>> reporter: it's not a pretty job but jorge enrique of all pro restoration says mold spores can cause respiratory problems and if left untreated can destroy a home. >> at a certain point it spreads throughout the entire house. >> reporter: the county received a crash course on the pitfalls of mold in the aftermath of hurricane isabel five years ago. >> this time we've actually had cleaning companies that were down here like the day after. a lot of people took their belongings, put it in the yard and it allowed the contractors to start attacking the mold before it got too bad >> reporter: as victims try to face the potential hazard in their home some help arrived from some unlikely sources. a convoy of flatbed trucks from the home depot filled with volunteers has spent the last three days here helping residents salvage belongings from their homes. >> we have associates who live in the area. we have a couple of associates

that have relatives and -- as well as our customer base is here. and it's all about giving back. >> reporter: in fact, one local business, len the plumber responded with free hot water heaters and hookups after hearing of victims that felt abandoned by their own insurance companies. >> these are our customers. it's the right thing to do. >> reporter: in dundalk, jeff hager, abc2 news. >> the company says the estimated value of the water heaters and hookups is $700 to $1,100. in the meantime we've learned there are still 26 homes without power. they've been in the dark for four days now. >> i don't have a father - talking! your mouth, i'm where are you from? >> gee, i didn't do anything. >> a lot of people saw that. new at 5:00 a baltimore judge threw out a civil lawsuit against a baltimore city police officer. the lawsuit based on that youtube video that shows the officer screaming at a skateboarder at the inner harbor and then putting him in a headlock and pushing him to

the ground. that civil lawsuit was filed by the teen's family. according to a police spokesman 17 -- 17-year veteran salvatore rivieri was put back on patrol back in november. there will be a determination if he will be disciplined. to word if the teen's family will appeal. a baltimore county workshop -- woman killed in a crash on 795. police say amy brooking was approaching the owings mills metro station when she crossed the median. brookings struck a truck causing it to veer off the road and she died at sinai hospital. the driver was taken to northwest hospital center. still no word on his condition tonight. we don't know why brooking crossed the median. a tractor-trailer driver was hurt after his big rig overturned on 695. its video you'll only see on abc2 news. we're told the tractor-trailer

somehow flipped near route 702 around 11:00 last night. the only vehicle involved in the crash. the driver was taken to shock trauma. no word on his condition. tonight, members of one baltimore county church are cleaning up after someone broke in and ransacked their office. it happened at st. andrews lutheran church on taylor avenue in the hillendale neighborhood. abc2 news brian kuebler shows us the mess. >> reporter: quite a mess left behind after someone broke into the church. the president of the church council has been part of st. andrews for decades, says he's never seen anything like this. he thinks they may have gotten in through the window in the office and said they tore out the alarm system. papers thrown everywhere, office equipment tossed around. church members are left wondering just what was stolen. >> right now the only thing i see missing are two laptop computers. and they took the hard drive out of the main computer here.

i don't know why. >> reporter: paul said he was going to spend the day repairing that broken window and cleaning up the mess. they are hoping insurance will help cover the loss of the two missing laptops. brian kuebler, abc2 news. state prosecutors are trying to find the source of unexplained cash deposited in mayor sheila dixon's bank accounts in 2004. an investigator says he interviewed dixon's family including her nephew, nba player juan dixon but said they didn't give dixon nearly $10,000. the mayor is accused of lying about gifts from former boyfriend and developer ronald lipscomb and stealing gift cards intended for needy families. she faces trial in november. first mariners ceo speaking out after the cease and desist order. it was given after it was found they took part in "unsafe and unsound practices." the bank has to get rid of some of its bad debt and raise capital.

the ceo says they are making progress, hiring an investment firm. he's's -- reassuring customers the company will pull through. >> this is something we're not proud of but we've had it in the past and worked our way through it. if i didn't believe we would work through it, i wouldn't be sitting here. >> he says he's confident the company can meet the deadline set by the fdic and believes customers will see in change in service while they work through this issue. some good news in the fight against crime in baltimore county. violent crime continues to drop. baltimore county executive jim smith says seven of the eight major crime categories dropped this year compared to last year. smith also says the number of solved violent cases is well above the national average thanks to the hard work of county police officers. our officers achieved a 75.9% clearance rate for

violent crimes which is about 31% higher than the national clearance rate, as of the end of 2008. this includes an almost 89% clearance rate for murder investigations. >> smith says traditional community policing practices combined with technology helps keep the crime down. an anne arundel county man was found dead at a virginia motel after being thought of as a murder suspect in his girlfriend's death. it started in clinton, massachusetts, where investigators found the body of 23-year-old gisele rodriguez. police say her on again off again boyfriend, alexander skowran, a pasadena native, was the main suspect. he was found dead in a virginia hotel. he apparently shot himself. police call it a tragic case of domestic violence. neighbors are shocked. >> it's craziness, you know? that's the worst kind i think, of anything, domestic, it's sad

that somebody is supposed to love somebody, could hurt them like that, you know? it's just wrong. >> turns otothe girlfriend did -- out the girlfriend did file a restraining order against skowran for breaking into her apartment in march and vandalizing it. a developing story in the south tonight where rains finally eased up but disases truss flooding -- disastrous flooding. the governor asked president obama to declare a state of emergency in that state. several people have died and thousands more waiting to get back in their homes which are still under water. >> reporter: the the water has wreaked havoc across the southeast, more profoundly, shattered lives. we cannot get to them. the current was so bad. >> reporter: in douglas county west of atlanta 2-year-old preston crawford was swept away from his family when a creek ripped open their mobile home. the body of the boy nickname

scooter wasn't found until hours later. >> if we thought this was going to happen we would have went and got him and brought him back to our house. >> reporter: the dangers widespread after a straight week of rain in at least five states including tennessee, north carolina and georgia. the death toll now stands at nine. some underestimated the currents. >> folks, that's what happens, we're no match for the kind of force that water can put upon us. so please, please restrain yourself, even as tempting as it is to get back and think you're safe. >> reporter: still, southerners are anxious to see what is left, in their homes. >> this sofa was floating. >> reporter: and businesses. >> we were devastated. i mean, we don't have a place to work. >> reporter: washed out roads and interstates have many here in a holding pattern. toby moreson used the boat to check the damage at the baptist church where he's been a member for over 50 years. >> we lost everything as far as

i know. all the books and pews. >> reporter: a flood warning remains in effect for about two dozen counties but meteorologists say the worst is over weatherwise and there's only a 40% chance of rain here in the atlanta area the rest of the week. abc news, austell, georgia. unbelievably heavy rains in parts of the southeastern united states. in the baltimore area we're seeing a couple of showers popping up on maryland's most powerful doppler radar. you do see some of the wet weather primarily north and west of the city right now. we'll zoom in to show you where most of the wet weather is. it will be slick as you head up i-83 this evening, say back up towards sliewzbury or hunt valley. north of the city, westminster seeing clearing but more rain as you head up toward the pennsylvania line. we could see on and off showers across the city tonight. not a lot of rain, not steady but we'll see a passing shower or two, 65 degrees tonight.

and muggy as well. and as we go into the first couple of days of fall here, started fall 2009 today of course, as we go into the first several days of autumn things actually warm up a little. we'll talk about that in a couple of minutes. more than two months ago a 5-year-old girl was nearly shot to death in the carrollton ridge neighborhood of southwest baltimore. now that neighborhood is working to take back its streets. operation protect went door-to-door today to hand out pamphlets. police designated carrollton ridge as a safe zone. at the end of the month the neighborhood will hold a block party to encourage residents to stay active in their community. bringing the nooks and crannies of baltimore back to life. one community leader takes us through his community and shows us how he's helping to give it a makeover. busted. which wii game a bunch of cops in florida were caught playing during a drug raid. yeah, the boys are back.

who is already coming out on top on this season's "dancing with the stars"? and wyatt says we're getting a little bit of rain. full forecast coming up. crest whitestrips has created a strip so revolutionary... you can use it while you do just about anything. it molds better... it grips better... and seals better. you can even drink water with it on. crest whitestrips advanced seal.

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a sign of recovery? many communities across the county are set to get a makeover including one in baltimore. it's part of the obama administration's plan to help get the economy on track, create jobs, revitalize run-down areas. sandra endo tells us how it works by taking us to greenmount west. >> reporter: boarded up homes line this baltimore neighborhood street. >> you're helping with this? >> all that will change. you'll have young families here who create a sense of vitality, young people who invested in the community. and therefore will take care of it.

>> reporter: bishop douglas myles has lived in this area for 40 years. this vacant lot is where he finds hope. soon it will turn into this. >> this is going to be an apartment house for young artists. so that is the basic concept. it's affordable housing. >> reporter: developers have been working on this project for more than three years. when the economy took a nosedive the funding dried up. now, more than $2 billion in recovery act money have been doled out to states weeks before anticipated for shovel-ready projects. the secretary for housing and urban development says an infusion of cash in targeted neighborhoods is part of the strategy for growth. >> it sends a real signal to the surrounding community, hey, i'm going to keep my house up, i'm going to keep investing. it's that kind of ripple effect that we're trying to make sure is happening. >> reporter: turning dilapidated community eyesource into economic engines. >> it would create jobs for plumbers, carpenters,

electricians and get money flowing back into the economy again. which is critical. >> reporter: a dream of bishop myles and promise of new life, coming back to communities like this one. in baltimore, sandra endo, abc2 news. >> obama administration officials predict the money being spent for construction projects like this one will create thousands of jobs nationwide including some permanent jobs in these communities. the projects should be completed in the next two years. we have a little bit of rain. we could use a little. >> it's interesting, if you look pack -- back on the summer and the year -- we've had basically over 30 inches of rain. we're a couple of inches ahead for the year right now. but all in all i think we'll continue to see basically a trend here where we'll get a little more rain today and

tomorrow, dry out toward the end -- >> and warm up? >> correct. a little warmer each day. >> i gathered that. >> not bad. let's look first at maryland's most powerful doppler radar. you do see a little bit of wet weather out there across the area. no doubt about that. in fact, right now you're seeing some showers up north across the bel air area. we'll talk more about that in a second. first a look at the inner harbor, gorgeous shot there. a little cloudy, we're not seeing a ton of rain at the moment but you do see that humidity has come up quite a bit. we're at 67%, relative humidity right now. and also you will find some different various amounts of rains here particularly across the north and west parts of the city. as you zoom out a little ways you see there's not a lot of rain to be found but where we are finding it is primarily the i-83 treck north headed north back up towards the pennsylvania line. that is where you're going to find a lot of showers, also showers just north of bel air right now. out toward jarrettsville area. so, depends exactly where you

are. it will be on and off the rest of the evening. i think we'll see a similar deal tomorrow through the day. hit and miss showers but not an all day steady rain. temperaturewise, low 70s, 74 baltimore. mid-70s as well. annapolis 76. 75 havre de grace. low temperatures this morning, we're in the upper 50s to low 60s. pretty seasonable start but a little warmer than average, we're topping out in the upper 70s. 80s toward easton. this is the trend, getting a little warmer each day as we go toward the latter part of the week. satellite and radar pictures, you can see rain showers, again, moving across, just north of the baltimore area. not a lot of additional wet weather and behind this round we're seeing right now. but overall it's a much more unsettled wet weather pattern across the eastern seaboard and a lot real heavy wet weather still moving across the deep south where they've had just way too much rain.

i think here we're going to see just light on and off showers tomorrow. our forecast model doesn't pick up on a ton of heavy rain. kind of hit and miss pop-up showers, that continues into the day tomorrow as well. i think the trend will be cloudy again, even in to thursday. probably not going to clear out much. we'll see more of the nice autumn sunshine. i don't think that will be though until the end. week. on the bay, foot, a chop. southeast wind 5 to 10 miles per hour. your forecast in the city tonight, 65 degrees. cloudy and muggy. watch for low-lying fog toward the early morning hours. tomorrow through the day could still see hit-and-miss showers throughout the day. it will stay muggy but get warmer. s as we go into fall we warm up. friday, saturday, sunday we clear out for a day or two. but right now looks like another wet weathermaker on the way in by the second half of the weekend.

♪ the boys are back in town♪ >> the boys are back in town. the season premiere of "dancing with the stars" went off with a bang. it was just the men competing with not one but two dances. just because it was the first time these guys hit the ballroom the judges weren't holding anything back. the dallas cowboy was tackled by the judges for his lack of difficulty. he's in the bottom two. so far carter and smirnoff are on top and were given a 22 for their chacha. >> for the most part, within this competition i just want to keep my composier and make sure i listen to her and she's really sharp. she knows her craft. i respect that. >> the feet are 62 years old. and you beat them on these floors like that for five weeks, they are going to start barking back at you. >> i'm just going to try to enjoy my performance, enjoy sexy max dancing next to me. looking at him do his thing, just give it my all.

>> we'll see because tonight is ladies night. be sure to watch here on abc2 starting at 8:00. many would call her a living legend. abc's barbara walters has been given a great honor. see how her hard work has empowered women for decades. and in washington state, an out of control car narrowly missing a little girl. and that's how verizon fios works. any questions? so will the tv in my house look that amazing? yep. fios has 100% fiber optics straight to your home. and i get $150 back when i switch to fios? that's correct. i got a question, i got a question. is anybody here buying this? read it and weep pal.

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now with a look ahead to news at 5:30 -- i'm kelly swoope. which county is a step closer to pulling the plug on tanning beds for teens? trying to stay swine flu-free? what preventions you should not take and why. plus, the risk you're taking when you pull out that debit card and new ways to help

you balance that checkbook. those stories and the fall forecast coming up. thank you. news around the nation takes us to polk county, florida, where sheriffs' deputies just couldn't resist playing the video game wii for hours during and after a drug raid. it was caught on security camera. investigators played wii bowling for nine hours in the suspect's house. one detective bowled frame after frame. and an internal investigation is underway to decide if anyone will be disciplined. in washington state a little girl was nearly crushed by an out of control car. police say the driver was parked outside a store when she quickly started backing up and as she was backing up the car hit a pickup truck parked next to it and slammed into the side of the building. the child was between the parking pole and building. the car came down on top of the pole. the child was not hurt. the 34-year-old driver was charged with reckless driving and driving with a suspended license. a california woman has a

lot of soul. darlene flynn proves you can never have too many shoes. she has more than 11,000 shoe-related items in her home, shoe lamps, shoe chairs, shoe soap, she's in the guinness book of world records. her favorite item cost $15.07. >> my son made it for me a couple of years ago for christmas. it's called "the 1507" because it's made out of $15.07. >> she even has a shoe fly swatter. get it, shoe fly? her dogs are names shoesy and bootsy. wow. ok. how to turn that foreclosed house into a home. when abc2 news at 5:30 starts in just two minutes. seem smooth and strong to irreversible damage. no different. irreversible loss of enamel. enamel shield enamel loss by forming against acid attack. toothpastes dentists check most. save your enamel. be gone for good. enamel shield. with the rinse. 

if you're under 18 tanning beds may soon be illegal in one maryland county. good evening, i'm kelly swoope. county officials are proposing a ban on indoor tanning for youths under 18. today's announcement makes howard county one of the first communities in the country to make this proposal. >> not banning it for everyone, just minors. >> reporter: as the howard county executive announced their intentions to seek a ban on aning for those under -- tanning for those under 18 he stressed that it's based on fact, not fiction. that recent studies show tanning beds can be nearly as dangerous as cigarettes. >> people under age 35 who are exposed to indoor tanning have a 75% increased risk of skin cancer and the younger you are exposed to indoor tanning the greater your risk of potentially fatal melanoma. >> reporter: they say incidences of young people