this is wjz tv, wjz hd, and wjz.com, baltimore. >> from the city, to the

counties, to your neighborhood. now it is complete coverage. it is wjz, maryland's news station. >> who killed phylicia barnes? one year ago today she disappeared in baltimore. the latest on the search for her killer as lovered ones prepare to pay tribute to the teenaged honor student. hello again, i am jessica kartalija, here is what people are talking about today. the search for phylicia barnes ended untragedy, they found her body 40 miles north from where she was last seen in baltimore but have yet to make an arrest. wjz is live on this one year anniversary, mike hellgren investigates where the case stands now, mike. >> reporter: jessica, state police say they are making progress but they won't say why or how. this is a case that at one time involved most of baltimore city's homicide unit and a case that continues to puzzle investigators. phylicia barnes disappeared without a trace from her sister's apartment one year ago and police have yet to make an arrest. the search gained national attention and became one of the biggest missing person's cases in baltimore history, authorities vend cheal found

the body of the teenaged honor student enacted with no obvious signs of trauma in the cold river. publicly they have said little. >> she was a beautiful person and didn't deserve to die let alone die the way she did. >> friends and family held a rally near where she disappeared and holding another vigil tonight in baltimore and north carolina where she lived. she was visiting her sister at the time of her disappearance. >> i can't express how special she is. i am not going to use the word was because she is still special. >> just days ago state police issued a statement saying investigators have worked the case continually and progress has been made, although make the details public could hinder the outcome of the investigation. they say they are reinterviewing family and friends and continuing to conduct forensic examinations of evidence, hoping to finally close this case and give her

loved ones some peace. >> we want to continue to have her name out here until the person who killed her is brought to justice, we get justice for her. >> and the vigil tonight is open west belvedere avenue at 7:00. >> state police say they are working with the heartford county state's attorneys office which w handle the charges in the event of an arrest because that is where the body was found. out of a job with almost no warning, that is what hundreds of workers at sparrow's point say happened to them days before christmas. monique griego is in the news reasonable with more. >> reporter: jess, more than 700 workers say last week they were told not to show up for work after the holidays. our partner the sun reports the workers are being furloughed until early march. federal law generally requires employers with 100 or more workers to give 60 days notice

to the workers or their union before laying them off. but those workers won't be completely without a paycheck. the state's unemployment insurance division is accepting their claims for unemployment benefits. back to you, jess. >> monique, thank you. union officials could not be reached for comment. service mebs at the navel academy in annapolis and other military academies are reporting a risen the number of reported sexual assaults. according to a new pentagon report 22 incidents were reported at the navel academy last academic year compared to leave the year before. the pentagon says efforts to encourage more female soldiers to report abuse may be partly responsible for the increase. a much drier day in our area today but residents are dealing with another weather issue as you head outside. you will probably have to deal with more than the breeze as the wind picks up. a live look outside right now, where it looks to be a nice day, what else does mother

nature have up her sleep -- >> -- not -- >> -- issue -- >> -- issue -- >> -- okay -- >> -- taped on well. >> or a small dog. >> or a small dog, pixie, what i -- good afternoon, everybody, let's take a look at numbers, first off it is an absolutely beautiful day. the sky is crystal clear, we could easily with our harbor cam see the bay bridge this warmer, a degree warmer right now -- that changes automatically by the way every few minutes, now, two degrees warmer than at this time yesterday. the temperature on tv hill now is 45 degrees but we are looking at a pretty steady wind of about 24 miles an hour with an occasional gust to 31, that is going to give us a wind chill of 36 degrees. yeah, it is certainly clear and temperatures are where they should be. but that -- that wind chill is tempering the afternoon if you will. we will lose the winds before not too long then we are set up for a fine week's end and weekend. the holiday weekend.

we will have those details coming up shortly, jess i will throw it back to you. >> marty, thank you. arson investigators are on the scene of a house fire that broke out this morning in baltimore, crews were called to the 800 block of west lombard street this morning. firefighters say heavy smoke was coming from the building when they arrived but when they got inside they knew something was wrong. >> the firefighters went inside and found a fire in the first floor front they extinguished and then while they were searching for occupants they found a second fire and then a third fire in separate rooms. at that point we knew it was suspicious. >> no one was home at the time. that investigate is ongoing. police in anne arundel county are looking for the people who robbed then pepper sprayed a man last night in brooklyn park. police say three masked men approached another men. the victim says one of them pepper sprayed him what will

the others took his clothes. no arrests have been made. police are asking for your help tracking down a thief who stole a quilt from a museum. it was taken from the benjamin bannicker museum. on one side is an eagle carrying a chain, on the other side the code of low. authorities have not said how much it is worth. anyone with information is urged to call police. mitt romney, ron paul and newt gingrich are locked into a three way race in iowa. republican candidates are crisscrossing the state and taking shots at each other. the iowa caucuses the first big test of the 2012 campaign, next tuesday. terrell brown reports for wjz from washington. >> reporter: the ground war in iowa is underway. newt gingrich is off on a bus tour but the other candidates are slamming him.

>> more baggage than the airlines. >> frankly they plain lie, i don't know any other word for it. >> mitt romney poked fun at him for not getting enough signatures. an aide said it felt as bad as pearl harbor. >> it is more like lucille ball in the chocolate factory. >> reporter: all this could help president obama. his ratings are up and the campaign is diverting attention from the economy. rick perry is trying to define himself. >> why would you settle for anything less than an authentic conservative who would fight for your viewings and values without apology. >> the candidates have a packed schedule, paula peers at a rally and michele bachmann has 11 stops. rick santorum has campaigned more than then other candy dut

bit is still behind. he now says if he finishes last he will end his campaign. >> poles in iowa show that many voters are still undecided. turning now to sports and some big recognition for several ravens players. seven members of the team have been selected to play in this year's pro bowl, including ray lewis. it is his 13th time being selected. linebacker terrell suggs was also selected for his 5th pro bowl. also making the cut safety ed reed and running back ray rice. fullback vaunte leech, nada and guard marshal young makes the pro bowl for the first time. the ravens look to win their final game of the regular season sunday afternoon at cincinnati. a game we will bring you live at 4:00 right here. still to come on eyewitness news at noon, slick roads wreak havoc in the midwest. and final preparations are made for the last party of the year. we will have all the details

and a little sunshine, a little wind making for an interest day in our area, marty will be back with your updated first warning weather forecast. >> complete coverage continues with don scott, jessica kartalija, and first warning weather with marty bass and meteorologist tim williams, it is wjz, maryland's news station. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

a solemn day in north korea as the nation says its goodbyes to kim jong il. tens of thousands of sobbing citizens lined the streets hoping to get a glimpse of the casket. he died last month. as his son prepares to take over analysts say it could be a pivotal time for them. >> it may be a moment of opportunity for north korea, on the other hand they are a nuclear power. >> his two older sons were not spotted in the funeral procession. a national service will take place tomorrow rmingts tomorrow. a wintry storm is blamed for these crashes. the worst of it was in the total of battlefield. officials there say visibility was down because of fog and the roads slick because of ice. breaking news to tell you

about, an accident on the inner loop of the beltway near providence road. this is the scene on one of our traffic cams. as you can see all lanes in that direction are closed. no word as to what exactly happened. we will have more on this doesn't accident on air and on line. we are learning more about the sudden death of musician and actor heavy d. a report found he died of a blood clot that formed in his leg during a flight then spread to his lungs. his real name was dwight arrington meyers, collapsed at his home in beverly hills last month. he was 44. as we are closer to the new year workers are preparing for the iconic ball drop in times square. nearly 300 new crystals are added to the ball. they represent this year's theme, which is let there be friendship. more than 1 million people are expected to attend that event. baltimore is having its own party down at the inner harbor.

we will bring you views from the best seat in the house. don't miss the new year's eve spectacular presented by the baltimore sun, live saturday night at 11:00 right here on wjz 13. and still to come on wjz eyewitness news at noon, yesterday's rain is long gone. the sun is shining today. we will have your complete first warning weather forecast in two and 1/2 minutes. first here is ,, medicare. it doesn't cover everything. and what it doesn't cover can cost you some money. that's why you should consider an aarp... medicare supplement insurance plan... insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. all medicare supplement insurance plans can help pay...

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now first warning weather, complete forecast and the first warning of severe weather. >> okay, it is -- it is a beautiful day. i mean look, we told you there were going to be some winds around and anytime you see the flag on federal hill moving from the right-hand-side of your screen to the left you are looking at almost a straight west-northwest wind, that is what we are seeing right there. north unexpected. it is all in the numbers. it was so clear this morning we had a shot from our -- steve was it the harbor cam or the tower? >> harbor. >> from the harbor cam -- >> -- pretty -- >> -- coolest sunrise pictures we have had in a long long time. in fact clear skies still out there. let's take a look at the numbers because that is the story of this noon hour, still two degrees warmer than yesterday. 45 right now on tv hill. but those winds and these -- these -- these numbers constantly update so that is why i am showing you these displays again.

still steady at 24 miles an hour, last time we checked there was a gust of 31. that really hasn't changed. wind chill of 36 degrees, so we knock a lot off that 45. 47% humidity, the barometer has risen to 29.75, when jay cart and i were doing the morning show it was 29.45. big area of low pressure was north, that low brought us all that rain. that is part of the wind mechanism in effect right now. 26 degrees in oakland. 26 degrees in oakland, 36 carmel, 36 haggerstown, 45 elkton, 40s dc and easton, 50 pax river, 48 on the boards. 40 westminster, 44 belaire, 45 clum by, rock hal, 46 annapolis, 48 kent island, an easy scenario. okay. there goes that law. see you later. high pressure builds in. as soon as the high really ridges toward the east coast we will lose the pressure gradient, the wind, the breeze and we are set up for some pretty fine weather.

the only little bump in the road frankly -- see this warm front? there is warp invection with clouds in here on friday. that could maybe cause a sprinkle but it should not be any big deal. 46 to -- we are going to hit our daytime high in the next hour. temperatures fall down to about 22 degrees during the overnight. and tomorrow it looks like going to be a pretty sunny day. kind of nice. but some clouds with that warm invection later on, a high of 44. let's take a loot at the 5 day coming up shortly. >> at least the sun is out that -- >> -- totally with, particularly on this shift. yesterday afternoon did you just not want to go to sleep. >> yeah, i know it -- >> -- mommy -- >> -- play -- >> -- yeah -- >> -- schedule but is it hurting your health long-term? we will have the answer in health watch. wjz is always on, here are the top stories at this hour. for instant updates and the first warning weather forecast log onto wjz.com. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,

we are continuing to follow breaking news. an accident on the inner loop of the beltway near providence road, we have confirmed a police officer was involved in this accident. he is being taken to shock trauma. avoid this area as you head out today. all lanes in that direction are still closed. as you can see it is causing a major traffic back up on both sides. we will bring you more on the 4:00, 5:00 and 6:00 news. now to today's wjz health watch. there is a new and improved

test that can tell if someone experiencing chest pains is actually having a heart attack. doctors already have a blood test that can tell if muscles air being damaged but they have developed a new version that is more sensitive. doctors say shift work could be considered a safety hazard, studies on nurses and others show that people who work late night and overnight shifts tend to have poor eating habits. in a new medical journal article researchers say physicians should look at shift,

let's take a look at that five-day-forecast. it is going to bet pretty nice. we were talking about warm invection, clouds coming in tomorrow late then friday mostly cloudy, but 57 degrees. we will take it. 51 the afternoon of new year's eve. it is clear. overnight 31. figure midnight about 38, 39 degrees. new year's day not bad and we keep it rain free through monday. >> all right. don't miss tonight's primetime cbs line up at 10:00, the original csi. now staring ted dan son, stay tuned for eyewitness news at 11:00. finally this noon a word of advice for you nature lovers if you find yourself holding something a crocodile wants you won't be holding it for very long. >> let it go, let it go, let it go. >> some zoo workers learned that the hard way after a 500

pound croc decided he wanted their lawn mower, they got it back after the played with ,,,,,