in the district. that plan now goes to the d.c. public service commission for approval. historic flooding in south carolina now. tonight floodwaters are beginning to fall, and that's revealing the devastation left behind from record rainfall down there. >> at least 17 deaths reported. 15 in south carolina. two in north carolina. countless more have lost their homes and even though it's stopped raining now the threat is far from over. the governor of south carolina is warning of more evacuations over the next 48 hours. other places will be under a curfew for the second straight night. nbc's jay gray joins us live now from columbia, south carolina, with the latest. jay? >> reporter: hey, yeah, this is the kind of mess that so many across the carolinas are dealing with right now. as you say, the cleanup begins here, they're also very concerned that more water could be on the way. finally, there's some sunshine

in south carolina. giving many here their first chance to work through the overwhelming devastation floodwaters left behind. pulling away debris, piling up pieces of their homes and lives ravaged by the storm. the tireless effort of so many who've lost so much. a reflection of the strength and determination in this battered community. >> we are resilient people. a hopeful people. thank god we're caring folks, folks are coming together. >> let's go. >> reporter: evidence of that, the skyhawks and highlanders. rival football teams that huddled together today in one of the hardest hit neighborhoods. >> just trying to help out best we can. there are no rivalries today. >> reporter: in other communities, the national guard is helping out. floodwaters continue to rise, testing dams and bridges across the region. >> the next 36 to 48 hours is going to be volatile. >> reporter: straining the city's already battered infrastructure. >> structural issues, our bridges, our dams, our roads. there's a lot of work that's got to be done.

>> reporter: ironically, one of the biggest needs here continues to be water. with the city's water system compromised -- >> withdrew need water? >> reporter: -- truck loads of bottled water are being moved in. >> i'll hand them a chilled one, all right? >> reporter: with the hope that all of this unwanted water will start to move out. yeah, but it could be a week or more before some of the lakes and rivers start to recede here. the cleanup and recovery, obviously that's going to take a lot longer here. that's the latest live here in columbia, south carolina, i'm jay gray, back to you. >> thank you, jay. new pictures from the coast guard are showing debris found during the search for the missile crew of the el faro cargo ship. three coast guard cutters and at least five military planes are racing against time. they found two debris fields in a search area the size of california. the ship left jacksonville last tuesday and apparently sank near the bahamas two days later at the height of hurricane joaquin.

>> and the only thing that i blame in this is hurricane joaquin. >> the danger's always there, and i have all the faith in the world in the captain that he did what he thought was best. >> searchers spotted the body of a crew member yesterday, but did not recover it. they say the search for survivors takes precedence in this situation. a team from the national transportation safety board is on the ground in jacksonville now. their focus is on finding out what went wrong and preventing the next disaster at sea. charles county, maryland, deputies are looking for two people who shot a teenager in the leg then stole his bike. it happened on a bike path in waldorf a few hours ago. the teenager was able to run down the trail and flag down a school bus driver who called for help. students at the nearby eva turner elementary school were told to shelter in place during that incident. a letter is going home to parents to explain what happened today. we are hearing new reaction

tonight to a deadly shooting just before lunchtime here in the district. a young man shot and killed on the curb. it is only the latest homicide this year as the city averages now about three a week. our pat collins is in the neighborhood now with more. pat? >> reporter: jim, when someone is shot and killed in the streets of our city, it takes a toll. not only on the victims and their families, but on the neighborhoods as well. how long have you lived around here? >> about 30 years. >> reporter: 30 years. >> yeah. >> reporter: this as bad as you've seen it? >> well, yeah. it's getting worser. >> reporter: the violence? >> yes. >> reporter: that's a man we call greg. police were back in his northeast neighborhood today. he says it's not an uncommon sight. this time it was for a shooting. a shooting that turned into a case of murder.

>> i don't come out after dark. after dark, i don't come outside. >> reporter: the victim today is a young man said to be in his early 20s. shot as he was walking to the store on 42nd street. he ended up dead on a grassy area near the curb. >> this time in broad daylight. guess what, when i go to work, i go to the doctor or something, i go straight to the house. i don't even like coming down this way. >> reporter: so far this year, there's been a 46% increase in the number of murders compared to the same time last year. we're averaging about three murders a week. now this kind of violence not only impacts the victims and their families, but it also can victimize the people in the neighborhood as well. >> i'm 58 years old. and this violence out here, they need to do something about these guns out hiere in the street. it's getting ridiculous. >> reporter: now, in this murder on 42nd street, so far no

motive. no suspect. no arrest. back to you. >> pat collins, thank you. in just a matter of weeks, a private ambulance could show up if you call 911 in the city. the plan got key approval today despite lingering questions and some major opposition. news 4's mark segraves joins us live with the concerns being voiced tonight. >> reporter: that's right. you know, just about everyone involved in this plan thinks it's a good idea as a short-term solution. the mayor and the fire chief came up with the idea. the d.c. council gave it unanimous approval today. and the firefighters union which represents the vast majority of first responders also gives it a thumb's up as a short-term fix. but there is one group that is adamant saying this is a very bad idea. >> we're not addressing the source. we're just doing a band-aid approach for quick fix to ems. this is not the issue. >> reporter: she represents a small number of civilian employees and emts in the d.c. fire department.

like some council members, she says the answer is not private ambulances, but rather rethinking how we treat patients with minor injuries. >> why are individuals calling 911? that's what we need to be focusing on and reeducate them, redirect them to other sources. >> unanimous. >> reporter: despite those objections the council voted unanimously to approve the mayor's plan to use private ambulances to transport low-priority patients with non life-threatening injuries. >> my concern is that this remains a short-term fix and that we really work on the long-term solutions for creating a great ems department. that means making ems central to the mission of the fire and ems department. >> the big news is this, is that we're moving forward, we're having an opportunity to look at it in different ways, doing business here in the district, that ensures our people are available, they can respond in a matter of time that we can ensure they're properly trained and take a look at apparatus maintenance program to understand the state of our

fleet. >> reporter: there is still no estimate on the cost of using private ambulances, but the chief says he hopes to have them in service within four to six weeks. in the district, mark segraves, news 4. we are learning a bit more tonight about a man who died after a confrontation with security guards outside medstar washington hospital center. the man's name is james mcbride. he was 74 years old. we're told mcbride left the hospital last week even though he had not been discharged. he fell to the ground at some point when hospital workers tried to take him back. he died a couple days later. we're told an autopsy has been completed but the results will not be released for another couple of months. vice president joe biden's office is pushing back and pushing back hard on a politico story that a lot of people are talking about today. the story accuses the vice president of mixing political ambition with grief over the death of his son, beau biden. politico says the vice president made a calculated call to a "the

new york times" columnist to tell her that beau's dying wish was for biden to run for president again. the vice president's office calls the politico report, quote, categorically false and says the characterization is offensive. beau biden died in may after a battle with brain cancer. joe biden is expected to make a decision on whether to run before the end of the month. a businesswoman from fairfax is scheduled to appear in court next week. she's been charged with fraud and accused of using money raised for an autism organization for her personal expen expenses. the news 4 i-team broke this story last night. as scott mcfarland reports now, federal prosecutors say a second person helped her pull it off. >> that's right. the feds in this criminal complaint say it wasn't just one, but two people who took nearly a half million dollars from a northern virginia autism organization and used it to bankroll themselves. last night we showed you lynn

miller also known as linda wallace. i'm with channel 4. charged with fraud. prosecutors say she helped create an autism group. the community college consortium on autism and intellectual disabilities purporting to be a charity and raised hundreds of millions of dollars from community college across country. she transferred money to accounts she controlled and used the money to pay her mortgage and personal bills. she faces 20 years in prison if convicted. but the feds say there was also a conspirator who they call d.m. in their complaint. they won't reveal the real name and won't comment when asked if d.m. might ultimately be charged, too. >> thank you very much, sir. >> reporter: the news 4 i-team found it was a david miller who was credited with founding the community college consortium on autism at a u.s. senate hearing on autism in 2009. >> i'm the father of two 7-year-old autistic boys. >> reporter: the man named david miller is also listed as the owner of the fairfax home where we caught up with lynn miller last week. at the senate hearing he

credited his wife for behalf of work. >> she's a wonderful woman and accomplished woman. she frankly should be seated in this witness chair. >> reporter: we tried to reach lynn miller and david miller today. but couldn't. the feds didn't specify what work was done by the autism organization. in 2009, david miller told the senate 41 colleges were part of the consortium. one of them was lewis and clark community college in illinois which told the i-team it never gave the organization money but said it worked with the community college consortium on autism to lobby federal lawmakers for money for students with disabilities. last week the news 4 i-team tried to pull the organization's tax returns and non-profit records. virginia officials told the i-team they have no record of the community college consortium on autism ever formally filing to become a non-profit. scott mcfarland, news 4 i-team. new pressure against president obama in the war on terror. what some are demanding after that deadly u.s. air strike on a charity hospital in afghanistan.

>> reporter: a man mauled by two pit bulls was walking along this sidewalk. coming up at 6:00, hear from the man neighbors are calling a hero after he jumped in to save a pleat stranger. and i'm tracking a chance of rain just in time for that weekend if you've got plans this weekend, friday, saturday night, here comes the shower activity. we'll talk about it. right now, though, beautiful sunset in the making. we'll be right b

the top u.s. general in afghanistan says it was a this stake. he told congress today that the u.s. is responsible for the air strike that killed 22 people inside a hospital in the city of kunduz. that happened on saturday. that admission comes as pressure on president obama increases to slow down the withdrawal of u.s. forces in afghanistan. steve handelsman tracking that story now from capitol hill. steve? >> reporter: jim, thanks. the four-star who came up here to testify in a senate hearing today is clearly opposed to the obama plan to pull out, and he is apologetic for the u.s. killing of civilians. the top u.s. commander in afghanistan told senators why it happened is not clear, but the air strikes that killed 22 at the hospital in kunduz on saturday were the fault of the american military. >> the decision to provide aerial fire was a u.s. decision.

>> reporter: a mistake says general john campbell. >> we would never intentionally target a protected medical facility. >> reporter: president obama is demanding quick action from the pentagon the white house said today to prevent another mistake. >> get the facts, full accounting and whatever changes are necessary are properly implemented. >> reporter: the tragedy came after the taliban took over kunduz, a disaster for the afghan government. 14 years after america invaded. and as the commander in chief is reassessing his plan to pull out. almost all of the 9,800 remaining u.s. forces by 2017. do not pull out, said john mccain. >> if we do what's presently planned to begin three months from now, we'll see the iraq movie again. >> reporter: the iraq movie, isis taking territory, u.s.-backed troops fleeing because republicans say u.s. forces left iraq too soon. now an afghanistan pullout, campbell opposes it. >> that decision was made in

2014. a lot has happened since then in transition. >> reporter: from seyria to kabul, and almost none of it good. and isis with its barbaric brutality a disturbing ability to grow is gaining a foot hold now in afghanistan. live from capitol hill, steve handelsman, news 4. back to you. >> steve, thank you. 6,000 inmates will be released from prison early at the end of the month. they are the first wave of a larger release sparked by a reduction in federal drug sentences. another 8,500 inmates could be released within the next year. nearly half of the drug offenders in federal prison could ultimately qualify for early release according to the "washington post." most inmates will be released to home confinement or to halfway houses before they're placed on supervised release. jury selection in the charles severance trial will stretch into a third day tomorrow. half of 150 potential jurors have been dismissed because the

six-week trial would pose a hardship on them. now each remaining juror is answering questions about exposure to media coverage and whether he or she could be fair and impartial. severance is accused of murdering three alexandria residents over the course of ten years. it's been one year since same-sex marriage became legal in the state of virginia. couples began marrying on october 6th of last year. after a ruling by the u.s. supreme court cleared the way for those unions. in the past year, more than 2,600 marriage licenses and 70 birth certificates have been issued to same-sex couples in virginia. another decision by the supreme court earlier this year legalized same-sex marriage in all the 50 states. a young couple from centerville, virginia, among the first to rush to a northern virginia courthouse to get married. >> our bureau chief julie carey witnessed their wedding in arlington. today she checked back in to see

how married life has been going. >> you are ajoined in marriage s wife and wife. you may kiss your bride. >> reporter: it was a spur of the molt decision that put jennifer and erica in the national spotlight. they became one of the first same-sex couples to exchange vows and rings last october 6th. landing them in news stories worldwide. their sister-in-law framed some of the favorites. >> even our jeweler called us. >> reporter: now a year later they are still most struck by their very spontaneous decision that day. >> both woke up that morning not planning to do that and, i mean, we saw the news and just reacted to it. >> reporter: even now when same-sex marriage stories hit the news, their wedding picture is often the one that pops up. >> it's fun. definitely fun. >> yeah, we get quotes on facebook all the time about it and family members tell us all the time about it so it's fun. people at work, school even. >> kind of like reliving the experience every time you see it. >>gratulated over and over again which is nice.

>> reporter: erica, a nurse, sometimes gets congratulations from patients who have just seen the story. jennifer is busy finishing a psychology degree. they had a chance to honeymoon in san francisco over spring break. both say another highlight of the past year, the u.s. supreme court ruling making same-sex marriage legal nationwide. >> it's amazing. it's still shocking to me it happened so fast. >> within the year of our marriage, it happened for the whole country. so i was surprised that it moved so quickly. >> reporter: and the women remain proud of their role in virginia history. >> i keep thinking i can't wait to tell our kids that and can't wait for people to stay why did you pick october 6th for your wedding? and say i didn't pick that day, that's the day we chose to act. so, yeah. i think that day is going to be special to us forever. >> reporter: in centreville, virginia, julie carey, news 4. here at the live desk we're tracking the numbers on those massive floods to the south of us and right now they're all moving in the wrong direction. the death toll now up to 17

people. 15 from south carolina, alone. we've just learned another dam has failed at a lake north of columbia. that means 11 dams have been preached around the capital city. officials are worried more could use the ability to hold back water. this is something we're going to watch all night. we're going to push out the latest on our nbc washington app and update you gone news 4 at 11:00. n

and now your storm team 4

forecast. >> that forecast looking pretty good over the next couple of days. plenty of sunshine. right now, though, got some cloud cover, but some really nice shot, a great shot from our live camera looking toward the northwest. sugar loaf mountain in the distance. way over here here it is. reston town center and the blue rage. pretty nice shot. look at this shot. really a great one. nice birds going around perfectly on cue. some trails coming through, from the planes across our area. mid to high level cloudiness continues to stream on in. that's going to help temperatures stay above where they were overnight last night because it was cool early this morning. currently 74. winds out of the northwest at 8 miles per hour. a very nice evening. notice we're already dropping into the 60s. it is going to be another cool night. 65 in culpeper. 68 winchester. 72 over toward manassas. not quite as cool as last night but still a pretty cool night.

nothing on the radar to show you. we're going to stay dry most of the week. some clouds trying to move our way. see these clouds coming toward the area. mid- to high-level clouds. no rain associated with those. the rain that was down toward the carolinas, it's finally off the coast. still seeing cloud cover along the coast. the storm, itself, is smoomovino sea. they'll be able to clean up in the next couple days. many of you into the 40s. upper 40s back toward the sch n shenandoah valley. we did see fog earlier this morning. could happen again if we get enough clearing.1 gaithersburg. the hour-by-hour frastorecast, looking like this tomorrow morning. 60 degrees in the city. plenty of sunshine early. more sunshine during the afternoon. again, a few clouds tomorrow. not going to see much, kind of like what we saw out there today. look at the high. up to 79 degrees. even close to 80. the average high temperature for today is 71 degrees. so we're well above that. we're going to stay above average the next couple of days.

washing the car, no problem at all. we will be dry through about the entire week. the only exception, friday. 78 tomorrow. 75 on your thursday. 79 on friday. you can see where the fronts are. we've got one cold front here that will drop temperatures just a little bit then the big cold front comes through on friday afternoon. we do see a chance of showers, maybe even a rumble of thunder late friday then into saturday. temperatures around 65 degrees. rather breezy. chance of showers early. that's the forecast that we're really watching right now. what exactly is going to happen? coming up at 6:45, we're going to talk much more about the big change heading in here for friday night and your weekend. >> thank you, doug. attacked on the street by a pair of pit bulls. hear from the man who risked his own safety to help a stranger. targeted victims from afar, but now there's a new clue in an atm skimming case. plus, the plan that could make the district one of the most generous places in the most generous places in the country for new parents.

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now at 6:30, a man viciously attacked by his neighbor's dogs. >> he was just screaming, like get them off me, get them off me. metro considering another fare hike. we'll show you how the transit agen agency's fares stack up against other big cities. new limits now on what kind of chemicals you can use on your lawn, but at what cost? >> we may have to consider layoffs. more paid family leave.

>> it creates happier employees. >> we'll report why some people aren't happy with that idea. and the national zoo's panda cub reaching two new milestones. so you walk down the street, you ought to be able to feel safe, but a d.c. man was trying to do just that this afternoon when suddenly a couple of pit bulls came out of nowhere and attacked him. >> that man might be dead tonight if neighbors hadn't risked their own lives to help him. meagan fitzgerald has the story. >> reporter: this was the scene nearly an hour after d.c. police and animal care and control officers arrived. they worked for nearly an hour to try and subdue and tranquilize two extremely aggressive pit bulls before they carried them away from the scene of the attack. police say the dogs somehow escaped from this fence. >> the dude was coming down and the pit bulls circled him and just attacked. and they just kept attacking. >> reporter: mika was just one neighbor who felt helpless as she watched a man being

viciously attacked. >> throw water at them, one guy got in his car, rode up on the curb. they wouldn't stop. >> reporter: a neighbor who lived blocks away heard the screams. >> all of a sudden this guy came from down the street like superman. >> reporter: his name is art brooks. >> two pit bulls attacking a gentleman who was laying down and pulling at his feet. >> reporter: without thinking, brooks sprang into action. >> as i ran to them, they ran and i chased them into the yard. >> reporter: neighbors who watched brooks call him a hero for what he did to try and save the victim's life. >> the man would probably have been eaten alive. totally. >> reporter: but brooks doesn't see it that way. he says he was only trying to do the right thing. >> if it's god's will for me to die helping somebody, that's what's going to happen. >> reporter: the condition of the victim is unknown, but animal control officials tell us that the dogs will be put to sleep. it's an ongoing investigation, but at this point, they say criminal charges against the owners is not likely since the

owners did not initiate the attack. reporting in southeast, meagan fitzgerald, news 4. a d.c. council member wants people to face possible jail time if they intentionally disable a metro bus. jack evans who also sits on metro's board introduced legislation that would attach criminal penalties for doing that. earlier this summer we reported on teenagers using an emergency switch on the outside of the bus to disable it. the evans' proposal includes a maximum $300 fine, 90 days in jail or 30 days of community service. police are looking for three people who've been stealing debit card information and p.i.n. numbers. the suspects installed a skimming device on an atm in st. mary's county in maryland. they used that information to take money out of atms across yn maryland and virginia. two women in disguise are seen walking up to the atm last month. the next day police ais a man removed that skimming device.

it's going to change the way a lot of local residents care for their nkglandscaping. monday co montgomery county passed a tough law that bans pesticides from private lawns. it's such a contentious issue, it may face a court challenge. >> 5214 is adopted on a 6-3 vote. >> reporter: parents wearing the green shirts celebrated. in blue, lawn care professionals are left worrying what the pesticide ban will mean to them. >> we're not allowed to use certain things. your results are going to be minimal. and in the long term, i really think it will put the entry out of business. >> reporter: the montgomery county council is the first government in the u.s. to ban pesticides on private lawns. they can't be used after january 1st, 2018, and the council ordered county parks and recreation to find safer alternatives for playing fields by 2020. >> through the technology and methodology exists to have

beautiful green lush lawns with the use of organic and natural methods, not requiring the poisoning of our soil. >> reporter: he was hugged by members of the group, safe grow montgomery, who worry about the health dangers of pesticides to people and pets. >> i can't believe it real live we've gotten to today and that we actually have had this passed to protect our health and protect the health of our kids, of our neighbors, of workers, everybody. >> reporter: lawn care professionals say this fight may not be over. >> meaning there could be litigation, things could change between thousand and january 1st, 2018. >> reporter: opponents of the pesticide ban raise the possibility that they might seek a referendum to ask the voters to decide whether or not they want a pesticide ban. in montgomery county, chris gordon, news 4. there is some new fallout today from a scandal involving two of the biggest names in fantasy sports. espn, in fact, has announced it is pulling segments sponsored by

those off the air. fanduel and draft kings are the companies involved. it's hard to watch a sporting event without seeing their commercials. last night, we learned, that a guy who worked for draft kings won $350,000 on the fanduel site by using insider information that gave him an advantage. today, both companies released a joint statement saying that they have barred workers from playing fantasy games on the rival sites. they say that nothing is more important than the integrity of the games that they offer. some d.c. residents found a unique way to watch football and it's catching the attention of the whole neighborhood. check out their setup on "v" street northwest. two guys decided to project last night's football game on their neighbor's wall. they say it's not the first time they've done this. they've even enjoyed some movie nights on the rooftop deck. >> a few folks on the street were watching it and everyone always stops and says, hey, nice

setup. way to go. can we join you? >> a neighborhood blog calls the popup building they use as a movie screen a monstrosity and applauds the men for making good use of it. prices to ride metro. we'll report how the transit system compares to other big cities in terms of fares. chances are you've driven through here, but what's behind the name? tonight the real story behind tunlaw road in d.c. i have no idea. but hey, temperatures tomorrow going to be on the cool side. how do we want to dress early in the morning? well, you're going to need that jacket. you will not need the umbrella, the glasses, the shorts. the jacket in the morning, sunglasses in the afternoon. another nice one. but what about the next few days? i'll show you when rain moves

there's a new challenge for beltway drivers. fasten your seat belts and get

ready for a very bumpy ride. a stretch of the outer loop between the american legion bridge and mclean, virginia. the road was milled last week as part of an asphalt repair project but it hasn't been repaved yet and that makes for a teeth-rattling ride. the job was stalled by the recent rain according to virginia transportation officials, but they say crews are working every night to repave this bumpy ride. the job should be finished in a week. we are checking tonight a trip through the district to find out how two roads got their names in our town. we're going to begin with tunlaw road. you know how that happened? we have details in tonight's installment of "meet your str t street." >> reporter: tunlaw road. any thoughts? >> could be a famous senator. >> reporter: do you have any idea? >> absolutely not. >> maybe a governor? >> tunlaw, after a law? >> reporter: after a law. not a bad thought. >> no idea. >> war veteran maybe? >> reporter: "a" for effort

there, but no. what do you believe is behind the name tunlaw road? >> it's backwards for walnut. >> reporter: who told you that? >> one of my husband's friends. >> reporter: you believe him? >> yes. >> reporter: a "washington post" article from 1897 talks about tunlaw farm and says that part of land was once named for a prominent walnut tree on the property. the farm was bought at auction and subdivided in 189 0 and according to a 1916 article in the "washington times" the famous old tree was cut down to be used for guns for the british army. fun, fable, or fact, it's a pretty tricky way to get a name. down the street now to reno road named for ft. reno once called ft. pennsylvania. the fort was built during the civil war the winter of 1861 and renamed for major general jesse lee reno after he was killed in a battle the following year. did you know this? at 410 feet above sea level, ft.

reno is the highest elevation in washington. this highest point was the perfect vantage point to guard what we now call wisconsin avenue. and spot enemy movement near the northern part of the city. no argument with how this name came to be, but down the street, relief. finally an answer. maybe. how do you feel now that you know? >> educated. enlightened. >> absolutely educated. it makes a huge difference. >> reporter: in northwest washington, news 4. >> their lives are complete. melissa has been doing a series of those segments. to see her previous reports, we invite you to the nbc washington app where you can search "meet your street." from the birth of a child to caring for an elderly parent. tonight local leaders consider plans for 16 weeks of paid leave for city workers. and another milestone for and another milestone for the national zoo's panda cu

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but the main reason to get fios? we're rated number 1 in customer satisfaction. why fios? ultimately, that's why. right now, get 50 meg fios internet, tv & phone starting at $79.99 a month, guaranteed for two years. plus get $300 back with a two year agreement. get out of the past. get fios. tonight, a plan is under way in the district that would give you 16 weeks of paid time off to care for a newborn child or a sick parent. only three states, california, new jersey, and rhode island, offer paid leave and it's for much less time. but as news 4's tom sherwood reports now, some business groups are fighting the measure. >> co-sponsors to this legislation -- >> reporter: and it was official. a proposed d.c. bill introduced.

it would be the first in the nation to tax and require businesses to offer employees 16 weeks of paid family leave. the city's chamber of commerce which opposes the 1% tax on businesses fears that if it passes it will be bad for business and vows to fight it. >> it's unfair to d.c. businesses. and what i'm concerned about is it's going to make us not competitive regionally. it goes further than anything else in the country. >> reporter: at large, council member david grosso, chief sponsor of the bill, says workers need the help with newborns, family emergencies, and caring for the aging. >> how are they going to pay their bills, pay for groceries and things like that? so we can work together through this process. we'll have a hearing. there's no emergency. get to a point where we think it will be fair and advantageous to the business community. >> reporter: if approved the district would be a national leader in family issues. it already has a minimum wage of almost $11.50. supporters say all this helps workers especially family leave. >> it creates happier employees

in that you feel like, yes, my employer cares for me, i can focus on my immediate issue and then come back to work and be productive. >> reporter: working families today strongly back more paid family leave. >> it's actually not going to be that much per employee per year and going to have a really big impact on families. >> reporter: the d.c. council will hold public hearings before voting on the measure. in the district, tom sherwood, news 4. tonight, a closer look at how metro fares compare to those in other cities. the transit agency, in fact, has been talking about maybe having to raise fares soon. this graph indicates that metro is second only to the bay area rapid transit. they call that b.a.r.t. out in san francisco. in terms of peak rail fares. the peak fare here is almost $6. keep in mind, though, that metro charges fares based on distance. in other words, the farther you travel, the more withdryou have pay.

chicago and new york charge a flat rate. metro has been forced to raise fares over the past few years as operating costs have gone up and ridership has declined. the national zoo's new panda cub is starting to open its eyes. the zoo released two new pictures today. in this one see his eyes partially opened. the six-week-old cub is also starting to develop teeth and weigh 4 1/2 pounds now. he was born august 22nd. we have a gallery of the cub's cutest moments so far in our nbc washington app. >> he is looking a little cuter now. >> include the sneeze? >> that's probably not the top of the list. >> the sneeze we heard round the world. we've got to be pleased with the weather we had today. >> yeah. >> sunshine all over the place. >> so many people want, you knows, those nice cool mornings, nice warm afternoons. that's packet exactly what we'v the past couple days. this morning, however, it was really chilly.

39 degrees in le ray. 41 in frederick. 50 in d.c. today we warmed up nicely. look at the sunset. it's quite nice. sun went down four minutes ago. still giving us off nice yellow and orange hues across the cloud cover. 74 degrees right now. temperatures dropping to about 70 by 7:00. 66 by 9:00. around 63 degrees at 11:00. cool, cool, and cool. cool. as everybody says. that's what they say. 66 in gaithersburg. 69 in reston. you're still looking at me, aren't you? >> yes, i am. >> storm team 4 radar. we've got nothing to show you. we are dry. no problems across our region. tomorrow's forecast. sun and clouds. a great afternoon. 74 to 79 degrees. it's really going to be quite nice tomorrow even with a few more clouds out there. heading to the bus stop, well, no problem tomorrow. 7:00 to 8:00, 60 degrees. nice and cool. 3:00 to 4:00 in the afternoon temperatures around 78 degrees. nice and warm during the afternoon.

next couple days, 78 on wednesday, 75 on thursday. 79 on friday. now, if you are going out on friday evening into saturday, this is the day that we're watching. we're going to have a cold front that comes through. that cold front is going to bring a chance of shower activity late. rain, some thunder friday evening. not a lot, but it's something we're watching. and early showers saturday. could it stick around a little bit longer? that's what i'm waiting to see. cool and breezy conditions for the weekend. 65 degrees on your saturday. temperatures on sunday getting right back to around 70 degrees. staying rather breezy. and, again, each morning will be a little bit cool. >> little sunshine and the weatherman gets giddy. >> he just gets crazy. >> thank you, doug. nbc 4 is teaming up with whitman walker health to help fight hiv and aids. our walk to end hiv will be saturday morning october 24th. chuck bell will emcee. it's the 29th year for the walk. we have more information about it at nbcwashington.com.

sports coming up. can you believe the wizards' preseason debut tonight? playing the 76ers right here. we'll tell you why they'll be without their top pick in this year's draft. also nicklas backstrom on the ice today. find out how soon the caps expect him back. first, here's lester holt with a look at what's ahead on "nbc nightly news." >> hi. ahead on "nbc nightly news" despite welcome sunshine, things are still perilous in south carolina with swollen rivers and dams under pressure. our team is on the ground with the very latest. we'll also have the latest on the scandal rocking the world of fantasy sports. and after 25 years in prison, we're in the courtroom as a man convicted in a notorious new york murder learns he is going free. plus why he told me he was innocent duri

this is the xfinity sports desk brought to you by xfinity. your home for the most live sports. >> caps, hockey. >> if the nationals had, you know, made the playoffs, we would have this weekend, right, all four of our professional teams playing at the same time. >> i was totally calling in sick. >> i had it off, too. i was ready to sit around and watch some sports. you know, but we have another team with championship expectations. here we go. >> year after year after year. >> all the predictions i've been reading on nhl, i mean, half of them pick the caps to win it

all. >> that's a jinx. >> really. that's like the "sports illustrated" -- >> we'll see because the caps are feeling good. the washington capitals days away from dropping the puck for real. season opener is this weekend hosting the devils. high expectations. nothing new for the caps. they're once again that popular pick to win the cup. yeah, we've heard it before, but coach barry embracing the challenge. he knows they should contend for the cup. so much talent on this team. been ten years almost to the day since alex ovechkin made his caps debut. crazy, right? as for his buddy nicholas back str nicklas backstrom recoveringsur re-evaluated midweek. he's only going to miss up to five games, not ten. familiar faces gone but new faces like t.j. oshie expected to help the team go big. starts with thinking and knowing it's possible. >> this team believes that we have a really good group.

that's a little maybe different than last year. i think last year we were not sure what we were. i think this group has a confidence. s4s the wizards opting to make a giant impact this year by embracing small ball. heard nothing but good things about this offense. players, they really love to spread it out, run the ball. had success with this in the playoffs. preseason debut tonight versus the 76ers. we're excited to see what the

first round draft pick out of kansas can do. kelly ubrai jr. tweaked his ankle in practice yesterday. he's still sore. sitting this one out. the rest of the team ready to go battle tonight thankfully against another jersey. >> very excited to play against somebody else. we've been going a week against each other. so now it's an opportunity to come out and see exactly where we're at and if we can carry forth into game situation now, you know, some of the things that we've stressed and pointed out these first seven days. >> love when he sounds so excited. to college football. maryland with an interesting depth chart at quarterback this week. no one listed as the number one qb. they have already used three quarterbacks. 15 interceptions between them in just four games. randy etsel said he won't make a decision on a starter until saturday's game. oh, yeah, against defending national champion the ohio state buckeyes.

they have been outscored 72-6 over the last two weeks. yikes. i typed that in capitals. ted, a tough question about his own job security. >> my whole focus is, will always be the number one thing is to make our kids better. make them better on the field. make them better in the classroom. and make them better as people. and that's the total focus that we have. and then as you continue to do that collectively, then, you know, the other things will take care of themselves, so that's the only thing that i concern myself with. i don't concern myself with anything else. now out to detroit. this was one of seven billboards put up today by some disgruntled fans, the picture of the referee reese' spo call at the end of the lions/seahawks game. to calvin johnson. megatron thinking end zone. kam chancellor. forces a fumble. right in front of the official, k.j. wright batted the ball out

of the end zone. >> the guy said wait, that wasn't intentional or something? >> the illegal bad out of the end zone -- >> it's a total gut shot. >> a mess. >> "nightly news" is next.

tonight, the death toll rising in the carolinas after 11 trillion gallons of rain fell in a matter of days. >> rivers and dams at record levels and homeowners returning to utter devastation. striking admission. the top u.s. commander in afghanistan changing the military story yet again by revealing u.s. forces did in fact attack a hospital by mistake. verdict over turned. in the courtroom when a man convicted for a murder in the new york subway learns he is going free after 24 years. tonight our prison interview with him. and fantasy scandal. the popular world of online fantasy sports rocked by accusations that big pay days may be going to insiders rigging the game. "nightly news" begins right now.