eight years lar, it is a day for people to stop and remember. september 11th. this morning from the white house to the pentagon to new york city and to shanksville, pennsylvania, they are remembering those that died that day and those that still suffer. good morning and welcome to "news4 midday." >> and i am eun yang in for barbara harrison today. we will have more on the 9/11 memorial. but first breaking news from the

district. the coast guard is conducting training exercises on the potomac river. and it started while 9/11 services were under way at the pentagon. we have more on what is happening with pete. what happened this morning? >> there was a lot of confusion here. some news reports were out that shots had been fired on the potomac, but what we have been told by a coast guard official, that a radio call reported that shots had been fired and a suspicious boat was present. this was a madue up scenario, ad somebody heard the radio call, a citizen, and then they relayed that to the news.

and now you are looking at coast guard helicopters flying in the area. coast guard boats have stepped up security that rises from time to time. it reached probably the most intense period in january during the presidential inauguration. so i think that there are two questions to be looked at here. number one, how did this information get out that shots had been fired? and that's a question certainly to be asked. and the second question is, precisely -- we don't know this yet, but precisely what was the nature of the exercise? what i am told initially is that it does not involve boats doing anything, and that's something we will look into. and the third question is why schedule an exercise on 9/11, and b on the morning when the president is crossing the river. initially some people in the

administration were saying we do not do anything wrong, the reporters what made it worse than it was. >> the fourth question, the cool hasn't luke question, was there a failure to communicate on the part of the coast guard that this exercise would be taking place on this day of such high tension? >> the answer to that may be yes. we don't know what the nature of the exercise was. it didn't involve moving assets around on the river, or was it strictly on the radio, for people to man the radios and test the communication system. we don't know the answer to that yet. >> pete williams, thank you very much. we have more now from pat collins. pat? >> reporter: well, on this anniversary of 9/11, somebody in the coast guard decided to have a dri here on the potomac river between the 14th street

bridge and the memorial bridge. and that's at about the time the president is making his way to the pentagon for the ceremony. and there were machine guns mounted. and there were coast guard radio transmissions that shots were fired at the rogue vessel. and it was a drill. news agencies heard that transmission. that story was broadcast around the world. and cameras converged on this area, and police departments went into a state of alert. but it was a drill. unfortunately, we are told the coast gud never told theitane ot t metropolitan police department about the drill. we are told the coast guard never called the department homeland security security and

gave them advance warnings about the drill and never told the news media about the drill. normally when they have the drills, the news media is notified in advance because they know that we monitor police radio calls throughout the area to find out what is going on, and they don't want to cause any unnecessary alerts or anxiety. but this time this drill was not advanced notified to any of the news agencies. they reacted and it turned out to be one big false alarm. thank god. but they may want to change the date of their drills now from 9/11, to maybe some other day. joe? >> it reminds you of the flight over new york city with air force one and the fighter jet patrolling it for a photo shoot without communicating what was going to happen and what it was all about ahead of time. >> i just don't know what might go through the mind of somebody that schedules a drill of this nature in the city of washington

on the anniversary of 9/11. i would like to talk to that person and figure out what was going through his or her mind. >> pat collins, reporting olliv. thank you, pat. now, remembering 9/11, some of the families of those killed at the pentagon on september 11th are gathering again this morning. >> president obama spoke to them during an emotional memorial service a short time ago. and megan joins us live from the pentagon with more. good morning, megan. >> reporter: good morning. this, of course, is a very emotional and difcult day for the family members that lost loved ones. they have come here to the pentagon to honor the loved ones that they lost and to spend time at the memorial. we have a number of family members who are at the victim's memorial right now following the conclusion of the remembrance ceremony. it was eight years ago today that flight 77 slammed into the

side of the pentagon and killed 184 people. today the memorial was held here, and it was dedicated last year. this year, though, it quite a bit different. a day so different from september 11th, 2001. gray skies, not the brilliant blue that fateful morning. different, too, the size and scale of this morning's remembrance service. no long speeches, just a simple ceremony. at 9:37, a time when thelane made impact, a moment of quiet reflecti reflection. and this memorial has become a special place for ny . a quiet spot to meditate and heal and most importantly to

remember those lost. >> eight septembers have come and gone. nearly 3,000 days have past. almost one for each of those taken from us. but no turning of the season can diminish the pain and the loss of that day. no passage of time. no dark skies can ever dull the meaning of this moment. so on this solemn day, at this sacred hour, once more we pause, once more we pray. >> reporter: the weather y conditions were difficult this morning, and all of the families huddled under umbrella ppz it has stopped raining now and many of the family members are still here, sitting on the benches and talking to one another, and reminiscing about their loved ones and enjoying or reflecting and having a quiet moment here

at the memorial. that's what the memorial was designed to do for the families. it's a series of benches. one for each of the victims that died in the terror attack. the names of the victims are ingraved in the benches. it's a quiet place where people can sit and do rubbings of the names engraved there. following a moment of silence in new york, friends, family and volunteers read the names of the 9/11 victims at ground zero. those that came up to remember them braved the wind and the rain. hardly like the blue september sky we saw the day the two planes struck the north and south towers eight years ago. >> from this day forward, we will safeguard the memories of those that died by rekindling the spirit of service that lit

our city with hope and helped to keep us strong. >> in pennsylvania, family and friends read aloud the names of the victims. a bell rang for each name of the victims. the location will soon become a permanent national memorial. while americans remember, they are also volunteering today, participating in a day of service. in southeast washington, 50 volunteers will work to give the 74-year-old's home a face-lift. she lost both of her sons on 9/11. >> i have not stopped crying yet. as old as i am, i never thought that nobody because the lord would help me get my house like this.

and i still -- tears just come up in my eyes. >> she has lived here for 53 years. volunteers already had a head start on upgrades to her home. now to breaking news from the district. good hope road in southeast washington reopened now after a double bus crash involving a metro bus. the accident result in multiple injuries, including children. news4's tracee wilkins is live on the scene. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, joe. we just got new information from police officers that tell us there were children on the charter bus as well as the metro bus. most of the children on the charter bus were gone from the scene before we even got here. we got here fairly early. we called d.c. schools to find out what happened with those kids. we talked with one of the passengers on the metro bus, and he told us he thought the metro

bus was slowing down and then the next thing he knew there was a hard jolt from behind. >> it was a hit, bam. that was it. >> reporter: he was on the back of the metro bus when it was hit by a charter bus around 7:30 this morning. it happened in southeastern and good hope road. 19 people were hurt in the crash. six of them were children heading to school. >> a lot of children got thrown sideways, and some hit head to head. >> all of the injuries are minor at this time. for checkups, it's all precautionary. we want to make sure the patients get the best treatment. if they are planing of something we want to get them to the right facility. >> reporter: a source tells news4 the charter bus had problems breaking half a block up from the accident scene. passengers on the bus tell us they felt a strong jolt. >> it was a good, sturdy hit.

>> reporter: the charter bus had the most damage, with a shattered windshield. the passengers were elementary students being transferred from garfield to cleveland schools. they were all picked up by their parents and only the driver went to the hospital, but on the metro bus, 18 people were transported. >> just whiplashes and what not. >> reporter: police are still investigating the official cause and who is at fault. >> reporter: we do understand there were a number of folks that requested not to be transported to the hospital, saying their injuries were not that serious, and they thought we were just fine. we don't have official word yet whether the students who were on the charter bus were among the ones who requested not to go to the hospital after their parents arrived. back to you in the studio.

>> tracee, thank you very much. it has been a wet morning. hopefully things will clear up for the weekend. look at the skies out there. still pretty thick clouds above the nation's capitol. >> good morning, tom kierein up in storm center 4. >> it was our wettest day in 20 days this morning. as we look at radar now, the rain ended here in washington. we have a batch of moderate rain moving through northeast maryland. it is trying to make its way down the metro area in the next hour or so. elsewhere, right near washington, we have a few sprinkles still lingering in fairfax and charles county as well as in louden and montgomery county. and the rai continues to fall north and east of baltimore. that may make its way down towards baltimore in the next hour or so. the rain is coming from a circulating area of low pressure

that is right now over the delaware bay, and that is going to continue to ever solowly pull away. we will have improving news as we get into the afternoon. still, a chance of a passing shower, or chances of rain diminishing as we get into the afternoon and evening. highs today in the upper 60s. a look at the weekend. looks nicer and warmer. and a look at next week, too, in just a few minutes. >> thank you, tom. jerry has the latest on the midday traffic. an ugly rush hour all day. >> yeah, and let's travel the beltway. montgomery county, this is the inner loop as you come from old george town road towards rockville pipe. and emergency crews are there. a good-sized backup. and then we had accidents on 395, northbound and southbound, and it has all been cleared up. those delays areinally starng to ease. there are no concerns at the wilson bridge. do be careful, you might still

find a couple spots around the area particularly in construction zones where they could be lingering ponding of water. be caution out there. back to you. hazmat and emergency crews are spending the morning over the scenes of a late-night explosion. emergency crews responded to an alarm and they saw there had been an ae sploeson at the water works. some of the chemicals were released. >> we have a hazdous materials team. they rendered the chemicals, which were released outside the buildings safe. >> no word yet on what caused the explosion. >> new today, police in prince georges county are hoping you can help them find a man in a

deadly accident. a man was hit at around 8:00 last night in the 7900 block of annapolis road. that's in the river dale area. police are looking for a chrysler with the front spoiler torn off. 11:16. we now know what made joe wilson so hungry that he heckled president obama the other night. coming up, the latest on the fallout from his actions. and supply numbers of the swine flu vaccine. things could be better than expected. and then a runner suspected of b

good morning. welcome back. tomorrow the president hits the road again to build support for his health care reform plans. he will be in minnesota as he tries to move beyond the breach in decore am during his speech. joe wilson apologized during the address with his outburst. and now kimberly joins us live in the studio. >> the president and house speaker indicating they would like to refocus on the important matter of health care reform, but congressman wilson is widing a wave of criticism and paul

lay -- popularity for this interruption. that was joe wilson getting a lot of attention for those two words "you lie," reacting to a omise that the president made that illegal immigrants would not drain the coverage in the health care reform plan. so many people flooded his website it crashed. and many supported him and some lashed back. and his is his description of his apology and the white house response. >> they wanted me to contact the white house and say my statements were inappropriate. i did. i am very grateful the white house, in talking with them, they indicated that they appreciated the call and we needed to have a simple discussion about the health care issues. i certainly agree with that. >> i am a big believer that we

all make mistakes, and he apologized quickly, and without delay, and i appreciate that. >> the support of the government takeover of health care and the liberals who want to give health care to illegals are using my opposition to use this. >> wilson claims that now that he is under attack, and he takes this opportunity to ask for support, and below the video box there are suggested donation amounts to his re-election campaign. y the chief democratic opponent already raked in $700,000 since the heckle. and now this is a quote, the

media can be helpful by not giving the attention to the loudest voices. good news this morning concerning the swine flu vaccine. the h1n1 vaccine will be effective with one shot rather than two. a preliminary study found a single injection gives participants strong immunity and gives minor side effects. children may still need to get two injections. tom kierein joins us here in the studio with more on the weather forecast. going to beaining all day? >> no, but i am growing webbed feet. it did rain this morning. mtain r most rain since august 22nd. it was welcomed. we did need the rain. it arrived later than we thought. and there is the sky watcher camera showing the gray clouds

racing through washington sky. at this hour, the view from the city camera showing the gray waters to the potomac reflecting the gray sky. we have a brightening sky looking further to the south and east. and right now in washington, 62 degrees, and this morning we had about 8/10 of an inch of rain. now we are up to 1 1/3. we are catching up now. the radar is showing an area of rain that continues to move in from northeastern maryland and baltimore. and several waves of rain that came through this morning dried out, at least temporarily. and one area heavy in rain north of baltimore is about to move towards frederick county and near haguerstown over the next, oh, half hour or so. it was showing a trend earlier

it would be dipping further to the southn washington. that heavy rain to the north and east of us will probably past just to the north, and maybe some clipping howard county and northern montgomery county over the next hour or so. and temperatures are cooler than average. 63 now in washington. and it's near 60 in the prince georges county and elsewhere. and ocean city, a cool 67. look at that, a daily wind gusts at 34 miles per hour. they had about 8/10 of an inch of rain. and here is a sure sign that summer is over. look at the big waves you can see summing in. and the work crews are removing the volleyball net. summer is over at ocean city. and that's a sure sign. the area of low pressure is spinning away just over delaware bay. and there are flight delays in

newark, laguardia, and down to philadelphia for the morning. it's running about 45-minute delays, too. and so we have the dry air to the west poised waiting to come in and it will likely move in as we get toward the weekend. mostly a cloudy afternoon and a hor.ce of a passingweho sr. may climb into the upper 60s. a lot of high school football games tonight. most of them should be dry. a cool start to saturday, near 60. and then a small chance of a passing shower tomorrow. warming up as we get into sunday and monday, as syhe tunshine breaks out. that will be nice. have a great weekend. i will be back with a few more updates yet. >> thank you so much, tom. let's go to jerry edwards and look at the roadways out there. be been a rough morning so far. >> yeah, thank you for the friday buzz, and summer is over

and everything is going to city. and now right things are looking much, much better. do be careful, a couple slick spots out there. still ahead on "news4 midday," we will have more seighthhe eighth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. and then the disappearance of a yale university student. f and the growing pro oem rabid bats ineaar.area. first a look

the defending super bowl champs seem to be in super bowl form already. and it was the season opener. the steelers' kicker nailed the 33 yard field goal four minutes and 30 seconds into ot to top the titans. and then the win. and the test results are in in the case of the south african runner to undergo gender testing, and medical experts need to examine the results before they decide if she will keep her medal.

they will not confirm the reports that she was born with male and female organs. if this is the case, it would be difficult to strip her of the medal. results could be known in weeks. coming up, we will have the latest on breaking news we have been following this morning. another accident involving metro. this morning's incident involved a metro bus. >> and days after announcing a tribute concert, m michael jackson's brother says maybe not. and pett

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follow the story and much more information as we get it through the day. well, americans are commemorating one of the most tragic days in this country's history. today marks the eighth anniversary of the september 11th attacks. >> here is a look where hijackers flew two planes in the world centers that day. >> reporter: the attacks eight years ago, and we honor the victims who died. in new york city, with rain and wind whipping, families gather at a park adjacent to the world trade center site for a ceremony of music and the readings of victims' names. >> vice president, joe biden, and his wife, are there. once again, the families of the victims are able to walk to ground zero to lay flowers, a

sacred makeshift memorial that shares space with an active constriction site. progress of the proposed sky scrapers and memorial has been slow by years of legal battles. at the pentagon, a private ceremony honors victims and families. president obama had these words. >> no words can ease the ache of your heart. no deeds can fill the empty places in your homes. but on this day and all that follow you may find solace in the memory of those that you loved, and know that you have the unending support of the american people. >> in pennsylvania, former secretary of state, colin powell, led the memorial service of flight united 93. passengers are credited for bringing the plane down in a remote field soon to become a national memorial. back in lower manhattan, workers

have been testing the memorial, which will once again light up the night sky and symbolize where the twin towers once stood. updating our stories right now, at 11:30. the good hope road reopened after a metro bus and tour bus collided. most of the people that were injured, we are told, are not life threatening. the road has reopened now. emergency crews responded to an alarm just after 11:00 last night. that's when they saw there was an explosion at the water works on capital heights. some of the chemicals were, however released. >> 36-year-old jose was struck and hit by a driver at around 8:00 last night at the 7900 block of annapolis road.

he was pronounced dead at the scene. police are looking for a chrysler with the front spoiler torn off and the vehicle should be mission the left hubcap. a msing student. the pharmacology student has not been seen since. her fiance is in town and working with police. there is new security measures being put in place at dulles airport. airport officials unveiled the new security skraeng area. it will move passengers through faster. it's in the main terminal of the airport and will replace the current tsa check points.

and now it's time for tom kierein. >> a cool september morning on this friday. as we approach the noon hour, things are settling down. right now on the radar, we do still have moderate to heavy rain across northeastern maryland. that is now advancing to the west rather than southwest. and it looks like that is going to -- probably most of this will pass the metro area. right now we don't have rain in washington or across most of virginia, and just one sprinkle near chantilly. up here in montgomery county, and around lateinsville they are getting a shower there as well as silver spring and up around l'oreowe lourl and greenbelt. and now we are up to 63 in washington. the rain is coming from a low area of pressure beginning to push inland. it's up around the delaware bay and continuing to move off to

the north and west. we will probably see it pull away from the area by later today. a smaller chance of a passing shower this afternoon. otherwise cloudy and breezy. temperatures reaching the upper 60s. and then a small chance of a shower. most of the high school game should be dry. the big football games are under way this friday night. and a few on saturday, too. and mostly cloudy tomorrow, in the upper 70s. a small chance of a shower, sunday and monday. and it should stay dry wednesday and tuesday, too. and maybe a passing shower on thursday. that's the way it looks right now. >> let's get a final che of the mid-day traffic. a messy and busy morning. >> yeah, and here is jerry edwards. the up side of the rain is it washed out the midday construction. unless it's an emergency piece of roadwork there is not a lot going on, and that's good news. and wilson bridge, no late

issues. a bit of a delay southbound at lorden. headed for downtown, looking a whole lot different than a couple hours ago. better northbound and southbound at the 14th street bridges. back to you. health departments across the area have a warning about bats. the number of rabid bats soared over the last month. >> reporter: from time to time when aleana takes her daughter for a walk they have company. >> it's about the size of a spare yoe, you know. they make a chirping sound. >> they are more dangerous than you might think. >> most of the human cases of

rabies exposurere ts bats rabidd august alone ine princ georgesr county. last month in the district, 11 rabid bats were found. officials say it's not bats swooping down from trees like these that are causing the problems. pele are approaching bats. >> if you see an ill bat on the ground that you can get access to or a bat flying in the daytime or a bat comes into your home, don't touch it or play with it or go anywhere near it, just call animal control. >> reporter: the dc department of health thinks part of it is when people turn off the a.c. and swing open the windows. >> the baby bats are being

kicked out of the bats, and we see teenager bats flying arnld and enter peoples' homes through air-conditioners or air-conditioning ducts. >> if a bat bites you, wash the area and call your doctor immediately. craig melvin, news4. a new study shows getting more sleep can help clear a fuzzy memory. a lack of sleep causes more mistakes than what you think you remember. this is the first study of its kind to look at how incorrect memories are affected by lack of sleep. the study suggests college students may score better on tests by getting more sleep rather than staying up all night cramming. and that assumes they have the information in their head in the first place. now, a wom gets her snake back after it slithers out of

her appointment back in july. somebody was house sitting while she was on vacation. she put up signs and offered a reward s'skenaaf se s'ske safe tu.rn and somebody spotted the snake crossing a street -- what? they contacted crocker. now the snake and the owner are together again. >> they called the snake by its name and he answered, and wiggles his rattle. >> yeah, and probably carrying a case with his initials on it. still ahead, our coverage of remembering 9/11 continues with a look at the stock exchange this morning. plus, a look at a new show opening tonight in our a ayith us

attacheattache. all was quiet at the new york stock exchange this morning. a moment of silence at 9:25 honored those killed at the time of the attack all trading and activity stopped for one minute. let's check in with cnbc's rebecca jarvis. >> it has been a tough day for most people at wall street. most people that work in the financial industry, and here in new york city experienced september 11th in a way that only they will know and in a way that really had a rippling affect throughout the city.

it's certainly something on everybody's mind as a tough memory today. and fedex out today talking about the fact that they are looking at earnings that will be higher than they anticipated. that's good number for fedex and a number of transport companies. things look particularly good for feddics in the first quarter because of cost cutting. that's a similar theme that we have heard to a number of companies throughout the year that they are cutting costs, and as a result of that they are increasing profitability. they talked about the strength in the international business. we will get more on that on september 17th when they report. the international business is an important indicator of what is to come in terms of growth in the future. it's interesting to note that we had positive views out of the international community today. the chinese economy, it keeps recovering. and the industry accelerated

there as bank lendsing picked up. so the fourth month in a row of acceleration. why do we care how things are going in china? it's one of the world's biggest consumers of commodities, and they consume the biggest consumption of the debt here in the united states, and our ability to pay for things is somewhat dependant on their interest in buying our debt. and president obama announced he will come to new york on monday to deliver what is being called a major speech on the financial crisis. and it's inresting. monday marks the anniversary of lehman brothers' collapsing, which led to the free fall. other than that fedex signal today, we have seen a handful of positive indicators in terms of that recession coming to an end. and consumer sentiment also was

higher in the michigan index today. >> thank you. the show returns to pentagon city in arlington. and one of the show's performers is from alexandria. james has been in the show and tells us how he developed his skills to become one of the stars of the show. ♪ >> i saw the show in seattle as a spectator, and i saw it -- i had never seen anything like it. it was an amazing show to see. multimedia, and equestrian life. a few years later when they needed a writer for the show i auditioned, and here i am. i started as a trick rider, and

then build-up my acts and now i do five numbers in the show. really just kind of stay focused on what their body language is telling me. if they are spooked or relaxed, they are like people and have different days, feel differently different days. some days they are willing to work great and i don't have to do much, and other days it's a struggle. probably the best part is around the circle, and i am trying to keep my body position out and as long as i can keep the horse where it's supposed to be i can focus on it. every night it's something different and it's a challenge.

>> do not try that at home. no, sir. >> and tom kierein will be back in a momenth it wanother check on the forecast.it >> we are looking for ppl e that make the day special in th early-morning hours. ou know somebody like that e-mail their story and a clear aicture o

michael jackson fans will have to wait another year to celebrate the event. it was supposed to take place later this month in austria. next year's concert will be in london instead. there were too many conflicting schedules. now, the thriller "whiteout" shows a murder. it's rated r. and then sisters try to cover up a prank gone wrong. "sorority row" is rated r. the character teaches a lesson by sending off kids to their

aunt who is a singer. and the scare on the potomac river where the coast guard was conducting training while the services were being held. and then the brain stimulater that is changing those peoples' lives. for that story and the rest of the day's stories join us right at 4:00 on news4. the rain tapered off and ended in washington. we have a batch of moderate to heavy rain advancing to the west, and that may be moving into frederick county and perhaps parts of northern montgomery county. and light rain in washington in

silver spring and moving off to the west there as well. temperatures are certainly cool. only in the low 60s. the average high is around 80. we will not be anywhere near that as the area of low pressure is spinning away to the north and will be moving away to the area as the day progresses. a chance of a passing shower this afternoon with the highs in the upper 60s. and then cloudy, and just a small chance of shower and in the 60s, good football weather tonight. anthen torrow for all the high school games, mostly cloudy in the upper 70s. a small chance of a shower. sunday and monday, more sunshine around. and then average or above average highs, s and monday, near 80. anthen tuesday and wednesday, partly cloudy. that's the way it looks. have a great weekend and see you on monday. there has bean big foot sighting in oregon. this looks scary. somebody built this covered statue on ross island near

portland. look at those eyes. it looks like the geico money person. and voters and residents say they mostly just want to enjoy waving to him as they pass by. >> i think the eyes gave it away, though. it might have been real, but it was the eyes. >> thank you for spending your midday with us. >> join us for news4 at 4:00, and 5:00 and 6:00. >> monday, we will be back at 4:55. we hope you will join us. >> see you tomorrow. >> bye.