keeping celebration from turning to frustration. the metrotrack work you need to know about if you're heading to one of several events happening around town this weekend. sad day. it's a very sad day. >> a mysterious and deadly altercation on a fairfax roads. the argument that led a woman dead and police searching for

her killer. and a community overcome with emotions after a fire reduced her home to rubble. thank you, everyone, for starting your weekend with us. i'm angie goff. >> and i'm richard jordan. welcome to news4 today on this saturday, may 5th, cinco de mayo. and we've had thunderstorms the past couple weeks. everyone wants to know what's going to happen today. let's bring in chuck bell. >> good morning to you. did you have a good week. >> i had a great week. it was nice yesterday. >> one came through around lunchtime. then another shower comes in late afternoon. no one got a whole lot of rain. just hit and miss kind of stuff. little bit more on the way for saturday. certainly not going to be a washout as you take a look outside. awfully thick this morning. muggy, and foggy, and hazy at the same time.

a fair sky overhead. temperatures are mild in the muggy low 60s. 59 now in waldorf. 66 in annapolis this morning. get a little bit further out to the west, it's a touch cooler now. martinsburg, virginia, 61. no rain in our immediate vicinity. there are showers now across parts of southern west virginia. the majority of that rain you see, that's going to be down to our south and west today. but that being said, a little daytime heating with this weather around and a front sliding our way means showers will be a distinct possibility later on this afternoon. not going to be a washout. your chances increase the farther south you travel. all the way toward fredricksburg. sort of keep that in mind. have a backup plan ready for today. upper 70s for today and a little

better tomorrow. less rain chance for your sunday, but little bit of a cloud issue. we'll talk about that later on. >> thanks. and today kicks off a busy weekend in the district. the caps and rangers face-off today for a critical game four. the nats continue their series. and the avon walk for breast cancer has just started and will last all weekend. huge crowds are expected. and it won't be easy to get around on metro. three stations on the green line are closed. delays on just that line could be nearly an hour. there is single tracking on red, orange, and blue lines. make sure you give yourself extra travel time. this morning a great loss for a well-known community activist. firefighters are trying to

figure out what caused the 19th century home of dorothy meyer to catch fire and bush to the ground. >> reporter: the flames consumed the home feeding on the dry seasoned woods of century-old beams. then it gave way. thousands of pounds of brick and flaming wood pancaked collapsing to the ground. not long afterwards, the homeowners arrived at the scene. the unflappable dorothy brizill was true to form. just the facts please. but after mayor vincent gray came to give her condolences, it got the best of her. she was taken to the hospital to monitor raised blood pressure. >> it's hard to imagine coming home and having your house burn down. that's your home, that's your

history. >> reporter: a d.c. firefighter was injured in battling what was a very dangerous blaze. a building collapse is one of the most hazardous situation a firefighter can face. >> the crews that responded here did an outstanding job. i want to particularly identify truck six for the job they did. >> reporter: hours after the fire was extinguished, firefighters continued to put out hot spots as they flared up. news4 today. a deadly case of road rage in fairfax county. a woman is left in the middle of a road after getting an argument with another driver. it happened yesterday morning. police say a 21-year-old woman stopped her car and started arguing with another driver. somehow she suffered serious injuries and the other driver took off. the woman later died at the hospital. the suspect was driving a black chevy suv with temporary tags.

if you have any information about this, contact fairfax county police. women's right leaders are furious this morning as planned parenthood had its state funding cut off. banning the organization from receiving any tax paying. arizona also -- but supporters of the law say public money shouldn't indirectly support abortion services. planned parenthood says the funding ban would affect 20,000 women in the state. they say they're considering challenging the law in court. president obama officially kicks off his re-election campaign today and he's doing it in virginia. he's got rallies planned at vcu in richmond and ohio state in columbus. they are both battle ground states this year. many analysts say the president must win at least one of those states if he wants to be re-elected. he's also choosing to speak on

college campuses which shows how crucial young voters will be this year. now, the president will hope vcu's popular basketball coach can earn him votes. shaka smart has become one of the hottest coaches in the country. he led the team to the final four the past year and the president is a huge hoops fan as we know. news4 will be there as the president relaunches his campaign. we'll have a recap on news4 at 11:00. the unemployment rate fell to 8.1%. but analysts say it's because more people have given up looking for work. the country added 115,000 jobs, lower than expected. mitt romney wasted no time in hammering president obama in what he calls his quote, failed

economic policies. >> this is a time when america wants to have someone who knows what it takes to create jobs and get people working again. i think it helps to have had a job to create a job. and i have and i will. >> president obama argued that while me april jobs report was weaker than expected, the economy was still growing. he pointed out that he inherited a deep recession and it's going to take a long time to fully recover. one local business is doing what they can to help in that recovery. michael and sons services a holding a job fair today. it's at 5740 general washington drive in alexandria. the company is looking for plumbing, electrical, and hvac technicians. michael & sons has offices in philadelphia and north carolina. maryland lawmakers will soon be back to work to prevent half a billion dollars in cuts to the

state budget. governor martin o'malley says a special session will begin the 14th to pass a deal. democrats and republicans couldn't agree for the wealthy because they couldn't come to a deal, more than $100 million in cuts are set to kick in jul first. republicans say the state can handle the budget cuts and there's no reason to return. right now the time is 6:09. a nationwide salmonella outbreak and it wasn't something patients ate due to it. details ahead. rusty bolts, cracked foundation, and parts connected with duct tape? that's what they found when they checked out road signs. checked spring has sprung but so have my allergies.

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welcome back. at least 14 people included one in virginia has gotten sick from handling salmonella tainted dog food. each of the cases traces back to dry dog food from the diamond pet food plant. people were likely contaminated after handling the food and didn't wash their hands. the same plant was shut down after mold got into the food and killed dozens of dogs. five exotic animals that were amongst more than 50 released by their owner shortly before he committed suicide are back on the family's ohio farm. marian thompson picked up the

animals. they were the anl to survived after the incident. ohio is attempted now to pass a law that would ban new owners of exotic animals. you drive past them every day, but have you ever taken a second look at the large highway signs andal po atall poles lini interstates? >> reporter: virginia crews working overtime we pairing highway signs. after this sign came crashing down on interstate 66. >> i was surprised that the sign structure on i-66 had fallen. we are inspecting them frequently. >> reporter: nick roper is in charge for our area. >> we've been canvassing since

the failure. >> reporter: they. still don't know why it fell, but they're focused on the anchor bolts. vdot shows an estimated 8% of northern virginia's overhead signs are in poor condition. records show these high mast light poles have the most problems. inspectors look for very specific things. for instance, on this high mast pole they have a problem with the fact there's no cover, you can get to the electronics, and the system holding up the lights. but below they focus on anchor bolts. this is what's holding it to the ground. there's no washers and there's too much clearance underneath. as many as 25% of high mast poles are in poor or serious condition. but roper cautions, the records are out of date and the number is closer to 15%. >> only a sampling of those

reports i noted half of those i pulled have been incorrect. >> reporter: many have been pulled or replaced. we went checking out the worst rated. near gallows road, a rusty pole, corroding bolts. near washington duct tape holding broken parts together. >> public can see corrosion on a bridge beam or sign or pole. doesn't necessarily mean they need to be concerned that that structure is in danger of falling. >> reporter: roper says these structures are safe because they're inspected every five years. >> they're massive and they're heavy. >> reporter: henry jaffey says they're always in risk if not in good repair. back in arlington, inspectors noticed missing bolts on this cross beam more than three years ago. news4 found there's only one

bolt now holding it on. over a lane of traffic. after we told vdot about what we found, they took the entire sign down. >> and that was tisha thompson reporting. the agency is now working overtime to inspect more than 500 similar signs. >> after that story i've been looking up a lot more. >> yeah. watch out. something might be coming down. >> not only the signs but the trees. i started thinking how many of the trees are doing okay with storms and everything. well, speaking of storms, we saw some showers yesterday. chuck, you said there could be some more rain here and there in the way for parts of our region. >> yes, indeed. there's a possibility of a few showers on your saturday. it's not going to be a washout though. we're off to a beautiful start here. the sun is up. your weekend is officially underway. forecast next.

snoechlt ♪ you got to fight for your right to party ♪ one of music's most unique and beloved voices has gone silent. adam "mca" yauch died after battling a rare form of cancer for three years. the beatie boys have been influential in rock and rap for 20 years. they were inducted into the hall of fame a few weeks ago. yauch was 47 years old. switching to weather now. radar has been active. >> yes. many showers in and out. now people want the chances to be away. there's a little concern on my part as we get into your weekend forecast that there may be a few

showers to contend with. most of your weekend will be rain free, but that being said, later on this afternoon you folks going out to the virginia gold cup or anything into northern virginia, that's where the chances will be better today. the further north you go, the less rain chance you will run into for your saturday. outside now it's a beautiful weekend to get your weekend underway. as a result we have the beautiful mirror calm finish. the first saturday in may. that means kentucky derby time. coming up on nbc tonight. so you won't want to miss that. showers and thunderstorms. might be a day for the mudders out there at churchill downs. for us the mudders won't have to worry too much about our rain chances for showers today. a light breeze out of the northeast at only 5 miles per

hour. temperatures mostly upper 50s. most everybody in the low to mid-60s. not much rain chance just yet. one or two loads of sprinkles out near annapolis. long parts of the shenandoah valley today. there's this area going over churchill downs today. most headed into the carolinas. but on the northeast side of that system where we are, there will be a chance for showers and storms later on this afternoon. there's a lot of shower chances around the country, but fewer aiming directly at us. as a result most of your weekend will be rain free. that ripple of low pressure going just down past the center today, may skrd shower chances. especially across central virginia. those chances sneak all the way north even into the d.c. metro

area. that's the reason rain chances are better today in virginia than they are in maryland. then overnight tonight, high pressure moving in. that sets up with an easterly wind. that can be tricky with the cold ocean water. that easterly breeze, may have cloud cover to contend with. today mild off to a dry start. showers will develop mainly this afternoon mainly to the south of town. highs to the upper 70s to near 80. overnight partly cloudy and so/so viewing for the super moon. it's just before midnight tonight. it's the closest the moon is to the earth during the earth's rotation. it will look 14% bigger. 14% more moon for you tonight. unfortunately we'll have the clouds around, so it won't be the best viewing. all you need is a peek here and there. >> you must have been reading my

facebook mine. kim, a viewer watching now said i'm wondering if chuck bell will be able to see the super moon this evening. >> holy cow. we're going to have to prepare this show so this happens all the time. >> kim, he's giving you 14% more moon. >> perfect. >> thank you. it's called the most exciting two minutes in sports and it happened today. more than 100,000 people are expected to pack churchill downs for the kentucky derby today. many of them will wear the fancy hats. right now a horse o named bodymeister is scheduled to win. but the kentucky derby is just one of sporting events today. >> around here the nationals and the capitals are in action. there's highlights from the nats game last night and a preview of what's expected on the ice today

in this morning's sports in a minute. good morning, everybody. your sports minute starts with the nationals who are hosting the phillies hoping to take back the cart with some natitude. fans on hand to see steven strasburg pitch. the nationals go down early but come back up. extra innings in the 11th. ramos with the bases loaded delivering the game-winning hit. ramos flying high as the hero. nationals take it 4-3, their fifth walkoff win of the year. game four between the caps and rangers this afternoon at 12:30 at verizon center. if you can't make it to the game, watch it here on nbc 4. nba, celtics and the hawks. boston point guard rajon rondo a triple double.

17 points, 14 rebounds, and 12 assists as the celtics win 90-84 over the hawks. they take a 2-1 series lead. rock the red somewhere whether it's nationals park or the verizon center. have a great weekend. >> well, i feel bad i'm wearing purple. >> there you go. you got to change. mayor gray wants the gnnats fans to pack the ballpark all weekend long. >> they want them to support their home team. >> the team blocked single game ticket sales from outside our region in hopes of keeping philadelphia fans away. philly fans have been notorious for traveling out to cheer there. if extreme sports are more your thing, you can be one of the first to ride a new skate

park in d.c. the meluth skate park will officially open this afternoon. mayor gray will be on hand as will pro skate border darren harper. built the cup last year and held a pro competition in september. but it closed after to finish more construction. the design of the 15,000 square foot park is inspired by freedom plaza. the ribbon cutting at 2:00. >> wear your helmet out there. >> there's a lot of talent though. the time now is 6:28. the woman at the center of the secret service prostitution scandal breaks her silence. the startling revelations that have members of congress asking questions. and it's one of metro's busiest and popular bus routes. so why is transit agency considering cuts stops?

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welcome to news4 today. i'm richard jordan. >> and i'm angie goff. here are some of the top stories we're following. major delays expected on metro. four green line stations are closed. there is single tracking on three lines. that could make it hard to get around with big crowds expected to flock to d.c. for the caps and nats game as well as the avon walk for cancer. president obama kicks off his re-election today speaking to students at virginia commonwealth university. shaka smart will introduce the commander in chief. no word yet on what caused the fire of a well-known community activist. dorot dorothy brizill. firefighters say the fire caused

the house to collapse. one firefighter was hurt but is expected to be okay. the woman who claims to be the escort who sparked the secret service prostitution is speaking out. dania suarez spoke for the first time for a paid interview. she called the agent dumb for thinking he wouldn't have to pay her. she also said she could have posed a threat to the president security. suarez flew to dubai after the incident blew up. she has not been contacted by officials. something that concerns members of congress. >> this woman is essential to the investigation. she's the one who created the initial conflict that brought the house down. she's the one who was involved at the very center of this whole case. and the secret service has not been able to interview her. >> the u.s. secret service is not commenting on the suarez

interview. nine agents are leaving the agency as a result of the scandal while the pentagon is investigating the behavior of 12 u.s. military personnel. the defense in the john edwards trial will cross examine. on the sand friday the candidate said the candidate knew contributions from bunny mellon were not for the campaign. really intended for edwards' personal use. prosecutors claim edwards used nearly a million dollars to hide his affair. still investigating possible corruption by d.c. lawmakers. u.s. attorney for the case says investigations are still open on kwame brown and vincent gray. they're both accused of finance

violences. he told wamu yesterday that his office is working quickly to find the truth because the people of the state deserve honest politicians. >> they need to act with integrity and honor. if they don't, people want them held accountable. riders may soon get from point a to point b a little faster using metro buses. the transit agency is considering taking stops off bus routes. but we explain why it may not sit well with everyone. >> reporter: it's called the 70. seventh street line is one of the most heavily traveled. ellison peppers has been used it for over four decades. >> it's respected by the citizens of this city. and it's well needed. >> reporter: but the 70 also makes frequent stops. something regulars say can drive them crazy.

>> stops with stop, stop, stop, stop. it slows you down enough. >> sometimes afternoon is like 30 minutes, 45 minutes. you get a wait like that. >> reporter: so metro is holding a series of hearings to see which bus stops, if any, it could scrap. >> this is just the first step in this process. it's a chance for the public to voice their input and let us know what they think about the idea of bus consolidation. >> reporter: cutting routes can be tricky. there are disabled riders that say they don't want to walk an extra block or two. others say they're hoof it for a more efficient ride. >> i think that's a good idea. probably help the economy stop spending like that. >> reporter: metro agrees saying it's one way to save money in these tight budget times. >> the goal here is to improve

on time performance and efficiency. there's a chance for us to recoup some money as well. >> reporter: the exact stops that will be cut won't be known until summer. >> metro will hold those meets first tuesday at matthews memorial baptist church. then thursday at mount airy baptist church on north capitol street. and the third is thursday, may 17th, at trinity episcopal church. new this morning, an american drone strike killed at least eight suspected militants in pakistan. it happened at the site of another drone strike earlier this week. pakistan has demanded the u.s. stop the drone attacks saying they kill innocent civilians. military officials say pakistan needs to do a better job of cracking down on terrorist organizations. the pentagon released videos of

americans questioning saddam hussein's driver. investigators questioned him about his support for al qaeda and information about attacks. the video doesn't show torture against him. he spent six years in guantanamo bay and is appealing his conviction. right now a tentative deal is in the works for a chinese disdent to come to the u.s. for chen guangcheng. he was ordered to house arrest. he fleed to the u.s. embassy. there's new evidence in the molestation case against jerry

sandusky. and some good news for mitt romney away from the race for the white house. why what makes the sleep number store different? you walk into a conventional mattress store, it's really not a.ut you.

they say, "well, if you want a firm bed you can lie on one of those, if you want a soft bed you can lie on one of those." we provide the exact individualization that your body needs. this is your body there. you can see a little more pressure in the hips. now you can feel what happens as we raise your sleep number setting and allow the bed to contour to your individual shape. oh, wow! that feels really good. it's hugging my body. when you find somebody's perfect level of comfort, that may be the first time they've ever felt a bed that feels exactly like they're hoping it would. - wow. - oh, yeah. it's not about soft or firm. it's about support where you find it most comfortable. you can adjust it however you want so you don't have to worry about buying the wrong mattress. once they get our bed, they're like, "why didn't i do this sooner?" to celebrate 25 years of better sleep, for both of you, sleep number introduces the silver edition bed set, at incredible savings of $1,000 for a limited time. only at the sleep number store, where queen mattresses start at just $699.

a day to thank me for all of the little things. like being the only one who knows how to turn on the dishwasher.

happy mother's day, family. you love me. [ male announcer ] buy any kfc 10 pc meal or larger and get a free double chocolate chip cake. there may now be at least 17 accusers in the child sexual abuse case against former penn state assistant coach jerry sandusky. suggests there could be at least seven more victims above the ten named in court records. the filing asked for the state attorney's general to provide more information about the accusers. experts say the growing number of victims could help or hurt the defense considering how serious their claims are. a woman will find out this summer how long she'll spend in prison for an acid attack. jackson was accused of assault

and reckless endangerment. she had another woman throw acid at a mother holding her girl. it happened in 2010 burning the mother and the child. jackson was apparently angry at the victim for dating her ex-boyfriend. she could get 65 years in prison when sentenced in augds. a two week old effort to transform in prince george county led to a drug bust. they found pounds of marijuana and cash and ammunition yesterday. 28-year-old leon flith was charged with felony possession and intent to distribute. in about half an hour, one of the popular trees in washington, d.c. will be taken down. the national christmas tree

died. it suffered shock when it was moved from new jersey. it was planted last march. and the tree that sat there before it was planted in 1978 but fell over in high winds last february. a new tree will be planted this october just in time for the holidays. mitt romney is a grandfather again. the presumptive republican nominee's son tweeted out they had new twins. it's the second time tag and his wife have used a surrogate. they have three other children not born through surragacy. the "today" show is next on nbc 4. let's see what they're working on. >> amy robach joins us live.

i spotted you from afar at the white house correspondents' dinner. you looked beautiful. >> thank you so much. it was a crazy crowd. it was hard to spot anybody. i think maybe i saw you on the dance floor? >> maybe. not showing any good moves for sure. >> i'm sure they were wonderful. angie and richard, good morning to you. coming up on saturday morning, the woman at the center of the secret service scandal is speaking out giving her side of the story. what happened that night in colombia, we're going to bring details. then an anniversary gift turns tragic while a woman plunges to her death while hang gliding. now they're looking at the pilot. now former superer supermodel linda evangelisa is in court telling the father to pay up. we'll tell you why. we're live at churchill downs when we see you a bit on

"today." back to you. >> thanks so much. going to be a good day for the running of the roses in kentucky. but the mudders may be the pick of the litter today. >> it may be good for the people going to the virginia gold cup to wear the really big hat. >> no doubt. virginia a little better chance for rain than the commonwealth today. we'll talk about why that is. and see if we can't straighten it out. what'll it be?

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a best buy employee is out of a job after pulling a prank on a customer. a denver man says he exchanged his old phone for a new one at the clinielectronics store but didn't erase his password from

facebook. the employee posted he's gay and coming out. >> it's wrong but it's funny. >> it is funny but it's a lesson to anybody, always log out of your facebook on other computers and phones and all that. >> that wife must have been in shock. >> no kidding. no, i'm just teasing. >> that's good, chuck. all right. moving over to the weather. >> please, please. >> let's get out of this one. so we are expecting some sprinkles here and there. yesterday we can't complain. not really bad. >> no complaints yesterday. cooled things down just a little bit. so if you wanted to run during the middle of the afternoon yesterday, it was not quite as unbearable as it would have been. but was it a little early summer preview of humid outside. dew point temperatures which is the real measure of moisture in

the atmosphere made it into the high 60s yesterday. by compareson using the 70 degree threshold when we continue to complain about the humidity. outside this morning it looks like a humid start for sure. there's the washington monument, and pavilion. way in the distance that's the national shrine. some clouds around this morning, but it is muggy. 64 degrees. hardly a breeze out there as well. 59 at waldorf. plenty of locations here in the city and especially bayside communities this morning generally speaking in the low to mid-60s. what are you going to do with your big saturday night? here's one thing you could do. the moon is full. right around midnight tonight. and we're jokingly referring to it as the super moon because it's the closest the moon gets to earth each year. it's going to be only 221,000

miles a i way tonight when it's full. typically it's about 250,000 miles away. 14% more moon for you on your saturday night. no rain out there yet. there are showers though. western most western virginia. and rain chances today will be best from about washington southbound into virginia. rain chances really ramp up by the time you get down to the border. these thunderstorms here made for a wet start early this morning at churchill downs for the running of the kentucky derby. all those rain drops should be generally out of there. it'll be a close call. for us, dry start. scattered showers. especially south of town mid to late afternoon today. then tomorrow high pressure settles in, brings an easterly wind into play. and that as a result may mean more cloud cover. so today mild, dry, start. showers developing. especially south of town today. move the rain chance up a little bit. mostly for folks in virginia.

gold cup goers be on the lookout. only so/so viewing for your super moon tonight. temperatures in the 60s. i think our rain chances are stacked up today around noon and 6:00 p.m. for the weekend. then tomorrow not much of a rain threat. much needed rain chances return by wednesday. >> who's your favorite superhero? >> superman. >> think about it. because coming up -- right now it's 6:53 -- this is one of the best days of the year were comic book fans. we're going to explain why when we return. and if you're still looking to book a vacation, why you may be better off going through a travel agent than going online to find the best deals. ♪ strea-ea-ea-ea-eam

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they hope to bring in readers with this event. organizers plan to give away more than 3 million books today. comic sales are up. they topped $660 million last year. twice the figure from 1997. you can see a list of vendors on freecomicbookday.com. >> we're debating. i like she-ra but you say she's not a comic book character. she saved the world. disappointing do it yourself trips have some consumers reconsidering the internet. just when you thought travel agents were a thing of the past, they're making a comeback. here's liz crenshaw. >> i think people are starting to get overwhelmed with the options out there. everything's a deal, everything's screaming at you. >> reporter: lisa is talking about the abundance of travel

sites where you can book online. do it yourself vacations. the downside, what if something goes wrong? >> especially when you're having a complex trip. you're going to a lot of different places. you have a lot of different hotel rooms and airline plans to deal with. maybe you don't realize that you booked your flight for the wrong time and can't get your hotel that night. you're in a strange city. you're stuck. >> reporter: many consumers are seeing it's good to have someone to lean on. travel agents say they can save you time and help you avoid scams. >> you don't want to go to italy and found your villa doesn't exist or you are scammed for a week's stay. those things happen day after day. >> reporter: healther is a travel agent and vice president in northwest washington. she and many other good agents survive the internet booking craze because of what she says an agent can deliver. besides making sure it's legit,

travel agents can personalize your vacation and find good deals you wouldn't otherwise know about. >> many times we can find such hidden value, things people haven't discovered that we can produce a trip much cheaper than in the outset. we have good tools and resources. we know who to call and how to put it together. >> reporter: what does it cost you to have a travel agent working for you? sometimes not at all. many work through the hotel they send you to or the cruise you take. others may charge a small fee for booking a flight. even good agents agree, don't think you always have to call an agent. if you find a deal online and it's not complicated, book it. >> visit grandma in cleveland on southwest, book it. but if it gets on your nerves and want an expert to take care of it, we're here. >> and t