here are the top stories we're working on for you. one of baltimore's oldest fire companies shuts down. we're live with more on this budget-cutting casualty. a recordbreaking surgery led by a local hospital. we've got the details just ahead. also this morning, you don't want to take a dip in the bay after hearing the results of this new report. all those stories and more coming up but in the meantime good morning and thank you for joining us on this wednesday morning. i'm megan pringle. jamie is off. we're going to send it to justin who has a look at maryland's most powerful doppler radar. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. it's 6:31. taking a look outside, we have a fantastic weather morning. mostly clear sky, cool temperatures, now running down into the low 60s. it appears as if clouds are trying to build in, just as i

said it was clear. we see the full moon set just over the western horizon. now looking at 62 degrees now, light wind out of the northwest. do i believe there will be some clouds that filter in throughout the day but maryland's most powerful doppler radar should remain dry. as we look at a clean sweep across the chesapeake now. and skies do go mostly sunny to partly cloudy as we're expecting a northwesterly breeze to hold our temperatures, our two-degree guarantee, to about 82. an absolutely pleasant day on tap. 6:32. let's check the roads with kim. if you check around the tunnels and beltway, traffic flowing smoothly in all directions. in howard and carol counties, still the accident at marriottsville road in both directions because of downed power lines. try sykesville rote, route 32, as a detail. a crash in arbutus, southbound 95 to the outer loop. this is 95 southbound through howard county.

no problems to let you know about as you make your way towards the capitol beltway. back to you. in about a half-hour one of the city's oldest fire companies will shut down. the result of budget cuts, but firefighters say the real cost could be the safety of some of you city residents. abc2 news sherrie johnson live downtown in baltimore with more. >> reporter: good morning. there will soon be some changes right here at john steadman station in downtown baltimore. as of 7:00 this morning, one of the station's trucks and about 24 firefighters will be assigned to a different area of the city. baltimore city mayor sheila dixon basically announced that shutting down some of the trucks would help on budget cuts from nearly every city agency. she believes if you shut down truck number 2 that will save money and jobs. truck 2 responded to 3,000 calls last year. just last week it was the first truck to put water on the steeple of the historic bethel ame church. truck number 2 covers the

central business district along with surrounding neighborhoods. without it crews at other stations nearby will have to work harder and some firefighters worry that the change could affect public safety. now, two ambulance crews will come here to replace truck number 2 and in the meantime, again, about 7:00 this morning, truck number 2 will leave and go to another fire station on eastern avenue. reporting live in downtown baltimore, sherrie johnson, abc2 news. baltimore city wants to help you deal with the high price of prescription drugs. so today the city will make prescription drug discount cards available for free. details are going to be released at a news press conference that will happen at 11:00. we'll keep you posted. in the meantime we want to help you during these tough times. if you have not done it yet check our "financial survival guide" on abc2news.com for free advice. it was a recordbreaking surgery that saved so many lives. johns hopkins hospital led the first ever eight-way kidney transplant involving 16 people at four hospitals across the country.

the eighth and final france plant was sucks -- transplant was successfully completed monday night. doctors say all the patients are doing well this morning. the series of kidney transplants was made possible because of a donor at hopkins who wanted to help an ailing colleague. >> i saw him in the hallway and said robert, wow, good to see you back, how are you? he said i'm doing pretty good. i said is there anything i can do, he said not unless you have a kidney. i have one. i'll give it to you. >> everybody's got two if you want to become a donor it's a great thing to do. head to our web site, abc2news.com. we have a link to hopkins web site. it will tell you how you can register to become a donor. the recession felt in the classroom. coming up on "good morning maryland," more on the closing of a local school that left parents scrambling. also ahead -- we hear so much about the hope of solar and other alternative energies so why are these businesses struggling? 6:35. we're looking at cool temperatures this morning. sunshine, a few clouds mixing

in, and our two-degree guarantee coming up. here's kim with a check of the roads. >> flowing smoothly. still working that crash on the southbound ramp to 695 on the outer loop. right now let's check the buses and trains with mark jones. >> good morning. for the commute start, the number 3 bus working with a 15-minute delay. 22 bus diverted at university and 41st due to a watermain break repair. number 17 diverted in the area of nursery and winterson, construction the cause there. fios guy! where ya headed?

ah, just installed fios in the whole building. now everyone has the fastest upload speeds. and we're giving them a mini netbook. well, i'm sticking with cable. he's just goofing. (voice) no i'm not! (sighing) ted has betrayed me. (announcer) switch to verizon fios tv, phone and internet today and get an ultra-sleek compaq mini netbook. call the verizon center for customers with disabilities at 800.974.6006 tty/v despite the president's claim that green jobs will help get the u.s. out of the recession some solar panel companies say business is down as such as 60%. jeannette reynolds family is head of the green home curve. a year ago they became the first in to their neighborhood, in denver, colorado, to install

solar panels which produce electricity. >> we've already seen great savings, $1,500 to $2,000 in the year we've had them. >> the trouble is the initial cost, $8,000 to $10,000 to install a solar electric system. in these tough times industry experts say many people don't have that kind of money. as a result solar panel companies are getting creative in ways to find new customers. now showing up at some home and garden shows, farmers markets, even placing ads on craigslist as well. i was planning on retiring early next year, but i'm going to call him and say i quit. >> love this story. an 80-year-old secretary hits it big at a casino in minnesota. she played a $1 slot machine and won $1.3 million. she worked as a secretary for a u.s. district judge in honolulu and was visiting her daughters in minneapolis. you heard it from her. she said i'm quitting.

another casualty of the recession that leaves more parents scrambling. >> i'm cheryl conner live at towson catholic high where students and faculty are hoping for divine intervention after the announcement comes to close the school for good. i'll bring you details on that shutdown, coming up.

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good morning. i'm megan pringle. a summer vacation shocker. some local parents discover their children's school is closing, and speaking of shutting down we're less than 20 minutes away from the closing of a baltimore city fire company, but firefighters say the real cost of this budget fallout could be your safety. video evidence reveals what really happened in a baltimore county light rail tragedy. we'll show you and tell you what happened, coming up. in the meantime, we'll have those stories and much more. let's go to justin berk for a look at the forecast. >> reporter: 6:44. i want to do a time lapse because we have a great shot of the full moon going down over the western sky, now watching the sun come up over the

eastern sky at umbc in catonsville. a few clouds but mostly sunny for most of us, 65 degrees, winds out of the north at 6 miles per hour. that northerly breeze to hold the humidity down, may also provide a few clouds mick mixing in during the afternoon. 65 parkville middle school, also a bit of a gusty breeze. officially 62 in baltimore. that is coming off of yesterday's high of 88. yesterday, warmest day of the week, now we settle back with the below normal pattern. the source of air coming from pennsylvania. they are in the lower 50s. cool weather will follow. as we have just a few clouds mixed in we're essentially calling it a mostly sunny to partly cloudy afternoon with the two-degree guarantee of 82 degrees but it just will be pleasant and that breeze at 5 to 15 miles per hour. tonight we'll settle back down into the upper 50s. low to mid-60s downtown and by the bay. we are looking for temperatures to hold at 80 degrees thursday and friday with spotty showers possible in towards the weekend. we're checking out a warm-up to 85 saturday. still the chance of thunderstorms. 6:45.

let's go to the roads with kim. >> volume remains light and traffic running smoothly around the the beltway, the tunnels and the jfx. however, in the counties, still dealing with the road closure marriottsville road closed in both directions at the howard county and carroll county lines. avoid that area if possible because of a downed power line. hop on route 32 or sykesville road as a detour this morning. still dealing with the crash southbound 95 on the ramp in the arbutus area headed to the outer loop. that will take you a few extra minutes to get around that. let's quickly look at the cameras, 695 at the bwi marshall with the beltway on the near -- at the bw parkway with the beltway on the near side. traffic flowing smoothly in both directions there. back to you. 6:46. baltimore residents will take back the streets tonight in the same neighborhood where a little girl was shot a week ago tomorrow. citizens on patrol will walk with residents of the carrollton ridge community in southwest baltimore. last week you may remember, a 5-year-old girl was shot in the head by a stray bullet after a

street fight between two groups of young men. this happened in the 300 block of south pulaski. the same street where tonight's walk will kick off. >> we strive for community involvement merely by just walking through their neighborhoods and reporting all kinds of problems in the community. >> city leaders including the mayor are expected to be there as well for tonight's walk. a proposal that would allow speed cameras in baltimore passed the first round of the city council voting. if the measure passes the cameras would be used in october. $40 ticket would be sent to the address linked to the vehicle's license plate. if the speed limit is exceeded by at least 12 miles per hour. a state law passed this year allowing speed cameras within a half mile of work zones, school sites.and road construction the city finance department does expect to take $7.1 billion from the speed camera violations during the fiscal year of 2010.

it is another sign of the recession. lower enrollment forcing a number of area catholic schools to close. the latest is in towson, that's where we find abc2 news cheryl conner, she joins us live. >> reporter: good morning. students and faculty here will learn more about the permanent closure in the coming days. towson catholic high has a rich history, was founded in 1922. nba player carmelo anthony and olympic gold medalists are among the notables who agreed from here but now -- graduated from here but now the school is forced to shut down, the archdiocese says the economy is to blame as the enrollment climbs significantly and the debt climbed over $500,000. the archdiocese planned on telling students and 20 faculty members before they found out by rumors posted on facebook and various e-mails yesterday afternoon. the archdiocese calls the situation dire but students are praying for a turnaround. >> if the school had only ever

lost 26 students from one year to the next. this year they lost 81. combine that with the fact they had $160,000 in tuition that didn't get paid last year, that they were waiting to have come in over the summer and parents just can't come up with it. >> if they can still change their minds, it would be nice. to save the school. >> reporter: it would be nice but we understand that will not happen. teachers will learn will job placement in the next week. students and parents will have a job fair. if students decide to go to another school in the parish we understand they will pay the reduced rate of $9,500 they pay here at towson catholic high. cheryl conner, abc2 news. >> this is just the latest string of catholic schools to shut its doors. here is a list of the other five schools. as you can see st. michael's in frostburg also going to close. to learn more about the closing

or this story, we've provided a link to abc2news.com. federal prosecutors say a baltimore man pled guilty to embezzling $34,000 from a labor union. the man pled guilty on tuesday to taking the money between 2003 and 2004 from the waterfront guard association local. and also this morning you might want to stay out of the chesapeake bay after hearing about this story. a new study by the chesapeake bay foundation reveals more people are getting sick from dangerous bacteria. researchers claim it's because of global warming and nutrient pollution. cases of bacterial infection in maryland are on the rise. >> to force the government agencies to enforce the law and that's still not being done to the level it needs to be done. chesapeake bay foundation, we continue to be optimistic that the bay can return to a healthy natural state but it needs some help. >> they fault the epa for

failing to clean up the bay. the maryland transit authority now says two of its trains did hit two 17-year-old boys. it happened sunday afternoon near the lutherville station in baltimore county. kyle wankmiller and connor peterson both died from their injuries. investigators now believe the teens were hit from behind while walking on the tracks and then possibly hit by a second train as they were laying on the tracks. the accident happened during the day but mta officials say the teens were wearing dark colored clothing which probably blended in with parts of the rail line. it will sound like an emergency today on the campus of towson university but it is just a test. towson's emergency warning siren and public address system will be tested today between 10:00 a.m. and about 10:15. the system is designed to notify students, faculty and staff in the event of a campus-wide emergency. even those living near towson university are expected to hear today's tests. bottom line, don't be alarmed. it's just a test. minutes away from now an

end of an era in baltimore city for firefighters. one of the city's oldest companies will be no more as a result of budget cuts. sherrie johnson is live with the latest including concerns about public safety. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. yes, in just a few minutes one of the trucks here at the john steadman station and 24 firefighters will not be assigned here any longer. they will be moved to other parts of the city. mayor sheila dixon, she called for budget cuts for nearly every city agency. she believes shutting down truck number 2 saves money and jobs. firefighters hoped federal stimulus money might become available to keep the trucks here but that was not the case. truck 2 responded to more than 3,000 calls last year and last week it was the first truck to put water on the steeple of the historic bethel ame church fire. truck 2 covers the central business district along with surrounding neighborhoods and without it crews at other stations nearby will have to work harder.

>> if it takes you a minute longer to get to a call then that's a minute longer where somebody's having difficulty breathing, where somebody's house is on fire. >> reporter: two ambulance crews will actually come here to replace truck number 2 and in the meantime, about 7:00 this morning truck number 2 will head to eastern avenue at a new fire station there. reporting live in downtown baltimore, sherrie johnson, abc2 news. a touching goodbye for michael jackson. >> i just wanted to say -- speak up, sweetheart. speak up. >> ever since i was born, daddy has been the best father you can ever imagine. and i just wanted to say i love him. so much. >> breaks your heart. that is jackson's 11-year-old daughter paris. she made her first public appearance torifully say

goodbye to her father. some 20,000 people gathered in the staples center for a ceremony watched by millions around the world. while police continue to investigate the death of steve mcnair fans are claiming to get mcnair memorabilia. the owner of the sports store in nashville said he started to get calls on saturday just after the murder was reported. >> they start thinking about the good times and -- what they felt about him, especially mcnair. he's in the hearts of everybody right now. >> the store owner says that mcnair was always one of the more accessible players and was always happy to give out his autograph. a memorial service is now planned for mcnair in nashville tomorrow. the 10 commandments, say thou shalt not steal but this guy didn't get the message and now the parishioners are praying for the virgin mary instead of to her. >> you can see the man pushing

over, smashing the statue, then comes wack and takes it. >> i found this on the floor, the back of her head. i picked her up. >> it hurts. we're devastated. i'm speechless. i don't know what to say. how could anybody do such a thing? >> this morning they are hoping to get it back. the holiday weekend brought a very special delivery to one army soldier home from iraq. sergeant john hernandez flew home from iraq and literally went straight to the hospital for the birth of his third daughter. his wife said she held on as long as she could because she knew her husband was on his way. 6:55. our wake-up window at the bottom of the screen, showing sunny to maybe partly cloudy skies this afternoon. temperatures staying about five degrees below normal with the two-degree guarantee of 82. again, that is going to feel a lot cooler than yesterday's 88. overnight 59 degrees which means mid-50s well outside

the beltway, low 60s downtown. near 80 tomorrow and friday with a spotty shower possible, mid-80s with the recovery over the weekend. 6:56 now. let's get a final check of the roads for the hour. >> thank you. just getting word eastbound bay bridge, an object on the road so use caution there. a new crash in baltimore city, east baltimore street and south ann street. traffic is heavy southbound 95 towards the whitemarsh area but still dealing with marriottsville road closed in both directions at the howard and carroll county lines. route 32 is an alternate. 95 southbound, the exit ramp to 695 is still a crash on the scene there. thank you so much for joining us. remember to join us for "good morning maryland" at 9:00. see you then. have a great day. thanks, again.