e police headquarters where a news conference will begin soon. >> we learn that michael trotta and his daughter 3-year-old elinor were found in massachusetts, the fbi tracked them down and you can see the podium behind me we are waiting for the full details but we are told that elinor is safe and the amber alert is canceled. shortly before 10:00 a.m. trotta assaulted the girl's mother and took the daughter from the home they share in newcastle delaware, they found his car a mazda a few blocks away and the amber alert was issued in states where he had contacts he was thought to be driving a red suv possibly a jeep cherokee after an intense aggressive investigation, detectives were able to locate elinor and are working to reunite her with her

mother, in connection with these series of events trotta was wanted on reckless endangerment and other charges. elinor is now in the care of the fbi and efforts are underway to reunite the girl with her mother. >> we are awaiting the news conference to begin and awaiting details about how this all came about and michael trotta and his daughter were found in massachusetts. live in minquadale, i'm sara bloomquist channel 6 "action news." thank you sara, now to a developing story a natural gas explosion leveled auto home at the jersey shore 15 people were hurt and two of them critically and evacuations remain there tonight. >> it happened in stafford township ocean county and it's now nothing but charred rubble. nora muchanic is live on route 9 in stafford township with the latest on everything that

unfolded today. >> reporter: good afternoon rick neighbors talk about and explosion that you could hear and feel all over, it rocked oak avenue early this morning, it continued to disrupt life even though flames are out. the house was leveled and 300 homes in the area of oak avenue are without gas service on this bitter cold day. >> felt the vibration and felt a big explosion i thought something happened i thought something fell in my house. >> neighbors described it as a deaf onning explosion that rocked stafford township this morning. gas crews were in the area along with ems checking on a report of a gas smell when the home exploded. >> it felt like a mini earthquake. >> i saw one of my guys get knocked to the ground, it was

something i never want to experience again. the gas leveled the home that is still smoking at this hour thankfully nobody was inside and seven workers from new jersey natural gas that were within 20 feet of the site took the brunt of the explosion and to are in critical condition two firefighters and two ems workers received injuries but are okay. >> the fuel explosion destroyed the home at that location currently there is nothing remaining there but a block basement. >> 300 homes in the area now have gas service shut off on one the cold of the days of the year. >> it's starting to get colder and we understand there is a job to do first. >> they are working to get repairs and it may take time because they have to dig up the lines and assess the situation. >> our thoughts and prayers go out to all of those that are impacted. >> we are not expecting everybody to get in hire homes

right away, we are telling people if they need someplace to be tonight, we opened up the community center on 260 eastbound bay avenue. >> if have you questions or are affected by the blast new jersey natural gas has a number to call. 1-800-221-2501. it's a miracle nobody was killed. i'm nora muchanic, channel 6 "action news." >> all right thank you nora, we are live now the fbi is holding the press conference about the child from newcastle delaware taken by her father. the amber alert is canceled here is the latest. >> we appreciate the assistance of the federal bureau of investigation, they were a key component to bringing this little girl back safely.

the attorney general's office and local and state office assisted including the massachusetts state police and the police department in massachusetts. i would like to ask jack webb of the fbi to come back up and make some comments we are ever grateful. >> thank you. sfl i would like to say this is an example of when state and local jurisdiction work together to get a victory. a little girl comes home to her mother. and i want to thank all the pd's that helped us. thank you very much. >> following in protocols we practiced this morning, we let you all speak to the mother and i think she is very happy now and we'll let you talk to her again. dawn?

>> hi a different tone than this morning i want to thank the fbi and newcastle police department and the da's office and everyone at the courthouse and all my friends and family that stood by me today is my birthday, i prayed to god all day that i would get her back and i'm going to go get my elinor back. thank you. >> did they call you? >> they called me in and they told me. >> when you got that news? >> i broke down, i got to talk to her on the phone. so she is shaken but she is ready to be back with me. >> are you being flown up there now. yes. >> do you expect to be reunited

at what time? >> i'm not sure but shortly as soon as possible. >> was she aware of what was going on? >> i'm sure she was, she has never been away from me for that long, she is never out of her routine i'm sure she is traumatized. >> she is 3. no. >> do you think she was treated okay? >> i think so yes. >> what is the first thing you'll say? >> nothing, i'll squeeze her and kiss her. >> it's going to be me and her and we'll be happy. that is it. thank you. >> thank you dawn. >> congratulations. >> have you been listening to the mother of a little girl after an altercation of a split

family where the father assaulted the mother and grabbed the 3-year-old child and was believed to be running out of state and believed to be new york and then found in massachusetts with the little girl today. happy on one hand and returning to the area and the father faces charges. >> it sounds like the mother is going to massachusetts to be reunited with her daughter, 3-year-old elinor trotta a relieved mother we heard different than from morning within she was pleading for the return of her daughter. a happy ending we'll have more on 6abc.com. turning now to the forecast it's been a cold but sunny day today and we have a slight warm-up to look forward to and sky 6 hd looking live at the uss new jersey and there is ice floating around.

cecily tynan is here now. >> it will be above freezing tomorrow i'm not sure about spring but it felt like winter this morning. philadelphia dropped down to a low of 7 degrees, that is 5 degrees above the record low so not a record in philadelphia but it was the record in the poconos. the air temperature 15 degrees below zero and allentown the record 4 degrees above and they shattered that record and reading a record low of 3 degrees and wilmington tying the record low of 6 degrees and philadelphia hit 23 degrees today and allentown 22 and millville 24 and trenton 23 degrees despite the bright sunshine you need to bundle up. pretty impressive this cold snap we had the last 12 days we only had 32 hours when temperatures rose above freezing. this was this past sunday 90%

of the time in the last 12 days, we get a little bit of a break and temperatures drop again stormtracker 6 live double scan we have snow not far away to the south. this could bring light snow, to the southern zones of our region, cape may county and dover, delaware this is what is ahead. it's a midweek warm-up, still chilly and still above freezing and arctic air 20 degrees below normal. we'll talk about that in the full accuweather forecast. >> thanks cecily. three cars of a commuter train derailed and amazingly no one was kill and dozens were left injured it collided with an abandoned truck and happened before 6:00 a.m. in the intersection of the city of oxnard northp los angeles, the impact derailed the train and

sent three cars on to their sides and rescue crews scrambled to get to the trapped passengers. investigators say that the train conduct ter tried to stop but did not have time. >> the driver of the vehicle he fled the scene we don't know why, but he was found a little while later some miles down the road and unharmed and is currently in police custody. a team from the ntsb is on their way to california to investigating the collision. now it's time for the "action news" traffic report. lets go to matt pellman. >> we have a plethora of problems, including 202 in king of prussia, they are working on the water main break by henderson road, just one lane is squeezing by instead of the

normal 2, coming down from norristown and the mall in king of prussia, if you use montgomery avenue to get home, you can't do that today in jaime's deli by an underground electrical issue, if you normally use montgomery avenue as a cut through, look for a crash at haverford road close to city avenue and a crash at collingswood and pennsauken because of yesterday's huge tanker truck fire, the ramps remain blocked but traffic can get by on 90 eastbound. we'll catch you good in a half hour. >> thank you matt, still to come on "action news" at 5:00. more than a dozen manatees were rescued off a beach in florida, why the weather is to blame for the animals getting stuck. plus, protecting your eyes and ali gorman talks to your eye doctor on why to shield your eyes in the winter too.

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weather may be what got them in trouble. they got caught in storm drains near a lagoon they believe they were looking for warm weather after cold weather moved in there as well. they were checked out and good news they are now back in warmer water. >> protecting yourself and your children from one of winter's overlooked risks, the sun. ali gorman is at the big board with more on that. >> reporter: we wrap ourselves off and our children in multiple layers with scarves and gloves and many of us don't wear sunglasses in the winter and eye doctors say we should. the sun is a welcome sight but the day in the brilliant sunshine with snow on the ground can be harder on your eyes than a day at the beach. sunglasses in the winter are a must. >> you get reflectist off the snow in the winter time and the snow can reflect up to 85% of

that uv radiation back at you. >> and they are more important for kids than adults. they are outside more often and the lens of their eyes let in more uv or ultra violet rays the more they get protection the less likely to develop serious problems later in life. >> cataracts macular de janeiro lens made of polycarbon won't dissport your vision. wrap around glasses don't just

look cool they serve a purpose. >> they will fit tight to the face and eliminate a lot of the sun you get from the tops and the sides. >> and one more note about children if they have light colored eyes, they are more vulnerable to sun damage and they need the uv protection even more, and read the label on the sunglasses don't just buy a toy pair. rick back to you. not for you either. >> thank you ali. students and staff at william pen high school in new casting game back today by giving blood. this is the large of the one day school blood drive in our area. 250 appointments were scheduled.

alaska is now the third u.s. state to legalize the recreational use of marijuana. they approve tropical disturbance for adults in private places and violators could be hit with a fine for using it in public and it's also legal in washington and colorado. well, a new forever stamp to remember poet and novelist maya

angelou is coming to post offices. she is best known for a series of auto biographies including i know why the caged bird sings. we all want to ensure that our loved one rest in peace so the "action news" troubleshooters took the case of a couple trying to get their father's final wishes honored. >> a name and a date put on a gravestone seems so simple and in this case the engraving was paid for. >> she didn't feel like he was at rest until his name was put on the stone. >> this couple contacted the "action news" troubleshooters because they couldn't get the company to do the work or give them a refund. find out what happens on channel 6 "action news" at 11:00.

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served warm, for just $6. better ingredients. better brownie. papa john's. time for accuweather atting "action news" big board. we'll bump up the mercury and it will feel like a dose of warmth. >> it's funny when 38 feels like warmth. today allentown 23 and trenton 23 and reading 23 degrees. february so far afternoon highs we only had four days in orange with our afternoon high above normal. the temperature running more than 9 degrees below normal.

this will likely be one of our top five coldest februarys of all time. satellite 6 along with action radar showing we have getting cloud cover and there is snow down to the south and this will miss us and there is another low pressure that will move in on thursday and that will clip the coast with a bit of snow most of the region gets clouds and flurries and cold air. it will be cold and not as brutal the last night. down to 17 and allentown it's low and 7 degrees and wilmington a low of 17 degrees. future tracker shows tomorrow temperatures will be above freezing again by 3:30, up to 35 degrees and we should bounce it up to 38 for the afternoon and then back into the deep freeze on thursday and friday, so the five-day at 5:00, tomorrow not nearly as cold as today. 38 degrees and a good amount of sunshine and on thursday an

arctic front brings more cold air, the high only 26 degrees and the low pressure to the south brings flurries and a quick coating of snow in new jersey and southern delaware friday we get back into partly sunny skies and still cold and 26 degrees, and we end february on a cold note not as brutal as friday and march comes in a lot milder 40 degrees, and we start with clouds we'll talk about that in the full accuweather forecast. bring out the flip-flops tomorrow. 38 degrees. >> sure. 38. quick break and more news on "action news" at 5:00 when we come back.

welcome back, breaking news tonight, a young girl from delaware allegedly taken by her father is found safe and sound an amber alert was issued last night after 3-year-old elinor trotta was take and from her home in newcastle delaware and she was found safe in massachusetts with her father michael after a search across several states by the police and fbi.

her mother dawn barkus is shaken but exciting to bring her daughter home. meanwhile, michael trotta her ex-boyfriend is facing charges, reckless endangerment and english dangerment of a child and carjacking and assault. >> now to developing news, a gas explosion leveled a home in ocean county and hurt a dozen people and two of them critically. chopper 6 hd was over the house in stafford township you can see smoke smoldering for what little is left of the home here on oak avenue crews from new jersey natural gas were there investigating when the home suddenly blew. >> it knocks you to your feet i saw one of my guys hit the ground. >> here is a close look at the damage from the ground.

seven are employees of new jersey natural gas and six are firefighters and two are emt's just 15 feet from the blast site and two are in critical condition and this video shows the moment the house exploded here in stafford today. you saw it there it comes from a stafford please cruisers can you see debris from the home shooting up into the air we'll have a full report cogging up on "action news" news tonight at 6:00. and new details on the closure of a busy ramp at the base of the betsy ross bridge following that massive tanker fire yesterday. it was charred after a big rig exploded into flames yesterday and "action news" reporter chad pradelli is live from lindenwald county tonight. >> reporter: the delaware river port authority says that the off ramp will not reopen for several

days that is because of the assessment of a contamination and cleanup continues. the off ramp to route 130 was bustling with activity not traffic but cleanup and environmental crews the aftermath after a tanker overturned and went up in flames yesterday and it went into a drain into the creek and ultimately into the delaware river. >> they are out there testing the soil along the embankment as long as the drainage well. >> they contained the material that went into the swell the storm sewer and that may have gotten into the creek there. >> the tanker fire briefly led to the evacuation of two dozen homes. a camden county spokesperson tells "action news" that tests determine the air is safe. not smelling anything out of

ordinary, i think that the wind took a lot of it out of here and what came out through here is 20 miles per hour wind yesterday. the delaware port authority says three things needs to happen before the ramp can reopen. lighting needs to be replaced and a guardrail replaced and the soaks asphalt needs to be scraped off to create traction and that will take several days. >> right now, the rpa the cause of the accident is under cleftgation and the driver was released with minor injuries he works for tj transport in pennsauken pennsauken.

from our delaware newsroom tonight, quite a scene in newark, a scene in phillips park was green a broken pipe at pernell hall caused water to leak and it had dye in it it is used to trace the water in the event of a leak and it's harmless and will eventually end up in the christina river. the department of justice says that george zimmerman will not face federal charges, zimmerman a neighborhood watch man shot and killed trayvon martin nearly three years ago and zimmerman was found not guilty of murder citing a lack of evidence but federal officials conducted their own investigation into the shooting and though concluted there is not enough evidence to prove that zimmerman violated martin's civil rights. rob are the mcdonald apologized

after he falsely proclaimed he served in the military's special forces while mcdonald was speaking to a homeless veteran and said was one of the military's elite. >> what unit? >> special forces. >> what years? >> overnight mcdonald admitted the error and apologized to anyone offended by the mistake and has great respect for those that served in the special forces and several lawmakers have come to mcdonald's defense. and president obama vetoed a bill approving the construction of the keystone oil pipeline, leaders say it would create jobs and make the u.s. energy independent and his administration he says are still weighing the pros and cons, his

first veto, since republicans took control of congress. and his third since he took office. the frigid temperatures here in the lehigh valley can cause shock when you receive your heating bill. here are tips on how to get some help. >> peco confirms we are using a lot more energy no wonder you compare temperatures last week to the year before temperatures were 48% colder last week and that means peco customers used 10% more electricity and 35% more natural gas and that means bill are going to be higher. if you are not turning your thermostat down, $643 may motivate you. >> it's a tremendous amount of money for us. >> hard to pay? >> yes i almost cried when i saw it. >> they tell me their contract

with their third party electricity supplier expired and their fixed rate became a much higher variable rate. >> customers can save money by shopping but it's important that customers pay attention to their contract terms. >> "action news" called peco for help and the company send an energy auditor to the home. and they will send an energy auditor to your house too. >> we need caulking along here. the cost is $50 to $100 or do a free online energy audit yourself. and if you have received a natural gas or electric bill you cannot afford to pay, they urge you to call for help immediately. >> we have programs to call for help and one-time payment arrange manies and get on billings that spreads your cost evenly over the year. be advised that you must have an account with good standing and

with pgw you must pay your past due been and both customers urge you not to leave money on the table. >> we know there are tens of thousands of families in philadelphia that don't apply for programs every year even though they are eligible. >> you can apply right now and get a grant up to $1000. >> for pennsylvanians along there is still $60 million available and pgw and peco offer other programs for instance they have a program called cares, it helps households going through financial hardship to pay a portion of their bill. we have program information and tips to help you conserve energy and an easy to read chart to help you pick the best electricity provider for you. and look for the lowest fixed rates.

>> the philadelphia streets department started inspecting bridges the falls bridge and strawberry mansion bridge are all getting checked out. expect lane closures between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. no indication that anything is wrong with the bridges. time for another check of the highways and byways tonight matt pellman is in the traffic center. >> reporter: at least they stopped their inspections before the evening commute because we are busy enough. here on 95 no inspections but we are watching a crash on the betsy ross bridge taking out the left lane north of the vine from this point at the betsy ross and slow speeds and not a lot of elbow room this afternoon. and issues in bala cynwyd and montgomery avenue is blocked because of an underground electrical issue stick with jaime instead of montgomery this afternoon.

and king of prussia repairing it's water main break near henderson road, delays are spilling back to the dannehower bridge and southbound on the old baltimore pike and a vehicle fire near old egg harbor road. >> still ahead the phillies get their first full workout together in clearwater. >> phillies hall-of-famer mike schmidt is trying to turn don brown into an all-star again. >> plus, a brand new cast fort hit abc show dancing with the star is unveiled. find out who is sashaying for the disco ball and there is a local tie. locally here we know it's brutally cold but look at the lower 48 the only 50 on the board is jacksonville florida. >> "action news" will be right back.

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the stars" is unveiled on "good morning america." including patti labelle and tv icon suzanne somers and mogul from shark tank and willow shields, she is only 14 the youngest contestant and rumor willis she is on there. and how about football standout and the first openly gay player michael sam you saw. and former hit band riker lynch and model charlotte mckinney and gymnast nastia liukin and one name you have not recognized yet, noah galloway sergeant turned trainer who lost his left arm in an ied attack. take a look at what is coming up on 6 abc fresh off the boat at 8:00 and followed by that repeat after me at 8:30 and then the

season finale of marvel's at carter and then "action news" at 11:00. over to you rick. >> thank you again, this month's deep freeze has led to breaking numbers for aaa over the past week officials responded to more than 16000 calls in the five county philadelphia area, monday february 16th set a record for the most calls in a single day with 12000 battery related calls are up 119% from last year, any car battery over three years old is susceptible to a break down. warning signs are a clicking sound. >> jaime apody is live now in the sports center and you have the latest on all sports. >> time to see what they are really made of phillies held their first full squad work quout for what is likely to be a

rebuilding process. jeff skversky is live in clearwater did it have a different feel out there? >> it was strange not seeing jimmy rollins out here he was the phillies team for 13 years. and coach ryan sandberg made his intentions clear. >> he did not think the phillies clubhouse was conducive to winning last year so the focus of the manager's speeches with to turn it around. >> i told them i learned things last year and everybody in the room learned some things and there are adjustments there so to bring some togetherness to the locker room. >> don brown was among the players that thought the phillies were not on the page but he hopes to turn the page personally as well.

after hitting just .235, only one starting left fielder was worse. >> i had struggles in may and that put me in a downward spiral there and i picked my head up. >> he is working with mike schmidt he gave him some advise before an at bat and he went out and hit a home run like schmidty would. >> i happened to speak with him before the at-bat he asked me about it but coincidental. >> sounds like you are a great coach? >> i like to think so. >> mike schmidt is a hall-of-famer, and we have another one in ryan sandberg i am picking their brains as much as possible. >> brown is making the switch from right field to left field his natural position hopefully it will make him more comfortable. with the phillies in clearwater,

jeff skversky channel 6 "action news" back to you. >> thanks jeff. the flyers hope to continue their hot streak in north carolina ray emory did not make the trip due to injury. and 5-1-0 he will start for the first time in five days, his first shootout win over the weekend and he is relishing the chance to give this team a playoff push. >> you play to be in situations like this and we are fortunate to be in the playoff push. >> the team called off anthony stolars. and sixers getting ready for mcw, but he made a crazy shot his replacement. look at this shot isiah cannon nails the bucket without landing

on his feet. he had 11 points hopefully you can do that all the time. >> still ahead on "action news" new details on the sale of the revel casino in atlantic city. coming up at 6:00, and sky 6 hd looking at penn's landing tonight. and information on new record lows in the exclusive accuweather forecast. i know grandma's house isn't the most exciting, but it's only for a few hours. look what i've got. when you get verizon fios, you get beautiful hd picture quality, super fast internet, and america's most reliable network. so you won't miss a second of that movie that game they love, or those moments with family. can we sleep over? please! come on! see why fios is rated #1 in customer satisfaction in hd picture quality based on customer satisfaction studies.

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time for a look at accuweather temperatures go up and down and then it's a tease. >> the up is a little hill and we find a twice slam back down on thursday. we are trying to climb back up the ladder. >> try harder. >> that is what i say. taking a look at double scan live radar some flurries off the coast of cape may not reaching the ground but cloud cover there as a coastal system just missed us to the south bringing snow to virginia and even north carolina this afternoon. the high today is just 25 degrees, the normal should be 46 degrees so we remain a good 20-21 degrees below normal for high temperatures and the 7 this morning in philadelphia did not make it to the record set in

1889 but other areas broke record, the poconos 15 degrees below zero and recovered this afternoon 30 degrees, and reading 3 below and wilmington 6 above a new record for them. 21 in millville and 21 along the shore, temperatures are pretty uniform across the area with a decent amount of sunshine for most and high clouds are moving in from the south and west and clouds off the coast especially from cape may and parts of sussex county and delaware, there you can see the snow across the delmarva and the outer banks of north carolina seeing snow at the present time, thankfully that stays off the coast tonight and tomorrow, and another arctic boundary pushes through and little in the way of moists your but a lot of sun, we'll call it milder given temperatures we bust out of the 20s and head to 38 degrees and we are right back down into the

20s on thursday as another coastal system pushes to the south and this one may come a little north to scrape southern areas with snow showers on thursday but most of us here on thursday will just be cold and cloudy. for tonight stars and clouds and not as brutal, we are not going back to the single digits or excuse me below zero. 17 in the city of philadelphia and 7 in the suburbs and the exclusive accuweather seven-day forecast and the clouds build on thursday with the system and 36 and future tracker 8:30 in the morning, can you see the snow showers south of millville it does not look to get as far north as philadelphia but we'll monitor the system tomorrow and more cold behind it and we are back to the 30s the last day of february and a quiet day and it's miler here for the first

day of february -- oh yeah it's march. >> are you kidding me? >> i don't want to go backwards and february is just entrenched in my brain forever now. >> you stay there we are moving forward. quick break and more news when we come back.

the entire "action news" team i'm rick williams, have a nice evening. good night.

"action news" delaware valley's leading news program. with ducis rogers, meteorologist cecily tynan, and jim gardner. tuesday night and the sale of revel has been resurrected and a massive fire fight turns into an icy scene in kensington but the big story on "action news" tonight is the discovery late today of 3-year-old elinor trotta of newcastle delaware she and her father are found in massachusetts and her amber alert has been canceled. sara bloomquist is live at newcastle county police in minquadale. >> reporter: jim in a news

conference we got a few details on how the fbi found michael trotta and his 3-year-old daughter elinor in the state of massachusetts, it was 3:30 this afternoon when s.w.a.t. teams moved into and took him into custody and recovered the little girl safely in spencer, massachusetts and elinor's mother talk about getting the good news. >> i broke down and i got to talk to her on the phone. she is shaken but she is ready to be back with me. >> and this is 3-year-old elinor missing since last evening it was shortly before 7:00 p.m. when police say that trotta assaulted his ex-girlfriend, elinor's mother and took the little girl from the home in newcastle delaware, trotta was spotted at a rest