when she decided to leave, she couldn't find her cane and the smoke was so thick, she couldn't see. >> it's engulfed. >> it's engulfed? ma'am? >> reporter: she fell down on the floor and the flames began to spread. >> please help me. >> help is on the way. help is on the way. okay? >> reporter: keizer arrived not long after she blacked out. he kick in the door and pulled her outside, and she was flown to a spartanburg hospital where she is in critical condition and getting treatment. keizer said other police officers and firefighters moved her away from the burning home and all of them together gave her a fighting chance. in gastonia, ken lemon, channel 9, eyewitness news. >> ken tweeted out that video

we're staying on top of breaking news of a man shot in charlotte over south brevard, and you can see officers are still investigating. they were called near the this afternoon. into custody. investigators say that it -- that the victim and the suspect know each other and the victim was taken to the hospital with serious injuries. dashawn brown is out there, talking to people about what they saw, and she very -- will have a live report at 6:00. and those accused of kidnapping a pizza delivery driver will be in court with a public defender. police say that shannon scott and brayon rhodes kidnapped the driver and took him up i-85 and

pair of atms and last him in archdale. a student was on south grand street after midmight when a robber came up to him with a knife. he had injuries but he refused treatment. no arrests have been made. and the district attorney will decide next week whether to charge a driver who crashed into a home killing the couple inside. they will present the case to the grand jury that meets next wednesday. earlier this month, troopers say that the truck crashed into the home off 182, rupturing the imas gas line, causing an explosion and killing the homeowners. and trash service for certain people were on the budget agenda today.

proposal that would cut trash pickup for complexes with more than four units and save $4 million a year. tonight, a local primary race is still up in the air and it could be because of the controversial i-77 toll lane project. >> eyewitness news anchor stephanie maxwell finds out that was not the only race impacted. >> reporter: the incumbent barely beat tom davis learningly in part because of the 77 platform. jeter initially threw support behind the toll lanes but has since called on governor mccroar tow break off the deal. the state made a deal to build the lanes, but the company filed for bankruptcy in texas last month for a similar toll lane project there and is causing more hesitation from

the vote for the house seat shows jeter did not do well in the community surrounding i-77, especially in his own backyard. >> people in representative jeter's hometown are looking for more than words. they're looking for action on the i-77 toll plaza. >> reporter: even no governor mccrory kept his job in a landslide, voters not happy with him. he lost specific precincts near the road construction. >> they are dissatisfied with his performance with regard to this toll lane. >> reporter: this isn't the first think the tolls have impacted ballots. in november all the candidates against it is tolls -- against the tolls have won their races and now they are looking ahead to november saying that the

stephanie maxwell, channel 9, eyewitness news. >> and tom davis told channel 9 that officials will count absentee the -- ballots this friday. voters approved maker's $2 billion bond last night and coming up next at 6:00, we're breaking down how the money is giving to universitieses across our area. new information on a triple murder in gaston county involving a prominent political consultants. swawrntss were returned in the arrest of crystle gambino, accused of killing her husband, giovanni and two other people at their home, all naked. she said she caught her husband

a man who spend nearly two decades in prison for a murder suicide. she was set free in 2004 after dna evidence cleared him and another man confessed. on sunday, police found him dead from a self-inflicted gunshot tbhiewnd a car near wake forest university. a man who escaped from a jail in rock hill faces new charges after he is facing charges of the shoeing a man in florida. - - shooting a man in florida. deputies arrested him last week northeast of atlanta, and he admitted to shooting a homeless man. that person survived but has a bullets lodge inside -- lodged in his neck. and a clear shot of a

in the middle of the day in york county. today, eyewitness news reporter greg suskin has more. >> reporter: surveillance video shows this guy pulling up in his truck and forces open the gate, cuts the chain, drives through and did all of that in front of this security camera and at least half a dozen others. >> this is somebody who just does not care. >> reporter: that's obvious by the number of cameras that spot this guy, light -- lighting a cigarette right in front of the camera. >> he didn't try and cover his face. >> reporter: the storage owner said he didn't care would saw him towing a 36-foot camper. and it was 6:30 in the morning on march 5 when the video shows that the suspect cut the chain on the electronic gate and pushed it open.

minutes to grab the trailer and let him go. >> reporter: the same man in a dodge pickup stole a 33-foot trailer, and this time in rock hill, he cut the fence and drove out at 10:00 in the morning. we went by to talk to the owners but no one was hurt. it appears that the suspect did take a precaution of covering his license plate. >> normally, people who did this don't stop until we make him stop. >> reporter: they are hoping that someone will recognize the man, the pick pick up, or the two missing campers. onlies are not sure what more they can do. >> we have excellent shots of him and he is still running loose. >> greg spoke with investigators, and they are scouring ebay and craigslist to find those campers.

by sharing them on facebook or wsoctv.com. police in lincolnton have issued a warrants on jonathan earl on felony child abuse charges. these are two different pictures of the suspect. he is known to change his hairstyle and wear glasses. the board of education has approved $10 million for 10 new school buses. cabarrus county could have them by september but they will order them next week and a portion of that money will be used to fix up portable classrooms. and a new education survey found only 4% of incoming college students say they'll major in education. that's the lowest point in 45 years. in 2000, it was 11%.

and lack of respect in the classroom. seeing yellow everywhere as pollen is covering charlotte. why this season could be worse tan last year and all the headaches for you. scott, the pollen counts tripled literally overnight. and we are very high, and that's the oak pollen. when we'll see rain to wash it out. >> that's ridiculous. >> they save lives but a channel 9 investigation found medical helicopters are leaving patients folks have some questionsabout my spicy, freshly-preparedworld-famous zinger sandwich. like,"is it freshly-prepared?" yes. "is the freshly-preparedzinger sandwich available in a $5 fill up?" if you have five dollars, yes. what a great limited time deal!

's finger folks have some questionsabout my spicy, freshly-preparedworld-famous zinger sandwich. like,"is it freshly-prepared?" yes. "is the freshly-preparedzinger sandwich available in a $5 fill up?" if you have five dollars, yes. what a great limited time deal!

medical helicopters can rush patients to hospitals within minutes and save lives. but a 9 investigation uncovered a situation when the quick ride may not be necessary and some patients end up with massive bills. >> i've been working with abc news investigating medical choppers. some patients say they were not given a choice. dennis oliver has to take each step slowly with help from his sister.

broken bones in his ribs and back from a construction accident at this costco site. a trench collapsed and oliver fell 15 feet. oliver said that they had to shore up the ground first. so you were down there for a while? >> two hours. >> reporter: a medical helicopter carried him to richland memorial about eight miles away. did they ask if you wanted to go by ambulance on the ground or the helicopter? >> they didn't ask me nothing. >> reporter: the chief said because they waited two hours to pull him out, he doesn't think that the air transport was necessary. miles. >> reporter: we're at the coast coe -- costco site in columbia and wanted to see how long it would take to get to the

here in 13 minutes. when oliver got home, he learned the cost of his flight, $32,881. is this a bill that you could pay? >> no, ma'am. i don't want got the money to pay it. >> reporter: oliver isn't the only patient with sticker shock. we worked with the investigative unit at abc news looking into the billing and collective practices of the air method. the company provides pilots and does maintenance on carolina's health care system's medical helicopter. abc took the patient concerns over massive bills to air method's vice president, paul webster. >> you take people to court and put debt collectors on them and liens on their home. how many people are you currently in court with?

>> reporter: webster said that air methods loses money on 7 out of 10 transports because of low reimbursements because of medicare and medicaid. so patients with private insurance pay bigger bills. so you jack up their cost to make up for the others? >> we have to. >> reporter: is that fair? >> it's the way the environment is set up right now. >> reporter: air methods transports 100,000 patients every year, and this patient was flown from virginia to a winston-salem hospital after he was in a car accident with his shattered leg. he said he was never asked if he wanted to be taken by air. >> nothing. they didn't tell me nothing. they just put me in the helicopter and took me. the bill was so big, $47,000. that's ridiculous. >> reporter: webster said no

lives and at the scene of an emergency, first responders call for a helicopter. at hospitals, it's up to the attending physician. both wish they were given a choice. >> if i had known what i know now, i would say we are not going in a helicopter ride. >> reporter: air method cyst that a patient can refuse helicopter transport if the crew is sure they are not impaired making that decision. legislation would require the companies to make the bill known, and that is still stuck in legislation. you can watch for the full report after eyewitness news at 6:00. the calendar may say mid- march but it felt like midjune with temperatures soaring to record level -- levels this afternoon.

mornington along i-40 to statesville and 60s in the high country, warm everywhere. the magic are in town taking on the hornets. and it looks great. temperatures fall to 80 by 7:00 and through the 70s and holding to the upper 40s by the time we get up first thing tomorrow morning and near 40 across the high country. another mild start and not as warm as it's been, and you will need to grab a light coat at the very least, and middle 50s at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow, much like today, sunshine early on and during the afternoon, high clouds pushing up across the south carolina midlands to charlotte and a few clouds up to i-40 in the mountains, and it won't change our temperature much. the average high is 62 and we'll be there 10:00 or so tomorrow morning and on our way to the highs in the mid-70s,

than average. the neighborhood forecast in morganton, tons of sun, and shelby, lower 70s, gorgeous, a fine st. patrick's day. across the associate midlands, chesterfield, highs in the upper 70s, still close to 80- degrees. tomorrow is, no chance of rain and warm temperatures. and the pollen count as i mentioned through the roof until we get rain. we'll get that but you may not like the timing, mostly saturday night and left over showers on sunday, and it will be enough rain to give us temporary relief from the pollen. and i mention temporary pause this time of year, the pollen comes back with a vengance. looking at highs in the 50s from saturday to monday. we haven't been that cool since the beginning of march. >> bad for allergies but good

>> and fund to -- fund to -- fun to be out in. thank you.

ma we are officially less than a month from tax day and protecting your personal information is top of mind. >> the irs said 700,000 people had their information stolen last year. consumer advisor clark howard explains what's at risk if are you one of those victims. >> reporter: i'm here in the

you can get advice for concerns over your wallet. we get so many calls about people stealing your identity. hackers broke into the irs and now, the irs thinks 700,000 people's personal information is in the hands of hackers. think about this, the social security number and everything about you and your address and where you work, all of that. so what you need to be aware of no matter where you turn today, your information could be at risk. you've got to protect yourself. the most important step you can take is something known as credit freeze where even if a criminal has your personal information, has your social security number you can shut them down cold. the process is pretty easy online. some states it's free. the maximum you can pay in the country to freeze your credit

look at the guide on clarkhoward.com. i'm clark howard. capitol hill is reacting to a story we told you about earlier this week, 73 people were flagged for suspected ties to terrorism. lawmakers are calling for stronger government vetting of airport workers. south carolina representative mark sanford will head to cuba next week. the state's former governor has worked in the past to end the travel ban and has long believed that americans should have the right to go to cuba. staying on top of a new story, we told you at 5:00 that former mayor patrick cannon pleaded guilty to voter fraud.

disgraced public official. tonight, we're staying on top of breaking news in the heart of uptown charlotte, a person shot in the middle of the afternoon across from the transit center. a live look from chopper 9 sky zoom of the scene. police tape is up right now and police found a man lying in the parking lot, shot in the neck behind the burger king at trade street and brevard. >> eyewitness news reporter dashawn brown has been bringing us live reports since 5:00 and we understand that police have one person in custody? >> reporter: erica, police have just cleared the scene here at the transit center. at 3:30 this afternoon, they found a man who was shot in this park being area. and according to police, they

that person has not been arrested. police say the victim was shot life-threatsenning injuries. according to investigators, what started as an altercation ended in violence and they are to solve this crime. >> the main thing we want to do is because we know there was a lot of people, we want to live -- reach out to people and say please let us finish you saw anything. >> reporter: and we will continue to follow this and bring you new developments as soon as we have them. dashawn brown, eyewitness news. it's the second shooting in uptown charlotte in the past two weeks in the middle of the day. any shooting in uptown is rare. on march 4, a man was shot at

victim is recovering. charlotte's disgraced former mayor back in town sentenced on voter fraud charges. >> openly and obviously the have -- violated the law. >> we are talking about his plans once he gets out. >> the convinces never go away. former mayor patrick cannon is back in charlotte. >> this is the first time we've seen him since he went to federal prison foraccepting bribes in office. he was sentenced to just one day in prison for the voter fraud, served concurrently at the same time as his federal sentence and will head back to morgan county, west virginia. we are breaking down what comes next. jim? >> reporter: the guilty plea