severe storms. good afternoon, i'm pat lawson muse. >> i'm jim rose, filling in for jim handly. there is now a severe thunderstorm watch in effect. >> meteorologist doug kammererer is keeping track of what is going on at the storm center. doug? >> we are watching that severe thunderstorm watch, still in effect until 8:00 tonight. look at the numbers out here right now, looking at 89 degrees out at the airport. that humidity is up to around 50% that's why we have a heat index of 93. earlier today, many areas saw the heat index close to 100 and once again, plenty of very warm and humid air out there and that leads to thunderstorms. we do have a lot of thunderstorms out there to talk about now. the strongest storms in our area, back to the west, just to the west of winchester right now, what we are going to be watching, those storms making their way down, to the south of fredericksburg, a very large cluster, very strong storm there is, making their way down to the south, down toward richmond. once again, the entire area under a severe thunderstorm watch until 8:00 tonight. i am watching a couple of

thunderstorms out there right now for the d.c. metro area and those are the storms that are actually in through pennsylvania, moving over the mason-dixon line, just to the east of hagerstown. now they have started to intensify the last couple of hours, this is actually the frontal boundary that will be making the way down from the north. as it does it is going to encount they are very warm and humid atmosphere. as it does so, i think we will see more scattered showers and thunderstorms develop, some of which could be strong to severe. of course, we will continue to keep you updated right here. but that's not all we have to talk about. we have a great day tomorrow but then, possible record-breaking heat once again as it will begin to move in during the day on thursday. i will let you know about the storms today, just how nice things are going to be tomorrow and then all about that heat i think moved back in for the day thursday. talk more about that in my full forecast. >> thanks, doug. families who lost loved ones in the colorado theater shooting last friday that left 12 dead are now face the somber task of planning funerals. the first service will take

place on friday. investigators, meanwhile, continue to search for evidence. they returned to the theerntd the suspect's apartment today. and it's a bittersweet day for one victim's family a woman whose husband was critically wounded gave birth this morning to their first child. the baby was delivered in the same hospital where her husband now lies in critical condition from a head wound. the alleged gunman, 24-year-old james holmes, will be formally charged on monday. prosecutors say they may seek the death penalty. two young women, best friends, were inside that theater when the bills started flying. one of them was seriously wounded but they believe they survived the ordeal because of their unbreakable bond. >> you never really know how close you are to somebody and how important they are to you until you can test your friendship and literally say you were both willing to lay down your lives for teach other because she was following give up hers to let me run and i was willing to give up mine to make sure she lived. >> we will bring you ali and

stephanie's story of bravery, friendship and survival coming up in the next half hour of news on news4 at 4:00. jennifer hudson's former brother-in-law will spend the rest of his life in prison. a judge gave william balfour three life sentences today. he is convicted of killing the oscar winner's mother, brother and nephew in 2008. prosecutors sabal four did it in retaliation against hudson's sister, who wouldn't reconcile their marriage. despite his conviction, balfour maintained his innocence at today's sentencing. his lawyers made a last-ditch request for a new trial. they claimed jennifer hudson shouldn't have testified because she wasn't there at the time of the killings. however, the judge denied that request. a nine-month-long investigation ends with a murder arrest for the death of baby in fairfax county. police have charged 20-year-old carol lud ski yesterday. they say she was taking care of 11-year-old knee maya williams at a house in vienna back in october. the baby somehow ended up

unresponsive and was pronounced dead at the hospital. a grand jury investigation and autopsy eventually found the baby died of blunt force trauma. pat collins will have more on what led to this murder arrest coming up on news4 at 5:00. police in hyattsville working to figure out who is at fault after a train hit an suv, pinning a woman inside her vehicle. she was trying to drive across the tracks here at decatur street when she was hit. took about a half hour for emergency crews to fee her from the suv. witnesses say she had no time to get off the tracks before the crash. >> train hit her. her car flipped over there. she wasn't moving fine but she was talking okay. so that's good sign. >> the woman has serious injuries. she is expected to be okay. witnesses say the train crossing signals were working at the time of the accident. there was some road construction near the tracks and crews were waving traffic by in one alternating lane. at least a dozen people ended up in handcuffs today after a march to call for more

aids funding research in the district. the weekend and aids march started at the convention center and made its way down k street and pennsylvania avenue and over to the white house. there, marchers tied red ribbons to the white house fence, but when they refused to keep on walking, they clashed with police. that march is one of several events that coincide with the international aids conference in town. another event brings ryan white's mother to our area to talk about the importance of aids research. >> i didn't know too much about it except that it was a death sentence. so, now to see people living with the disease, see mothers turn into grandmothers, you know, even grandfathers, it is just so amazing so see people living because of the great medical advances we have had in the last few years. >> ryan white's mother will be speaking tonight as part of a panel at whitman walker's health hiv forum. that starts at 7:00 in

northwest. now to the presidential campaign. we have some early results from the new nbc news/"wall street journal" poll that will be released later today. that poll shows voters continue to view barack obama as a better commander in chief than mitt romney might be by a ten-point margin, 45% to 35%. but mitt romney scores better on a key economic question. jennifer johnson reports. >> reporter: on the move and on the attack, mitt romney blasted president barack obama on defense cuts. in a speech before the veterans of foreign wars in reno. >> today, we are just months away from an arbitrary, across-the-board budget reduction that would saddle the military with $1 trillion in cuts. severely shrink our force structure. >> reporter: president obama campaigned in oregon and washington state, while unveiling a new one-minute tv ad to run in nine swing states. the tone is less negative and gives voters a choice. >> not just between two political parties or even two

people. it's a choice between two very different plans for our country. >> reporter: despite negative ads about romney's business record with bain capital, a new nbc/"wall street journal" poll shows americans think romney would have better ideas than the president to improve the economy. 43-36%. although the president polled 16 points higher than romney in looking out for the middle class. that was the message michelle obama gave voters in her first solo campaign visit to swing state ohio >>. >> we believe that in this country, everyone should do their fair share and that means teachers and firefighters shouldn't pay higher taxes than millionaires and billionaires. >> reporter: while the president plans to campaign domestically this week, romney is heading overseas to england, poland and his real, a country mr. obama has not visited in his first term. even today, romney criticized the president's record on foreign affairs, but almost every poll shows that foreign policy is a big strength for the

president. on capitol hill, jennifer johnson, news4. and there will be more results from the nbc news/"wall street journal" poll coming up tonight on "nbc nightly news." we are now just three days from the opening ceremonies of the 2012 olympic games in london. last-minute preparations are under way at all of the olympic venues. of course, security is paramount at the games. today, british officials decided to deploy an additional 1200 troops on top of the soldiers called up two weeks ago. earlier this month, the british company hired to provide security guards for the games acknowledged that only about half the promised number would be ready. the government is filling the gaps with soldiers. more on the olympics coming up in our next half hour when we will hear from u.s. swimmer ryan lochte. when news4 at 4:00 continues here, a new twist in the story involving two young girls who disappeared almost two weeks ago. why the executors of michael

jackson's estate say they are worried about the safety of his children. ♪ ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] virtual wallet can help you be that person who's good with money. see what's free to spend. move money with a slide. save with a shake. feel good about your decisions.

brad pitt and angelina jolie are the latest victims named in news of the world phone hacking scandal. two former workers with the now-defunct paper are accused of hacking into the couple's phones in hollywood and eight people now face new criminal charges in connection with a scandal, including news of the world editor rebecca brooks and andy callson. he was prime minister david cameron's communications director are. the phone hacking scandal led to millions in payouts to victims, including a lot of a-list celebs. what a man cave really says about the state of your relationship. who's really stalking who on

facebook? and the latest viral video. >> cane from hot 99.5 is hire with the hot topics. start off with the viral videos. >> oh, yeah. >> seen one where a friend tries to scare a friend awake. women show this one first. have a different look. >> so, there's a truck getting towed and it looks like it's coming down and my wife's asleep. we are going to see if we can scare her. babe wake up, there's a truck! [ screaming ] >> oh, that's not nice. >> oh, man. somebody's about to be single. this is the most viral video in the past 24 hours. >> get that camera out. >> play this one for everybody when you -- when everyone gets home tonight. the most viral video in the last 24 hours, we are learning more about that man and his family right there. >> how did they do that? >> that brings up the whole other safety issue, using your

camera while driving with the kid in the back and a sleeping wife. best reaction from the wife. >> honey, don't do that. >> exactly. >> they talked about man caves in the movie "i love you man" but a psychologist is looking at the meaning behind them what happened they say about your relationship. so, tell us, what did he find? >> now, man caves are usually a place why guys go in the basement when they are not allowed to have any other spot to call home. they can decorate it with anything they want, posters, messes, it doesn't matter, at least in my house, i'm allowed to make it messy. they found that man caves actually signify an offset, a structural problem in the relationship, where there's not give and take between a husband or wife or whoever is living together, if it is a man/woman situation. they found because there is an inability to give and take with the rest of the house when it comes to decorating, there could be other problems in the marriage. they have taken this show the

like "man caves" on diy and say let's break these down and figure out if there's relationship issues that go with it and they found there r. >> what if the spouse, the wife, is okay with it. here is your space? >> she is fine with it because it is the basement, if this is stereo typically the way it is, not allowed to decorate any other part of the house, got to have your space in the basement. >> not allowed ed ted to mess other part of the house. western university has a stat about facebook stalking. >> 88% stalked an ex on facebook. some are good at it check out these tips, 48% remain friends with their ex. 70% of people have used a friend's account to get on facebook to look up and see what their ex is doing right now. i would give you my password and you can poke around. 74% check an ex as significant other. and 51% post pics to make an ex

jealous. pictures of a bar. >> what is coming up tomorrow? >> tomorrow on the cane show, 8 and 9, send doubt i heart radio music festival in vegas, two nights, shish kara, no doubt getting back together and at 8 and 9, i will have your chance tomorrow on hot 99.5. >> doug is excited. >> doug is coming with me. vegas. >> so ready to go! >> we got sitters and everything. it's on. >> leave his man cave though. >> that's fine. i do, too. >> thanks. >> all right. >> the national zoo has a new attraction, have you seen this, two cute cheetah cubs will soon make their public debut. zoo members got the first sneak peek at the boy and girl today. everybody together. they were born in april at the smithsonian conservation biology institute in front royal, virginia. scientist says their species is close to extinction. as for their names a nice twist, we won't know that until after the olympics, pat, because the

zoo, they are planning to name the cubs after the fastest american man and woman in the 100 meter dash. >> that is appropriate, they are the fastest cat. >> sure r run up to 75 miles an hour? >> i don't know. i would have to google that. >> that's what -- i think that's right. >> i just googled it. that's correct. >> 75 miles an hour. coming up on news4 at 4:00 this afternoon, a story of survival and friendship, how a close bond got them through the colorado shooting. dramatic video shows an area overtaken by a flash flood. and for all your news, be sure to follow news4

this dramatic amateur video shows just how quickly a flash flood can overtake just about

anything in its path. brian and carla rogers should schott this video in their backyard in miller canyon near tucson. the wildfire three weeks ago left the ground just unable to absorb all the water from the rachel. the runoff caused the miller canyon creek nearby to overflow. water and mud just barrelled right through their backyard. and there was no warning except the roar of the approaching water. >> wow. that is a fofrmis a force. >> happens a lot out west, what they are dealing with in colorado, huge massive wild fires taking away all those trees and soil and water races down. had major flash floods there >> very scary. >> what do we have coming our way? >> for us, we have got it all. with the exception of snow, we really have it all out there talking about heat, talking about severe storms, we are talking about wind, talking about really nice weather in between and then talking about record heat coming up on thursday. so, yeah, i need about seven minutes for this weathercast

but -- oh, i do have it? oh, yeah, that's what i thought. testimo telling me i only have 2:30. sitting at 89 at the airport. temperatures have come down just a little bit from where they were earlier this afternoon w did he see a high in the low to middle 90s most locations, winds out of the northwest 13 miles an hour, that dew point still close to 70, so very warm and muggy. here is where we are right now, notice everybody, just about everybody, into the 80s as a result of the cloud cover. but look at the river, 98 degrees down there that is because they have seen more sunshine, temperatures all across the area that have seen sun were into the mid-90s easily. look at aberdeen, seen sun, 103, current heat index. 104 pax river, 99, la plata, cooler back to the west where we are looking at that rain. here is where the rain is now, back toward winchester, the south of you, pretty good storms here, watching this storm here around frederick county, look

like they could put a severe thunderstorm warning in effect for this country. right now, not severe at this time. back to the west, south and west of winchester, along i-81 here. you notice the storms to the south and the west of white post, making their way down towards front royal. watching out here. a lot of lightning with this. nothing severe now, but a lot of rain, a lot of lightning, some hail and very strong winds from this. here is the other storm making its way down 15. this will come very close to frederick and also mount airy and then most likely into montgomery county the next hour or two. take a look at this watch when i put the lightning on, a little bit less now. there is that severe thunderstorm warning just issued by the national weather service it does include frederick and everybody along 15 here a brand-new severe thunderstorm warning including the mountains here. going to be most likely until 5:00 tonight. i have the gotten that down yet. most likely 5:00 for frederick and frederick county.

watch out from this storm, it continues down to the south. you can see with that train, through montgomery county and maybe around the district by 6:00. this is something we will be watching very, very closely. hot temperatures today, all of those thunderstorms, mostly to our south and west the afternoon. nice weather tomorrow and then the heat really returns during the day on thursday. i think we could be setting another record on thursday with a high temperature of 101. the record high temperature is 100. so if we hit 101, we could be talking about a new record high temperature but enjoy tomorrow. tomorrow looks great, a high of 89 degrees, low humidity. i think tomorrow's going to be a fantastic afternoon. friday, still hot, high of 97, 91 on saturday, we start to settle down just a little bit. once again, i need about four more minutes to tell you about everything we have got. but i will be back in just about 15 >> >> in a clone. >> see you soon. still to come on news4 at

4:00, what the executors of michael jackson's estate have to say about what could be a family feud and the impact on the children. and tonight, a new twist on the disappearance of two cousins at a lake in iowa. and new york's mayor

here's what's happening in the news. right now, police and federal agents are back at the movie near the aurora, colorado, searching for more clues in friday's deadly shooting that left dozens -- a dozen people dead and dozens more wounded. authorities are also searching the suspected gunman's apartment. the first funeral will take place friday. a judge gave jennifer

hudson's former brother-in-law three life sentences for murdering the singer's family members back in 2008. william balfour's lawyers made a last-ditch request for a new trial before today's sentencing. they claimed hudson shouldn't have testified because she wasn't there at the time of the killings but the judge denied that request. at least a dozen aids activists were arrested outside the white house this afternoon. they were among thousands taking part in the end aids march, calling for better hiv and aids funding. they were arrested after tying dollar bills, pill bottles and red ribbons to the white house fence and refusing to leave the area. it coincides with the national aids conference taking place in washington this week. in wall street, stocks fell over continued worries over the debt situation in europe. the dow jones industrial had its third consecutive triple-digit loss, shedding 104 points. the nasdaq dropped 24678 the s & p 500 ended with a 12-point loss. investigators are reaching out to the public for possible

clues as the search for two missing iowa cousins intensifies. the girls were last seen nearly two weeks ago. john yang has the latest. >> reporter: wearing bright pink t-shirts emblazoned with the images of the girls, drew and heather collins struggle to keep it together. 12 days after investigators say their daughter, elizabeth collins, 8, and her 10-year-old cousin, lyric cook-morrissey, were abducted. >> guy as long as i can and then i break down and i get up and guy again. >> reporter: now there's signs of tension between heather and her sister, letter lyric's mom, misty cook morsi. >> even though we would like to be as one family, it has made it to be two separate -- two separate families. >> reporter: the source of the conflict, statements from investigators last week that lyric's parents, now estranged, weren't fully cooperating. monday, misty took a second polygraph test. she said she passed. investigators wouldn't discuss

the exam. >> we are getting the cooperation that we are asking for. so, it's getting better. >> reporter: both misty and her husband, who spent time in prison over drug charges, over the weekend, she acknowledged her criminal past but said it had nothing to do with the girls' disappearance. >> not something that i'm scared of, not something i shy away from in any respect. >> reporter: the two girls were last seen july 13th heading out on a bike ride. their bikes were later found on a nature trail by a lake. searchers combed the area and drained the lake but last week, authorities called the case an abduction, saying there were signs the girls were still alive. monday, investigators said they still cling to that hope. >> nothing to indicate that they are not. we want to keep hopes up, you know, and for the family to keep the hope up. >> reporter: community is holding together, pink ribbons, missing posters and message boards, throughout this tiny rural area, parents are worried. >> my kids are on lock down.

they don't go anywhere without me, not even in my own front yard. >> is that person still around, are they looking to take someone else? >> reporter: as heather collins yes or yearns for the return of her daurnd the nie daughter and the niece she considers her own child. >> we love you and miss you. miss your laughter and your jokes. 12 jurors are now seated in the murder trial of drew peterson. attorneys are working to choose three more alternates. peterson is a former chicago area police sergeant charged with killing his third wife, kathleen savio. her death was originally ruled an accidental drawning but investigators reopened the case after peterson's fourth wife, stacy, disappeared in 2007. his attorneys say savio's death was an accident and that stacy ran off with another man and is still alive. the executors of michael jackson's estate say a family feud has them worried about the singer's mother and three children. letter posted on fan sites today

states the executors are trying to protect family members from bullying and greed. they didn't detail what happened. the letter comes after deputies responded to some sort of dispute at katherine jackson's home. she has custody of michael jackson's three children. mrs. jackson was reported missing over the weekend. it turned out she was with relatives in arizona. now new yorkers are getting their say on whether they think the mayor is combatting obesity or infringing on their rights. >> mayor michael bloomberg has proposed a ban on large, sugary drinks served as restaurants, movie theaters and other eateries. today, there was a public hearing. >> reporter: super-sized sodas may soon be shrunk. that's if mayor michael bloomberg has his way. today, those for and against the mayor's controversial ban on large, sugary drinks will face off at a public hearing nmaker the mayor announced his proposal with a detailed demonstration and charts to show how much sugar is in soft drink, saying

20-ounce soda contains 16 packets of sugar. >> if you are going to have a cup of coffee or tea, would you put 16 packets of sugar in it? i don't think some. >> reporter: the proposal bans large soda, anything bigger than 16 ounces at restaurants, movie theaters, bow going dash. it doesn't apply to diet sodas or calorie-free or mill homosexual-based beverage. the mayor says that is about obesity and the fact it is becoming an epidemic. opponents, some consumers and especially those in the restaurant industry say this isn't limiting soft drink, it is limiting people's rights to choose. >> people have their choices. people buy soda, don't want to drink it, not buying it because they want sugar. people buy what they want to be. you can't force somebody to buy something they don't really want. >> they know they take it, they know it is fattening, you know? i mean, if that's what they want, that's what they want. really. some people want to gain weight. a lot of people don't. >> the board is scheduled to vote on this measure coming up on september 13th that is the

board of health. there is more to come on news4 at 4:00. up next, why swimmer ryan lochte won't be playing it safe during the london olympic games. and a close encounter of the curious kind. a fisherman gets up close and personal with a killer whale. watching some storms out there right now. take a look at the radar, storm four radar showing the strongest storms out to the west, south of winchester, severe thunderstorm warning in affect for frederick county, including frederick. here is a list of the counties or areas, mount pleasant the next minute, damascus, 33 [ male announcer ] where did all the obama stimulus money go?

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awarded through it went to overseas companies. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. wow. that feels really good! and now, sleep number introducs our new memory foam series the only memory foam beds with exclusive dual-air technology that adjusts on each side. memory foam just found its better half. sleep number. enjoy introductory savings of $500... and two free coolfit pillows! plus, free shipping through saturday. only at the sleep number store, where queen mattresses start at just $699.

celebrating ramadan in the land of the midnight sun face an unusual problem no sunrise or sunset. the constant sun is a problem because muslims are supposed to fast from dawn until dusk during

the holy month of ramadan and because of this challenge, many local muslims choose to observe ramadan but the sunrise and sunset times of turkey, one of the nearest muslim country to us fin land. apart from the late sunset times, muslims living in the arctic also face a lack of traditional food. a kid who used to try to get kicked out of swim practice could be one of the biggest medal winners for the united states at the olympics in london over the next few weeks. swimmer ryan lochte spent several years swimming in the shadows of michael phelps. he recently told matt lauer that he likes to take a lot of risks and in just about everything he does and he says that hasn't changed since he found out he was going to london. >> we were to go out on the street right now and i would say here is skateboard, would you skateboard down the road here? >> oh, yeah, i do tricks, i do

everying, because if i don't be myself then i won't swim to my best and i need to just be myself. >> lochte says he enjoys his growing rivalry with michael phelps. he says he swims some of his best races when phelps in the lane next to him as his biggest competition. you can watch line games right here on nbc four. coverage begins on friday with the opening ceremonies. dan hellie reports from london beginning on thursday. also, watch -- visit, rather, nbcwashington.com to get a list of the key events to watch. >> like any sport really, that strong competition, like if you're playing tennis against somebody who is better than you, makes your game better? >> yeah. >> i can see how that would spur him on. >> iron sharpens iron. >> that's right. when news4 at 4 returns, severe thunderstorm watch in affect. continue to keep an eye on the weather coming our way. youtube takes steps to wheeeeeeeeeeeee!

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look at this fisherman having an up close encounter with a peaceful killer whale. not going to forget this encounter, richard ellison, speer fishing off the coast of san diego, california, yesterday when this curious whale swam right up to his boat and kind of hung out for a while. the whale circled the boat. there have been several whale sightings in the area the past couple of weeks. just wanted to see what was going on. >> you don't want to ream that n you just want to watch it and appreciate it. but you don't want to get too close. >> you have to be pretty strong to reel that one in. >> hey, doug, how is the weather looking out there? >> still watching a couple of those storms out there right now. current temperature at the airport, 89 degrees. winds out of the northwest, 13 miles an hour, a very warm and a

very humid atmosphere right now that has helped to produce the showers and thunderstorms now the strongest storms that warning up toward frederick county but this storm starting to die out a little bit. the strongest storm out 66, away from washington, back toward the front royal area. front royal, you just had some big-time rain come through your area and some winds. this little guy right here, a little bit of a bow echo here, also see a lot of lightning associated with this, woodstock, i-81 and 340 this making its way to the south and east, 25 miles an hour. talking about edinburgh in six minutes, washington, 16 minutes, la ray, 31 minutes, boston and then down toward culpepper, culpepper coming in about an hour if it stays together. may not only stay together, this may continue to intensify as it makes its way down to the south. watch out for this, a lot of rain, a lot of wind out of this especially into this area, south of the front royal region, as we have talked b the storm that still has the severe thunderstorm warning in effect

until 5:00. it is starting to reorganize to the north and west. frederick look like you may miss this off to the east but not reforming back to the west. frederick, watch this, you will see this very soon here, frederick coming in the next ten minutes, ballenger creek, 22 minutes. damascus, 25 minutes for you. towards the gaithersburg area, through montgomery county, coming up the next 45 minutes to an hour, also includes damascus. watch out here, mount airy, also see some of this shower and thunderstorm activity. all of this making its way to the south and east. the reason why? we have a cold front, going to bring in great temperatures overnight. 64 overnight low in gaithersburg, 61, frederick. 62, leesburg. tomorrow, highs only in the mid to upper 80s, tomorrow, fantastic, look at the next couple of days, we get back to the heat thursday, a high of 101 on thursday. 97 on friday, 91 on saturday. and right now you it's like we

will move back into the upper 80s we head into next week. the weekend looking pretty good. >> i see you moved those digits up on thursday? >> yeah, went to 101. sorry. >> okay. got to do what you got to do. coming up on news4, what youtube is doing to crackdown on users who anonymously post negative and hurtful comments on videos. and the tale of true friendship from two young women who survived the shooting hads at that movie theater in colorado.

lots of new moms say they

were surprised to discover they were expecting. a new study shows four out of every ten women were not expecting to get a positive result on that pregnancy test. the cdc research shows about 25% of women who are married said their pregnancies were unintentional. that statistic doubled and tripled for women who were unmarried but living with the father. and women who were not living with the father. the study also found that women with a college degree were less likely to have an unplanned pregnancy. even the most harmless video on youtube can attract hateful, even nasty comments. well, now a change on the site could stop the abuse by anonmoss visitors. youtube is urging visitors to start commenting with their full names linked to a google plus account instead of screen names. an option to comment without the real name is still available but users will have to select a valid reason. still ahead on news4 at 4:00, two young women who survived the shootings at the movie theater in colorado.

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question for you, how far would you go to save your best friends life? two women in colorado know the answer to that question. >> they were in the movie theater last friday when those bullets began to fly. as kristen dahlgren reports, their special bond proved to be life saving. >> reporter: at first glance, they are your typical bffs. >> we met working at victoria secret. >> reporter: ali and stephanie finish each other's sentences. >> i decided we were going to be friends and hang out.

we hung out that weekend. >> we have been inseparable since then. >> reporter: almost every sin sentence ends in a laugh. >> she was like, hey, do you want to go see batman tonight at the movie premiere? and i'm like, heck yeah i want to go. >> reporter: but what started as a typical night out ended in a story of friendship so extraordinary, even the president was moved to share. >> when the gunman initially came in and threw the canisters, he threw them only a few feet away from ali and stephanie. >> and i get up, because the people behind us are like run, run, go i just remember opening my eyes. i'm on the ground, blood everywhere. and i just hear her saying ali, get up, ali, get up, ali, get up. i couldn't talk. i was like, steph, steph, i can't. >> i never heard her voice sound like that. >> i can't move. i can't get up. she is like, get up. people start running down the aisle, i'm not aisle, my arm across me, just laying there so

she grabs me and pulls me into, like, the seats where your feet would be. she looks at my ribs, my lungs -- >> just blood every where. >> she puts her fingers over my artery, carrotid artery, write got shot. >> i was like stay down, stay quiet, don't move, just be quiet, just keep breathing. i'm looking up through all of the rows of seats, i just peek up. and i see him up there. and i'm hearing him yell at people. and then you just heart rounds going off, just boom, boom, boom, boom. >> reporter: knowing she couldn't move, ali told steph to run, save herself. >> you have to go. you have to go. she is like, no, no, no, i'm not leaving you. stay. >> reporter: steph stayed by her friends side until the gunman was gone and s.w.a.t. teams arrived, helping carry ali over bodies and across two parking

lots to safety and an ambulance. >> you never really know how close you are to somebody and how important they are to you until you can test your friendship and literally know you were both willing to lay down your lives for each other. because she was following give up hers to let me run and i was willing to give up mine to make sure she lived. >> reporter: teaching us all the meaning of best friends for life. kristen dahlgren, nbc news, aurora, colorado. >> ali suffered multiple gunshot wounds and lost the use of her right arm. she has a lot of healing ahead but despite it all, surprisingly, she expressing very little anger toward the gunman. >> two strong women. coming up, strong storms moving into the area. a 20-year-old woman is in custody, charged in the death of an 11-month-old girl. lucky to be alive a freight train slams into a woman's car. thousands of aids activists march through the streets of d.c. and end up at the white

house. good evening, everyone, i'm jim rosen field. >> i'm pat lawson muse. jim handly and wendy rearing are off tonight. we begin tonight with severe storms. parts of d.c., maryland and virginia are under a severe thunderstorm watch. storm four meteorologist kammerer is tracking storms to the west where a der raven cho hit the area. >> a severe thunderstorm warning in affect until 5:00. as we look off to the north and back to the west, we are also looking back toward the winchester area,