >> i had been calling police at the same time. freaking out, hey, there's a house on fire. i'm telling him quit trying to put it out with the water hose, man! just move, move. i'm hearing glass bust. i'm trying to see who else in there. an old lady in the back, helped her, got her out. making sure we got the dogs out. i picked up the bike, i said let's go. >> reporter: we have learned that man that was transported to tampa general hospital is

trying to figure out what exactly caused this fire. we will stay on top of this breaking story and bring updates as soon as we get them on air at abcactionnews.com. back to you. we're starting here with mild temperatures and probably mostly cloudy skies by later this afternoon. we are going to see a few showers in the forecast, 20% to 30% coverage. not going to see lightning today, or big storms. it's just going to be nuisance showers. we'll time that out but tomorrow things are going to change in a big way. 60s now bartow checking in at 59. the cooler spot. my goodness, this is not only mild but you step outside and notice more humidity out there. that is setting the stage for the showers today. then for the storms as we head through tomorrow. there's your hour by hour, pick time and there's your forecast as temperatures climb up to the upper 70s. notice after 12:00, 20% to 30% coverage as far as showers.