baggage fees up to $55 for international travel. you can get out of them. most airlines waive baggage fees for high-level frequent fliers, full fare coach passengers and active military personnel. >> stay with us, everyone. "news 4 today" continues at 5:00 a.m. rude awakening. masked men storm a maryland home and the outcome is deadly. a local family's terrifying ordeal that has an entire neighborhood on edge. >> iran flexes its nuclear muscles, firing one of its long range missiles. how the united states and its allies say they are planning to respond. >> fail to the redskins. washington breaks the lions' 19-game losing streak. this morning fans are wondering if jim zorn has what it takes to turn things around.

good morning, everyone. welcome to "news 4 today." i'm barbara harrison. >> good morning to you. i'm joe krebs on this monday, this 28th day of september, 2009. let's take a live look outside right now, beautiful day, 59 degrees. kind of chilly at 5:00 this morning. welcome to "news 4 today." >> let's see if we're going to have these fall-like temperatures throughout the day or is it going to warm up like it has? >> it will warm up with all the redskins fans with torches and pitchforks as they hit the streets. this morning, here we go. at least the weather's nice as we take off on this monday. no precipitation. we do have a little patchy fog around. it certainly is fresh and cool. down into the 50s this morning. we'll see it climb today all the way into the mid-70s. it's in the 50s all around the region. but we will have increasing clouds. there's a weak front triggering some showers in the midwest but it will pick up speed and head our way by later on this afternoon, and a passing shower is possible. temperatures reaching the mid-70s and a blustery wind picking up as well.

looks like a gusty day tomorrow, partly cloudy, highs only in the 60s with winds gusting to 30 miles an hour on tuesday. wednesday, partly cloudy and cool again, 40s in the morning, 60s in the afternoon. should stay dry into thursday. a look at friday and the weekend. that will be in ten minutes coming up at 5:11. >> all right, tom. out to the roads now. >> and ashley, good morning once again with the -- still got big problems on 270, i guess. wow. looks like a parking lot. >> starting off with a bang. if you're traveling down 270 this morning we had an earlier accident, occurred around 4:00 involving an overturned vehicle. this is just about a mile before father hurley boulevard. only the right shoulder is getting by. as you can see, we do have substantial delays that begin now before clarksburg so coming onto 70, come on at father hurley or better, anything further south than that point it's wide-open. before that we have delays. no problems elsewhere around town. capital beltway is in great shape. looking at springfield, everybody's moving there. no problems on 95 or 395.

back to you. >> thank you. >> again, redskins fans would like to forget and lions fans will remember. for the first time in two years, the lions are celebrating a win this morning. the lions scored first and never looked back. on the final play of the game, with time running out, the redskins didn't get anywhere near the end zone with whatever kind of a play this was. they fall to 1-2 right now, losing 19-13 yesterday in detroi >> this morning we're keeping close watch on a deadly home invasion that has neighbors in one prince george's county neighborhood on edge. three masked men broke into a house and killed a man after tying up his wife and children. it happened early yesterday morning on marley drive in bowie. news 4's michael flynn reports. >> reporter: it was an early morning ambush on an entire family inside their bowie home. sometime around 2:45, three masked men -- two of them with guns -- stormed inside the home and ended up killing the

homeowner, 38-year-old tyrone richardson. it's disturbing news to res departments in this development called marley. >> i am very shocked. i'm, i'm actually horrified. i'm very saddened for that family. >> terrible. i can't believe it happened. i just spoke to the guy maybe two, three days ago. >> reporter: one neighbor says soon after the attack richardson's wife says the men tied her up, along with their kids. neighbors say the family includes three kids under the age of 12 and another child who was staying with them. police say the three men stole a mercedes from the home and it appears that richardson was targeted. >> right now this case does appear to be isolated. >> reporter: there have been three break-ins in the same neighborhood in just the past month or so and now this. >> while we don't believe that this is connected at this point, we spoke to the police, we're just concerned that we don't have this type of crime, this type ofctivity in marley and that we want to work wi those -- the police or any other county official to make sure that this doesn't occur again in

our community. >> reporter: neighbors just hope the men who killed richardson are caught and quickly. >> pretty cool guy. always smiling, talking to his neighbors, cutting his grass, keeping it nice. it's sad he's gone now. >> police are looking for the car that was stolen from the house. it's a 2000 black four-door mercedes s430 with a maryland dealer's plate. anyone who spots this car is asked to call police. >> several stores at a popular prince george's county strip mall will remain closed today while firefighters investigate a gas leak. that leak was discovered yesterday near the marshall's store at the penn mar shopping center in forestville. ten stores had to be evacuated. now, this is the second gas leak at this shopping center in four months. you may remember the other one back in may which caused a massive, dramatic explosion caught on video. that explosion injured nine firefighters. >> how close were we to having

another catastrophe? >> probably very close. >> it is a little bit concerning. i don't even know what to say. they should have checked everything which it happened down there. >> no one was injured. marshall's and several surrounding stores will remain closed for a few days while the investigation takes place. >> a woman is dead after a tree fell on her in her own front yard. it happened yesterday afternoon on oak tree road in dur wood. police say the tre was rotten and the recent rain may have loosened its roots. it fell, pinning 63-year-old diane leech to the ground. her husband found her. she was rushed to the hospital where she later died. >> well, the u.n. general assembly will begin winding down today after a whirlwind week. president obama and others, of course, spoke last week but today the prime minister of army-ruled myanmar will speak. he'll be the first myanmar leader to visit the u.n. since 1995. meanwhile, iran is hearing more international condemnation after

its sudden revelation of a former secret uranium enrichment plant. the netherlands called tehran's presumed weapons program a, quote, major challenge to international peace and security. the senate finance committee still has hundreds of amendments to get through. they're taking a break from health care, though, today and will resume debate on a bill tomorrow. there are more than 560 amendments to the bill. the committee has not gotten through 50 yet. the bill as it stands would cost roughly $800 billion over ten years. >> william safire, the influential political columnist and former speechwriter to president nixon has died. for 30 years he wrote a conservative op-ed column for "the new york times." he wrote more than 3,000 columns in his career, winning a pulitzer for his coverage of a scandal involving president carter's white house budget director. he died yesterday at a rockville hospital at the age of 79. he had pancreatic cancer.

of course, i think he will be most remembered for his on-length articles in "the new york times" magazine which i absolutely could not miss. >> yeah, they're really delightful. every sunday definitely a lot of folks enjoyed them. texting and driving becomes illegal in maryland this week but the new law might be more difficult to enforce than some first thought. >> plus the arrest of a famous filmmaker after spendg more than three decades on the run. >> what the obamas do when they have relatives in town for a family vacation.

good morning. welcome back. we're following breaking news this morning in rockville. >> a fire at an apartment complex off 355 near grovesnor. that's where kimberly suiters is live right now. what's happening out there? >> reporter: well, good morning, barbara. the fire trucks are still all here on the scene. we're also told that right there in the lobby we were able to get a little closer, we could show you, there are dozens of people, maybe as many as 50 who live in this apartment complex are being briefed right now about what's going on, about whether they can go back in their rooms. we're told so far that they are not being allowed to. there was some kind of smoke and fire on the second floor, we understand, and then much of this apartment building was evacuated. the fire truck just pulled up and is blocking part of our view

here, but there are at least ten trucks out there. a pretty big response here in rockville. i just talked to one woman who said she was just coming home from the beach and this is what she came home to. she hasn't even been inside. she said she did see smoke coming out of a window. we did not observe that ourselves. we're going to get a little more infoation and get back to you in a little bit. reporting live in rockville, i'm kimberly suiters, news 4. back to you. >> thank you. >> thanks very much. 5:11 is our time right now. we'll check on traffic and weather. >> we'll start with tom kierein in storm center 4. tom? >> it is fresh and cool on this monday morning under a clear sky. temperatures around the region are in the 50s at this hour. we do have a little patchy fog in the rural areas. we're in the 50s now. it will climb later on today into the low to mid-70s as we have a front that's just now moving into ohio, triggering some rain there. as it sweept through this afternoon, may have a blustery shower. partly cloudy tuesday and wednesday, still light breezes

around. highs in the 60s again. a bit warmer on thursday and sunny. friday may get back into the 70s and sunny, near 70 or so. chance of a shower on saturday. now ashley linder, how's the trafc? >> you wouldn't believe it by this picture but i promise progress has been made on 270 soun southbound. now we have the right lane open. before it was just the shoulder getting by. we have an over turned vehicle before father hurley boulevard. we have delays that continue past clarksburg. actually just got word all lanes are now open. barbara and joe, back to you. >> thanks sha, ashley. 13 minutes after 5:00. an acclaimed director that eluded police for decades has now been arrested. >> plus, we're following a developing story overseas. next at :15, iran guess against nuclear sanctions and test fires a long-range missile.

a major overnight development in iran. that's where tensions are building after another round of missile tests. they include long range weapons designed to show iran's military muscle. brooke hart joins us live from capitol hill and has more on this developing story. >> reporter: that's right. today's test, iran sent up a long-range missile, one that could reach israel or a u.s.

base in the middle east. it ratchets up tension ahead of this week's showdown with iran over its nuclear work, and that's one part of a double security test now for president obama. >> it's -- >> reporter: in iran today, more missile tests, the second round in two days. is tehran working eventually to arm missiles with a nuclear warhead? that's the u.s. suspicion. the u.s. and allies revealed friday iran's been building a uranium processing plant for years in secret. >> iran is on notice that when we meet with them on october 1st, they are going to have to come clean. >> reporter: six nations face iran in geneva this week on its long term weapons goals. >> the iranians are in a very bad spot now because of this deception in terms of all of the great powers, and there obviously is the opportunity for severe additional sanctions. >> reporter: on tuesday, war strategy in afghanistan tops

president obama's agenda. general stanley mcchrystal meets with the president, along with defense secretary gates and secretary of state hillary clinton. she said sorting out election results in afghanistan where the regime's been accused of fraud, is step one in u.s. strategy review. >> it's not over yet. we have to wait until it is resolved, hopefully very soon. then make a new commitment about how we're going to meet our strategic goals. >> reporter: secretary gates said he hasn't given the president general mcchrystal's request for more troops and doesn't plan to yet. a political fight is brewing. some gop senators say without moreroops the u.s. will lose. president obama this weekend called his election rival, john mccain, telling him, according to aides, quote, we need to get this right. live on capitol hill, i'm brooke hart. back to you. >> all right. thank you, brooke. >> new numbers reveal most terror suspects are not being prosecuted. a research group from syracuse

university found the government is only prols cuting one in four people charged in connection with terrorism. the study found the other 75% are going free because the evidence is not strong enough. the justice department is already responding, saying it disagrees with the study's conclusions. well, it's been 14 years since the oklahoma city bombing and now the fbi has released some security tapes showing the immediate aftermath. in this video, you can see people rushing from nearby buildings after the blast at the murrah federal building. the tapes do not show the murrah building itself. neither do they show the explosion. 168 people were killed in that blast. bomber timothy mcveigh was executed back in 2001. his co-conspirator, terry nichols, is in prison serving a life sentence. >> acclaimed film director roman polanski has hired a swiss attorney for a possible extradition hearing following his arrest yesterday. the united states has sought to have polanski extradited ever since 1978 when he pleaded

guilty to having sex with a 13-year-old girl. he then went to france to avoid prison. police arrested him in switzerland where he had traveled to receive an award at a film festival. polanski's fans protested outside the festival, calling for his release. his iends say they are stunned. >> i'm ashamed to be swiss, that swiss is doing such a thing to a brilliant, fantastic genius that millions and millions of people love his work. he's a brilliant guy. and he made a little mistake 32 years ago. what a shame for switzerland. >> switzerland has made a point of saying polanski will not be transferred to u.s. custody until he has had his day in court there. >> well, the redskins beaten by historically bad team. >> for the first time in nearly two years, the detroit lions won yesterday. one former redskin hall of famer is joining the chorus of people

who say the loss is unacceptable. hakem dermish has this morning's sports minute. >> good morning, everyone. well, the fans aren't the only ones questioning the redskins right now. hall of fame running back john the diesel riggins is bringing some serious heat. on his twitter page, he tweeted the following. there are team-specific issues for sure and some individual issues for sure, but the owner ultimately is a loser and you can't fix that, end quote. the redskins are now 1-2 after losing to a team that had been 0-19. we're in detroit. lions qb matthew stafford played like a veteran in this game. late first quarter, no score, the lions threatening. stafford throws a perfect pass to bryant johnson for a touchdown. rogers gets beat on the play. stafford led the lions a 12-play, 99-yard drive. eight seconds to play in the game. skins down 19-14, last chance. on the lions' 36 yard line, the pass complete to santana moss

this lateral stuff rarely works. they need ad touchdown, they don't get it. that's it, ball game. it's the first win for detroit since 2007. >> it's -- it's just disappointing. we have to win the one-on-one battle at times and we're -- we're giving the offense a chance to convert those one-on-one situations, and they've done a good job. teams have done a good job against that. we have to find an answer. we'll just keep working at that to try to find that answer. >> coming up later today we'll have more from redskins park. that's all for now. hakem dermish. have a great day. >> i bet they will. >> uh-huh. >> there's a lot to be said. >> 5:21 is the time now. time for traffic and weather on the 1s. >> let's go to meteorologist tom kierein in storm center 4. tom? >> we're off to a clear start on this monday morning. good morning. look at these temperatures. it certainly is autumnal. it's down into the mid and upper 50s all around the region. weather watchers, shenandoah

valley reporting low 50s. it's in the upper 50s in washington. low to mid-50s montgomery, fairfax, prince george's and arlington counties. over the last six hours we have had a clear sky. venus in the eastern sky. the autumn constellations are gleaming. clouds building in the midwest. a front approaching there which will sweep through here later on this afternoon. a small chance of a passing shower as the front comes through. increasing clouds, blustery wind, highs mid-70s before the front arrives. after the front arrives, we'll clear out tonight, get cool tomorrow morning. down into the upper 40s. tomorrow, highs in the 60s with clouds in and out. wednesday, partly cloudy, upper 60s. sunny thursday, here 70. here's a look at friday and the weekend. a passing shower on saturday. now ashley linder, good morning. how's the monday commute? >> we had an earlier major issue on 270 southbound before you reached father hurley boulevard, we had an overturned vehicle. all lanes of rohave been re-ope. around 109, that's where you're picking up early volume. expect a slow go there.

as you get closer to clarksburg area, you're back up to speed. no big problems elsewhere. traveling along 66, you will find all your traffic lanes oft open. no overnight construction left anywhere around the area. back to you. >> thank you. >> thank you. our time is 5:22, 59 degrees. how one of late night's most famous faces ended up in the hospital. >> also, how do you entertain your relatives? wait until you see how the first family spent their weekend. >> don't forget, "news 4 today" is connect to you on facebook and twitter for up to the minute breaking news, weather and traffic alerts. you can find us on either site by searching news4today, that's all one word.

so, what do you do when your relatives come to visit? well, you show them around your city, right? that's what the president and mrs. obama did last night. they took the president's sister and her husband on a sight-seeing tour. the first family strolled first around the jefferson memorial, then the group took in the washington monument and had a little fun there. the entire excursion lasted about an hour and a half. >> nothing's nicer than the monument at night, too. >> anybody recognize them out there? >> pardon? >> i wonder if anybody recognized them as we had, obviously, cameras there.

>> the motorcade was probably a hint, too. to to work for conan o'brien today after he injured himself while taping a stunt. the production of "the tonight show" was called off on friday after conan apparently hit his head. nbc released a statement that he was examined at the hospital and released. he then spent the weekend resting at home, still not clear what that stunt entailed or if it involved his red hair. >> maybe we'll get to see it eventually in the cameras were rolling. >> bumped on the pompa door. >> why enforcing maryland's new texting and driving law may not be as easy as they thought it would be. >> why several businesses are once again shut down. >> also, a family's nightmare. inside their own home has police sending oua waing to residents.

strip mall scare. it was once the scene of a massive explosion that injured local firefighters. why investigators are now back on the scene and some businesses are shut down. >> breaking and entering. a deadly home invasion at a maryland neighborhood on edge. the terrifying turn of events that has police urging residents to be vigilant. >> street-busters. the redskins' disappointing loss to the lions in the motor city this morning is becoming one of the most talked about football games of this young season.

good morning to you. welcome back to "news 4 today." i'm joe krebs. >> and i'm barbara harrison. it's monday, september 28th, 2009. and taking a look outside, still dark. i guess that's the morning star out there. is that venus, tom? >> yes, it is. >> good guess on my part. we are wondering what kind of day we're going to have to start off this week. more like fall than summer, i guess. >> certainly is. it got much cooler yesterday and into this morning. as we look around the region, no precipitation on radar but look at the temperatures. down into the low 50s around the shenandoah valley and blue ridge weather watchers reporting. culpepper down to 48 now. near 50 in springfield. low to mid-50s in fairfax, arlington, montgomery, prince george's counties. near 60 near the bay, northern neck. away from the waters, mid-50s on the eastern shore. only near 50 out in the mountains. we do have a front that's approaching th ohio valley now, triggering some rain there. that front will rapidly sweep

through here this afternoon and may give us a passing shower but the big change will be a drop in temperature with a blustery wind. down into the 40s around the region tomorrow morning. windy and cool, partly cloudy, tuesday. highs only in the 60s. remaining cool wednesday and thursday and dry. a lack at friday and the weekend in ten minutes coming up at 5:41. >> thank you, tom. >> let's go to ashley linder now and the news 4 traffic network. good morning. >> good morning. we're starting off with delays on 270 southbound. we had an earlier issue with an overturned vehicle before father hurley. that's been cleared so that's out of your hair. now you have the delays to deal with. the delays look bad here and it is going to be slow past 109. as you get closer to clarksburg it opens up and is fine. anything better than 109 in clarksburg you'll find all your travel lanes open. traveling out of loudoun county, dulles toll road, green way, a very quiet commute this morning. no problems there. back to you. >> thank you very much. >> thank you, ashley. a heads-up to anyone who uses the fairfax connector,

route 380. starting today that bus route will be rerouted. the temporary route will start at the gamble road park and ride and travel down the fairfax county parkway to the back lick road park and ride. it will travel straight to the pentagon. this route will not serve the franconia-springfield metro station. the temporary detour is in place so construction can begin at the metro station. well, the redskins return from the motor city look look like the nfl's version of a clunker. the team lost to the lowly lions yesterday 19-13. ugly game. now fans are questioning the coaching moves and hall of famer john riggins is going one step further. on his twitter page riggins called the team's owner, daniel snyder, a loser. we'll have reaction from fans coming up a little later this morning. >> several stores at a popular prince george's county strip mall will be closed today while crews investigate a serious gas leak. this isn't the first time a leak has been detected there.

>> mayday, mayday. >> we have explosion in the building. >> you may remember this explosion at the penn mar shopping center which happened in may. nine firefighters were injured in that explosion. now just four months later, another serious problem is detected at the same forestville strip mall. news 4's megan mcgrath joins us live from forestville with more. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. you can see behind me here t the -- >> we apparently lost that live report from megan mcgrath. we'll try to get her back and have more on the story coming up a little later in this newscast. >> new today, dozens of people forced out of a rockville apartment building by fire. it happened aa building in the 10000 block of grovesnor place. we're told the fire happened on the second floor. firefighters gathered some of the residents in the lobby to tell them when they'd be allowed to head back to their apartment. no word on what caused the fire or if anyone was hurt. >> well, it's an attempt to

explain the inexplicable. the search for why a father committed an unspeakable act of violence in frederick county, maryland. this unfolded in mt. airy. a murder-suicide that left an entire family dead. police say the 38-year-old charles dalton shot and killed his wife, jennifer. they say he also opened fire on his children, 14-year-old charlie and 7-year-old emmaline. police say that dalton even killed the family dog before taking his own life. it is a tragedy that has left the community in mourning. >> mama told me this morning that she was dead. i, i -- i had a little bit of tes coming down from me because she was one of the best people i knew. >> emmaline was in the second grade at twin ridge elementary school. charles jr. was a freshman at

linganore high school. both schools are closed today for yom kippur. tomorrow crisis teams will be on hand to help the students and staff cope. >> the search is on for three men suspected of killing a man and tying up his wife and three children. it happened before 3:00 a.m. yesterday. police say three masked men, two carrying guns, stormed into a home on marley drive in bowie. once inside they ended up killing the homeowner, 38-year-old tyrone richardson. richardson's wife told neighbors the masked men tied her up and her children as well. before leaving, the suspects stole richardson's mercedes. police believe this is an isolated incident and that richardson was targeted. >> now we will go back to the live report from megan mcgrath on the gas leak at a prince george's county strip mall. >> good morning again. >> reporter: good morning. if you take a look behind me here at the marshall's, you can see the storefront is dark today. that's because they have cut electricity and natural gas to this store and a couple others on the -- either side because of a big gas leak that occurred

yesterday afternoon. now, this is the second time in four months that there has been a major gas leak at this shopping center and so there was a lot of concern because of a similar situation that ended in a terrible explosion back in may. in yesterday's incident, the shopping center had to be evacuated because of the gas leak. there was a strong smell of natural gas that was detected at the marshall's and the eyegla eyeglasses store around 1:00 sunday afternoon. a responding washington gas crew came to the scene, found high levels of natural gas inside some of the stores. they evacuated 13 stores and then cut the electricity to the area as a precaution. there were no injuries, no explosion, but fire officials say it was a close call. >> mayday, mayday, mayday. >> mayday call, mayday call. we have explosion in the building. >> sounds like the same exact set of circumstances is occurring now as it did back in

may. why is this occurring again is something we have to be involved in, looking at to make sure it's fixed and doesn't happen again. >> reporter: that dramatic video you saw was from the may incident where there was a large explosi explosion in some stores at the end of the penn mar shopping center. there were nine firefighters injured in that incident as they were responding to the report of a smell of natural gas in the area as they were approaching the stores that were impacted in that incident, the entire thing blew, sent debris flying. again, nine firefighters injured in that incident. again, that was caused by a natural gas leak. we had a similar scenario yesterday or similar gas leak here in the center of the mall, the penn mar shopping center. they did shut off the gas. they shut off the electricity. there was no explosion but fire officials and natural -- and washington gas officials trying to figure out what's going on. these stores will remain closed until repairs can be made. back to you in the studio. >> thanks very much. >> thank you, megan. maryland's new law against

texting and driving is designed to keep drivers safe but some are wondering how the state is going to everybody force it. the wording of the law makes it illegal to write and send a text message but it's still legal to read one. maryland's attorney general says police officers will have a lot of discretion. the law goes into effect on thursday. if you're caught texting and driving you could be fined 500 bucks. >> our time right now is 5:39, 21 minutes until 6:00. 59 degrees out there. the new tool the disict has in the fight against the swine flu. >> also, the road to recovery continues as residents in the southeast continue to return home to devastation. >> plus, the new fee you'll have to pay, yes, the next time you fly based on -- it will all be based on when you bought your ticket.

5:41. weather and traffic on the 1s. now a cool 59 in washington. good morning. wove a clear sky. the autumn constellations overhead. 50s all around the region. we'll have highs today reaching the low 70s as we have a front moving into the ohio valley triggering some rain that will be arriving perhaps here later on today. a small chance of a passing shower. highs before the front arrives in the mid-70s and a blustery wind to follow. gusts to 25 miles an hour out of the northwest this afternoon nad this evening. much cooler tomorrow morning, in the 40s. afternoon highs in the 60s with a blustery wind. partly cloudy. wednesday, partly cloudy, in the 60s, sunny, near 70 thursday and friday. but over the weekend, maybe a

shower saturday. ashley linder, how's the monday commute? >> starting off with maryland. it is slow. 270 southbound is going to be on the brakes from 109 down to the truck scales. this is because of an earlier issue that we had before -- or before father hurley boulevard. that was an overturned vehicle. that's all gone. but again, 270 already slow 109 down to the truck scales. out of springfield, starting to pick up volume in the northbound direction but still moving at speed. elsewhere, though, traveling on route 1 this morning, we've got an accident. route 1 northbound just before 234. actually road construction, excuse me, one lane is getting by. it was causing a little bit of a slowdown as you made your way northbound. back to you. >> all right. thanks, ashley. >> thanks. >> our time 5:43. why it just got more expensive to travel this holiday season. >> plus, the washington breaks the lions' 19-game losing streak. we're talking about whether

pitch it. pitch it aga. and this game is over. the detroit lions, for the first time since decemr of 2007, can celebrate a victory. >> oh,man. think about that. a disappointing loss to say the least. the redskins become the first team to lose to the detroit lions since december of 2007, as you heard. the fans are letting the team have it this morning. kimberly suiters is live right now to tell us what the fans are saying. good morning, kimberly. >> reporter: well, joe, let's start with what the lions' owner said. he said not only did they get the monkey off their back, they got king kong after their back. unfortunately it was at the expense of the washington redskins. let's take a look at some of the lowlights from last night. we've all been talking about this -- snapping this 19-game losing streak. it was the 20th game for the detroit lions. their last win december 23rd,

2007. the final score 19-14 in front of just 41,000 fans at ford field. this is what the redskins' fans said about the loss. >> you know, you come out and you do all of is work and you lose to the worst team in the league in two years. >> i thought we would beat detroit because detroit hasn't won in -- what did you say, since december of 2007? they got the first win off us. >> reporter: this morning at the grovesnor metro station, people are shaking their heads as they walk by us, saying the changes that need to happen start with the quarterback down to, one guy said, it's just hopeless this season. reporting live in rockville, i'm kimberly suiters, news 4. joe, back to you. >> pretty depressing for fans. thanks very much, kimberly. >> reporter: sure. >> barbara? >> the swine flu vaccine is

supposed to be made available in the next few weeks but now we're finding out people near the top of the list to be vaccinated will not be able to receive the first doses. that's because the very first doses available will be in nasal spray form. the spray is recommended for healthy people age 2 to 49. pregnant women are not supposed to take it that way. government health officials expect the demand for the vaccine to be very high. they're prepared for that and for dealing with concerns about the vaccine's safety. >> misinformation spreads more rapidly even than the flu, so any rumor has the risk of creating concern and we need to deal with that as it arises. >> the latest numbers show every statis dealing with the swine flu. 26 states have widespread outbreaks. meanwhile, d.c. has a new weapon against the swine flu. it's a website flu.dc.gov. it has the latest information on the virus, the vaccine and how

to treat it. you'll find plenty of prevention tips. here's the website again. it's flu.dc.gov. >> cleanup is in full swing in georgia after last week's destating storms and flooding there. damage is estimated at at half a billion dollars. with some homes swallowed up by ten feet of water or more, the cleanup effort has been nonstop and overwhelming. >> losing everything is dramatic. i know it's replaceable, but at this point, we have no place to go. >> officials estimate that as many as 2,000 people are out of their homes. still, residents speak of rebuilding and restarting their lives no matter what the mountain of hard work is ahead. look at this. a sinkhole swallowed a car near atlanta this weekend with a driver inside. appantly, someone apparently then moved the cones meant to block the street and this unsuspecting driver dropped right into the hole.

the driver was not injured, but he's pretty upset because vandals targeted his car overnight, cutting the seats and stealing the radio. >> wow. >> look at that. a basement. >> that's not the one you were telling me about where a daughter drove on top of her mother. >> no, no, a different sinkhole. >> a lot of rain causing that, i guess. let's talk about the weather, let's talk to tom kierein who can tell us what we can expect. rain? >> perhaps later on today. if we do get it it will be our seventh day in a row where we have had precipitation around the region. then we'll go in a dry trend beginning tomorrow and toward the end of the week. as we take a look around our region at this hour, there's a view from our city camera showing the skyline of washington under a clear sky this morning. the autumn constellations are twinkling. maybe tweeting, too. there's venus right now in the eastern sky. it's a nice, bright like diamond

on black velvet there. now 59 cool degrees in washingt. as we look at the radar, no precipitation around. there's a little patchy fog around. weather watchers are reporting temperatures very cool, in the shenandoah valley and around the blue ridge, near 50 degrees there as well as around culpepper, parts of central virginia from prince william county through culpepper it's in the upper 40s now. low 50s weather watchers reporting from arlington, into fairfax county, also low 50s in montgomery and prince george's counties. weather watchers checking in from calvert, charles, st. mary's and right near the bay reporting upper 50s there. northern neck weather watchers reporting a clear sky in the mid-50s. on the eastern shore, too, temperatures are in the mid-50s. out in the mountains, another cool morning there. it's only near 50 degrees. there's a front just approaching western pennsylvania, mid-5 out ahead of that front. as we look at what has been happening over the last six hours, we've had a clear sky here but there's the leading edge of that front triggering some rain in eastern ohio, into northwestern pennsylvania.

that front will begin to approach our region here by later on this afternoon. here's a wider view across the nation. if you're traveling today, no travel problems from the west coast all the way through the central plains. however, there's quite a strong storm that's whipping up big waves on lake superior, lake michigan. it's now moving across the northern part of the great lakes and there may be some flight delays up there from detroit all the way over toward perhaps buffalo as this front is going to begin to approach new england. some flight delays there by later on this afternoon, perhaps some nigflight delays from syrae to albany, boston. farther to the south, maybe some showers across pennsylvania. we're sort of on the southern end of any precipitation chances here. and maybe a few flight delays in south florida as there may be a few isolated thunderstorms there. but for us, well, this big storm that's spinning way over the great lakes with a lot of wind is going to be passing to our north. and as it does, it will swing this front that is just now coming into western ohio, out of eastern indiana and out ahead of

that we'll have some pretty strong winds gusting out of the southwest perhaps to around 20 to 25 miles an hour as the early afternoon progresses. this front looks like it will begin to move into the mountains here probably in about, oh, late morning to around noontime. they'll get the chance of showers first and then that front, as it goes by, we'll see our winds shifting into the northwest and bring in much cooler weather. as we go forward over the next 48 hours that front rapidly moving through and behind that we'll have some pretty gusty winds tonight, into tomorrow. this low pressure system will be over southern ontario during the day tomorrow, maybe some showers up to our north then. but here, just going to have winds from that system tomorrow and into tuesday evening we'll have quite a bit of cloudiness around as well, maybe a few sprinkles out in the mountains on tuesday, into tuesday night. but by wednesday morning we'll begin to see the winds diminishing but we'll still be under the influence of that very strong low pressure system as it moves over new england during the day on wednesday. here is the bus stop forecast.

we'll have our temperatures this morning in the 50s. we'll be quite chilly with a clear sky so dress accordingly. bundlep and get your woolly sweater out. our sunrise not until just after 7:00 this morning. sunrises are rapidly getting later and later and sunsets earlier. sunset today is at 6:55. before that, we ought to be in the mid-70s before the front arrives. then as it does come through, a passing shower is possible. only a small chance. we'll have a blustery wind with clouds on the increase after a sunny morning. in fact we'll be in the low 70s by noon and mid-afternoon in the mid-70s. overnight tonight we should clear out by late this evening. we'll have a waxing gibb bus moon. by midnight near 60. by dawn tomorrow it will be in the upper 40s so quite a cool start. then during the day on tuesday afternoon highs climbing into the upper 60s with blusier ti winds. winds gusting perhaps over 30 miles an hour tomorrow afternoon with some clouds in and t. then partly cloudy wednesday,

40s in the morning, 60s in the afternoon. sunny thursday, up near 70 for morning lows in the 40s. more of the same friday. over the weekend, there's a chance of a passing shower as another front comes through perhaps on saturday and a bit warmer as we get into the end of the weekend. cool and autumnal throughout the week ahead. a little fog around as well. watch out for that. >> great. thank you. not great with the fog but thank you very much. see you in ten minutes. >> let's go to ashley linder now and the news 4 traffic network. >> good morning. taking a look at the beltway right here at university boulevard, both inner and outer loop travelers doing just foun. outer loop headed toured us there. 270 southbound, there was an overturned vehicle that's been cleared but it's slow from 109 to the truck skas. traveling the 95 corridor, no problems as you leave the fredericks burg area. after that all lanes are open up to springfield and 395 is quiet.

back to you. >> thanks, ashley. >> thanks very much. >> we have some good news for drivers on this monday morning. gas prices are heading down. drivers nationwide are now paying an average of $2.50 at the pump. that's down 11 cents from a month ago. in d.c., drivers are paying about $2.55 a gallon. maryland is shelling out about $2.44. in virginia, drives are paying the lowest, $2.34 a gallon on average. >> this holiday season get ready to reach deeper in your wallets. the airlines are adding new fees. american, united, delta, northwest and us airways are adding a $10 surcharge. it applies to people traveling the sday after thanksgiving and the weekend after new year's. experts say it's deceiving because fares are actually going down but they say let the flyer beware. >> their mission is to show you rock-bottom prices, and then they're hoping that once you do that, you get the air travel fever.

>> you'll get the fee-ver if you catch my drift. those fees are in addition to fees airlines are chearging for checking baggage. the airlines say they need the extra money to stay afloat. >> now to the money crisis and a look at how the foreign markets are doing today. the asian marke were in the red this morning. the nikkei lost 2.5%. the hang seng lost 2.07%. the shanghai lost 2.65%. to wall street now where the dow futures are pointin toward a negative opening. the dow finished last week by losing 42 points, closing at 9665. the nasdaq lost 16 points, closing at 2,090. >> this morning "news 4 today" is helping to find jobs for you. immediate assurant, a growing medical company, is recruiting for several it. positions. to learn more and apply, go to nbcwashington.com and search jobs 4 you. >> a reminder, news 4's always

connected to you on facebook and twitter for up to the minute breaking news, weather and traffic alerts. you can find us on either site by searching news4today, one word. >> coming up at 6:00 a.m., a must-see story for any coffee drinker. a new instant coffee from starbucks hits stores tomorrow. see if it's

firing range. iran launches more missiles this morning. tests of potential weapons capable of striking israel and europe. how will president obama and the international community react to this most recent act of defiance? >> mayday, mayday, mayday. >> close call. you might recall this video when a massive explosion leveled a strip mall in prince george's county. why the same thing was minutes

away from happening again. >> a new low. the redskins lose to the lions, yes, the detroit lions whose last win was in 2007. this morning, fans are doing a lot of finger pointing and questioning just how good this team is. >> good morning, everyone, and thanks for waking up with us this morning, this monday morning for "news 4 today." i'm barbara harrison. >> good morning to you. i'm joe krebs onhis monday. it is the 28th day of september 2009. take a live look outside where the temperature is 59 degrees. we must have fairly clear skies because we saw venus. maybe that is still venus up there near the horizon on this early monday morning. >> tom's here to tell us what we can expector the rest of this day. he's calling autumn-like temperatures. 59 degrees right now, right? >> certainly the coolest morning of the season so far. it will be cooler tomorrow morning, maybe up to ten degrees cooler. much cooler weather on the way. looking at radar now, no precipitation. a little patchy fog some of the

rural areas. by 9:00 we should be in the mid-60s with a sunny sky but then by noon, clouding up and a front moving in from the midwest rapidly sweeping through between noon and 3:00, may trigger a passing shower. otherwise, bringing in some fast-moving gray clouds and a blustery wind. as the front arrives, temperatures may spike up into the mid-70s and then after it goes by it will drop back into the 60s by 6:00. and then by dawn tomorrow we'll be down into the 40s under a clear sky and during the day on tuesday, partly cloudy, windy and cool. highs only in the 60s, remaining cool on wednesday and thursday. a look at friday and the weekend in ten minutes. that will be coming up at 6:11. >> thanks, tom. >> out to roads now. let's talk to ashley linder who's been watching the traffic for us while jerry's on vacation. good morning. >> good morning. well, it looks like a pretty nice vacation traveling the dulles toll road, greenway, route 7 right now. volume not a big factor for drivers. we're looking at the toll road there.

elsewhere, we do have some issues. 270 southbound you'll hit the brakes 109 toward the truck scales. earlier accident activity gone from father hurley. out of springfield, volume picking up on 95 northbound but you're still moving at speed for its entirety out of fredericksburg. 395 is quiet. we did have an issue traveling route 1 out of dumfries -- well, not anymore, but it's still there. it will be route 1 just before 234. that was juan laone lane gettine to construction. back to you. >> thank you. ♪ >> daniel went into the lion's den. this team he and his team were the ones tamed and spanked even you could say. the redskins became the first team in two years to lose to the detroit lions, the team that did not win a single game last year. the redskins lost 19-14 in detroit. they've scored three offensive

touchdowns all season and many fans this morning are questioning the coach's play-calling. hall of famer john riggins even called the owner, daniel snyder, a loser. and fans don't have many nice things to say either. >> the coaching has been problematic. zorn's been questionable on the play call. the field call at the beginning he should have taken. lack of confidence from the team. >> just another example of, in my opinion, how the coach is definitely in over his head. poor play-calling, seems like. the only time the team can move the ball is in a no huddle situation. >> next up for the redskins, they take on another one of the nfl's worst teams, the tampa bay buccaneers. the loss had fans using a lot of choice words, some of them probably can't be used on television. the examiner newspaper, though, put it pretty plainly with this headline. it said "we stink." >> mayday, mayday, mayday.

>> mayday call. >> you may remember this video from the spring where an explosion rocked a popular shopping center in prince george's county. that explosion injured nine firefighters and was caused by a gas leak. well now, four months later, another close call. a second gas leak is detected at the same strip mall in forestville, forcing several stores to shut down. the leak was discovered yesterday near the marshall's at the penn mar shopping center. ten stores had to be evacuated. fire officials say it appears to be the same exact circumstances that occurred back in may. this time tho one was hurt, though. crews are working to isolate the leak. marshall's and several other stores will remain closed for a few days while that workplace -- work takes place. thor is. continues this morning for three men who are suspected of killing a man and tying up his wife and three children. it happened before 3:00 a.m. yesterday. police say three masked men rrying guns stormed into a home on marley drive in bowie. ce inside, they ended up

killing the homeowner, 38-year-old tyrone richardson. richardson's wife told neighbors the mked men tied her and her children up. at this point, police believe this is an isolated incident and that richardson was targeted. >> i am very shocked. i'm, i'm actually horrified. i'm very saddened for that family. >> terrible. i can't believe it happened because i just spoke to the guy maybe two, three days ago. >> before the suspects left, they also stole richardson's car. it's a 2000 black four door mercedes s-430 with a maryland dealer plate, 188982. anyone who spots this car is asked to call police. >> a falling tree killed a woman in her own front yard. this happened yesterday afternoon on oak tree road in derwood. police say the tree was rotten and the recent rain may have loosened its roots. it fell, pinning 63-year-old diane leech to the ground. her husband found her. she was rushed to the hospital, where she later died.

>> now to a developing story in iran and an act of defiance. this is video -- let's have a look at it -- from overnight missile tests. they include some long range wem ons and they underscore the heightened tension was iran days after revelations of a secret nuclear facility. brooke hart joins us live from capitol hill now with more on the oversight test. good morning, brooke. >> reporter: good morning. you're right. this test last night of a long-range missile by iran was testing a missile that would reach israel or a u.s. base in the middle east. it ratchets up tension ahead of this week's showdown with iran over its nuclear work in what amounts to a double security test for president obama. in iran today, more missile tests, the second round in two days. is tehran working eventually to arm missiles with a nuclear warhead? that's the u.s. suspicion. the u.s. and allies revealed friday iran's been building a

uranium processing plant for years in secret. >> iran is on notice that when we meet with them on october 1st, they are going to have to come clean. >> reporter: six nations face iran in geneva this week on its long term weapons goals. >> the iranians are in a very bad spot now because of this deception in terms of all of the great powers, and there obviously is the opportunity for severe additional sanctions. >> reporter: on tuesday, war strategy in afghanistan tops president obama's agenda. general stanley mcchrystal meets with the president, along with defense cretary gates and secretary of state hillary clinton. she said sorting out election results in afghanistan where the regime's been accused of fraud, is step one in u.s. strategy review. >> it's not over yet. we have to wait until it is resolved, hopefully very soon. then make a new commitment about how we're going to meet our strategic goals.

>> reporter: secretary gates said he hasn't given the president general mcchrystal's request for more troops and doesn't plan to yet. a political fight over that is brewing. some gop senators say without more troops in afghanistan, the u.s. will lose. president obama this weekend called his election rival, john mccain, to say when it comes to u.s. war strategy there, quote, we need to get this right. live on capitol hill, i'm brooke hart. back to you. >> thank you, brooke. >> reporter: you're welcome. >> 6:09, 59 degrees. we're connected to your commute. the changes starting today for one fairfax connector bus route. in the big loophole in maryland's new texting and driving law which starts this week. >> and starbucks has a new instant coffee that's hit store shelves, will hit the shelves tomorrow. find out if it tastes good. this morning at 6:15, liz crenshaw puts it to the taste test.

weather and traffic right now. good morning. at this hour, temperatures are cool, down into the 50s all around the region. now 58 in washington. and all around the region today, we'll have a front sweeping througby late this afternoon. weelt ae have perhaps a passing shower, perhaps earlier around noontime out of the mountains. otherwise, clouds coming through with a blustery wind. highs before the front arrives, mid-70s. after it goes by we'll plummet into the 40s by dawn tomorrow. partly cloudy, highs in the 60s.

wednesday and thursday should be dry with highs in the 60s, morning lows 40s. sunny and clouding up over part of the weekend, chance of a shower on saturday. ashley linder, how's the monday commute? >> traveling the capital beltway as you can see here doing just fine this early monday morning. no big problems to report all around the capital beltway. we did have some problems out of tysons on route 7 headed eastbound just after the dulles toll road. there was a deer struck and that's in the left lane. we do have delays 270 southbound, going to be slow from 109 down to the truck scales. suitland parkway was slow inn band before branch avenue and briefly before stanton road. that was just volume. back to you. >> thank you. 13 minutes after 6:00. we've got a pretty good idea of what you were saying following the redskins game. find out what head coach jim zorn had to say about his team's performance. and starbucks has a new instant coffee coming out tomorrow but does it taste any

we are connected to your commute this morning. this morning, a heads-up to anyone who uses the fairfax connector bus route 380 beginning today, that bus route will be rerouted. the temporary route will start at the gam brill road park and road lot and travel down the fairfax county parkway to the back lick road park and ride lot. it will travel straight on to the pentagon. this route will not serve the franconia-springfield metro station. that's important to know. this temporary detour is in

place so that construction can begin at the metro station. well, beginning this week drivers will have to give their thumbs a rest in maryland because a ban on texting while driving takes effect on thursday. but many are wondering how the police are going to enforce it. the wording of the law is curious. it makes it illegal to write and send a text message, but it is apparently still legal to read a text message while driving. >> do you consider yourself a coffee cnoisseur? do you turn up your nose at instant coffee? starbucks says it now has an instant coffee that you'll not only drink but actually like. grab your mug. liz crenshaw has the results of her latest taste test. >> reporter: this may just look like a squirt to you, but starbucks says it's taken more than 20 years to produce this squirt.

what we're squirting is via, starbucks' instant coffee. it's new, it's instant and after two decades, it's available to everyone. but how's it taste? do a coffee taste test for me? to find out, we put up a taste test in arlington, virginia. we put three coffees in front of days ters. coffee a is via. we measured it out to starbucks' exact directions and were supposed to get a cup of coffee with rich aroma and the flavor of starbucks' brewed coffee. coffee b is starbucks' brewed coffee directly from the store in the mall. and coffee c is nescafe days ters choice which claims to be gourmet. we followed the exact instructions to make it. we marked our cough feesa, b and c. all w were needed were the tasters. >> we want you to taste them and

tell us which one you liked the best. now, starbucks says its instant secret is premium beans and a patented process that produces a coffee that looks and tastes brewed. starbucks says you'll think this is the same high quality coffee you'll find in a starbucks store. so let's just see about that. coffee is via, the instant starbucks. >> i like a. >> reporter: going for a? >> yes. i'm from brazil and i love brazilian coffee and this looks like for me my brazilian coffee. >> reporter: why a? >> strong, smells good. >> reporter: do you drink instant coffee? >> not really. i guess this is instant coffee? >> reporter: yeah. you picked starbucks instant. >> okay. >> reporter: coffee b comes from the starbucks store. tell me about b. >> got a good smell to it. i think they all kind of taste the same, honestly, but i think

b smells the best. >> b has a really good -- a better taste. it's not bitter and it smells great. >> b i love. b is good. >> reporter: b is good. >> nice and tasty. i like it. >> reporter: coffee c is neska fay. >> i like c's the best. a strong, rich flavor. >> reporter: strong and rich. okay. you like c? . it tastes like pure coffee. >> i like c the best. >> reporter: why do you like c? >> it tastes fresher. >> reporter: how did the starbucks instant do? it won. out of 42 tasters, nescafec took five votes. starbucks' brewed coffee grabbed 15 votes. and via, starbucks' instant coffee, got 22 votes. coffee connoisseurs, take notice. >> got the brew. i could taste everything. that's it. that's the one that's going to keep me awake all day. >> reporter: okay. liz crenshaw, "news 4 today."

>> starbucks' via cost about $1 a cup. joe? very interesting. the fight song -- that's it. the fight song is tough to hear this morning because the redskins lost to a historically bad team. hakem dermish has your sports minute. >> good morning, everyone. well, the fans aren't the only ones questioning the redskins right now. hall of fame running back john "the diesel" riggins is bringing some serious heat. on his twitter page, he tweeted the following. "there are team-specific issues for su and some individual issues for sure, but the owner ultimately is a loser and you can't fix that," end quote. the redskins are now 1-2 after losing to a team that had been 0-19. we're in detroit. lions qb matthew stafford played like a veteran in this game. late first quarter, no score, the lions threatening. stafford throws a perfect pass to bryant johnson for a touchdown. rogers gets beat on the play. stafford led the lions a 12-play, 99-yard drive.

detroit goes up 13-0 at the half. eight seconds to play in the game. skins down 19-14, last chance. on the lions' 36 yard line, the pass complete to santana moss. this lateral stuff rarely works. they needed a touchdown, they don't get it. that's it, ball game. the lions beat the redskins 19-14. it's the first win for detroit since 2007. >> it's -- it's just disappointing. we have to win the one-on-one battle at times and we're -- we're giving the offense a chance to convert those one-on-one situations, and they've done a good job. teams have done a good job against that. we have to find an answer. we'll just keep working at that to try to find that answer. >> coming up later today we'll have more from rskins park. that's all for now. hakem dermish. have a great day. >> 6:21 is the time now, time for traffic and weather again. >> let's go to meteorologist tom kierein in storm center 4, fiptd

out if we might have some rain. >> certainly not now. it's a clear sky, a pristine, clean sunrise under way. there is venus. the sun will be up in about 35 minutes and temperatures around the region are fresh and cool, low and mid-50s around washington and the nearby suburbs. 58 now in washington. from anacostia to brandywine, springfield and clarksburg, a cool morning under way. out in western loudoun county, only 50 degrees right now. the rest of the day, we'll have increasing clouds, a front moving in from the midwest will maybe trigger a passing shower, especially to the north of washington by early to mid-afternoon, highs reaching the mid-70s. a blustery wind will kick in behind that front out of the northwest, gusting to 25 miles an hour. much cooler tomorrow morning, in the 40s. afternoon highs on tuesday with a blustery wind. in the mid-60s and partly cloudy. upper 60s or so perhaps by mid-afternoon. another cool day on wednesday and thursday but the wind will diminish and we'll have dry conditions. should be dry and sunny friday up near 70, perhaps a passing

shower on saturday over the weekend. ashley linder, good morning. how's the traffic? >> well, good morning. let's take a look. news chopper 4 over the top of 270 right around 121. we had an earlier overturned vehicle around 4:00. that's been cleared but really got 270 kicked off as far as delays are concerned. so 270 southbound is going to be slow as you make your way off and on from 109 down to the truck scales. but as you can see here out of clarksburg, the pace is much improved. moving at speed if you continue toward the beltway. elsewhere around town, no major issues but if you were planning a trip along the beltway out of springfield headed toward the wilson bridge, wide-open spaces in front of you. no big issues as you make your way toward college park. all your travel lanes open. back to you. >> thank you very much. >> 6:23 now, 58 degrees. the new plan to make the school year much, much longer for everyone. >> plus, what the president does with his family when they come to visit for the weekend.

so what do you do when relatives come to visit? you show them around your city, of course. what's the president and mrs. obama did last night. they took the president's sister, maya, and her husband on a sight-seeing tour. the first family strolled first around the jefferson memorial, then the group played around the

washington monument. the entire excursion lasted about an hour and a half. >> well, school could last a lot longer if president obama has his way. he wants schools to add more time to classes. mr. obama also wants schools to stay open later and to let kids in on the weekends so that they have a safe place to go. president obama says students are not spending enough time in school and he says that puts them at a competitive disadvantage compared with their foreign counterparts. >> more war games from iran this morning. how the country's testing the patience of president obama and the rest of the international community. >> and early morning ambush and murder in an upscale maryland neighborhood. police are trying to figure out why three masked men murdered why three masked men murdered one man and tie get online payroll and put hours back in your day

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mayday, mayday. >> a massive explosion leveled a strip mall in prince george's county. why the same thing was minutes away from happening again. >> the long arm of the law. famous director film director roman polanski i in custody this morning in europe, so why, after more than 30 years on the run, was he arrested now? >> singing the blues. the redskins hit a flat note in motown, losing to the lions. it's the lions' first win in two years. and now many are wondering how it got so bad and just who is to blame. >> well, good morning, everyone, welcome back to "news 4 today." thanks for staying with us. i'm joe krebs. >> and i'm barbara harrison.

it's monday, september 28th, 2009. looking outside we've got sunrise under way out there with a rosie glow on the horizon. i can't tell if there are any clouds but tom can tell us. what about it? >> off to a clear start. no travel problems weatherwise. a good day to wear your woolly sweater finally. autumn weather moving in. right now, no precipitation around the region. it is in the cool 50s weather watchers reporting across maryland, virginia, down into the low and mid-50s. mid-50s now in prince george's, montgomery, fairfax, arlington counties. upper 50s in washington and near the bay. around the neighborhood network in ft. washington, they're at 58. their monthly rain, almost three inches there. later on today, another chance of a passing shower. this would be the seventh day in a row with rain in the area if we do get a few passing showers as the fro comes through with a blustery wind. before the front arrives, mid-70s. much cooler into tomorrow, wednesday and thursday.

a look at friday and the weekend in ten minutes coming up at 6:41. >> thanks, tom. >> let's go back to ashley linder now and the news 4 traffic network. good morning again. >> good morning. well, traveling down 270 it's been a tricky monday. we had an earlier overturn back in the 4:00 hour that really slowed things down. at copper road, the pace is fine. the only delays left on 270 southbound are starting to be more normal. slow from 109 down to the truck scales and beyond that. this is the pace you're looking at toward the beltway. elsewhere taking a trip out of virginia, no major hang-ups but 95 starting its normal slowdown out of dumfries making your way up to woodbridge. no major issues to report on 66 now. you're wide-open, leaving gainesville toward the beltway and the theodore roosevelt. back to you. >> okay. thank you very much. >> new today. dozens of people are forced out of a rockville apartment building by a fire. this happened at a building in the 10,000 block of grovesnor place. we're told the fire occurred on the second floor of the building.

firefighters gathered a lot of the residents in the lobby to tell them when they would be allowed back into their apartments. no word yet on what caused the fire or whether anyone was injured. >> mayday, mayday. >> you may remember this video from back in the spring. an explosion leveled part of a shopping center in prince george's county. that explosion injured nine firefighters and was caused by a gas leak. now just several months later, another leak is detected that firefighters say could have had the same results. the leak was dcovered yesterday at the penn mar shopping center in forestville. megan mcgrath joins us from the shopping center with more now. do they think they have found where it was coming from, have it under control yet? >> reporter: they've shut off the gas so everything is under control. you can see the darkened storefronts behind me. they shut o the electricity as well. they're still trying to figure out exactly what happened, why we had yet another major gas

leak at the penn mar shopping center. this is a very similar set of circumstances to what we saw in may. ther was a very large scale natural gas leak. one of the stores gathered very high levels of natural gas inside, dangerous levels. fortunately this time the problem was discovered and the gas was shut off before there was an explosion. sunday afternoon and the penn mar shopping center was filled with customers. all were evacuated. the electricity shut off when high levels of natural gas were detected inside some of the stores. >> they smelled some gas next door and the fire department asked us to evacuate. so we just did that. >> reporter: no explosion this time, but last may the shopping center was the scene of this dramatic blast. >> mayday, mayday, mayday. >> reporter: nine firefighters responding to a natural gas leak were injured when a store near the end of the mall blew up. fire officials say sunday's

incident could very well have ended in a similar explosion. crews found high levels of gas inside the marshall's and the america's best eyeglasses store. >> sounds like the same exact set of circumstances is occurring now as it did back in may. why this is occurring again is something that we're going to have to be involved in, looking at to make sure it's fixed and doesn't happen again. >> it is a little bit concerning. i don't even know what to say because they should have checked everything when it happened down there. at this point, we have to wait and see what's going to happen next. >> reporter: you can see here from this live picture that the marshall's storefront is dark. electricity cut to this store as well as, it appears, the stores on either side as well. we're told by the fire department that the stores will remain closed until repairs can be made. again, they're trying to figure out exactly what's going on here. we have had two major natural gas leaks here at the shopping center in four months. fortunately this time around, no one was injured, no explosion. back to you all in the studio.

>> thanks, megan. >> residents in one upscale prince george's county neighborhood are on edge this morning. police say three men broke into a home, killed a man and tied up his wife and children. this happened before 3:00 a.m. yesterday. police say three masked men, two carrying guns, stormed into a home on marley drive in bowie. once inside, they ended up killing the homeowner, 38-year-old tyrone richardson. richardson's wife then told residents that -- neighbors, that is, that the masked men tied her up and her children up. this is the fourth reported brake-in in this very same neighborhood in just the past month. >> while we don't believe that this is connected at this point, we spoke to the police, we're just concerned that we don't have this type of crime, this type of activity in marley and that we want to work with those -- the police or any other county official to make sure that this doesn't occur again in our community. >> the men also stole a mercedes from the house. at this point police believe this is an isolated incident and

that richardson was targeted. >> new today, a message from al qaeda's number two. it's an audiotape from al zawahiri posted on militant websites today. the message is a 28-minute eulogy of the pakistani taliban chief baitullah mehsud who was killed in august. on the tape, al zawahiri praises him and challenging the pakistani army. he also says mehsud's death will only add fuel to the fighting against western forces. also new today, an overnight show of defiance by iran. it test fired the longest range missiles in its arsenal. those are weapons capable of carrying a warhead. they have a range long enough to strike israel or attack military bases in the middle east and europe. tensions were high already after revelations of a secret nuclear facility in iran. >> the iranians are in a very bad spot now because of this deception in terms of all of the

great powers, and there obviously is the opportunity for severe additional sanctions. >> iran's weapons goal will be on the agenda thurg thursday as it begins six-nation talks in geneva. tomorrow president obama will focus on afghanistan. he will meet with general mcchrystal, robert gates and hillary clinton. mcchrystal wrote a report saying he needs more troops within the next year or the u.s. could lose the war. president obama still hasn't made a decision on troop levels. >> william safire, the influential conservative columnist and former speechwriter for president nixon has died. for 30 years he wrote an op-ed column for "the new york times." safire wrote more than 3,000 columns in his career, winning a pulitzer prize for a scandal involving president carter's white house budget director. he was also known for his

on-language columns that appeared in "the new york magazine" every sunday. he had a long battle with pancreatic cancer. >> the irs' new plan to go after tax dodgers. the new sky high fees from airlines. why it will now cost you more to fly over the holidays. >> and what the redskins nation is now saying this morning following an embarrassing loss to the lions yesterday.

good morning. time for weather and traffic. right now a cool 58 at reagan national where we see now in the foreground national airport under a clear sky. about 20 minutes away from dawn this morning and from petworth to falls church, glendale and bethesda, it is fresh and cool, down into the mid-50s there. farther to the west near 50 degrees. later on today we should reach the mid-70s with increasing clouds. as a front sweeps through there's a small chance of a passing shower and a blustery wind to follow that. tomorrow morning down into the 40s. windy and cool tomorrow, highs in the 60s and partly cloudy. wind diminishes, remaining cool

wednesday, thursday and friday. over the weekend, maybe a passing shower saturday. your national travel forecast in ten minutes. how's the traffic now? >> let's take a look at chopper 4 over the beltway around of 6. 66 eastbound, you will pick up volume. there was some activity on the right shoulder right past 50. the last mile to the beltway was also pretty slow. as you can see, those drivers who are coming onto the beltway it is a slow entrance. elsewhere around town, no major problems to report on the 95 corridor. as you make your way up from springfield, expect to hit some delays out of dumfries making your way through lorton. nothing reported in the roadway, just volume. leaving the capital beltway -- excuse me, leaving springfield, traveling northbound along 395 you will hit delays up to seminary. back to you. >> thanks, ashley. >> thanks, ashley. just like me, traffic is getting heavy this morning. famed film director roman polanski is behind bars this morning. why he was arrested now after more than 30 years on the run. and the redskins suffer an

embarrassing loss to the lions. this morning, fans are doing a lot of finger pointing and questioning just how good this team is.

good morning and welcome back. acclaimed director roman polanski has hired a swiss attorney for a possible extradition hearing following his arrest over the weekend. the united states has long sought to have polanski extradited ever since 1978, in fact, when he pleaded guilty to having sex with a 13-year-old girl. he then went to france to avoid prison. police arrested him, though, in switzerland where he had traveled to receive an award at a film festival. polanski's fans protested outside the festival, calling for his release. his friends say they are stunned. >> i'm ashapmed to be swiss, tht swiss is doing such a thing to a brilliant, fantastic genius which millions and millions of people love his work. he's a brilliant guy. and he made a little mistake 32 years ago. what a shame for switzerland.

>> switzerland has made a point of saying that polanski will not be transferred into u.s. custody until he has had his day in court there. >> this morning the irs is stepping up its efforts to track down tax dodgers. cnbc's courtney reagan joins us live to explain. >> reporter: good morning. in an attempt to do that, the u.s. has secured guilty pleas following the relea of 250 names by swiss banking giant ubs. an amnesty program for some offenders has also been extended to october 15th, but the irs hopes this will encourage people to come forward and pay off any owed back taxes so the same fate doesn't happen to them. states are looking to congress for quick action as they face to lose nearly $9 billion in federal highway funds. a fix would have to happen by october 1st in order to make it into the 2010 budget. the $9 billion in question has been accrued over several years. states were required by congress to set aside a small portionf their annual funding to make up

the difference. back to you. >> all right. well, thanks very much, courtney. have a great day. >> reporter: thanks. you, too. >> joe? >> this morning "news 4 today" is helping to find jobs for you. med assurant is recruiting for several i.t. positions there and to learn more and apply, go to nbcwashington.com and search jobs 4 you. well, this holiday season get ready to reach deeper into your wallet. the airlines know that people have to travel and they're adding some new fees now. american, united, delta, northwest and us airways are all adding a $10 surcharge. the fee applies to people traveling the sunday after thanksgiving and then again for the weekend after new year's. airlines say they need the extra money to stay afloat. >> it's over. >> have you ever seen those airline commercials from southwest that end with saying "want to get away"? the redskins players and coaches

may want to do that now after that 19-14 loss to the detroit lions. after the game a lot of players are questioning themselves. >> this isn't -- this isn't the preseason. this is -- this is the real deal. like you said, a lot of guys running around here who think they've arrived. >> growing up, always heard i had a bunch of potential. that potential isn't nothing until you turn it into something. this team, we got potential but that means nothing. we got talent but that means nothing. this is a team game. if we don't play as a team and together as a good team then we won't be anywhere. >> somber in the locker room there. you would have to look far to find any kind of praise this morning. in fact, take a look at the headline from this morning's

examiner newspaper. "we stink," it says. kimberly suiters has been talking with fans this morning. gshg. it is only week three but a lot of folks are really, really frustrated. >> reporter: joe a lot of people making their way to work this morning are shaking their heads, frustrated with the redskins' management. others are expressing compassion for the detroit lions. now if you picked up a different newspaper, the detroit free press, this is what it would have said this morning. after 644 losing days, 21 losing months, 18 losing sundays, 1 losing thursday, 4 starting quarterbacks, 1 fired coach and a million bad jokes about detroit utility, after all that, the gun sounded on this last weekend of september and our long, local nightmare was finally over. for redskins fans, a local nightmare has begun. >> i think it's a shame, but it's good to have that type of competition in the national football league. you want to see a team that hasn't won a game in a long time pull through and win a game, even if it is against the redskins.

nobody wants to see somebody get beat up all over the place time and time again. >> success starts at the top. i think that dan snyder has proven an ability to spend money but i think that you have to couple that with securing people who understand how to run a team. and i think that that's where it starts. so, people want to blame campbell and i wouldn't go there. i would actually, you know -- i was furious with jim zorn's play-calling. >> stop paying them. stop paying them. modify the salaries, don't pay them. you don't win, you don't get paid. these people are getting paid an absurd amount of money and they're not performing. we need performance-based contracts with these people. just like we have in business. >> reporter: redskins fans waxing philosophical all the way to speechless. again, most of them walking by and just shaking their heads. reporting live in rockville, i'm

kimberly suiters, news 4. back to you. >> kimberly, thanks very much. a lot of straight talk out there. thank you. >> reporter: oh, yeah. >> let's talk a little about the weather now. let's see what tom has to tell us about this week. what's going on out there? >> good morning. break out your lumberjack gear. you want to dress in flannel and corduroy this morning and a wool sweater would be nice as well. off to a cool start. here's a live picture of dupont circle on this monday morning and it is fresh and cool and you can see the pedestrians there dressed appropriately as we take a look around the region at this hour, under this clear sky, we have the sun just about to come up. sunrise is in about nine minutes. and there is the clear sky over the potomac river. now looking at radar, no precipitation around the region. we do have temperatures reported by weather watchers across virginia and maryland, down into the low and mid-50s from the shenandoah valley all the way to the atlantic beaches. around the neighborhood network this morning in vienna, they are down to 56 now.

their monthly rain, though, only a paltry, about an inch or so. we could use more rain. might get more later on today, a small chance of that. 6 over the last six hours we've seen a clear sky here. we'll see clouds rapidly on the increase, getting showers in western pennsylvania associated with a powerful low pressure system that's providing some very strong winds over the upper great lakes region today. and that may cause some flight delays along with showers from there into new england and maybe some flight delays from storms in south florida. elsewhere should not have any travel problems. for us, the area of low pressure passing to the north. there is a front from the southern part of that low that stretches all the way down into the tennessee valley this morning. out ahead of that, we'll have the winds picking up out of the southwest. behind it, we'll have the front coming through with some blustery winds. a small chance of a shower. but for this morning for the bus stop, we will have chilly conditions. we'll be in the 50s for the next few hours. then by 9:00 in the mid-60s. then clouding up by this

afternoon. a chance of a shower out of the mountains in the next couple of hours and closer to washington between noon and 4:00 p.m. before the front arrives, mid-70s. after it goes by, clearing out. by this time tomorrow morning in the 40s and partly cloudy, windy and cool tomorrow with highs in the upper 60s. the winds will diminish and stay dry on wednesday and thursday with highs upper 60s and morning lows 40s. more of the same friday. could have a shower passing by over the weekend on saturday. that's the way it looks on this monday morning. okay. thank you, tom. >> let's go back to ashley linder now. she's keeping an eye on the roadways out there. it has been rough this morning. a lot of heavy traffic. >> just another manic monday, i suppose. but job security for me so i'm not complaining too much. traveling around the capital belty rit now here's a look at chopper 4 over the top of the american legion bridge. that is beautiful. got a little bit of the fog rising up but fog is not a big, prevalent issue around the area now. we do have delays on the capital beltway -- not here. that's doing just fine. traveling through college park into silver spring, expect to

pick up volume on the outer loop of the beltway. 95 northbound, we do have some volume as you leave the dumfries area headed through woodbridge and continuing toward lorton. fine from newington to spring baeld but back on the brakes around seminary road. >> that was pretty, that ribbon of fog sort of following the potomac i guess it was. >> nice. >> thank you, ashley. >> here's a look at some of the top stories we are following this morning. several stores at a prince george's county strip mall will remain closed today while fire officials investigate a gas leak there. the leak was discovered yesterday at the penn mar shopping center in forestville. ten stores had to be evacuated. now you may remember a similar gas leak at this mall back in may which caused a massive explosion that injured nine firefighters. >> the search continues this morning for three men suspected in a deadly home invasion. it happened early yesterday morning at a home on marley drive in bowie. police say three masked men stormed inside and killed a

homeowner, 38-year-old tyrone richardson. they then reportedly tied up his wife and three children. at this point, police believe this is an isolated instant department and that richardson was targeted. >> iran raised the stakes overnight. it test fired long-range missiles capable of hitting israel along with u.s. bases in the middle east and in parts of europe. tensions were already high after revelations about a secret nuclear facility in iran. iran's nuclear ambitions will be on the agenda for six-nation talks on thursday. we ask you to nominate a news 4 morning person today. we want to know who makes your day special in the early morning hours. it pit be a teacher, a bus driver, a crossing guard. who knows? e-mail that person's story, along with a clear, close-up picture or video to morningperson@nbcwashington.com. we'll try to recognize that person right here on the air. >> a big party took place in london over the weekend and people went bananas for this

one. more than 600 people took part in the seventh annual gorilla run. participants dressed in gorilla suits and had some fancy costumes on top of that. they ran a four-mile race. the gorilla costumes are provided by the organizers of the race but many people added their own special touches like wigs, swimsuits or oversized inflatable bananas. proceeds go to saving the gorillas in africa. >> should have gone there. i might have found the gorilla of my dreams. that's "news 4 today." thank you for starting your morning with us. >> have a great day. join us for "news 4 midday." >> bye. with online cash manager, you can be where the action is.

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