the jersey shore. in ocean city they marched right into the ocean to unlock the sea signaling the start of months of fun on the sand. and this was the scene in atlantic city as mayor don guardian is hoping the summer can be kind to his beleaguered city. we are poised to bring you a holiday preview with annie mccormick at the shore, cecily tynan with a late word from accuweather and eva pilgrim with all the holiday happenings in philadelphia. annie let's start with you in sea isle city. >> and jim we promise we're going to show you more of that surf and stand in just a moment but we also want to show you this construction project right now that's going to cause a headache for a lot of people that rely on this townsend inlet bridge that was supposed to be open. this connects sea isle to avalon. we'll get you to where you need to be don't you worry but this is something that's give some people a headache. plenty of shore points around the area many people are so excited to finally feel the sand between their toes. the jersey shore is ready for

waves of eager sun and sand thirsty people. in sea isle city resident are disappointed the townsend bridge in opened yet. it's a popular way for drivers to jump to different shore points especially to avalon. >> very inconvenience for me the bikers. everyone down here and it's a shame for the businesses. >> reporter: but other shore spots started the weekend without any major detours. in wildwood, officials turned the giant key in the sand to officially unlock the ocean. the lieutenant governor encouraging people to come on down. >> i think people should get in the car right now and drive to cape may come to wildwood especially and look at this beach. this is a huge beautifully well kept beach. people are welcoming them and they're waiting for them. >> reporter: one gorilla is eager to make his footprint in the sand, that is king kong, wildwood shore-goers have missed the big guy for decades but now his statue tops a new $1.6 million ride at surf side pier in north wildwood.

the kite festival coincides with the memorial day weekend too. already by midday works were packed hopeful al good sign for a summer full of fun and plenty of people to keep the jersey shore in business. >> we're excited. the things that we're hearing this year about the season, we're hearing good reports from our hotel hotel owners. >> reporter: we're hanging on cecily's words. it's perfect out here with a little bit of wind. if you want an alternate route you'll have to go outside of the city, take route nine or the garden state parkway and as for wildwood, that international kite festival tonight, they're going to light up those kites and it's going to be absolutely beautiful. for now reporting live in sea isle city, annie mccormick channel6 "action news." jim. >> thank you, annie. you said it. nothing is more important for a fun holiday weekend than the accuweather forecast. so, cecily tynan what's the deal with that? >> the pressure is on, jim.

we are starting the weekend seasonable. i'm tracking a lot of sunshine for the weekend but we do have to pretty big swings in temperatures. right now, though, it's comfortable. 77 degrees in philadelphia. it's breezy. good amount of sunshine. you'll notice, though, pittsburgh it's 65 degrees. there's a cold front moving through. this has been kicking off a couple sprinkles north of philadelphia. it's mainly coming through dry and what will happen behind this front, another area of high pressure builds in. this will bring us loads of sunshine tomorrow but a big drop in the temperatures. overnight tonight temperatures dropping down into the 40's in most of our viewing area. 30's in the lehigh valley and the weekend kickoff for tomorrow showing not a cloud in the sky. wall to wall sunshine but temperatures running about 6 degrees below normal so it's going to feel a little bit on the cool side. philadelphia 70 degrees for the high. at the shore take a sweatshirt. it will be cool on the beach 67 degrees in the poconos tonight frost advisories in effect. tomorrow will be chilly for

may, 61 degrees. but it doesn't stay cool. future tracker showing as we head into sunday, temperatures up near 80 degrees and memorial day will be very warm and humid. i'll talk more about that, the shore and the poconos and track a potential heat wave next week in the full accuweather 7-day forecast. jim. >> thank you cecily. so let's go live to independence mall where "action news" reporter eva pilgrim, eva let people think that the shore has a monopoly on weekend fun. what's on tap in philadelphia. >> reporter: yeah, jim, not everybody is heading out of town for the long holiday weekend. if you are planning to stay in town there's plenty to do. as many roll out of town to head down the shore,. >> beat the track, i'm going to ocean city. >> reporter: others are kicking off their holiday weekend with a bang. right here at home. >> like have a good nap time. >> keep busy during the day. >> reporter: spruce street harp harbor park opened today

for the new season with lots of food game and funs. >> we were here last year and there's so much more this year. >> seemed like a fun thing to do today on a beautiful day. >> all kinds of roving entertainment as well. today there's circus performers, steel drummers. every day there's different action and different things you can take in. >> reporter: just down the street at penn's landing summer fest is in full swing. >> i think it's awesome. the roller skating rink was a big draw for us. we're so excited about that. >> reporter: the river rink a wintertime favorite is now a roller rink. >> beautiful that it overlooks the river and the boat and everything. it's just so nice out here. >> reporter: from reading books in a hammock to catch something rays on the dock and even taking a few lapse around rink there is something for everyone this weekend right here in the city. >> really is the greatest city ever. >> reporter: now there will be free events all weekend here at independence national park to honor those who gave their lives for our country. on monday it is free to get into the national constitution center.

jim, really, there is something for everyone for families for singles for couples, you can find something to do in the city here this weekend. we're live here at independence mall, eva pilgrim channel6 "action news. >> thank you eve v please don't forget 6abc.com/weather ashas you covered with storm tracker radar and hourly forecast this weekend and be sure to visit 6abc.com/traffic on your way to and from your recommend destinations. we have breaking news in south philadelphia, this is our sky six airport camera. we have turned it around. can we take that graphic off so we can see the thick black smoke that is arising from the old sunoco refinery in south philadelphia. this incident was reported in the 3000 block of penrose avenue just about 20 minutes ago and as you can see it looks like something is on

fire at the refinery. don't have any word about injuries. the refinery is now known as philadelphia energy solutions girard point refinery. obviously we are gathering information as quickly and as best we can. when we find something out we will let you know. this one is causing quite a buzz on north broad street. the united states justice department is saying that the chairman of the temple university department of physics is an international spy. passing off technology secrets to china. live on the temple campus tonight is "action news" reporter wendy saltzman. wendy. >> reporter: jim professor xiaoxing xi was the head of temple physics at temple university specializing in soup are conductors but this federal indictment alleges he used defense department funds to build physical that he later leaked to leaders in his homeland. xiaoxing xi has worked at temple since 2009. this world renowned physicist.

>> i'm shocked he was giving these details to people he was not supposed to. >> reporter: drexel physicist knows xi and explains the technology the professor was working on. >> super conductor has no resistance so it can pass electrical current without any loss. >> reporter: they're conductors like copper wire that pass electricity and data but much faster. >> in the case of a thin film you can back up a lot of circuitry in a very small space. >> reporter: xi turned over technology and offered to help chinese entities become world leaders in the field and also recruited his postdoctoral students from china to assist in the scheme. >> science and technology it's all about details. if anybody knows the secrets before somebody else does, you have an up are hand. >> reporter: xi built these super conductors using a defense department grant. they would allow those who possess the technology to

build the fastest electronic devices in the world and they could be used in antimilitary defense systems among other applications. in return for the information, xi allegedly sought lucrative and prestigious appointments in china. he faces a maximum sentence of 80 years in prison if convicted. >> don't get involved in this kind of stuff. so this was quite a shock. >> reporter: xi has been replaced as the head of physics in light of this indictment today. a spokesperson for the university says they are aware of the case and they are interested in speaking with xi who is still a professor here at the university. live at temple, i'm wendy saltzman, channel6 "action news." >> thank you wendy. a car collided with a septa bus this afternoon injuring eight people. the accident happened at 2:30 at the intersection of germantown avenue and tioga streets in hunting park. police are investigating what caused the car to crash with the route 23 bus. eight people were taken to the hospital with nonlife-threatening injuries. a $2,500 reward is now

being offered forly information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspects involved in a gun shop robbery. the crime happened at 4 o'clock yesterday morning at the suburban armory store in collingdale. this is surveillance video. the thieves stole 19 weapons. collingdale police and atf agents are looking for two vehicles a silver gm sedan and a maroon important whack montana with the partial license plate yz. hundreds of scouts honor war veterans on this memorial day weekend an former wrestler from drexel takes to the ring in vegas this weekend. ahead in sports we'll introduce you to the ufc fighter living out his dream. >> certainly a beautiful start to the holiday weekend. breezy and seasonable with a high of 77 degrees. i'm tracking a very cool saturday and then a big warmup including the possibility of a heat wave next week. i'll have the details in the accuweather forecast. >> those stories and more when

"action news" continues tonight. >> ♪♪

>> ♪♪ >> chopper six is now in the air with a good view of what is going on at the old sunoco refinery in south philadelphia. this is now the philadelphia energy solutions girard point refinery but regardless of the name part of this refinery, something on this refinery is on fire. and as you can see firefighters are pouring water on this very smoky blaze. it's very difficult for us to see whether the situation is improving. i think it is because when we looked at it just a few

moments ago there were these big plumes of black smoke. it seems to be dissipating a little bit as we speak. and as you can see fire trucks are pouring assaulting this fire with water at the refinery. we're keeping track of it for you as best we can. a roadway in hamilton township, new jersey, looked more like a rodeo this morning. chopper 6hd was over the i-295 off-ramp to route 29 north. that's where officials choralled a cow that was running loose. they had to tranquilize the cow to move it off the highway and it later died. state police say the cow escaped from a trenton slaughterhouse about 3 miles weigh. an "action news" viewer audrey cooper sent us this video showing the wayward cow on the move right past her car window. meanwhile viewer acadia rivera was recording from an overpass as the animal ran from the grassy median and onto the roadway. you can join the action as

well when you see news happening, just e-mail us your photos and video to join the action at 6abc.com. or use the #6abcaction on social media. more than 1,000 scouts spent today honoring what memorial day is really all about. the boy scout, girl scout cub scout and brownie troops decorated the graves at the brigadier general william c c. doyle veterans cemetery in wrightstown. they placed a fag at each of the 58,000 graves. the scouts received a patch for their community service today.

>> phillies will spend their holiday weekend taking on the team with the best record in the national league east. >> and a red hot team at that, too. the phillies will have their hands full. they have a series with the nationals that begins tonight followed by one with the mets. those two teams are first and second respectively in the nl east. chase utley and ryan howard seem to be breaking out of their slumps.

utley has anyone hits in his last six games. his batting average is now up to .169. nothing to brag about but two weeks ago it was below 100. howard is driving the ball once again. he has five home runs in his last 15 games. manager ryne sandberg is pleased and he would like to see more. >> they both made adjustments they're both on a hot streak and those are a couple of big bats veteran bats that we need right in the middle of the lineup. yes, so to see them both contributing and being a threat up there in the middle of the lineup that's definitely good for the guys around them. >> let's switch gears completely. ufc187 takes place in las vegas saturday night. call it fight night. jeff skversky mixes it up with a relatively small fighter who has big dreams. >> reporter: do you know the saying don't judge a book by its cover. well at 5-foot four, 125 pounds, zach makovsky doesn't look tough. until you get him into the

octagon. despite his stature and the nickname fun size, the bethlehem native is an ultimate fighter ranked in the top 10 of the ufc's fly weight division. >> i've been taking short jokes my whole life. i wasn't really affected by short jokes. i got bullied a little bit because i was so small. >> reporter: that's ironic. >> yeah. >> reporter: well, nobody's picking on makovsky now. how did zach get his start in ufc? started here in the drexel wrestling world. he led them to the most wins in school history in 2006. >> done competing college wrestling and you're not olympic caliber wrestler, there's kind of not much of an outlet to still compete and mixed martial arts kind of gives you that. >> reporter: the former drexel walk on and biology major believes wrestling in this very room a decade ago prepared him for the biggest stage in mixed martial arts. >> wrestling is very similar really. i mean it's a combat sport

and in my opinion probably the most effective combat sport to lead you to mixed martial arts. >> reporter: makovsky found an outlet. he getting set to fight john dobson in las vegas. jeff skversky channel6 "action news"." >> report for mrs. skversky, he's okay. >> he's okay as he typically is. some young people in camden spent today helping to pay tribute to a group of men who fought for freedom while being denied their own. students from the urban promise academy dedicate add new sign at johnson cemetery honoring the soldiers buried there. those soldiers include african-american soldiers who fought in the civil war and the spanish-american war. for the past few years these students have been working to restore this site and with it the dignity of these brave men.

>> here we go. the all important holiday weekend forecast. >> and jim a good amount of sunshine through the weekend. it starts cool and it ends very warm. storm tracker six live double scan showing that most of our region is rain free but we do have a couple light showers in the poconos just north of jim thorpe, lake harmony penn argyle between a cold front that will drop temperatures as we head into saturday and right no comfortable out there. philadelphia 77 degrees it's breezy, reading 72 wilmington 74. sea isle see 72 and allentown currently 66 degrees. the wind gusts will show you it's quite blustery. winds 31 miles per hour right

now gusting to 36 miles per hour in wilmington. once this front moves through and the sun sets, the winds will be diminishing tonight and the skies will be clearing. satellite6 along with action radar showing this cold front doesn't have much moisture but it does have a push of some very cool air behind it. so tonight the skies clearing out, the winds diminishing and the temperatures dropping like a rock. 48 degrees the low in philadelphia. that's 8 degrees below average. some of the north and west suburbs, though, even cooler. reading and lancaster 40. allentown all the way down to 39 degrees. so, your saturday will start cool but we'll see a good amount of sunshine. high pressure in control of our weather so the high 70 degrees. that's 6 degrees below average. low humidity, not quite as windy as today so all in all a pretty nice saturday. if you like it a little bit warmer though, that happens on sunday. the high pressure moving off the eastern seaboard brings us that return flow out of the southwest. so, temperatures up to

80 degrees. again, low humidity. heat and humidity will be waiting in the wings and a memorial day -- on memorial day when we take the time to remember those who fought and died protecting our freedom it's going to be muggy. some clouds in the morning mostly sunny skies by the afternoon. at 8 o'clock 69 degrees. by noon, 81. by 4 o'clock, 86 degrees. so, memorial day will definitely be at the warmest of the three days this week. the poconos tonight frost advisories in effect and it will be chilly tomorrow despite all the sunshine, the high only 61 degrees. so if you're heading up to the mountains definitely take a sweater. sunday sun mixing with clouds, 73 degrees and monday can't rule out the possibility of a pop-up thunderstorm. otherwise, partly sunny and warmer with a high of 78 degrees. heading to the beach the ocean temperature 59 to 60 degrees. and tomorrow bright sunshine but cool, 67 degrees. on sunday, quite a bit warmer, 73 degrees. it will be breezy and on memorial day, at the shore

75 degrees. you lit that around lunchtime and that sea breeze will kick up and drop temperatures down into the 60's. so the exclusive accuweather 7-day forecast, sunshine through the weekend with climbing temperatures. tomorrow's high 70. we bump it up 10 degrees on sunday and memorial day it's warm it's muggy with a high of 87 degrees. do you like it hot you've got it on tuesday, hazy, hot and humid, 90. the warmest day so far this year but it's likely even warmer on wednesday. summer soup. very muggy 92 degrees and thursday hazy, hot and humid 90. three days in a row, we hit that, that will be our first heat wave of the year. could have a few pop-up showers and thunderstorms on thursday and the heat and humidity sticks around on friday with a high of 90 degrees. wining how once we hit memorial day we really open the door for that summer heat. >> all right. thank you cecily. we're going to check back now at the old sunoco refinery

in south philadelphia and as you can clearly see it appears that firefighters have this blaze at least they have the upper hand. we don't know if there's an official designation that this fire is now under control but clearly it has been contained by firefighters. by the way these firefighters are the refinery's firefighters. philadelphia fire department was called to the scene. it is there in case they are needed. but it looks like the refinery's firefighting force has contained this blaze. that's good news. we'll find out more particulars as we continue through the evening put them on abc -- 6abc.com and of course we'll have the latest at 11 o'clock tonight. abc's world news tonight with david muir is next. for the entire "action news" team i'm jim gardner. we hope you'll join us at 11:00. >> ♪♪

tonight, behind bars after a dramatic takedown. the suspect charged in the brutal killing of that washington, d.c., family. police saying he didn't act alone. officers taking in five other people traveling with him. but tonight letting them go. and, new details of how the crime unfolded. holiday washout. one of the busiest travel weekends in a decade. millions facing heavy rain and flooding. caught on camera. the suspected hit-and-run driver accused of ignoring police. body cam video showing officers using a taser and pepper spray. the startling discovery at the hospital. and, the family bombshell. the scandal swirling around one of the stars of "19 kids and counting." the popular show yanked off the air tonight.