struggle and the problem is getting worse. live now at the capital area food bank with some startling facts. >> the numbers indeed are staggering. 478,000 people are fed through the capital area food bank. that's a 25% increase just in the past four years. while no one goes hungry we are told, the portions are smaller. so everyone who walks in the door can go home with food for their families. >> we want to thank you for the food that has been brought here. >> nearly 80 people gather at the church every wednesday and friday. >> we have two different forms of produce for you today. >> volunteers are serving up food for the soul. >> i feel good. >> we have noticed a lot of new faces. a lot of people that are pretty averagely dressed. we know that they are working

people that have just had a little bump in the road. >> reporter: in fact, only 5% of the folks who receive groceries through the food bank are homeless. this is more common. a full time student who just needs a little part-time help. she says it is all about swallowing your pride. >> you have to have courage and be wise and believe that god is with you. you don't want to just not receive your blessing. to me it is a blessing for myself. not only that it helps me but i have neighbors who are unable to come and i would share with them. >> reporter: so with friends, food and their faith. >> lord, you would not give me no more than i can handle. >> reporter: they will all make it through even the toughest of times. the situation is so dire right now the folks at the food bank tell me people who were once donating food items are now finding themselves standing in

line waiting to receive food. lesli? >> what can we do? >> when folks see a story like this you want to help your neighbors, you can donate nonperrishable items in the north east or if you have the means go online and donate some money. we are going to connect all of that information and put that on our website. wusa9.com. >> all right. thank you. we here at 9news now are joining in the hunger fight. we could sure use your help in food drive 9 this year. for information on where to drop off food and what food is needed go to our website wusa9.com and click on community. >> prosecutors in the chandra levy murder trial have dropped rape charges against ingmar guandique, the accused. bruce leshan has been in the courtroom all day and joins us now live from dc superior

court. bruce? >> reporter: yes, lesli. ingmar guandique still faces charges that could send him to prison for the rest of his life but for some reason that really remains a mystery, prosecutors did not put on the jailhouse informant who was expected to testify that ingmar guandique confess to raping levy. prosecutors were left with no evidence that he raped levy so they dropped the sexual assault charge and murder count connected to it but the gang member still faces charges of robbing, kidnapping and murdering levy. with the prosecution done it was time for the defense case. ingmar guandique's former landlord was one of the first witnesses his lawyers called back to the stand. >> were there scratches on ingmar guandique back then on may 1st? >> there were. >> there were scratches on him. >> yes, there were. >> do you think that he killed

chandra levy? >> i don't believe that. >> reporter: all they heard from phillips was when chandra levy disappeared ingmar guandique was a slight young man about 5'4". the implication apparently that he wasn't big enough to knock the woman down and drag her into a ravine and kill her. >> gary condit came here nine days ago and refused to say whether he was having an affair with chandra levy. that has all been pushed to the gutter now because an fbi technician came and testified that a stain on the underwear found in chandra levy's apartment contained gary condit's d.n.a. the trouble for prosecutors is that with chandra levy's skeltal remains out in rock park they found neither ingmar

guandique's dna nor gary condit's dna. prince george's county looking for two missing sisters. 15 and 12-year-old sisters have not been seen for a week. napolie is 4'8", 95 pounds, brown eyes and black shoulder length hair. the other girl stands at 4'6", brown eyes and brown hair. police want to hear from anyone who may know where these young girls could be right now. new at 6:00 p.m. the nebraska doctor in the middle of a national debate on late-term abortions plans to open a clinic near washington, dc. dr. leroy carhart says nebraska's decisions led to his decision to open the clinic. the state bans abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy based on the fact the fetus can feel pain at that point. sexual and reproductive health

center will open december 6th in suburban maryland. >> i totally believe in this cause every bit as much as i did when i got up in the military believing that i was doing the right thing. and if dying for this cause is what i have to do, then that's what i will do. >> two other clinics will open in iowa and ohm omaha. each clinic would also offer services for men including vasectomies and health screening. the government says st. joseph medical center put unnecessary stints in heart patients then paid for referrals to the hospital. today they reached a multimillion dollar settlement. baltimore hospital will pay civil claims. three doctors blew the whistle on what the fed said was a kickback scheme. >> they noticed that they were

not getting referrals from the cardiologists like they had been before and they wondered why that was going on. and then they found out that it was because of kickbacks that were going from the hospital to the cardiology practice. >> the government says st. joseph was paying a heart group called mid-atlantic heart associates. the u.s. attorney also says that the hospital was billing the government for stints placed in patients that were not medically necessary. st. joseph has not admitted any guilt. the majority of the $22 million will go back to the federal government. all right. cancer patients. diseased lungs. these are graphic images the government plans to use for new cigarette warning labels. a new push announced by the fda and department of health and human services to reduce tobacco use. new stats show tobacco use is

responsible for about 443,000 deaths a year. the new warning labels could start appearing in advertisements and on cigarette packages late next year. but will this campaign be enough to bring the numbers down? >> we want to make sure that every person who picks up a pack of cigarettes is going to know exactly what the risk is that they are taking. >> even when they show the commercials and people on their deathbeds losing fingers i find myself even more so wanting to go smoke a cigarette. >> the new prevention plan is part of a law passed in june of last year which gives the fda authority to regulate tobacco including marketing and labeling guidelines, banning certain products and limiting nicotine. coming up ahead. a workout warning. how a little girl almost lost her hand on a popular machine. plus, topper has your forecast. very nice evening. temps starting to fall a little bit. let me show you the almanac. you can always access this at

wusa9.com. click on the weather tab. then follow the drop-down tab. 59 and 36 our average. 64 and 35 go in the book for today. but up next, the traffic headache in georgetown and more on the bump that's causing it.

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issue. big one today. took about half an hour to get across the key bridge or off whitehurst freeway in georgetown today. an incomplete road repair was left by a dc water crew. they were supposed to patch up a broken water main last night but deep ruts made the road nearly impassable for some low to the ground cars and there was even an accident. >> the car in front of me slammed on their brakes. i ran into the back of it. >> a new crew show up at noon and they put steel plates down and dc water says permanent repairs will start on monday and they remind us that that broken main that caused all of this was installed before the civil war. coming up after the break. where you can fine the top 10 gifts for women this holiday season.

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she agreed to talk to us only if we revealed her identity and her son and the hospital he is being treated. the mother of two high school students shot monday night says her son told her three men were involved in that shooting that saw his best friend shot multiple times and killed. she talked with our bruce johnson. >> how is your boy doing? how is he doing? >> he is doing. he is doing okay. >> in surgery? >> he is in surgery. >> three guys, one gun. >> one gun. >> you and your son were laughing and joking between themselves. >> and then three men came up and pulled a gun on them. >> dc police say they are working hard on the case but they have yet to make an arrest or even make a public statement. neighborhood sources say the three men who shot the high school students were the same ones who shot a wait, at the capital diner in north east last saturday. people stranded on that disabled cruiseship are finally able to talk to their loved ones as that ship made it back

to cell phone range. the carnival slender is slowly making its way back to california. two tug boats should have the ship and its 4500 passengers and crew back in port tomorrow. the u.s. military has delivered over 10,000 pounds of food and supplies and some military members are even staying aboard to make sure everyone is okay. >> it is my understanding that all the passengers are safe and as comfortable as they can be. >> the slender lost power on monday when a fire broke out in the engine room. it was contained there. though one was hurt. but the giant cruiseship was left dead in the water. coming up at 7:00 p.m. a passenger on board described how they are coping with the ordeal. we have got a warning tonight about a popular piece of workout equipment. it could be a danger to your family. tread mills are now blamed for sending nearly 25,000 children to the e.r. every year. from bruises to severe burns,

the exercise machine's design can hurt kids who are not supervised and this is something one texas family learn the hard way. >> felt like my knuckles were on fire. >> dangerout piece of equipment. >> keep it locked and unplugged and keep the machines where you can see them. >> we will shift things and get you ready, set to shop for the holidays. most people like to make a statement with their wardrobe. you don't know what to do many times. go to yahoo.com. top 10 fashion gifts for women and will give you suggestions on dresses and denim. >> if nothing strikes your fancy you can go to our website. check out the ready, set, shop link. it is right there on wusa9.com. you need to get started my

friend. >> you're freaking me out now. >> don't freak out. just get started. >> let me get to turkey day. let me fry my turkey. >> help keep peace in the house. >> here is your forecast first. if you like today you'll love tomorrow. really the rest of the week for that matter. 61. sunshine on veteran's day. very nice for high school football. temperatures primarily in the 50s during the game then upper 60s on saturday. we will be close to 70 over the week. that is a good deal. here is your thursday day planner. sunshine across the board. 43 to start. upper 30s though in the burbs then upper 50s by lunchtime. so you'll need a light jacket and shades to start the day. by evening 59. why do i have a moon there at 5 p.m.? the sun goes down just before 5 p.m. now. temperatures right now. 59 at national. 57 in arlington. mainly in the upper 50s which is actually a pretty good deal. 54 at college park. 51 in beltsville.

50 by fairfax. upper 50s for sterling. 57 for leesburg. temperatures a little bit above average for this time of night. all right. tonight, clear skies, cold. not crazy cold though. 36 to 44. winds north easterly at 5 to 10. so a light wind. lows tonight inside the beltway low to mid-40s. outside the beltway in the 30s again. everyone should stay above freezing though tonight. 36 in gaithersburg. reston and in sterling, upperville, middleburg, manassas all in the mid-30s. veteran's day. what a nice day. sunshine. high temperature 61 and with a light wind that 61 will feel very comfortable. tomorrow morning, sunny with a chilly start. grab your shades, grab a coat. 30s and 40s. winds north easterly at 10. and then by afternoon. great day. sunny and pleasant. high temps around 60. winds still north easterly. winds will stay light tomorrow and looks like it will be that way on friday, saturday too. next seven days.

61 on veteran's day. we will keep saturday and sunday dry. there is a weak system that will come in here next week. clouds come in on monday. rain or showers develop late in the day. about 59. more rain on tuesday. but temperatures by then in the low 50s and then only 60 but that's still not bad. but sunshine returning next wednesday. >> this next story is big, topper. how big? worldwide implications in tonight's wizards game. brett haber is live at the arena. >> reporter: we have got yee versus yao. only two players from china in the nba. 9sports live from the phone booth is coming up. [ man ] are you aware that verizon fios brings fiber optics to your home

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it is time for 9sports with brett haber. >> welcome back to verizon center, everybody. norm entally a november game between the wizards and rockets wouldn't rate a whole lot of attention outside the players' friends and family. but tonight there are 1.3 billion fans who give a hoot about this game because the entire nation of china will be watching tonight as the nba's only two chinese players, yao ming of the rockets and yee will face off. they will have their eyes on this game. >> so many people watching in china he will want to play well. when you're good friends you want to play well. >> it is definitely a big deal. it is probably like me playing

against shaq. >> i know he has been competing really hard this week in order to get ready for this game. >> reporter: and just to add to the overall wattage of this night. hall of famer magic johnson will be here and will address the wizards in their lockerroom before their game on the topic of team work and effort. he was invited to do so by the team owner. obsessing about their quarterback situation and who knows the playbook and whose feelings were hurt after the benching perhaps they should focus on the eagles quarterback situation. michael vick is back. and 218 passing yards, 274 rushing yards and two touchdowns vick is feeling fine. they are going to need a better strategy than last time they played. >> he is good on his feet throwing the ball very well. doing well. we have got to be sound on both sides. >> we have done a good job of

keeping them in track last game and continuing them to be physical and run around and hit. >> will have to get out there every now and then. but for the most part just has to stay in front of him and got to know where he is at. >> as for mcnabb, mike shanahan said he is, quote, "by no means at full speed. mcnabb stayed after practice today and did extra work to prepare for the eagles." time for you to pick our dc high school sports game of the week. five games for your consideration. the list is on the screen. you can vote and winning team will lead coverage on friday night. nats star ryan zimmerman pulled off the hardware double one year ago.

winning the golden glove and silver slugger for national league third baseman. unfortunately there will be no such double this year. the baseball authorities handing out their awards couple of hours ago and it is the reds scott rolen that got his eightt career win. zimmerman a favorite to repeat but his fielding stats were down a little bit from last year and he paid the price. that's it from here. yao against yee in half an hour. all of china will be tuning in. highlights for you at 11:00 p.m. lesli, back to you. >> literally a big showdown. >> you've got it, brett. >> yes. >> thank you for that, brett. forecast now? >> here is the seven-day. i put a little redskins helmet on monday. >> draw it in. >> nice tomorrow for veteran's day and upper 60s over the weekend. >> thank you, topper. that's it for us.

stay with wusa for the news with katie couric next. derek will be here later tonight. always on at wusa9.com. captions by: caption colorado, llc 800-775-7838 email: comments@captioncolorado.com