yesterday. made it up t 95 yesterday in washington, 98 at bwi marshall yesterday and 97 at dulles airport. unusual for reagan national to be the coolest of the three major airports. this morning, off to ateamy start yet again. most areas are in the low to mid 70s. a little bit warmer by the bay. annapolis at dulles airport just a bit cooler at 67 degrees. so, for your commute today, sun is 6:08. no rain in the region at this point in time and we should be rain free through about the lunch s and more than enough sunshine to get temperatures to around 90 degrees before things turn very unsettled andtormy around here for the afternoon commute. that could take it on the chin. damaging winds a possibility, er some brief pds of very, very heavy rain as well. so just know that the evening commute could be a little on the stormy side. rain chancesngre hag around for the rest of the week and into the weekend. ten-day forecast coming up. melissa? chuck. ight, thank yo on the beltway here, nothing really new right now.

we had the inner loop after connecticut with three lanes blocked because of the work zone that's been happening overnight. that has cleared out of the way between connecticut and georgia. hyattsville southbound bw parkway the ramp to 450 still have that crsh hanging around this morning. the issue on boyds is a sinkholne that work ll laned blocked 117 at moore road. probably another 24 hours befor that ismpletely wrapped up. westbound 66 after 123 right lane blocked disabled vehicle. >> melissa, thank you. 4:31. developing in the dismict this orning police are looking for the driver whod opene fire on another driver in broad ftylight. this was the math left behind on i-395. we're told an suv hit a honda. there was some sort of argument and the honda driver pulled a gun and shot the other driver. that vict is in critical condition. the road had to be shut down for hours while police were b investigating so far no arrests. this morning a local lgbtq

activist is speaking out after ransgender ries of women in the district. police believe each crime was committed by the same man. the suspect was captured in surveillance photos you see here. the first robbery happened last monday on second street northeast. the second and third happened two days later within about 30 minutes of each other nearby sixth and k streets and on hunt place. police say that all three robberies the suspect hopped out of the car, flashed his gun and demanded the victim's property and took off in a dark colored suv. >> we don't know all the details yet, but it is good to see the police partnering with thend community aeaching out for more information. >> the robberies happened just ce the lgbtq community is mourning the murders of two transgender women. they were killed in a nearby area. we are getting details of a murder mystery in fairfax county. >> a man is on trial accused of killing his wife and covering it up. prosecutors laid out their cass

th laz low shot and killed his wife donna and shot himselfu to coverp the murder. they say he staged his wife's death. prosecutors say their 13-year-old daughter came home and found her father in the bathtub with a gun. she also found her mother shot and killed in bed. she also had a gun. prosecutors say donna could not have shot herself. this happened back in january of 2017. next week the defense is expected to present its case. 4:33 now. we turn to decision 2020 and a look at last night's democratic presidential primary debate. ten of the last -- of the candidates hoping to secure the party's nomination were on stage for the first nit ofanother two-night event. >> immigration, gun control and president trump's fitness for office were allis dssed, but once again the issue of health care caused a split among the candidates. k it 4 jummy is here to br all down for us. good morning. >> good morning, aaron and eun. all ten candidates agreed that

health cad is a right an not a privilege and they want every american to be covered, but when it came to that discussion about how to accomplish that, the candidates seemed to be divided into two groups, the first group suggests ai medre for all plan, which would get rid of private insurance and put everyone in the same government-runthplan. second group, though, believes that people should be allowed to keep their private insurance but that the government should also provide option for those without it. a disagreement over this issue led to this exchange between former maryland congressman john denanie and sor elizabeth warren. >> they're running on. they're running on telling htf country that your health insurance is illegal. it says it right in the bill. we don't have to do that. we can gcave everyone health and allow people to have choice. that's the american way. >> thank you, congressman.to senawarren? >> so look, let's be clear about this. we are the democrats. we are not about trying to take away health care from anyone. that's what the republicans are trying to do.

and we ould stop using republican talking points in order to talk with each other about how to best provide that health care. >> senator warren there was then asked if taxes would go up for middle class families in order to pay for a medicare for l system. she said the costs would go to the billionaires and corporations, which she says aren't paying enough in taxes right now.i tont's debate will feature senators cory booker and kamala harris and current front-runner and former vice president joe biden. back to you. >> thank you. your timeow right ns 4:35. a look at our other top stories this morning. northern virginia congresswoman jennifer wexton joined a list of lawmakers calling for an impeachment inquiry. she released a stament saying in part, quote, i did not run o forfice with the purpose of impeaching the president, but i didak te an oath to uphold the constitution. the final beam was put in place on the pple line yesterday. the light rail line will connect the a bethesda new carolton

metro stations. it's still years away from opening and optimistic projection right now is late02 22. alexandria police are warning that scammers have been posing as officers and calling local homes asking for money. police say sometimes the thieves say they're looking for . donatio other times they say you're about to be arrested but can avoid charges if you pay a fine. if you receive a call that you think is suspicious, hang up and all the police departme yourself. an 18-month congressional investigation into u gymnastics has revealed that the organization as well as the olympic committee and the fbi should have done more to protect young female athletes from sexual abuse. larry nassar is already accused of molesting more than 150 women. he usa gymnastics national team doctor and a physician at michigan state. he is serving time for convictions in a handful of cases. this morning, we know that arlington county public schools will have aew interim

superintendent in a month. the arlington school board appointed cynthia johnson to the position. she is currently the assistant superintendent of administrative services. . she will take over on september 1stsh is fluent in spanish and has 35 years ofer expnce in education. a search firm will be hired this fall to find a permanent superintendent. some good fnews a local vietnam vet this morning william holly has been reunited with the famil heirloom he thought he had lost forever. his wife's uncle served in world war i. when he died, the burial flag was given to them. it fell out of a moving truck two weeks ago. another veteran found it along a busy stret of centr avenue in prince georges county and immediately recognized its significance and turned it into police. holly's daughter later saw on theicews that offs were searching for the owner. it was returned yesterday. so happy the fmily found that precious, precious heirloom. >> one of those things that has

so many memories tied to it.i ave my grandfather's flag. i can't imagine losing that. >> part of him that you have. >> exactly. still ahead a little more tha a day after news broke of that capital one bank hack, there are new suggestions for people's whose information may have been compromised. >> we're working with you for details how to keep your info safe. plus, drama on capitol hill. a nominee for a top military position defends himself against accuaations of sex assault while his accuser sitsn the room. what she had to say afterwards when news 4 today continues.

welcome back. u.s. oast guard wants you to know about the dangers ofmb cliing aboard an illegal charter boat. military leaders discuss how passengers can identify and i reportegal charters in annapolis yesterday. boats that op rate without a license may not have proper

safety gear. that includes navigation and communication equipment. peopti caught opera an illegal charter could be arrested and face significant fines. drivers are learning how to combat human trafficking on the road. >> drivers across the country spent yesterday being trained how to spot victims. and what to do if they suspect one of their passengers is a victim. uberis partnering with a nonprofit that runs the human trafficking hot line. they estimate there are more than 24 million victims worldwide. there are some signs to look for if you think someone is a victim. >> somebody lookumb like they n't want to be there. is someone treating them iny a that seems like it's in a controlling manner? >> now experts say do not intervene if you suspect someone is a human trafficking victim. that can make the situation more dangerous. instead call 911 or the hotline. find that numbernd more information in the nbc washington app search human

trafficking. just about 4:42 right now. hchuck bell has a weat alert for you. >> absolutely right. thunder and lightning here near harrisburg, pennsylvania, early ning now. that's moving away, but all the instability that's causing that is still hanging out over the d.c./metro area. a severe weather chance for us later in the day. i'll show you future weather oming up. > good wednesday morning, everyone. today at 4:00 p.m., there's a area y that women in our can obtain birth control. >> it's really just about getting it to the patients who need it. >> where you can find affordable andth accessible bircontrol.

♪ welcome back 15 before the hour. night one of the second idemocratic president debate is over and it was a battle between the party's moderate and progressive wings. >> lower tier candidates spend that evening in attack mode. they blasted the front-runners, a strategy which led to some of the niryt's more fie exchanges. >> that included this moment when ohio congressman tim ryan took on senator bernie sanders over his medicare for all plan. >> medicare for all is comprehensive, it covers all health care needs for senior citizens it will finally include dental care, hearing aids and eyeglasses. >> you don't know that, bernie. >> i do know. bill.te the damn second of all -- >> tracie potts joins us live now from capitol hill with more on the night. tracie, the big take aways from night one? ts all democra are not the same. we saw elizabeth warren and you

heard bernie sanders thhee. t progressives in the middle and more moderate democratic candidates flanking them talking aboutngs like free college, not everyone agreed with that. dicare for all, you heard that debate. even tmmigrationere were distinctions among these candidates with some saying that donald fump would win i they were too lax on immigration and border policy.if soyou're a democrat and you're watching this debate, there was a clear area where you could see the democratic party separating. some of these democrats separating from the mdle with people like elizabeth warren and bernie sanders much further to the left than some of the other candidates. >> and tracie, who is on the stage tonight an what should we be looking out for in round tw>> yeah. we have the other ten tonight. by the way, impeachment never came up in that debate. we have the other ten tonight including joe biden and kamala harris. that will be an interesting and

much anticipated rematch after what happened in miami. cory booker and y can see the rest of them there. this is going to be a set of st debates, laight and tonight, that begins to distinguish and even weed out these can dates because come next debate in september, some of these folks may not be on the stage. they are tightening thequ alification requirements. >> all right, tracie pott live on capitol hill this morning. tracie, thank you. and reminder to check out news 4 at 11 tonight after the debate for a look at how the candidates did. you can also download the nbc washington app for coverage any time. just search decision 2020. 4:47 right now. drama also played out on capitol hill during a confirmation hearing for general john heighten, the man president trump nominated to take over the n the highest position u.s. military. >> general heighten was accused of sexual assault two years ago esterday he was again denied the allegations while his accuser sat in the room.

army kernel katherine spoke afterwards and o accused himce again of lying. a lengthy air force investigation found insufficient evidence to charge the general, but those same investigators also found no evidence that she was lying. >> i want to state to you and to the american people in the strongest possible terms that these allegations are false. >> bottom li he lied about sexually assaulting me. >> senator martha mcsally a former fighter pilot and sexual assault survivor herself says she sports the general. the committee could vote by the end of the week. we are working for you and stayi on top of that capital each.ata this morning, the company is offering more tips on how to make sure your information stays safe. first, they say you want to reeze your credit. that will prevent hackers from opening up accounts in your name. you'll also want to sign up for free crit monitoring. capital one promised these services to everyone. and be sure to change your pass words.

serity experts recommend this step even though the bank says log-in credentials were not compromisal. fin, sign up for push alerts on all of your bank accounts and credit accounts that will alert you toany account activity that isn't you. we posted these tips in the nbc washington app. if you're still hoping to plan a last-minute vacation this summer, federal law enforcement has a warning for you. >> thieves are tricking people into renting properties that either aren't available or aren't real. news 4 jummy joins us from the news om with more details. what's going on here? >> one of my biggest nightmares really. the better business bureau says that aeady this year thousands of people have fallen victim to this con. they go online, find for and pay for a rental property only to learn it was a phony listing. this isn't just a scam here in thu.s. plenty of people have booked ar m overseas only to travel far away and learn they have nowhere to stay. now these scammers are using pictures and addresses of homes that are actually forrent. if you do google a home,in everyth appears to be legit.

before you book, though, go ahead and do a reve se google image search to see if that home is listed anywhere else. and don't only look on one website. use multiple booking websites to try to find a place to stay. another tip here, avoid paying by wire ansfer, cashiers check or apps like movenor cash apps that are popular these days. this scamisn't only used for vacation rentals.re people a using apartments as well as easy targets. back to you. >> jummy, thank you. >> wow. used to be easy to do these things. you have to do our homerork. >> evne is trying to scam you out of something. calling you, impersonating police officers trying to get your money and all kind of stuff. >> it's azy. never once tried to fool you about the forecast, though. >> we trust you, too. you're very trustworthy. >> it wasn't an intentional miss. today is another weather alert day around here. a very high lelihood of stronger thunderstorms this afteinnoon up the evening

commute. so your ride into work is probably going to be a lot smoother and unaffected by rain than the ride home is likely to be. all is at least quiet here on a wednesday morning. temperatures in the 60s and 70s now. 71 in rockville. 74 in college park. in in arlington. 73 in con maryland. if you're heading down to the nats game, the braves got us last night but it's a noongame today. first pitch is at 12:05. if you're going down there mid afternoon for the game, dry weather, hot and humid all the way up until the game gets going. unfortunately becau it's a noon game, probably by the later after half of the inning, 7th, 8th, 9ther inning there v well could be the chances for some thunderstorms and rain delay. just know that. you should be able to get the game completed, but i can't guarantee that whole game will be dry. the risk for sere weather is highest in this yellow-shaded area here that does include the washington metroarea, northbound to baltimore and

philadelphia. already a few thunderstorms not coming ou wayhen we cross parts of central pennsylvania. no rain here to get your day started. here is future weather, though.' it wo take long past about noon before things really get bubbling up. here is 1:00 p.m. in the afternoon. thunderstorms out near petersburg, west virginia. by 3:00 p.m., storms could be reaching place like fairfax station out to the dulles airport, more storms out here towards southern foquer county. any of those individual storms could really pack quite a punch today.ld winds cougust over 60 miles per hour and, of course, likely to have some at least brief periods of very heavy rain to come alongth with t. so stay weather alert with your nbc washington app. doug cameron will be here later in the afteroon to help keep you safe and ahead of those storms as well. very unsettled pattern around here. rain chances hang around for tomorrow. likely thunderstorms again on friday and showery saturday. sunday should be the transition

day to drie weather and back to 90 degrees. let's go to melissa mollet. how is traffic? >> good morning here. outer loop at braddock road, left lane is getting by the work zone. you're not seeing any major delay,ust a little bli on the screen. hyattsville southbound bw parkway the ramp to 450 we have a crash there this morning's thattill hanging around. that actually should be cleared in the next couple of minutes. boyds 117 buck lodge road at moore all lanes still blocked. emergency work zone. this is aually a sinkhole causing some delays. 66 and 95 into and out of town l over looking okay, but westbound 66 after 123 the right lane is blocked because of a disabled vehicle. eun? >>thank you, melissa. a new ranking by u.s. news and world report has one of our regions hospitals among the top in the country. johns hopkins in baltimore ranked number three in the country just behind the mayo clinic in minnesota.

fairfax hospital ranked number one for those in the dmv. med star georgetown university n ranked sec for the area but the district proper and just to the north holy cross andsu rban ranked best for local maryland hospitals. well, after the president went after baltimore on twitter this weekend, the city's youth responded. teens were making morals like this one in two neighborhoods. kids worked with local artists to help beautify the city. the five-week program should leave the city with five brand new murals when it's all over. >> very nice. most baseball fights a batter charges the mound. ci but in cinati last night, it was the pitcher starting the fight. uh-oh. red's pitcher garrett sa he heard somechirping from the pirates's dugout during the mound meeting. here it goes. oh, boy. oh my goodness.s the player poured on to the field and turned into a whole

all out brawl. if you're going to do it -- >> you have to have a little baenkup. >> sevlayers were thrown out of the game. >> how do the umps know who started it, onlyooks like seven. this is the second brawl between these two teams. there'orbad blood there f sure. chirping. >> he is not a little guy. did you see that? a few of them are. adam eaten is an exception our nats guy. i don't know what happened there. >> do we know who won? >> does it matter? >> not at this point. >> we all win as dillen our producer said because we get that video. there you go. it's 4:55 right now. and next on news 4 today, fireworks on the debate stage. we'll get you caught up on some of the big moments from last night's democratic debate. plus, dramatic scene caught on came. bystanders rush in and save a little boy dangling from a balcony several stories above the ground. and is better sleep just an app away?

we aki worng for your health this morning. we're goi a to take look at how some different apps can help you get a better night sleep. stay with us. you're watching "news 4 today."

>> announcer: news 4 begins with a storm team 4 weather alert. good morning, everybody 4:59 your time right now i'm aaron g.lchrist. >> i'm eun yan welcome to wednesday, july 31st, 2019. theast day of july. this makes me sad. it just means the summer is being over. >> which means fall is closer to being here. >> i do love fall but i like summer best. melissa mlet is checking on your commute with your first 4 traffic. >> first though, storm team 4 lteorologist chuck bel is here bday. chuck it wille busy for you it's a weather alert day. >> yeah, mother nature will plar hardball f us later this afternoon. if you're headed do to the first ls game, 12:05 pitch, likely to get that game to t,coun but i also can't count on that game getng to all the way to the end of the game without a rain delay or perhaps even a calling it early. any game that gets through thei f inning at least is an official score. four things to know, weather alert day today. strongthunderstorms likely

between about 2 and 8:00. noon at game starting at should be able to get to at least 3 or 4:00 p.m. before any rain delays. main threat for today will be gmaging windsts up near 60 miles per hour. but periods of brief, heavy rain and frequent lightning also expected with ese storms. the highest risk for severe weather is in this yellow zone here that extends from new york to philly to baltimore right down to the washington area. don't turn your back on mother naturceand that storm chan later today. have your nbc washington app ready to go and obviously news 4 will be on the air at 4, 5 a 6:00 p.m. live to track the troubles. 70s and even some 60s on the map on the way out the door this rning. it will be a hot one, upper 80s to near 90 degrees at lunchtime befor storms really get going. more about those lingering rain chances into the weekend coming up. melissa? >> thank you, chuck. brand new problemhat has quickly become quite an issue frederick, eastbound 70 as you're approaching 15 340 and 270 only the l l