she was in character. coming up, the new multi-million dollar plan to fix asheville's thomas wolf auditorium. >> tammy: news 13 at 5:30 starts now. >> frank: first responders facing dangerous conditions in the icy weather. call of duty for one woman stranded in her home. i wanted it at first. now i just want it to go away. >> anchor: many mountain schools closed for the third snow day in a row. how working parents are now struggling to find care for their kid. >> frank: and a winter storm could still be taking a toll on your car. what experts say you should do right away to avoid some major damage. now from western north carolina's news leader, this is news 13 at 5:30. >> anchor: new at 5:30, many

the mountains are still slick with ice, heavy snow or mud right now. >> frank: and that's a problem not just for the folks who live there but work there as well. >> anchor: hope, this has been a responders. >> hope: it has, ashlea. as we found out today, the weather can be an issue for them even when they get off the road. no matter how slick or slushy or stubborn or snowy, emergency responders like these have t t find a way around it. >> you've got some roads who are dry and don't have salt. and some that do. it makes a decision tough whether or not we keep the trucks trained. >> hope: more than once, they rolled right up to it. >> we actually had to use our atv a couple of times.

we have to be careful walking up and down the steps. >> hope: those firefighters came to the rescue of jana bowman and her little sidekick, easter. she was suffering extreme stomach pain but couldn't make it out of her house. >> there was snow and there was like a layer of ice on top of that. so you could just slide all the way down. one of them asked me if i wanted to sled down the stairs. and i was like no, i don't think so. >> hope: first responders recognize the sticky situation, describing it over the radio. >> i don't remember them saying that but it was. it was gross. >> hope: and though she told them they didn't have to, they shovelled every step. taking them down the road where the ambulance made it.

the woods. conditions are still prime for getting stuck. jana is grateful for those who are willing to dig deeper. >> they are definitely heroes. she's like no, i'm waiting for those guys. >> hope: jana is home resting. it does slow down response time to an emergency. jana's advice is if you can ahead of time, clear a path to your house to help them out. guys. >> ashlea: that's a great tip. i always think about getting out but never people getting in. >> frank: you might need some jason. >> jason: absolutely. leicester carpet sales news13 sky cam network. my eyes don't deceive me. watch this time lapse.

there's colder air above and it's kind of filtering down in to some of this moisture. we do have green mostly showing up on radar. that's the rain from many locales. cullowhee getting light rain. moderate rain around mars hill. down in asheville, we have light and moderate rain. this is all going to shift east ward. more of us getting in to rainfall. even in to polk and rutherford. so far 4/10 of an inch. our temperatures are chilling but still well above freezing. we do have freezing rain advisories for the counties here along the tennessee border. i'll show you the bigger changes by the end of the week. stick around for that.

continue to dig their way out of this weekend's monster storm. after three days in a virtual standstill, cities along the northern east coast are now starting to get back to normal. federal offices in washington are still closed. and schools in dc, baltimore and philadelphia canceled classes for the second day. new york city got back and up and running. transportation is limited there and mounds of snow remain piled up on the sidewalk. >> everybody pretty much shovelled the walk. just at the crosswalks are a little bumpy. but you gotta be careful. even if it's shovelled, you know. >> ashlea: while the clean ups continue, officials urge residents to use caution. several people have died.

>> frank: karen, many of these parents missed work to stay home with their children. >> karen: right, frank, when schools close for a snow day, many parents in a small home in top of a mountain in etawah, rhonda sullens. >> i was excited for the snow. i told my husband when it did that little snow that i wanted a foot of snow. well i got what i wanted and now i regret it. i love spending time with her. i really do. but not being able to work, it hit hard. >> karen: rhonda has missed the past four days of work. missing work is also an issue for eric castle.

she stayed out of work today to take care of the kids because daycare and schools were still closed today. that way i can come and open the store. >> karen: he had to miss three days of work. >> for a small business, it makes it a little tough. it's not impossible but tough. >> karen: now both eric and rhonda are hoping for a brighter and warmer future. >> sun. sun. >> lots of sunshine. maybe a little bit of rain to melt the snow off. >> karen: rhonda says she's really hoping for a two-hour delay only so she can return to work. and isabel's daycare will reopen. and of course we'll have all the latest on our website at wlos.com. live in buncombe county, i'm karen wynne, news 13. >> frank: road salt can keep you safe but after the storm, the salt isn't so good for your

it can do some damage in this form of rust to your car. experts say a thorough car wash will get rid of all the salt in places you can't see, like the under carriage. >> it could cause damage and rust. mess up your paint job. i advise that you get it done as soon as you can. >> frank: today was a slow day because many are waiting until after the rain starting on thursday. they expect long lines. >> ashlea: now the roads are getting very busy for rush hour. >> jaclyn: there's stop and go traffic between charlotte street and the bowen bridge. traffic is heavy through i-40. it's a good idea to avoid this stretch of 240 west bound if you can. crews are working a new wreck. we are seeing minor delays associateded with this wreck that might back you up.

we have an update for those of you over in haywood county. crusoe road is back open. this portion of the highway was shut down due to snow and ice. that is all cleared up for you. that's a look at your on time traffic report brought to you by debruhl's used car superstore. >> ashlea: the thomas wolf auditorium could cost between 15 and $37 million. those numbers from a report to the city's planning and zoning commission today. it shows the building can be updated for the asheville symphony and concert. while the repairs are expensive, the auditorium manager says it's a third of what it would cost to build a new venue. ford is recalling hundreds of thousands of trucks. up next, the potentially deadly issue that's prompting the recall. >> frank: and feeling charitable? how to make sure you're giving to the right group.

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>> frank: stocks rise on wall

the dow was up 282 points ending the day at 16,167. the nasdaq picked up 49 and closed at 4567. ford is recalling nearly 400,000 ranger pick-ups after a south carolina man was killed by a faulty airbag. he died when his airbag inflator exploded sending a piece of metal shrapnel in to his wreck. >> ashlea: it covers rangers from 2004 to 2006. . blue cross blue shield says it has reinstated health coverage for thousands of customers after a serious system failure. >> frank: it caused customers to be put on the wrong healthcare plan. the company did not say how many customers are still without insurance.

review the problem. they want to see if any laws were broken during the failure. >> ashlea: and more than 6 million bottles of water are being sent to students hit by the flint water crisis. coke, wal-mart nesly and coke. state and federal officials are now struggling to provide clean water to residents. >> frank: jet blue says it wants its planes to be more spacious, modern and entertaining. jet blue plans to include in seat power outlets. there also will be free wi-fi which passengers will be able to

news 13 wants to know will you be more inclined to fly with jet blue once they redesign their planes? you can log on to facebook.com/news 13 to answer our question of the day. everybody's got a device. >> ashlea: you need a charging station but i think it all comes to leg room. to me, i'm shorter. but i think jason needs it. >> jason: there's always somebody kicking me in the back. >> frank: put that seat up. >> jason: yeah. you know all this technology is going to be free for us. it's not going to cost us anymore a ticket. 27 on the low. that's right where we should be. no rain just yet. but it's coming, folks. in fact, it's in many places now. i'll show you when it moves in to your neighborhood. and there w every auto insurance policy has a number. but not every insurance company understands

those who have served our nation have earned the very best service in return. usaa. we know what it means to serve. get an auto insurance quote and

now your news 13 skywatch weather. >> jason: check out this time lapse. watch the rain come. boom, there it is against the lens on our leicester carpet sales news13 sky cam network from hendersonville looking up north towards the blue ridge. yeah, there it goes. isn't it neat? right on the lens now. it is a miserable evening. cold rain, too. our chances will go down significantly tomorrow. yeah there's a chance we have lingering showers. but the chance is dryer right in to the weekend. it is going to be mighty nice

60 degrees right now at the airport. now that temperature is going to come down. once the rain comes down, we'll see our temperatures drop probably 5 to 10 degrees. are we worried about ice? yes but only minimally, if you will. because it's going to be in the high country and there really is not going to be enough moisture left once the cold gets here to really squeeze out any ice or snowfall. the idea is this is really going to be the liquid form for most of us. once it goes east, the cold will get in here. there's the front already east and out to sea by wednesday evening. high pressure builds in there after to provide us dry and comfortable weather. even though it's going to get colder, the sunshine will be back. thursday we'll warm up a little

system here. as it dives in friday. come back down friday before we go up big time in to the weekend. a little bit of a roller coaster ride no doubt. here's the future cast overnight tonight, the showers advance east ward. there's midnight tonight. look at the mountain county. maybe a skiff of moisture in the morning. really the idea is dryer and certainly cooler tomorrow with the clouds initially by the lunch hour clouds breaking up. clear skies tomorrow evening and overnight in to thursday. not bad. how much rain are we talking about? there's going to be a little more southwest of the mountains. as it spreads east it will dry out initially. we'll get about a quarter inch or less. i think 1/10 of an inch in

tonight we'll get freezing and below. down to below 40s in the upstate with rain more likely again this evening there, too. temperatures tomorrow as you climb back in to the 40s to 50s south over the upstate. there's your forecast. 50 on thursday. nice. 60s saturday, sunday, monday and tuesday. you're going to see your 60s, too, in the upstate. mid 60s on sunday makes it the pick day of the weekend. >> ashlea: time to check out today's "see it, shoot it, send it" picture. kim sent us this shot of a special snowman from fletcher. >> frank: check this out for all of you star wars fans. she says after seeing the movie, her family decided to make this bb8 snowman. it's a pretty good rendition. >> ashlea: i didn't see star

>> frank: it's a modern r2d2. >> ashlea: out of hollywood tonight, veteran actor abe vigoda died at the age of 94. he was known as detective phil fish in barney miller. >> frank: next in our consumer report, giving to the right charities.

check. >> ashlea: many of us have a charity we support, that we're loyal to. but these days it seems like more and more organizations are asking people to give. >> frank: so how can you be sure your money is being put to good use? >> reporter: americans donated $350 billion to charities last year. consumer reports has information to make sure your money goes to worthwhile charities. while the vast majority of charities provide real aid, scam artists won't hesitate to consumer reports margoe gilman says you really have to do your

>> organizations can spend as much on marketing and overhead as on actually helping people. >> reporter: there are plenty of ways to research charity. charity watch and give.org from the better business bureau. in general, they suggest staying away from charities that spend more than 30 to 40% of their budget on fundraising. if you'd like to know more about an organization, consider volunteering first to get to know the group. and consumer report says to be reful of look alike charities. >> it's important to look at organizations whose names and

>> reporter: the childhood leukemia foundation spends one quarter of its budget on programs. you don't have to wait for your credit card statement to be mailed to you as long as the donation was made before january 1st. you can find information about this story and other consumer news on our consumer reports section at wlos.com. we're just looking for an act of god to make the building bigger and better. >> frank: winter weather causes

tonight at 6, why a >> larry: a couple walks away with lesser charges after a toddler is shot and killed in