many heading right for the casino and there were times overnight and last night that this place was filled to capacity and crowds were limited from coming and going inside and outside national harbor here. there's 125,000 square feet in the casino to gamble. there are several dozen game tables. and that has gone over well here. i also met a woman from ruch monday, virginia. she tells us this experience brought her here she wants the money and plans to come back. i'm sure you were aware of the restaurant here. >> a big night for sure. >> you never know what's going to happen at 4:30 in the

exit ramps near mgm as backups flooded the bridge. they opened their garages an hour ahead of schedule, but some drivers fear the added traffic will bring to their route home now that the casino is open for good. >> i come this route and i was trying to assess the traffic and it's definitely going to be crazy. monitoring traffic patterns and our chopper will be back in the air to bring you live coverage from the road. >> even if. you're not a gambler, you will still be entertained. it prides itself on making m fwrks m as much of a resort as a casino.

including sara jessica parker's boutique and the restaurant that brought in high profile chefs. >> this is the way i would do seafood my way. that's what you're going to be getting. american seafood. >> the resort features 308 rooms and a full service spa too. >> our coverage continues online. we posted a guide to getting to

the highway was totally shut down. it only reopened a few hours ago. the cold here is nothing compared to casper, wyoming. they are waking up to temperatures in the 30s. the negative 30s. that's the actual temperature too. with the windchill, don't even talk about it. people are without their gloves or hats. it's a different -- they are built differently u in that part of the world. >> i can't even imagine those amelia draper, i guess it's not that cold here. >> it doesn't make it any better this morning. at least it's friday. however, the cold will stick around sbo the weekend. and i want to let you know giving you a heads up. we're going to get a colder blast toward the end of next week. more on that coming up at 4:51. but right now we're at 31

the teens and 20s all morning long. because of the cold today it is a storm team 4 weather alert day. recess will be outdoors, but you want the warm jacket. if you're heading to the holiday parties, it will feel like we're in the 20s. any issues on the rods this morning? >> we have a couple things. the situation on 95 should be wrapped up here pretty quickly. right now it's just blocking one right lane. 95 north as you head into we're going to look at the bemtway coming up in a a minute. president-elect donald trump is continuing his thank you tour today. he's making stops in louisiana as well as grand rapids, michigan. he thanked supporters in iowa. tracie potts will join us to break down his latest trips.

are investigating a shooting on northeast. police say they found a man inside his home around 5:00. he was shot multiple times. he was not breathing. we'll update you as we learn more. the community will continue to rally around comet ping-pong in northwest washington. neighbors are being encouraged to visit the pizzeria and share messages of support. on sunday a man fired a gun edgar welsh was investigating a a fake news story. no one was hurt. today the man accused of killing his estranged wife will be sentenced. yesterday a judge rejected a motion. a jury recommended a life sentence. he broke into his estranged wife's home and suffocated her and staged the crime scene to

were raped at montgomery college, today their attacker will be sentenced. it shows in blue and white looking for potential victims. this was at the tacoma park campus in o 2010. he locked one of the victims inside a a restroom and raped her repeatedly. he was previously sentenced to 90 years in prison after pleading guilty in 2010. after a new trial, he's now murdered 16-year-old girl from d.c. she was shot and killed in southeast the day after thanksgiving. through a gofundme page her family raise ued almost $10,000 to pay for her funeral. police say evans was caught on surveillance video firing a gun around the time she was killed. so far all he's been charged

he passed away at the age of 95. the former astronaut cemented his place in history when he became the first american astronaut to orbit the earth. he received the congressional gold medal and presidential medal of freedom. he was the last survivor of the original mercury seven astronauts. he piled washington. a cuator says america has lost a hero and a a legend. >> john glen is one of the three most important astronauts. >> john glen made history at the ageover 77 when he returned to space on space shuttle discovery. 4:37 now.

how you can plan out your day for some of the coldest weather we have seen in months. stepping up. security, the new safety concerns after a string of

4:40 your time right now. >> these feel like temperatures are crazy, amelia draper.

you can see the future temperature. still feeling like the teens and 20s. definitely a morning to bundle up. by noon it feels like we're in the mid- to upper 20s. as we head into the evening hours, getting home from work, probably a good night for. we're keeping it dry, but it's going to be cold out there. still a berg. in ten minutes i'm going to be walking you through your weekend hour by hour. and also talking about that colder blast that's moving in next week. but for now, how are the roads? >> right now overall they are okay. we have a couple items of note here. 95 northbound if you're headed into fredericksburg, you have

getting by. they are closing the roadway intermittently. but it will reopen quickly u. no major problems on the beltway. we're going to take a live look, coming up. hillary clinton back on capitol hill. the honor she took part in and the message she made a point to

never trumpers.

now. they are for the most part gone. >> president-elect donald trump continuing his thank you tour in iowa last night. he's on his way to louisiana and michigan following a new round of nominations to his cabinet. >> tracie potts is live on capitol hill to break it down for us. let's start with the pick for labor secretary. >> he's a fast food executive who trump wants to be in that position. but he's getting some pushback evero good choice because he's expressed a preference for foreign workers and openness to automation saying machines don't take vacations and that is a concern for people who are afraid that their job might be replaced by a machine. the confirmation hearing could get contentious on capitol hill. >> let's tailback the choice for ambassador to china.

governor of iowa for more than 20 years. he's the nation's longest serving governor. now it looks like he may be getting a new job depending on how the hearings go. president-elect trump wants him to be the ambassador to china because he has close ties to china. while trump is talking about being tough on china, making shia na play by the rules, he's appointed someone with close ties to last night saying you don't want someone who is going to go there and want to live the rich life through the job, but someone who knows china well. he knows china's current president and has known him for years. we'll see. the confirmation hearings for these cabinet positions could get interesting not only by democrats but also by some republicans. >> tracie potts on the hill, thank you. we are 41 days out from inauguration day u.

hard to make sure everything is ready to go come january 20th. the platform will need to hold about 1600 guests. they will include former president, vice presidents and supreme court justices. the construction around capitol hill started in september. former presidential candidate hillary clinton made her first appearance on capitol hill since the election. she was there to honor harry reid who is retiring. she was glad to be invited to hiking in the woods. >> but after a few weeks of taking selfies in the woods, i thought it would be a good idea to come out and i am very grateful to harry for inviting me to be part of this celebration. >> during her speech, clinton took some time to talk about the danger of fake news and real world consequences.

there's one less vying to be governor. rob witman is bowing out. three republicans are still hoping to become the gop nominee. they include cory stewart, frank wagner, and ed give leps pi. >> take a good look at this it video. police are asking for your help to identify this november 10th on 8th street northwest. police say the man walked up to them with gunshot wounds and was take on to the hospital with nonlife threatening injuries. the video also shows the white car. the suspect drove away in. call police if you know who he might be. a sad update to a developing story. two police officers shot in

police say a man ambushed them during a domestic dispute call. officers corridored the man yesterday. he then killed himself. 4:49 now. today in maryland the names of potential marijuana dispensaries and growers are set to be made public. the medical marijuana panel chose to allow two dispensaries in each of the senate districts. that 109 licensed dispenaies. the law allows for 15 growers. each of the companies has to go through a background check. medical marijuana is not expected to be available until next year. today the man responsible for a deadly crash on river road in bethesda will be sentenced. three members died after that

moments before hitting the family's car. he pled guilty to manslaughter. he's facing 30 years in prison. police are increasing patrols in georgetown after a string of sex assaults. police say whomever this man is he's accused of sexually assaulting a woman. it happened back on october 19th and it's just one of five similar reported incidents since august. the advisory neighborhood commission hosted a a community crime mee traffic patterns will be changed at the site of a deadly accident in bethesda. the changes are coming next month at the intersection of little falls parkway. it's where an 81-year-old man on a bike was hit and killed in october. the plan to merge traffic from two lanes to one in each direction. they u will also lower the speed limit to 25 miles per hour. a thousand people around

kane company is going out of business. the financial troubles started last year. the washington business journal reports the company unexpectedly had to spend $2 million to rent temporary warehouses. the company's owners pensions and 401(k)s will be paid. when you lose something, it can be hard to imagine ever getting it back. >> police are organizing a special effort this holiday season to return people's stolen police caught two people they say went door to door stealing packages off doorsteps and stuffing them into a box truck. then they returned more than 70 stolen packages last night. i love being able to spoil people and give them what i think they would like. >> three men were charged with the theft.

pickup. you'll need to bring a photo i.d. and proof of address. amelia draper joining us now. in the car this morning, you watched the thermometer and the temperature go down. >> the coldest it's been since february. it's going to stick arntd through the weekend. it's coming next thursday and friday. so today is a weather alert day as we track our first arctic blast so far this season. windchills throughout the day in the teens and 20s. we lose the wind over the weekend, but we keep the cold. it's going to be dry this weekend. so some good news there. it's looking cooler next week. but right now, i want to show you current temperatures. take a look here. 31 degrees in washington. 33 in annapolis. 27 in march tinsburg.

we'll have mostly sunny skies during the morning hours. so you want the sunglasses as well. by noon we're in the upper 30s. 38 and a high today of 41. with the wind, that 41 feeling more like 28 around 3:00. and this evening it's cold and clear. we're at 36 degrees by 7:00 p.m. as we look to the weekend, if you're getting the christmas tree, it's going to be chilly, the better day would be sunday. probably layers this weekend and thin gloves if you're going for a run or a bike ride and heading to holiday parties. travel weather looking good. you definitely have the heater on in your car. we have our tracking winter special. we're going to look at the

new weather satellite. that's really going to improve the weather forecasting there. some rain on monday. actually kind of comfortable relatively speaking. here's the big cooldown i was talking about. 36 next thursday. 32 on friday. and 42 next saturday with a chance of a rain/snow mix. how are the roads? >> i am not looking. forward to that. i can tell you right now roads are nice and. trator-trailer crash in the right lane. just hearing from police that right lane may u be shut down until 8:00 a.m. no major delay. that will change if it hangs around that long. beltway at 220 looking a lot different. eastbound dulles still have the left lane getting by. that works from there. a live lock at 270, coming up. a simple wish for a young

that filled his spirit. they are two of of the most popular items. the big sales change for the

you can finally get your iphone checked out in downtown d.c. apple is opening one of its flagship stores. city officials approved a plan

right across the street from the washington convention center. it dates back to 1903. a beautiful building. it includes renovations, although they have to follow preservation standards. the makeup sales are surging and that's being credited to the selfie. they want to look good for your selfies. according to npd group, perfume usually reigns when it comes to beauty sales but makeup will be taking over. billion on contouring kits and cosmetics. that's a 12% increase. it's supposed to rise. you are figuring out where to put that elf on the shelf.

thing i have ever seen. >> this is an extreme idea. take a look at this. a west virginia dad turned himself into a real life u elf on the shelf. he sat on the roof. he went to an elementary school and did this. the whole outfit here the dad says it was pretty cold up there. but the looks on the kids' faces terror, horror, all that stuff made it worthwhile. >> our christmas greetings have a special way of warming our heart this is time of year. >> it's true for a young cancer patient in north carolina. this 5-year-old spent most of the year battling leukemia. for christmas he had one simple wish to get a bunch of cards

his mom put out the word and the cards started rolling in. >> he got five cards in the mail. he did a little happy dance. he was doing a happy dance the whole time he was reading the card. >> i'm sending him a hundred cards. he's in remission from a cancer, but he will need chemo for the next three years. he looks like a fighter. the news continues at a.m. at 5:00 a.m., the arctic blast is here and it's going to get even colder. >> amelia draper is tracking the chilly weather while melissa mollet watches for traffic problems out there. >> it's 5:00 a.m. good morning, i'm aaron gilchrist. >> and i'm eun yang. it feels a lot colder today. >> what do we need to know? >> this is the coldest it's been in our area since february.