you is one houston neighborhood. what were once cherished belongings are just ruined. not everybody can begin that rebuilding process. sarah dallof has more on the rescues still going on this morning. sarah? >> reporter: good morning, aaron and erika. for those who have been able to come back to their neighborhoods, seeing their homes for the first time has been a shock. an estimated 100,000 are damaged and most people don't have flood insurance. only about one in six do. as little as an inch of water can cause $20,000 in damages. some homes dealing with so much more as rescues continue today in east texas. meanwhile, officials continue to monitor a chemical plant in crosby, texas. they say an initial fire there has burned out after critical cooling system failed and some of the chemicals exploded. people there say they are staying away for about a mile and a half radius from around that plant.

aaron and erika. >> sarah, we've seen a lot of support pouring into the rare area for harvey victims. what supplies do they need the most right now? >> reporter: it really varies from house to house. some people lost everything and need to start over with furniture, refrigerators. we can show you some of what they've lost. befding stacked out there. there's a crib. but it's personal things that can't be replaced. it would be hard to say exactly what they need overall other than money to be distributed. handed out to folks so they can get exactly what they need. every situation is so individual right now. >> sarah dallof live in houston for us this morning. she did mention that chemical plant exploding in the flood zone. we're keeping an eye on it. >> molette green is at the live desk with more on that. >> they're trying to monitor that flood crippled chemical plant near houston, that plant wh m

products like plastics and paint. it exploded and burned early thursday morning. at least two tons of highly unstable chemicals exploded. the owner of the plant warns that more explosions could happen due to a loss of refrigeration and because of the dangerous circumstances, the fire marshal says they're uncertain about water levels at that plant. because they're not sending first responders beyond the buffer zone there. we'll keep an eye on it throughout the morning. >> molette, i'm doing digging on ar kem a, this plant. apparently find this year. >> according to the ap, they were find back in february over ten serious safety violations found during an inspection. >> molette, thank you. it's 4:32 now. weave been telling that you hurricane harvey will impact gas prices. the company that runs the major pipeline providing gas to the east coast hopes to reopen

weekend. aaa says you should fill up today. >> prices will continue to increase over the next few days until in all plays out. >> the average cost of gas in our area is $.10 more than it was before hurricane harvey made landfall. >> many of you are probably planning to hit the roads for that last minute summer get away. while there's good news for you on the roads this holiday weekend, the direction of 95 express lanes is going to shift to help ease traffic. here's a look at the time that that's going to happen. traffic moves southbound beginning at 10:00 this morning. saturday those lanes move northbound starting at 2:00 p.m. and remain northbound through monday. then they switch back again to southbound at 11:00 a.m. on tuesday. don't forget an e-zpass is required to travel in those express lanes. if you are heading to dulles early this morning, there are a few roads closed with construction. the two right lanes from the er

this morning and lanes closed near the dulles greenway east as well as sunrise valley drive east and west. again, these are closures that are just happening this morning until about 5:00 this morning. if you've got an early flight, you might need to know that. prince george's county police are searching for the driver who hit and killed a person and took off. this happened across the street from the census bureau on suitland road. we're waiting to see if anyone saw what happened and have a lead on the car. police say you don't have to worry about the man who opened fire at a metro station. the man in this video is off the streets and under arrest. that video shows him shooting down a metro escalator in columbia heights last friday. the man, 22-year-old cesar morales was taken into custody in montgomery county last night. fortunately, nobody was hurt in that shooting. instead of preparing their daughter for

she died days later after being hit by a stray bullet. so far, one arrest but police are looking for two more people in connection with that shooting. right now there's a purple heart recipient in the district chained to his house. george farris has been sitting in front of his northeast home on sixth street for more than two days now. he says the city's poor upkeep of the alley led to water problems that damaged his home's foundation. the district says it's going to force repairs in order to stabilize the home. farris says that will destroy the historic stone walls and that will cost a fortune. >> they're planning to trash the original river stone walls, which are part of the working person's history in d.c. they don't have many of those left. >> d.c.'s deputy mayor for planning and economic development released a statement that says in part, we understand th

to the homeowner, but it is important that we make sure the property is safe. >> to make matters worse, farris and his wife can't live in the home but they still have to pay taxes on it. we could find out what's next for the lynnhill condo building. there's a hearing this afternoon. they've authorized the court to -- declared unsafe by inspectors. you might remember, the heartbreaking stories of more than 100 families forced out with little notice a few weeks ago. three men still on the loose in the district after breaking into a business and actually picking up the atm and taking off with it. in this video, you can see the guys pulling up, getting out of the car. there they are. the two of them being able to wrap their hands around it and put it in the trunk of some suv that they're driving and haul it off. police say this was on pennsylvania avenue in the hill east section of southeast d.c. all right. get excited ry

redskins game, it will be week one of the regular season. the preseason ended with a win for the burgundy and gold. >> touchdown! >> well, thank the good lord. >> wasn't a big win but still a win. >> for the players fighting to make the team, there was a lot riding on the game against the buccaneers. 37 players will be cut by tomorrow as the team has to decide who makes the final roster here. everybody is waiting to see what happens. week one, next sunday. >> it is september 1. already starting to feel like fall. the 'skins will play the eagles at fedex field. want to get another check of weather and traffic this morning. >> look at the roads in a minute with wtop's jack taylor. first to sheena and what we face this morning. nice cool errie think. >> yes. nice cool air. feels like football weather a little bit. eventually, it will feel more like football weather. that's going to be a great game against the eagles.

69 degrees. 62 in gaithersburg. school day forecast, not looking bad at all. 7:00 a.m., mid-60s. by noon upper 60s. it's going to be unseasonably cool. you'll in the the clouds from tropical depression harvey headed our way. we'll talk about the timing of the rain for the weekend. let's check the roads with jack taylor. good morning, jack. >> good morning, sheena. we had to work through on the beltway in prince george's county. it's only blocking the single right lane. not a gigantic delay. you'll find rock creek parkway to the kennedy center, crews always work but coming up on a holiday weekend. around week 7, ashburn village boulevard. the right lane getting by in each direction. the potential of an early delay in that direction. aaron and erika back to you. a police officer fired after a routine traffic stop. what he said to the woman he pulled over that not only created a controversy but cost him his job. met

something new when they get to the station. the much-awaited escalator that passengers could now use. you're still on track to get a raise.

welcome back. shocking video out this morning of a controversial police encounter. >> it's what the officer says to the woman at the traffic stop

>> but you're not black. remember, we only kill black people. yeah, we only kill black people, right? all the videos you've seen, have you seen black people get killed. >> the officer makes that statement after the woman inside the car said she didn't want to put her hands down. this actually happened last year. just four days after cell phone video of him inside his car. the police chief calls the georgia officer's actions unacceptable and fired him. >> i don't know what's in his heart. but i certainly know what came out of his mouth and it's inexcusable. >> the community and his own officers expected an appropriate response. it's the third time in happened in loudoun county this year. this time at a school. the anti-semitism incident stirring up concerns. mystery solved. when somebody else yawns, why

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the end of the week and starting your holiday weekend. we're going to start with some rain. this is tropical depression harvey over tennessee. the rain is heading in our direction. coming up in a bit, i'll show you the timing, what you can expect for your weekend and how many sunny days we'll be able to sal vanl. that's next. i'm molette green. we're learning the pentagon is starting to send more troops to afghanist afghanistan. defense secretary jim mattis says 11,000 are currently there. the u.s. plans to send up to 3900 more troops. this would bring the total number of u.s. t

fight the taliban to about 15,000. erika, back to you. >> molette, do we have a timeline when we'll know concrete, exact figures on that? >> the top officials are scheduled to brief on wednesday. we'll know more then. >> president trump has declared september national preparedness month. but it's congress that may be unprepared for their long to-do list. >> when lawmakers return next week, they'll decide whether to raise the debt ceiling or shut down the government. that will impact thousands of federal workers in our area. tracie potts is live on the hill with more on the other issues that congress will also be tackling. tracie? >> good morning. lots of people concerned about the budget shutdown negotiations. lawmakers insist they won't shut down the government. president trump has said if his wall is not funded it should or could shut down. we'll be whi

not to mention if the debt ceiling, we hit the debt ceiling, the u.s. can't borrow more money to pay bills, there's the possibility of default. beyond all of that, children's health insurance known as the chip program, that's got to be reauthorized. so does the faa. national flood insurance, which is $25 billion in debt, runs out at the end of september. all three of those big have to be reauthorized. now congress has to look at emergency funding for victims of hurricane harvey. the flooding, the damage from the hurricane itself in louisiana and texas. money is already being planned to be shifted within fema to start that process. but they need a lot more. back to you. >> tracie potts on the hill this morning. thank you. federal employees will receive a raise next year, but it won't be as much as they thought. president trump said federal workers will receive a 1.4% receive. that's less than the 3.2% that congressional leaders asked for

pay raise which was 2.1%. >> in a letter to congressional leadership, the president said any increase would impact the safety and security of the american people. russia has until tomorrow to close three diplomatic properties. they include a trade annex here in d.c. one in new york and consulate in san francisco. the move by the state department is a response to russia's demand that the u.s. reduce its embassy staff in moscow by 755 people. american diplomats say they are not kicking out any russians. workers at the shuttered facilities can be reassigned to other posts in the u.s. a shocking find at a loudoun county high school. officials say they found a swastika written on a bathroom stall at blairwood high school on wechblts school administrators and the school resource officer are speaking with students about that incident. the loudoun times reports this is

fit i incident in the county in the past 12 months. a mother is apologizing for her son this morning. he struggles with mental health issues and is sorry he's accused of attacking a liquor store employee. edwards is in jail this morning. prince george's county say he threw a molotov cocktail at an employee who wouldn't let him inside the liquor store in beltsville. the store's manager says the employee has third degree burns. >> they won't let me talk to him or see him because he's in the burn unit and worried of infection. >> our bureau chief, tracee wilkins found out the attack also hurt a customer. he's out of the hospital. they're accused of taking bribes over smoe removal. anthony willie of culpepper and kenneth adams of fairfax are accused of awarding over $9 million in snow removal deals to four contractors. they allegedly received $140,000 in

investigators say this went on for three winters starting in 2013. good news. if you use the met re station to get to work or -- the escalator set to reopen. construction on the 13th street entrance is complete with two new escalators in service. the work was supposed to take six months but wrapped up a month ahead of schedule. pretty good news indeed. here's an answer to a question some of us may have lost sleep over. why are yawns contagious? new study says contagious yawning may be triggered by reflexes in the area of the brain responsible for motor functions. we learn what happens when we imitate other's accents. humans aren't the only ones who yawn. apparently dogs and chimps do that. >> when you read about yawning, research stuff like that, you start to

>> well, you can use this study to your advantage next time somebody doesn't want to take the dog for a walk. walking the dog does wonders for your mental health. >> psychologists at the university of liverpool say humans benefit as much as the pets do. dog walkers reported being happier after taking a walk twice a day. taking your pet out could help you with that five extra poinds pounds you might want to lose. a pet owner briskly walking their dog for 30 minutes exceeds 150 minimum physical activity. >> they also say that rolling over and letting people rub your belly, same effect. >> that's creepy. >> maybe i made that up. that might not be a study. >> is it going to be good weather this weekend for that? >> today yes, tomorrow no, sunday, monday, yes. >> there you go. >> and we're done. no. the dog walking today is going to be really, really

happy when i walk my dogs. it's nice to see them happy too. anyhowh 69 degrees in washington. 62 gaithersburg. we're cool this morning but closely watching harvey as a tropical depression over tennessee. a lot of the rain now in kentucky. we're seeing the cloud cover from it. so for today, cloudy and cool. harvey rain gets here tomorrow. sunday and monday looking pretty good. a closer look at the area. the clouds will stay with us. it will help to hold the temperatures down. should remain mostly dry until tonight. an increased chance of showers. by noon, not budging too much. still in the upper 60s. clouds will be with us. around 70 degrees with maybe a few showers. here's future weather. 1:00 p.m. today. mainly dry. clouds are here still. 11:00 p.m. showers moving in overnight. saturday morning, 8:00 a.m., scattered showers.

afternoon and evening. 3:00 p.m. saturday. now at 8:00 p.m., we're not dry. not drying out until sunday. the weekend forecast not good on saturday. sunday looks good. 80 degrees. improving conditions. more sunshine. monday 84. we're also watching a major hurricane out in the atlantic. this is hurricane irma. very far away. i want to show you how far it is. we're still talking over a week out before nearing the u.s. i want to give you a heads up. we'll be tracking this thing through time. could become a category 4 as it nears the lesser antilles. won't be until tuesday. very far away. beach forecast through the weekend. saturday, rainy. sunday, monday, looking good. like most of your labor day weekend, it's actually going to be fine. just not the beginning of it. we'll be watching rain by the end of next week. let's check the roads with jack taylor. wtop. good morning, jack. >> sheena good morning. our crews still working. cleared out on the -- we'll see how things go. outelo

single file left getting by. causing an early delay. out on the roads early this morning. outbound on the key bridge towards rosalyn. we had sidewalk work going on. the left lane getting by. not causing a delay. 66 eastbound up near westmoreland. sounds like the work zone has cleared. the left lane blocked. moving themselves to the shoulder and are in the process of clearing out starting their holiday weekend. erika, aaron, back to you. >> jack, thank you. the moment harvey hit, a lot of you wanted to know how to help. you may have even donated to the red cross. now the organization is under fire when it comes to where donations actually go. >> the rainbow still tastes the same but may not look the same. the change to

many of you are looking to donate money to help those impacted by harvey. there's controversy surrounding the red cross. the main question is what happens to the money you donate. a red cross executive came under fire for not saying how much money would go to texas. in 2014 an investigation found the charity misstated how money was spent. after the earthquake in haiti, a quarter of donations went to administrative costs. the red cross insisted 91 cents of every dollar raised will go

lyft is expanding ride sharing to more areas. including rural areas with ride hailing needs but no consistent service. the move means lyft will offer -- uber controls about 70% of the market and has near statewide coverage in 13 states. when people order an ice cold drink at a restaurant, you normally get a straw with that. a new campaign wants you to skip the straw. the straw sucks campaign out of canada asks everyone to just say no when it comes to straws. the reason is because the straws are not recyclable. >> it's time that we start thinking differently about why are we using these single use items. the reason for this is because there are 500 million straws that are used per day in north america. the average person uses them for about four

>> the shaping you do with your mouth -- >> people behind the campaign say there are alternatives to the single use straws like stainless steel reusable straws. >> i can't -- if i'm at a restaurant, i can't put my mouth on a glass. you don't know where that's been. >> but you're drinking a liquid. >> no. it's different. >> your favorite skittles candy is red because it tastes like strawberries, think twice before trying this out. >> it's joining forces with the nfl for a new release. let's say the new skittles will keep you guessing. in this pack, you have to guess which flavor you're picking up. because the color of the individual candies won't indicate the flavor. >> the new pack is going to be available throughout the nfl season with flavor names like raspberry rush and comeback cherry. >> i feel it's like the j

lovely color and it's -- >> "news4 today" continues now. >> right now, pack the umbrella and your jacket for the holiday weekend. the remnants of harvey are headed our way. we'll break down the timing of the rain. >> plus, the price at the pump going up. we've been warning you about approximate this all week now. we'll show you how much more you'll be paying as you head out of town. >> new information to a story we brought you last night. a veteran chained to his d.c. home for days. demanding change. what we found when we stopped by this morning. >> i'm aaron gilchrist. i'm erika gonzalez in for eun yang. welcome to september. it feels like the summer zoomed by. you're hours from that holiday weekend. we know. >> we're working for you this morning to help get you on the move this friday. wtop's jack taylor will have a look at the commute. first l