>> so, don't drink that coffee. stay with us, everyone. "news 4 today" continues now at 5:00 a.m. pressure problems. a fast-moving fire destroys a well-known washingtonia's home. first on 4, what we're now learning about what may have been to blame for that. >> crime. a local firefighter allegedly uses a popular internet website for foul play. what he is accused of doing that landed him behind bars. >> tax free. the annual tradition of back to school shopping. what parents need to know about this weekend and where to find those best bargains. good morning, and welcome to "news 4 today." we're glad you're with us today. i'm barbara harrison. >> and i'm keith garvin sitting in for joe krebs. it is friday, august 7th, 2009. happy friday, everyone. give you a live look outside. a beautiful shot of the washington monument, pleasant, pleasant, pleasant. >> and low humidity.

you can drink that coffee. got good and bad things. >> as long as you give me permission. >> cup of joe already? you don't drink coffee, do you? >> ion d. don't. goth e caffeine back about teaen y a rs back about ten years ago. di shumiety ion g this morning. it's dpped oncoid.erably aboy it while you can because enek going to be returning ovee. highs today into the mid-80s otwi sth lf o sunshine. ouendycl, oucl,cl getting more humid by the afternoon. hi en90 th the heat is on. apr es propsiveprumidity for sunday and monday, highs in the mid and upper 90s, morning lows in the 70s with hazy sunshine. you're definitely going to want to get to theooeal bo or t ayst cool. looks like the heat wave will continue into tuesday, maybe some thundershowers wednesday and thursday into next week. i'm back with another update at 5:11. >> can't wait. >> okay. >> see you then. >> thanks, tom. we want to get our first look at traffic. jerry edwards joins us from the traffic network how you doing, jerry? >> early getaway? >> yeah, you know what? i think folks are going to squeeze another vacation day

today. saw an awful lot of traffic early this morning. good friday morning, by the way. the trip in on 66, no early worries. headed westbound we're doing just fine. elsewhere, we'll check out i-270 northbound and southbound between frederick and rockville, out route 15 point of rocks and 66 headed west and east doing all right. it's friday morning. back to you. >> thank you, jerry. >> new details in the investigation of a massive fire that destroyed the home of a well-known washingtonian. news 4 has learned the washington area sewer authority found no problems with water pressure and fire hydrants in the area. >> you may remember these images. flames ripping through the home of former school board chair peggy cooper cafritz. it happened back on july 19th on cham bridge road in northwest. kimberly suiters is following this story first on 4. good morning. >> good morning. the cafritz property is still fenced off this morning. a d.c. police officer sits out front, standing guard, as does a fire department mobile command unit. the smell of this fire and smoke

still lingering in the air. last week on wednesday, flames devoured the former school board chair's home and her vast art collection in northwest. fire crews ran hoses to hydrants blocks away. they said they couldn't get proper water pressure close to the fire, and other neighbors apparently had complained of low water pressure in the past. while the cause of this massive and devastating fire is still under investigation, was a wants to put to rest speculation about any water pressure deficiencies. news 4 hasrowteet t ayfrom lheenette tfrenheom mer geranal t tagofr o nnene oneridistbution system e esristontiteysm been ns h sheen shown whit with regardo t ahe wilableerat w supply, to fire and e.m.s. to fire to suppress this in this emergency. this is the letter. more in this morning's newscast. d.c. mayor adrian fenty is expected to announce a press conference this morning to announce the initial findings of

the city's investigation. back to you. >> kimberly, people who were on the scene who a neighbors of the cafritzs say the fire department got there very fast, but they saw firefighters actually trying to struggle to get the water going. any indication of any other ideas? >> well, i'm going to go through this letter again this morning and we'll talk more about that later. it talks about how firefighters looked to wasa for assistance in finding other hydrants, but in this letter, wasa says the pressure, the hydrant location, none of these things contributed to a lack of response to the fire. >> certainly going to be interesting to find out what it was. thanks so much. after an internal review, the prince william county police chief says officers did act appropriately when using a taser to arrest a man and woman at a house party. police went to this home in manassas back on july 26tho to respond to a nse complaint. officers say the homeowner, 55-year-old edgar rodriguez, w highly intoxicated and refused to turn down the volume.

then they say family members tried to interfere with the arrest. in the end, rodriguez and 25-year-old girlfriend was tased. we talked to one of the neighbors. >> he said get down on the ground, get down on the ground, get down on the ground. all i know is right after that, the third time, the officer issued that order, i immediately heard the taser. my brother was like, holy cow. they just tasered somebody. >> an attorney representing rodriguez calls the incident unjustified and compared it to similar racially charged cases. the police chief says there was no language barrier. he says one of the arresting officers explained the noise ordinance to rodriguez ind anise 20-year-old veteranefirer fig is facing charges after an internet sex sting. po lice say lieutenant wayne othershead answered a craigslist beli weved believed was aye6-ld 1-oarrl gi. it turns out the ad wasct ay.lll posted byn a deunerrcov police

of ther. parkingrc pheking looft he whole brook shopping ier itrgheburs.bu co ntmeeread had agreed tont erha mshagead dreed to meet the girl there nd and pay her $ for sex. lieutenant modereashs i free s$100,0bond nd he also has been put on paid administrative leave. >> in the district, a family is desperately searching for a young mother. 24-year-old tiffany holesy was last seen in southeast. she has two young children and yesterday was her 5-year-old son's birthday. her family spent the afternoon posting up thousands of flyers and searching ft. dupont park where tiffany has been known to frequent. her mother says she cannot think of any reason why tiffany would disappear. >> breaking news this morning. brand-new information about a c.i.a. missile strike in pakistan. the taliban is now confirming that its chief baitullah mehsud was killed. he was standing on the roof of his father-in-law's house when

the drone struck. baitullah mehsud has led a violent campaign of suicide attacks and assassinatis against pakistan's government. >> after a historic vote, sonia sotomayor has been confirmed to the u.s. supreme court. the 57-year-old new york native will be the first hispanic to sit on the high court. democrats applauded her smooth confirmation. however, only nine republicans voted in favor of sotomayor. most republicans worry that she has a liberal bias. president obama praised her confer mags, calling it a, "wonderful day for america. sotomayor will be swn i tomorrow on live television, another first for the supreme court. congress has hit the accelerator on the cash for clunkers program. last night, the senate joined the house in approving an additional $2 billion worth of funding. that bill now awaits president obama's signature. under the program, consumers can get up to $4,500 in rebates if they swap out their gas guzzler

for new, more fuel-efficient cars. the program's initial $1 billion ran out of money after ten days. lawmakers exempt the new funding to last through labor day. happening today, the tax free holiday kicks into high gear in virginia. this weekend parents are getting a price break on school supplies. it could not have come at a better time. the recession is clearly having an effect on back to school spending. the national retail federation estimates four out of five americans are making changes to their budgets and to their back-to-school plans. spending is projected to be down nearly 8% this year. the tax-free holiday is a plus for both shoppers and for retailers. >> on top of that, they have the sales tax that they haven't been having to pay on the clothes and stuff. it's been tons of savings. people in and out looking to save. >> we do see on the retail side, our research shows an uptick in sales, in affected stores of sometimes as high as 40%. >> this year, 15 states, including virginia, are taking bart in the tax-free holiday.

the tax break applies to clothing and footwear under $100 and school supplies under $20. >> a community meeting was held in northeast washington to discuss a plan to bring street cars to the h street corridor. the advisory neighborhood commission requested the meeting to improve dialogue between residents and dd dot. the director gabe klein took questions last night. street caresin l havein also be prop proposed in an a costs at this in add k street northwest. >> 65 degrees outside. getting a first look at video of a fall that sent rock star steven tyler to the hospital. >> plus, the loss of a talented filmmaker known for unforgettable motion picture >> the husband of a woman who calls a horrific wrong way crash is speaking out in her defense.

good morning. a fresh and cool start to this friday morning, temperatures only mid-60s in washington, just near 60 in montgomery, fairfax and prince george's counties. low 60s eastern shore, 50s out in the mountains. low humidity has moved in overnight. we've got a mostly clear sky, a few high clouds over the shenandoah valley and in the mountains we'll have highs reaching the mid-80s today with low humidity. increasing humidity by saturday afternoon, highs near 90 and partly cloudy. hazy sunshine for sunday and

monday, highs into the 90s. it looks like that may continue into next week, perhaps some thundershowers on wednesday and thursday. i'm back in ten minute was another update. jerry, how's the traffic? >> let's take a look, see how we're doing on this friday morning. fine so far over the american legion bridge. outer loop moving along without delay. light volume of traffic. the inner loop, same story there. elsewhere, check things out, in from the west along interstate 66, haymarket all the way in, incident free. no hang-ups at the wilson bridge. southeast 295 to the 11th street bridge, pennsylvania avenue all doing fine. barbara and keith, back to you. >> thanks, jerry. >> thanks. ti now 5:13, 66 degrees outside. a major meltdown for widely popular social networking site. >> plus, strapped for cash and billions in the red. next at 5:15, why you may no longer be getting mail on the weekends. ó#>ús

time is now 5:15. updating our top stories of the day. d.c. mayor adrian fenty will hold a news conference today about a fire that destroyed a well-known washingtonian's home. last week flames broke out at the home of former school board president peggy cooper cafritz in northwest. news 4 has learned -- since learned that the washington area sewer authority found no problems with water pressure and fire hydrants in the area.

sonia sotomayor makes history tomorrow when she is sworn in as supreme court justice. she is the third woman and first hispanic on the bench. more than 2/3 of the senate yesterday voted to confirm sotomayor. she will replace riring justice david souter. today, virginians are getting a break on back-to-school shopping. the sales tax holiday kicks in today. the tax break this weekend applies to clothing and footwear under $100 and school supplies under $20. >> the postal service is in big trouble. it's strapped for cash, billions in the red. that's why the postmaster general was on capitol hill yesterday to ask congress for help. tracie potts explains. >> reporter: many of us are e-mailing now instead of buying stamps so mail carriers are delivering fewer letters to more homes, and the postal service is losing money. >> post offices got to adjust to it or they will go the way of the horse and buggy a the

bridals. >> reporter: even after getting rid of mailboxes and raising prices and soliciting new business online -- >> give flat rate boxes a try. >> reporter: -- the agency will end this year $7 billion in the red and won't me a $5.5 billion retiree health insurance payment due september 30th. >> somebody's going to pay for it. somebody is. that somebody is either going to be a rate payer or the u.s. taxpayer. >> reporter: the post master general is looking at more cost-cutting, eliminating regular delivery on saturdays and closing nearly 700 postal faciliti facilities. >> i wouldn't have a place to come at lunch tile to drop off my mail. very inconvenient. >> we want to keep as many of those open as we possibly can but we cannot just sell stamps in those outlets. >> reporter: one senator says all those changes amount to less than 1% of operating costs, and postal worker unions are at odds over whether to reduce that massive insurance payment. >> the requirement for the postal service to prefund the

massive 75-year liability over just a n-year period is no longer feasible. >> this is a mean-spirited amendment that undermines the collective bargaining process. >> reporter: bargaining that largely prevents the postal service from laying off workers. the senate is looking at reducing that insurance payment, but there's big disagreement on how much to cut because federal regulators, the government, postal inspectors, all are using different figures on how much health care costs will increase over the next few years. tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >> here's what this means to you. your local post office may close, and the agency is considering no more mail delivery o saturdays to save money. about 1,000 offices across the country are on the chopping block. 14 branches in our region are on that preliminary list. nine of those are in the ri dict. the columbia heights, .ct davis, resrceahesearch lara nto,ryavy annex, northeast, peorth,, randall and woodbridge branches.wo brbechth,da ibethda,

hyattsville des silprinprgg could also be closed, iludi ng fredericksburg. no closures expected until at least october. keith? the widower of a woman who is accused of a horrific wrong-way crash is now defending his late wife. diane shuler's action killed eight people last month in new york, including her 2-year-old daughter and three young nieces, though tests reveal that shuler was drunk and high on marijuana at the time, her late husband says it is not true. >> i go to bed every night knowing my heart is clear, she did not drink. she is not an xolic. she not an alcoholic. my heart is rested every night when i go to bed. something medically had to have happened. >> daniel shuler and his attorney suggested that gestational diabetes or an abscessed tooth could have caused diane's behavior. the medical examiner says there was no evidence of a stroke, heart attack or aneurism. >> funerals will be held this weekend for two of the three women killed in a suburban

pittsburgh fitness club. last night a memorial service was held for 49-year-old betsy gannon, a radiologist. 37-year-old jody billingsley, a physical therapist, and 46-year-old heidi overmier, a single mother. meanwhile, two youtube videos and an autobiographical website called crazy george is shedding more light on the gunman's lonely life and his yearning to find love. >> well, let's hope the redskins can get healthy before the season begins. the injured players' list seems to get longer and longer. >> dan hellie has your sports minute. >> good morning, everybody, your sports minute starts with the redskins at training camp where injuries are starting to pile up. santana moss felt a tug on his hamstring and sat out the afternoon practice yesterday. meanwhile, second year receiver devin thomas tweaked his hammy again on the first play of team drills. it's the same hamstring he hurt last year. for now, thomas is the leading candidate to start opposite of

santana moss. in baseball, the nationals completed a three-game sweep against the marlins, all star ryan zimmerman went 4 for 4 with three rbi, leading the nats to a 12-8 come from behind victory. the nats have now won five in a row. in tennis, at rock creek park for the mason tennis classic. andy roddick taking on sam querrey. he gave roddick a run for his money, but in the end, a-rod prevails. he wins in straight sets, 7-6-4. that's your sports minute. have a great friday. >> 66 degrees outside. time for traffic and weather on the 1s? >> let's find out if this wonderful weather we're starting the day with will continue. >> good morning. it's a fresh and cool start this morning with low humidity in place. enjoy. we're going to get a reprieve from high heat and humidity today. it's in the 60s around the region, 50s farther to our west and north. the dew points are down into the 50s. that is comfortably dry.

eastern shore temperatures now low 60s, out in the mountains in the 50s now. we have a mostly clear sky, a few high clouds over the mountains and the shenandoah valley. those may be in and out today. otherwe, mostly sunny, low humidity, highs mid-80s. near 90 tomorrow with increasing humidity and oppressive heat and humidity for sunday, monday and tuesday th highs in the 90s. maybe some thundershowers wednesday and thursday next week. i'll be back at 5:31 with another update. how's the traffic? >> smooth sailing so far. let's take a live look at the woodrow wilson bridge, on the bridge span, both directions a little bit of volume but between alexandria and oxon hill your lanes are open. check your speeds. moving along nicely along 270 from i-70 to clarksburg, 13 minutes. just 2 minutes to germantown. and 17 minutes headed on down toward the split. looking good. back to you. >> thank you, jerry. >> time now 5:22, 66 degrees tside. the video you do not want to miss of steven tyler falling on

stage during a convert. >> and flames weren't all firefighters in northern virginia had to contend with when they were called into action to battle a house fire. the slithery surprise waiting for them inside. >> plus, the shocking death of a famous filmmaker known for the production of a number of cult classics. >> first, here's your liz "on the money," money-saving tip of the day. >> should you tap your home equity for extra cash? money magazine says home equity borrowing is tougher, but if you have high credit score and substantial equity you may still be able to borrow against your house. i'm liz crenshaw, "on the money."

[ female announcer ] there are few guarantees in life. here's one for your skin that's clinically proven. olay professional pro-x wrinkle protocol is as effective as the leading wrinkle prescription brand at reducing the look of wrinkles. that's because olay has teamed with a highly specialized group of dermatologists and created a wrinkle protocol that gives you the results of the leading wrinkle prescription brand, without a prescription. olay professional pro-x. this is a guarantee you're guaranteed to love.

the extent of steven tyler's injuries, but we do know he hurt his head, neck and shoulder when he fell off the stage during wednesday night at a show in south dakota. tmz posted new video of that show. tyler fell off the catwalk as he was singing "love in an elevator." the crowd thought it was part of the act until tyler failed to get up. aerosmith's next show has been postponed. >> a man whose movies key find a j generation has passed away. john hughes died suddenly yesterday of a heart attack. he was walking in new york city when he collapsed. his many credits include directing the popular "ferris bueller's day off," "the

breakfast club." >> john hughes spoke to a whole generation. he didn't talk down to them. >> hughes is survived by his wife and two children. he was 59 years old. >> 5:27, 66 degrees outside. busted. the crime that landed a montgomery county firefighter behind bars. >> also what we're now learning about the investigation into the water pressure problems during a fire at the home of peggy cooper cafritz. >> then, the deep discounts being offered for parents headed out to do some back-to-school shopping.

pressure problems. first on 4, what we're now learning about the -- what may have been to blame for a fire that destroyed a well-known washingtonian's home. >> recession rebound. the crucial numbers set to be released that could show our nation's economy could be on the verge of turning around. >> back-to-school bargains. the deep discounts being offered this weekend, depending on where and when you shop. good morning again and welcome to "news 4 today." i'm barbara harrison. it's friday, august 7th, 20. >> i'm keith garvin sitting in for joe krebs. we want to give you a live look outside. look at the moon and i believe that's venus underneath. a few minutes away from sunrise, but a beautiful picture right now. >> it sure is. meteorologist tom kierein is in the studio. no, actually, up in storm center 4 and can tell us what kind of

day it's going to be. good morning. >> that would be jupiter right there below the moon. >> ah! >> veen news the east, the moon in the western sky. at this hour, we have low humidity in place. it started moving in yesterday afternoon, then overnight. now 66 degrees in washington. low and mid-60s in the suburbs. many of the rural areas down into the upper 50s now west and north of washington. look at the dew points. they're down into the 50s. that is comfortably dry. we just have a few high clouds over the shenandoah valley and central virginia, into the mountains of west virginia this morning. we'll have mostly sunny day, highs mid-80s with low humidity. tomorrow becoming partly cloudy with a high near 90, increasing humidity by saturday afternoon and evening. oppressive heat and humidity for sunday and monday. highs sunday into the mid-90s. monday upper 90s and it looks like this is going to continue into tuesday. but a front moving in on wednesday and thursday should knock down the temperatures as well as increase our chance for some needed rain, form of some passing thundershowers. that's the way it looks right now. back at 5:41.

>> thank you. i'll be down there shortly for a reeducation on my planets. >> all right. >> hard to tell. from this far away. >> that's right. >> let's check to roads out there. let's see what jerry has to tell us. how's the traffic moving this morning? >> moving along nicely as we ease into your friday morning. taking a live look, pennsylvania avenue at the sousa bridge, inbound and outbound, a few folks out and about. the good news is no hang-ups. as a matter of fact, all the anacostia and potomac bridges doing all right. headed out, going to the eastern shore, continuing down toward ocean city for a long weekend, doing fine. those of you headed westbound on 50 we're okay. i-95 between baltimore and washington's okay. no worries on the toll road or 66 so far. barbara and keith, back to you. >> thank you, jerry. new details this morning in the investigation of that massive fire that destroyed the home of a well-known washingtonian. news 4 has learned the washington area sewer authority says it found no problems with water pressure and fire hydrants in that area. >> you may remember these

images, flames ripping through the home of former school board chair peggy cooper cafritz. it happened on july 29th on chain bridge road in northwest. news 4's kimberly suiters is following this story first on 4. good morning. >> good morning. this morning, the cafritz property is still fenced off. a d.c. police officer sits out front, standing guard as does a fire department mobile command unit. the smell of smoke still lingers in the air. last week, flames devoured the former school board chair's home and her vast art collection on chain bridge road in northwest. fire crews ran hoses to hydrants blocks away. they said they couldn't get proper water pressure close to the fire. other neighbors had complained of low water pressure in the past. wasa now denies that those kind of complaints had any impact on the way hydrants operate. in the meantime, when news 4 talked to mrs. cafritz, she did not touch on those issues. instead, talking about how people around the world, especially her neighbors and even d.c. residents she doesn't

know, are helping her get by. >> i want you to know i'm calling on behalf of ward 8. ward 8 loves you. it was really nice. all over the city, ward 8 is very far from ward 3. but we are, you know, we're connected. and they know that. so, you know, so it's wonderful. it makes you feel better. >> the cause of the devastating fire is still under investigation. wasa wants to put to rest speculation about water pressure deficiencies. news 4 has now obtained this letter from wasa's general manager to the city administrator and it reads, in part, not one of these distribution system performance issues has been shown to be deficient with regard to the available water to supply the fire and em st to suppress the fire in this emergency. the wasa letter goes on to say that low pressure, hydrant service ability and adequate

water flows for fire suppression were not deficient at the time either. the mayor will hold a press conference on chain bridge road this morning to release a report on the cafritz home fire. barbara, back to you. >> thanks, kimberly. a veteranontgomery county firefighter is facingharg es niis or mng following an teexrn setor instg. police mstomontg monenomt wayne mothshsweaand ed aan craigslist ad byt w beli girl. yeurldit t utgirl. it turns out allhe adasuact w ay edfi ceofr.police officer. he was arrested in the parking lot of the holbrook shopping center in gaithersburg. according to court docunts, mothershead had agreed to meet the girl there and pay her $150 for sex. after learning of the july 20th arrest the fire department took immediate action. >> aware of the situation, yes, and as a result of that, i took an action which placed the individual on administrative leave which is paid leave at this time. ereeieutenant mothershd is fr on 00,000 ndbo.

he's also been placed on paid administrative leave. >> breaking news this morning. brand-new information about a cia missile strike in pakistan. the taliban is now confirming that its chief baitullah mehsud was killed. he was standing on the roof of his father in law's house when an unmanned drone struck. he has led violent assassinations against pakistan's government. >> president obama is turning his primary focus back to the economy and some good news, workers probably got slapped with fewer pink slips in july as the worst recession since world war ii seems to be windi dow brooke hart is following this story and what could be some crucial unemployment numbers released later toy. brooke, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. that's right, the labor department will be out with the critical jobs report this morning. it's important to president obama. his line is that we are seeing the beginning of the end of the recession, and he knows many people will see today's jobs report as a verdict on his stimulus and whether it's working.

president obama looked like he was campaigning in virginia last night, and he was. not just for the democrat for governor, but for his handling of the economy. >> we're losing jobs at half the rate we were at the beginning of this year. >> reporter: today's jobless report is expected to show americans are still losing jobs, but not as fast. >> i think we're going to be on an improving track. >> reporter: still, to out of work americans, the job market's hardly welcoming. >> we have many more months of difficult labor situation ahead. >> reporter: critics expected better news by now, six months into the obama-backed stimulus. the challenges are sometimes bold and public. this was the house majority leader in new york. >> the bill that we passed was a recovery to bring us out of this deep recession. >> you're lying to me. >> reporter: democrats are under fire, too, in pennsylvania.

and in missouri, where one lawmaker plugging cash for unke had to shut out protesters at the door. the senate last night extended the program till labor day over gop objections. >> the program, i believe, is little more than a clunker itself. >> reporter: will heftyar rebates steer spending from retailers? sales are slow. americans are on hold, waiting for stimulus promises to bloom. >> we anticipate that the effects will build through the end of this year and the beginning of the next. >> reporter: and waiting for the security that comes with jobs. analysts will look inside today's jobs report for details like the number of hours worked and temp workers hired. they'll indicate just how busy u.s. companies are and how many new workers they might need in the coming months. live in washington, i'm brooke hart. barbara, back to you. >> thank you, brooke. >> a travel alert for metro riders. more delays this weekend. major repair work will be done on the blue and yellow lines. as a result, one track will be

shared through the pentagon city metrorail station. the delays kick in sunday night. the good news is that it won't affect the morning or evening rush. work will be done every night starting at 10:00 p.m. this will be the case every week leading up to the labor day weekend. metro's trying to replace the entire rail switch at the pentagon city metrorail station on the blue and yellow lines. riders are being encouraged to add another 45 minutes to their trips. >> 5:39 is the time right now. it is 66 degrees here in washington. a popular social networking site crashes. >> plus, the shocking discovery firefighters encountered when they arrived on scene of a fire at a northern virginia home. >> and the controversial doll that's raising the eyebrows of some parents because of what it does. ññóñpñcñwqñqñssñ

good morning. as we get going on this friday morning, lower humidity. temperates in the 50s and 60s. now 66 in washington. a turquoise and tangerine glow flooding the eastern sky. we've got jupiter on the western sky. there's venus in the east. that big, full moon, too, getting low in the western sky. ghs today in the mid-80s with low humidity and lots of sun. partly cloudy tomorrow, near 90 with increasing humidity near the afternoon and evening. oppressive heat and humidity for sunday and monday with highs well into the 90s. looks like that's going to linger into tuesday as well. could get some thundershowers wednesday and thursday. i'll have your bay and beach forecast for the weekend in ten

minutes. how's the traffic? >> good morning, everyone. doing all right. let's head outdoors, take a sampling. good morning to you folks up in frederick, maryland, along i-70 at the intersection of 270, moving along pretty well. light volume of traffic. here's i-70, here's 270. everything's fine. good news there. let's see if the good news continues into town. northeast kenilworth avenue, rhode island avenue, new york avenue all moving along nicely. good news just keeps on coming. >> we like good news. >> thank you very much, jerry. our time is 5:43, 66 degrees. with very little humidity as tom keeps telling us here in the nation's capital. a break in the case of a murder investigation in charles county. >> plus, the annual tradition of back to school shopping. next at 5:45 a.m., the deep discounts being offered this d ou yp.enho sepen oe erand when you shop.

our time is now 5:45. updating our top stories of the day. we could learn more today about

a fire that destroyed the home of a well-known washingtonian. d.c. mayor adrian fenty will hold a news conference on the city's investigation. last week, flames broke out at the home of former school board president peggy cooper cafritz in northwest d.c. news 4 has since learned that the washington area sewer authority found no problems with ter pressure and fire hydrants in that area. hollywood is mourning the death of writer, director john hughes. he died of a heart attack yesterday. he was 59 years old. hughes wrote and directed hits like the "breakfast club," and "home alone." the united states and pakistan trying to figure out whether the taliban chief in pakistan was killed in a cia missile strike. baitullah mehsu has led a violent campaign of suicide attacks and assassinations against pakistan's government. if confirmed, mehsud's demise would be a major boost to pakistani and u.s. efforts to eradicate the taliban and al qaeda. >> the national retail federation estimates the economy

is having a major effect on back-to-school spending. four out of five amerins are making changes to their budgets and back-to-school plans. in an attempt to boost sales, retailers in more than a dozen states will participate in a tax-free holiday. news 4's megan mcgrath is live in alexandria with more on what's happening today. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. virginia is one of those states that will participate in the sales tax holiday. you can see here at this walmart in alexandria they have all of their school supplies in a dedicated aisle. we have markers, glue sticks, pens. all of these items, if you buy them today in virginia, you will not have to pay the 5% sales tax. that's because of this program that is running today. actually it starts today and will run through the entire weekend. it basically includes everything you need for back to school. so we're talking about all supplies $20 or less. the back-to-school supplies you are exempt from sales tax. it also includes clothing and shoes so long as those items are $100 or less. you will also be exempt from sales tax in those situations.

now, here at walmt, they're going one step further. they're also offering an exemption for certain electronics items that kids use for school, things like computers, calculators, printers, that sort of thing. those items will also be exempt from the sales tax. so, as you know, keith, you've got kids, they're in school, it's very, very expensive. so, a chance to save a buck here. we'll have more coming up. back to you. >> sounds good, megan, thank you. >> police have arrested two teenagers in the murder of a charles county man who was killed while walking home from work. the violent attack happened on true row lane in waldorf on july 28th. li say jer was walking l wking ne h homom hisfr when he was stabbed. police announced the arrest of trayzon harvey and benjamin thomas. police say they believed the teens targeted gutierrez.

>> they wanted to use the money possibly to purchase drugs. >> they apparently -- police are saying they targeted him because they thought he was carrying cash after work. gutierrez's brother was also targeted in the robbery. he was able to bite one of the suspects. in the end, that helped link one of the teens to the crime. >> firefighters rponding to a house fire in alexandria got even more than they bargained for. inside the house, dozens of snakes. the reptiles belonged to a teenager who lives in the house on shropshire court. most of the snakes died, but a few, including a boa constrictor, survived. those the snakes are nonpoisonous and legal to own, some neighbors are unnerved. >> i knew the young man was into them, but i thought he let 11 loose a couple years ago and i thought that was the end of it so i didn't know he's got a lot now. kind of scary. >> firefighters say the fire was accidental, caused by an extension cord. >> the virginia race for

governor is gaining momentum. president obama attended a rally yesterday to support democrat creigh deeds. a boost deeds is hoping will help him get an edge in the polls. right now he's trailing his republican opponent, bob mcdonnell who just opened up a campaign office in alexandria. both candidates are staking out northern virginia, focusing on issues important to the region. >> has got to be taken care of. we have got to fund these roads here because the prosperity here helps the entire state. >> got to bring change and innovation and greater accountability to our schools. we've got to make change that ensures that our education dollar are being spent wisely and where most needed, in the classroom. >> deeds and mcdonnell are no strangers to facing off against each other. in 2005, deeds lost a close one to mcdonnell for the state attorney general seat. mcdonnell's margin of victory then a mere 360 votes. >> two years ago, d.c. mayor adrian fenty vowed to revamp the city's rundown schools.

$1 billion later, people say they do see a difference. take, for example, this new $26 million swimming pool at wilson high school. it's operated mostly by solar power. this is just one part of what has been a fast-paced effort to make over schools and athletic facilities. >> two years ago we were just literally putting out fires and fixing a lot of things that shouldn't have been broken. >> people are just ecstatic about it because for so long we let out of our infratruck tour degrade. >> for many years it was common to hear complaints about broken air conditioning or heating, but this year there have been very few complaints. >> let's take a look at weather and traffic now. begin with weather. here's tom, 5:51 the time. >> thoughts turning to the weekend forecast. good news for you, at least for day.h ye y avda ye feof'r you havthe day of you're certainl hting theaiacot weatherwise for august. we'll take a break from high heat and humidity. off to a delightful start this morning. there's the sunrise over the potomac river. sun will be up at 6:15.

right now a comfortable 66n in washington with a calm wind. now as we look at raitr,ipnecioo at tipio around the iurhenes t prince george's county. in t mid-60s in fairfax county. rweatchatat wers reportingat ne toarngustin jlit 61 degrees the. it's in the mid-60s to upper 50s in montgomery county, frederick and loudoun county and points west. only in the upper 50s around the blue ridge. excellent visibility up on skyline drive this morning. looks like it will be a beautiful day around the bay and at the beaches on the eastern shore. starting off there in the mid-60s at this hour. lookt the dew points. they have dropped down into the 50s. dew point in washington down to 56. that is comfortably dry. now as we look at the other temperatures, eastern shore on the cool side, low 60s there. out in the mountains in the 50s this morning with a mostly cle sky. and as we look at the view from space, just a few high clouds crossing the shenandoah valley into virginia. those may be in here by later on this morning. and the wider view showing this area of high pressure is very cool. in fact, northern michigan only

in the mid-40s right now. got high pressure there as well as bigger one right over the ohio valley with the low humidity just beginning to move in. it will be in place here today. but there's a warm front with increasedn humidity now beginnig to move into the midwest. that will be arriving here owto rrmo. so, enjoy it whilerr you can. a high ultviolra index. a quick burnithout protection today fromoon to 3 or 4:. bynoon, low 80s. mid-80s bylo dimihu.ty w lohumidity. 8:12.12 dbontks a diamondbacks at .sh should be great weather for baseball. first pitch time at 7:05. should be mostlylear and 78. fo ttrfess o o the night, should partly cloudy, down int the low 70s by midnight. then the mid-60s by dawn on turday. now, if you're heading tohe t t bay, over theke wndee saturday should be highs in theid m0s-8 there right on the bay. eth water temperatures are in me 0the-7ids. hotter on-7 sunday and probably w ertteather for sailing on erarsu ayou ou theay bit wh wins

t of t sstfheweth gusting 20 to 25.we to bew tbeaches, there's wtat because it wie b very hot inland,0spp 9er 9 inland. at the beaches on ayrdtu, emperatures in the 80s with lo ts of sunshine. tewar atteermpesures are su swblaynd susw aynd itulho e saybed n a t auec bse es in the0s we'll have an offsre w wind rather than onore. en h wll te'eavhein wds coming in out of t she wwethoustth bgrg in the heat from the ldare ain the beaches. you might get brief wind coming in off the water. that ought to hp cool you down a thtt ae beach ot n sunday. but it's going to be hot. imonday, highs well hein tto 9s. t enjoy today. mhi 0sghs-8id with low humidity. near 90 tomorrow with increasing humidity, but that big ht wave sunday all the way into tuesday with hazy sunshine and highs ntwe-8 illo the 90s. then wednesday and thursday might get some showers and thundershowers as we get into next week. that's the way it looks. good weather for the lil wayne concert tonight at nissan pavilion, too. >> are you going? >> i'm going to the john wayne concert.

>> thank you, tom. >> thanks, tom. pleasant day out there in the weather department. is it plaeasant on the roadways? jerry, you're a lil wayne fan, right? >> i love hill within, l-i-l, lil wayne. >> that's right. >> i'll be there, first row. let's see how we're doing this morning. i didn't even know tom knew there was a concert out there. boy, you're mr. cultural events. beltway as you travel through the work zone over there at van dorn street moving along nicely. inner loop of the beltway, van dorn, no hang-ups to report. elsewhere a quick check along i-270 we're fine. cop side of the beltway college park to silver spring, no hang-ups to report. >> thank you, jerry. >> thank you. breast feeding is a healthy and natural way for a mother to fee and bond with her newborn child, but there's mixed reaction to a new doll that teaches little girls how it's done. baby glaton which translates as

glut evens on baby looks line a regular baby doll but she comes with a bra-like halter top for girls to wear. some parents think it's too much too soon. >> i nursed my daughter until she was 6 months old. i think it's fine to do. but it goes a little bit farther. >> i think a lot of moms don't breast feed, especially in public, because they're worried about what people think. so, we encourage our kids to see that, make it natural. >> the doll is made by a spanish company and is not yet available on the u.s. market. >> things are back to normal on twitter following an online attack. the popular social networking service says it experienced an outage yesterday because it was hacked. the temporarily -- the temporary shutdown is being linked to the ongoing political conflict between russia and georgia. >> to the money crisis now and a look at how foreign markets are

doing today. japan's nikkei kand 0.23%. china's hang shy lost 2.85%. hong kong's hang seng lost. to wall street now, where the dow futures are pointing to a negative opening. yesterday the dow lost 24 points closing at 9256. the nasdaq lost 19 points, closing at 1973. >> every morning on "news 4 today" we're i finding jobs 4 y. thanin fcial crimes enfoen a fo faciliti and property management specialist. the position pays 86 and $1.3and 00 you can get the info on our ton.co nbcwnghi n.stm. just search jobs 4 you. >> and much more still ahead on ernd.st restar.f "news 4 today.r eolat sayicy caught him dog inwrong g. >> a midair sreca for two celebrities aboard a plane. what happened that made one of them tweet that he's happy to be

alive. >> we're in for a hot, steamy weekend. well, we'll find out when we take aook at our weather. we'll have traffic and weather on the 1s. "news 4 today" continues in just two minutes. wee! happy days are here again. oh! celebrate summer with giant and enjoy mouthwatering fruits and vegetables at prices you can handle, like strawberries -- 3, 1-pound cartons for just $5.00. this week only at giant. what's better than steak on the grill? steak, chicken, ribs, and burgers on the grill. at giant, you'll find fresh, delicious quality meats at prices that sizzle, like super-g boneless chicken breast just $1.79 a pound. this week only at ant.

an updated all-time favorite: juicy steak layered with zesty chipotle sauce, melted cheese, piled high with only... the toppings you love on freshly baked bread. only at subway. subway. eat fresh.

so it's no surprise that we're now serving up... iced tea that's fresh-brewed. thirst-quenching fuze fresh-brewed iced tea. the newest fresh idea at subway. ♪ right now on "news 4 tod a firefighter under arrest. what police say he's accused of doing on the internet. >> first on 4, what was found during the investigation of last week's massive house fire in the district. >> and breaking news. a top taliban official dead. what he's said to have a major hand in pulling off. good morning, everyone. welcome. we're glad you b mi'today.ra i'm barbara harrison. >> i'm keith garvin in for joe krebs. a live look outside at 6:00 on this friday morning. happy friday, august 7th, 2009. >> let's start things off with a look outside. there we have it. it's a beautiful morning, very

little cloudiness and a lot of blue sky showing. tom says it's going to be at least a nice morning. >> yeah, and a nice afternoon with low humidity. we'll take that in early august. congratulations if you have the day off, too. off to a delightfurtta t sarhis morning. mpar in t are in the 60s a nd0s 5 andecip. n onio radar. low humidity has moved in night. ovhere's how we're looking for e xtner. daysxt weve'lhahsl hayda h todont i t mid-80s and a figew hh clouds co ugthngro n en the heat comes in saturday and athouer sstwe ly breeze. partly cloudy with a high around 90. itngoi t go start turning very humid byurat syda satury afternoon, into saturday night. es propsive humidity on sunday d .r od the heat will be reaylly cranking up. 90d-on90 sunday, maybe even monday.s a look into next week. that will be in ten minutes at 6:11. >> okay, tom. we'll look forward to talking to you again. >> thanks, tom. pleasant weather. is it plays antion the roadways? >> good morning.

yeah, for the most part it is a relatively quiet morning. good news. clear, dry road surfaces. the sunshine, of course, will be a factor for you folks coming in from the west. capital beltway still moving nily. on the iter loop moving springfield through the outer loop. the inner loop to springfield, no hang-ups. elsewhere, s far, so good along i-270 out at the wilson bridge, no hang-ups. into town northeast and southeast corridors movingalong under a light but increasing volume of traffic. barbara, back to you. >> all right, thanks, jerry. we begin at 6:00 a.m. with a story you're seeing first on 4. there are new details in the investigation of that massive fire that destroyed the home of well-known washingtonian peggy cooper cafritz. news 4 has learned that the washington area sewer authority has found no problems with water pressure and fire hide rabts near that area. you'll remember tt firefighters complained of pressure problems while fighting the fire. kimberly suiters joins us now with more on this story.

good morning. >> good morning. reconciling different points of view here, what neighbors saw, what firefighters experienced and what wasa says actually happened. now, last week flames devoured the former school board chair's home and her vast art collection on chain bridge rd in northwest. fire crews ran hoses to hydrants blocks away. they said they could not get proper water pressure close to the fire, and other neighbors had complained of low water pressure in the past. now wasa denies those kind of complaints have any impact on the way hydrants operate. but let's go back to the scene of the fire and recall what one neighbor says he witnessed firsthand. >> they started with the hoses, and it took probably about half an hour before the hoses actually had water pressure. and the significant amount of time before there was enough pressure to get water on the house. so, it was substantially delayed. this is really awful. >> wasa wants to put to rest any speculation about water pressure

deficiencies. news 4 has now obtained this letter from wasa's general manager to the city administrator. it reads in part, not one of these distribution system performance issues has been shown to be deficient with regard to the available water supply to fire and ems to suppress the fire in this emergency. this morning, the cafritz property is still fenced off. a d.c. police officer sits out front, as does a fire department mobile command unit. the smell of smoke still lingers in the air, and coming up at 9:00 a.m., questions that lippinger may be put to rest. mayor adrian fenty releases on report on the fire. by his side will be the city administrator, neil albert, who received this letter. assistant fire chief of operations lawrence schultz and wasa chairman william walker. be very interesting to see what the results of this investigation are. barbara, keith, back to you. >> i think a lot of people are waiting to hear. thank you very much. >> now in montgomery county where a veteran firefighter ntceexter s st iinneerex s sting.

sth,lantmo 44-year-old wayne mothershea parkingot l o parking lot holbrook gaithersburg. s gait rsburg. ths atewh i l terenieheanut t ge -ol agreed to meet aar wye g6-ld beal wed 16-ye a-old girl for sex.-oigrat cisslthad oas c actually posted by an undercover police officer. >> the female montgomery county police officer went on the internet, using classified, for sale and social networking sites to post advertisements as though she were a 16-year-old girl, placing an ad for prostitution. >> according to court documents, mothshead reed to pay the girl $150 for sex. lieutenant mothershead has been pa placed on paid administrative leave. >> following in breaking news in the war on terror. the taliban is now confirming that its chief, baitullah mehsud, was killed in an cia missile strike. nbc news has learned that he was standing on the roof of his father-in-law's house when a drone hit. mehsud has led a violent campaign of suicide attacks and

assassinations against pakistan's government. according to intelligence officials, his demise would be a major boost to pakistani and u.s. efforts to eradicate the taliban and al qaeda. >> now to a story made on capitol hill. >> with this historic vote, the senate has affirmed that judge sotomayor has the intellect, the temperame temperament, the history, the integrity and independence of mind to ably serve on our nation's highest court. >> the senate approving the nomination of sonia sotomayor late yesterday afternoon, and she'll continue to make history when she's sworn in tomorrow. sonia sotomayor's about to become the first hispanic to sit on the u.s. supreme court. the 57-year-old new york native was confirmed by a vote of 68-31. democrats applauded her smooth confirmation hearing. however, only 9 republicans voted in favor of sotomayor. most republicans worry she has a liberal bias. president obama praised her

confirmation, calling it, "a wonderful day for america." sotomayor will be sworn in tomorrow on live television, another first for the supreme court. >> the popular cash for clunkers program has been refueled. last night the senate joined the house in approving an additional $2 billion worth of funding. that bill now awaits president obama's signature. under the program, consumers can get up to $4,500 in rebates if they swap out their gas guzzler for a knew, more fuel-efficient car. the program's initial $1 billion ran out of money after ten days. lawmakers expect the new funding to last through labor day. the democratic party's biggest star is getting -- president obama is throwing his support behind democrat creigh deeds. he gave a speech at a rally and a rally for deeds in tysons corner last night. a boost deeds is hoping will help him -- or give him an edge in the polls. right now he's trailing his republican opponent, bob mcdonyell, who has just opened

up a campaign office in alexandria. both candidates are focusing on issues important to northern virginia. deeds and mcdonnell are no strangers to facing off against each other. in 2005, deeds lost a close one to mcdonnell for the state attorney general's seat. his margin of victory then a mere 360 votes. >> it is now 6:08, 66 degrees outside. next on "news 4 today," shop till you drop. where you can really cash in this weekend. remembering a legend of the silver screen whose face you probably have never seen but whose movies you know very well.

at suntrust, we help you manage your money at home.

and make it easy when you're away. and where ever you go, atm fees won't follow. get back to what really matters switch to suntrust checking today suntrust. live solid, bank solid.

coming up on 6:11. time for traffic and weather together on the 1s. >> here's tom kierein. tell us what we can expect. >> low humidity has moved in overnight. it's fresh and cool this morning. sun up in four minutes in a mostly clear sky. live picture from the city camera. a comfortable 65 in washington. upper 50s to near 60 in montgomery, fairfax and prince george's counties. 50s farther west and north. mid-60s near the bay. look at the dew points. down into the comfortable 50s now. from washington's benning neighborhood to mitchellville, bethesda, a delightful summer day. low humidity, highs mid-80s. partly cloudy tomorrow, near 90. increasing humidity by the afternoon and evening. oppressive heat and humidity sunday, monday, tuesday, highs mid and upper 90s each day, maybe some thunderstorms wednesday and thursday next week. jerry, good morning.

how's the friday traffic? >> the fun and games are over, i'm sorry to say. along interstate 66 in particular it is jammed. the issue, an accident, 66 eastbound after nutley street along the right side of the roadway, right there. delays developing very quickly headed east out of fair oaks. that's gotten ugly quickly. headed west doing fine. elsewhere, south of town the approach to and crossing the woodrow wilson bridge both the inner loop and outer loop between alexandria and oxon hill, we are looking gd. back to you. >> that looks nice out there. >> uh-huh. >> it is now 6:12, and the temperature 66 degrees. twitter attacked. how the popular website is doing this morning and why this could have been part of a major international conflict. >> new details in that horrific health club shooting. next at 6:15, what connection irgithis cnias has to the virgi tech m a ake ootht pto> taking

>>ories in the news for today.

a montgomery county is facing iernetgh s.e.ing. lipornmoayg.ce li ermoth dsh mothershead answered a craigsea astlid pla craigslist ad placed by a person he believed was a 16-year-old girl. it was actually an undercover cop. last night after confirming supreme court nominee sonia sotomayor the senate passed a $2 billion extension of the cash for clunkers program. without the extension, that program could have ended today. president obama says he will sign the bill soon. and intelligence officials in pakistan are confirming that taliban chief baitullah mehsud was killed by a u.s. air strike on wednesday. many considered mehsud the top internal threat in pakistan. he is believed to have been behind the assassination of former prime minister benazir bhutto. >> new details in that deadly shooting rampage inside a health club near pittsburgh. this morning, we're learning more about the gunman and his strange life after some videos were found posted on the internet. meanwhile, last night people

gathered to remember the three women who were shot to death by george sodini. police say so din i walked into the la fitness club tuesday night and opened fire in the middle of an aerobics class. afterwards he killed himself. video found on youtube shows that sodini lived a sad life and he desperately wanted to be involved with a woman. >> my objective is to be real and to learn to be emotional. couch and chair, they match. esimprsed. o be really ur impressed. >> our nbc affiliate in pittsburgh also uncovered receipts that showed sodini bought gun par and ammunition from the same online gun store used by the shooters in both the virginia tech and the northern illinois university shooting rampages. >> twitter is back up and running after it came under attack yesterday. the popular social networking service experienced a temporary outage because of something called a denial of service attack. that is when a hacker overwhelms a website's servers with communication requests. the shutdown is being linked to the ongoing political conflict between russia and the nation of

georgia. experts say the attack started when hackers sent a flurry of spam e-mails that contained links to pages on twitter. lori drew is back in the news again. she's the missouri mother accused of using myspace to harass a 13-year-old girl who committed suicide. sh she was convicted, but the conviction was thrown out last month. yesterday, a judge modified her bail so she can use a computer and internet for a new job. >> looking to start your back-to-school shopping this weekend? you can save a lot of money if you go to virginia to do it. today starts a commonwealth's tax free shopping weekend. news 4's megan mcgrath is in alexandria with more on what you can get for cheap this weekend. hi, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. you can see the back-to-school aisles are fully stocked. we're at the walmart in alexandria. in virginia, if you do your back-to-school shopping beginning today through sunday, you get a bit of a break.

they are exempting back-to-school items from the 5% sales tax. so, things like glue and scissors and crayons, supplies th are $20 or less, you don't have to pay that sales tax. also you get a break on clothing, which is great because you know how that can really add up. you're exempt on items that cost $100 or less. we're talking about clothing items as well as shoes. this isnly in virginia. the dtrict in maryland in years past have had similar programs, but because of the economy they're not doing it this year. but the state of virginia, it gets under way today and will continue through sunday. now, some stores are even offering special deals beyond the sales tax exemption. walmart, for example, is offering that exemption on electronic items that are geared toward back-to-school. things like computers and calculators. >> computers can range anywhere from $200 to $600 in the stor so with no sales tax, that can really add a lot of savings. >> it's tough sometimes to find

all the things you need. but we usually get it done in a day or two. >> reporter: so it adds up for you? >> it does, it does. >> reporter: we've got our first couple of shoppers here. it's very early in the morning, and they just walked into the aisle and they look like they have full carts here. any lists? do you have a list? are you going off a list of supplies? there you go. she's prepared. all right. so, hard to believe that summer is wrapping up and people are already doing their back-to-school shopping. but it is under way. here in virginia, if you do your shopping here in this state, you can get a little break. barbara, back to you. >> you should have brought your kids with you. >> reporter: you know what? the cart over there, that's mine. >> okay. >> reporter: that's my cart there. been doing a little between live shots here. >> okay. thanks a lot, megan. talk to you later. >> the injuries are racking up at redskins camp. the nats pull off a major comeback. here's dan hellie with this morning's sports minute. >> good morning, everybody, your

sports minute starts with the redskins at training camp where injuries are starting to pile up. santana moss felt a tug on his hamstring and sat out the afternoon practice yesterday. meanwhile, second year receiver devin thomas tweaked his hammy again on the first play of team drills. it's the same hamstring he hurt last year. for now, thomas is the leading candidate to start opposite of santana moss. in baseball, the nationals completed a three-game sweep against the marlins, all star ryan zimmerman went 4 for 4 with three rbi, leading the nats to a 12-8 come-from-behind victy. the nats have now won five in a row. in tennis, we're at rock creek park for the leg mason tennis classic. three time champ andy rock dick taking on sam querrey. he gave roddick a run for his money, but in the end, a-rod prevails. he wins in straight sets, 7-6, 6-4. that's your sports minute. i'm dan hellie. everybody have a great friday.

>> we're following a developing story out of northern california this morning. a wildfire that's burning near redding, california, has doubled in size. it's called the goose fire and it's now burning across 6,000 acres. firefighters say it's about 10% contained. in all, nearly 23,000 acres have been burned so far. more than 3,000 firefighters are battling this blaze. it that happens time of year out in california. we see a lot of those fires that -- they can probably use some rain out there, hmm, tom? >> another dry day there. here a dry day. there's the sunrise over the potomac river. right now temperature 65 in washington. our clock is stuck, by the way. it is 6:21. don't be alarmed. it's in the upper 50s in prince george's county and montgomery counties. near 60 in fairfax county. points west upper 50s. near the bay it's in the 60s. look at the dew points. they're just in the 50s. that is comfortably dry. dew point in washington now 56.

highs today mid-80s with low humidity and lots of sun. tomorrow partly cloudy, near 90 with increasing humidity. oppressive heat and humidity for sunday and monday with highs well into the 90s. looks like it will be repeated as well on tuesday. assi p>>ng passing thursday we thundershowers. now, jerry, good morning. how's our friday commute? >> good morning, everyone. unfortunately we are now in the thick of it. along interstate 66 we're jammed from fair oaks headed toward vienna. the accident remains along the far right side of the roadway. 66 eastbound near nutley street, authorities working to get that out of the roadway. but a couple minutes extra travel time. another big problem, northern virginia, prince william county, route 1 closed at opitz boulevard because of an investigation into a serious accident. you cannot travel the route 1 corridor. you will be diverted onto i-95 while authorities are down there. route 1 is closed at opitz boulevard. back. >> thanks. >> plan for some serious delays

if you use metro this weekend on the red line. passengers should plan for delays of up to 30 minutes as crews will be working on the track near the friendship heights station. on the orange line, track work in vienna could cause delays of up to 30 minutes as well. >> our time right now is 6:23. it is 65 degrees here in washington. what really happened with those two journalists held captive in north korea. what they're saying now that they're back home. >> plus, a midair scare for two celebrities and why one is saying he is happy to be alive. >> here's your liz "on the money," money-saving tip of the day. >> should you tap your home equity for extra cash? money magazine says home equity borrowing is tougher, but if you have a high credit score and substantial equity you may still be able to borrow against your house. mo y.e mo"" z

a rough ride yesterday for ashton kutcher and his wife, demi moore. the private jet they were on had to make an emergency landing in las vegas. shortly after takeoff from las vegas, the pilot noticed a warning light signaling a problem with the right engine. he turned back and landed safely. kutcher tweeted his experience.

quote, saying, engine overheated. happy to be alive. arrow smith is postponing their next concert aer steven tyler hurt himself during a show in south dakota. we still don't know the extent of steven tyler's injuries, but we do know he hurt his head, neck and shoulder when he fell off the stage wednesday night. tmz posted new video of that show. tyler fell off the catwalk as he was singing "love in an elevator." the crowd thought it was part of the act until tyler failed to get up. >> prolific film directo john hughes died suddenly yesterday of a heart attack. he was walking in new york city when he collapsed. his many credits include directing "ferris bueller's day off" and others. he also wrote "home alone." he is survived by a wife and two children. he was 59 years old. >> our time is 6:27. much more still ahead at 6:30. what happened to knock twitter offline yesterday. >> also new, surprising details in the investigation of last week's massive house fire in the

district. what sewer crews found that's raising some eyebrows. , w w this -- orgtinay a the policre a saying a firefighter did that has landed him on the wrong side of the law. >> and we have a hot weekend coming. do not miss tom's forecast. it is 6:28. "news 4 today" is back in two minutes.

during times like these it seems like the world will never be the same. but there is a light beginning to shine again. the spark began where it always begins. at a restaurant downtown. in a shop on main street. a factory around the corner. entrepreneurs like these are the most powerful force in the economy. they drive change and they'll relentless push their businesses to innovate and connect. as we look to the future, they'll be there ahead of us, lights on, showing us the way forward.

this is just the beginning of the reinvention of business. and while we're sure we don't know all the answers, we do know one thing for certain, we want to help. come see what the beginning looks like at openforum.com right now, 6:30. a major discovery at the scene of last week's massive house fire in the district. what was found that is contradicting firefighter accounts. it's a story you'll hear first on 4. >> and a localir fefighter fdi. what polic say 'she accused of doing that landed him behind bars. good morning, everyone. i'm barbara harrison. >> and i'm keith garvin in this morning for joe krebs. we want to give you a live look

outside right now. 6:30 on this friday morning. friday, august 7th, 2009. >> and we see that the sun is up. it's warming things up, but not that much so far. just 65 degrees, tom, outside. >> yeah, and a fresh and clear starte th y. y.the t.dallenbilities are t.niditygherel e ertethesatmp durov ert. the temperatures are down in the comfort zone as well. onadnoar we don't haveny re.onge region. upper upper 50sn irigenc porgee county. it's in thes upper 5 inn idid0s-60srfaiou f ctoaxy rnteaf a few est in the mid tor wheup itann the mid idhertecno nearn wker wth erhertatrn nchk weather watcher 60d-s. lo in t the dew points there mountains to the mountains to the atlantic dig rnmoel dfuhtinl start this morn. ht salisbury.n out of the mountains in the low and-5id m0s this morning. off to a mostly clear start, just a few highid clouds crossi irin va toni ogifouthe mountains, and those highlohesud will be with us from time to tisti low humidity today,

mid-80s for highs. thennc iinasreumg hidity and the heat com on h saturday. opesprsive heat and humidity for sunday and monday. a look into next week in ten minutes at 6:41. stay tuned. >> all right, tom, thank you. >> let's get a look on the roadways. jerry, got a little dicey out there a little while ago. >> yeah, unfortunately, some real tough going. good morning. let's check things out. the backup continues to grow, i'm sorry to say, along interstate 66 eastbound from at least route 50 in fair oaks past nutley street with a multivehicle crash still keeping the right lane closed off. prince william county authorities telling us route 1 is closed to traffic and will be while they investigate a fatal accident, route 1 closed at opitz boulevard. those of you who normally come up route 1, cut toward ft. bell voer, you will be diverted onto opitz boulevard to i-95. 95 itself not too bad, just picking up volume. back to you. >> thanks, jerry. first on 4 this morning, new details in one part of the investigation into the response

to a massive fire that destroyed the home of well-known washingtonian peggy cooper cafritz. news 4 has learned that the washington area sewer authority has found no problems with water pressure and fire hydrants near the area. kimberly suiters joins us now with more on this story. >> keith, good morning. this is about reconciling different points of view. what neighbors saw, what firefighters experienced and what wasa says actually happened. last week, flames devoured the former school board chair's home and her vast art collection on chain bridge road in northwest. fire crews ran hoses to hydrants blocks away. they said they could not get proper water pressure close to the fire. other neighbors had complained of low water pressure in the recent past. well, wasa denies those kind of complaints have any impact on the way that hydrants operate. but let's go back to the scene of that fire and recall what one neighbor says he witnessed firsthand. >> they started with the hoses. it took probably about half an hour before the hoses actually

had water pressure. and the significant amount of time before there was enough pressure to get water on the house. so, it was substantially delayed. csoslaheimre te weras cimhes te as 4 psurene hws as oaiws 4 written by 4 's galerby g'swaalen er na anager to the t administrator that r nrtot part, not one of,hese distributifo perceanrm perfosueb to the plupo s t fyeiregtho tr supy to fire and ems to suppress the fire in this emergency. also in the letter, a time line that says the wasa manager was called by fire and ems at 8:37 p.m. he arrived on scene at 9:15 p.m. and was asked by fire and ems to provide locations of the larger mains. one was 900 feet away, another 3,000 feet away. mayor fenty, the assistant fire chief and wasa will release a

preliminary report together this morning at 9:00 a.m. to discuss the investigation into the cause and response to this devastating fire. barbara, keith, back to you. >> okay. thank you very much. a local firefighter faces charges this morning for trying to have sex with a 16-year-old girl. molast nth, 44-year-olwaste th parking lot of parking lot of holbrook s pping center in w t's lreenhesbieutan meo w where the lieenutdl wt he e h be believed was a 16-year-oldl.ir g the ad on cigsltasis w w actu an undercerovn undercover toincort cg oumedocu ntrdcos,tog rtou documents, er renateeu nterthshmodeaay the lieutena nmothershead is now on paid administrative leave. >> sonia sotomayor's about to become the first hispanic to sit on the u.s. supreme court. the 57-year-old new york native was confirmed by a vote of 68-31. democrats applauded her smooth confirmation hearing. however, only 9 republicans voted in favor of sotomayor. most republicans worry that she has a liberal bias.

president obama praised her confirmation, calling it a "wonderful day for america." sotomayor will be sworn in tomorrow on live television, another first for the supreme court. the popular cash for clunkers program has been refueled. last night the senate joined the house in approving an additional $2 billion worth of funding. that bill now awaits president obama's signature. i under the program, consumers can get up to $4,500 in rebates if they swap out their gas guzzler for a newer, more fuel-efficient car. the program's initial $1 billion ran out of money aft only ten a days. lawmakers expect this new funding to last through labor day. >> new details this morning about the two american journalists pardoned by north korea a day after they're motional union. lisa ling says her sister, laura, is weak, exhausted and emotiona laura ling told her family she was treated humanely but meals were meager and her phone calls

were monitored. she plans to write an editorial explaining about what happened and how she was captured. she and fellow journalist euna lee were apparently captured just seconds after touching down in north korea. the women were sentenced to labor camp for entering north korea illegally. they were released this week after a visit to pyongyang by former president bill clinton. >> two teens have been arrested in the murder of a charles k mundilan h olenay w home from work hnepeapd hnepe oa waldorf back on july 28th. police say jeremias gutierrez was walking home from his job at yum's buffet when he was stabbed. yesterday, police announced the arrest of 14-year-old trayzon harvey and 18-year-old benjamin thomas. police say they believe the teens tdtege gutierrez because eyht tteughoeug was carrying cash after work. in the district, a frantic search for a missing mother. 24-year-old tiffanyolesy was last seen july 24th in the area of 37th place southeast. she has two young children and yesterday was her 5-year-old

son's birthday. her family spent the afternoon posting up thousands of flyers and searching ft. dupont park where tiffany has been known to fruent. her mother says she cannot think of any reason why tiffany would disappear. >> our time is 6:37. it's 65 degrees. what's the next issue for president obama to tackle now that his supreme court nominee and the cash for clunkers program have been approved? >> plus, find out where you can really cash in if you plan to do some sho.th wee! happy days are here again.

oh! celebrate summer with giant and enjoy mouthwatering fruits and vegetables at prices you can handle, like strawberries -- 3, 1-pound cartons for just $5.00. this week only at giant. what's better than steak on the grill? steak, chicken, ribs, and burgers on the grill. at giant, you'll find fresh, delicious quality meats at prices that sizzle, like super-g boneless chicken breast just $1.79 a pound. this week only at giant.

it's my "save-so-much-on- his-graphing-calculator... look. i made it say "booger." ...i-can-get-him-a- math-tutor" button. (announcer) staples equals savings on everything for back to school. staples. that was easy. it's my "save-so-much-on- his-graphing-calculator... look. i made it say "booger." ...i-can-get-him-a- math-tutor" button. (announcer) staples equals savings on everything for back to school. staples. that was easy.

time now for a news 4 baait.n blas looking for something for lunch already? deny any's isffering a free entree salad with t a peurasch of another entasere aend two beverages. g>>o tet youo coupon, just go to nbcwashington.com and search bablrgain t.as 6:41 the time. time for traffic and weather on the 1s again. >> we start off with meteorologist tom kierein in storm center 4. good morning. >> hey, tom. >> good morning. there's the sunrise over the potomac, captured by our city camera this morning. sun up in a closely clear sky. we do have a few high clouds coming in from the west. but the big story is the humidity has plummeted overnight. dew points in the 50s. temperature now 65 in washington. it's in the upper 50s now in montgomery, fairfax and prince george's counties and points

west and north, near the bay. it's in the low and mid-60s. low humidity today with lots of sunshine, the mid-80s. the heat turns on tomorrow. it will be near 90. increased humidity saturday afternoon. oppressive heat and humidity sunday, monday, tuesday with highs well into the mid and upper 90s. maybe some storms wednesday and thursday. bay and beach forecast coming up in ten minutes. jerry, how's the traffic? >> a live look along i-270. good friday morning, everyone. 270 folks having a fine commute from frederick to rockville, scattere minor slowdowns with no accidents all the way on down. beltway north of town also moving along pretty well. let's check your speeds and see w we are doing, be specific on the beltway. the outer loop from college park over to the american legion bridge, 24 minutes. that's just a little bit of volume, no lanes blocked off. although authorities are checking the inner loop near river road for an accident. on the outer loop from the american legion bridge to i-66, 7 minutes. from i-66 to springfield, just 8 minutes. barbara and keith, back to you. >> all right. thank you, jerry. our time now 6:42, the

temperature 65 degrees here in washington. still ahead, who will be jay leno's first guests on the new prime time show. >> next at 6:45, what happened to twitter yesterday and why it could be part of a bigger could be part of a bigger a sand castle? help me build sure, pal. let's just find a good spot. [ dratic music plays ] a big day at the beach with the legendary taste of dunkin' donuts coffee on ice. this looks like a good spot. you kin' do it. america runs on dunkin'. treat yourself today with an authentic caramel swirl iced latte.

the district is coming down hard on criminals. mayor adrian fenty just signed off on an emergency crime bill. it covers a lot, including making text messaging while driving illegal and stiffer penalties for repeat offenders. police can create temporary loitering zones to protect crime-plagued neighborhoods. the legislation also expands hate crime laws to include homelessness as a protected category. >> we're expecting some crucial job numbers this morning. the labor department will tell us how many workers got slapped with pink slips in july. that will signal whether hiring is on the horizon or not. brooke hart has more from capitol hill. >> reporter: president obama looked like he was campaigning in virginia last night and he was, not just for the democrat for governor but for his handling of the economy. >> we're losing jobs at half the rate we were at the beginning of

this year. >> reporter: today's jobless report is expected to sw americans are still losing jobs, but not as fast. >> i think we're going to be on an imprague track. >> reporter: still, to out of work americans, the job market's hardly welcoming. >> we have many more months of difficult labor situation ahead. >> reporter: critics expected better news by now, six months into the obama-backed stimulus. the challenges are sometimes bold and public. this was the house majority leader in new york. >> the bill that we passed was a recovery to bring us out of this deep recession. >> you're lying to me! >> reporter: democrats are under fire, too, in pennsylvania. and in missouri where one lawmaker plugging cash for clunkers had to shut out protesters at the door. the senate last night extended the program to labor day over

gop objections. >> the program, i believe, is little more than a clunk itself. >> reporter: will hefty car rebates steer spending from retailers? sales are slow. americans are on hold, waiting for stimulus promises to bloom. >> we anticipate that the effects will build through the end of this year and the beginning of the next. >> reporter: and waiting for the security that comes with jobs. analysts will look inside today's jobs report for details like the number of hours worked and temp workers hired. they'll indicate how busy u.s. companies are and how many workers they might need in the coming months. in washington, brooke hart, nbc news. >> a mortgage giant is asking the federal government for more help and gm is planning on a -- on a plug in suv. cnbc's courtney reagan joins us live with more on these stories and the rest of the business headlines. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. futures are lower right now ahead of the big event of the day. it's the monthly jobs report, of

course, out at 8:30 a.m. it is expected to show that fewer people are being laid off, but forecasterstill calling for a loss of 275,000 jobs in july. it is the smallest decline in nearly a year, if that's what we saw. companies are still not hiring, though, and that's the big problem because the unemployment rate is set to hit 9.7%. if that happens, it will be another 26-year high so people that have lost jobs are having a hard time getting back to the market. asian markets were lower overnight. europe, though, in the red. i investors there still awaiting the u.s. jobs data as well. wall street did take a breather yesterday. the dow fell 24 points to 9256. the nasdaq lost 19 points to 1973. well, the taxpayer bill from the housing market slump keeps getting bigger. fannie mae says it needs another $11.7 billion from the treasury department after the mortgage giant reported a nearly $15 billion quarterly loss. they were seized by the

government last september. fannie has received about $34 billion in aid so far. well, general motors plans to launch a plug-in buick suv in 2011. the latest move away from gas guzzlers to more fuel-efficient vehicles. it's expected to be the first commercially available plug-in hybrid suv from a major automaker. it will follow the gm electric car, the chevy volt. hopefully consumers will have ts more options for those fuel-efficient vehicles. back to you. >> okay. thank you very much. have a great weekend. >> reporter: thanks. you, too. >> twitter is back up and running after it came under attack yesterday. the popular social networking service experienced a temporary outage because of something called a denial of service attack. the shutdown is being linked to the ongoing political conflict between russia and the nation of georgia. experts say the attack started when hackers sent a flurry of spam e-mails that contained

links to pages on twitter. ve eor>> m oryngewni >> every morning on "news 4 today" we're finding jobs for you. cee financial crimeornfnt ece ork is looking atit fneacs and property management ialis. the position paysweiaen bet 86 d $113,000. you can get thenf i o in our tog co wee, ascw shington.com. ea just search jobs 4 you. >> jay leno has booked his first guests for his new prime time show. his first show will start with a performance by jay-z, rihanna and kanye west. they will perform "run this town"m rcro fjaz'ro n album. you casen his new show on nbc 4 starting september 14th. leno is hoping to run his town starting at 10:00 in september. >> yeah, a lot of towns, i suppose. hey, tom, good morning. >> this town has low h at mthasidity that has moved in overnight. enjoy it while you can. it's not going to last long, but there is washington under this mostly clear sky at dawn. sunrise was 25 minutes ago.

the visibility's excellent this morning. we don't have a lot of haze in the air. mievdihaty ls els really dropped. now 65 incireti ptapionn o ciretitaon on radar and it's in the low 60s to near 60 in parts of fairfax and prince george's county, montgomery counties. right near the bay from annapolis to point lookout it's in the mid-60s. but inland, southern maryland weather watchers reporting temperatures near 60 this morning. it's in the upper 50s northern montgomery county, into frederick and loudoun county, as well as prince william, fauquier, into the blue ridge and the shenandoah valley. in the mountains in the low and mid-50s this morning. eastern shore cool as well there, just near 60 degrees. large area of high pressure in the midwest beginning to move in. out ahead of that, we have a few high clouds drifting over us here this morning. overall, lots of sunshine on tap for today. for thishe forecast id.ay by.9:00, low 70s. ae quick burn whit a that very dry air if you're not noon g protection between 3:. 00 index.ltraviolet

temperatures climbing he t low 80s. 8:12. l 8:gh.toni tonight for the nationals and e diamondbacks atatlsio nna park, game time 7:05.ul nd u a mostly clear sky and inhe t upper 70s. by tend of the game, low 70s.he an partly cloudy by d awyn tomorrow in the mid-60s. theay forecast. rdtu tsa,aypesrature, in the mid-80s wittu a southwest eebr.e en on sunday, hotter around the bay with a southwest .breeze shou b tee aet br dsaing but it will bt iingutt will be cooler ight ovhe twa .rste on the eastern sre beaches, from -- to ocean city in the 80s on satury, 90s on sunday. ot much of a n. ea n.ea the water temperatures are n. swimmable. here, partly cloudytoy, mid-80s. near 90 twomroor whitro increasg ty tmidiy bhe afternoon. thenss oyreppiv htndea are humidity for sunday and monday. it's going to be hot for the leg mason tennis classic for the championships on sunday. tuesy hstlndilot ahumid, too. wednesday and thursday could get me thunderstorms.

the howard county fair starts tomorrow. the air will be filled with the aroma of corn dogs, cotton candy and cows. the smells of summer. >> i remember that well from state fairs. >> yeah. starting to come on. county fairs are starting. >> thanks. county fair, right? >> right. >> jerry edwards, how's the traffic looking? >> i wish i had good news. unfortunately, a very tough commute for folks in virginia. i-66 eastbound the backup continues to grow from before route 50 in fair oaks to the accident still in the roadway 66 eastbound at nutley street. some maybe 29 or 50 i think will be better bets because this is not going away any time soon, i'm sorry to say. elsewhere, big problem continues prince william county, route 1 is closed to traffic both directions at opitz boulevard. accident investigation under way. if you normally come up on route 1 to ft. bellvoer, headed to alexandria you will be diverted to 95. take 95 as an alternate to route 1. 95, no worries to the capital

beltway. back to you. >> thank you. our time is 6:5. oiesthefs tinok at somtoorp top stories of the morning. omtgy county nt i itneerom ernet morning.ges this po ie lceenynanwat e n pla ad by a person ast a placd he belied was a 16-year-old girl. it was actually an undercover cop. >> news 4 has learned that the washington area sewer authority has found no problems with water pressure and fire hydrants near the scene of a massive house fire on chain bridge road last week. firefighters complained of pressure problems when they were trying to put out the fire. we should learn more in a news conference scheduled for later this morning. >> doing some back-to-school shopping this week, stores in virginia want you to spend your money there. >> that's right. megan mcgrath is live in alexandria this morning with the details on the commonwealth's new tax-free weekend. >> hi, megan. >> reporter: good morning. we are in full swing with back-to-school shopping season here. we have some folks in the

back-to-school aisle at walmart. today is an excellent day to buy your supplies in the state of virginia. that's because back-to-school supplies, 20 bucks or under, and clothing and shoes, $100 or under, those items are exempt from the 5% sales tax. now, that deal starts today and it runs through sunday. now we have been talking to folks this morning about what they're doing in terms of strategy. we got a lot of folks who are out here hitting the stores before they go to work this morning, trying to get it all done, get it done early. talked to one mother, and she says getting the tax break really helps. >> we try to take advantage of it every year. me coming this morning, i will be out again tomorrow morning, you know, trying to pick up such items as their clothes and shoes. >> reporter: it gueets expensiv >> it gets very expensive. i have three. me coming early this morning, trying to get a head start. it's a plan for me. >> getting a lot of stuff. >> reporter: look at all that glue. you can see that they're very well stocked.

the stores are ready for the rush. retailers are really hoping they'll get a little bit of a bump here because of the tax break. now, maryland and d.c., they used to do a similar program but they're not doing it this year because of the economy. this is just in virginia, starts today and runs through sunday. barbara, back to you. >> great time to be ther you don't have to stand in those long checkout lines. >> reporter: that's right. >> thanks a lot, megan. >> today our morning person is a truef owo teainheot butul of twl as, cancer a ta friends describele ng a a angela beel on eosowhe someone who lig when she walks in and when she walks in and thur lives. thur lives. omcus pheostalus biness oy r kalwnohe royal know they will walk in and see alealmi s her face. if you know someone that you woikmi lde l nominate to be a news 4nior m ngatperp, e-mail their story and a clear, close-up person or video to morningperson@nbcwashington.com. we may use it right here on "news 4 today." that's "n4 s.ingtoour day

with us. >> s wlloue'ee y later at "news 4 midday" eeth that's at 11:00. stay connected with us. we are on facebook and twitter. monday morning we will be waiting right here for you, 4:55 a.m. joe will be back. >> that's right. >> see you monday. have a great weekend. ♪

for fresh deli taste, ( scanner beeping, music ) why pay for the whole deli? ♪ ( laughs, beeping ) price check on deli man. oscar mayer deli fresh shaved meats. great, fresh-from-the-deli taste... without the deli counter price. sliced, packed, and sealed at the peak of freshness. oscar mayer deli fresh. for the love of a great sandwich.

we've all heard about the trouble in the housing industry. the fact is, with all the talk of a national real estate market, your town, your neighborhood, your home, or the home you'd like to buy, are each unique. the national conversation may not apply at all. if you've been worrying about what your property may be worth, or wondering if your dream home may finally be affordable, ask a re/max agent or go to remax.com. nobody sells more real estate than re/max.