dunning. she was the wife of the former alexandria sheriff. she was killed, again, not far from here in an unsolved murder. there have also been robberies in the area, as well. certainly an unusual occurrence -- [ inaudible ] >> reporter: we are expecting to get an update from police later on this morning. we are expecting to see some activity here at the house later on, as well. reporting live in alexandria, megan mcgrath, news4. back to you. >> thank you. before we go any further, as we approach 4:31, we want to look at the forecast. tom kierein has that. tom? we got the light, wet snow last night. this photo sent in from bethesda when it was coming down. you see it was coming down pretty hard for a short time, enough to put a coating on the grassy areas. and we have as we look back in time the fast-moving area of snow is long gone. the sky has cleared out. a few scattered clouds around the region now. as the skies cleared out, the temperatures have dropped to near freezing. also the road temperatures, just checked them, are generally just

a degree or two above freezing. in some locations, maybe a little below freezing, especially the bridges and overpasses. watch out, there could be icy spots as the roads are wet. the only accumulation of the snow was on grassy areas. dale city, that's our hometown forecast location. prince william county. by noontime, sunshine, into the mid 40s. all the snow will be melting by the afternoon hours. we might have scattered icy spots at 6:00, as late as 7:30 this morning. watch out for that. the voodoo wet. could be icy. above freezing by 8:00 a.m. by noontime, the mid 40s. i'll be back in ten minutes with another update. we'll look at the rest of the afternoon. now a look at traffic with danella, good morning. >> reporter: good morning. in the first 4 traffic office, i'm tracking two accidents. northbound taking the ramp to eastbound 50 due to an accident involving a police chase.

heading northbound 295, the ramp to eastbound 50 is what's blacked. let's head over to the 11th street bridge in d.c. outbound, you'll see a right lane blocked by a crash there. stick to the left to get by that accident. making the trip this time in virginia, northbound out of stafford heading north and south, you see very light volume. i'll give you a live look at the rest area. no issues to report. nice and clear commute all the way into the district this morning. i'm back in ten minutes. aaron and eun? >> thanks. 4:32. melissa mollet with breaking news. >> reporter: good morning. a south african paraolympian has been charged with murder. olympic sprinter oscar pastorius was arrested after a 3 0-year-old woman was shot -- 30-year-old woman was shot dead at her home. the double amputee, nicknamed the blade runner, may have shot his girlfriend to death thinking she was an intruder. he made history at the london games when he became the first

double amputee runner to compete on the track. we'll keep an eye on the story. at the live desk, news4. we're awaiting information on a burned out car that belonged to christopher dorner. he barricaded himself. officers fired teargas in the cabin, it went up in flames. they heard a single gunshot after that. this morning, we're learning more about a couple that christopher dorner held hostage on tuesday shortly before his standoff with police. karen and jim reynolds say they went to their mountain cabin to clean it out. when they got there, they found attorneyer inside. he aimed the gun at them, tied them up, and stole their truck. >> he was always very, very calm. and you really could tell that he was professionally trained. of course, we knew that, too. really the way he had us do each

thing was really -- best word i can think of is methodical. >> police spotted the stolen car which he then crashed. they say he ran into the woods and into the cabin where the police standoff happened. as for the reynolds, they say they're just happy to be alive. later a family will come together to remember the short life of a baby found dead last week. 7-month-old larissa haine died at the hands of her teenager brother last week. the teen beat and killed her when she would not stop crying. the family held a memorial service last night. the funeral will be held at st. camilla's catholic church in silver spring at 10:00. one group will use valentine's day to push lawmakers for more gun control. the group moms rising wants congress to have a heart and pass gun law legislation. the grassroots organization will hold a ceremony at lutheran church of the reformation on

east capital street, then will deliver a petition for tighter gun legislation. it will go to carolyn mccarthy, head of the violence gunfire control task force. we have more details on how president obama plans to expand and fund higher preschool education. he'll visit the college heights early childhood learning center in georgia. he used the state as an example of quality pre-k programs during his state of the union address. georgia was the first state to offer voluntary pre-k to all 4-year-olds regardless of a family's income. the president is expected to detail how he would fund universal preschool a national level. and it appears a major battle is brewing over another of the president's proposals -- raising the minimum wage. he called on congress to hike the wage from $7.25 an hour to $9 an hour. house speaker john boehner says that would raise the price of employment, reduce the number of available jobs, and make it harder for small businesses to hire. the president argued yesterday in north carolina that giving workers a decent living is key

to reviving the economy. metro board members have a long day ahead. they'll be meeting to discuss several issues today. the board's safety committee will get a report on last month's green line meltdown. thousands of riders were stuck in a tunnel or dark trains for more than an hour because of a problem with the third rail. the real estate committee will also look at a proposal to build the fbi's new headquarters on land metro owns near its greenbelt station. right now, thousands stuck on board a nightmare cruise are finally making their way back to land. carnival's "triumph" boat had an engine fire and lost power last weekend. passengers have no air conditioning, limited food and no bathroom access. tug boats are pulling the cruise liner to mobile, alabama, where it should reach port this afternoon. the 4,000 passengers can board buses to texas or spend the night in a new orleans hotel. carnival says it will refund the trip, discount future cruises, and offer an additional $500 in compensation. the company canceled two other cruises after this incident.

this morning we expect to get official word that american airlines and usairways will merge, forming the biggest airline in the world. of course don't expect change overnight. the justice department and the judge in the american airlines bankruptcy case still have to approve this. when it is said and done, though, the usairways name will be phased out. both airlines have a major presence in our area. passengers and employees say they're concerned about the long-term impact. >> hopefully it won't increase our prices. >> reporter: that's your concern? >> if there's no competition, yeah. >> it biggest concern amongst the rest of the employees now is how seniority lists are going to merge together. that's the big thing. where are we going to fall in. >> what does this mean for you, the passenger? the two airlines will continue to operate separately for several months. if you're a frequent flyer, american and usairways' programs will eventually combine. and unused miles will likely carry over. making a change. why you'll soon nice a different look for a popular energy drink.

ahead, new help on the way for a mississippi community hit hard by a tornado. dramatic video showing just how much trouble the skier found himself in during this competition. and the skies have cleared for now. our winter weather may still come -- cause problems for some. [ anouncer ] ihop is in time square to compare

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only try to score the best time but racing to survive an avalanche. this was the swatch skiers' cup. the skier accidently triggered the avalanche during his run. not only did he outrace it, he did it in style. you saw the back flip -- >> now he's just showing off. goodness gracious. >> you can see this entire thing for yourself. we posted a link on our "news4 today" facebook page. >> how in -- >> nobody got hurt. >> how he managed to keep his composure on top of that, do the flip, and outrace that avalanche -- what about the panic? >> you expect to see that in a cartoon or something. wow. >> unreal. obviously an expert, expert skier. do not try this at home, folks. >> no. lucky guy. 4:41 the time. we got a little rain overnight. tom? no snow. there is the washington monument under a clear sky. and the snow that just accumulated on grassy areas made the roads wet. now temperatures are dipping down to near freezing.

watch out. there's icy spots in montgomery county, prince george's, arlington, fairfax, northern virginia, much of maryland. down to near freezing. the road looks wet. in fact, there might be a few scattered, icy spots. drive as if it might be ice. and later this morning, we'll be well above freezing. near 40 by 9:00. mid 40s by noon. near 50 by mid-afternoon with a partly cloudy sky. then tonight, partly cloudy, by midnight, we'll be right back down to near 40 degrees. the seven-day outlook in ten minutes. could get more snow. details coming up. now a look at traffic with danella. good morning. still checking on two accidents. the earlier crash across the 11th street bridge, out of the roadway. police are still on scene. as far as lanes, they're open. we'll head back over this time 295 northbound. the ramp to eastbound 50. that ramp is shut down still because of that earlier crash. we have more in ten minutes. >> thank you. new tensions at this hour along the korean peninsula. the latest fallout from a controversial nuclear test.

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i'm melissa mollet at the live desk. just in to the newsroom, south korea has just unveiled a crucial it says can hit the -- cruise missile it says can hit the office of north korea's leaders. this video of rocket launches is what the government released in making the announcement. this came after north korea carried out its third nuclear test on tuesday, raising tensions and drawing fire from around the world. experts say no radiation has been detected from that test. because of it, australia has blocked a planned visit by north korean diplomats. at the live desk, melissa mollet, news4. and iran may be trying to

expand its nuclear program, as well. overnight we learned of new evidence tehran is speeding up plans to build nuclear weapons. according to the "washington post," iranian agents tried to buy from china 100,000 magnets that are used in centrifuge machines. the u.n. banned other countries from exporting magnets to iran. if the report is true, iran would have enough magnets for 50,000 new centrifuges that would help enrich uranium, five times the number it operates now. president obama signed a disaster dlaergz ordering federal aid in mississippi following a massive tornado there. a powerful twister with 170 mile-per-hour winds touched down sunday night, damaging the university of southern mississippi and more than 800 homes in the southern part of the state. the declaration will help state and local agencies in their recovery efforts. it may also provide grants to help business owners and individuals rebuild from the storm and provide temporary housing. this morning, families are out of their homes while major wildfires burn in australia.

australian leaders believe lightning strikes sparked at least 16 fires on tuesday. they issued an emergency warning and evacuated families from their homes in western australia. the fires already destroyed three homes and scorched more than 8,000 acres. the fires threaten many homes in its path. more than 200 firefighters are battling this fire. so we know that political debates can get a little bit heated. but check out this just all-out brawl between two politicians on georgian television. the live debate between members of the georgian dream party and united national movement party got heated to say the least. after the man on the right of the screen goes on a rant about how his opponent is a snake, the moderator tries to ease tensions. that didn't work either. the glass is broken, the punches start flying. and there you have it. i should say, this is the country of georgia, not the state. both of these guys had to be escorted off the stage. the show went on. in the day ahead, the maryland general assembly will take up governor o'malley's push to reveal the death penalty.

committees in both the house and senate will hold hearings. governor martin o'malley along with naacp president benjamin jealous are expected to testify. the current bill takes some savings of a repeal and uses it to support family members of murder victims. if passed maryland would be the sixth state to do away with the penalty. some maryland lawmakers are taking heat over the way they're handling another controversial bill -- gun control. a 16-member group of delegates has been holding closed door meetings on governor o'malley's proposal. it is one of the toughest bills in the nation, calling for an assault weapons ban and the fingerprinting of licensing gun owners. house leaders say the meeting is strictly educational and is exempt from open meeting laws. a public hearing held by the senate last week drew more than 1,000 people and lasted more than eight hours. this morning, an alexandria sheriff's deputy is on administrative leave a little more than a day after he shot and killed a man who apparently broke into his house. investigators say he found the

intruder in his home on rosemarie drive in ft. washington just after 10:30 tuesday night. they say the man -- two men got into a fight, and the sheriff's deputy eventually shot the intruder. he managed to run out of the house before collapsing. he later died. police tell us the intruder may have -- may not have been acting alone, although we're not hearing of any arrests in this case. two different plans are on the table to raise money for transportation in virginia. the state senate approved a funding bill to generate $1 billion a year in revenue. it would raise the gas tax by a nickel and give local cities and counties the option of raising their sales tax by 1%. virginia governor bob mcdonnell back the house plan. it would scrap the gas tax altogether and raise the sales tax statewide by .8%. both versions now go to a committee made up of state senators and delegates for a possible compromise. redskins fans, if you want to take a roadtrip today, you may want to head to richmond. the treatment will break ground on its new training facility.

the training center will be built near the science museum of virginia. governor mcdonnell will be at the ceremony. the training center should be completed in time for training camp this summer. ten minutes before the top of the hour. the nationals already gearing up for their upcoming season. pitchers and catchers reported to the team's spring training in florida yesterday. the players underwent physicals, took part in light throwing drills. the nats enter the season with really high expectations. most experts are picking them to repeat as national league eastern division champions. manager davey johnson says last year's playoff run will help the team go even deeper into the post season this year. >> experience to me is the key. being there before in the playoff situation, winning your division, that's experience you can't replace. that's something that leaves a taste in your mouth to do better. >> the rest of the players report to camp tomorrow. the first spring training game

is a week from saturday. we will be all over it. >> that's right. the wizards are heading into an all-star break on a bit of a sour note. they had a four-game winning streak snapped last night by the pistons 96-85. washington led through three quarters but allowed the pistons to outscore them in the fourth and steal the win. another good game, john wallman, 16 points. and okafor led with 20 points. they'll try to get back in the win columns next tuesday against toronto. looking good. turning around. >> definitely. say it for me -- >> 4:51. >> that's the time. tom kierein keeping an eye on the weather. tom? >> we had big change yesterday. got into the 40s before the rain fell. as soon as the rain fell, it dropped dramatically and changed to snow last night. this is what it looked like yesterday afternoon. the area in green was rain. this was at around 4:30. we quickly had the snow moving through into the evening hours. now it's partly cloudy to mostly clear. and we had enough snow to coat

the ground. this was a photo sent in from sterling, virginia, by lisette miller to weather@nbcwashington.com. when you're waking up this morning and you see still a little snow around, take a photo, send it to us, we'll show to on tv. weather@nbcwashington.com. there's the sky over the washington monument now. mostly clear. reagan national at 35. here's how the morning's looking. watch out for icy spots on many roadways. if it looks wet, in fact that might be a little ice. but by 8:00, ought to be above freezing. by noon, into the mid 40s, partly cloudy. all around the region now, yes, temperatures are near or a little below freezing. that includes all of northern virginia, most of maryland, montgomery, prince george's county, arlington, fairfax. right in the district of columbia, generally mid 30s. roadways are wet. hour by hour, we'll have icy spots maybe through 8:00. after that, we'll warm up. by 8:30 or so, 9:00, mid 30s. mid 40s by noontime. as we get into the afternoon, peaking near 50 degrees. as we get into friday, some late

rain maybe after sunset. and maybe a little snow after midnight friday night. before then, mid 50s. then much colder for the weekend. might get a little snow on saturday morning. some flurries maybe in the afternoon. highs only in the 30s, near 20 sunday morning. by afternoon, upper 30s. 40s by monday afternoon, maybe rain tuesday and near 50. 50 again perhaps on wednesday. i'm back in ten minutes. a look at traffic with danella. good morning. good morning. tracking breaking news. if you're traveling 295 northbound, taking the ramp to route 50, there you'll find an accident that has shut the ramp down. again, we'll get more details coming up. from what i was told earlier, the accident was due to a police chase ending in a crash. again, traveling northbound 295, the ramp to outbound 50, that's shut down. now, let's head over and check out charles county. as you travel in accokeek, 210 checks out. 301, as you continue heading all the way to prince george's county along 5, nice and clear in both directions.

in fact, taking 5 branch avenue to the beltway, travel lanes are open. i'm back in ten minutes. back to you. >> thank you. big truck lovers looking for a little more bang for your buck, there's a new ram truck coming your way. "motor trend" magazine reports chrysler will announce today it's going to offer a version of its ram 1500 pickup truck that runs on diesel. will be the first modern half ton pickup in the u.s. with the diesel power option. even though diesel costs more at the pump, some drivers prefer it because it lasts longer and has a higher resale value. this morning, three big auto makers have something to brag about -- having the most dependable vehicles. jd power and associate gave the honor to lexus, porsche, and lincoln. the survey looks at three-year -- 3-year-old vehicles and looks at whether the cars had things like engine failure, electronic glitches, excessive wind noise. mercedes-benz and toyota ranked among the best. jeep, mitsubishi, dodge, and landrover ranked at the bottom. a drink that may be a

popular choice for many at this hour is getting a new label. monster energy drinks will no longer be considered a dietary supplement but just a drink. its new label will list nutrition facts instead of supplement facts. the label will also include caffeine content. the company ceo says the move from a dietary supplement to a drink changes the federal guidelines it must follow. the company has been under investigation for reports of at least five deaths associated with its monster energy drinks. we continue to follow breaking news involving south african sprinter oscar pistorius and his overnight arrest. coming up at 5:10, bad news for all of lady gago ga-- g gags little monsters.

pretty low turnout last night at the annual state of the d.c. fire department address. last year dozens of firefighters symbolically turned their backs on chief kenneth ellerbee in response to his plan to change their schedules. this year they just didn't show up. chief ellerbee says he knows the changes he's trying to make are not popular but says he'll continue with plans to modernize his department. parents in fairfax county are sharing concerns about school safety in the wake of the tragedy at sandy hook elementary

school. last night parents met with resource officers and members of the fairfax county public school system at the sully district police station. some asked about adding more school resource officers on campus. >> i have two students in elementary schools. and i don't see sras in the schools. at least the times that i'm there. i do have that concern, especially after recent events around the country. >> the head of security discussed campus protections including cameras, lighting, and lockdown procedures. today we'll get it meet the lucky ticketholders waking up $217 million richer this morning. a local couple in virginia hit the powerball this month. the winning ticket was bought at the richmond airport. that is where the big check will be presented to the lucky winners this afternoon. >> all right. stay with us. "news4 today" continues right now at 5:00 a.m. police still on the scene in a quiet alexandria neighborhood this morning after an elderly

man was found dead