new at midday, david watson bruised and bloodied after days on the run. this morning police showing us where the prison escapee was found. new information on the actual escape. we're also keeping a close eye on the floor at the house. in the next few hours replacement for the affordable care act is expected to be passed. what lawmakers are doing right now and what happens after today's vote. and the clouds will be increasing as we go throughout the rest of the day today. temperatures will stay cool, but then rain moves in overnight. heavy rain for tomorrow morning. i'll show you the timing of that. news 4 midday starts now.

good morning. i'm pat lawson news. >> we start on capitol hill where we are keeping a close eye on republican efforts in the house to repeal and replace the affordable care act. procedural votes and the date related to the bill is happening right now. the final vote is expected to begin about 1:30. today's vote comes after weeks of negotiations by republican leaders to get a majority of their members to back that bill. and it's a sign that leaders have the numbers to pass it. we've broken down the key changes to the plan. so here are four things to know about it. it aims to protect people with preexisting conditions. yesterday house members added the measure to get more lawmakers on board. it'll cost $8 billion. states would be able to opt out of the requirement that ensurers cover benefits like maternity care, mental health care, and hospitalizations. states that do opt out could charge people with preexisting conditions much more. those folks would go into high risk insurance pools. and the billou

subsidies based on income with tax credits based on age. this would help people buy insurance in the individual marketplace. if the house passes the bill today, it would then be sent on to the senate. it's unlikely the current house bill would pass the upper chambers though. house members voting expect senators to make significant changes. >> we're going to take you live to the white house rose garden. that's where president trump is taking part in a national day of prayer event. he's also expected to sign a new executive order on religious freedom. the order aims to weaken a rarely enforced irs rule threatening the loss of tax exempt status for religious organizations that endorse political candidates. all right. let's move on to our weather. there is a lot to talk about after a chilly morning. >> yeah. storm team 4 is expecting heavy rain late tonight. our meteorologist joins us now with the latest. >> we could be seeing over an inch by the time the day is over

tomorrow, but in the morning hours, that's when we expect the heaviest rain. so here it all is back off to the west. it's heading in this direction. it's not going to be here today, but it will be here through the morning commute tomorrow. so that's why we have a weather alert out for tomorrow morning. temperatures currently though, ahead of all of this rain, we're still cool. low 60s for the most part. overcast skies developing. and as we go through the day today, overcast skies by 5:00% p.m., still dry, 67 degrees. 10:00 p.m., showers moving in mostly west of the district, 62. then by 6:00 a.m. tomorrow morning, heavy rain will be around the area. so the morning drive not looking very good. but we will be seeing some improvements later in the afternoon. coming up, i'll show you closer look at the timing of this plus a cooler weekend forecast. that's straight ahead. >> all right. thank you, shooe in a. right now prisoner who was missing for days in howard county is back in police custody. and this morning, we're getting new information about how they tracked david watson to a draina

megan mcgraph is life in justice where all of this came to a head last night, megan. >> reporter: well, good morning. david watson slipped out of his shackles and escaped during a transport last friday. and after six days, the search is now over. he's behind bipartisans and he's talking to investigator -- behind bars and he's telling investigators how he was able to stay hidden for so long. a new picture of david watson taken after his arrest last night. and new information about how he eluded police for days. this is the narrow drainage pipe off dorsey run road where watson was found. a tactical team spotted him at around 9:30 last night. after a minor struggle, he was taken into custody. watson has been cooperating with police. he told investigators that he made use of the abundant drainage pipes in the area. and never lingered too long in one place. >> it appears though from the conversations

had been moving back and forth continuingly. he did not bed down for long periods of time. he was moving back and forth. >> reporter: another had packing material and other i ams that watson used to bed down. as for food -- >> he said he'd been eating out of trash cans. and also drinking water from puddles. >> reporter: and watson apparently also took advantage of a storage shed in the area. he tells investigators that he got clothing from there. he also say thes that the escape was not prethought out. that he actually thought to do it when he was in the middle of that transport. investigators don't believe that anybody helped him. now david watson has been convicted of attempted murder. he's serving a 100 year sentence in delaware. and he will now be taken back to delaware at this point, but sent via a maximum security transport. still awaiting word on when that transport will actually happen. back to you all. >>

thank you. for the second time this week, students a at local university are dealing with an act of hate. university of maryland campus police say a noose was found hanging in the kitchen of the fraternity house. the incident happened last thursday. university president wallace lowe called the act, quote, despicable. campus police are investigating this as a hate incident. this morning, police at a american university are still searching for whomever was responsible for an active hate on it's campus. on monday, somebody hung bananas from nooses references the alpha kappa sorority and placed them around campus. justin finch has more on the interview with the student at the center of it all. >> reporter: student government president taylor dumps is finding support among members of congress who also happen to be part of her sorority. a perceived target of the on campus hate crime. today they will stay together to denounce it. speaking with news 4's wendy

rooeger, dumpson says she is doing well and says helping au foster better on campus cultural relations is part of why she ran for student body president, becoming the first black woman elected to that post. and then her shocking first day, those nooses and bananas found on campus with the letters aka on them. thought to stand for the historically black sorority. the member is set to stand side by side with aka members to condemn this act of hate. now under fbi investigation. and students thinking about leaving au, dumps is asking them to reconsider. >> as a student who their freshman year wanted to transfer, i can see this on a personal and real level. staying is one of the best decisions i ever made because i think at the end of the day, going through the adversity i faced in the past year molded me into the person i am and the leader i am becoming. and i wouldn't wish this any other place. i don't think i would be who i am right now. >> reportend

this hate crime is set for this afternoon. meantime, the search continues for that person of interest in this case. we have surveillance video of that person on our nbc washington app. as well as details about the investigation. back into you. >> all right, justin, thank you. this morning, montgomery county school resource officer's getting the credit for stopping a possible attack. the officer spotted 18-year-old march row alvarado leaving einstein high school. he stopped the student and then found a police rifle and loaded magazines in his trunk. police later learned the car was stolen. and it turns out the gun was also stolen from an unmarked rockville police cruiser. busy families may soon no longer need to hustle in between different afterschool activities. leaders with boy scouts of america are meeting today in texas to discuss whether to allow girls to become members. for all of it's 107 years, the organization has only had boys as members. the organization has been on t

by accepting transgender people into it's programs in january. shortly after lifting it's ban on gay scout leaders. a warning from google, the spam messages gmail users need to be on the lookout for and what to do if you find one. and this summer, could be one of the worst tick seasons we've ever seen. this has health experts concerned about a virus you may never have heard about. like lyme disease, it is spread also by ticks. what you need to know before you go outdoors for a hike or to mow the lawn.

we are working to learn the condition of a woman who was apparently set on fire at a motel. this is video taken at the scene after dc police arrived around 9:00 last night. the motel is on fourth street northeast near the university. witnesses say the woman was set on fire by a man in a room at the motel. we're told he ran off, but the motel does have security camera footage. we don't know the relationship between the two, but it appears to have been a case of domestic violence. we'd like to remind you that nbc 4's committed to raising awareness about domestic violence. you can find local resources in our nbc washington app through our safe at home campaign. new this morning, we've learned that the side of th

history will soon feature a permanent memorial. 49 people were killed last year in the pulse nightclub in orlando, florida. and this morning, the owner announced the future plans for the memorial that's far beyond just one building. >> community grants to care for the survivors and victims families and endow scholarships for each of the 49 angels and eventually a museum showcasing historic artifacts and stories from the events. >> last year she announced she would not sell the club to the city despite a multimillion dollar offer. one pulse foundation adds vise ri board will oversee the memorial complex. no date for an opening has been announced yet. be really careful before you open your e-mail. there's a sophisticated scam out there targeting accounts right now. it's as someone shared a document with google on google doc with you, but when you open up the link, you let in a bug that steals your entire e-mail

the scam works and what to do about it. >> reporter: it looks innocent enough. an e-mail inviting you to view a google document from a trusted contact. but when you click the phony document, it gives hackers access to your gmail account. phishing is a common tactic. they went a step further, sending a worm out to your contacts, reproducing itself hundreds of times with just one click. he got the e-mail on his smart phone. >> this has me label the more on edge. i'm surprised how many people were affected. smart people. vigilant people. >> reporter: of more than a billion gmail users, google says about a million were affected. among the target, u.s. senate staffers who were instructed wednesday to delete the message and not click on the link. for those who did click, scammers were able to harvest full e-mail histories, including all the personal data sent or received in gmail. hackers could also reset passwords for online in

>> e-mail is a mess and is not getting any better. and people are only getting more sophisticated at hacking. >> reporter: in a statement, google added, we were able to stop the campaign within approximately one hour. while contact information was accessed and used by the campaign, our investigations show that no other data was exposed. experts say although google issued a quick fix, hackers have proven there's a new strategy as effective and lucrative. >> user names and pass words are being sold all over the dark web. and you can package a bunch and buy and sell them for not that much money. >> that was jolene kent reporting. now if you've gotten this e-mail and you clicked on the link, go into your settings and revoke access from google docs and change your password. which is good advice any time. military veterans sounded off last night at a town hall about problems in d.c.'s va hospital. this comes after a few weeks after a report from the inspector general that

rooms and missing supplies at the facility. and while some vets had good things to say about the center, others called for change. >> because i want to show what kind of bandage was put on the port of the iv port on my husband's arm. this is just unbelievable. you don't this to veterans. >> new hospital director says changes have got to be made. va secretary david testified before congress yesterday and vowed to improve services at the va. one in five americans spend their money on vitamin d supplements believing that it'll improve their health. >> reporter: dr. john torres looks into the role of vitamin d supplements and just how well they actually work. >> reporter: heather gillis is spending more times outdoors these days. she says she needs that sunshine, a vital source of vitamin d and she start

she was feeling weak and in a recent blood test revealed a vitamin d deficiency. >> i started to feel really run down and lethargic. and i just sort of -- i lacked the energy i usually have. >> reporter: more than 780 million americans take supplements. they're frovn prevent osteopro sis which heather does not have but doctors say vitamin d's role in helping cure other ailments is still not clear. >> it certainly works for bones. there's no question that it's critical to protect you against fractures. it's role in the prevention of cancer or heart disease is still being explored. >> reporter: another concern, rates of testing for vitamin d deficiencies are skyrocketing. results may lead to the unnecessary use of vitamin d supplements. >> too many people are getting tested too frequently. i think it's reasonable if you're in your 40s to have one test to verify that you're okay. >> reporter: so who should be

generally people with darker skin, those at risk for osteopro sis and those with digestive disorders. heather is also making healthier lifestyle choices to add vitamin d through foods like oily fish, cereals, milk, and juice. >> there's a lot of things that you have to think about to be a complete person. well it's going to be a terrible year for ticks. that's the warning from health professionals this year. and this lyme disease weren't troubling enough, a more serious tick-bourn disease may be emerging. >> the virus is new. people are starting to hear about that has more serious consequences. >> the virus can cause inflammation in the brain which leads to death or permanent disability in 60% of the cases. historic flooding in the midwest is far from over this morning. incredible new video coming in now from the hardest hit area.

the first family planning their move to d.c. coming up, we're going to tell you what the president said about where his son will be attending school nexyear. t

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stronger is blasting without risking her bones. it's training her good cells... to fight the bad guys. stronger is less pain... new hope... more fight. it's doing everything in your power... and everything in ours. stronger, is changing even faster than they do. because we don't just want your kids to grow up. we want them to grow up stronger. this just shocking video we have to tell you about. thankfully serve okay here. this is a bus that drove into this high water in louisiana and scenes like this and more are playing out across several

towns. nbc's blake mccoy shows us the massive impact this morning. >> reporter: this morning in parts of the midwest and south, torrential rain is adding to already record flooding. down river water surging through a levy breach northeast of little rock. officials warning it's a life threatening situation. the black river ten feet above flood stage. national guard troops now on alert. 6400 nearby residents told to seek higher ground. this couple lets their house monday. >> it's cold. it's raining. it's bad. i'd like to go home. >> it's going to get stuck. >> reporter: this terrifying scene in louisiana as a school bus with kids inside comes precariously close to tipping over. the kids all rescued and okay this morning. everywhere you look, water. all over, stories of misery. stacy robinson's basement

>> i haven't had much sleep. i've set my alarm for every 45 minutes to wake up and go out and check the road to see how far it's come up. i'm wanting this rain to stop. you know, i hate this. >> reporter: the water here is already starting to recede. and residents could be let back into their homes some time in the next 24 hours. black mccoy, nbc news, valley park, missouri. turning now to our weather. are we looking at possible flooding from all the rain we're expecting? >> there is a chance with the heavy rain tomorrow morning that we could see some localized flooding. this should be moving through fairly quickly though. heavy rain for the morning commute tomorrow. it's not going to be fun tomorrow morning as you're driving, heavy rain will be here i think before the morning commute starts and through most of it. and again, some of that rain will be heavy at times. could be lowering visibility. take your time tomorrow morning, grab the umbrella before you head ou

probably needed a light jacket this morning. tomorrow you're going to switch it out. today though, more clouds are going to keep moving in. rain overnight. weather alert tomorrow morning because of the rain i just mentioned, but a cooler weekend. so if you like the warm weekend last weekend, well, it's going to be very different as we go through this saturday and sunday. currently 62 degrees. the district, you see those overcast skies. breezy east wind at 14 miles an hour. temperatures aren't going to get very warm today either. we'll be in about the mid to upper 60s this afternoon. 63 mt. frederick and clinton. if you're walking a dog today. at least it'll be nice and dry. we don't expect the rain until overnight. here's nelson available for adoption. he's actually from puerto rico believe it or not. by 4:00 p.m. this afternoon, 67 degrees overcast skies, 7:00 p.m., 63. still overcast, but still dry. there's the rain off to the west. we have a big weather system that'll be moving through. and yes, unfortunately the timing will be putting it here tomorrow morning. we're dry right now.

the closest rain is off near ohio. and the clouds are going to keep moving in ahead of it. again, you'll notice that today, but tomorrow morning, heavy rain will be around early. here is future weather, so now we get towards 9:00 p.m. the clouds are here, rain off to the west right down 81 most likely by that time. then we'll see that heavy rain moving in by about 5:00 in the morning. the reds, orangings, yellows showing you the heaviest rain around the beltway. basically all over. then by the afternoon, some improvements could still see a few showers. then saturday and we have another round of showers by saturday afternoon. and the weekend is going to be cooler with that. so tomorrow, that weather alerts out for the morning. heavy rain and big improvements as we get closer to lunchtime. look at the weekend though. mid to low 60s. we'll take a look at your extended forecast coming up. >> thank you. star wars lovers, you probably already know, but we just have to say, may the fourth be with you. it's may

star wars holiday and a lot are getting on board. so are prince william county police. they tweeted saying, troopers are riding speeders today. some of them simply shared the phrase may the force be with you. entertainment weekly gave a little tribute to carrie fisher in the process. and we know you can'ter that, but the tonight show with jimmy fallon pulled together clips from all of the different movies. sounds like they're singing the song all star by smashmouth. well making sure your next flight is safe and comfy, lawmakers are again questioning airline execs this morning. the hearing comes as a major carrier announces big changes that are likely to make you feel a little more cramped. and royal retirement. prince phillip, the husband of queen elizabeth makes a big announcement that has social media followers on high alert today.

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you're watch, news 4 midday. he's the one who has always been by queen elizabeth's side. but this morning, we've learned prince phillip is stepping aside from his public role. >> he's retiring at the end of this summer. nbc's kiir simmons shows us the importance influence the duke has had. >> reporter: making the historic announcement this morning, prince phillip,

the single most important person in the queens life standing down from royal duties. at 95, he will no longer carry out public engagement this year. the queen in full support. >> he's retiring. i think he'll be attending major royal events, but no 9:00 to 5:00 anymore. >> reporter: this is how the world knows him. loyal companion, always two steps behind the queen. >> the queen is going to be greatly moved and affected because prince phillip has been by her side. >> reporter: rumors started when the british tabloid reporting that a highly unusual emergency meeting was called at buckingham palace this morning. for all senior royal staff members. initially the palace refused to reveal what the meeting was about. setting off a fire storm of speculation. media quickly gathering outside the palace. prince phillip was seen enjoying himself just yesterday attending an event in london. both royals enjoying the day at the zoo last month. today, taken it's toll.

out of the hospital a few times. and royal duties can be physically demanding. the palace quick to underscore the queen will carry out her engagements as usual. this will be viewed as a generational change. we know the queen will never abdicate, but over time, may well step back more and more from duties. i think we'll see more from prince william and we'll miss prince phillip will miss perhaps his often politically incorrect jokes. an event yesterday, he told people you're about to witness the world's most experienced plaque unveiler. back to you. lawmakers are demanding answers from airline executives. this time the senate committee is asking the question to united president scott kirby. united has been under a lot of pressure to make changes after a passenger was dragged off a flight to make room for crew members. >> need to ask yourselves as providers, are you prioritizing those shareholder

>> several lawmakers introduced bills to change the way airlines handle overcrowding situations. so far, none have come to a vote yet. and just when you thought airline seats couldn't get anymore uncomfortable, the nation's largest airline is planning to reduce leg room by as much as two inches in the economy cabin. get cozy with your neighbors, folks. american airlines says the new design will be felt in it's new 737 max jets. the change is meant to bring a bit more comfort to wallets by adding more seats. and to help offset rising employee wages. our crowded local schools are increasingly congested on the outside too. >> a news 4 i-team investigation found the local high school parking crunch is leading for rule breaking and potential profits for folks with homes nearby. scott macfarlane has the story. >> reporter: parking is difficult to come back at some

schools. it's limited to only seniors in some cases. to those with high gpas and those willing to spend $75 a year for the parking passes. a semester long investigation by the news 4 i-team found the end result is creative parking in some of the closest neighborhoods. including students violating no parking signs on the nearby streets. some parking in ret stricted permit parking only spaces which are meant for nearby homeowners. and near churchill high, we found this, private driveways looking more like parking lots. no comment from the home owners, but county investigators told the i-team it found some renting the spaces to students which the county says is a violation. >> it's a neighborhood. and to violate that brings in additional cars, and it's impactful. if pedestrian safety, children's safety, pet safety. >> reporter: coming up tonight our i-team investigation, what's being done to solve this parking crunch. and what happens to the students d

for now, scott mcfarlan, news 4 i-team. melania and barron trump are closer to joining the president at the white house. the president says his son has been admitted to a school here in washington and is expected to start at the beginning of the next school year. the first lady and son are living in new york city until the end of the school year. in an interview with bloomberg news, the president didn't name the school, but he did call it, quote, a good school. and you can bet a lot of parents are doing a lot of speculating this morning. news 4 is going sugar-free all this week to highlight the impact sugar has on your health. now we're just passed the halfway mark of our week long challenge. >> that's right. well for pat collins, this has become a lot more just like a lifestyle, lifestyle change and those changes, they are paying off. >> reporter: i'm pat collins, and this is my lunch. i'll show you what's inside in a minute, but first, i've got to te

people who go off sugar for just one week? amateurs. i've been off it for two months. i've lost 20 pounds. we're good friends, aren't we? let me show you something. this is my belt. this is pat collins in february. this is pat collins now. 20 pounds i've lost, but i didn't do it by myself. i had some help. i want you to meet janet. she's my conscience of calories. she's the one who taught me that sugar is the devil. what are four things you should never, ever do to stay away from sugar? >> skip meals because then your blood sugar level will drop and you'll be starving. two, avoid all carbohydrates. again, your body won't be balanced. some people say i'm never going to eat brea

three, never avoid fresh fruits and vegetables. and four, never drink excessive artificially sweetened items. >> reporter: and now for my lunch. 100 calorie bag of popcorn. protein bar. less than four grams of sugar. i don't think of meat anymore. i think of protein. this is turkey-flavored protein. a cheese stick. a really good snack. and a big apple. and in in my off hours, i don't get in the same zip code as beer. why i had some over the weekend, but no beer. having craft without beer is like having peanut butter without jelly. but i don't do that anymore either. >> boy. i give him kudo

go hand in hand. >> what's turkey flavored protein? >> turkey wraps. yes. >> well you can hear more from pat's nutritionist on the nbc washington app. >> and tomorrow morning on news 4 today, nutritionist will join us live to answer any of your questions that you may have about going sugar-free. right now is a really good time to get outside, enjoy an afternoon walk or a jog. >> yes. enjoy it because it's going to change. tonight, we are back with when to expect the big change to arrive.

fios is not cable. we're wired differently. maybe that's why we've been ranked highest in customer satisfaction by jd power 4 years in a row. and now you can love fios too. get 150 meg internet, tv and phone. all for $79.99 per month onlinefor the first year with a two-year agreement. it's the only internet with equal upload and download speeds. cable only offers upload speeds that are a fraction of their download speeds. plus get hbo for a year and free multi-room dvr service for two years. and verizon wireless customers can stream tv on the fios mobile app, data-free. get the best. go to getfios.com

driven away. he scores. >> all right. that's it. one more loss and they're done. there is a lot of pressure on the capitals to come back. they

hockey this year, but they're losing in their playoff series against the penguins right now. 3-1. they're going to have advantage in the next game this weekend at the verizon center. >> all right. and the wizards hoping that coming home will make a difference for them. >> yeah, they're playing the celtics downtown tonight. john wall has been really good in the series, but isaiah thomas has been better. the wizards lost games one and two. they really could use a win tonight. >> oh yeah. and, we should have some good weather to stay indoors and just watch the game. >> yeah, watch them. root them on. i have faith though. we saw the super bowl, patriots came back like they did. i have faith in the capitals. >> okay. >> i do. i'll be watching with my fingers crossed. as we go through the day today, yes, we're watching rain approaching. four things you need to know. we have a weather alert out for tomorrow. this is going to be tomorrow morning. that is the timing for this weather alert.

keep in mind you'll keep yourself extra time out there. visibility lowering especially when we see the heavy showers moving in. saturday showers are also in the forecast unfortunately and the weekend will be remarkably cooler. it's not going to be anything like it was last week. we're going to be in the mid to low 60s. right now low 60s, 62 in the district. quantico, 64, 63 frederick. if you're dining out today. we're going to stay dry. that is the good news, but you will notice all of these clouds around. 54 degrees by lunch time. happy hour, 67. overcast skies. even by dinner time. that vain going to hold off until later tonight and close to midnight. here's a look at satellite and radar. you see the clouds now building in. we have even more off to our west. now look at all of that rain. we have a lot of heavy rain to the west and southwest. and we're going to see that early tomorrow morning. so here's future weather. we go through this afternoon, you notice all of those clouds moving in overcast by 10:00 p.m. most of the rain should be around the

81 by 10:00 p.m. then we see that move in early tomorrow morning, so for the morning commute, this is now 5:00 a.m., we will be seeing periods of heavy rainfall. i think we'll be seeing improvements by lunchtime in the afternoon. now we go into saturday, we could also be seeing another round of scattered showers. mostly saturday afternoon. so it's also going to be a clear weekend with that. tomorrow, once the morning rain starts to taper off and we see the improvements, mid-70s, breezy, mid-60s though saturday. low 60s on sunday. and mostly cloudy. next week though, look at this cool pattern setting up. we don't have any 70s or 80s in the forecast after the weekend. guys. >> all right. thanks. right now there's a new campaign being launched to raise funds in honor of nba sideline reporter craig. >> after the break, meet craig's si doe and hear how she is continuing his fight against the third leading cause o cancerf

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get 150 meg internet, tv and phone. all for $79.99 per month online, for the first year with a two-year agreement. it's the only internet with equal upload and download speeds. cable only offers upload speeds that are a fraction of their download speeds. plus get hbo for a year and free multi-room dvr service for two years. and verizon wireless customers can stream tv on the fios mobile app, data-free. get the best. go to getfios.com

it's been almost three years since the death of robin williams, but his fans will have a chance to see the late comedian play one last role. his british sci-fi film absolutely anything will be released here in the u.s. williams doesn't actually appear on screen in it, but lends his famous voice to a talking dog. the film hits theaters may 12th. news for your health, it hits people of all ages. leukemia is the most common

here with more on the fight against blood cancers is news 4's reporter. >> approximately every three minutes a person in the united states is diagnosed with a blood cancer. every nine minutes, someone dies from it. craig sager, the nba sideline reporter was diagnosed with leukemia in 2014 and died last year. he and his wife stacy founded the foundation to raise funds for blood cancer research. stacy sager joins us along with a doctor from the lymphoma society. thanks for being here today. first of all, tell us about saiger strong and the effort to raise awareness. >> sager strong primary object sieve to fund aml research. he was diagnosed back in 2014. and our whole objective is to fund research and clinical trials.

it was launched in october. and the two collaborations have the exact same goal and it just makes sense that the natural transition to partner together. >> and how important would this have been to craig? >> this would have been mean so much to him to carry on his legacy and carry on his whole goal was not for any other patient or family to endure the pain and suffering that we have gone through the last three years. so, i know he'd be proud. >> for sure. doctor, many of the patients now use some of this research. tell us about some of the findings and the break throughs that can help families like stacys. >> yes. well many, many break throughs. and what stacy and i both know is that finding a cure for cancer is a team sport. >> uh-huh. >> and we've teamed up with stacy and the sager strong foundation to make that happen. many new advances coming forward for many of the blood cancers. new treatments that involve the patients own immune system to find and attack the cancer. new

and leave the good cells of the body alone. so patients can avoid chemotherapy. but acute mie loid leukemia, the disease that took craig has been stubborn. we have this initiative together called beat aml to make advances in treating that disease. >> are most blood cancers curable and treatable? can you talk about that? >> so we've again we've made great progress in treating the blood cancers. i'd like to think of blood cancer research as the tip of the spear. we've been able to make more progress more quickly. we're using precision medicine the right drug for the right patient at the right time. it's -- if you will, it's in the dna to do that. so we've made great progress, but no cures yet. no real cures. i believe they're coming and they're coming soon. but we need to keep the effort up to make it happen. >> and stacy, for people watching who want to help and get involved, what can they do? >> absolutely. you know, both

have team building awareness, go on als.org and join a team and dr. luke can talk about that a little bit more. go to sager strong and donate there as well. it's a collaboration of both -- it's a all going to the same goal. so either one, either organization we have the same goal which is beat aml. >> what a great way to carry on his life and legacy. stacy sager, thanks so much for being here today. >> thank you for having us. after the break, an adoption story involving one of the country's most famous musical families. and you can catch matt lauer on ellen this afternoon. see if the two are planning more pranks for each other. ellen airs week days at 3:00 here on nbc 4. and then stick and for news 4 at 4:00.

wedding bells are ringing for msnbc's morning anchors. morning joanne chors. joe and mika are engaged. scarborough proposed while they were away on vacation. rumors started swirling after he addressed their relationship in an interview with the hollywood reporter last month. msnbc confirmed their engagement early this morning. carolyn clark grew up listening to gnat king cole but never knew the man with the signature voice was her biological grandfather. >> barbara harris sont presented

award for case. the centers for adoption services right here in washington. barbara then invited clark to tell the story of how she put the pieces to figure out the truth about her family. and that is something that is simply unforgettable. >> reporter: she was born in new york city on christmas day 1964. adopted at three days old by teachers ver in a and robert clark. they loved her dearly. and she them. growing up, they had shared what they knew about her birth mother. >> i knew she had been sent to new york sort of, you know, hidden away so that people wouldn't know she was pregnant. >> reporter: carolyn clark grew up in an apartment filled with books and music. especially that of her dad's favorite. ♪ the late, great, gnat king cole. >> i knew every lyric to every song, even the obscure ones. >> reporter: she later actually by chance

his twins, casey and temalin. she met through her boyfriend in massachusetts. >> we went to a party and my boyfriend introduced noid all of his friends there. one of his friends, his best friend's girlfriend actually was emalin cole. >> reporter: when natalie cole was performing in boston, she was invited to go. and they stayed with the mom who had an apartment there. >> she seemed to take a special curiosity in me. knew i was born on christmas day, she asked about that. >> reporter: carolyn had seen old pictures of maria and nat king cole. their daughters cookie and natalie often with them, the photo showed the privileged life his talent afforded them. >> nat king cole was like one of the very first true crossover artists. i mean he could just across all racial lines and globally. >> reporter: his music remained a favorite for carolyn even after she grew up, married, and

>> when my children were song, i used to sing them to sleep with nat king cole songs. >> reporter: concerns for her unborn children made her anxious to know more about her own dna. she sought medical history from the agency from which she was adopted. there were no significant medical issues, but they did give her some social history of the birth mother. >> the thing that stuck with me the most was that the description of her family at the time i was born. they were clearly wealthy people. >> reporter: she had left thinking if there had been a black family in those days with all of that wealth, she could surely find them by going through old copies of ebony magazine. >> and i'm cranking on this family because it's so unique and boom. it just hits me. i know these people. i know exactly who it is. >> reporter: she called her parents ver in a and robert clarking to ask their advice. her mother encouraged her to go forward. >> and so ul

up the phone and i called cookie. >> reporter: prepared for rejection, she braced herself to say she was sorry for the mistake. >> reporter: and before i could say it, she cut me off. >> and she said, this means everything to me. ♪ >> reporter: nat king cole never knew his granddaughter. he died at 45 years old. less than two months after her birth. >> the devastation for cookie is that she gave me up largely to protect the relationship of her father. who then died. so there's no reputation to protect. and it was too late to go back from it. >> carolyn clark is out with a book about her life and family and it is called "postcards from cookie." barbara will have more of this unforgettable reunion between a woman and her long lost birth family tonight on news 4 at 6:00. >> what an incredible story. >> oh yes. i can't wait to see it. well our weather is going to be pretty incredibly w

>> well right now we just have the clouds moving in. so not for the rest of the day, but tomorrow morning, yes, at least we're going to be nice and dry. there's all of that rain moving in as we go into tomorrow. i want to show you though quickly, we have a flood watch that just got issued. this includes the county. mostly so the south and west of loudoun county, includes part of the blue ridge mountain. that's a flood watch for tomorrow morning through noon tomorrow because of the heavy rain that we expect to be moving in. so will be here for the morning drive, weather alert is out for the morning hours because of it. we'll start to see things improving through the afternoon. then saturday, it's going to be cooler, mid-60s with a chance for afternoon showers. low 60s on sunday. so your weekend after tomorrow's heavy rain is really going cool down quite a bit. and we really stay in that cool pattern through all of next week, guys. >> all right. thanks. and thank you, that's news 4 midday. thanks for being with us. we're back on the air this afternoon first at 4:00. >> remember get news and weather updates any time with the nbc washington app. have a great day and then we'll see you

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stand by, everyone. we're live in five, four, three, two, one. it is may. prom season is in full swing, and kit, get this -- the big trend this year, something i think we're fans of. look at these outfits. >> this is unbelievable. teens are wearing their mom's dresses, and sometimes their grandmother's prom dresses? i love that. >> i don't think i have my prom dresses anymore. first of all, they look great. these are cute ones. >> there is a big difference though when you talk about some of the prom dresses that we've seen. >> or that we wore! wait until you see ours. >> some of these are so cute. >> these are