kidnapped him from his bedroom in that country. in the newest video sent to select media including "the washington post," weinstein, who is now 72 years old, pleads for the obama administration to negotiate his release. here is what he says in the video. and i quote, now when i need my government, it seems i have been totally abandoned and forgotten. you're now in your second term, and that means that you can take hard decisions without worrying about election. that is, again, a quote from warren weinstein held in captivity for the last two years. we're going to continue to follow this developing story and bring you more throughout the morning. from the live desk, molette green. back to you. investigators trying to figure out what sparked a fire that made for a tragic christmas morning in calvert county. check out these pictures of the aftermath. the home in owings caught fire and quickly spread to three

cars. one person in the home was found dead. firefighters say about $250,000 in damage was done. they're still searching for the cause. we now know what sparked a fire in silver spring christmas morning that sent a tis abled veteran and two firefighters to the hospital. investigators say the fire at the home on narrows court started after a flammable liquid was used in the home's fireplace. one man in the home and two firefighters suffered burns. five people forced from the h e home. if you were were expecting a present yesterday that never arrived, well, it may come today. u.p.s. wasn't able to deliver all christmas packages to customers on time. news 4's jackie bensen spoke to a local woman who is still waiting for one special package to arrive. >> reporter: people tell us they noticed something was wrong late tuesday afternoon. they went on line to check the progress of their packages and noticed nothing was happening. jessica jackson spent tuesday waiting and waiting and waiting for a package she'd ordered online from amazon.com to arrive

at her montgomery county home. >> the tracking never changed on the website. it just said from 10:00 a.m. yesterday it said on the are truck for delivery. and i'm like, this is just down in rockville. can't i pick it up myself? >> reporter: the package never arrived. jackson was not alone. what retailers call an unexpected surge of online orders appears to have strained the limits of delivery companies. late tuesday united parcel service which delivers around 45% of u.s. packages issued a statement saying it wouldn't be able to get some goods to customers by christmas. the volume of air packages in the u.p.s. system did exceed capacity as demand was much greater than our forecast. u.p.s. expected to receive 8 million packages monday but got many more. how many that were not delivered is not yet known. jackson has her fingers crossed the missing package will be

delivered thursday because it has an important gift, one she cannot tell us about. >> it's a present for my mom. she loves this channel so she'll probably watch the news. i can't say what it is. >> reporter: in addition to refunding shipping and handling charges, amazon is offering disappointed customers a $20 gift card. jackie bensen, news 4. >> hopefully those customers can get the belated christmas present. >> a nice surprise they're waiting for. it's just sad because so many people spend that extra money to make sure it's there. >> you really want it on the 25th. yeah, all right. well, let's talk about the weather. we're still waking up with our coffee this morning. >> indeed. >> the the one thing i heard amelia say -- >> 53 degrees. today our high will be 45. a good ten degrees warmer than we were yesterday. on satellite and radar right now i'm track aing clouds moving into the area. light snow with them and that could produce some flurries this morning in areas like frederick

county, maryland, and loudoun cou county in virginia. temperatures are in the 20s right now. 25 in washington. now down to 24. 25 for those of you in rockville. as we work our way throughout the morning hours, we will have cloudiness around. 9:00 a.m. a temperatures will be in the low 30s. now getting into the afternoon hours, any of those clouds exit the area. we will be seeing plenty of sunshine this afternoon and, again, a high temperature of about 45 degrees. now looking ahead to the weekend, there is some rain in the forecast, and i'll be taking a look at that potential coming up in about ten minutes. for now, maynard, how are the roads looking? the roads are looking pretty good this morning. i-270 at 109. light volume and running at full speed. the same story further down the line. 270 and 118. just a 16-minute ride to the beltway from there. and here is the american legion bridge. no volume this morning and running at full speed. when we come back, we're going to talk about the update on the water main break and how it's

affecting your commute in the d district. back to you in the studio. the white house expects this to be another busy day for the health care industry. it's counting on thousands of uninsured americans spending this day after christmas shopping for coverage. danielle leigh is live on capitol hill with the latest. >> reporter: hi, adam. good morning. today is going to bring a whole new set of challenges to start reaching out to those people who did enroll making sure they are, in fact, covered, and reaching out to people like those young invincibles who missed the deadline. this morning it's not entirely clear who will be receiving health care from the federally run exchange and when. a health care.gov post tells people they'll be considered for coverage january 1 on a case-by-case business. everyone else starting the signup process today can expect insurance in february. insurers say who enrolls is just as important as how many.

>> the success of health reform depends on having broad participation in the marketplace, getting healthier and younger people to balance out cost. >> reporter: catchy ads hoping to convince young people obamacare is worth the investment. james anderson got the message, but many of his friends have not. >> a lot of people go about it as they don't care. nothing going to happen to me. until you need it and then panic. >> reporter: industry consultants warn those who are enrolled can't relax just yet. >> lots of people have signed up. they believe they have coverage. there are still lots of errors. >> reporter: after a record week of visitors on healthcare.gov now comes the difficult task of making sure all those applications are correct. and processed. and now the next step is making sure that your payment and also your paperwork have been received by the insurance companies. ex perts are recommending to give a call it if you don't hear

from them within a week of signing up. i'm danielle leigh. adam, back to you. time rate now 4:35. we want to check in with molette green at the live desk. angie, on this day after christmas two teenagers are dead in new jersey. three young people in all were shot when gunfire rang out in newark about 10:00 p.m. a 13-year-old girl and 14-year-old boy is dead and a third child is listed in stable but critical condition. we don't have the gender and the age of that child. we're working to find out more about what all happened here. these shootings happened in the neighborhood not far from interstate 78 in a neighboring city. it's been a violent holiday there as these shootings come after three men were fatally shot and two others wounded early christmas morning at a nightclub in irvington. we're work iing to continue to t more information for you. that's the latest now from the live desk. back to you. thanks, molette.

we're waiting for police to tell fuss a man found dead along the anacostia river yesterday was murdered. someone saw him lying in the grass near the 11th street bridge. the medical examiner is trying to figure out what caused his death. the man charged with killing a tsa agent at l.a.x. will be in court today. ciancia will be arraigned. they say ciancia walked into the airport last month, pulled a rifle out of his bag and then opened fire. he could get the death penalty if convicted. right now power crews are working around the clock to get the lights back on to thousands who spent christmas in the cold and in the dark. more than 100,000 in michigan and more than 15,000 in maine and vermont still do not have electricity. it was knocked out five days ago in an ice storm. icy roads made for a messy drive

in michigan as well where there were dozens of accidents. temperatures have remained far below trezing making it very difficult for power crews to remove ice on power lines. well, new this morning, reports that a u.s. drone opened fire overnight. we're tracking new developments. word how a good deed at a drive-through is becoming a holiday tradition. and at 4:37 it's a chilly start to your thursday. we are a warm-up.

weather and traffic next. so if you are already planning a getaway for the new year, we have a list of what travel experts say will be the top destinations of 2014. vacation rental website flip key says rio will be a popular destination. brazil is hosting the world cup in june. the top five destinations are all in florida. miami beach, orlando's kissimmee and key west among the most visited in the new year. and 2014 may bring with it some changes in your office. a company that designs flexible work spaces is predicting three work place trends he in the new year. one is an increase in a, quote, third place to work and that is somewhere they say that isn't the office but isn't your home. second, a redesign of the open

office plan. regis says workers are complaining about noise and the lack of privacy. and, finally, am some companies may get rid of office space altogether and opt for an as needed office like a drop in lounge. i think a napping lounge would be nice. >> definitely tops the list. that would be good. some residents of a connecticut town seemed to have started a new christmas traditional their local starbucks. since early tuesday almost every customer who has used the drivethrough has found their order paid for by the person ahead of them in line. by the time the shop closed at 5:00 yesterday he evening nearly 450 customers -- this is great -- 450 customers had paid it forward and thing giving spirit will continue today. $45 is left over so the first several orders this morning will also be free. $45 gets you, what, three -- >> three and a half. that is just so nice. and what i noticed on line and n twitter people tweeting where you can send just a cup of

coffee. it's the small things that can really warm your heart. >> really the simplest thing makes all the difference. >> a hot cup of could have he fee, that's what we need. a live look over the city. things pretty much nice and calm but there is a chill in the air. >> sure. let's head 0 over to amelia with the forecast. good morning, adam, a chill in the air it this morning, but that chill will lift as we work our way into the afternoon hours. on the satellite and radar tracking clouds moving into the area. very light flurries over west virginia and washington county. so those of you north of washington this morning could see not only plenty of clouds but maybe a few flurries, too. 29 chilly degrees right now. 8:00 a.m. we will be mostly cloudy it by noon we're at 40 degrees and any morning cloudiness will give way to afternoon sunshine. as our temperatures warm into the mid-40s for highs today, you can see around 2:00, 4:00 p.m., that's when we'll hit our high temperature of about 44, 45 degrees.

some rain on sunday. i'll have the extended outlook in ten minutes. maynard? roads are good. we do have a water main break. closed between irvin and franklin street. news 4's melissa mollet is on the scene and says it will be clearing soon. a picture, tough to see. as you can see the entire roadway closed there. here is a look at i-66 at suddenly road. things moving along well. still the holiday pace out there and 66 at lee highway, also, no cars on the road at this point. adam and angie, back to you in the studio. >> let the gift exchanging begin. stores are about to get real crowded again. we're going to tell you what you need to know if you're swapping out a new gift. first, dramatic next and w

authorities are growing more concerned.

breaking news at 4:46. news 4's melissa mollet arrived at the scene of a house fire in the district. what's going on? >> reporter: good morning. take a look at this behind me here. this happened at 4:00 this morning and you can see the had heavy fire that must have torn through this home. this is a duplex here. we still have a lot of firefighters on the scene telling me they do not know how the fire started, but we know there was one man inside the home, a middle aged man. he says that he saw some smoke. he tells me he called 911 and came outside. right now we know the firefighters are inside, as you can see the flashlights moving about in the upstairs area. they are doing their cursory search when they go through after something like this happens. you can see down here in front of the home we have these firefighters standing here.

there is apparently a power line town across this area, so right now they are waiting for pepco. nobody injured. one person inside the home. these guys will be on the scene for quite a while, though, because they tell me of these conditions. back to you. >> melissa, thanks. 4:47. news 4's molette green at the live desk with more breaking news. molette? and good morning. we just found out about another suspected american drone strike in pakistan. intelligence officials in the country say two missiles were fired at a home in the northwestern tribal region bordering afghanistan and officials in islamabad say at least three foreign militants possibly arabs were killed in a village in north withaziristan. that's the latest. montgomery county police need your help to find the person who stole a menorah from a man's front yard. >> this is video of the five foot tall menorah from a few years ago. the owner says when he got to his germantown home after work tuesday night it was gone.

friends in the neighborhood told him it had been left in pieces in a nearby yard but when he went to collect the pieces yesterday morning they were gone. firefighters in massachusetts are trying to figure out what caused this, a nativity scene, to go up in flames. you are looking at the remnants of it. investigators believe the fire was fueled by hay that surrounded the scene in medford and they say it was likely just a strange coincidence that it caught fair on christmas day. firefighters are now looking at the electrical wiring in the nativity scene to see if that is where the fire started. and poe are still looking for the man who shot five people outside a new jersey nightclub yesterday morning. three of those victims did die. they include the club owner's son. detectives believe the bouncers stopped the gunman from going inside the club, and that is when that person pulled the gun and opened fire. we have a warning if you planned a ski trip to utah. there could be avalanches in the mountains near salt lake city. there have been nearly as to in the past five days and there

could be several more in the coming days. here's something to keep in mind if you're going to utah. avalanches tend to happen more on the first sunny day after a snowstorm. we want to show you what it's like to be trapped in an avalanche. a man was swept up in one over the weekend. his brother caught the whole thing on video. he spoke to our sister station in denver. >> yeah, we have been skiing together at vail since we were tiny kids. >> reporter: for as far as back as edwin can remember, he and his brother have always been close. but what happened to them on sunday brought the relationship to new heights. >> it was did he haefinitely a experience. >> reporter: the brothers were on top of a mountain with another friend. the footage you are seeing is from a go pro camera attached to davis' hat. right there, that's his brother edwin who explained to us what happened next. >> it was my first real turn on

the slope. and i saw downhill from me to my left that the snow was cracking up and starting to slide. >> reporter: at that point edwin tried skiing toward a tree to get out of the way. it was too late. in the fog of white snow the aft avalanche fwripd him and ripped him out of one of his skis and continued to drag him facefirst down a 20-foot cliff. >> robl 800 feet. >> reporter: his brother davis raced downhill as fast as he could jumping over the same cliff edwin was pulled over. he found his brother buried head deep. >> even though i could breathe, i was very very panicky and freaked out because i just couldn't move and it was like being cemented in place with just your face above. >> reporter: it only took a few minutes to dig edwin out. edwin had a torn acl and some other minor injuries but you he still had his life and his brother by his side. >> wow. that was kevin torres. both brothers are experienced skiers and were equipped with

all the recommended survival gear. get this, your ears could be the ticket to shedding some unwanted pounds. korean researchers found that acupuncture on the ears can lead to weight loss. they studied three different types of acupuncture on the ear and found a five-point treatment was most effective. that's where five needles are kept in the outer ear for a week. they saw a substantial drop in body mass index and body fat. today a u.s. senator will outline a plan he hopes will better protect you from credit card breaches like the one at target. robert menendez will introduce the plan outside a target store in jersey city later this morning. he says it will ensure you're protected if a retailer fails to safeguard your personal information. you'll probably find big crowds if you head to the mall today. >> many people here will be returning some gifts or maybe exchanging them but not necessarily buying them. if you're going to try and make a return, check the fine print before heading to the store. also, bring coupons or gift

cards. you may receive store credit instead of cash, keep in mind, and you may have to use that credit right away. you can also try returning some items online. some sites do offer cash or gift cards for unwanted gifts. a chilly start to the day but not a bad one overall if you want to head out to the mall. amelia is here with the forecast. >> maybe wear a new winter coat that you got. >> absolutely. temperatures right the now are in the 20s. it was capitol hilly yesterday. beautiful sunshine but there was definitely a chill in the air today. today will be warmer and our temperatures warm a little bit each day as we head on into the weekend. now i am tracking rain on sunday and as we look ahead to new year's eve and new year's day right now you it's looking dry for those time periods. temperatures 29 in washington. 21 in manassas. 23 degrees for those of you in camp springs. and i am tracking some very light snow on storm team 4 radar in west virginia and washington

county. those of you in frederick and loudoun counties this morning could be seeing some flurries. otherwise notice the clouds moving into the area. we are going to have clouds around the this morning and you see here on future weather at 6:30 plenty of cloudiness. even at 8:00 a.m. we're still tracking mostly cloudy skies over most of the area. again, maybe some isolated flurries north of washington. but as we get into the midday and afternoon hours, look what happens. the clouds clear out so we will have plenty of sunshine this afternoon and a high temperature of 45 degrees. for tomorrow sunny, a high of 46. plenty of sunshine still around on saturday. a high temperature of 51 degrees. for sunday cloudy skies, a high of 47. and i do think we will see rain on sun day mainly later in the day so we're going to continue to track that rain potential. as we look ahead to new year's eve, a high temperature of 35. now for new year's night around midnight, a temperature of 30 degrees and it is looking

chilly. maynard, are we still tracking problem free conditions on the roads? overall problem free. we do have a fire minnesota avenue southeast is closed between knenelson place and m pe for that fire. so the crews can work on things. and 295/95 headed into the beltway looking pretty good and running at full speed right now. here's a live look at i-95 south of route 32. you just have a ten-minute ride from 32 to the capital beltway. aaron and -- sorry, adam and angie, back to you. >> it's an easy mistake. >> too many as. still ahead on "news 4 today" at 5:00 -- caught on camera. a near tragedy on christmas day instead becomes a meiracle. you'll hear from one of the men who jumped into action to save a man from a burning car. plus, you could soon be paying more in the new year. why riding the

why hundreds lined up to relive a moment that changed history on christmas day. president obama and the first lady spent part of their christmas visiting with u.s. service members. the obamas made a stop at the marine corps base in hawaii. he made a few remarks in the dining hall and took photos with the service members and their families. vice president biden was here in maryland visiting wounded

warriors. he and his wife jill went room to room to say hello to patients and their families and chatted with hospital staff. the vice president thanked the service members for their service and sacrifice. you can use christmas to teach your kids a history lesson. this is how hundreds spent the day wred, watching the re-enactment of george washington crossing the delaware river. he made the rossing on christmas day in 1776. it turned the tide of the revolutionary war. this is the 61st year the crossing has been re-enacted. >> certainly cold when washington it the first time. >> when washington did it was windy, blustery, there was snow and one of the actors yesterday, they were doing it in 30-degree weather, how cold it was and that they did this over a span of almost two days and keep in mind that the revolutionary war is eight years so they had many a winter of fighting in those conditions and only tf