saw hail the size of golf balls earlier this afternoon. right now i think the severe weather threat starting to diminish. now a line from frederick. and we continue to see this whole thing tracking across parts of northern virginia and maryland along 270. here's the strongest storm toward northern fauquier county. we'll watch this. and then follow this up toward gates gate. we will see it moving right down 270. those storms also moving toward bethesda. i'm tracking it for you. thanks. tonight firefighters are singling their could not dole ends after a firefighter who spent 24 years protecting the people who live and work here. >> it started almost

immediately, he was the father a husband, a well hiked colleague from a family of firefighters. our coverage coverage starts now. >> reporter: you can see the black bundling is up on the up on engine six of the fire house right now. while many are remembering kevin mcrae as a leader and a mentor and the city is remembered him as a hero. many who knew him well say they'll remember his sense of humor. >> his smile and his positive attitude are the best things about kevin. >> reporter: dozens of his friends and colleagues stood at attention and saluted. his body was transferred from the hospital today. firefighters have spent the day consoling one another. it has been nearly eight years since a d.c. firefighter died in the line of duty.

the fire who died his cousin james mcrae. >> the mcrae family has suffered a lot. this is the second time this has happened to this family. >> kevin mcrae is one of the few members still on the department 24 years later. >> kevin was also available to help somebody to teach them. whether it is going over the side of a building on a rope or how to search in a burning building to find a victim. he had done of a of those thing and at an extremely high level and he taught others to do it. >> mcrae is survived by his wife and three children as well as his mother. d.c. firefighters are now wearing the traditional black ribbons to honor their fallen brother. >> it is a painful reminder of how high the stakes are. >> reporter: kevin mcrae his team will be receiving counseling. the men and women who went into

that fire this morning. he is the 100th d.c. firefighter to die in the line of duty. and his death comes 159 days exactly to the day of the first d.c. firefighter to die in the line of duty. back to you. the people firefighters raced to rescue from that you know building are grateful to be alive them escaped the flames but many cannot get back into their homes now. they're still talking about the terrifying moments. >> reporter: it was difficult for many who have special needs. most will be allowed back inside this building in about an hour. but not those who live on the top floors. 9 and 10. that's because the fire damage is too extensive up there. flames and smoke poured out of

the penalty in floor apartment where the fire started. two d.c. firefighters collapsed. one is kevin mcrae who died. the other is in serious condition. two residents were also transported with injuries. for those tenants who escaped the fire they say they feel very fortunate. >> i thought i wouldn't be caught up in the fire. the elevator nobody can use the elevator so i had to rush by the stairway. >> family members called. the neighbors called me. somebody came and knocked on my door. me being difficult to get with my chair. >> reporter: coming up at 6:30 we will hear from the woman who lived in that apartment where the fire started. they call her miss ruby. and we'll see how she is doing.

if she can understand how this started. this afternoon a group of high school students gathered to support lieutenant mcrae. dunbar high school is across the street from engine six. it is the school from which mcrae's son will soon graduate. the students and dunbar's principal walked from the school to the fire house today to pay their respects. in community leaders were quick to show support on twitter. tonight we look at how many don't succumb to jersey from the fire. it tore her city apart.

the. he's been for this all along since everything blew up in baltimore. it was here in washington that former u.s. attorney general eric holder unfolded a similar study for ferguson. now his successor loretta lynch looks likely to approve this for baltimore. the national guard is pulled out. and baltimore's state of emergency today is lifted. but mayor stephanie rawlings-blake said the federal government now needs to investigate her police department. >> baltimore continues to have a fractured relationship between the police and the community. >> reporter: the justice department is already investigating whether freddie's rights got violated by any of the cops charged in his death. the new probe would look at the pattern of policing in baltimore. who gets stopped, arrested treated aggressively. the record is disturbing. 100 lawsuits. >> we have now over the last

four or five years. we have paid out for excessive force. ? the probe found a pattern of raes. . >> whatever they final we need to do. to have a department that our citizens deserve. i'm determined to get it done. >> reporter: the police and many complain. comes are being send out. it has taken decades to grow and it will likely take decades to repair. >> reporter: the federal investigators will look at thousands of police records. they'll try to quaunl identify how baltimore was being policed before the explosion. news4. >> steve, thank you.

tonight we're learning how a school system is responding to a teacher accused of sexually abusing a 9-year-old student. pat collins is in landover tonight at paca elementary school. >> reporter: for more than seven years, he's been a teacher here in prince george's county. only the as he criminal suspect. the charge. sex abuse of a minor. the suspect, a teacher. shown here in this prince george's county police video. he is identified as 39-year-old irwin mcnaya. as he science and math instructor at the william paca elementary school in landover. according to court documents, he

had inappropriate encounters with one of his students. a 9-year-old boy. police say it included kissing and touching. >> the time frame for this situation, the boy says it began in september of 2014. and lasted through february of this year. and there were at least five instances in which this abuse is alleged to have occurred. >> this from the prince george's county school system. it says it is cooperating fully with the police investigation. that teacher magnaye has been placed on administrative leave. >> i think they need to investigate these teachers more than what they're doing now. >> reporter: the teacher is being held without bond pending

further court action in the case. back to you. the people investigating whether the new england patriots that intentionally deflated footballs before a championship game say that the team probably did it. they also say the quarterback probably was aware of it. >> reporter: 243 pages, jim, i got it right here. the investigation that lasted nearly four months and produced this. the report singles out three people as quote, probably responsible for the deflated balls. just to recap, in january during the afc championship game against the colts, the patriots were accused of using underinnatd balls to gain an advantage today. 's report says it was more probable than not that the patriots inflated the balls. this included some incriminating text messages between a locker

room attendant and an assistant. you it was conclude that had tom brady was generally aware of what was going on. he has depends that in the past. the patriots oernl bob kraft released a statement saying he doesn't agree but he won't disagree with whatever they decide. >> thank you. a mother's -- >> the student body faculty and staff. >> a mother's plea for help. her son's disappearance. why the timing has so many people worried. a crackdown on what they call tow spotting. a story we've been following for years. now there is a decision about whether a towing company can target drivers. >> reporter: a d.c. police officer accused of trying to kill his wife. i'm tra

live pictures in oklahoma. a tornado emergency has been issued. that's more severe than a tornado warning. we'll have coverage in a couple minutes. a d.c. police officer is on

trial for the attempted murder of his wife. he took the witness stand today. the case is in the hands of the jury and we're hearing from an alternate juror. tracee wilkins in upper marlboro with more. >> reporter: he is facing second-degree murder charges in addition to four other counts. my understanding, the jury has ruled on four of those counts. one is still up in the air. they're going to come back tomorrow and deliberate and decide what that will be. we spoke with one alternate juror who. he already made up his mind before he was asked to leave the jury pool. >> we're prayerful in this trial he'll be acquitted of all the charges. >> reporter: the last time he stood trial for trying to kill his wife. this time -- >> i find him not guilty. >> reporter: this alternate juror says it is not clear to him. >> i don't think he meant to kiss his wife or meant to harm

her in any way. he was acting in self-defense. >> reporter: betty said her husband of 20 years, sam sonl laurnls, lawrence violently beat her. sam sonl is accused of spraying his wife's face with lie sol, pushing her down the steps, choking her and holding knives to her neck. none of his dna was found on any of the alleged weapons find inside their home. that swayeds juror. the evidence with the finger prints and people who testified. i found him not guilty. >> reporter: it is clear there was domestic disturbance that left her with injuries. but was she hurt on that you recall or part of the self-defense? the new jury of eight women and four men has yet to decide. >> obviously there is a

distinction and then participating inparticipate in deliberations. >> that was the attorney responding to what the alternate juror said he believes there is something to actually deliberating listening to what other jurors think about the case. sam son is on suspension with pay from the d.c. police department. we're expecting the jury to render their decision tomorrow. back to you. >> thank you. there will be no change to a maryland state law after a towing company went to court saying it was unconstitutional. it is a story the i-team has been covering more than a year. the owner fought the laws which includes tow spotters. an appeals court has dismissed the challenge saying g & g can't challenge the law because nobody has ever prosecuted the company for violating the company.

you can read more about it by clicking on investigations. >> the government is loosening some restrictions on the use of commercial drones. today the federal aviation administration announce ad program called path finder. it is going on allow several company to use drones for farming. railroad inspections and news gathering purpose. the faa will still require operators to stay within view of their drones at all times. back to our weather for the second night in a row. showers and even some storms are fire up across the area. doug is tracking it all from the storm center. >> we do have an intake. we've got this line of storm continuing to make its way on through. the best news about this is we saw severe weather a little earlier. i think we're about done with the severe weather. still some strong storms and

very heavy rain coming down along 270. northern portions of loudoun county along 15 as you move over. and then right along 270. we'll do a little bit of a zoom here. you notice right over the clarksburg. that's the h rain. and it continues to fall. and then right south, along river road. around this area. more heavy rain crossing into loudoun and fairfax county. we continue to see that. no real heavy storms. that was the area they got hit really hard earlier. the strongest storm is right now over rappahannock county. all of this to the south. this is all part of that line as it moves to the south. waiting to see. that's pennsylvania and it could

dip in. that's the wider view. we have more storm well to the north. we're not quite done with these storms just yet. speaking of storms. we're not the only one dealing with these. veronica has been tracking this. >> they really have been getting hit hard down there from texas all the way north up toward kansas. take look at the live images. this was a wall cloud. ominous sky for sure. this is just to the area in and around oklahoma city which we can show you that radar in just a second. it is an enhanced version of the tornado warning used by the national weather service for highly populated areas. for oklahoma city now. the tornado emergency issued in rare occurrences where they are expecting widespread damage. for oklahoma city now, tornado emergency issued.

we can go back to showing you the images and of course what we have around here. still some storms that continue to fire up. oklahoma city to the south is the town of moore which was devastated by an f-5 a few years ago. that storm is very close to tracking over that area. we're just dealing with some thunderstorm area. activity and some very heavy rain. if you're heading down. a lot of people heading downtown. you're going to get wet for sure. we have a lot of rain moving in. the temperature tomorrow 80 degrees with some sunshine but also some cloud cover. yeem degrees on friday. 82 on saturday. 83 on sunlds. maybe an isolated shower on saturday and sunday and then much warmer as we head toward monday and tuesday. this is like a summer forecast. some hotter weather and some chances of storm, too. >> all right. thanks. relief is in sight for people in a neighborhood. a sewage problem that has been

going on for days will get fixed. everywhere you turn there's some type of construction. how much longer for all of

a developing story from stafford county and here in washington, too. the family of a missing man,

33-year-old lance buckley, is appealing for help in finding him. buckley was last seen yesterday morning on his way from stafford county to howard university in the district. he is set to graduate on saturday with a ph.d. from howard. police know he picked up his graduation packet on campus and then disappeared. his mother says it is not like her son and is appealing for help. >> we are just desperate to find lance and we really need their help. we really need them to just reach out and think, was i there, 50 seen him, did i interact with him. we're just pleading for the public's help. >> deputies tell us lance may also be in possession of a firearm. they warn they don't believe as he threat to anyone else. they want to you call them if you know anything. fairfax county police track a school thief who stole from a disabled student. they found it was an inside job. investigators used the find me app to track down the student's stolen ipad.

it led to the home of the lead custodian. a search warrant we pulled said he allegedly bragged to others about stealing stuff from the school. officers arrested him at his reston home today. the former speaker of the house has died. jim right was the first to be driven out of office in mid-term of he served 32 years in congress before he replaced tip o'neill as the speaker in 1987. two years later, wright was charged with 69 violations of house rules on reporting and accepting gifts. he left office in 1989. he was 92 years old when he died. we are developments on the big story of the day. a firefighter has died in the line of duty. we'll go back to the scene and hear from the woman in whose

apartment that fire started. >> we're keeping a close eye on this. showers and storms moving across the

i don't know if we can do

that. that radar continuing to show very heavy thunderstorms across our region. making their way right down on 66. they will continue to do so. montgomery county seeing that rain. back down toward rappahannock county fauquier all seeing the heavy rain. we'll see it down to the south. moving right through the metro area within the next 15 minutes to about a half-hour. right toward the south. this is the biggest storm right here. notice all the lightning with this. this is in little washington. that's where it is. around 6:32 toward the boston area around 6:40. and toward culpepper at 6:45. we're tracking these storms. we'll continue to do that. we begin with a developing story out of the district. a d.c. firefighter is being

honored after he lost his life on the job. >> lieutenant kevin mcrae had been a firefighter in the district for 24 years. he joined as a teenage cadet. mce.r.a. and other firefighters battled a two-alarm today. he collapsed after leaving the building. he is the 100th d.c. firefighter to die in the line of duty. we're hearing from the woman who lives in the penalty in floor apartment where that fire apparently started. >> her name is ruby morgan. they call her miss ruby in those parts. she banged on doors, telling everybody that her place was on fire. the red cross is now helping the residents there. chris gordon on seventh street northwest with more on this. >> reporter: you're about to meet miss ruby. she was kind enough to talk to us on probably one of the most difficult days of her life shelf lived up there on the ninth floor of the apartment building. fire investigators are looking

for a cause. ruby morgan said she heard a loud noise and then saw smoke in her apartment. she said she thanks god she made it out alive. >> they said somebody died and all that. i'm real sad about that. >> reporter: firefighters saluted their fallen brother, a tribute to lieutenant kevin mcrae as he was driven past the scene of the northwest fire where he lost his life this morning. flame and heavy smoke shot out of the ninth floor apartment. d.c. investigators are trying to determine the cause of the blaze with the help of atf investigators who interviewed ruby morgan this afternoon. >> did you cook anything this morning? >> nothing. >> reporter: for breakfast you ate? >> i ate rice chrisrispies. >> where did the fire start?

>> i don't know. >> i smelled smoke and got out. >> when will you be able to get back in? where will you live tonight? >> going to my daughter's house. >> for some of the disabled residents, getting out was challenging. >> all i know is i was asleep i hear the alarm, i can't walk somebody knock on the door. next thing i know we looking out and there's fire roaring out of the building on my side of the building. >> now we are back live. they tell us they expect to know the cause of the fire within the next couple hours. residents, at least most of them will be allowed to move back in if they live on floors 1-8. they'll be allowed to move back in within the next hour or so. that's the latest. the family of the d.c.

firefighter who died today knows this kind of tragedy all too well. it is hard to imagine what they must be feeling. before today, the last firefighter to die in the line of duty was lieutenant kevin mcrae's cousin. james mcrae iii died of a suspected heart attack while he was on duty back in 2007. he went on three calls just hours before he died. the fire officials believed the stress may have played a role in that death. throughout the country, more than 100 firefighters died in the line of duty in the year 2013. and of course according to the most recent data it is from homeland security. that data found that among the fallen firefighters 55 of them died at the scene of a fire. and about a third of those firefighters died from a heart attack. we just posted a deeper look at the firefighters on the job. it is in our nbc washington app. it is being called the new

normal. no relief any time soon for drivers into and out of the city. three of the biggest construction projects are expect to cause traffic delays for months even years. the hot spots are 16th street at imminent road in northwest. canal and foxhall in georgetown and mass avenue at third street. our transportation reporter adam tuss takes a closer look. >> it is the crawl that hurts. it can feel like a cross country trip. >> it takes me with 35 to 40 minutes to get to my job, about three, four miles. >> reporter: yep. the construction is spreading and impacting drivers from all across d.c. maryland and virginia. we took a tour of the hot spots for you. >> reporter: construction on canal road? yep. backed up all the way to foxhall road. third street project? sitting in traffic. 16th street bridge project?

trying to get through the construction. >> i guess it is annoying but necessary. here's a quick recap. the third street opportunity. that's a massive project that will enclose the open air section of 395 and buildings will go on top of that. and the 16th street bridge project replacing the bridge which was in bad shape and needed the attention. many taking in it stride for now. >> we have to fix it. >> the city says it is coordinating to make sure people from all across the region can keep moving. so how much longer is all this construction going to stick around? we have the answers for you. canal road. that's through july. 16th street bridge. that's through the fall. the third street tunnel. that's years of hayne changes and construction. if you want to read about how they can make traffic better go

to the nbc washington app and search road construction. in northwest. news4. >> we have a welcome up date. crews can stop the hike by tonight. they had previously said it might take until friday. now they're putting equipment into place to did i have territory sewage and repair the pipe soonler. some 10,000 gallons of waste waerpt leaked from the sewer line last night after it broke. she came to this country not speaking any english. now two years later, she's nearly fluent and about to graduate from high school. you'll hear from the teacher behind her success. also a classroom tradition takes a surprising turn. the heartfelt message from a local student from thousands of miles away. >> live pictures in oklahoma.

a tornado emergency has been declared there. people are being evacuated. we're watching it and we'll

a delightful surprise today for some kids. a kindergartner made a wish regarding his father in the air force now stationed in afghanistan. >> how did dad know them? >> reporter: as far as surprises go for 5-year-olds, this was pretty good. >> his dad who is in afghanistan, loond randy combs

will be our guest reader. >> reporter: they took their seats and one couldn't stop smiling. this is what pre-k is supposed to be. but it was more than the tale of peter rabbit. >> do you miss daddy? >> i didn't know they had a computer with skype. >> of course, mom kelly was in on the whole thing. dad is lieutenant come randy combs station in the kabul. the two haven't seen each other since christmas. >> that way you get to see him all the way in afghanistan. >> i wish i could go there. >> for kinder care it was an opportunity to build relationship and support military families. >> milk and berries. the end. >> reporter: more like a fairytale for a soldier at war and a young boy who can't wait to play with dad again.

reporting in northern virginia. news4. a lot of desperate parents don't know what to do. >> they drove her to help others. how this local woman is on a mission to change minds about mental health. >> for some of us it's been a rainy and

(music) hey! let me help with that. oh, thank you! (music)

introducing the one-and-only volkswagen golf sportwagen. the sportier utility vehicle. for many people suffering from brain disease or mental illness, it can be tough to find help and even find housing.

news4's melissa shows us how it is changing minds. >> here we go. >> reporter: to understand why trudy is where she is you have to go back. about 40 years. >> my daughter laura became sick with a brain tumor when she was 8. >> reporter: she said laura never fully recovered from a surgery to remove the tumor. >> she was totally different afterwards. >> reporter: that change in her daughter grew into a huge desire to help others housing those in need. >> there is a lot of desperate parents all across the country that don't know what to do. >> reporter: by 2003 she had started the brain foundation. >> i was a realtor so i know about housing. i tried to get housing which was so needed. for the mentally ill. >> reporter: several years later, laura passed away. each house now called laura's house in her honor.

the brown foundation owns eight houses. right now, though, the group is looking for a ninth. funding from the all volunteer group comes from grants and private dollars. >> we try for anything we can get. >> reporter: and the 32 tenants paid 32%. it comes mostly from social security and disability. >> i'm so glad she got involved in helping people like me out. >> reporter: she's been battling bipolar disorder for 22 years. >> i was at my wit's end trying to find a place to live. >> reporter: she's lived in a brain foundation home since 2009. >> to me it has been a godsend to live in a nice townhouse and a nice place. i can walk to the grocery store. i can walk to almost anything i need. >> reporter: the clients are place bid mental health groups and receive in-house counseling. drew was diagnosed with schizophrenic a few years ago.

>> it is another test in life. and i'm honored to have a chance. >> reporter: drew lives here with three roommates. >> sometimes me and the guys like wrestle and stuff. >> reporter: he long boards to work at a nearby rock center and says what trudy has done has changed his life. >> i think a lot of people can learn from her. and she has experience and she knows what she's doing. and i'm a part of it. >> reporter: as trudy looks for another house, she hopes others rin spired too. to do something just like this in their community. in honor of her daughter or someone else's child. how does it make you feel to walk into these houses and see clients who are happy? >> well it makes you feel wonderful. yeah. >> reporter: in fairfax county. news4. here at nbc 4, we're

committed to helping people deal with mental illness. if you or someone you know needs help we have a long list of resources on our website. nbcwashington.com. no english. those were the only two words that a woman knew when she came to this country two years ago. but today, this local high schooler is nearly fluent in english and expected to graduate in a few weeks all thanks to one teacher. >> reporter: it began with this letter. >> in i don't know how i can really put into words how much you have changed my life. >> reporter: 18-year-old jamie, reading the english words she couldn't express two years ago. >> as you know i spent the years of my life living in the most dangerous city in the world. >> reporter: did you feel that danger? >> yes. every day. >> reporter: in 2013 her family

moved to spotsylvania county. it is here at river bend high school she met this woman. teacher tara. >> this is your first year. >> yes. my first year teaching high school. >> reporter: clocking in hours of unpaid overtime to tutor jamie. >> i said when are you free? she said just the weekends. then the weekends i'll come to your house. >> i realized she was an angel. >> you said something that i will never forget. you will me i will never give up on you. >> reporter: jamie entered into the barnes and noble the teacher of the year contest and the teacher won. $5,000 for this beloved teacher and another $5,000 for the school. and she supplied her with an offer to pay for her first year of college. the emotions ran down her cheeks and her parents overwhelmed.

news4. what a difference a teacher can make. we show you live pictures of bad weather in oklahoma. that's where a tornado emergency has been declared. that's more severe than a warning. a number of evacuations are underway here. "nbc nightly news" will have more at 7:00 and doug is in our weather center. >> the tornado emergency happens when there has been a tornado confirm on the ground either by law enforcement or national weather service. that's what we're seeing south of oklahoma city. take a welcome at the nation. this is the airport evacuating toward oklahoma city. they do have places for people to go underground and toward the airport. this is will rogers airport. you can see the people trying to get down there. this storm fortunately for the airport is just south of the airport. including one around the city of wichita. look at this. a classic hook echo.

this is amazing. making its way off to the north and east. here's the town of moore which has been devastated by tornadoes. another one two years ago in 2013. completely took moore almost off the map. this looks like it will go to the south of moore, oklahoma. also norman oklahoma. new castle has had reports of some damage around that region. you just don't see this very often. a classic hook that will make its way to the north and east. we'll see much more of this. nbc news will have much more as well. for us it is not severe. we're still dealing with the showers and thunderstorms through montgomery county. down toward rappahannock. and i want to show you look toward the north through parts of pennsylvania. that's the next round of storms. we're not done yet. we'll see more storminess.

80 degrees on thursday. 83 on friday. no more storms. a slight chance of a shower on saturday with a high of 82. then next week we see temperatures even warmer. 86 on tuesday. we'll continue to keep you posted. you talk about an athlete feeling it. you think bryce harper was feeling it? >> reporter: yeah. bryce harper home runs. it sounds like he had a lot of coffee today. speaking of coffee how a

i know some rangers fans. they're obnoxious. >> that's a big one only the too. up three games to one and heading back to new york or tied at 2-2 and heading back to new york. that's what's at stake. momentum and the chance to put those punks on the brink. dana is live. we thought game three was intense. tonight might be amazing. >> reporter: my entire family in new jersey they're all die hard rangers fans so i agree with you. this is such a big game. the cams got three things going

for them. braydon holtby is the best this year. and alex ovechkin is all in. and now they need to finish this. go back to new york three game to one. but they know they have one flaw. that's they tend to come out flat. they're hoping to change that tonight. >> there's a time to a time to play. don't get them mixed up. i'm relaxed because i feel confident and prepared. i feel relaxed because i trust the group. i think i can turn it off in between. i think i was on all the time. that might have had to do with the 18 cups of coffee that i used to drink. >> how many cups did you drink? >> if i'm really tired, two. usually just one. >> reporter: i don't know how somebody can drink 18 cups of coffee. if he has it down to two, good for barry trotz.

>> thank you so much. forward to it. coffee with the coach. that's a segment coming up. here he is ready to break out of the slump. leading off the bottom. second. harper blasts his solo shot off tom. that puts the nats on the board. next at-bat for harper. bottom three. this one going to the upper deck. that puts the nats up 4-2. and of course he has the hair flip. oh yeah. he's not done. tom going to see harper and his nightmares. third at-bat. there he goes again. 445 feet. 4 player in nats history to do that. max scherzer gets the win. 7-5 nats.

harper the youngest player selgs 1969 to hit three home runs in a game. >> wow! ♪ there is no royal blood in this country. nothing is reserved for anyone. it's all just out there...

...waiting... ...for someone to reach out... ...and take it. and the ones who do... ...these are the kings and queens of america. ♪

on this wednesday night, letting the air out. the long-awaited deflategate report is out pointing the finger at some on the patriots including super bowl mvp tom brady about the under-inflated footballs. did they cheat? bob costas joins us tonight. take cover. tornadoes already spotted on the ground. millions in the potential path with watches and warnings throughout the night. and it's just getting started. alone in the cockpit. chilling revelations that the pilot who deliberately crashed a passenger plane may have practiced it on the flight before. and sibling rivalry. prince george is the most famous toddler in the world, but how will he share the spotlight with his little sister? "nightly news" begins right now.