a fire kills six. the dead includes several children. hello again. here's what people are talking about today. fire investigators are on the scene in the 2200 block of homewood avenue. wjz and mike hellgren are live at the fire scene. mike? >> good afternoon. such a tragic, such a sad story here. you can really feel the gust of cold, cold wind. fighters had told us that made in very difficult fighting this fire. it also fanned those flames.

the bodies of six people were taken out of the row homes. thick smoke and flamed spread to three. >> the other two houses were inflammed from the front door. >> reporter: shirley braxton lives next door, ran next door to get a relative. they're okay. >> nobody in the middle house got out. >> reporter: the fire department said the wind made conditions unsafe for the firefighters. >> ordered an immediate evacuation of all firefighters. they proceeded to exterior operations. >> reporter: the department responded to concerns that a nearby fire company was not on the scene due to a rotating budget closure. >> one of the companies, truck one out of the old town station. they would have been here on the scene. however, it had no, i'm act on our firefighters being able to

battle the fire. >> reporter: right now the firefighters said it was unclear in there were working smoke detectors. >> most likely taking the kids to school. >> reporter: it's the deadliest fire in baltimore city this year. you're look life -- looking live at some of the rubble. they have been here since 5:00 this morning. the red cross is also providing support services and arson investigators are here on the scene. we're told that is routine. >> thank you. 18 people have died in fryers in baltimore city so far this year. the frigid temperatures were made worse with the winds. take a live look at a cloudy, still blustery and cold afternoon. in fact, it's cold enough that

the maryland zoo was closed because of the extreme cold. not far from the zoo, marty bass is live in the outback. it is cold and windy. we're going to see rounds coming down from the northwest, a burst heavier for a snowshower. switch is over and as far as the winds, a wind advisory. sustained winds of 15 miles an hour. 29 in hagerstown. when you factor in the gusts, 40 in hagerstown. 36 in baltimore. that's keeping the cold air in place. for more, here's marty. >> it is cold.

thank you, bern. it's a three-dog night. let's take a look at the actual temperatures. on tv hill it's 25 degrees. at 9 a.m. it was 21, so the barometer has barely moved. wind chills, we're up to 10. when we finished at 9:00 we were at 8 degrees. it's going to be a windy and very, very cold afternoon. it looks like we don't get out of the deep freeze for awhile. we showed you this graphic yesterday. look at how big that bite of cold air is moving across the eastern half. atlanta 27. 48 in the capital of the world, miami beach. this is some really wicked stuff. meteorologist bernadette woods talks about how long it will stay cold. we'll throw this back inside.

the mother of a local terrorism suspect said her son was set up. >> i know him. i'm the only person who knows him. i believe it's entrapment. >> 21-year-old antonio martinez is accused of trying to blow up a military recruitment center in catonsville. his attorney said it was the government's idea. prosecutors say martinez confessed it was his duty to wage a jihad on this country. he will remain behind bars before he goes to trial. the mother of a son who fell out of a wheel well said her son was afraid of heights. he was found near boss ton. investigators said he most likely fell from the wheel well of a plane when the landing gear came down. his mother said he had never flown in his life.

the cordish company gets the go ahead for the casino in run recount mills. it will be in the parking garage next to the mall. there will be 2,000 slot machines and should be up and running by the and of next year. a larger permanent casino is scheduled to open at 2012. time is running out to prevent tax increases for americans. the senate could vote on it as early lamps tonight but as joel brown reports for wjz, democrats in the house are calling for major revisions. >> reporter: the senate started its debate on the bipartisan tax plan overwhelmingly approved. >> the code. >> reporter: then the bill moves to the house where it faces opposition from democrats. sweeping tax cuts will expire if nothing is done by the end of

the year. the bill also keeps jobless benefits from running out. >> it's high marks to move us out of the recession. in the spirit of the season it does say god bless tiny tim and donald trump. >> reporter: many believe the compromise gives too much to the wealthy. they're focusing in on the estate tax, which they say is too low but gop leaders said this will create jobs for all americans. >> this is not just about giveaways to the wealthy. most of the people are small business employers. >> reporter: president obama has been pressuring lawmakers to back the deal he made with republicans. he said the senate test vote shows both parties can work together. >> it is a substantial victory for middle class families who don't have to worry about a massive tax hike come january 1st. >> reporter: after yesterday's

test in the senate its chances are looking much better. the $850 billion package extends tax cuts for two years and unemployment benefits for 178 months. a judge rejected a key provision requiring every american to buy health insurance if they can afford. it two other judges have upheld the law. it was certainly a roller coaster ride last night for the ravens as the theme blew a big league -- lead and pulled out a victory. ron matz has more on the game and the mixed emotions after the game. >> the ravens were looking to light up the scoreboard and they delivered early. david reed, returning the second

half kickoff. how about that. 103 yards. the defense couldn't hold the lead. matt schaub. and then josh will sornings the -- wilson, from the university of maryland. despite the victory, are you worried about the ravens as they head into a possible playoff run? >> i want to see them go to the super bowl or get deep into the playoffs. i don't think they're going if they keep playing like this. >> looking at the defense, people are starting to pass on us a lot. it kind of worries me. >> i'm worried about the wild card. i thitz we can pull it off. >> if they keep plague the way they did last night, they were really lucky to win that game. they're going to have to do a lot better than that.

>> we can beat any team in the nfl. but not the way we're plague offensively. >> the ravens improved. ravens trail the steelers by a game in the afc north but a two game lead for the wild card. don, who date come -- dat coming to town. the found are of wikileaks appears in front of a british judge. could julian assange soon be a free man. >> a virginia girl is back with her family after she disappeared a week ago. stick around, your complete first warning forecast is still coming up.

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♪electronic santa song ♪electronic santa song washington is mourning the death of richard holbrooke. he had undergone 20 hours of surgery to repair a torn aorta. he played a key role in the

obama administration in afghanistan. a british judge granted bail to wikileaks leader julian assange today but he remains in jail pending a possible appeal. the 39-year-old has spent a week in a on done prison. he's fighting extradition to sweden where he is wanted on sexual assault charges. many say his extradition would make it easier for him to take action. a 12-year-old taken from virginia is back there this afternoon. brittany smith is back with her family. 32-year-old jeffrey easley is charged with her kidnapping. the pair was spotted outside a san francisco supermarket last week. her mother was found dead and easley is a suspect. stick around. your complete first warning forecast is now two and a half minutes away.

first, take a look at today's midday stocks followed by last night's multimatch numbers. night's multimatch numbers. ,, 3q copd makes it hard for me to breathe. but with advair, i'm breathing better. so now, i can join the fun and games with my grandchildren. great news! for people with copd, including chronic bronchitis, emphysema, or both, advair helps significantly improve lung function. while nothing can reverse copd, advair is different from most other copd medications because it contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator, working together to help you breathe better. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair

may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking advair. i had fun today, grandpa. you and me both. if copd is still making it hard to breathe, ask your doctor if including advair will help improve your lung function for better breathing. get your first full prescription free and save on refills.

yeah. you must really care about him. what? no, no. you gave him fiber. no she didn't. this tastes way too good to be fiber. they're delicious crunchy clusters with sweet honey and half a day's worth of fiber. you care about my fiber? not really. i care about your fiber too. i have for a while. ok, carl. why don't you care about her fiber? hey carl. [ male announcer ] fiber one. cardboard no. delicious yes. welcome back. the winds are gusty. you can tell. because of that, a wind advisory is in effect through 10:00.

the winds are very high. sustained winds between 20 to 30 miles an hour with gusts higher than that. it's 25 in baltimore. 20 throughout most of the area. teens in cumberland and 5 degrees in oakland. look how dry the air is. now the wind chill 10 degrees is what it feels like in baltimore. north and with the of that single digits and below zero, minus 1 4 in oakland. feels like 16 down at the ocean. here's the cold air. it's going to stick around for awhile. this is a pattern that we're in. there's no major storm the next two days but we're still connected with the lakes. so flurries flying today. after that it gets cut off. a new storm system will move our way on thursday. most of this will pass off to the south. there are a couple of questions. the northern fringe will move

into cold air. we can see light snow. then we're set in a pattern. it's interesting. there's a lot of cold air. there is the potential for one or two of the storms to get bigger. so something we will be monitoring because we really know it affects everyone. so stay tuned. as far as the forecast, out on the water gale warnings in effect. flurries possible. 30 for our high, probably not getting above freezing. tonight down to 18. tomorrow we get to freezing. that's it. maybe some flurries out there. we hang on to the cold air really through the and of the month. there are a couple of storms trying to get going. nothing has latched on yet. we'll have your five-day coming up. still to come at noon, a soda tax. a new study reveals the effect of high taxes on the fight

against obesity. remember, wjz is always on. for constant updates of all the days news, go to wjz.com. [ male announcer ] are you watching cable? here's what you should be watching: your cable bill. because you could be paying way too much. stop spending more for second best. upgrade to verizon fios and get tv, internet and phone for just $99.99 a month for a year. call now for this special holiday bonus: over 25 hbo and cinemax channels free for 3 months. plus hbo go and max go. watch your favorite movies and shows anytime anywhere. there's no term contract required. if you don't love fios, you can cancel anytime with no early termination fee. get the best channel lineup, superior picture quality, more hd, plus internet rated #1 in satisfaction, speed and reliability. why keep paying for cable?

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a team of researchers followed more than 1,000 patients who were late for colorectal screening. half received a reminder in the mail or computer and those who row received them were more likely to go for a screening. researchers find adding a 40% tax on high calorie drinks would only cut 13-calories a day. they said taxing the owners of restaurants and vending machines might be a better way to go. check in today at 4, 5 and 6. how someone can steal your credit card information without seeing it. you will be shocked to see how easy it is. plus, the cleanup last begun on the collapsed metrodome. join us for these stories and more at 4,,,,,,,,,,,

welcome back it. is cold. it's going to remain this way. here's marty. >> you pretty much laid it out. it's going to stay cold.

more importantly, it's going to be an unsettled weather pattern with some possible issues on thursday and then again on sunday. it is going to at least -- the winds are going to abate to a breeze and calm a bit but, you know, hey, welcome to almost mid-december. i was getting ready to say the weather is supposed to be this way. this is just some exceptional this is just some exceptional ,,,,,,,,,,,,

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