right now on "news4 this week," a false alarm. we'll explain what sent joint base andrews into lockdown right before a scheduled active drill. big money. a bridge in danger of closing finally gets a federal grant for much-needed repairs. and fireworks in the fall. it wasn't the prettiest show ever. but it did happen, despite a dreary fourth of july. >> announcer: welcome to "news4 this week." hi, everyone, i'm chris lawrence. we start with a day of confusion at joint base andrews. a scheduled drill, an armed patrol, and a vigilant person, all lead to a long lockdown on the base. prince george's county bureau chief tracee wilkins explains what went wrong and what went

right. >> reporter: just after 10:00 a.m., people are taken out of malcolm grove medical facility in joint base andrews,some with their hands up. >> all i have is a report of an active shooter. >> reporter: colonel ryan freeland was locked outside of the base due to the shutdown. >> just praying for my colleagues who are in there, barricaded behind locked doors. >> reporter: it would soon be discovered there was no gunman. most ironic, the base was preparing for an active shooter drill on the other side of the base. adding to the confusion when the report was made of an active shooter. joint base andrews released a statement describing what unfolded this way: joint base andrews was scheduled to conduct a no-notice active shooter exercise however reports of a real world active shooter situation were miscommunicated. there was a

were conducting a recent inspection of the medical facility which caused the call. base officials aren't saying who made the call. the medical center is used by active and nonactive personnel and their families. >> it's a brand-new facility, a beautiful building. it's in the process of being opened. >> reporter: tracee wilkins, news4. the next two phases of metro's safe track program are impacting travelers as they go to reagan national airport. the yellow and blue lines will be shut down through braddock road until september 11th. shuttle buses are being provided. you may want to consider alternate travel plans. this week the arlington bridge got a $90 million fast lane grant to make some much-needed repairs.

last year and showed you that it is literally falling apart. there is currently a 10-ton weight limit and buses can't cross. planning for phase i will begin immediately. the full project is expected to cost $250 million. virginia will also be getting $165 million to make improvements on the i-95 corridor. the money will be used to deliver the so-called atlantic gateway project. it will extend the 95 express lanes north to the potomac river and south to fredericksburg. bus service will be expanded and new rail track will be put down to improve capacity for freight and commuter trains. some construction could start by next year. this week, news4 got exclusive access into a virginia forensic lab where backlogged rape kits are being processed. there are thousands of them, some

meagan fitzgerald has more. >> dna today is the most powerful tool law enforcement has. >> reporter: and in many cases, the only hope for frustrated sexual assault victims to get justice. in 2014, virginia received a $1.4 million grant so the more than 2,000 backlogged rape kits in the state can be stored here and tested. news4 got an exclusive look at the process. >> we try to take the equivalent of one swab from our sexual assault samples. >> reporter: each sample is marked with its own identification number. after testing, it goes back into the envelope and is sealed again, a process that can take up to two hours per kit. commonwealth attorney general mark haring says the results will be entered into a national database. >> if there are hits, that information will be communicated to the appropriate law enforcement officials

>> reporter: it's been a long wait for so many survivors. but haring says scientists are working quickly so some of these crimes may finally be solved. >> this is really important for a lot of reasons. first, it can help identify additional crimes that known perpetrators may have committed. >> reporter: meagan fitzgerald, news4. several new state laws took effect in virginia this week. exceptions for parental consent at 16 were removed. smoking in a car with a child under 8 years old is illegal. among several new gun laws, virginia will now recognize out of state concealed gun permits. in maryland, the minimum wage went up to $8.75 an hour. montgomery county saw an increase to $10.75. the state gas tax jumped to more than 33 cents per gallon. of course we celebrated the fourth of july this week. the rain held off just l

on national mall. david culver spoke with people who braved the weather to try to enjoy the show. >> reporter: making the drive in from baltimore. >> it's better to watch it shhe. >> reporter: the weather not ideal. umbrellas and ponchos. two hours before the show, the family and many others had to abandon their tree-lined cover. police searched these portable bathrooms. someone reported a suspicious item. the all clear given moments later. heavy security seen throughout. what we've come to expect. staff members checking all bags. even the soggy weight, dancing, a game of frisbee, mona lisa's kids passing the time thanks to smartphones. will this help you with the wait until the fireworks start? >> yeah. i can play some of the me

it's going to last? his sister wondered if it's time well spent. >> i'm not sure it's worth it. >> reporter: we'll check in with you after the show. >> okay. >> reporter: see it through their eyes. was it worth it? >> no. >> reporter: it wasn't? >> it was to me. it made me feel like -- [ screaming ] >> reporter: you loved it. >> yeah. >> reporter: david culver, news4. >> love that scream. controversy over the birds and the bees. why parents in one local school district are fired up about changes to the school aches sex ed curriculum. plus a furniture flop. one woman kept getting the wrong sofa considered. she called consumer reporter

thank you so much.

honey? hey, try some? mmm that is tasty. is it real? of course... are you? nope animated you know i'm always looking for real honey for honey nut cheerios well you've come to the right place. great, mind if i have another taste? not at all mmm you're all right bud? never better i don't know if he likes that. yeah part of the complete breakfast a lot of parents in fairfax county are upset over the direction of the school system's sex education courses. recent graduates are asking the school board to include an even

includes lessons on transgender issues. but at a school board meeting this week, some parents said the current curriculum already pushes the limit. >> they have put forward the idea that they're going to include a lot of new material in the curriculum, things about different sexual practices, transgender students. and yet, as parents we haven't seen any of the lesson plans. >> some parents also told me there was just not enough time for them to have a say or even make suggestions on what the new material should include. it's a change you need to know about in arlington. you will now get a ticket if you pass a stopped school bus and get caught by one of the district's safety cameras. more than 20 buses have the mounted cameras that record passing vehicles. and the fine is $250. next on "news4 this week," pulling an all-nighter. why thousands chose to burn the midnight oil a

national mall's most popular museums. she got the wrong piece of furniture -- twice. then when she asked for a refrom your understanding the company told her she had to pay. that's when she called nbc 4 responds. all: milk! milk! milk! milk! milk! okay! fun's over.

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we saw huge crowds this week at the smithsonian national air sand space museum. they all came out for a celebration of the museum's 40th anniversary on the national mall. and news4's darcy spencer was there. >> five, four, three, two, one -- >> reporter: hundreds of people rush in. it's a 40-year birthday celebration at the national air and space museum on the national mall. >> so many people who have come through these doors leave touched and inspired by what they have seen. and these experiences act as seeds for further innovation and discovery. >> reporter: it's being

celebrated in a unique way. an all-nighter. >> with the speakers happening earlier, it drew a lot of people off the mall that were here for the fourth of july. it's a great time for this to happen, and a commemorative moment. >> reporter: those here at the party will be treated to live music, star gazing and a scavenger hunt, while others are sleeping. this man brought his son. >> i think it's great, an awesome time to spend with the family, look at airplanes and spaceships from years past, and an opportunity for all of us to stay informed about what this great country has done through space travel. >> reporter: the museum opened july 1st, 1976. 300 million visitors have come through these doors since then. the main gallery just underwent a $30 million makeover. >> i'm here, i'm loving the history behind everything. we're excited.

>> i can see why. we're less than a month from the 2016 summer olympics in rio. workers are putting the finishing touches on venues. rio is expecting a half million visitors for these games. a massive cleanup of the different event sites is scheduled to start in ten days. the manager there is promising everything will be ready on time. >> we are scheduled to have everything done by the 18th of july. on the 24th of july, we welcome the athletes for training at olympic park. >> watch the opening ceremony for the rio games on august 5th right here on nbc 4. now nbc 4 responds to a maryland woman who says a store delivered the wrong furniture not once but twice. and what came next

calling consumer reporter susan hogan for help. >> reporter: well, this is a first. >> why are we sitting on the floor? >> good question. >> reporter: she ordered a sectional from marlo furniture. but when it arrived, it was all wrong. >> it was the wrong size. it was the opposite of what i selected. >> reporter: she made the delivery guys pack it up and take it away. one week later, marlo's delivered another one. her furniture flop was getting worse. >> they brought me the wrong sofa again. >> reporter: when you saw that -- >> i lost it. >> reporter: she had already paid marlo $1800. she asked the company for a refund. she was told she would have to pay a 30% cancellation fee plus all delivery charges. >> let me get this straight. you brought furniture to my house, you brought the wrong furniture to my house on two occasions and you want me

>> reporter: she called nbc 4 responds. a quick search of our consumer database, we found two more complaints with marlo's furniture. one woman said the leather furniture she had just purchased was damaged when she got it home. the five-year protection plan she said she paid for wouldn't cover it. the third party warranty company calling it wear and tear, and blamed the customer for the damages, since they were the ones who brought it home. after contacting us, marlo's agreed to repair the chair at no cost. marlo's tells us that the damage was trying to get it into the loam and it was not a manufacturer's defect, and the warranty plan does not cover damage that occurs during transportation. and mary from laurel says her marlo's sofa started to sink. the service department called it wear and tear. mary called that ridiculous.

to change the chair after we got involved. marlo's admitted to us the sofa seems to be defective. as for cheryl, the days of her having to sit on the floor are over. after checking into her mixup delivery, a spokesperson tells us her furniture was mislabeled and agreed to waive all fees and refunded her money. susan hogan, news4. >> marlo also released a statement to susan apologizing for any inconvenience. the company says the majority of their orders are fulfilled without issues. if you have a consumer problem, open our nbc washington app and search "responds." coming up, what this amateur tennis player accomplished at 61 years old, all for a good cause.

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this july 4th

reston became a new world record holder. she broke the record for consecutive singles tennis matches. she played 38 in a row, continuously over the holiday weekend, and didn't take longer than a five-minute break in between. she says she wasn't plan to go win a lot of her matches. instead she was focused on raising money for the military. >> i'm thinking about all those people that i can draw inspiration from, from what they do. i mean, this doesn't even begin to compare to what they go through every single day. >> she raised as much as $72,000 for the organization thanks usa, tennis thanks the troops. she said she kept her stamina up by drinking pickle juice. in honor of the fourth of july, there was an all-american celebration at george washington's estate in virginia this week. the fife and drums sounded, the declaration of independence was read, and 100

joined our union. our photo journalist got a front row seat to the festivities at mt. vernon. [ drumming ] >> reporte >> this is really one of the great places to celebrate, here at the home of george washington. we have so many great events going on here. it's really an exciting time, every time here. particularly on the fourth. >> they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights. >> we, being at the home of general george washington, thought it was important to hearken back to his military achievements. i think it's an important reminder of that. >> a naturalization ceremony. we welcome a hundred new citizens here to the united states. it's always been one of my favori

i've been here for 12 years now. so it feels like this is the right moment to do it. and i'm excited that i'll be able to vote with these very interesting elections coming up. it will be fun. >> we're the only country on this planet that was not under the control of men and women of absolute power. instead, we raised up a nation of laws. you are now governed by those laws. you are part of an unbroken line of americans that goes back to this day, 240 years ago, the day of american independence. that's going to do it for "news4 this week." i'm chris lawrence. thanks for joining us. have a great week.

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night of protests and another day of mourning ahead as texas, minnesota, and louisiana continue to grieve. and with them so does the nation, so do many of you as we try to make sense of what unfolded in two deadly police shootings, and now the tragedy in texas. and on this saturday, july 9th, good morning to you. i'm david culver. >> i'm angie. following the two deadly shootings of black men this week and shooting deaths of five officers in dallas, texas. this was the scene just a few hours o