least one line break every month between july and october. most by contractors for at&t and google fiber. we asked piedmont natural gas how many line breaks have been caused by those contractors since last years but they haven't yet answered that question. >> it can be very dangerous. i mean it's electrical lines. >> ruby is with blithe construction company. it's not responsible for the recent fiber work but she knows how important it is to have utility lines marked before digging. even then she says it doesn't always prevent accidents. >> there can be a chance errors happen and utilities don't get located. >> she says that's why companies have to be extremely careful. >> we do a lot of soft digging as well to make sure we know exactly where they're at. >> piedmont natural gas says that the lines in this neighborhood were marked before that line break took place on friday. we did reach out to google

exactly what led up to that mistake. piedmont told us that they are able to bill contractors in situations like that. tina terry, eyewitness news. at&t contractors caused major problems for neighbors in this neighborhood in october. they hit gas lines and phone lines within a week. eyewitness news found out they were digging before the utility lines were clearly marked. that stopped after our report. our eyewitness news reports about utility lines being cut by contractors goes back to july of last year. and you can find the links, videos, and pictures from the cases under tina's story at wsoctv.com. after clear skies and some much needed sun, we're tracking clouds moving back into the charlotte region over the last hour. our chief meteorologist steve udelson is in the severe weather center pinpointing when the rain will return. >> not a lot of rest for the weather weary.

out there enjoying that break as temperatures climb to the upper 50s. look at this. all ready some rain being detected on live early warning doppler 9. moving into burke, cleveland county, rutherford county. a little rain reached rutherford. but the dry air ahead will reach this initial batch of moisture. here's the future cast, rain for the charlotte area starts at 8:00 or 9:00. off and on showers. not a big deal. not like what we dealt with last night. as far as winter weather that's confined to the high country. even here, it's gone by the time you get up. when i come back, i'll talk about rain totals and whether or not we dry out toward the weekend. >> health officials in two local counties are warning people to watch out for the symptoms of the mumps virus. in breaking news tonight at 5:00, we told you about two cases. one in mecklenburg, one in iredell county, that they are connected. and right now at 6:00, we continue to ask health

on those communities where the mumps have been discovered. and whether those with the virus are children or adults. the mumps is a virus that can cause fever, headaches, loss of appetite and muscle ache. it's spread by coughing and sneezing and it's very contagious. of course we'll continue to push for some more details about these mumps cases. we'll bring you any new developments coming up tonight on eyewitness news at 10:00 and 11:00. within the last 30 minutes, deputies packed up and they left the scene in rural rowan county. over the last hour, we used chopper 9 to monitor the large police presence at this home near highway 52 in rock well. ten mimes south of salisbury. we're working to gather more information on what exactly police were doing there. we'll update you as soon as we know more. new at 6:00, state lawmakers agreed to redraw this local congressional district deemed racially biased and

eyewitness news reporter mark becker monitored the major developments out of raleigh today. and legislators decided to leave race out of the picture when the maps are changed. >> reporter: yeah, alison, republican lawmakers, specifically insisting that race should not be part of the equation in redrawing the lines in district 12. whatever they decided could effect hundreds of thousands of voters here in charlotte and mecklenburg county. take beatties ford, like most of west charlotte, it's in the twelfth district for now. but may not be once the new lines are drawn. >> if i'm going to take voters here, that's going to throw your nine numbers off. >> mecklenburg county elections director told us that more than 250,000 people here live in the twelfth district. many of them african american or other minorities. now represented by an african american congress woman. but when lawmakers redraw the line, some of them could find

where the representatives are republican and white. >> we believe that race should not be a consideration in drawing the maps. >> today republicans on the states redistricting committee stood firm in saying that reshaping the district should be color blind. >> let's not consider race any more. we're passed that. >> but democratics argue race is impossible to ignore. >> but when it comes to folks who look like me, we want our voices heard. >> mr. clerk, would you go with the roll call please. >> senator bob chaired the meeting that agreed to move ahead with redrawing the maps but it maybe thursday before we see what they come up with. and former state senator malcolm graham says he hopes he'll keep some districts african americans can win. >> we deserve representation in all levels of government. and we deserve representation in the united states congress for north carolina. >> reporter: 12th district

she's facing two contenders in her primary race in four weeks. what nobody knows is who will be eligible to vote in that primary. for now, reporting live in north charlotte, mark becker, channel 9 eyewitness news. all right mark, while he told us it'll be a few days before we know what the maps look like, we do know they won't likely change things in washington right now. the redistricting committee agreed to maintain the republican parties 10-3 average in the u.s. house. despite an improving economy in mecklenburg county, taxpayers may not get a break on property taxes. for the past hour, we've been updating you on today's state of the county address. trevor fuller said the tax rate will not increase. he says continued construction has helped to keep money coming into the county. in the mean time, some republicans on the commission say that taxpayers should see the tax rate cut by a penny. >> we hear all the time about the investments that the county

pay back to the taxpayer at some point. and we think from time to time, you should make, you know, at least a marginal adjustment to that. other highlights from today's state of the county address, include a jobs initiative to put 8,000 people to work. a 130 million-dollar investment in parks, universal prek for all children in mecklenburg county who are under the age of five. a woman was able to walk away after her car collided with a tractor trailer and then flipped over on i-485. the highway patrol told channel 9 the woman driving a ford focus veered into the front wheel of the tractor trailer as they approached the i-85 exit just after 10:00 this morning. her car flipped at least once. but a trooper says that she was up and talking when police arrived. emotions ran high this morning when this local man pleaded guilty to killing a woman with her own car. >> and eyewitness news reporter

in the lincoln county courtroom when that man asked the victim's family to forgive him. derek williams faced the crying members of cheri's family and admitted he was wrong when he stole her truck and ran over her. >> it hurts me. he met cheri on halloween night 2013. >> you don't know anything about that. >> they picked up williams girlfriend and his mother. the four of them went out for drinks in denver. he got into an argument with one of the passengers at one point he got out of her truck. williams took the wheel, ran over her and left her there. her last words were call for help on a dark rural road. she was actually able to call 911 herself.

at the bottom of a pond. in court. >> the family members will never be satisfied with the sentence. >> williams was sentenced to just under eight years for involuntary manslaughter and will not face trial for second- degree murder. but family members believe that is what cheri would want. >> if my sister was here today, she would give the young man a hug and tell him she wished him the best. >> he told derek williams to williams girlfriend and mother still have to face a judge. they face lesser charges for their roles in what happened that night. prosecutors said both were willing to testify against williams if his case went to trial. neither has a court date set at this point. ken lemon, channel 9 eyewitness news. new tonight, the company tasked with building toll lanes along i-77 is accepted bids right now to move forward with a controversial project. they're foe cushioned on two major hurdles now. demolishing the griffith street

widening the lanes over lake norman. once completed, the express lanes will stretch for 26 miles from uptown charlotte to mooresville. right now, crews continue to take down tree after tree along the i-77 median. we gathered this video today from the stump town road bridge where it crosses i-77 in huntersville. crews started clear cutting near exit 23. and they slowly have been marching north toward lake norman. this is the first step in trying to get the median ready for the new lanes. as we track another storm pushing through the karens, we've been in a very busy pattern. john ahrens and i are checking out the long range charts and we'll show you what we're in for the rest of the month. you maybe upset with your land record and you have rights. but be careful. part of this law is so vague you may misread it and get evicted.

you what itthat feeling. you know the one. that "grand-slam, aced-the-presentation" feeling. multiply that feeling. it's the deal of all deals. a moment worthy of celebration. now multiply that. you're everyone's hero in the championship of all championships it's that feeling. multiplied. introducing the new multiplier scratch-offs. a chance to win. and a chanceto multiply your winnings.

yea, that fe >> the number of apartments in charlotte is going up. in just the last 24 hours, city leaders signed off on hundreds of new units for park road. >> action 9 investigated the law that protects renters rights and discovered that part of it is so vague that you could read it wrong, make a mistake, and get evicted. action 9 investigator jason stoogenke is live for us

jason? >> reporter: that's right. here's the law right here. the housing code. it says if your apartment has code violations, your landlord can collect rent from you now. that sounds like you get out of paying. but legally, that's not what it means. she worries about her children. >> be safe for my boys. that's all that matters. >> she says her apartment and lake arbor apartments has had problems from the time she moved in. rotten counter tops. faucet coming off. loose cabinet panels. i said posed wires on heating equipment. and this hole in the wall near the water heater. >> i called and called and called and left messages. went down to the office and put in work orders but still didn't get nothing done. >> last spring they called code enforcement. they found eight code violations and gave lake arbor one month to fix them and told

charge white in the mean time. >> it's unlawful for the owner to collect rent. >> white says and code enforcement confirms six months went by and the complex still hadn't fixed all the problems. it even racked up $2,500 in fines from code enforcement between may and last month. so white thought legally she could stop paying rent and she did. but code enforcement's mike jenkins says the law is confusing. just because the landlord can't collect rent doesn't mean you don't have to pay rent. that was there for the landlords to put them on notice if they had these certain violations, they were serious, the tenants read it. they read it like most people would read it. i don't have to pay rent. that's not the idea. >> in the mean time white and her children could be evicted for not paying. now if you have a problem with your apartment first ask your

if that doesn't work, call code enforcement. if the landlord still doesn't fix the problem, charlotte residents can call community relations to get involved or you may need a lawyer but the bottom line is, very simple, do not ever stop paying rent out of protest. you may end up sacrificing some of your rights. live in plaza mid wood, jason stoogenke, channel 9 eyewitness news. eyewitness news talked to the mayor and city council members asking if they're thinking of clarifying this law. so far, no one has said yes. emergency crews in the foothills are enjoying the warmer temperatures tonight after a busy 24 hours responding to wrecks on the roads. this was the scene early this morning in burke county where heavy ice brought down trees and power lines. in catawba, several cars crashed after a car hauler jackknifed. one man told us he had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit. >> they came sliding at me. i had to jump over the guardrail.

but they just barely stopped. right before they hit my truck. >> thankfully, the temperature warmed up throughout the morning and the roads were able to dry out. >> hopefully we won't return to conditions like that. let's go to chief meteorologist steve udelson. >> this next one is a distant cousin compared to last night. live early warning doppler 9. showing a little drizzle toward shelby. nothing reaching the ground yet. but it will later tonight. but this time, temperatures safely above freezing. we got mid 50s from york over toward belmont. lake 59 now. charlotte checks in with 54. the only area i'm concerned about wintery weather is up to the high country. 35 at boone. 36 in jefferson. but everyone else, about 20 degrees warmer than this time last night. as far as potential rain as the system comes in, we're not talking about a lot. 1/4 of an inch in some locations. as far as the threat tracker, some rain tonight.

snow in the charlotte area. and no travel issues. the high country will see snow showers. some travel issues especially as you get into the higher peeks. there will be a little wind and cold air pouring in. but nothing compared to what we dealt with last night. temperatures by the time you get up, upper 30s in the charlotte area. below freezing in the mountains. the wake-up forecast, clouds break up as temperatures climb back up above 40 by the end of the morning driver. tomorrow like today, quickly thinning clouds and plenty of sunshine from the mountains to the metro down to the midlands, a few passing afternoon clouds, that's it. temperatures recover nicely. 50 by lunch time. everywhere east of the mountains in the 30s in the high country. and we'll reach the low to mid 50s tomorrow afternoon. especially from charlotte points south. neighborhood forecast uptown, a mix of sun and clouds early. and plenty of afternoon sun. highs warm to the mid 50s. your neighborhood forecast toward fort mill. tons of sun. afternoon highs mid to upper

neighborhood forecast, mid 50s after the morning clouds are gone. things are looking up as well as temperatures looking up for the next five days. we're talking about highs in the mid to upper 60s. that's good news after a very wintery stretch. you have to wonder, is this going to last? for more on that, we head to john ahrens in the long range forecast. >> to go long range, you need to look at weather patterns in the upper levels of the atmosphere where the wind speeds are. we can see a clear pattern that we're used to. the north atlantic oscillation, the positive face of that. that's what we call it. all this essentially is with the winds the way they're positioned right now, it's bottling up all this arctic air. that air will stay trapped in eastern canada, away from the eastern united states. when we see something like that, it tends to last a while. that's going to be the case into next week where the temperatures warm up. we're getting out of this winter stuff at least for now. we'll be mapping out the change possibly maybe tuesday into wednesday.

a little bit but not by much. for more on rain chances. >> not only dry but warm, temperatures in the upper 60s. five-day forecast keeps the warm weather going into the early part of next week, and as john said, we'll have to keep an eye on another bump in the road but it looks like more chilly rain than anything else. >> good looking five-day there. coming up, parents will have the chance to voice their concerns, ask questions and share any confusion over how the charlotte mecklenburg school district plans to tackle student assignment. the answers they're demanding from district leaders. the story coming up tonight at 10:00 and 11:00. taking a look at wall

222 ones en hornets forward michael kidd- gilchrist has two choices. he could try to rehab his

injury or risk surgery ending his season. the team announced he'll have season-ending shoulder surgery tomorrow to repair the labrum in his right shoulder he injured last week against indianapolis. this is the second shoulder reconstruction for the former second over all pick. just seven games back from aggressively rehabbing and returning from an october surgery that was supposed to keep him out six months the hornets made a move today according to multiple reports. charlotte has traded for grizzlies guard courtney lee sending forward pj harrison to memphis and back up point guard. he will also provide defense. head coach clifford loves versatility. meanwhile, the hornets lose pj harrison, their second first round draft pick from 2014. he was averaging six points per game for the hornets.

coach mark price admits his team is going through growing pains and that means taking the bad with the good. this week has been very good for the 49ers. back-to-back wins. back to 500 in conference play for charlotte. they did it by beating up on teams below them in the standings. not getting out played by out classed teams. there's plenty to be proud of as the 49ers look ahead to a pair of road games. but when you have a young team, you celebrate good weeks like last week. >> it was a lot of fun to see the way we came out and the way we played in back-to-back 100 point games. it's pretty impressive. and i was really proud of the effort our guys put forth. >> their on the road against marshal on thursday. >> we have a little bit of rain on the bay tonight. some snow in the mountains. not a biggie. it's gone by tomorrow morning. and finally a great stretch of weather that takes us through the weekend. >> nice break here. >> that's nice timing. >> thank you for making channel

at 6:00. world news is next with david mueller. >> join us back here for all

we'll see you at 11:00. we'll se breaking news tonight. storms slamming both coasts. in the east, treacherous driving, a dangerous mix of sleet and rain. the pileups. 60 60-mile-per-hour winds. across the south, 20 reported tornadoes. the woman trapped under her home, rescued. and in the west tonight, bracing for a major system, too. also breaking tonight, the new polls coming in now. where do donald trump and hillary clinton now stand in south carolina? and former president george w. bush taking aim at trump. also developing, the supreme court. the president just moments ago, saying, "i intend to do my job. i expect them to do their job,

a message to the senate. the case of the serial killer, far worse than first thought. accused in ten deaths, now linked to several others. what was discovered in his home. and mic check. america loves adele, but millions watching wondering, what happened? tonight, adele's own explanation, right here. good evening. and it's great to have you with us here on a tuesday night. we begin tonight with a very dangerous commute home. a storm hitting in the east, another one about to hit in the west. and in the south tonight, multiple tornadoes, the pictures just coming in. an ef-1 tornado confirmed outside miami. winds about 100 miles an hour. drivers there on i-95 in the middle of it all. and you will see the rescues in a moment, playing out elsewhere. meanwhile, the chain reaction crashes further north. a mix of rain and sleet, a coating of ice in pennsylvania.