this has affected power to tens of thousands of people. the tether has been affecting the power lines. this is video from bloomsberg university. this is a shot of the bloomsberg university in the dark because again this aerostat or this blimp knocked out power. a lot of folks capturing this on social media this afternoon. at this point the latest is we heard is the aerostat or the blimp not on the ground and is still in the air. we haven't got an update on where it is but it is in the va -- vicinity of bloomsberg, pennsylvania. there are f-16 jets launched from new jersey to trail it and i guess see what it is doing. the military not being clear. at this point this is loose and out of control. according to everything we are hearing near bloomsberg, pennsylvania. back to you. jonathan: we are joined by michael who is with norad to

talk about the blimp. the blimp is used for the defense mechanism for the united states and they are supposed to be tethered not come untethered. feel us in on the problem and the threat it poses now. michael: i can tell you p 12:20 this afternoon eastern time as mentioned earlier, it became untethered. we are watching it closely and coord mating closely with the pennsylvania emergency operation center folks. we are coordinating with the state and the law enforcement officials. i'd like to stress we are also interested in the public safety aspect of this as well as the infrastructure aspect of what the situation is presenting. public safety is our number one concern. our next priority after public

safety infrastructure protection would be the safe recovery of the aerostat. alison: michael, what can you tell us about where this is right now? and what people, you talk about public safety, what should people be doing or looking out for? michael: so at this point, people are seeing things. it's getting attention on social media. that is a good thing because it lets people know where it's at. i am hearing the same information reported on earlier. we are, you know, obviously looking to ensure that the public is safe, that they work with their local law enforcement officials. that really is our primary concern right now. we will continue to monitor and again, we will provide updates as we get them. jonathan: michael, break down, i know that norad is the north american aerospace blimp command and the blimps are used as defense mechanism for

incoming missiles but have you ever had one of these become untethered before or float away like this? michael: what this is, this is a surveillance radar. it doesn't have a defensive capability in terms of, you know, some type of munitions that could be launched from the platform. jonathan: right. michael: it provides us in the national capital region specifically with a good 360-degree, about 340-mile capability to see incoming air traffic. it's designed to detect them. help the integrated aerodefense system on the ground to defend the capital region. jonathan: but you never had one become untethered like this. michael: no. this is not something that was planned or the aerostat is designed to do. jonathan: all right. alison: one more question, michael, if you don't mind. we heard about the f-16's. what are they doing? what is going on there?

>> we launched two out of atlantic city, new jersey. to make sure we had the eyes on and we could provide update from the cockpit in terms of the elevation. the status of the aerostat. a precautionary measure. we worked to make sure that the air space in the eastern air defense sector was safe for air traffic. we worked closely with the f.a.a. on that. now we are working closely with the folks on the ground to ensure no one is, no one is harmed and no one is hurt. and the infrastructure can be safely obtained. jonathan: stay with us on the breaking news about this throughout the everything. sign up for the text alerts at

wjla.com/text. more breaking news to tell you about this afternoon. reporting of a shooting on east capital street. two juveniles were shot. they were alert when the police and the paramedics got there. we will bring you updates here on the air or the website at wjla.com. in rockville, look at this. a tree comes down in cars off the pike near the beltway. yikes! unclear if it's brought down by the weather but we are told nobody was hurt. can't say the things with the vehicles. alison: a live look now outside. if you are not getting showers it's still gray and gloomy. doug hill is tracking the possibility of thunderstorms. doug: we haven't had them yet but there could be isolated one in the evening. around here is gray, gloomy, drizzle and light rain. give you a look at the live conditions in hagerstown, maryland. 67 degrees. cloudy skies. widespread. it's been widespread overcast throughout the day. that will continue through the

evening. more showers at times. south of radar shows the area of the metro area. steadier area developing south and west of the metro region. we will keep an eye on that through the evening. it's lifting from south/southwest to north/northeast. no thunderstorms yet. cold front still lies to the west. we will keep an eye on that. we have opportunity for isolated thunderstorm early this evening at 7:00 and 8:00. then again around midnight is the possibility when the cold front comes through. after it comes through we are in good shape. the ties tend to clear as we head late overnight, the temperatures in the lower 60's. tomorrow looks fine. partly cloudy, breezy and warm. secondary cold front tomorrow afternoon will deliver cooler rare. we will give you all the details for the week and halloween coming up. jonathan: stay with the weather team. even away from the tv set you can get the updates on

wjla.com, facebook, twitter and the stormwatch weather app. download it to your phone. nice to have. alison: a violent arrest of a student in south carolina. it was caught on camera. now the deputy seen in that video is out of a job. elizabeth hur has more on the department decision to fire the officer. >> he should not have done that. he lost control of her. that is not acceptable. that is our policy. elizabeth: deputy sheriff and school resource officer ben fields fired after a review of his actions caught on video. >> terrified. terrified. my first instinct was get my phone out. elizabeth: tony is one of several students that recorded the incident on monday. i began when a 16-year-old female student reportedly using her cell phone in class refused to hand it over, ignoring request from the teacher, another administrator and defied the orders from the

officer to leave the classroom. >> i didn't feel like if i were to tell it, people would believe what i was saying. >> the deputy needs to be handcuffed and he should have been in handcuffs when the sheriff saw the video. elizabeth: the officer former boss explained there is other video showing the student swinging and striking the deputy. >> it doesn't justify his actions but she needs to be held responsible for what she did. elizabeth: the officer was arrested last year as exceptional role model but sued twice before for using excessive force. the first filed develop by martin and his now ex-wife. >> got upset because i called him dude. next thing wham, slams me to the ground and beats on me. elizabeth: the second lawsuit is headed to trial. for this incident a criminal investigation is underway by the f.b.i. elizabeth hur, abc news, new york. alison: metro appears to be close to hiring a few general manager. a source close to the search process tells abc7 they have

their man. they wrapped up the interviews yesterday. they are in negotiation with the finalist. if it goes as plan according to the source we'll know the name by the end of the day. jonathan: we are learning more about that car that slammed into a home in alexandria last night killing two people inside the car. police now say the car had been reported stolen in alexandria. our brianne carter is live with the latest on the investigation. brianne? brianne: jonathan, within the last 90 minutes police identifying the driver as 28-year-old antonio beattie. they have not identified the passenger in car that slammed here in the now boarded up home. what we do understand, according to police the car was traveling here along the very busy beacon hill road. take a look at the path that came through. the car coming through the area.

through this section of the yard and coming across the street ending up inside the home there. we understand according to authorities that they believe speed was a factor. that the driver perhaps lost control of the car and slamming into the home. beattie was taken to the hospital where he later died and the passenger was pronounced dead at the scene. the honda they were in was stolen from falls church. the family that lives in the home was not at home at the time. they were at church. according to friends of the family, they say this is the third time a car has hit this property. this afternoon we talk to neighbors of the two men who died in the crash. >> my neighbor, my friend. gone. but i didn't expect to see this. >> friends with both of the guys. great guys. i know one of the young men had kids.

they both worked. so it's really sad they are gone. brianne: police say that speed was a factor in the crash. residents telling abc7 news that people speed through the business road all the time. so just how fast are they going? and what can be done to slow them down? that is coming up on "abc7 news at 5:00". reporting live, brianne carter, abc7 news. jonathan: okay. thanks. we are hours away now from the next republican primary debate. for the first time, dr. ben carson will take center stage leading the polls. donald trump, second place. senior political reporter scott thuman is live in boulder, colorado. scott, i know we can expect fireworks but what are we looking forward to tonight? some of the candidates that haven't shown up on radar now going to speak up? is trump going to gain more ground? what is going to happen? scott: good question. first, because this is hosted by cnbc the focus will be on

the economy and on jobs. is this in trump's wheel house? it should be if you listen to him talk. can he lay out plans beyond saying he has a plan to make america great again? have to have specifics to win over an audience, especially with the panelists and the moderators who will press hard on details. secondly, what about carson's credentials? is he able to plainly tell the american public how he has a pist -- fiscal knowledge. he had a hiccup previously and can he recover that and give confidence for those who are undecided but considering him that he knows what he is doing to make sure the economy continues to grow. what about the break-out performances? so many candidates still in this field. in fact, we have the undercard debate prior to the main event. does chris christie or marco rubio or jeb bush who is lingering and in fifth or sixth place in most polls, do

they have the bump they need to get the bump that carly fiorina did after the second debate. jonathan: why is carson ahead in the polls? what is he doing to push him there? two, what happened to fiorina? she had two great performances in the earlier debates and then she completely disappeared? scott: first with fiorina, there wasn't much of a followup act. she is a great speaker. she has the business acumen and the history to talk about it. but after that initial debate and bump we saw there wasn't anything on the campaign trail that grabbed attention or headlines. she will try it again. she will be attacked from other candidates on this one because they are going to say h.p. didn't do that well and you were ousted. but she will talk about what she does know. that is, business. secondly, back to your question about ben carson. it may not be what he has done to get to the top of the polls, it might have been some people no longer buy what donald trump is selling. keep in mind the difference

right now is still within the margin of error with the cbs/"new york times" poll. so it's not as if carson suddenly is running away with anything. we have just seen a shift. that is the momentum he tries to build on. if trump can capitalize on his business acumen it should be tonight. it will be interesting to see if he capitalizes on his own traites or goes after those on the stage. jonathan: we will look for your report tonight. stay with us for the coverage of the debate. we have more from scott at 5:00 and 6:00 and a wrap-up at 11:00. also ahead at "abc7 news at 4:00" -- how millennials are shaping the 2016 campaign. on the hill, the house is getting ready to vote on the budget. it happened hours after they nominated paul ryan to be the next house speaker. ryan said he would support the budget bill because it makes

"meaningful reforms." the strength and the safety net programs like social security and provides sufficient resources for the military. alison: okay. former house speaker dennis hastert pleaded guilty to bank fraud. in exchange for the plea, prosecutors are expected to drop charges of lying to the f.b.i. hastert is accused of covering up millions in hush money. sources with knowledge of the program said he was paying a former student to stacket about allegations of sexual abuse when he was a coach and teacher in illinois. sentencing is set for february 29. plea deal recommends he serve up to six months in prison but the judge could give him up to five years. jonathan: encouraging news with testing for students in the district. they are back with the improving school districts in the united states. data shows the students grew by eight points in reading compared to the 2013 test results.

also, fourth grade math scores grew by four points. everything is on the up. however, there was a two-point dip in eighth grade math scores. in maryland, students' scores remain above the national average in most areas but they did dip below the national average in fourth grade now. coming up on "abc7 news at 4:00" -- a new app to find the best houses when it comes to trick-or-treating and getting the best candy. alison: really? plus, we'll tell you about royalty in washington. prince harry is in town. what he is doing with american wounded warriors still ahead. >> and an atv stolen. did the burglar know who he or she was stealing from? i'm kevin lewis with

alison: we are back with an update to breaking news we talked about since the top of the hour. the blimp that floated to aberdeen is on the ground. the norad blimp part of a missile defense system. again, we heard it is now on the ground. we'll get more information about exactly what happened here coming up at 4:30. jonathan: good news. former president jimmy carter is backing the eisenhower memorial project. he is the latest joining the

advisory committee. both bushes and bill clinton are on the committee. the memorial project has won design approvals. but some in congress want to halt the project. in a statement, carter said eisenhower is possibly our last warrior president. the search for a stolen a.t.v. this isn't an ordinary vehicle. it belongs to military veterans assistance group. alison: that's right. maryland department natural resource police posted this flyer here online. kevin lewis has more on the search. kevin? kevin: police say the thief or thieves tried using the silver combo lock. when that didn't work they walked around the yellow maintenance shed. and smashed through the glass window to gain access inside. if you look below the window, you can see markings presumably from their shoes of the aluminum siding of the

shed. here is a better look at the bright red a.t.v. that was stolen. it was stolen from a non-profit called warrior canine connection. it trains therapy dogs and places them with veterans with illnesses like ptsd. year and a half ago it moved to dairy farm. this the executive director says is a netback the group did not need. they are stealing from a group that sacrificed so much for the country. this is a chain they had to cut through to get it out of the shed here. if you join us at 5:30, we will explain one of the solid

leads the police have in their pocket. for now we are live in boyd, i'm kevin lewis, abc7 news. alison: tonight get ready for heated competition between arlington firefighters and the local chefs. it's called the "chiefs versus chefs -- too hot to handle." they will take part in the cooking competition and fundraiser. this is at the ballroom at wilson boulevard. it begins at 6:30 tonight. by the way, the money raised from the ticket sales will feed needy families. jonathan: weather today is dreary, cloudy, rainy day. but it's nice. doug: got up to 70 degrees in some places. beautiful weather will return tomorrow. we'll get through this. look at the army-navy country club. this is in fairfax. 67 degrees currently.

the radar didn't changing. there is a moderate strand of rain here through the district and points north. this heavier downpour is moving north/northeast. we will continue to see the repeat process. if there is a thunderstorm it's isolated. the cold front will get closer there could be an opportunity. but if there is one at all to wake you up it will be later tonight when the cold front passes. that may be around midnight or after.

every now and then you will get one where the cold air lags behind the cold front. that is the situation tonight. 8:00 tonight, heavier downpours, maybe in the early overnight hours. isolated shower possible. winds to the west will be breezy. warm. 62 to 75 tomorrow -- 72 to 75 tomorrow. then fall on friday. 62 degrees with sunshine. saturday looks great. 61 is the high temperature with a lot of sunshine. the conditions are fine for trick-or-treaters. saturday night, in the 50's. partly cloudy skies. turn the clocks back an hour before you go to bed. sunday looks fine, too. 30% chance of showers in the afternoon. a bitter chance on sunday -- a better chance on sunday and then we have typical weather monday and tuesday. alison: looks good.

thank you. jonathan: another update on the breaking news we are following. two juveniles were shot in northeast washington. roz plater just got on the scene. what do you know? roz: we are at benning road and east capitol street. you can see they have blocked off quite a section here, crime scene. half a block. also by the benning road metro stop. i spoke to an ear witness who told me he heard about seven shots. there was a group of kids coming off the metro. they don't know where the shots came from. police tell us two young men were shot. they were breathing and conscious and taken to the hospital. we don't know further update on the status. apparently when they were shot the victims ran on to a metro bus that was stopped here. that is why metro is leer and

the d.c. police. they are investigating this. this is fresh. this happened in the past hour or so. the two juvenile males shot, they ran off to the metro bus. taken to the hospital conscious and breathing. we are told a number of kids in the area of the time. number of them get off the benning road metro stop here. so this is a popular spot where the kids gather after-school. sometimes parents come to wait for them. we don't know where the shots came from but an ear witness telling me he heard seven shots fired. the two juveniles struck. hopefully we will get a condition update on them. for now, live in d.c., roz plater, abc7 news. alison: thank you. coming up next at "abc7 news at 4:00" -- a glimpse of royalty. what prince harry was doing in a visit with wounded warriors coming up. jonathan: plus, closing arguments in the alexandria murder trial. what the prosecutors and the defense are saying in the final push to swing the jury. that's coming up next at "abc7 news at 4:00".

announcer: countdown to veterans day sponsored by

jonathan: a crowd favorite. prince harry in d.c. alison: checking out the programs that help the injured service members. diane cho caught up with him. diane: prince harry made a

stop at the army base to spend time with the injured service member. he was here with the first lady and dr. biden to help the invictus games next year in the u.s. which is an international competition for wounded service men and women. while they were here they had a chance to cheer on teams in a wheelchair basketball game, schism to one they would see at the game. the soldiers we talked to today told us despite the injuries they were able to rebuild camaraderie because of a death of sports knowing they have someone else to lean on that is going through a similar issue. >> most soldiers have a competitive nature anyway. that's how we are trained and how we are built. when you come out and do something to build on the army or the marines or the navy and the military in general has given it, it helps. diane: the invictus games will be held in orlando next year at the espn wide world of sports complex. diane cho, abc7 news. jonathan: coming up next at

4:00 -- closing arguments today in the alexandria murders trial. what was said by both prosecution and defense as the trial is coming

jonathan: we continue to follow breaking news about the blimp that broke lose at the aberdeen proving ground in maryland. that is what the blimp looks like. tethered by a mile-long cable. that is the problem. the cable can do damage. paul is joining us live there tonight. what can you tell us about the

blimp? is it finally on the ground or what? paul: it is. yeah. strange afternoon, weird few hours and the headlines you are reading are true. a blimp got on the loose from here at the aberdeen proving ground. the aberdeen proving ground east of i-95 between baltimore and philly. there are two starts of the installation and the blimps were housed here at the edgewood facility. there are two of the blimps. we are not exactly clear which of the two blimps broke free of the moorings just after noon today. there is one of the blimps that went in the air back in last december. so if you drive up i-95 for the past ten months and you fall a big wide blimp in the air, 80 yards long, that is one of the blimps. they are the jlens. this is what it looks like now. it's in moreland township,

pennsylvania, north of the aberdeen proving ground here after taking f-16's for a ride as they escorted it through the pennsylvania air space and finally has it touch down near bloomsburg. and finally landed at moreland township. the blimps are designed norad tells us to look for 150-mile radius for airborne threats. it was unmanned today and on the loose for three hours before it finally landed and the helium ran out. that is the next chapter as we move forward. this chapter is closed. the blimp one of two here from norad at the aberdeen. it went on the loose for three hours. it's finally grounded about 150 miles north. jonathan, back to you. jonathan: all right, paul. thank you very much. i got to say behind you is a gorgeous picture of the trees changing. alison: it is. we move on to closing

arguments in the alexandria murders trial. defendant charles severance accused of shooting and killing three people. soon, a jury in fairfax county will decide his fate. northern virginia bureau chief jeff goldberg takes us inside the closing arguments. jeff? jeff: the case will be in the hands of the jury any moment right now. this was an intense and an emotional day in court today. a packed courtroom for the closing arguments. just moments ago, lead prosecutor brian porter wrapping up his forcement and passionate plea to -- forceful and passionate plea to deliver guilty verdict against charles severance. before porter spoke the deputy prosecutor as well as the defense attorney making their final pleas to members of the jury. the prosecution closed by presenting charles severance as a man scarred by losing a custody battle over his son. motivated to inflict violence on the so-called utopian elite. the defendant hated alexandria and wanted to terrorize the community.

prosecutor lloyd citing the murder of nancy dunning, ron kirby and ruthanne lodato all happened near one another, in the same time of day and in the same manner and each committed with a small% -- small .22-caliber revolver that they say severance was obsessed. there are the writings of a man who believed he had the right to kill. and the identification in court as severance the shooter by the care-taker. he closed with the message to jurors. this is your opportunity to tell the families of the victims they did not die in vain. defense attorney megan thomas responding saying by day one the commonwealth jumped to conclusion with mr. severance and they are asking you to do that today. she conceded the writings are a major piece of the prosecution's case were all over the map but there is nothing in the writings that connect mr. severance to these crimes. nothing. thomas arguing that there is no d.n.a., no fingerprints, no blood connecting severance to the killing.

continually stressing the absence of hard evidence is enough to find reasonable doubt and a not guilty verdict. we know just in the past few minutes that judge randy bellows, instructed the jurors how to proceed from here. as to what will happen today it's still unknown. i will run inside the courtroom to find out whether or not the deliberations will take place tonight. it remains to be seen. it's late in the day. they have been leaving at 5:30. they have a lot to digest. i'll go back inside the courtroom to see what is going on with the deliberations. i'll have an update at "abc7 news at 5:00". until then, live in fairfax, jeff goldberg, abc7 news. alison: keep us posted. you can stay with abc7 and jeff goldberg for the latest on the alexandria murders trial. he has been and will continue to sweet any and all updates. follow him. @abc7jeffg. @abc7news. jonathan: bernie sanders will be in northern virginia tonight.

he will take part in a student town hall meeting at george mason university. in the prehalloween event to raise awareness of the student debt crisis going on, member of the vass student power network will dress up as walking debt zombies in the town hall. that is very appropriate. they want to scare up support for debt free higher education, which is an idea embraced by sanders. alison: my len millennials -- millennials will be key when it comes to pick the next president. young adults make up almost 30% of the electorate. national correspondent jeff barn tells us what it will take to earn their vote. reporter: millennials, people between the ages of 18 and 33 number 15 million strong and have proven they have the power to determine the outcome of a presidential race. >> what will galvanize voters our age is to have someone exciting. reporter: millennials make up

the second larging voting bloc behind baby boomers. and they vote. they tipped the race in 2012, especially in the swing states for barack obama. >> we are a generation of people that want different things than older generations. reporter: they are fiercely independent voters. >> i am a fan of the nonestablishment candidates. reporter: they don't necessarily follow in their parents' footsteps to cast their ballot. >> policy is something we discuss. we discuss ideology. i think that has been excellent groundwork for me to form my own political identity. reporter: they are not swayed by the captains of business. >> untrustworthy. has to be donald trump. reporter: or promises cast with an eye to the future. >> hillary clinton, it takes a good amount of effort to have that much baggage. reporter: they have enough insight to know who they are

voting with. andrew is going with rand paul. jerry favors hillary clinton. smith and pierce are decidedly for bernie sanders. i'm jeff barn, abc7 news. jonathan: ahead at 4:00, first for astronaut john kelly. what he did in space today as he spends a year hovering above earth. alison: also ahead a 4:00, we are talking retirement with the u.s. soccer star abby wambach. what she parker: my daughter alison and her cameraman were gunned down on live television. i know we can't stop all gun violence, but we can save lives if our leaders take action. narrator: but we can't count on hal parrish to act. he gets an "a" from the gun lobby, they fund his candidacy... while fighting against background checks to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people. parrish will make us less safe. parker: politicians' condolences aren't enough. it's time for them to act. feinblatt: everytown for gun safety action fund sponsored this ad.

jonathan: nasa astronaut scott kelly took a walk outside the international space station today. i guess they floated around. alison: took a walk. jonathan: the crew was seven hours of work to complete outside the international space station. the astronauts are tasked with installing athermal cover over an antimatter detector and removing a piece of thermal insulation from switching unit. this is kelly's first spacewalk of the year-long stay at the space station. alison: wow! the world series today took a furry turn. you can say. because the mets' world series puppy parade took place in new york in a way to celebrate the mets' participation in the world series and promote pet

adoption. adoption agency sponsored the event. they were dressed in mets gear. jonathan: some game last night. five hours later. alison: late, late, late. ahead at 4:00, shes the face of u.s. women's soccer. and she is hanging up her cleats. abc7 caught up with abby wambach at the press club to find out what is next. jonathan: new wal-mart in the district. we'll take you inside to tell you why this is a big deal. that is coming up. alison: a look outside for you now. some showers but there is a chance of storms. we are keeping an eye on that and the wet roads as well. updates to the forecast. there is the commute right there. slow-going. that is right after this break.

alison: a big-time soccer star hanging up her cleats. jonathan: abby wambach will announce. the decision announced in washington. erin hawksworth is with us. one of the most influential athletes out there. if you go out, this is the way to go. e. it is. this is a cool story. this is a surreal moment for

her. she said she has to pinch herself sometimes. she can't believe the success she has achieved. hard to believe it herself. as the career started the same place it is ending in d.c. abbey began her career in 2002 with the washington freedom playing alongside mia hamm. so her career came full circle because she announced her retirement at the white house yesterday. before president obama honored wambach and the u.s. women's national team for winning the world cup this year. today she told us how she broke the news to her teammate last week. >> i think they were stunned in the way i did it. hey, by the way, i'm retiring at the end of the victory tour. they were surprised but it's evident that it's time for me to step away. winning, going out on top, i don't know if there is a

better way to retire. >> the best way to do it. she scored 1844 goals on the u.s. on the way to winning a world cup. she won two olympic gold medals an six u.s. soccer athlete of the year award. you know you made it when you get this. in 2012, she was granted the chipotle gold card, which means she gets free burritos for life. i don't know if anything is better. i wonder if she does the bowl or the whole burrito. jonathan: i love the hashtag. #happiestdayever. alison: thank you. well, your choice of pharmacies is growing a bit slimmer. that is if a megamerger close through. walgreens is buying rite aid in a deal that topped $17 billion. it would combine to make it the biggest pharmacy in the nation. that would take c.v.s. to number two. it's pending approval.

jonathan: we have slight drizzle but nothing compared to what the folks down under had. look at this. that is hail. lots of it. big. baseball-size hail pounding down. came down in buckets. homes were destroyed because of this. thousands of other homes lost power in the area. some had big holes in the roof as a result of the hail coming down. you don't see a storm that violent when it comes to hail. alison: scary. what about now? what have we got? >> the computer models last night is holding true. we thought it would be tough this morning. moving in the evening hours this is what is going on. if you are expecting anyone home, travel to the beltway or 66, they will see delays. heavy rain on the way. give you a track for the system or the cell that is not moving off toward north and east. chantilly you will see most of the action after 5:00. northeast to montgomery

county. germantown at 5:30 or so. this is the beginning. we will see heavy rain in the evening hours but we will get it out of here by midnight and the skies will begin to clear. let's talk about something better. the weekend. 61 degrees for a high on saturday. sunday we have highs in the middle 60's. trick-or-treat forecast is holding steady. upper 50's to start. moving through the evening hours to drop in the lower 50's. get out and enjoy the foliage. peak conditions for the district and the surrounding areas. not so much for southern maryland. get an update on the rush hour commute. it's messy, jamie sullivan. jamie: of course it's a wet one for you. if you plan on 10 to 15 minutes to get where you have to go, tap out extra five or ten minutes at least to accommodate. when the roads are wet, everyone goes slower.

you get an idea on the inner loop and the outer loop. we are seeing the brake lights and road spray, too. move to the maps and focus on crashes. on the outer loop of the beltway. working south from maryland to get closer to virginia continuing to anon-dale. we have an accident at little river turnpike. you can get by. we had the lanes blocked and they got it cleared out. the other spot is d.c. we see 295 both directions bumper to bumper. eastern avenue to the 11th street bridge. freeway. a big crash to watch out for navy yard. all lanes are blocked westbound. be careful with the wet roads. back to you. jonathan: thank you. up next at 4:00, a massive wal-mart opening up in d.c. we will take you there and tell you why this is a big deal.

jonathan: a major grand opening in the district. alison: the fort totten wal-mart supercenter officially opening the doors. sam sweeney explains why this

is a big deal for the area. sam: good afternoon. this is an exciting moment at fort totten. brand new 120,000 square foot wal-mart has just opened its doors here. this neighborhood is going through a major transformation. this is the center piece. look behind me at the fresh fruit and vegetables that line the wall. before the wal-mart opened this morning the area ruse wered a food desert. those who do not have access to a car on transportation, it was troublesome to get the fresh fruit and vegetables on the table. now things changed. the mayor was out here this morning surrounded by hundreds of people. exciting moment for people in the area. they are bringing 400 jobs to the community. i want to bring in the general manager here paul hill. paul, tell us why this is such an exciting moment. often times wal-marts don't receive the best reception but this morning you could tell people were excited to have you in the neighborhood. paul: thank you.

we are excited to be here and we are bringing 400 jobs to the community. it's always a good thing. more jobs is a great thing. we have access for the customers. access to fresh food, fresh groceries, home goods. normally d.c. residents would have to travel outside of d.c. to get the items but they can get everything here. sam: if you have free time you can make it out here there are free flu shots. the first 300 people to come get it free. otherwise you pay $25. if you can't make it today this saturday they have a street fair, free dental exam. come on out. a lot of fun. we'll be here. reporting in fort totten, sam sweeney, abc7 news. >> leon: tonight, heads up. there are serious concerns for public safety after a military blimp breaks away and floats away over maryland. hit the brakes, please. a local naked is troubled by speeders and rocked by an accident is that destroyed a house.

who would do such a thing? that is a question after the thieves profit a non-profit that pairs troubled veterans with therapy dogs. announcer: from abc7 news, this is a breaking news alert. leon: let's get to it. in the last hour the search for the run-away blimp ended in central pennsylvania. alison: broke free from the aberdeen proving ground around 12:20 p.m. it drifted north, knocking outpower in the town of bloomberg before coming back down in muncy. tom roussey has the breaking story. tom: this is an unbelievable story that is the talk of the east coast this afternoon and maybe the whole country. we have video just in the newsroom that shows this blimp on the ground. here is the video. it's just in the country, just east of muncy, pennsylvania, which is in northern pennsylvania. a little east in state. you can see part of the blimp in the frees on the ground there. it was confirmed within the

last hour by state police that the blimp had finally come down. after traveling quite a ways. it traveled 150 miles almost directly north from aberdeen proving ground, northeast of baltimore up into pennsylvania in the muncy area there. this has been posted all over social media this afternoon. we will show you some of the posts that people have been making. this is one of the best ones right here. this was taken by somebody who saw the blimp fly directly overhead. they turn and you will see the traffic lights, they flash for one moment and then they are out. the glitch was knocking out power to tens of thousands of people this afternoon. especially in northern pennsylvania there. here are power crews working on the situation. the blimp is called an aerostat. it had a tether that was supposed to keep it attached to the ground. but instead it broke free. but the tether was still there. you can see in this photo the line that the tether left in grass up there in pennsylvania as it moved along. well, that tether w