fire roars out of control and just like that, three homes in manassas are up in smokes. our own, brittany morehouse, is live on the scene with breaking news and the latest, britney? >> reporter: well derek, we're in a sprawling development in the center of the city of manassas. before we roll to the video, which shows the kind of impacts here, i want to show you that behind me, the community center. the families that are displaced, they are being helped by the red cross right now. i also want to show you the layout of the house that is here. if you could look behind me, these houses are so closing

together and they are very large. for that, you could only imagine, tells you how fast the fire could spread, which clearly might have been what happened here today. around 3:00, witnesses say when they heard a loud explosion, we don't know what that explosion was. and they say that they saw two of these houses here go up in flames. and they spread fast and furious. they didn't have much time to think. we did interview one gentleman who was sleeping. and he is okay. he was staying in the neighboring house. and we also interviewed one family where all five of the people, who live inside, they were all at once. they are okay. five people are accounted for. but they just bought their house six months ago and they had their house-warming party last week. and now, we're extending -- we're standing 300 yards from the fire. and it is so far away that you just can't see anything but the police siren lights on the neighboring windows here in the

houses. even though that we're 300 yards away, in my hands here, you could see the ashes, that is spread all the way this far into the neighbor's yard. so this was a big fire for them. we have not spoken with the fire marshal. once we get more information, we'll bring it to you at 11:00. >> i need to ask you a big explosion. have you seen that around here, perhaps investigating? >> reporter: yes, we have seen them out here. that's a good thought and that you could be onto something there. thank you. we'll keep on this one. in the meantime, the deadly fire that killed a mother and her two children in manassas, they are also in the headlines tonight. we'll take a look at what may have started that one. and face to face after the virtual war of the words before the democratic primary, the dc mayor candidate, vincent gray and michelle reed, they sit down to chat. >> this is bruce johnson in the district. >> michelle reed, the day after

the meeting with the dc chairman council. >> in their office, the mid speculation as to whether or not they would stay after he becomes mayor in january. >> this is not a decision- making meeting. there were no decisions made. here we talked a lot about the schools. >> the mayor of sacramento. kevin johnson. >> they will figure out, you know, is this the right fit for them to stay in dc and that they wanted and vice versa. everybody wants her to work for her and their organization. and that is something that they would lose out. >> reporter: i'm peggy fox in lorton, where a grandmother shares the pain of losing two grandchildren and a daughter-in- law in a horrific fire. >> i just lost my son and now my grand babies are gone. >> they think that the fire must have started left by a

fire. being evicted from the home, hoping to move into a shelter. the electricity was turned off on monday and then wednesday morning, fire raged in the home, killing the 3-year-old, alfonso, the 5-year-old, and their mother, 24-year-old, aly anderson. saving her two-month-baby girl by dropping her out of the two- story window. and saving the two oldest, a 6- year-old boy and the 8-year-old girl, telling them to jump out of the window. >> i'm just so happy that they are okay. no smoke in their lungs. they are healthy, they are running around. >> and time is running out for the only woman on virginia's death row. teresa lewis is scheduled to be executed in just about two hours. she met with her family, the spiritual advisor and other supporters in the greenville correctional center in virginia today. she faces a death penalty in the murders of her husband is the stepson eight years ago. both the u.s. supreme court and the governor, bob mcdonald, they have now declined her request for clemency. today, governor mcdonald

released the results of the private audit of the virginia department of transportation. and the results were less than impressive. that investigation found hundreds of millions of dollars, actually went unspent while of course, drivers around here, they were sitting in traffic. the governor called the problem, missing management. and he said that the money could have paid for the roadside mowing, rest stop, or the other workers salaries. in the meantime, they are wondering if keeping those shoulder lanes on i-66 open all the time would help ease some of the traffic on the the highways. right now, those lanes, they are only open during the rush hour. keeping them open around the clock, would cost about $8 million. and the county is also thinking about thing longer-term solutions to the traffic tieups like hot lanes, or maybe extending metro service. and speaking of metro rail, it is now significantly safer than when the red line crash happened last summer. killing nine people. that worked from the head of the ntsb, testifying today to a congressional oversized committee. saying that metro has made some clear progress and has already

implemented the safety board's recommendations. now, that would be a complete 180 from back in july. when she said that metro, they had a safety culture. all right, let's check out the evening rush where those folks are getting home safe and quickly. >> reporter: yes, that's what we're hoping for. it's easing in many spots. you'll see the yellow cars there. they are going below the speed. no accidents on 495 throughout virginia. that's not the case. we have a couple of accidents to tell you about. the first one, southbound, passing them out here from the lane closures to watch out for and dc itself. georgia avenue and hamilton, that's in northwest. if you're checking the rails right now. the only delay we're seeing is on the green line between the plaza and the green belt, usually the mechanical problems that are out there. back to you. >> thank you. and i heard that it was the first day of fall. so how come it was about 150 degrees outside? topper? >> reporter: mother nature is confused, i'll tell you that. 93 at dulles, by the way. tieing their old record high. here is the forecast for

tonight. we have removed the chance of the showers or the thunderstorms. clear and mild. both temperatures, 64 to about 72. winds are out of the southwest at 10. and temperatures right now, they are still pretty toesty, 86 downtown. 93 also in national today. not a record. 81 up in gaithersburg. 84 in frederick and also leesburg. 84 in manassas. we'll come back and we'll talk about whether or not we're going to break the records tomorrow. and we'll also take a look ahead for the weekend. >> you might think that they are just pets, but they are actually attacking our food supply. more on how you could stop the swarm coming up. first, two high school girls decide to take it outside, after class. and we'll just wait until you hear what was egging them on. that's up next. [ male announcer ] progress. progress is saving tax payers millions of dollars, with the help of visa digital currency. which lets troy reiners,

manager of nebraska's child support payment center, put money into pre-paid visa accounts for just a penny... instead of mailing out checks for 59 cents each. now that's progress. visa. currency of progress.

instead of paying the fines. so what do you think? some places are already paying students to make better grades. now they want to charge him for being late. is that ringing just a little too much into the temple ofhigher learning, or is it just recognizing? when you hit somebody in their pockets, that tends to be a really good motivator that is always free to write into the mail bag. the address is mailbag@wusa9.com. well tomorrow, the environmental protection agency, they will release what is calling a solution diet for the chesapeake bay. it is all part of the effort mandated by the presidential record r last year. they said that all six pays in dc could expect to be required to take sweeping actions to curb the pollution and the runoffs. well remember this scene from a couple of years back? hundreds of people are lining up for the opportunity to drop off their electronics for a recycling in the district. well now the city's department of the public works is setting up weekly east cycling dropoffs and the free personal document

shredding. you could recycle your electronics, get them is had redded for the transfer station. that's on john f. mccormick road every saturday. getting started on october 3. well, is it summer or fall? topper is back to clear up what seems like a confused mother nature. but first, conflicting actions from two major health agencies on the popular diabetes drug. stay with us. hey, ove, i'm gonna need a bank. any ideas? capital one bank. they're everywhere.

♪ yeah, you're right! [ horns honking ] hey, there's one right up the street. [ male announcer ] capital one bank. the most branches and atms in the dc area. what's in your wallet? ove, go long!

what's in your wallet? china, they're busy building wind farms and expanding clean energy manufacturing. but in america, gridlock has held us back. now, the senate can change that - by passing a renewable electricity standard. it will spur development of clean energy and boost manufacturing in america, creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs. so we can make our own energy future - not just buy it from china. call your senators and urge them to pass a renewable electricity standard today.

today, they restricted the access. and that diabetes treatment has been linked to a higher risk of a heart attack. now, doctors, they will need to sign a waiver if they want to prescribe it, a waiver showing the patients who have tried just about everything else. regulators did stop short of pulling the drug from the market shortly. but european leaders did make that move today. you can get rid of your unwanted and expired drugs without just tossing them away this weekend. falls church is one of the hoe cal communities that are taking -- one of the churches in the community that are taking back their community. you can find more on wusa9.com. find your community in our where you live section and keep up with what is happening in your neighborhood. in fact, if you've got a story or a news tip on your own, we want to hear from you. contact us and become a part of

th wusa9.com team. you might have had trouble logging onto your facebook page. the social networking site is down for about 45 minutes this afternoon. that's after having several hours of slow downs and problems yesterday. no word yet if the problems are linked or connected, but with 500 million users worldwide, one news organization sent out a breaking news alert about the outage that read, "facebook is down, workerproductivity rises, u.s. times out of recession." funny. all right, last night here on 9news now, you saw the swarm, the sink bug, thousands of them, surrounding a county, frederick county home. and tonight, we're hearing that they are not just harmless pets. they are actually hurting some local crops. in fact, congress member asking congress for $3 million to find a way to combat the problem. our own lindsey mastis went out to german town to find just how bad things are getting. >> reporter: it is a lot like a horror movie. >> reporter: the community farm in germantown is infested.

>> tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, okra. >> reporter: they cause discolorations, changes to textures, making crops unedible, off by 15% this year. a loss to the farm and for the people that work there. >> we grow and sell vegetables as training adults for the environmental disabilities. >> reporter: the bugs are all over the barn. and attacking crops in the field. and they are using this floating row cover. underneath are collar greens. this is the only thing that is keeping them safe from stink bugs. >> we're a certified organic farm here. what that means is that we don't spray chemical-based pesticides or herbicides. >> reporter: nothing else has worked. >> there are no known predators, natural predators for the stink bug. >> reporter: other farms are seeing the same thing.

we're making it through this year, but next year could be problematic. >> reporter: and derek, i brought back some of the crops. this is the tomato. i cut it open and the inside of it, it looks like it is moldy. this is from the stink bug. what it does, it lands on here and it puts an enzyme into this fruit. the next thing you know, discoloration that changes the texture. >> so they are disgusting in more ways than one? >> this is a pepper. it goes all the way through. all the way through. and i asked whether you could eat these. no one new the answer. >> i don't think that anyone has ever tried. >> do you want to be the first? >> i think not. >> okay. [ laughter ] >> lind lipped, we thank you. take that -- lindsey mastis, we thank you, take that food away. we have a lot of e-mails. one suggest using a pesticide called all star pro on a regular basis. seal all your cracks on utility pipes. but they suggest just spraying them with a mixture of the dish soap and water. and he says it puts them out of

commission in about a minute. we'll have more on your e-mails later on. all right, one thing that will stop the stink bug, colder weather. hopefully we won't see anything though like we saw last winter in the months ahead. and today, the federal emergency management agency announced that it will pay dc $2.3 million to help cover the cost of those awful storms last december and february. and that would britain the total amount of the federal reimbursements for the storm, $5 million. >> okay. >> not too bad. >> not too bad. but remember, the five years previous, who save money. we came under the budget. >> right, no snow at all. we'll hope to go back this year. >> i would not do that. let's hope that they are in the middle for the group of the fun. >> no, not at all. let's talk about the weather where there will be no snow, but it will be cooler. >> how about 95 tomorrow? >> really? >> okay, here is the forecast for the next three days. probably record highs. we'll talk more about that in just a second. 94 for the high. 85 on saturday. just a slight chance of an isolated shower. and then a few clouds on

sunday, but cooler finally. temperatures, they go back to the upper 70s, which by the way is average for this time of the year. all right, we'll break down tomorrow. you're coming eastbound on 66. you'll need some shade. 74 to start. it will be mild. in fact, it might be like a summer day. 84 by lunchtime and 94 by evening. pretty much the pure sun. we won't see a stray shower tomorrow. right now, still pretty warm. 8 downtown -- 86 downtown. depending on where you are in leesburg and manassas, but still, 90 in fredericksburg and also still 90 in cull pep r -- culpepper. temperatures are running around and cooler as well. all right, for tonight then, clear skies are mild. low temperatures, 64 to about 72 downtown. winds are out of the southwest at 10. now, tomorrow morning, a very warm start. mostly sunny, 70s and 80s. in fact, some areas might be approaching90 by lunchtime. now by the afternoon, winds

pick up. mostly sunny, breezy, hot. highs near 95. winds are southwesterly at 10 to 20 and gusty. and okay. record highs tomorrow. 94 at nationals, a record high. 92 at dulles. and both are which sent back to 1970. both of which are it in jeopardy. it will be our 66th day of the 90-degree weather or higher tomorrow. the all-time record for the 90- degree days for a year is 67. and we put two more on the bag after tomorrow. we could rewrite the record books. might as well. all right, high temperatures, 94 tomorrow downtown. 94 in fairfax and leesburg. 95 in college park. next seven days. mid-90s tomorrow. we lose 10 on saturday. and 85, pack in the 70s on sunday. some showers and thunderstorms possible on monday and tuesday. that will keep us in the upper 70s and the low 80s. more showers and storms are possible on wednesday. kind of unsettled. then we're back in the low 80s again next thursday with a few clouds coming in late. >> you have a man, sir. >> thank you.

let's talk weird news. tonight, a woman fights off the charging bear. wait until you hear how she did it. where a woman heard a bear like that one, outside, attacking one of her dogs. standing on the back porch, she screams to divert the bear's attention. un. if gnatly, it worked and then they focused on her. and then it charged. the bear actually took a swipe on her, jumping back, gapping the closest thing on the kitchen counter that was a zucchini. so i guess making the best of the best situation, she throws it there, hitting on the back of the head. and she ran away. she got a few scratches and a great story and their dog, a 12- year-old was just fine. >> pretty cool. >> she is just one thing. >> we want to hear what you think. send your e-mails to mailbag@wusa9.com. 9news now will be right back.

words alone aren't enough. our job is to listen and find ways to help workers who lost their jobs to the spill. i'm iris cross. we'll keep restoring the jobs, tourist beaches, and businesses impacted by the spill. we've paid over $400 million in claims and set up a $20 billion independently-run claims fund. i was born in new orleans. my family still lives here. i'm gonna be here until we make this right.

right here in this neighborhood, i grew up learning strong families and hard work means opportunity. and that starts with good schools. it's a tradition here in maryland-- and why in these tough times i've put education first. we've made record investments in our classrooms... doubled the number of charter schools... and we've frozen college tuition for four years in a row. and it's working. experts say we now have the number one schools in the nation. when it comes to expanding opportunity in every neighborhood, i know that we must do even better.

with the most locations in the dc area, we figured they could use our help. ♪ down a bit. too much. [ crowd cheering ] [ grunts ] [ garth ] capital one bank. now with the most branches and atms in the dc area. what's in your wallet? then the comedy, mid dad says followed on the new episodes of csi and the meant list. you might want to be sure to tune in bright and early tomorrow morning for the news and the weather that gets going at 4:25. in the mail bag tonight, stink bugs, thankfully not

literally. laura from dawnstown, saw our stink bug store at 11:00 last night, saying the score has hit hard at her home. in an hour, i vacuumed up, 654 bugs both inside and on our screened-in porch. before bed, finished at 8:34. that's the most effective way to kill them. they do a backstroke in the toilet and you need to flush them right away. we sprayed the house four times in three months, killing some, but not all. the praying manatis seem to be eating them. has anyone looked to see what eats them in china? i did. it seems like wasps will destroy the eggs, but here is the catch 22. while as you notice, they are pretty much invincible. then this from our good friend, john. who had a bunch of questions about dc school chancellor, michelle and her mayor, vincent gray. why hasn't she been fired or

why hasn't she quit? does she have a contract? does she get nothing if she resigned? is there a buy out in the work? is there money in the works for that? just asking. well, john, i wish we could all answer. it's not because we haven't been asking too. finally, we have this on the bill from the dc council that would force the electors to go with whatever presidential candidate has the no jr -- majority of the popular vote as an example, they would have gone for reagan. the bill doesn't go far enough. why most of the past presidential elections are not legit is because of the bush one. buy the popular votes with the top two vote getters competing for the final vote in a runoff. no such thing as electors there. well, that probably wouldn't be a thing here either except for the pesty constitution thing, do you remember that? your e-mail is never pesty. mailbag@wusa9.com.

that's our report. i'll be right back here tonight at 11:00 with anita brikman. don't forget, log on any time to wusa9.com. we'll see you a bit later. have a great evening. bye. in case of everyday emergencies, it's important to be prepared for dinner. that's why i've prepared my perdue perfect portions fresh chicken breasts. they're individually wrapped, so you can cook what you need and store what you don't. [ male announcer ] perdue perfect portions. ready when you are.

i do 22 more inspections than the government requires. and my fresh, all-natural chickens are never given any hormones or steroids. ♪ ...and no candy, gladys. [ clucks ] [ male announcer ] perdue. extra inspections... extraordinary chicken. >> now, "entertainment tonight," the most watched entertainment news magazine in the world. >> ashton and demi go public today.

>> real men protect, respect and care for girls. >> the couple in a middle of a cheating scandal facing the press. >> i follow my heart. >> side by side, a united front for a cause close to their heart. >> then katy perry banned from sesame street? why her song with elmo was scrubbed. katy's past and her message to at risk teens. >> i came from nothing. >> sometimes we would eat from the food bank. >> in tonight's celebrity gps, tom selleck in new york city. betty white in l.a. >> i was terribly popular. >> new idol judge, j. lo. >> what am i doing right now? >> in the "e.t." slide show, michael douglas with his daughter. tom at katie take suri to prague. >> i'm flanked by two of the hottest men on television. here you are. >> all of the hotties getting flirty with samantha. plus grey's anatomy wedding secrets.