>> i set the fire extinguisher down. i couldn't see anything, this whole area was full of smoke. >> reporter: 19-year-old pepco lineman ryan callahan was part of a crew upgrading facilities in a rural part of upper marlboro when he noticed smoke. >> the smoke was very thick. i have to admit the smoke was very thick. all i saw was the flames. and i saw the flame getting bigger. >> reporter: as ryan ran inside, others on the pepco crew ran to alert the homeowner who had walked her 7 and 9-year-olds to the end of the driveway to put them on the school bus. she immediately began sprinting to the house knowing her 4-year-old was sleeping in the upstairs room. >> i came back running because this one was in the room. i had to make sure he was fine. >> reporter: prince george's county fire officials said given the rural location, the pepco crew prevented what could have been a tragedy.

>> it is a long response time here. we're met by a driveway that's rather long and tedious to negotiate. >> reporter: >> reporter: it's not clear how the fire started. a trash compacter burned. but the homeowner worries that in the chaos of a school morning, she may have left the stove on. she called the pepco employees angels. >> a godsend. they were really godsend. i don't know what would have happened. >> reporter: coming up on news4 at 6:00, we'll tell you how the little boy reacted to all of this. reporting live in capitol heights, jackie bensen, news4. street thieves attacked and robbed a man last night in hyattsville, and police are trying to find out who did it. two men started beating a man in the face with a handgun. he fell to the ground and lost consciousness. the robbers took his wallet and cell phone and ran off. the victim was treated for head and face injuries. we're hearing from one of

the officers accused of beating a university of maryland student in his own words. this afternoon he took the stand in his beating trial. earlier today, a judge dismissed the most serious charges against those officers. news4's chris gordon has more on what led to the judge's decision. >> reporter: the most serious charge in the trial of defendants prince george's coty police officer reginald baker and officer james harrison has been dismissed by the judge. when prosecutors rested their case against the two, defense lawyers argued there was no evidence that student john mckenna was hit in the head by the officers' baton strikes, after a university of maryland basketball victory on march 3rd of 2010. i only see strikes from the neck down, said the judge. that's the problem she told the prosecutor. the judge ruled there is insufficient proof that the officers intended to inflict serious and permanent injury.

which are the legal requirements of the charge of assault in the first degree. student john mckenna was treated for a concussion, and cuts after the incident, but wasn't admitted to the hospital that night. three days later he complained of dizziness and went to an emergency room. the judge left the courtroom to check the law. and returned to rule that the injuries were not proven to be both serious and permanent. >> the judge did dismiss the most serious charge. >> what do you make of it? >> no further comment. we're still in trial. >> any count thrown out is a good count. >> we're still in trial. >> we're still in trial, guys. >> no comment. >> reporter: in court with his helmet, shield and baton, corporal baker answered one of his lawyer's questions about that night. i'm afraid, he said, but we have a mission. he said he saw a large male yelling, running at police forces with his fists clenched. he's not obeying commands to go back. i had to get him before he got to the horses. i don't know what he's got in

his hands. i yell, get down, get down. i push him, apply short strikes to his arm area. the arrest team arrives. he's asked, are you embarrassed by what du? are you proud of what you did? baker replied, no, sir. this trial is expected to go to the jury by the end of the week. now, because the judge today dismissed the number one charge in the case, assault in the first degree, jurors will be deciding two lesser charges. misconduct in office, and second-degree assault. that's the latest live from the prince george's county courthouse, chris gordon, news4. a major sponsor dropped lance armstrong, and he's going to step down from his charity. nike said it is severing ties with armstrong due to the latest doping accusations. meanwhile, armstrong has decided to step down as chairman of the livestrong charity he founded. armstrong said he doesn't want the charity to be impacted by

the current controversy. the u.s. anti-doping agency stripped armstrong of his tour de france titles. nike said it will continue to support the initiatives of livestrong. lots of blue skies today. as we say, don't get used to it. doug kammerer is outside on the weather debck. >> enjoy what we have out here right now. if you're thinking about making your way out out and about this evening, it's going to be a good night to do it. as we look at the sky right now, plenty of sunshine. a temperature of 67 degrees. winds right now out of the south at 8 miles per hour. as we look at the rest of the area, just about everybody in the mid to upper 60s. fredericksburg coming in at 72 degrees. gaithersburg in montgomery county, one of the cooler spots at 64. there's no rain to talk about right now. but that's not going to be the case tomorrow. i think we've got a good chance to see not only heavier

downpours, but maybe some strong to severe thunderstorms, too. i'll come back a little bit later on and show you who i think has the best chance to see those strong storms and when they may arrive in our area. we'll talk about that coming up in my full forecast. hello, iowa! >> both presidential candidates headed right back to the campaign trail after last night's contentious debate. president obama flew to iowa this morning, and spoke at cornell college. then he moved on to ohio. he will speak at ohio university in athens at 6:00. >> please welcome the next president of the united states, governor mitt romney. >> virginia governor bob mcdonnell introduced mitt romney today in chesapeake, virginia. clearly a part of romney's campaign strategy. he will attend a rally in leadsburg tonight. his running mate paul ryan was

in fredericksburg today. the debate was the top political event of all-time in social media. the confrontations between candidates often stretch the truth. today we are fact checking the debate. here's nbc's dawn timmeny. >> presidential debate round two provided plenty of lively moments and once again both candidates were making false claims and misleading attacks. first, the exchange about september's embassy attacks in benghazi. governor romney questioned the president, calling it an act of terror. >> you said in the rose garden the day after the attack it was an act of terror. it was not a spontaneous demonstration. >> please proceed, governor. >> i want to make sure we get that for the record. it took the president 14 days before he called the attack in benghazi an act of terror. >> get the transcript. >> actually, president obama called it an act of terror twice. in the same day on september

12th, the day after the attack occurred. he said it in the rose garden -- >> no act of terror will ever shake the resolve of this great nation. >> and he also said it again that night at a fund-raiser in las vegas. >> governor romney isn't entirely wrong. president obama did refrain from calling it a terrorist attack in the following weeks. next, president obama misquotes governor romney on green energy. >> on wind energy, when governor romney says these are imaginary jobs, when you've got thousands of people right now in iowa, right now in colorado, who are working, creating wind power. >> he got it wrong when he said romney called clean energy jobs imaginary jobs. that's not what he said. he referred to it as in an imaginary world, in which the economy could be powered by green jobs, and solar and wind. >> finally, governor romney gives an inflated figure about

women who have lost their jobs under president obama. >> in the last four years, women have lost 580,000 jobs. >> the 580,000 figure he used is way off. the number is actually 283,000. during obama's period from january '09 until the most recent data. >> the bureau of labor statistics announced the annual benchmarking process will result in adding jobs to official historical figures. so the current loss of women's jobs will be closer to 93,000. this town hall face-off kept fact checkers busy, and count on hearing more of these repeated claims during monday's debate. dawn timmeny, nbc news. let's break down that debate. political director and chief white house correspondent chuck todd is in new york to break down the action for us. chuck, president obama's first debate performance, of course, criticized his lackluster, to put it mildly.

did he recover last night or did romney hold his own? >> i think he recovered enough. i don't think he's peeling away any of the gains mitt romney made. what the president was able to do was what his advisers said he had to do, which is send a message that he actually wanted a second term. i think the biggest fear that the obama folks had was that that first debate sent that message to some voters that said do you even want this, does it look like he wants the job they admit he still has to make the case why does he want it, what's a second term going to look like. but he did seem to do on that front, and i think you'll see some stabilization of his numbers. as for romney, again, i don't think he lost ground, he certainly had an opportunity to keep growing, and that didn't happen. >> definitely saw a lot more energy in that room last night. some might even say aggression, chuck. how is that likely to play with undecided voters out there, the few remaining?

>> i tell you, most of these undecided voters seem to be the one fed up with our towns, that they don't like the politics of washington. they don't like the combative nature. i don't think any part of that debate last night made them feel good, made them think, boy, this is somehow the two parties coming together. i wouldn't be surprised if you see both of them dial it back a little bit on monday, because it's not good for either of them. the swing voters in the middle want to know you'll somehow try to reach across the aisle. it seemed to be missing because it was so contentious. >> thank you, chuck. we'll look forward to your report on "nightly news" at 7:00. still ahead on news4 at 5:00, two virginia hikers survive four days in rugged conditions. tonight hear from both men about how they managed to get rescued and stay in good health. broccoli and another vegetable could help in the fight against breast cancer. and when you can sign up to

attend the national christmas tree lighting ceremony. maryland schools are number one in america because we invest in them. but we can do even more. every year marylanders spend five hundred and fifty million dollars at casinos in other states. question 7 keeps that maryland money in maryland through expansion of gaming in maryland. it will mean hundreds of millions of dollars for our schools. as governor, i can promise you, that money will go to education. that's the law and that's what we'll do. vote for question seven.

and balanced the budget every year. and tim kaine and i both cut our own pay as governors, to lead by example. mark warner and i reached across party lines to get things done. we were a great team in richmond and we'll be a great team in washington. i'm tim kaine and i approve this message ...because we'll work together to restore fiscal responsibility, grow our economy and create jobs. [ male announcer ] tim kaine. bringing people together to tackle the challenges of tomorrow. broccoli and brussels sprouts might be the secret to fighting breast cancer. researchers say a compound derived from both veggies have

been successful in fighting triple negative breast cancer, which accounts for about 20% of all breast cancers, and it's one of the most aggressive. experts say the compound is safe, and less toxic than current treatments. they hope it can be made available soon in pill form for daily use. thousands of cyclistcyclist runners and walkers are gearing up for this best buddies challenge here in d.c., an annual fund-raiser for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. jim rosenfield introduces us to some of the riders getting ready for the challenge. >> reporter: this ask just the warm-up to the main event this coming weekend. this these riders geared up last saturday for the training session. >> i'm not sure if i'm ready. but i think this training ride this morning will put me on a good path. >> reporter: a path to raise money for best buddies through a

150 or 20-mile ride kicking off saturday morning at the washington monument. >> i'm getting ready for the audi best buddy challenge in d.c. >> reporter: it was founded by anthony shriver to help give people with developmental and intellectual disabilities opportunities. scott kia was chairing this year's ride and 5k run/walk. >> we think it's crucial for the people with the intellectual and developmental disabilities a chance to be in the workplace and contribute. >> reporter: more than 1,400 people are expected to take part, including olympic cyclist bobby lee just back from the london games. his brother, sid, is his inspiration. >> he got involved with best buddies out of high school and started working with a best buddies chapter. it's been influential in helping him grow up and become more integrated in mainstream life. >> reporter: life that will definitely include real ups and downs.

on the route, that is. this saturday. jim rosenfield, news4. >> news4 is a proud sponsor of that event. this is saturday morning, 7:15, down at the washington monument. learn more by going to our website nbcwashington.com. of course, we want really good weather for it, doug. >> i knew what the question was going to be, and i'm giving it a two thumbs up. the weather should be spectacular on saturday. maybe starting off with fog and l low clouds, but a good day for biking. as far as the weather goes right now, a good day for everything. and anything you want to be doing out there. it's just that nice. plenty of sunshine. temperatures right around the average for this time of year. our average high is around 68. that's where we were last hour. right now we're at 67 with abundant sunshine. winds out of the south at about 8 miles per hour. take a look at the rest of the

numbers here. look back to the west, this is where the warmer air is starting to make its way in. cumberland at 70. still not quite here. gaithersburg at 64, 64 in baltimore. down to the south, warmer, too. fredericksburg coming in at 72 degrees today. i do expect numbers to be about five degrees warmer than they were during the day today. that will put many of us into the low 70s. nothing to show you right now in our region, but watch what happens when we widen out here. this is a massive storm system making its way through the middle part of the country right now. all of these watches, high wind warnings in the orange, into the brown colors, omaha, wichita, wind advisories. severe thunderstorm warnings, including a severe thunderstorm warning that looks like it could come right close to st. louis right now. of course, wouldn't it be nice if this was right here -- anyway, we're not there. we'd like to see these storms move on past us. but they're going to do so with a chance for strong to severe

storms during the day tomorrow. we've got to watch out for that. mild air with plenty of sunshine today. tomorrow, here comes that frontal boundary. once again, warm air ahead of it. as it moves on through here, it will most likely be here around 9:00, 10:00, maybe 11:00 for some potential severe weather. we do have a chance for severe weather in portions of west virginia, maryland, and right around the district, just about everybody in our viewing area has a chance for at least some strong to severe thunderstorms. once again, i think it will be tomorrow night, into early tomorrow evening. clear skies, just perfect this evening. temperatures 58 to about 63 degrees. most of tomorrow will be on the dry side. so don't -- i don't think you'll need your umbrellas at all during the day tomorrow. it will be tomorrow night. high of 72 tomorrow. 72 on friday. slight chance of a shower early on friday. saturday and sunday looking gorgeous, with highs in the mid to upper 60s. monday, tuesday and wednesday, i think this could start a very

nice streak of warm temperatures with highs in the 70s. maybe all week next week. >> wow. >> nice little warm-up for us. >> three thumbs up, i would say, huh? find another. >> thanks, doug. straight ahead, we'll take you inside the control center as the 4 and 95 express lanes get ready to monitor the hot lanes. a controversial ad headed to metro with images of the twin towers. the nationals are out. here's another d.c. team that could be headed to the play-offs real soon. dan will have the preview. at 6:00 tonight, the new planet just discovered and how it's similar to earth.

nats behind us, but there's another team in d.c. >> some may have forgotten about the soccer club.

they are quickly becoming a much better team than the past few years. for the first time in five years, perhaps head coach ben olsen saying his young team may be turning the corner. they have to beat or tie columbus on saturday. >> welcome to d.c.! >> it's great for our young team to go through this process. games that really mean something. it's great for a young coach to go through these situations as well. i'm really looking forward to the challenge, them coming into our home. and i think we're ready. but we'll find out on the weekend. >> they should be more than ready. it's been a miserable postseason drought for one of the mls's winningest franchises. doing without one of their biggest stars, who went out with

a knee injury september 11th while playing with the canadian national team. back in d.c. they responded by turning up the intensity on defense. the results speak for themselves. >> it's in the net! >> reporter: the team rallied to pull off four wins in the draw with the last five games to put them in the middle of the play-offs. it could be their first postseason run since 2007. >> i was very proud of the guys. they responded in the right way. everybody's giving a little bit more. we've focused a little bit more on the defensive side, to lock things up. and give up very few goals in the last five games. >> i think all the players, all the veterans want to go into the play-offs. i think everybody picked it up a little bit. it's not just one player, it's the whole team putting a little more on their shoulders. >> reporter: the crew come to town with play-off implications of their own.

>> we expect them to bring it. 110%. being that they need a win to make it -- to keep their play-off hopes alive. and they know that we need a tie or a win. they're going to come in guns blazing and we'll just tame that, and, you know, work the ball around and do what we need to do. >> reporter: d.c. split games with the crew earlier this season. both games separated by just a point. but this time d.c. united is back at home where they've been dominant. >> yeah, i can't wait. the fans, they bring it hard. they support us through thick and thin. so we want to put on a good show for them, because we know they'll come out and bring a good atmosphere for us. >> reporter: zachary keach, news4 sports. making home field advantage mean something, and they have. d.c. united hasn't lost a home game since march 1st. they hope that trend continues

against the columbus crew on saturday. and yes, that is columbus, ohio, coming to town. it would be really nice to see ben olson get this team back in the play-offs. he's been an athlete that has been a favorite here in washington, d.c., for a long, long time, as a player and a coach. >> quite a winning streak. next at 5:30, two hikers talk about surviving in rough conditions while lost for days in montana. virginia voters weigh in tonight on the presidential debate last night, as mitt romney gets ready for tonight's event here in loudoun county. the 495 express lanes are in the final stages. we'll have an update on when it will be smooth sailing. as governor, i cut five billion dollars in spending

and balanced the budget every year. and tim kaine and i both cut our own pay as governors,

to lead by example. mark warner and i reached across party lines to get things done. we were a great team in richmond and we'll be a great team in washington. i'm tim kaine and i approve this message ...because we'll work together to restore fiscal responsibility, grow our economy and create jobs. [ male announcer ] tim kaine. bringing people together to tackle the challenges of tomorrow.

under the president's policies, middle income americans have been buried. they're just being crushed. middle-income americans have seen their income come down by $4,300. this is a tax in and of itself. i'll call it the economy tax. i'm not going to raise taxes on anyone. my plan is to bring down rates to get more people working. my priority is putting people back to work in america. i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. an update on the developing story we're following for you tonight, that terror arrest in new york. federal authorities nabbed a 21-year-old man in a sting operation. they say he was trying to blow up the federal reserve building.

investigators say he parked a van filled with what he thought to be explosives outside the building, and tried to detonate it. he was arrested at his home in jamaica, new york, this morning. he's charged tonight with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to provide material support to al qaeda. nbc's chief justice correspondent pete williams will join us live at the top of the hour with new details. after six days in the wilderness, two virginia hikers are happy to be home tonight. both men were lost in the rugged terrain of montana's glacier national forest. richard jordan spoke to the men about what kept them going in extreme conditions. >> pat, both men lost over ten pounds each and were looking forward to a really good meal. they hiked together many times before, but say they have never come close to being in a situation like this. and if their wives have anything to say about it, they won't again. >> we spent a lot of time in a

tent. >> reporter: a two-day hiking trip for two friends turns into a six-day ordeal. neal peckens and jason hiser lived to tell their tale. the temperature in the upper 30s, snow on the ground, and rain, the avid hikers say they lost their map and held on to their will to live. >> there was so much snow, there was no trail to be seen. and there was no sign to show you where to go. and without that map that we had lost, we couldn't tell whether we should be going down or up. because the topographic map -- >> reporter: meanwhile, back home hiser's wife just wrapped up her baby shower. they're expecting their first child. peckens wife waiting with their son just 1 year old. >> i think the people at home had it worse than we had it. sadly. >> reporter: peckens and hiser finally rescued late monday. they used a blanket and put on

sos using burned logs. but help wasn't coming fast enough. >> we saw helicopters. we had a couple fly over our heads but they couldn't see you through the fog. >> reporter: their two-day food supply was running low. hiser eer was in charge of ratg the food. hunger was constantly on their minds. they each lost roughly 15 pounds, waiting for the rescuers. they say the days they spent together hunkered down in a tent mostly consisted about talking about the first meal they would eat when they were rescued. all that time in the extreme elements was a test of endurance and friendship. >> we never got in any arguments, never got irritated. we just used our heads and thought through things. there are a lot of people out there that would take that situation a lot differently. so i think we learned that we were with the right guy. >> reporter: neither of the men were hurt. both of them were immediately

given a turkey sandwich by their rescuers. but hiser said he quickly had a beer and wings right after that, and peckens went for some gatorade. the men appreciate all the efforts by everyone who was out searching for them. pat? >> thanks, richard. d.c. police want you to get a good look at two people wanted in connection with a burglary in early august. take a look here. police say the man and woman in this video tried to use stolen credit cards at a mcdonald's just hours after the cards were taken in a burglary on reno road northwest. if you know these people, if you know who they are, police want to hear from you, and you could get up to a $1,000 reward. less than three weeks to go to election day, and the battle for virginia continues in the presidential campaign. on the heels of last night's big debate, mitt romney is in loudoun county tonight for a rally that starts in just about 90 minutes. northern virginia bureau chief julie carey is there. julie, it was a much different debate than we saw two weeks

ago. >> reporter: it certainly was. and a much different mood among supporters. at an earlier virginia rally in chesapeake today, mitt romney said he loved the debate. but for supporters, last night's affair left some of them unsettled. compared to the first debate, the president's supporters said they do have a little something to lift their spirits this time around. from the sight of mitt romney's northern virginia rally to the nearby obama campaign office to the downtown leesburg, last night's presidential debate was on most people's minds. out for a lunchtime walk, lisa said she's long been an obama support supporter, but said she's cringed a bit at the more presidential style last night. >> they got into each other's personal space. that was unbecoming of both of them. but i felt as if president obama did what he had to do, and said, look, if you want to fight, here it is. >> reporter: the sign in the window of this downtown business

makes it clear who they support on november 6th. stephanie said the combative nature of the debate didn't dampen her enthusiasm for mitt romney. >> at some point it looked like a fight would break out. i'm still pro-romney. you have to fight for what you want to say, especially when someone's trying to interrupt you constantly. >> reporter: democrats seized upon romney's statement that he turned to binders full of women to search for cabinet members. but stockman rejects the idea that the awkward phrasing will hurt the gop nominee. >> the wording could have been better. but i wasn't offended by it at all. i think at the end of the day, romney hired more women than any other governor in the united states. >> reporter: in the obama campaign office, binders full of women mattered little, instead volunteers say they are heartened by the president's more energetic performance, which they believe will give him

a boost after a sub-par first debate. >> it's been so busy in our offices. i think people are fired up. they realize there are three weeks to election. they realize loudoun county is important and they're excited and getting involved. >> reporter: and coming up at 6:00, i'll tell you which celebrity supporter will be joining mitt romney at this rally. i can tell you right now, though, it's not clint eastwood. >> he doesn't do bleachers, just chairs. thank you, julie. still ahead at 5:00, why vitamins are good for guys. plus, the tree lighting ceremony is set. already? how you can witness the event in person.

tomorrow will be your first chance to win free tickets to the 90th annual lighting of the national christmas tree. there were 3,000 seats available, and 14,000 standing room tickets available to the public. the lottery to win the tickets will open online at the national tree.org tomorrow at 10:00 in the morning.

the first family typically atends the tree lighting ceremony. it's scheduled to take place december 6th at the white house. time for that already. yeah. tonight, wednesday's child features a young man looking for a home. >> we revisit with greg, who is still hoping for a permanent adoptive family. barbara harrison takes us out to rfk stadium. >> reporter: a ground tour from two d. krflt united players with a special treat for 15-year-old gregory who loves sports. chris and danny talked about what it's like to play at rfk. although greg is not on a soccer team at school, he'd like to one day play for one of several different sports professional leagues. >> basketball, football, and soccer. >> you would be happy to play either one of those professionally? >> yes. >> we've got to make sure you get on a team, huh? so you can start getting ready? >> reporter: greg got a chance to see where they get ready to

play inside rfk. and down the hall, where they relax with a game of ping-pong. >> yeah, i'm good. >> all right. >> he has a warmth about him. >> reporter: he's had to move many times in his young life. and he's hoping to soon find an adoptive family to become a part of. he said he'd like -- >> a mom and daddy. >> reporter: yeah? anything else? >> a couple brothers and sisters. >> reporter: how about a family that likes sports? >> that would be good. >> reporter: christian danny had d.c. united gear for greg to take home with him. the big hit, a real jersey with his name on the back. >> reporter: you're ready, huh? >> yeah. >> reporter: he's ready for play. and ready for a family right now. barbara harrison, news4, for "wednesday's child." >> he's wearing that proudly these days. if you have room in your home and your heart for greg, or

another child who's waiting, call our special adoption hotline, that number is 1-88-to-adopt-me, or logon to nbcwashington.com. next at 5:00, new complaints tonight about another ad popping up at metro stations. plus, how much is a faster commute worth to you? hear about plans for the express lanes in northern virginia. and we're looking at a very strong storm out in the middle part of the country. it will move our way and could bring us severe weather.

maryland schools are number one in america because we invest in them. but we can do even more. every year marylanders spend five hundred and fifty million dollars at casinos in other states. question 7 keeps that maryland money in maryland through expansion of gaming in maryland. it will mean hundreds of millions of dollars for our schools. as governor, i can promise you, that money will go to education. that's the law and that's what we'll do. vote for question seven.

and balanced the budget every year. and tim kaine and i both cut our own pay as governors, to lead by example. mark warner and i reached across party lines to get things done. we were a great team in richmond and we'll be a great team in washington. i'm tim kaine and i approve this message ...because we'll work together to restore fiscal responsibility, grow our economy and create jobs. [ male announcer ] tim kaine. bringing people together to tackle the challenges of tomorrow.

a new study of multivitamins show they can modestly lower the risk of cancer in healthy men. the only subjects in the study were male doctors. and over a course of more than ten years, the vitamin users only cut their cancer risk by 8%. doctors say you can fight off cancer more effectively by eating well, exercising and not smoking. about one in three american adults takes vitamins. the group behind a controversial anti-islam ad posted in several metro stations is about to release a new one. it features a photo of the twin towers under attack on 9/11. next to it, there's a verse from the koran that reads soon shall we cast terror into the hearts of the unbelievers. the ad is sponsored by the american freedom defense initiative. that's the same group behind the anti-jihad posters that are already up in a handful of metro

stations. the group is hoping to place this new ad in metro stations as well. we got this reaction today from metro riders. >> that's not good. i don't want to see that. >> i was in d.c. when that happened, and that was scary for all of us. to bring that back, and with hate, that's exactly what we don't want to do. >> we live in a country where people can share their opinions and you understand that you don't agree with them all. they might even offend you as you walk by. but to not have that possibility of those things being posted, our freedom is a bigger price to pay, i think. >> metro officials tell us the new ad has not yet been submitted to them, but it will likely be put up due to the u.s. district court's recent ruling on such advertisements. rolling to completion. the i-495 express lanes is in the final stages of construction.

news4 transportation reporter adam tuss is along the beltway in tyson's corper this evening with a look at how the high-tech system is going to work. adam? >> reporter: yeah, pat, it's a question a lot of drivers are going to have to start asking themselves soon, how much is a faster commute worth? would you pay a toll to get around traffic? >> absolutely. >> reporter: you would? >> in a heartbeat. >> reporter: why? >> because time is -- there's not enough time in the day as there used to be. >> reporter: pay up and avoid the traffic, the idea of the new 495 express lanes, or hot lanes as they've been called. the project now about two months away from opening. >> the construction has been under way on the beltway for nearly five years now, and is almost over. >> reporter: project leaders showing off just how technical this road is, a massive data center constantly monitoring the all-electronic lanes between

springfield and the dull es toll road. these are the express lanes here. they have to be constantly monitored so traffic keeps moving. the more traffic that's in the lanes, making traffic slower, and the toll will have to increase. the idea being some drivers will be priced out. the operator of the lanes are required to keep drivers moving at a minimum of 55 miles per hour. is that worth the price? >> if i need to be somewhere, i'll pay for it. >> reporter: even if it's a dollar a mile? >> even if it's a dollar a mile. i won't use it every day, but i will use it. >> people get into traffic, and to pay for it, so they can get out of it. i don't care. it's not going to work. >> reporter: there is a way to get around the toll, ride in a car pool of three or more people. to do that, you'll need a new easy pass called the easy pass flex that can switch into car pool mode. again, this is an all-electronic road, meaning there are no toll booths. the toll just tacked on to the easy pass.

now, project leaders tell us they'll let us know three weeks before this project is ready to open that these express lanes are ready to open. reporting live, in tyson's corner, adam tuss, news4. experts say there is good and bad news about this year's wine harvest in europe. first, the bad. european union farmers say drought, cold and hail have conspired to produce the worst wine growing conditions in half a century. france's grape harvest is expected to slump by 20% from last year. italy's grape crop has declined for the past two years, but there is a silver lining, a sliver of hope, we should say. the quality of the wine that is produced should be very good and flavor should be more concentrated. i like that. >> worth the wait? >> yeah. let's get another look at our weather this evening. doug? >> take a look at this shot. woodrow wilson bridge, and over by the airport, along the

potomac, a beautiful day today. plenty of sunshine. bright blue skies. doesn't get a whole lot better than what we've seen out there today. currently sitting at 67 degrees. winds out of the south right now at 8 miles an hour. nice and mild, with temperatures right around average for this time of year. around the d.c. metro area, 64 in gaithersburg, 67 down towards fort belvoir. say hello to my friends in warrenton. a cool 62, that little bit of chesapeake influence for you folks there, you're a little on the cooler side. notice the clearing skies. but also notice back to the west, this is a very big storm back to the west. it is bringing severe weather toward st. louis. a lot of wind damage out of this storm already with 60 and 70-mile-an-hour winds. a lot of trees down. this will go right through the metro st. louis area in the next hour or so. the whole system will shift to the east overnight tonight and into the day tomorrow. let's time it out for you.

here we are tomorrow afternoon. around 12:15. nothing. don't worry about tomorrow. your lunch will be fine. getting home from work will most likely be okay. here we are around 6:15, a few scattered showers. the main area is still back towards the west of the you can see what i'm talking about right here. but it does move through right around, say, 9:00, 10:00, 11:00, right through the i-95 corridor. the potential is there for severe weather. we'll watch this one very carefully. this will happen after tomorrow night's rush hour, i believe. but you want to stay tuned for this. by friday morning, it's already moved out. just a few clouds. friday looking like a pretty nice day. it will move in pretty quick. temperatures tonight not as cold as they were last night. 42 in frederick and 49 down towards fredericksburg. 52 in the city. tomorrow afternoon, quite nice. i think we'll see a lot of sunshine early and then the clouds will be on the increase. best chance of the storms will be back toward the mountains. highs in the upper 60s to low 70s for most of us. through the next couple of days, chance of rain early on friday,

but most of us will be on the dry side. saturday and sunday looking very nice, highs in the upper 60s. next week, really, really looking great with highs in the 70s. >> all right. we'll take it. thank you, doug. more fallout from the release of more than a dozen names who allegedly paid for ♪

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fallout continues in the so-called zumba prostitution ring up in maine. >> police released names of some of the alleged clients. nbc explains why some locals said they had enough of the controversy in their town. >> reporter: 21 men, 21 families, 21 lives potentially changed forever. as the fallout grows from the partial release of alexis wright's alleged client list. lawyers for the accused are on the offensive. >> the way these guys have been treated is outrageous. i'm embarrassed for the injure additional system. >> reporter: gary represents two of the men named, one was

monday, a local high school athletic coach who has since stepped down because of the scandal. >> it's a scarlet letter of the worst effect. there's no other way you can put it, other than the damage has been done. and there was no reason to rush to get those names out like ken ebunk did. absolutely no reason. >> reporter: alexis and her business partner pleaded not guilty to dozens of counts of prostitution and promoting prostitution. prosecutors say wright, the local zumba instructor, sold sex out of her dance studio. wright's lawyer said her clients have been portrayed as a monster. >> she has been thrust into the public eye, basically having the worst moment in her life play out on national television. but it's not the only thing that defines her. >> reporter: for the first time, strong has released a statement denying all of the charges. writing, i've never had sex with her for money. i am a businessman and i loaned her money to start a legitimate

zumba dance studio with the usually promissory notes at commercial interest rates. and she paid back those loans. he also said, i did not promote or participate in her business. meanwhile, with more than 100 alleged johns, there's controversy with just how the first names were released. no middle initials, ages or addresses were disclosed. this man says he shares the same name as one of the alleged johns. and for him, the past two days have been a nightmare. >> it felt like getting hit in the face with a frying pan, and didn't have the courtesy to warm up the pan. >> reporter: 21 names down, dozens to go, all ken ebunk can do is wait. >> the 21 men on the list will appear in court december 6th. now, at 6:00, a bomb plot foiled in the big apple. right now, thrown out, some of the most serious charges in

the university of maryland beating case. the hikers who survived five days in the snow and cold are sharing their survival story. saved by pepco, the heroic crew helped save a toddler from a house fire. i'm doreen gentzler. >> and i'm jim vance. today in new york, police arrested a man who they say tried to blow up a federal building. his name is quasinafi. >> he was arrested in jamaica, new york, this morning, charged with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to provide material support to al qaeda. justice correspondent pete williams is here with the details. how did this whole thing get started, pete? >> it got started when he came to new york, the fbi said he came to new york actually in january, wanting to be a student, studying for a while at southeast missouri state in missouri. then came back to new york and started to try to recruit people.