inhaling. >> announcer: why a gas station has people worried for their health. >> we have got so much to get to this afternoon. team coverage for you over the next three hours. >> we are working for you so you can start the weekend off right. first at 4:00, we begin with some breaking news. a startling shake up in the dugout this afternoon. the nationals say manager dusty baker won't be back next spring. chris miles from nbc sports is at our live desk. so, chris, what happened? >> hey, pat. dusty baker had the highest winning percentage in nats history. he won 59% of his games. now he's out of a job since the nats heart breaking loss to the cubs last week, we've all been waiting to see what would happen to dusty baker. now we have that answer. the team says baker won't be back next season. he was in the district for just two years, but led the team to its first back to back division titles. the nats have never had the same manager for more than three straight seasons. here's part of the team statement saying, quote

sport and we thank him for the successes we've had together the last two years. we wish him nothing but the best going forward. the team also says the contracts for its coaching staff have expired so what comes next, the team says a search for a new manager starts right away. pat, leon? >> this is crazy. >> big upset. >> crazy. >> all right, thanks, chris. >> first at 4:00, thousands of gallons of fuel have leaked just steps from apartments and people fear the fumes could make them sick. >> now, this fuel spilled at a gas station on king street in alexandria. people nearby there tell us that they are not getting answers to their questions about it. >> so, news 4's chris gordon went out there looking for answers. he's live with a scene with a closer look. what have you found, chris? >> reporter: well, pat and leon, behind me you see a huge water tank and over here crews that have been working very hard. down the block you'll see they're digging trenches with steam shovels. crews on the scene are

pipes that remove gas out of the groundwater and sump pumps. around two residential buildings here, the pipes have disrupted traffic. some residents say they smell gas fumes and they're afraid of an explosion or a fire. they say they aren't getting enough information and they worry if the air they are breathing is safe. >> i don't know what exactly is in the air. i don't know what i'm inhaling or what anyone else would be inhaling or anyone that i live with. as far as i know, i haven't gotten any updates. >> reporter: is it dangerous right now? >> it's not dangerous right now, no, sir. >> reporter: any of the residents in any of these buildings? >> right now, initially when we first started, there was a huge vapor smell. we've done some aggressive work as it relates to vapor. so, some pressureization of the buildings as well as removing those vapors out of the building to make the air quality the way it should be.

>> reporter: cleaning up the liberty gas station here along king street could take months. and the reason is thousands of gallons of gas could be buried where you see these cars moving up to the pump soaked into the ground and crews will have to dig down deep to locate, find and remove that gasoline. that's the latest live from alexandria. leon, pat, back to you. >> all right, you got it, chris. thanks for that. a device associated with war explodes just outside the college of william and mary. now federal, state and williamsburg police are investigating. news 4's erika gonzalez joins us with the latest on that. erika? >> on the explosion they call it an i am pro rised explosive device ied, happened at 5:00 last night a few steps away from the college of william and mary. police say it went off outside a car. this was in a parking lot behind a restaurant in merchant square. that's the shopping and food district in the city.

no one was injured and none of the vehicles had any damage, but the fbi, atf and state police are now among the agencies investigating this. also keep in mind here, this is home coming weekend at william and mary and officials say the events will continue as planned with added security. pat? >> thanks, erika. if you're heading to the mall, an important note. 17th street along the mall has just reopened. it's been closed all day while crews tested a levee designed to protect the mall and downtown d.c. from flooding. the temporary structure is put up and then taken down piece by piece at least once a year. the national park service says it's the best way to make sure the barrier is in good working condition just in case it's ever needed to control flood waters from the potomac. this is the fourth test, by the way. it has not been deployed for flooding yet. however, park officials say when that day comes, they will be ready. >> one of the biggest events in our region has

underway and that means tons of crowds and lots of road closures this weekend. we're talking about the 42nd annual marine corps marathon. it's going to be tough trying to drive or parka round the 26-mile long route. that begins in arlington and winds its way through d.c. and ends once again in arlington. festivities started today at national harbor. news 4's mark segraves is there now live with more. mark, what's the story there? wait a second, who is that standing behind you? that guy looks familiar. >> reporter: i think that's the story, leon. they'll let just about anyone in. we're here at national harbor and the expo. here's one of the runners coming out here to pickup his race bib, our own chuck bell will be there sunday morning. but this is the beginning of the weekend events. we've got a kids race. we've got a 10 k race and of course sunday the big event, 26,000 runners in the 42nd annual marine corps marathon. but you can come, pickup your packet. the

morning. metro will open 6:00 a.m. today the race instructor or race director talked to the press about the future of this marathon, the people's marathon. and he told us he's concerned about attracting future runners because the average age of someone participating in the marine corps marathon is in their 40s. here's what he said about trying to attract younger runners in the future years. >> so, to lean forward in 2018, let us use the number 40 as a discount percentage for all children to receive on all registrations for the marine corps marathon organization's events. >> reporter: now, again, metro will open at 6:00 a.m. for runners and spectators trying to get to the race course. we can tell you security, of course, will be tight. it's actually tight here. you have to go through security checks just to get into the expo. as derrick ward reported yesterday, one of the things

las vegas with the shooter from a hotel overlooking the race course. security experts tell us they have been taking every precaution they can to avoid anything like that happening this weekend. that's the very latest. we're live at national harbor with the marine corps expo underway. back to you in the studio. >> wait, mark. got to ask you this. where is chuck? get chuck, ask him if he's going to beat susan hogan. he's going to be running. what's he going to do compared to susan. >> you're going to know somebody with a number like that. >> reporter: he always has a 4 in his bib number. chuck, i think the big question our viewers want to know is susan hogan, our consumer reporter, is also running. who do you think is going to come in first? >> she is. susan is going to beat, no doubt about it. she's stronger than me, she's a mom. >> reporter: moms are tough. >> moms are tough. >> reporter: chuck has already conceded. there's no reason for him

>> chuck is a smart man. he's a very smart man. thanks, guys. folks, we need your help this marathon weekend. join us at mile number 4. that's where the news 4 team is going to be setting up to cheer on the runners. so, if you need help navigating all things marathon -- marine corps marathon, i should say, go to the nbc washington app and we'll set you straight there. >> all right, going to be a big weekend, a special time. and it's a special time today. in fact, all this week at howard university. right now folks are enjoying the sounds of yard fest. it's howard's annual home coming concert that everybody there looks forward to. news 4's meagan fitzgerald is live on campus right now and tell us about all the excitement. meagan? >> reporter: so, pat, this campus has been packed since early this morning. just take a look right here. this is just the line to get get food. it's a common sight across campus. we wan

it continues to grow with people here. we're told some 22,000 people will pack the yard throughout the day. a lot of folks looking forward to the big headliner rap artist. the university says this year's home coming is even more special because howard university is celebrating 150 years. the yard fest kicks offer the weekend which is packed with events. among the thousands of people expected on campus over the next few days include celebrity guests, alumni from all over the country, and of course students who say they have been waiting for this weekend all year. >> i really love the experience. i never really encountered anything like this in my life. >> there is just this magical connection that you can't really put into words. >> reporter: now, as you can see, there are a lot of security officers out here. we talked to the university president.

he says this is what you can expect to see, a lot of security out here. they beefed it up because they say in light of what happened just a couple of days ago where there was a threat of an active shooter, they want to make sure everything right now is the cure for the 22,000 people to be out here just today alone. bo back to you guys. >> huge celebration, party time. >> she's low balling the number, 22,000. there's going to be more there than that, i bet. >> it's going to be packed. >> all right, folks, time to start the weekend whether you're going to be at howard university or not, storm team 4 tracking what kind of weather for the weekend. >> let's go to chief meteorologist doug kammerer. serve it up for us. >> looks great at howard, no matter where you're going to be, saturday, sunday, the great stretch of weather continues. we do need to see some rain, but it's not coming any time soon. the warm est we've been all week, 76 did he greeegrees in d gorgeous

sunshine. temperatures in the upper 60s to around 70 by 7:00. 67 by 9:00, 67 in the city. no problem at all, i told you yesterday it would be a fantastic friday. that's exactly what we have for you. what about the weekend? i'm going breakdown your weekend and breakdown our next chance at a pretty potent storm system moving in early next week. all that coming up. i'm see you back here in just a minute. >> all right, doug. get -- folks, get your phone, get your thumb and your best selfie face ready. you may need it all, of all things to get, a credit card. susan hogan is going to come in here and show us how this works. >> smile. helping dogs in need that already have homes. we're going to highlight a program that is taking care of pets who belong to domestic violence victims. >> and the first lady melania trump more candid than we've seen her and heard her before. the

cnarrator: ed gillespie and i wants to endis ad. a woman's right to choose. ed giof a woman'sd put thpersonal decisions,rge not women and their doctors. as governor, ed gillespie says, i would like to see abortion be banned. if ed gillespie would like to see abortion banned, i would like to see i would like to see i would like to see that ed gillespie never becomes governor.

time for a credit card, you might have to do this. >> that phone. >> take a selfie. >> it's all part of it. >> unfortunately, speaking for people like me, unfortunately, actually it's part of reality these days. next time you fill out a credit card application, you might actually have to do that and smile for the

here to show us how the whole system is geneva conventi system is going to work. >> you sound so old when you say that. >> i am. >> you think about it, selfies are everywhere, facebook, instagram, twitter, soon our banks could be asking for one in order to approve things like a credit card application. payment processing giant visa is launching a platform to allow banks to now integrate various types of biometrics such as your fingerprint, face or voice info into -- for approval for the process for the credit card applications and payments to go through. so, how will it work? you saw it right there. if you apply for a credit card application on your smartphone, the bank app could ask you to take a selfie and a picture of your license and the technology is going to compare the photos for facial similarities within seconds. so, financial companies like the idea of biometrics as a fraud protection measure. as you've seen lately our social security numbers are more vulnerable tha

choose your own preference for which biometric you want to use. just think about it, you want -- you know how we have to remember all of these passwords? >> too many. >> now you just bat your eyes, talk into a microphone or show your face and you're done. >> so that replaces your mother's made enname, the high school. >> which you use anyway. you're supposed to lie about those security questions, fyi. see, stick with me, you learn all sorts of things. >> right. he know. >> she just advocated lying here on television. thank you, susan. tell us we're supposed to lie. >> for a good cause. you guys know what i mean. >> keep you safe and secure. thank you, susan. >> you can always take a second photo if you don't like the first one. >> that's right. and get those little light ups. make you look even better. >> you know you look good. >> great day for taking selfies. >> fantastic. tonight is a great night. we're heading into the weekend. this may just be one of the best

into the weekend that we've had in quite sometime and today, guys, really going to be very nice out there if you're getting ready to head out to dinner, hitting the movies, saturday, sunday all looking good. lot of events going on this weekend. look what we're seeing outside right now, blue skies in abundance this afternoon. all that sunshine helping temperatures to rise to 76 right now. winds out of the northwest 5 miles an hour, temperatures around the entire area into the 70s. 72 winchester, 72 culpepper, char slots ville 80. we are going to see numbers go up a little the next few days. again, we need the rain. we definitely need some rainfall. we're not getting it, though. we're not going to see any chances of rain until the day on tuesday. that's the big storm i'm talking about. i've shown you this pretty much all week. most of the nation has been cloud free most of the week. we are watching a storm system, very small system in the middle part of the country, but this storm system back to the west is going to provide us with

monday night into the day on tuesday. that's what we're waiting for. it's got to go all the way across the country. it's going to dip way down towards the gulf coast and make its way our way hopefully with a lot of moisture, hopefully with a lot of rainfall. right now half inch to an inch expected on tuesday. temperature wise overnight tonight, not nearly as cool as it has been. waking up tomorrow morning for that early morning saturday jog, 46 degrees on your saturday. 44 in manassas, 48 fredericksburg, 56, 57 degrees inside the city tomorrow morning so not nearly as cool as it's been the past couple of days. and tomorrow afternoon, well, more sunshine. another beauty, 77 degrees. a fantastic day to get out and about on your saturday. and this great weather just continues right on through the next few days. how about your kids' sports? pi know my daughter has a soccer game tomorrow. 12:30. don't forget the water. it will be around the warm side at the noon hour. 63 degrees for the 9:00 a.m. games, 75 by the afternoon. with the abut

you still want to make sure you have plenty of water because the kids will tend to get dehydrated a little sooner with all the sunshine. saturday, sunday, great weather all three days. highs in the upper 70s. tuesday, good chance for rain. right now i have it as showers. i was hoping we'd see more, maybe an inch to 2 inches. right now i'm thinking half an inch to an inch at the most. 64 on your wednesday, 62 on thursday, some cooler weather moving in, but right back into the 70s as we head towards next weekend. two weekends, guys, two weekends, and right now both of them looking pretty good. >> all right. >> all right, good deal. do one better for tomorrow. apple pie contest tomorrow in adams morgan. you do soccer, i'll be eating apple pie, adams morgan. check us out. >> sounds good. add a scoop of ice cream. and before the weekend is over, we may be calling washington hollywood east. >> that's right. what's bringing tom hanks and david letter man and

where you might be able to see one of them. >> plus we're going to show you how you can make a little cash this holidayeason without s alex: when i was 11 years old, a man broke into the house and he sexually assaulted me. thankfully, in my case, the police caught him, but there are so many survivors that live knowing that their attacker is still out there. ♪ thank you mark herring, for taking this seriously, and for making this a priority,

mark: i'm mark herring, candidate for attorney general, and i sponsored this ad.

>> announcer: you're watching news 4 at 4:00. >> well, doug just told you it's going to be great weather weekend and what better place to be than beautiful rural virginia. >> that's right. if you go out that way, you can take in the middle burg film festival which has gotten bigger and bigger every year. some movies likely to draw some oscar nominations being featured there. wtop entertainment editor jason joins us now. jason, the movie shown last year at middle burg ended upped drawing some 44 different oscar nominations. so, what looks good this year? >> hey, guys, yeah, absolutely. like you said it's 44 oscar nominations from last year's slate. it was the first time people in our area were able to see moonlight, "la la land," it's probably going to be the same thing this year. if you want to get ahead of the curve award season, darkest hour, gary ul man plays winston church

same as when daniel did lincoln . lady bird, which i saw a screening a couple nights ago, man, it gave me all the feels. it's a really good coming of age mother/daughter story. i think people are going to love it. d. reese is going to be out there, superior piece mud bound, the award to her from lee daniels this year. they're both going to be there. a bunch of other movies including margot robby as tanya harding, i tanya, another favorite of toronto. get out there and see them before. >> sounds fantastic. jason, we're going to be maybe seeing two famous faces in film around town this weekend. tell us about them. >> yeah, absolutely you get to see forest gump himself. tom hanks will be at warner theater. he's in town because he's getting honored tomorrow at national archives with records of achievement awards. sunday the kennedy center does its annualk

bill murry and eddy murphy. david letterman, with the beard, a bunch of other comedians, other a-listers show up. jimmy kimmel and steve martin. the list goes on and on. there are going to be a lot of names out there for him. >> speaking of the newly bearded one, what about comedies, do you have anything good for us? >> yes. chris rock is going -- tonight and tomorrow, at mgm national harbor. it's -- he calls it his total black out tour. so, check that out. one of the funny est -- probably my favorite comedian. bigger and blacker still makes me crack up. watch one if you need to get ready. jesus and biggie on the sea saw. robitussen. so funny. if you can't see chris rock, you know, there's also brad eric from everybody loves raymond, reer

he'll be at mgm tuesday. a couple good options there. yeah, yeah. >> interesting. >> so much to do. lots of good choices there. jason frayly, thanks a lot. >> jason, i'm sorry, i can't go to the atm without thinking about chris rock. we can't go into that. see, he's laughing. >> you have to see it. >> you've got to see it. you know exactly what i'm talking about. thanks, dude. >> thieves are getting creative when it comes to a way to get into your home. the steps you can take to keep them from taking advantage of you. >> and our morning team had a scalding start to the day. you want to

now at 4:30, opening up with the first lady that candidly revealed about her inaugural gown for the very first time. >> when you call for help, are there enough police officers on the force to protect you? the news 4 i-team uncovers police departments stretched so thinly that your safety could be at risk. is enough being done to ensure that your family is protected? >> and it may be easier than you think to earn some extra cash this holiday season. how you can do it from home. >> i'm erika gonzalez at the live desk. we are getting breaking news coming into

minutes ago, police were called to third street in northeast for a shooting. we have our jackie bensen that is now headed in that direction. this apparently happened inside an apartment and we are told from d.c. police that a teenager has been shot in the back and transported to the hospital. again, we do have a reporter that's headed to that scene now and as soon as we get more details we'll have them for you right here from the live desk. back over to you guys in the studio. >> all right, thanks, erika. >> some neighborhoods in northern virginia have a problem on their hands. purses and wallets are disappearing. >> and the thieves are finding a pretty easy way to pull this off. news 4's kristin wright is live in sterling to tell us what is happening. kristin? >> reporter: the woman who lives in this house here was sleeping upstairs with her husband when she heard the garage door suddenly just start opening. seconds later she looked outside and saw a man riding off on her son's mountain bike. so, this is what is

thieves are going into unlocked cars in driveways, easy targets. they open the car door, grab the garage door opener, point and click. that simple. once in the garage, they check the door to the house. if it's unlocked, they're going in and taking ipads, purses, wallets, even going upstairs. it's happening in the middle of the night. scary. so people sometimes are not hearing a thing. the sheriff's office says they know of about ten or so incidents in sterling this week. listen to the man's son whose bike was stolen. what the wife heard after the garage dpoor was opening. >> she's rapping on the window. i'm coming downstairs to run outside and see if i can, you know, scare him off. he was already gone by the time i got out there. >> reporter: so, we talked to the sheriff and he says people should be bringing their garage door openers into the house at night. he also wants anyone to rep

back to you. >> all right. word to the wise, a word of warning. thanks, kristin. remember this flowy white dress, the beautiful gown? now you can see first lady melania trump's inaugural ball gown up close and in person. she donated the gown today to the smithsonian. it will be displayed as part of the first lady's collection at the museum of american history. mrs. trump said after the presidential election, her family was busy making the transition to d.c. so what to wear to the ball was, in her words, the last thing on her mind. however, she knew the decision would be significant. >> expressed a desire for modern, sleek, light, unique and unexpected look. and a style that could be down to task to choose an outfit that will be mesmerized and become part of our nation's story. >> first lady sa

she was very pleased with the look, and she acknowledged the dress designer who was also in the audience that night. >> many moms and dad's already have busy jobs and schedules and life-styles right now so taking on a seasonal job might seem a little impossible. but what if you can pickup a temp job and earn some extra money all without leaving the house? news 4's justin finch explains how you can do that. >> reporter: with their plans to hire thousands of workers, big box stores are go-tos for seasonal workers. but those jobs often want you to be flexible, which not every parent can promise. so, try taking your talents online. >> there are plenty of things you can do from the comfort of your home, on your computer. either while your kids are at school, while they're asleep, sometimes even when they're awake and hanging out at home. >> reporter: merriam klaus has been looking into ways parents who work outside or inside their home can pickup

and cash. >> if you like giving your opinion, there are a few things you can do. you can sign up to take online surveys and you'll earn cash or points you can put towards gift cards. >> reporter: klaus finds your teleworking options are many. for example, if you're on social media, take advantage of your talents and your network, especially if you have unique skills. >> i actually have seen people do this on social media. they post down taking orders for gluten free cookies and people will buy. >> reporter: did you know a growing number of companies are hiring call center operators of those working at home? reasons to keep looking for what works. >> $10, $20 doesn't sound like a lot, but it adds up. >> reporter: in northwest washington, justin finch, news 4. >> for all the stories on seasonal jobs and how to make yourself a desirable candidate for one, check out the nbc washington app and search seasonal hiring.

the future of a community landmark in doubt. >> jim and erika are in the newsroom with more. hey, guys. >> hi, guys. happy friday to you. it's a war tonight over the so-called peace cross after an appellate court ruled that that monument has to come down. >> and now the reaction maryland's governor weighs in with a strong response as residents announce the steps that they are taking to keep 2. >> plus also at 5:00 tonight, a mother of three is murdered. her ex-boyfriend now pleads guilty to the crime. >> still ahead, how her friends fight for justice for her inspired a program that's now helping other victims of domestic violence. >> we'll see you for those stories and a good deal more on a busy friday. leon, pat, back to you for now. >> all right, folks, you got it. see you guys in a little bit, all right? >> the great parking debate, which is better, more space for parking or more lanes for traffic? >> well, that is the big question. where you need to know about changes coming this weekend that could leave you looking for a place to park. >> out there right now, doesn't get much bettern

towards reston town center. you're going to hit some of the restaurants around reston this weekend? looking fantastic for that. what about this next big storm we'veot g

all right, folks. if you're planning to hang around dupont circle later tonight, you have to know there are some new parking rules going into effect there to ease traffic congestion on the weekends. >> that's right. between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. thursday through sunday from now on, you can't parka long this stretch of connecticut avenue south of dupont circle. the entire area becomes a zone dedicated to pickup and drop off only. yesterday we spotted police officers out there giving tickets. the city is testing this idea over the next year. if it works, we could see something similar in other parts of the city. so look out for that. hey, did you hear about the reporter who burned his coworker with some hot tea this mornin

they're calling it hot watergate. >> hot watergate, love this. you know the saying, spill the tea? this is taking on a whole new meaning. happened here. >> good morning, everybody, i'm chris lawrence. along with meteorologist chuck bell -- >> did you really just spill hot tea all over me? >> so sorry. >> i put the birnbaum urn balm . >> if you want to sue they are behind you. >> if you can put more burn balm -- >> he just can't let it go. >> he can't let it go. >> this, too, shall heal. don't you worry. >> and in breaking news overnight, a local meteorologist was -- suffered nonlife-threatening injuries. >> you. >> right here at news 4 not long ago. >> i love when you talk about yourself in third person. >> apparently i've just been served papers by chuck's personal injury attorney. i don't know how much longer i'm going to be here. he must have had that

on speed dial. >> 5:14 your time right now. >> oh, stop it. poor chuck. he has to have sheena wrapping up the poor wounds from his hand. >> not to say chuck bell is going to milk this thing. >> yes he is. >> yes, he is. he's been milk it all day. take a look. was that an accident? what do you think? >> we even slow mo'd it for you. we should stick to ice water from now on. what do you think? >> don't mess with a man with greenberg and better man on speed dial. >> chuck is okay. just in case you want to know. protecting pets in dangerous situations, we'll showcase the program that helps women and pets in need. >> this is scott macfarlane. coming up, our news 4 i-team investigation finds shortages of police officers in many local police departments. what's

cnarrator: ed gillespie and i wants to endis ad. a woman's right to choose. ed giof a woman'sd put thpersonal decisions,rge not women and their doctors. as governor, ed gillespie says, i would like to see abortion be banned. if ed gillespie would like to see abortion banned, i would like to see i would like to see i would like to see that ed gillespie never becomes governor.

four things to know, let's get you caught up on this afternoon's biggest stories on this friday. the white house is defending chief of staff john kelly after he falsely accused a democratic congresswoman of bragging about getting funding for an fbi building in miami. video from the ceremony contradicted his claims. today the white house press secretary said wilson made the ceremony about herself. decades after its start, the annual marine corps marathon is still going strong. the festivities starting today at national harbor. the race is sunday so expect to see plenty of crowds and road closures this weekend. it starts and ends in arlington. yard fest, one of the school's big home coming events, howard is rolling out a new tradition this year. it is an ideas fe

speakers will tackle some of today's hot topics. and the nats looking for a new skipper. back to back division titles and 90 win seasons weren't enough for manager dusty baker to keep his job. the team season came to another bitter end after a first round loss in the playoffs. pat and leon, back over to you. >> still trying to get over that one. >> bummed over baker. >> strange move there. thanks, erika. well, folks, they protect and serve, but are some police departments stretched too thin in the process of that? >> an investigation by the news 4 i-team reveals an uphill battle in many communities to keep a full team of officers. as scott macfarlane reports, the battle is even more fierce. >> reporter: odds are gary hatch will show up if you have an emergency. >> i have nobody to help me if something goes bad. >> reporter: in several occasions in the last year he was the only park police officer on duty on the highway. three years ago he was the one in trouble. >> we wound up fight

the road, asked for assistance. >> reporter: after a drunk driver got out of his car and attacked, throwing punches. >> we were fighting in the middle of the street. >> reporter: just you? >> just me. >> reporter: u.s. park police staffing records we obtained under the freedom of information act reveal the number of sworn officers dropped 10% between 2010 and 2016. union officials say the agency can't squeeze enough money out of a gridlocked congress for a hiring spree. in maryland there are one-man patrols on the water and in the woods, too. >> we know if we can call for back up if a situation ever arises where we would need it, it's not going to be there within five, ten minutes. it might be a half hour to an hour before they can get there. >> let me see your hands. >> reporter: the state natural resources police are so concerned about staffing they've given new officers like ben dorsey advance training in self-defense. the agency says it's been stretched thin because of the loss of 48 officers to retirement in the past three years and the cancellation of academy classes a decade ago duringge

departments are shorter than expected on police officers, too. we checked with more than a dozen local police departments for their number of sworn officers and found in each case those numbers were below the authorized level. the number of officers communities thought they needed in those departments and the number for which they've actually budgeted money. several of those departments told the i-team the shortsage is not a danger ore risk to the community. f frederick said its shortage could reduce the availability of deputies to handle calls for service from the public. in a request to the u.s. justice department, preventsable funding the charles county sheriff's department said it had fewer deputies than needed. homicides, robberies, rapes and assaults are up 8%. add, quote, this is a concern. in d.c. metropolitan police are below the 4,000 officers they are authorized to have. and agency leaders told the justice department they need more federal money to hire more officers. and, quote, better

community and its visitors. the national fraternal order of police tells the i-team recruitment is a struggle because of growing safety concerns, including an increase in assaults on police nationwide. >> so, any questions at all, give me a call. >> reporter: prince william county officer has been a recruiter 15 years. >> we have colleges, we hit local colleges, military bases as well. >> reporter: flexible work schedules haven't been enough to draw some people in especially in a rebounding economy where money could be better in the private sector. >> we want someone who wants to be with prince william county as opposed to someone just looking for employment. >> reporter: on the highway officer hatch says until recruitment picks up -- >> if i'm on a call, i have to break up my call to you and somebody else might be available. >> reporter: scott macfarlane, news 4 i-team. >> the head of the u.s. park police says officers are diligent and they're dedicated and added, quote, i don't know a police chief in this country w

and more officers. remember, if you have a tip for the i-team, you can visit the nbc washington app and click on investigations. >> you know what, i don't think i know a meteorologist who wouldn't want to have a telescope out working tonight because we want a meteor shower coming this way we were looking at. we were talking about that a second ago. >> going to be a great night for sky gazing? >> you know what, it is. we have clear skies tonight. the we have orion coming in. they peak tonight and tomorrow night. coming from haley's comet. we pass through the tail of haley's comet or the debris field from haley's comet quite often. best viewing 2:00 a.m. tonight, october 21st and 22nd. tonight overnight and tomorrow night overnight, look up. obviously 2:00 a.m. is the best viewing time. ten years ago that would be when i was coming home from the bars. but now i have to stay up a little bit extra. they could be upwards of 50 to 80 an hour. that would be great and again, i'm thinking plenty of clear skies tonight. if you do want to

you can see them a little earlier in the night as well, but best time will be at that 2:00 a.m. hour. clear skies once again, as i mentioned, plenty of blue skies, too. 76 degrees. temperatures dropping through the night, 67 by 9:00, 63 by 11:00. but a great night no matter what you're doing, getting out there, going to dinner, maybe heading out to the movies, walk being the dog late, no problem. 76 belvoir, warren ton coming in 77 degrees. no rain to talk about and we're not going to see any. again, i mentioned a great night. how about out towards leesburg, my friends out there towards riverside high school. look at this, guys, they've been trying to get me out there for the great pink out tonight as they take on one of their foes. this is their game tonight. they're all going to be dressing in pink. you can see that. they all wanted know come out to the field tonight. coming up at 6:45, we will be out there above their field with chopper 4. that's why i'm all pink today, doing it up for the pink out trying to raise money for breast cancer. let's go over to somara

theodore. the game looking really good tonight weather wise. >> definitely. i want them to bring pink hoodies, pink sweater. it will be cool the later we get. overall comfortable conditions. ge let's get straight to it. friday night lights. temperatures are going to continue to fall through the evening. you can see here we're looking at 65 degrees at 7:00. still cool, clear as we head towards 9:00 p.m. in the 50s. so, again, we're dropping to the mid 50s. a lot of our outer suburbs tonight actually are going to be headed to the upper 40s. that's not all that's going on. we have west field at centerville, eleanore roosevelt at wise. temperatures are going to be in the mid 60s. and dropping into the upper 50s as well. if you are headed to the howard home coming tailgate tomorrow, just know that it's going to be pretty mild to start the day off in the 60s by the time we hit the football game we're looking at the mid 50s. doug? >> go howard tomorrow. looking good for that, too. 77 degrees, high temperature on

sunday looking good, too. high around 78. same deal on monday. three more phenomenal days. before things change, they're going to change in a pretty big way, we've got a big storm coming in on tuesday. how much rain are we going to see. we need to see the rain. right now i've got showers that are going to be out there. i'm thinking half an inch to maybe an inch. i'm hoping for a lot more. right now i do not have that rain in on wednesday. temperature around 64 degrees and next week looking a little bit cooler towards the middle of the week. but not staying that cool. we'll see another warm up as we head in towards next weekend. the weekend right now, this weekend, next weekend looking pretty good. the big change comes in the middle of next week and that's where we want it. >> yeah. >> we don't want it on saturday and sunday. >> exactly. >> give it to us in the middle of the week. >> exactly. >> alrighty. >> good move with the tie. >> thanks, man. >> and the shirt. pinking out. >> some i cvictims of domestic violence will stay in danger out of fear of what will en

but there is a program now that keeps their pets safe while victims seek the help they need. news 4's sheena par vene explains. >> october is domestic violence month. safe haven offers 24/7 help for victims of domestic violence and who are also concerned about the safety of their pets. zita is here, director of human law enforcement to explain how the program works. thank you so much for being here. how does safe haven work? what kind of a program is it? >> thank you for having us. safe haven is a program that helps victims of domestic violence get out of their potentially lethal situation and we provide safety for their pets so they can get the -- get to the safety they need for themselves and not worry about what's going on with their pet if they had to make that choice of leaving them behind. >> that is one thing we tend not to think about so much when there is domestic violence. so, it is a foster program, about 30 days long. have you seen animals abused in these situation whz they come in? >> unfortunately we have seen that, when the officers go out to cruelty

might face an animal that's been injured because of domestic violence situation so we see it that way as well. >> okay. now, we also have cloud here available for the human rescue alliance. if you want to adopt him, head online to our website, nbc washington or the nbc washington app to find out more about safe haven. >> coming up, a cemetery situation that's neither trick nor treat. couple there prepays for a plot so they can be laid to rest next to their loved ones. >> but when they went to the cemetery a year later, they were in for a nasty surprise. consumer reporter susan hogan has the story you've got to see. ws this is ne

vowould be a disaster forion virginia families.e adams supports letting insurance companies deny coverage for pre-existing conditions. seniors would be charged thousands more. 685,000 virginians would lose their health care. and adams is against medicaid expansion - denying coverage to thousands of veterans, children and the disabled. john adams: higher costs, less coverage, hurting virginians. mark: i'm mark herring, candidate for attorney general, and i sponsored this ad. now he looks me square in the eye, and, i swear he says, "welcome to navy federal credit union."

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now at 5:00, a community concerned. >> i don't know what exactly is in the air. i don't know what i'm inhaling or what anyone else would be inhaling. >> the demand for answers after thousands of gallons of gas

for residents of two apartment buildings. >> crime of opportunity, a rash of burglaries hits homeowners and police say there's one thing they all did that made them victims. >> and a major league shake up. dusty baker out after two successful seasons with the nats. so, what's next for the team? >> breaking right now, it's a move that sent a ripple through the d.c. sports world today. >> right, after two 90 plus win seasons, dusty baker is no longer manager of the nationals. we're going to get to that story in just a moment. >> we'll hear from chris miles because baker is speaking now. he's issued a statement so we'll have much more on that later. in the meantime, we've got some breaking news. we apologize, folks.

northeast washington. we've got her now where just a few minutes ago a teenager was shot in the back. >> reporter: jim, apologies for those difficulties here being able to hear us. i hope you can hear us now. we want to show you this scene here at third and t streets northeast where we understand that the young man was shot just a short time ago, maybe half an hour, maybe 40 minutes ago as he was walking home from dunbar high school. some of his friends have gathered here, very, very concerned about him. we understand that he was shot in the lower part of his back. police are here on the scene. i can tell you that they have taken a young man into custody. now, i don't know whether this young man is a reluctant witnesses, whether he might be a suspect in this. i cannot tell you at that point. now, you can see up there just a little bit up ahead on the street by that police 1u6suv