good morning, everyone, welcome to "news4 midday." i'm barbara harrison. it is monday, january 23rd, 2012. today thousands will gather for the annual march for life protesting the supreme court's decision rowe versus wade. that decision that legalized abortion 39 years ago. news4's tracee wilkins is live at verizon center where a prayer service was held earlier today. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. we're expecting more than 100,000 people to participate in events and activities for those who are against roe versus wade

and against abortion. over my shoulder you can see some of the folks who will be participating preparing to go down to the memorial for the march. these people represent the youth involved in this movement. they say they know exactly where they stand on this issue. today thousands of teens from around the country have gathered here in washington to celebrate life. and they're taking a stance on the very grown-up conversation of abortion. >> i'm here because i'm supporting pro-life and i think that abortion is wrong and i want it to end. >> reporter: more than 28,000 teens are expected to participate in the youth rally and mass for life prompting two locations for the event, one at the verizon center and one at d.c. armory. >> life is about how you treat the person sitting next to you today. >> our children realize how precious life is, then our country has a chance to survive. >> reporter: they lined up early this morning and came but the

bus loads to sing, pray and send their message loudly. >> it's just a beautiful thing to see so many people come down here, all in favor of life and all in favor of this wonderful religion and it's so nice that everyone's so passionate about it. >> we're talking about tens of thousands of young people. they're the next generation. they're the future and they're saying, life, all life, is sacred. >> reporter: now the national organization for women released this statement saying reproductive health care is not for some women. it is a fundamental right of all women. we will not let anti-choice groups destroy what we have worked so hard for. now as you can see back out here live, again, these youth, these kids, who represent about a quarter of the folks who they are expecting to participate in today's activities, they are preparing to get their signs together and go downtown for the rally that's supposed to happen on the mall near the smithsonian

castle starting at 12:00 p.m. then they will actually begin to march at 1:30. we'll follow its traditional route of constitution avenue to the supreme court. house speaker john boehner is also expected to address the crowd. in northwest, i'm tracee wilkins. back to you all in the studio. >> thank you. if you're headed to downtown today, the march is bound to affect your commute. angie goveff is here with more that. >> the march for life events that are happening right now are going to make -- i don't have a prompter. sorry. >> we will get back to that a little bit later. but again those events downtown could affect your travel in that area so be careful. we'll check on that again shortly. good news this morning. not as much freezing rain as expected and now temperatures have started to climb. tom kierein joins us with the first forecast. hey, tom, good morning. >> good morning. welcome back. we've got a lot of fog here this morning. we've had this fog really

developing and thickening up around dawn but it's been gradually dissipating. we also have had some pockets of freezing rain. all of this is associated with a large front that is spreading rain from southern canada all the way down to georgia. it did trigger some tornadoes in alabama this morning. there was some severe weather associated with that and there was some damage and some fatalities as well. we'll have more on that coming up. right now though right around washington, radar showing some passing showers now moving through and most temperatures are getting above freezing so any freezing rain now that we've had earlier this morning is now confined to way farther northern maryland, areas in pink, and up in southern pennsylvania. elsewhere we are getting above freezing. there is one band of some rain that's now into charles county, fairfax county, just now coming into the district of columbia and into montgomery county. that's going to be sweeping in to prince george's county here over the next hour. got some other rain farther off to the west and still some patchy fog around and temperatures getting above freezing. frederick still now at 32 degrees but we're into the mid

30s now throughout much of the region. chilly rain throughout the rest of the afternoon as we gradually climb into the 40s and the fog slowly dissipates. we'll look at tonight and the rest of the week and weekend in just a couple of minutes. barbara? >> tom, thank you. well, schools and the government opened late this morning. what's it looking like out there right now? let's check the late rush hour. >> we are seeing a late rush hour on 395. you're slow at edsell. as you pass seminary road it gets a lot about thor. other roadways look pretty good. the beltway in virginia, robinson terminal, taking the inner or outer loop, you're in the clear, no issues for you. if you're traveling in maryland, this is a look at connecticut avenue. no issues for you either. lanes are open. >> thanks. see you again shortly. metro has canceled track work for today because of the delayed start for federal workers. but the rest of the week they

plan on having some delays on all five lines. trains will single-track between dupont circle and friendship heights as well as tacoma and forest glen on the red line. orange line will single track trains between boston and foggy bottom and there will be single tracking between alk son cemetery and foggy bottom on the blue line. on the green line trains will single track between ft. tot be and prince george's plaza between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. yellow line trains will only operate between huntington and mt. vernon square until 7:00 p.m. the rest of the week. today two metro employees accused of stealing from fare card machines will be in court. prosecutors say the pair would drop off bags of money on the way to the revenue facility and pick them up after their shifts. they say the two spent most of the money on lottery tickets. authorities were tipped off after one of the employees was buying tickets with bags full of coins. right now the man who tried to kill president ronald reagan

is back in court asking for more time away from the psychiatric hospital where he's lived for more than three decades now. john hinckley's lawyers argue that he should be allowed longer visits with his mother in williamsburg and ultimately be allowed to live outside st. elizabeth's hospital. but federal prosecutors still say hinckley is too dangerous. he was found not guilty by reason of insanity by a jury after he shot and wounded reagan and three other men in 1981. this just in from the supreme court -- a decision on how police can use gps technology to track criminal suspects. the court says police must get a search warrant before using that technology. the ruling came out of a case of d.c. nightclub owner antoine jones. a federal appeals court here in washington overturned his drug conspiracy conviction because police did not have a warrant when they installed a gps device on his vehicle and then tracked his movements for a month. he was sentenced to life in prison before the appeals court overturned the conviction.

the supreme court agreed with the appeals court. and today in arizona, congresswoman gabrielle giffords will finish her meet and greet that was cut short by a shooting that killed six people and left her and 12 others injured. it will be one of her final official events before she steps down from congress. in a video message giffords announced yesterday that she would resign this week to concentrate on her recovery. she spent the past year relearning to walk and talk. >> thank you for your prayers and for giving me time to recover. i have more work to do on my recovery, so to do what is best for arizona, i will step down this week. >> president obama called giffords an inspiration. a special election will be called to fill giffords' seat.

eight minutes after 11:00. coming up, new information on that cruise ship that ran aground off the coast of tuscany. rescue crews may make a decision on the recovery effort and the effort to get the fuel off that ship. plus, the latest battleground state -- florida. the new attacks being leveled this morning by newt gingrich and mitt romney in the race for president.

a developing story out of pakistan this morning. what's believed to be a u.s. drone strike has killed four suspected militants in pakistan. the attacks targeted a house and vehicle in the north waziristan tribal region in northwest pakistan early this morning. this is the third attack in the past two weeks. and american officials have said privately that these strikes have taken out many senior taliban and al qaeda operatives. a u.s. aircraft carrier has passed through the strait of hormuz in the persian gulf, this as iran has created intense pressure in the region. iran warned the u.s. not to send we carriers through the region in december after another ship passed through. iran suggested it might use military force to close the strait in retaliation for sanctions against it. iran could face a new sanction before the end of the

day. diplomats in brussels say the european union plans to adopt an oil embargo. iran is under an international economic sanctions for operating a nuclear program. new this midday -- this morning salvage teams found two more bodies in the wreckage of a capsized cruise ship off the italian coast. crews are blaftsing their way into hard-to-reach areas for easier access for divers. meanwhile, workers got the green light to remove almost 500,000 gallons of fuel on-board the ship. there were concerns the fuel tanks could rupture if the ship suddenly shifts. decision 2012 is now a fight for florida. the republican presidential candidates are coming off a shake-up from saturday's primary in south carolina. now they'll have a chance to sway undecided voters in a debate tonight ahead of next week's contest. nbc's tracie potts has been following this story for some

time and has a preview a little bit later from capitol hill. meanwhile, the candidates will hold two debates in florida. can you see the first one tonight from tampa bay during a special edition of nbc's "rock center." brian williams will be the moderator of that, that's at 9:00 tonight right here on nbc 4. president obama's preparing for his third state of the union tomorrow night. he is expected to push for what he calls a moss prosperous and equitable society. president will outline his plans for a lasting economic recovery which includes a tax hike for the wealthiest americans. republicans are already coming out against tomorrow's speech. house speaker john boehner says the president's plan is "pathetic." tomorrow's state of the union is at 9:00 p.m. you can catch it right here on nbc 4, your place for politics. today maryland governor martin o'malley will outline his legislative agenda for this year. he is expected to call for the general assembly to legalize same-sex marriage in maryland. the democrat is also expected to

push legislation to develop offshore wind energy. according to the "washington post," o'malley's energy plan would create nearly 2,000 new construction jobs and reduce air pollution but be paid for by customer rate hikes. tom is here to talk a little bit about our weather. it is not quite as bad as there as maybe it could have been. is it? >> well, we had the snow and isolate saturday night and into friday morning. we're beginning to get above freezing now as the warm air passes over that cold surface. we are getting fog. we've had fog around since pre-dawn and it still lingers here as we are just past 11:00 in the morning. it is foggy at reagan national. can you just barely make out the national airport tower there. visibilities are down to half-mile to a quarter-mile still throughout much of the region. 36 at reagan national with a calm wind and high humidity.

what is freezing rain? that is rain that falls and then freezes on exposed surfaces and gives us a coating of ice. we have had that. looks like that on that window on that car there. we've had that off and on. we had that late friday night into saturday morning. we had that coating of ice on the snow and we've had a little bit of that freezing rain this morning. but most of that now is dissipating. now we have a lot of rain falling from southern ontario all the way down the east coast to northern florida and the southern end of that front did produce some tornadoes earlier this morning in alabama and that did cause some damage in alabama. there were a couple of homes leveled there, a couple of fatalities. we do have a little bit of light rain now coming through the district into montgomery county and western howard county. farther north where you see this pink zone in carroll county, there are still maybe a few pockets where it is below freezing. this rain may be freezing on

exposed surfaces, freezing rain. down into south washington, charles county, they, too, getting light rain. farther to the west getting heavier rain now this darker green zone here in west virginia, the panhandle there. that's moving into western maryland and allegheny county shortly. still patchy fog, temperatures though most of virginia an west virginia getting above freezing. some parts of west virginia into the 40s now. into the upper 30s in southern maryland and closer to washington, mid-30s in montgomery, prince george's, arlington, fairfax counties. farther to the north there are still a few pockets where it is a little bit below freezing right along the pennsylvania border. over the last 12 hours we've had just a little bit of sprinkle activity but now we're going to see rain pick up a little bit in intensity over the next several hours as that front does approach. as we go forward over the next 48 hours, all this green is rain. looks like most of this will be over this evening. by dawn tomorrow we ought to get a few breaks in the cloud cover. tuesday we'll have lots of sunshine breaking out and we should have a mild afternoon

climbing into the low 50s to mid-50s. we'll be mostly clear on tuesday night into wednesday morning, then increasing clouds on wednesday. how much rain will we get? not much. this whole green zone is a zone of maybe a half-inch to perhaps a few pockets may get up to an inch of rain. that would be out here in western maryland, perhaps into the mountains of west virginia. some of those locations could get up to an inch or maybe a little bit more of that rain as it does come on through. for the rest of the afternoon, periods of rain, light breezes, temperatures making it into the low and mid 40s to upper 40s just to our south. then overnight tonight the rain ending, cloudy, maybe some fog around, we'll be in the 40s through the evening. then by dawn tomorrow we'll have our temperatures down into the upper 30s and a lot of sun tomorrow and a beautiful day climbing into the low to mid 50s. then a bit chillier on wednesday with increasing clouds. could get some rain on thursday and then friday morning maybe some lingering rain, drying out friday afternoon. right now weekend looks nice. sunshine saturday and sunday. >> winter just can't take a

strong hold with all those 50s. >> we had a little bit over the weekend, now warming back up again. >> thank you, tom. we'll see you again shortly. how are things moving out there on the roads? >> still have a couple problems for you. first start in the district. fire activity closes the 5,000 block of north street in washington, d.c. please avoid if possible. earlier 395 had a lot of delays, now looking at duke, it is moving a lot better and not really seeing any issues for you if that's your commute. however, fog is a big problem for you on i-270 at shady grove. no traffic traveling southbound, you're clear. northbound as well but give yourself extra time, it is tricky to see. back to you. >> thank you. we have more now on decision 2012 and the fight for florida. the republican presidential candidacy are coming off a shake-up from saturday's primary in south carolina. now they'll have a chance to sway undecided voters in a

debate tonight ahead of next week's contest in florida. nbc's tracie potts has a preview now from capitol hill. number one biggest swing state in the country is -- >> florida! >> there you go. >> reporter: in tampa the stage is set for tonight's debate. taxes, once again, will be a key issue. rick santorum says he'll release his this week and now, so will mitt romney. >> we were going to release them anyway in april. might as well release them now. >> reporter: after reversing his double-digit lead and losing south carolina, romney's hitting florida hard reminding voters of newt gingrich's failed leadership in washington. >> what's he been doing for 15 years? he's been working as a lobbyist, yeah. he's been working as a lobbyist and selling influence around washington. >> i was not a lobbyist. i was never a lobbyist. i never did any lobbying. >> reporter: gretchen cyingrici- >> the fact is he is trying to

cleverly hide behind an argument that no high school debater would ever let stand. >> reporter: san fotorum says h the only candidate who's won a state not near his backyard. >> now florida can send the real winner on to the victory in the future. >> reporter: mitt romney's been winning polls in florida though newt gingrich has an edge in the latest poll by eight points. 11:21 is the time now. still ahead on "news4 midday," american billionaire warren buffett shows off his musical skills during a celebration for the lunar new year. and we'll sit down with a woman who was part of the real-life story that inspired the movie "big miracle." but first, here's a look at what's hot on nbcwashington.com. here's a friendly reminder.

it's your last chance to get verizon's reliable high speed internet and phone for small business for only $84.99 a month. call 1.866.solutions now or visit verizon.com/solutions.

only $84.99 for high-speed internet and phone. plus your choice of either no annual contract or a two year price guarantee. call 1.866.solutions or visit verizon.com/solutions today. hurry -- this offer won't last long. contact the verizon center for customers with disabilities at 1-800-974-6006 celebrations are in full swing for the lunar new year. millions of chinese, koreans and vietnamese across asia are ringing in the new year of the dragon with fireworks, feasts and family reunions. dr dragon is a good luck symbol lasting 15 days. ♪ i've been working on the railroad ♪ ♪ all the live long day

>> that's american billionaire warren buffett playing the yuk laically. he recorded this video to help celebrate the lunar new year or china's state-run television. buffett is popular and well respected in china for his financial success. he's also, as you can see, a uk laically enthusiast. the new york giants will represent the nfc in the super bowl xlvi. they beat the 49ers. the patriots will represent the afc. they advance thanks to a missed field goal from baltimore ravens kicker billy cundiff. cundiff had a chance to tie the game late but kicked it wide left. we'll have complete coverage of super bowl xlvi right here on nbc sunday, february 5th. stay tuned to our station, nbc 4, as we'll head to indianapolis

to cover the big game. ♪ and the rockets red glare ♪ as bombs bursting in air ♪ gave proof -- >> maybe you recognize that voice. that's steven tyler's rendition of the spar spangled banner before the pats-ravens game yesterday. his performance is getting mixed reviews. we posted it on our nbc washington facebook page and got about 200 comments in less than an hour. some loved it, some called him a rocker, one critic said the national anthem is a very hard song and his vocals just don't match that music. tyler, of course, is the lead singer for aerosmith. the group is from boston which made it fitting for him to sing before the new england game yesterday. it's now 11:26. coming up in the next half-hour of "news4 midday," how the penn state community is coming together to remember legendary football coach joe paterno.

plus, we'll have an update on our weather. the good news is that we're warming up out there right now. and why improving your child's handwriting may be important to the student's being a

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it just got more frustrating and frustrating. a lot of times, the picture would break up. for the amount of money that i am paying, my cable company should take care of me. [ male announcer ] stop paying for second best. move up to verizon fios tv, internet and phone for our best price online -- just $89.99 a month guaranteed for two years. first time we saw tv on fios was amazing! i was just in a trance watching it. i'm discovering new channels every day. [ male announcer ] and here's a special bonus: sign up now and get $300 back with a two-year contract. fios internet -- the speed, you can't compare. i'm able to take care of things much faster now. [ male announcer ] start saving now. move up to fios for our best price online -- $89.99 a month guaranteed for two years and get $300 back with a two-year contract. or ask us about the option of no annual contract. is change good? in this case, change is very good. [ male announcer ] visit verizon.com/greatprice. contact the verizon center for customers with disabilities that's verizon.com/greatprice. at 800-974-6006 tty/v. fios. a network ahead.

right now on "news4 midday" -- thousands are gathering in the drit fistrict the annual march for life protesting the supreme court decision roe versus wade. earlier teens from around the country packed the verizon center for a prayer rally. national organization for women responded to the rally saying they will not let anti-choice groups destroy what they worked so hard to achieve. if you're headed downtown today, the march is bound to affect your commute in that area. angie goff is here with more on that. >> good morning. the march for life event is happening right now making it tough to get around today. d.c. police have issued a list of street closings and parking

restrictions. you can see here it is a pretty big area we are talking about. they stretch from 7th street over to maryland avenue and last pretty much the entire day until 6:00 tonight. and then in just a few minutes at 11:30, parts of f street and 12th street northwest will shut down for a prayer service at the verizon center. that closure will last about an hour. then the big rally is this afternoon starting at 12:30. several streets will shut down so pro-life demonstrators can march from the smithsonian castle down to constitution avenue to the supreme court. the march should wrap up around 5:00 tonight. that will likely have an impact on the evening rush. metro is also rerouting bus routes today to deal with the rolling road closures. barbara? back to you. >> thanks, angie. meanwhile, the college football world is mourning the loss of former penn state head coach joe paterno. the legendary coach died yesterday at the age of 85.

nbc's brian mooar takes a look at paterno's legacy and how people are honoring the long-time leader of the nittany lions. >> reporter: on the penn state campus, thousands of people gathered to pay their respects to a football coach who seemed like so much more. more like a member of the family. joe paterno, who died of lung cancer on sunday, brought joy and pride to this campus for generations. and it was paterno, the icon, that penn state fans mourned. >> we're here to honor joe and we've brought our granddaughter ou out. >> he's just been a fan for a very long, very, very long time. >> reporter: still, there are uncomfortable questions about the scandal that ended paterno's storied career. what he knew about the child sex allegations against his long-time assistant, jerry sandusky. >> this has been a roller coaster from november until now and i just think penn state has lost a really huge piece of what

it is today. >> reporter: paterno lost his job but his reputation here is more resilient. >> trying to be strong for him. but it's hard. he stood for honor and made me proud of this school. >> joe paterno taught us about success with honor and that it wasn't enough for him just to win football games, but that he wanted to do it the right way. >> reporter: a sad farewell to a coach whose legend outlived him. brian mooar, nbc news, state college, pennsylvania. >> former penn state players took to twitter to show their support for paterno. former redskins linebacker lavar aaroni in aaronington, thanks, joe, thank you. we are. we'll have much more on the life and legacy of former penn state head coach joe paterno. we'll have more on how people at the university are remembering the long-time football coach on

news4 later today and throughout the week. right now emergency officials are trying to determine if a tornado killed two people in alabama. strong storms moved through birmingham overnight destroying homes. an emergency management spokesman says more than 100 people have been injured in central alabama. tornado warnings were issued in several states across the south. the same system caused heavy damage in arkansas. no one was hurt there. search crews are going house to house in the birmingham area looking for people possibly trapped inside. let's check on our weather now with tom kierein who's keeping an eye on the forecast. tom, what's going on? >> we have quite a bit of fog around that's lingering. it will linger for another couple of hours and will gradually dissipate as we get into the afternoon hours. we've had one little band of rain come through the metro area now, calvert, seeoutheastern prince george's, into st. m

mary's. a broader area of rain coming into the panhandle of west virginia. all that area in green is rain and temperatures there are above freezing. few pockets where it is a little bit below freezing up in frederick county and carroll county in maryland, maybe parts of washington county, too, where it is a little bit below freezing. temperatures elsewhere most locations are beginning to climb into the mid and upper 30s. then later today we should make it into the 40s with the fog dissipating and then tonight, the rain ending by early evening and we'll have some clearing after midnight. sun back tomorrow with highs into the mid 50s. partly cloudy wednesday into the mid 40s, maybe more rain around on thursday with a high around 50. we'll dry out friday afternoon. looks like a nice weekend to follow with some sunshine returning. >> tom, thank you. we'll move out to the roads now, see how things are going with late starts for schools and the federal government. >> good morning. well still seeing fog on our roadways but i can tell you our travel speeds are so much better. look at this. if you're taking route 50 from 301 to the beltway you're at 64

miles per hour. if you're traveling this time on the beltway outer loop at 50 heading to i-95, you're at 58 miles per hour. i-66 looks really good as well from fairfax county parkway to the capital beltway, 55 miles per hour. along i-95, there is the fog. heading northbound to fairfax parkway, no issues. just seeing fog. back to you. police need your help finding a man who may have been shot by an officer. prince george's county police are looking for 30-year-old joseph quarm. he tried to punch officers yesterday after officers responded to a domestic violence call. they say they used pepper spray and a taser on him but he reached for an officer's gun. that's when police say they shot at him and quarm was able to run away. they aren't sure if he was actually hit by that shot. if you've seen quarm, please call prince george's county police. a fire damaged three town

houses leaving nine people displaced in montgomery county. the fire broke out last night inside a middle unit in the 2000 block of littensville road in silver spring. the for a collapsed into the basement where the fire started and the fire quickly spread upstairs and two other adjoining townhomes were also involved. everyone got out safely, though the cause remains under investigation this morning. an early morning fire displaced seven people in northwest washington. the fire broke out just before 5:30 this morning in the 1300 block of newton street. one of the tenants tells news4 a man forgot to blow out a candle and that set a mattress on fire. fire damaged one bedroom on the second floor. everyone was able to get out safely. 11:37 our time now. still ahead -- how much is your coffee habit costing you? if you stop to buy your morning cup of joe, the total may

surprise you. we'll sit down with a woman who was part of the real life story that inspired that new movie "big i just had it with cable. it just got more frustrating and frustrating. a lot of times, the picture would break up. for the amount of money that i am paying, my cable company should take care of me. [ male announcer ] stop paying for second best. move up to verizon fios tv, internet and phone for our best price online -- just $89.99 a month guaranteed for two years. first time we saw tv on fios was amazing! i was just in a trance watching it. i'm discovering new channels every day. [ male announcer ] and here's a special bonus: sign up now and get $300 back with a two-year contract. fios internet -- the speed, you can't compare. i'm able to take care of things much faster now. [ male announcer ] start saving now.

move up to fios for our best price online -- $89.99 a month guaranteed for two years and get $300 back with a two-year contract. or ask us about the option of no annual contract. is change good? in this case, change is very good. [ male announcer ] visit verizon.com/greatprice. contact the verizon center for customers with disabilities that's verizon.com/greatprice. at 800-974-6006 tty/v. fios. a network ahead.

gas prices seem to be leveling off as many fill up for the start of the week. the latest numbers from aaa show d.c.'s average stayed around 3:58 for a gallon of regular over the weekend. gas prices inched up a penny though in maryland. 3:42 is the average there. virginia's average also went up about 1 cent and is about $3.35 a gallon. in west virginia the average is 37 about $3.49 all weekend. experts say driving around to find the best prices -- >> they did this calculus. it costs up $1 for every seven miles that we drive on average.

keep that number in your mind. if you're going out of your way you're not saving more than a couple of bucks, it is not worth it. >> that was financial editor jean chatzky this morning on the "today" show. experts say nigerian production issues could raise prices in the future along with ongoing tensions over iranian sanctions and the strait of hormuz situation as well. a new survey shows splurging on eating out during your workweek -- people are spending nearly $11,000 a year on coffee and when it comes to lunch, almost $2,000 eating out a year. most who ate out and bought coffee regularly were between the ages of 18 and 24 years old. booking your next flight will be much easier. this week the faa will implement a new set of rules that are expected to make buying your ticket less confusing when you're looking at the total

price. nbc's jay gray has that story. >> reporter: this week new rules from the department of transportation take flight, conditions most agree will ease some confusion for travelers. >> it is sort of the consumers win here. the consumer wins by now having a little laundry list of rules that should make airfare buying a little more transparent, a little safer and a little bit easier. >> reporter: here's a closer look at that new laundry list for passengers. the total cost of a ticket must now be posted, no more fine print or hidden fees, including the cost of baggage. airlines are now required to let passengers know whether a flight is canceled, diverted or delayed more than 30 minutes and travelers have a 24-hour window now to hold or cancel a reservation at no cost. >> that's what consumers want. they want to make better decisions. >> reporter: decisions that will be based on fares that are unfortunately on the rise. >> we could see another year where these airfare hikes are

attempted on a rather regular basis. not just airfare hikes, now the implementation of what they call surcharges. they start to look at what are probably popular traveling dates. >> reporter: but are the new regulations in place, the increases shouldn't come as a surprise. >> we'll get a better gauge as to how to budget for airfare, vacation planning by knowing exactly what our out-the-door price is going to be. >> reporter: even if we have to save a little bit more before getting thut door and in inting the air. u.s. stocks are opening slightly higher. we'll check in live at the snoesh york stock exchange. >> numbers have fallen into negative territory as vesters watch the news out of greece get ready for the world economic forum in davos. today texas instruments in the

semiconductor space is one investors expected to rebound in 2012 after the devastating thailand flooding in late 2011. a recovery in this space should drive chip makers to new highs. intel was one of the key companies in that chip space i reported last week. in other news, watching research in motion. takeover talks swirl as investors and analyst ponder whether the new chief executive had been appointed to lead a turnaround of the struggling smartphone maker or prepare it for a fail. hines who joined the company in 2007, took over the top job on saturday when the co-ceos resigned. he said he wants to do a better job in ruling out innovative new products to get ahead of the competition but argued the company doesn't need seismic changes. we're putting a lot of focus on technology with semi-conductors reporting today and the new management changers at research in motion. that's the news over here. back over to you. >> a lot to watch this week.

okay, thank you. well, this week d.c. will host a star-studded world premier for the new rescue adventure "big miracle." the movie tells the real-life story of the international effort to rescue gray whales from being trapped in ice near point barrow, alaska. it also includes a real-life white house love story that was sparked during the save the whales event. bonnie carroll was a technical advisor for the movie and part of that real-life love story and joins us with baltimore on the movie now. welcome, it is so great to have you here. >> it is great to be here. >> i was getting a little bit of a picture of the movie. i went and looked at the trailer so that i could find out more about the film. but tell us how were you involved? >> well, i was actually working in the west wing of the reagan white house back in 1988 when the whales were trapped in the ice and became involved. that's how i met my husband, colonel tom carroll. he was leading the rescue operation up in barrow, alaska. we met actually over the phone initially and that's where our romance started.

>> this became really an international incident. i could tell that from the trailer that i saw. everyone became involved. all over the country people were reporting on these whales. something had to be done. were you helpful in getting some attention from the white house. >> oh, we did. i had president reagan call. we actually -- an exciting part of the end of the film is bringing in the soviets and this was at the height of the cold war. so to have the soviet union come in with ice breaker and my husband, flew an american army helicopter out, landed it on the soviet vessel, rode it in and they broke through and saved the whales. >> how did you meet him? by telephone? >> yes. yes. >> and he was in the navy. there is a wedding picture. how did you meet actually? >> yes. it was over the phone. we connected absolutely in our first phone call and they have the phone call in the movie. so i'm really excited and they have some of our wedding photos at the end of the film. >> so your love story is actually a part of this movie and in the midst of the saving the whales.

but something else happened as a result -- well, first of all, we should tell the tragic story of what happened with your husband. you were married. we saw those beautiful wedding pictures. and then? >> and very tragically, a number of years later, tom was killed in an army plane crash with seven other soldiers and it was in the aftermath of that horrible tragedy that i founded the national organization called t.a.p.s., the tragedy assistance program for survivors. >> how did you come to start that? there was something missing, you found. >> yes. back in the early '90s there was no national peer-based support program for all military families, grieving the loss of a loved one. so we created this organization and now it is the major national partner with the defense department to care for all those who are grieving. >> what are some of the things that t.a.p.s. does? >> we provide comfort care, community-based support, counseling, case work assistance, immediate support for all those families who suffered a loss. this wednesday at the premier, we will have over 400 surviving

families that -- >> that is actually one of the sponsors for the big premier -- >> we are putting on the premier, yes. universal partnered with us to have this gala celebrity event. >> that's fantastic. so the movie premiers on february -- >> 3rd in theaters. >> who are some of the big stars that are going to be here for the premier of the movie? >> oh. the film stars drew barrimore, ted dan son, kristin bell, der mott mullroney plays my husband. i was thrilled with that choice. >> you think they chose somebody that looks like you? >> she does, she looks very much like me. we just did the press junket out in l.a. and people were asking if we were related. >> they also hired you to kind of help with the film. >> universal has been tremendous. they actually made a very generous donation to t.a.p.s. in support of my technical

advisement on the film. >> it is great to hear about t.a.p.s. and the wonderful work they are doing. i'm excited about seeing this movie because it sounds like a real adventure and a love story. so something for everybody. >> it is. it absolutely is. >> we're so glad that you took the time to come and see us. i know you live in alaska. welcome back to washington. you must have a lot of memories from this part of the world, too. >> oh, yes. thank you. our time now, 11:50. coming up, is handwriting in kids key to their academic achievement? meteorologist tom kierein will be back with more on the break from the snow. at 3:00, ellen sits down with a

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a surprise celebrity divorce as super model heidi klum and singer seal will splitting up. the two released a statement saying while they have respect for each other, they've simply grown apart. they added it was a mutual and amicable decision to separate. the power couple married in 2005 and have four children together. actor tracy morgan is recovering in the hospital after collapsing at a film festival. sources say the "30 rock" star

had just stepped off the stage at the sundance film festival in park city, utah. he was acting dizzy and confused just before he collapsed. a spokesperson says morgan was overcome by a mix of of exhaustion and altitude. is he expected to be okay. a new study from florida international university looked at handwriting and children and found learning to write better earlier can impact overall academic performances later. diana gonzalez explains. >> what about this one right here? what is this picture of? >> reporter: at rem learning center in south miami-dade, teaching these 4 and 5 year-olds to write is a priority. >> my favorite letter is -- c -- i mean k. >> reporter: the children's trust funded a study that finds how well these children learn to write will have a significant impact on school grades later.

fiu researchers analyzed information from 3,000 miami-dade public school students first when they were in preschool and then second grade. >> we found that kids who had higher scores on the fine motor writing test in pre-k had better grades and bet ter standard achievement test scores in reading and math. >> reporter: pre-k students who did poorly in writing had "c" averages. researchers are still looking into why. >> we think it could be attention. we think that kids who have greater attention skills might also have greater writing skills because they're able to focus and are able to copy. >> reporter: researchers encourage parents to work on writing with their kids. >> but now i'm riealizing i should probably focus more on it. i provide the materials and let them access it as they want to.

>> i like making js and i like making cars. >> drawing has helped, too. we'll take a look at some of the stories that we'll be following for news4 this afternoon. pat joins us from the newsroom with a preview of things to come. >> happy monday. oscar nominations come out tomorrow morning. we'll have a preview of what you can expect. also this afternoon on news4 at 4:00, new videos released in the case of the missing mother in florida who disappeared right after she appeared to testify against her ex-fiance on "the people's court." and then at 5:00, to buy or lease whether it comes to getting a brand-new car, the key is in that fine print. which is the better deal? liz crenshaw breaks down what you need to know tonight on news4. we start at 4:00. >> pat, thank you. it is time for a final check on our forecast. here's tom. >> you'll need an umbrella. we've got some rain about to

move into the metro area coming in from the west. it is a broader area of rain than what we've seen so far today and that's going to linger into the afternoon, periods of rain, maybe briefly moderate at times. we still have this stubborn patchy fog around. especially in maryland. the fog is rather thick. we have many locations where the visibility's still right around a quarter of a mile or so. watch out for that, allow yourself extra time if you're heading out. also we have a few pockets where temperatures are a lite bit below freezing right along pennsylvania border. watch out, there may be a little more icing there over the next hour or so. but then everywhere we ought to climb into the upper 30s, low and mid 40s the rest of the day. may hit upper 40s to near 50 just south of washington during the afternoon. rain ending by sunset. then clearing out after midnight tonight, sun back tomorrow, a beautiful day on tuesday. a lot of melting going on and it will be up into the mid 50s tomorrow afternoon. then on wednesday, partly cloudy, highs mid 40s. more rain likely on thursday and then maybe lingering into friday morning, we'll dry out friday

afternoon with a high around 50, to be followed about anice weekend, saturday and sunshine, low to mid 40s on sunday. see you tomorrow morning. >> there are still some icy patches out there where it is shady. >> watch your footing. >> be careful if you're heading out now. that's "news4 midday" for today. thank you for being with us and invite you to tune in for more news at 4:00, 5:00, 6:00, and tonight at 11:00. until then, have a terrific day. see you in the morning. does your cable company keep charging you more... and more... and more? stop paying so much for second best. upgrade to verizon fios and get tv, internet and phone for our best price online: just $89.99 a month guaranteed for two years. you save $600. go to verizon.com/greatprice to sign up now

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