from a church and was captured on surveillance video. the shooter still at large this evening. let's head right out to news4's pat collins not far from the scene. pat? >> reporter: a friend says the two construction workers were called home from work for an emergency. they were walking here on alabama avenue when all of a sudden, gunfire, right across the street from a church. check out this security camera video. it comes from the community of hope church on alabama avenue. the double shooting happened across the street from the church. now look closely, and you can see one of the shooting victims running down the sidewalk to a nearby church, looking for help. this man was there. he asked that we conceal his identity. >> he fell inside of the church and said, i've been

members to call his mother. >> reporter: it happened around 9:45 this morning. two men shot in the 900 block of alabama avenue southeast. the victims wearing hardhats and reflective vests. they appear to be construction workers. on the scene, assistant police chief robert alder. >> the only lookout we have at this time is for a male wearing a mask last seen running south away from the scene. >> reporter: homicide detectives are on the case. police spent more than five hours here working the scene, taking pictures, collecting shell casings, marking evidence. they left nothing behind. back now to that good samaritan. >> i think it was a robbery. that's my personal opinion. >> reporter: 9:30 a.m. >> yes. >> reporter: broad daylight. >> this is southeast, sir.

trust and believe, don't make a difference. >> reporter: both victims are in the hospital tonight. one is said to be in very critical condition. coming up at 6:00, we're going to hear from a friend and some neighbors here. i'll see you at 6:00. wendy, back to you. >> pat collins, thank you, pat. new tonight at 5:00, we're learning more about the house fire that claimed the life of this little boy. fire investigators are revealing the details about how this fire started. it unfolded on tuesday evening at the home on arcade street in lorton. investigators say the child was playing with a lighter. news4's chris gordon is in the neighborhood with reaction to this tragedy. chris? >> reporter: wendy, this tragedy is even worse today when the people who live in this tight knit lorton community learned the cause of this fire. the 5-year-old little boy was left alone in that garage. you see the s

he was unattended. and he was playing with a lighter. neighbors saw flames and smoke coming from the house and immediately called the fire department. >> the flame was just so big that coming out of the front door was just -- the whole front door was black smoke. >> reporter: the fire quickly spread. >> it was flames shooting up in the air and going all the way up. and it was frightening. >> reporter: a retired firefighter came running and was told that 5-year-old stellan lotuno was inside the garage or basement. >> the mom let us know that a child was in there. we trying to get in, but, you know, it was too far gone. >> reporter: fairfax county fire rescuers battled the blaze. the mother and three men were taken for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. two dogs were rescued. two other pets were killed in the fire. >> the fairfax county fire

marshal's office in conjunction with fairfax county are investigating the event. the cause has been determined to be a child playing with a lighter, unintentionally set the garage on fire. >> reporter: neighbors are dealing with the sadness caused by the loss of 5-year-old stellan, made worse by the news that he apparently caused the fire by playing with a lighter. >> sad. very sad. a little boy who had very easily gotten something like that. and you see what happened. >> reporter: ahead, why firefighters returned to this neighborhood today. the questions they're asking every homeowner, questions that they say you may want to ask yourself, that's coming up at 6:00. jim? >> chris gordon, thank you, chris. now to a developing story in baltimore county. check it

are on the scene still of a pretty massive blaze at this tire shop. you can see the huge flames and thick black smoke. this is along pulaski highway, a major artery just inside the baltimore beltway in rosedale. no word yet on a cause. but the building itself may be a total loss. when you call someone or you call 911, you expect someone to show up. but dc's fire chief says his department is still struggling with response times to some of its most critical 911 calls in dc. today the chief and the mayor laid out their plans to fix that. news4's mark segraves broke this story last night on twitter. he's now live in northwest with the story you're seeing first on news4. >> reporter: yeah, good evening, wendy. overall the numbers show us that when you call 911 for either fire or emergency, the response times actually have improved. but when you call for critical medical care like a cardiac arrest, that's where response times have not improved. to fix that today, the chief

the mayor said one thing they're considering is restricting who actually gets an ambulance when they call 911. >> we responded to over 200,000 emergencies last year. >> reporter: while dc fire did respond to over 200,000 calls last year, the chief says not all of those were true emergencies. firefighters refer to dc's current policy as, you call, we haul. that means everyone who calls 911 for an ambulance gets a ride to the hospital whether they need to go or not. and that takes critical resources away from the more urgent calls for help. if the new recommendations are approved by the mayor, a nurse or a first responder would decide whether or not to take the patient to the hospital. >> what we're atalking about is make sure our personnel and hospital rooms are available for people who have having an emergency. >> reporter: today the chief and the mayor said they're also considering hiring a private company to provided nurses

screen some calls to determine if that ambulance is actually necessary before being dispatched. chief dean has for months advocated placing a nurse inside the 911 call center, the department's new medical director is recommending a private firm. >> this nurse is able to further assess and direct a caller toward nonemergency department resources, including self care advice or nonemergency transport to primary care clinics or an urgent care center. >> reporter: and mayor bowser announced she's proposing new legislation that would require insurance companies to pay 100% of the cost of 911 transports to the hospital. >> this legislation will help close gaps in insurance coverage and ensure that more district residents have access to emergency medical care. >> reporter: mayor bowser pointed out that

are just recommendations. she'll decide between them. coming up at 6:00, you'll see what happened when a neighbor confronted her about what her insurance ideas would mean for his premiums if she passes that legislation. >> mark segraves out in front on this story again, mark, thank you. just over a month into the new administration and the grades are coming in. the public appears to be lukewarm on president trump, with two new polls showing more than half disapprove of his job so far. an nbc news surveymonkey poll gives the president a 43% approval rating while a new poll from quinnipiac university gives mr. trump just 38% approval. those numbers come as we're seeing backlash here and across the country at republican town halls like this one in virginia, in some cases people shouting about health care. today, the white house

to downplay a tweet by the president referring to liberal activists. >> when you look at some of these districts and some of these things, it is not a representation of a member's district. >> today the president said an obamacare replacement plan could come in early or mid-march. just outside of washington, the annual conservative political action conference is getting under way at national harbor. among those who will be speaking, president trump and vice president pence as well as chief strategist steve bannon. the president skipped cpac last year when he was a candidate. aides to maryland governor larry hogan unblocked people from the governor's facebook page. but some of those same people were then blocked again. now the aclu could take some legal action. friday, the civil liberties union demanded a restoration of posting privileges for seven clients. according to "the washington post," six of t

but the governor's office blocked several of them again for allegedly spamming and for offtopic posts. another beautiful day out there today. high temperatures into the 60s all across the region. tomorrow we get back into the 70s. we've seen a lot of cloud cover. we have a system down to our south. that system giving us shower activity. norfolk over towards richmond and raleigh, even showers around fredericksburg, that whole system moving down to the south. right now, take a look at the numbers. 59 in dc, 64 in hagerstown, 64 in morgantown, west virginia. we have warmer air moving in tomorrow, back to the 70s. a few showers possible tomorrow. i'll take you hour by hour. then the best chance of rain coming on saturday. >po

mt. vernon where 51 of this country's newest citizens took the oath of allegiance. coming up, what these brand-new americans have to say about president trump's immigration enforcement plans. and it's history on the move. how nasa is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the historic mission. new concerns about the side effects of popular heartburn medications and why doctors say they may be doing more damage than good. and ready for this? trending right now in maryland, check it out on our nbc washington app during the brief break. the survey that's ranking observation city

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some of the country's newest citizens are reacting tonight to president trump's immigration and enforcement policy, which broadens the definition of who can be arrested. news4's julie carey joins us. jules? >> reporter: hey, wendy. you can see the buttoni ibuntin gate. some of those i spoke to from central america, their happiness

about the changing immigration policy and its impact. and idyllic setting for a naturalization ceremony. the mt. vernon estate, overlook the potomac, on george washington's birthday. among this country's 51 newest citizens, linda came to this country from guatemala 17 years ago. she works at a cafeteria at a woodbridge elementary school. this ceremony left her in tears. >> thank you so much, i'm so emotional and crying. >> reporter: those tears, tears of joy. but she and some other here's today saddened by the trump administration's new immigrant enforcement policy. it broadens the type of undocumented immigrants that can be arrested. no longer will criminals be the sole target. >> i'm very sad, because the people come here for an opportunity to find a good job and support the

kinds of countries. >> reporter: press secretary sean spicer addressed the concerns at today's white house briefing. >> the president is clear about his priorities. yesterday was focused on going after people who are a public safety concern. >> reporter: last week governor mcauliffe and religious leaders reacted with outrage after a news4 report that i.c.e. agents had arrested some latino men just after they left a church hypothermia shelter. the governor is addressing those concerns face-to-face. >> who is going to be stopped, and why? we just want to not guidelines going forward. i'm very concerned that this will drive people underground, that people won't seek the medical care they need, they won't report the crimes they may see. there won't be a working partnership with their communities. that's my biggest concern. >> reporter: but not every new american here today disapproves of president trump's tougher policies. coming up at

refugee thinks the reworked travel restriction plan could be needed. back to you in the studio. >> julie, thank you. after contentious debate, the virginia senate has passed legislation banning localities from restricting enforcement of some of those federal immigration laws. the house of delegates had already passed it. today's back and forth was over what kind of message the bill sends. president trump signed an executive order to strip funding from sanctuary cities and states. republicans say it's needed to show that virginia respects the rule of law. democratic governor mcauliffe promises to veto it. a piece of history is going to be leaving us for a while. the apollo 11 capsule which took americans to the moon and back will be leaving washington in october for a road trip. news4's barbara harrison is here with the story. >> reporter: you guys know i've been talking about nasa a lot lately, after having a chance to meet some of the folks down at nasa

figures"' real life character helped in the mission to take americans to the moon and back. it was 1969 when that capsule carrying astronauts neil armstrong and buzz aldrin descended to the lunar surface in the module called the eagle. the command mod you wiule was t one to return to the earth. for the four decades that followed, it's been on display at the smithsonian. in 2019, the country will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. in advance of that, the capsule will be visiting houston, st. louis, pittsburgh, and seattle. it will spend five months in each city. >> the apollo program in my view is one of the greatest amen

when apollo 11 landed on the moon and humans first stepped on a celestial body, it changed the way we saw ourselves. thanks to the smithsonian traveling service, for 65 years, our affiliate museums, 216 strong, were able to spread the wealth beyond the over 20 million americans and those from overseas who visit our institutions every year in washington and new york city. >> reporter: we all remember seeing it when it came back to earth and landed in the water. catherine johnson was one of those who found out the trajectory that would bring it back so we could find it. it's been in the smithsonian all this time, and going to be renovating the gallery where it was on display. objects used on that lunar mission including gloves and a visor from buzz aldrin and a rock box used to bring back samples f

included on the tour. >> it still gives you goosebumps. >> reporter: it does, doesn't it? >> we've got until october. barbara, thanks so much. from the past to the present and beyond. i just shared this story on my facebook page. from nasa, it's announced a major discovery that is literally out of this world. seven rocky earth-size planets in a solar system about 40 light-years away known as exoplanets, all seven orbit a single star that's smaller than our own. scientists say their orbits are also smaller than in our solar system. they could potentially have water. nasa hopes future telescope launches including one next year will help to study these exoplanets and analyze their surfaces. you may remember the acronym "my very educated mother just served us nine pizzas." but then about a decade ago we dropped pizzas, or

so-called dwarf planet could get a promotion. some scientists wanted the international astronomical union to dedefiredefine what constitu planet. it's supposed to be a round object in space smaller than smarts. the astronomers say classifying it as a planet is significant and encourages exploration. at the same time, the definition excepts our own moon and 110 other objects in our solar system could be reclassified as planets. try making an acronym for that. share your new words on my facebook page. >> it's the goldilocks zone because it's not too hot, not too cold, it's just right. >> just the right amount of h20. >> there you go. coming up, how there could be science to the old wives'

child. >> reporter: the very last days of the first colored circuit is a performance that captures the trials and tribulations african-american performers faced in the early 1900s. through it all,

all right, doug. the week is getting better and better, day by day. warmer and warmer, anyway. >> the next couple of days will be so warm, you won't believe it. >> really? >> well, it will be happening so you probably will believe it. temperatures are currently in the 70s. 70s is just a thing this february wants to bring us more of. want to see an awesome shot? >> yes. >> take a look at that. remember i was talking about the sundog? you can clearly see one right there. there is another one just to the left of this. we have a thing called a tv tower that's on there. you can see one to the left, very faint right there. we'll show that one a little bit better, there it is, right there. another one is off to the left. if you're looking at this, if you're

you're driving you're not watching us on television. but remember the degrees i told you about yesterday? >> yeah, we do. >> 26 degrees. >> 22 in half. >> close. but about 23 degrees. it's beautiful, really nice. we call it a sundog or a sub-sun. 59 degrees right now, dropping through the 50s but not dropping all that much. we'll stay on the mild side tonight. we've seen those clouds, 64 degrees in leesburg, 62 culpeper, 65 in martinsburg. temperatures on the rise tomorrow. we won't see any rain with this. we need to see the rain. we saw showers to our south today. that's where they all stayed for the most part, a few in southern maryland, maybe around fredericksbu fredericksburg. closest area of rain to our south and a big storm down towards parts of florida. this big area of low pressure spinning to the south and west of jacksonville. a lot of rain for them. fortunately for us, we're not going to get in on it. we will see a chance for some showers, around

tomorrow, most of the day dry. we'll look west and see sunshine. could see an area of showers along the i-81 corridor. as they move east they'll most likely day due to a lack of daytime heating once the sun goes down. maybe some showers. it won't help the drought situation. again, a moderate drought in our region. notice where the armwarmer air just back to the west. even warmer tomorrow. high temperature tomorrow, 74 degrees. i think we're going to at least tie a record at duls, the record high tomorrow at 73. we'll come close. partly sunny, nice and warm. a few showers just off to the west. and we get even warmer on friday. 76 degrees on friday. 72 on saturday. now, saturday there will be a chance for some late day rain or thunderstorm activity. that ahead of a strong cold front that brings in some much colder weather and rather breezy conditions on sunday and most of next week, a little bit cooler except for next wednesday, we're back in the 70s again. >> i love it, much

now. >> i know. >> all right. >> doug, i think we need to give you a new handle. "sundog" on instagram. >> i'm in. >> d.a.w.g. >> now we're talking. coming up, plans for president obama's presidential library now beginning to take shape. >> ahead, what that building and the new national museum of african-american history and culture will have in common. and from parking lots to parks. i'm able to just be bryce, just be myself. >> and that's star bryce harper talking to carol about what the did you know slow internet can actually hold your business back?

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at 5:30, some help for gamblers. mgm is helping customers to know when enough is enough. the goal is to prevent gambling addiction. news4's tracee wilkins has more. >> reporter: wendy, they're saying they want to help with researching gambling addiction as well. this announcement was made an hour ago by mgm. they did it in canada, because the british c

commission, the government takes care of gambling addictions in their casinos. they have kiosks that talks to folks about when they're taking gambling too far. they want to offer help to people with gambling addictions and help people before they start playing the games to know when they've gone too far and when enough is enough. it's going to start this year and should be done by the end of this year. it's called gaming sense in canada. mgm says they'll adopt the same name here. here is a better explanation of what they're trying to accomplish with all of this. >> we're going to have a conversation with all of our customers. certainly as many as we can, to make certain that what they're doing is having a good time, is within their means, is because they just want to have some fun.

profile is otherwise, then there are different discussions to be had. >> reporter: now, again, they're saying they're going to put this in all of their casinos across the country. and it will be coming here to mgm national harbor as well. critics have said there is no enough help with gambling addictions in maryland for the number of casinos in this state. i'm tracee wilkins, back to you in the studio. >> tracee, thank you. it was the last day on the job for prince georges county's fire chief. mark bashure is planning to move down to florida. the deputy fire chief benjamin barksdale will be the acting fire chief. several more red light cameras will be on eastbound

southbound lee highway at germantown road, and eastbound fairfax boulevard at germantown road. also westbound fairfax boulevard at germantown road. makes you want to just avoid germantown road, doesn't it? the cameras will be installed in the spring. traffic signs will let you know that you are about to get on camera. >> hmm. i'm always on camera on the roads, it seems. it's hard to believe but bryce harper is entering his sixth season with our nationals. today at spring training, harper sat down with our own carol maloney to talk about everything from this year's team to why he and his wife waited in line 45 minutes for a milk shake. >> reporter: how could you describe a side of yourself that only your teammates see? >> man. i don't know. i mean, i'm able to just be bryce. i'm able to just

they don't get my full self. and my family, they're the biggest ones that understand me as a whole. the team gets me every day, they understand what i'm all about. >> reporter: what encourages you the most about this team this year? >> i mean, we've got a great mix of guys. we've got young guys, some older guys. everybody comes in here pulling on the same rope. we have fun, we enjoy each other. >> reporter: how long did it take you to get used to all the attention, the rock star status as you walk around? >> it's just part of it. i think at a very young age i've had to deal with it. "sports illustrated" came out and everything went through the roof for my family and friends and relatives and everybody. >> reporter: it's the little kids. >> when you're at a young age, i was the same way, i actually never asked for autographs, i would look and see, wow, that's derek

for a little kid, that's the first time they have that interaction with you. you want to put a smile on their face. >> reporter: talking about staying in line for your autograph, what's the longest line you stood in and what was it for? >> man, this is off season, probably, chik-fil-a milk shake. they had just opened in vegas. i was on facebook live for an hour waiting for this milk shake. me and kayla, it was valentine's day, we went out to dinner, we wanted a milk shake so bad. we stood in that line 45 minutes. >> reporter: nobody said, mr. harper, you can cut? >> no, i don't want to cut everybody. everybody wants chik-fil-a. >> handly says he's stood in line for a chik-fil-a milk shake. doctors say you need to be vigilant if you need to take certain heartburn s.

african-american performers faced in the early 1900s. a look at black history month through the arts.

in news4 your health, a warning about a popular drug used by millions of

treat heartburn and the risk of kidney damage. these are proton pump inhibitors or ppis. they're sold under brand names like prevacid, prilosec, nexium. these drugs have been linked to kidney issues before but a new study from washington university finds that half of patients who experienced chronic kidney damage had no idea they had it until it was too late. they say those people did not experience any problems that would tell them that their kidney function was in decline. researchers say patients should always tell doctors when they are taking these ppis because they're over the counter and only consume them when absolutely necessary. parents know boys and girls can certainly act differently. now new research suggests those differences may begin before birth. sometimes women carrying girls may deal with more sickness during their pregnancies. and researchers at ohio state university

in a study, scientists looked at the mother's immune cells and exposed them to a bacteria in the lab. cells from women carrying baby girls showed greater inflammation. >> this means inflammation could be playing a role in some of those symptoms. >> doctors say all pregnant women can help support their immune system with a good diet, meditation, and plenty of exercise. the architectural firm behind dc's hottest new museum is about to start working on another high profile project. ralph apple baum associates designed the african-american museum. now it will design the president obama center. applebaum was involved in the look of the u.s. capitol's visitor's center and the

a laptop in need of servicing taken in for repairs. but it goes missing along with a whole lot of personal information. >> coming up, nbc 4's susan hogan against the hultsz. is one of our busy downtown areas about to lose hundreds of parking spaces in favor of green space?

>> announcer: you're watching news4 at 5:00. if you're just tuning in, here's what you missed today. the cause of the fire that killed a 5-year-old boy here in lorton has been determined. fire investigators saying that he was playing with a lighter and unintentionally set the garage on fire. the boy has been identified as stellan lotuno. ahead, we'll hear from a neighbor who tried to save him but was turned back by smoke and flames. that's coming up at 6:00. back to you. dc say a masked man shot and killed two men in southeast. one of the victims still in critical condition, the other expected to survive. no arrests. i had this problem on my lunch break today, finding a parking spot in downtown bethesda is often anything but easy. sound familiar? now there's a push to get rid of hundreds of parking spaces there and turn them into green

tuss has been getting both sides of this debate tonight. he's live for us in downtown bethesda to show us how this would work. hey, adam. >> there's been a drought, a park drought in downtown bethesda. >> reporter: she's leading a charge to turn a grassroots effort to turn parking spaces into parks. >> we need more parks for kids to play on. >> reporter: she calls bethesda the brick oven, because there's so much concrete here. but to get green space, you have to get rid of 500 parking spaces. that would translate to five acres of new parks.

a supporter of the plan on the council explains why this is the time to do this. >> if you're waiting for the value of property to become so low, they'll be waiting for a long time. you have to look at what land you have and make the best use of that. >> reporter: but as we know, drivers are particular about their spaces. >> a lot of people do drive around here. we do need places to park. >> reporter: this is all happening as the county is in the midst of a new master plan for downtown bethesda. the next step, finding the funding to make this a reality. now coming up next hour at 6:00, what should happen for drivers? should they be compensated if these parking spaces do go away? >> adam tuss, thanks, adam. nbc 4 responds to a computer dropped off for service. when the retailer couldn't find his laptop, he called

responds. s so susan hogan has more. >> reporter: this customer called nbc 4 responds to get to the bottom of it. bobby fontaine spends a lot of time outside these days. that's because his laptop that he and his wife cindy use quite a bit, let's just say it's missing. >> where's our computer? >> reporter: and no one could give you a straight answer? >> no one's given us a straight answer. >> reporter: he brought his laptop to this staples in springfield for service. >> they were supposed to call, he said three days but it would probably be a day and a half. >> reporter: did you hear from them? >> no. three days later we started calling them asking them, you know, when can we pick up the computer. >> reporter: according to bobby, staples employees were vague about the laptop's whereabouts. >> a little more prodding, okay, someone stole it. i was like, okay, so the computer was stolen, when was it stolen? he doesn't know. >> reporter: he was

he's got banking, medical, and other private financial information on that stolen computer. >> at that point i was concerned about, okay, who's got the computer, what information is on there. >> reporter: staples did offer to replace the laptop with something it had in stock. bobby said what they had wasn't comparable. staples then offered them $1,000, and that too, according to bobby, wasn't fair. >> it was like, we want you to pay what you owe us and they wouldn't do it. >> reporter: bobby then called the police, the better business bureau. nothing happened. >> and then cindy came up with nbc 4 responds. and so i said, well, let's try that, because they're going to do the work and we ain't got time for it. >> reporter: we do have the time. and we got the results. >> i went with you. and then y'all took it over and you got us the $1500. and -- >> reporter: yay! staples tells us if a unit is stolen from their store they w

a cash equivalent. in this case they valued the unit, but bobby and his wife were asking for $3,000. the fontaines were happy to accept a compromise for $1500. there you go. if you have a consumer problem you need help solving, contact nbc 4 responds. go to nbcwashington.com/responds, wendy. >> all right, thank you, susan. you might think of log rolling as the stuff of cartoons, lumber jacking, flannel shirts. no. swim suits. this is a sport that's growing in popularity. today a champion log roller was in fairfax county teaching others -- she's good. >> it consists of two people on one log each trying to get each other off the log. we have introduced log rolling now to

and seven countries. >> i think i could stay up on that for about a second in haan half. >> i could tap dance on that, watch me. >> log rolling classes are available at the mt. vernon rec center in fairfax county. search "log rolling" on our nbc washington app. i could sit on that, looks like fun. >> tomorrow will be a good day for log rolling. >> for log rolling, and friday, and then saturday morning. but not in the afternoon. it will be windy on sunday. so there's your impact forecast for log rolling. as we look outside right now, we're already seeing signs of spring out there. so many people on facebook and twitter are sharing these wonderful photographs. check this out from arlington, yesterday sue kromer sharing

this cherry tree already showing its blossoms. i'm hearing gardeners seeing stuff in their gardens about a month ahead of schedule. tomorrow it's not just warm. it's near record warmth. overall the weather having a low impact on your day. recess for the kids, don't even need the jacket. t-shirt will be just fine or at least long sleeves. exercise, it's warm if you want to go for that jog during the afternoon, it will feel hot relative for this time of year. if you want to eat outdoors or take the dog for a walk in the evening hours, we'll be tracking scattered showers mainly west of dc. i'm going to time this out for you on future weather. we'll have a mix of clouds and sun, strive for the midday hours. i'm stopping future weather at 3:00. there's scattered showers around the corridor. into the evening hours, we're tracking area of rain in parts of montgomery, loudoun, prince

up around frederick. as the line continues to the east, the sun goes down and that rain fizzles before it hits the district. tomorrow, later in the day, west of dc, scattered showers are possible. most of the day looking spe spectacular for everybody. 53 at 7:00 a.m. already near 70 by lunchtime. have your lunch outdoors. 74 for a high tomorrow. near record warmth. then again during the evening hours we'll have some showers around west of town. but still around 70 degrees at 7:00 p.m. you can head to my facebook and twitter pages for the latest pollen report. trees are coming in high. that will likely continue to be the case through at least saturday morning. friday, a high of 76 degrees. saturday, we hit 72. and then we have a period of rain and thunderstorms to deal with during the afternoon and evening hours. that sets us up for a cooler sunday. a big temperature change, over 20-degree drop from the highs from 72 on saturday to 52 on

sunday. >> thanks. this next story is fascinating. a local play debuting in the district. >> it's raising the curtain on a special part of our history. the story of a circus brought to life inside the anacostia play house. >> when i put my hands on these stones and know that a young george washington probably did the same thing, that sends a little chill down my spine. >> george washington called this place home as a child, decades later, an incredible discovery as crews work to bring you back in time.

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an african-american couple falls madly in love while performing in a circus. >> now their great great grandson is sharing their story and how they overcame the hate surrounding them. the show is at the anacostia play house. >> i bring to you benjamin boswor bosworth's colored circus. >> reporter: for generations the circus has been a place of excitement and laughter. >> a circus is always a part of our childhood. it's cotton candy.

>> reporter: for african-american preferformers the early 1900s -- >> behind the music, behind the laughter, that's not always yours. >> reporter: a story about stephen a. butler's great great grandparents who fell in love while performing in a circus in la plata, maryland. their lives are brought to live nearly a century later in the anacostia play house. >> they were violated, subjugated in situations that are unimaginable to us now. >> reporter: the artistic director says through powerful performances, the audience travels back in time to experience life for a couple who have to fight for their love. >> how do you love a man who has to say "yes, sir" when what he wants to do is punch them in the face? but that's how we had to

we persevered through that. ♪ just keep on crying >> reporter: like so many others, ollie and ruby thomas were surround by racism. but butler will tell you it is their bond that gave them the strength to carry on. >> love will win over all. >> reporter: meagan fitzgerald, news4. >> announcer: news4 at 6:00 starts now. first at 6:00, heartbreaking new details in a deadly house fire in fairfax county. >> investigators say a 5-year-old boy died after he accidentally started a fire while playing with a lighter. it happened last night in lorton. inside that family's garage. news4's chris gordon joins us with the latest on the investigation. chris? >> reporter: doreen, the little boy's name was stellan. he lived here with his mother and sisters.

to move in with his grandmother. and they hadn't been here long. but for stellan, it was long enough to have made at least one good friend. this neighbor brought her son. she tells me he was playing with 5-year-old stellan lotuno yesterday. stellan was killed in the fire that he himself started yesterday. >> it was a child playing with a lighter, and unintentionally set the garage on fire. >> reporter: two neighbors, a retired firefighter and an off-duty firefighter, trying to get the 5-year-old boy out of the garage. but the flames made it impossible to reach him. >> i'm disappointed we couldn't get him. i really, really feel bad about his mom. she had to stand in the front yard and watch. that's terrible. >> reporter: the child's mother and three men were taken to the