by 5:00 we'll be about 54 with highs today in the mid-50s. a far cry from 72 but still well above the average of 45. you can see -- let me go back for a s.e.c. i -- for a sec. this is what's coming for the next several hours. had a report from jan in reedville, an inch of rain. only a trace so far in cathlet with more showers to the -- catlett with more showers to the west. these showers will be around for a few more hours. temperatures this morning jackettable, jackettable? yes. cumberland 49. it's 350 in leesburg and la -- it's 50 in leesburg and la plata. unfortunately i have some tough news. there's a traffic alert on the northbound side of the 270 spur in rockville, bethesda. a serious accident. it's before montrose road. all lanes are blocked.

what i'm hearing is this is three vehicles and a tractor- trailer involved on the northbound side again of the 270 spur. if you're coming up from the inner loop of the beltway, you want to avoid the spur all together. curb around the bend and go ahead and use route 3w 55 as your alternate route to get northbound -- 355 as your alternate route to get northbound. i can see sky 9 is zooming out and heading up to show you the delay heading northbound. i believe it's going to affect the inner loop of the beltway very, very quickly. in fact, let me show you what it looks like live on the inner loop of the beltway from our traffic land camera coming up from river road right now. you will see delays form quickly trying to get up north to the spur. avoid that all together. let's go to the outer loop of the beltway. i want to tell you if you're heading through silver spring heading past 270, this will not affect your drive on the outer loop of the beltway past 270. in fact, if we could go back to the sky 9 shot on the northbound side of the 270 spur, once again just to let you know it is before montrose

road. all lanes are blocked with this multivehicle accident, including a tractor-trailer. it's going to take some time before it clears up. we'll keep you posted on this situation coming up in my next report. back to you. every morning metro riders, quite of few of them, probably say a little prayer. please let there be a hassle free commute. >> six times so far this year alone a cracked rail has caused major delays across the system. now a look at why. >> delia goncalves is following this commuter alert. she joins us in northwest washington this morning. good morning, delia. >> reporter: good morning, mike. you know, this was the scene tinley town of a major disruption last week. i was here. riders were very frustrated, one woman telling me her 20- minute commute took about an hour. metro says this is one of the many signs of an aging system that they're dealing with. so just how old are our rails? 30 years old at the very least. metro is undergoing a five-year $5 billion track replacement project. but in the meantime, crews are trying to get ahead of the

problem. ultrasound equipment is used to inexpect the 106-mile rail system at a minimum we're told of twice a week. however, that's still doing little to keep the brakes from -- the breaks from happening. take a look at the numbers. pretty staggering. in 2009 metro had 19 cracks rails. 33 in 2010. and 49 cracked rails that we had to deal with just last year. so what's behind all of these cracks that we're dealing with? seems like every week or so. i'll let you know coming up in my next live report in about a half-hour. mike? >> thank you, delia. we'll see you in a little bit. another weekend means another round of track work. they need to fix these problems, right? this is going to slow you down on metro if you're taking it this weekend. starting tomorrow night at 10:00, the orange line will be closed between courthouse and foggy bottom. the blue line will be closed between pentagon and foggy bomb. that means no service at ross

-- foggy bottom. that means no service at rosslyn. you can use the yellow line to get from the pentagon. jessica doyle has more on your money. it's about extending a pay freeze. >> republicans have push add bill through the house that -- pushed a bill through the house that would effectively freeze paychecks for federal workers for a third year. this works both ways because the measure would also bar members of congress from giving themselves a raise. now, the plan would freeze federal worker pay through 2013. the cost savings to taxpayers $26 billion. the pay freeze, though, would not apply to military personnel. many democrats are against this freeze. they're saying federal workers have already done their part in reducing budget deficits with those previous two years of pay freezes. president obama expected to propose a half of a percent hike in federal pay in the 2013 budget proposal.

here comes some context. the government's nonpartisan congressional budget office came out with these stats about federal pay earlier this week factoring in their pensions and health care plans. federal workers are actually paid about 16% more than private sector workers. republicans are saying extending this pay freeze for another year, that it would pay for things like extending the payroll tax cut and federal unemployment benefits for all americans. of course, all of these issues are still up for debate. >> being a political year, nothing will happen. >> bingo. >> well said. 6:05. america's military mission in afghanistan should be done by 2013. that's the word from defense secretary leon panetta. the pentagon and nato want to end the combat mission next year, one year ahead of schedule. the war began in 2001 just weeks after the 9/11 attacks. panetta wants the drawdown to be similar to the end of the combat mission in iraq. but the news comes as the same time as a new report claims the

taliban is actually just lying in wait anticipating the pullout of u.s. troops. when that happens according to this other report, it will cease -- seize control of afghanistan, the taliban will. both nato and the pentagon are downplaying that report. chances are your facebook page or your e-mail is exploding this week with the controversy involving komen for the cure and planned parenthood. komen says it will no longer donate to planned parenthood. that is draw something outrage, even on capitol hill. >> all of you across this country that feel that susan g. komen should stick to what it knows and that is breast cancer research and breast cancer screening and support and promote those activities by organizations that do the research and do the screening. i ask you to call them. >> komen donated $600,000 to planned parenthood. that money paid for 170,000 breast exams and 6400 mammograms just over the last five years.

komen says the decision is because of an investigation into planned parenthood over its possible use of federal funds to pay for abortions. komen tells cbs news it's adopting a new and more stringent eligibility standards to safeguard donor dollars. channel 9 and komen had a relationship for many years but komen severed those ties last year. 6:07. today is february 2. you know what that means. >> it's groundhog day. the party is in punxsutawney, pennsylvania. >> let's take a look at the fun they're having there early this morning. these people have probably been up all night, some of them probably drinking to stay warm of course. they're waiting for phil to emerge and decide if he sees his shadow. if he does, that means six more weeks of winter. if he doesn't, it'sen early spring. -- if he doesn't, it'sen early spring. considering we hit 70 degrees at national airport yesterday, it may already be spring and who needs phil? >> supposedly he has a cousin

living in dupont circle. he's potomac phil. he emerged. he's the brainchild of a group dupont festival. >> we're always amazed if he sees his shadow given all the tv camera lights around him but we'll see. we'll rely on our howard, the hedgehog. our time is 6:08. in four minutes a look at black history month and why it's still important in the 21st century. it's thursday. that means today is cool school thursday. moving objects with your mind? may sound like science fiction but we have some science facts and you've got to see this to believe it. the really warm weather is gone for now but it will still be mild today. howard has your weather first when 9news now returns without help from phil or the potomac guy. [ male announcer ] this was how my day began.

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she was in paris, but we talked for hours... everyone else buzzed about the band. there's a wireless mind inside all of us. so, where to next? ♪

we'll have the possibility of showers around through mid- morning. by midday the sun will be back. it will definitely be cooler today. not talking 60s and 70s. we're talking afternoon highs around 55. a tough morning for commuteers in bethesda. good morning. i'm monika samtani with your time saver traffic. you're taking a look from sky 9 on the northbound side of the 270 spur north of democracy boulevard but before montrose road. several vehicles involved

including a jackknifed tractor- trailer. maryland state police tell me it's going to be a while. go ahead if you're on the inner loop use 355 northbound. i'll give you more alternate routes and an update on the situation at 6:16. february is black history responsibility. why is the celebration still so important? we're joined by sylvia, the executive director with the association for the study of african-american life and history. sylvia, good to you have here with us. >> good morning. >> dr. carter woodson started this in 1926. it was just black history week at the time. now it is a month. is the mission still valid? do we still have to he enforce black americans' contribution in american life and culture? >> we absolutely do. african-americans have contributed so much through the years to american life, history and culture. even though we've made great strides and there's much more information that's published about african-americans than when we started this commemoration, we're still making history. we are still the american story

that shows people that you can come up from very little and make great strides. so this celebration and this month is still very important to american history. >> yesterday we talked about a man that most people didn't know about who gave us refrigerated trucks and vehicles allowing food to go across-country with an eighth grade education. you are focusing with your luncheon this coming week on women who have contributed to african-american culture and life. >> absolutely. dr. woodson started this commemoration of nero history week which the association turned into black history month in 1976 by establishing a theme for everyone to think about. the 2012 black history theme, the proclamation was signed by president obama yesterday as black women in american culture and history. and the strides that we as african-american women have made through the years needs to be recognized because so often the stories of women are not told in the same way that sometimes men are.

so we're bringing light to so many women that through the years in american culture have done so much to make this country great. >> i've had the honor of hosting that luncheon and another colleague is involved with the luncheon this time around. >> absolutely. that luncheon is going to be held in february, february 25, saturday, at the renaissance hotel. it's going to be at 12:30 p.m. and the wonderful historian and educator dr. cole is going to be our guest speaker, the only woman who has served as the. of both -- [indiscernible] >> one of the emcees for the afternoon is our own j.c. hayward. thank you very much. good to see you again. >> thank you. we've got some wet roads out there this morning. watch out for that. monika will be along in just a moment. our bus stop forecast scattered showers. temps anywhere from the low 40s mort to the low 50s south. -- north to the low 50s south. sunrise at 7:14. we have the rain showers this

morning. in fact through later this morning. but by noon i think the sun is returning, especially west of d.c. temps in the low 50s topping out in the mid-50s as winds go to the northwest at about 8, 9, 10 miles an hour here by 4:00 p.m. and by 8:00 we're back in the upper 40s. we dip into the 30s by tomorrow morning. you'll notice one area of rain. that came through overnight. this morning got the second batch coming out of west virginia weakening some. we still have the showers that are coming in toward the shenandoah valley along route 66 now headed right toward fairfax county. you can see this on live doppler 9000hd. that sliver of showers right along 66. on 81 south straussburg down through new market, harrisonburg and mount jackson. locally chantilly over to fairfax seeing the showers, down through prince william county, central and northern fauquier county with the heavier stuff on the eastern shore. and north of town, you just might not see that much more in the way of rainfall from this next batch of rain. temperatures up north into the

low 40s. still 52, though, low 50s in fredricksburg, manassas with the rain 46 along with annapolis. we've got 52 at the pacs naval air station. in spite of the light showers on our weather camera and 49 degrees and calm winds. we'll have those showers around this morning but the afternoon turns sunny. temperatures into the mid 50s. for tonight we're dipping into the 30s. tomorrow not bad finish to the week with sunshine. about 53 for the high. saturday cool, 50 with a few more clouds late in the day. mayben early rain or shower or flurry on sunday morning but sunday not bad at all. partly sunny. highs in the upper 40s. it's now 6:16. monika, things going from bad to worse? absolutely bad to worse. we have a traffic alert n. is a live look from sky 9 on the northbound side of i-270 on the spur before montrose road but after democracy boulevard. it was a two-vehicle accident.

a tractor-trailer tried to miss the accident and jackknifed in the meantime. so now they have two separate situations to deal with on the 270 spur. corporal langley tells me you can exit at democracy boulevard but all these people here are stuck in between. so they're sending units out to figure out what to do with the people stuck in between. if you're just heading out the door, of course you want to avoid this situation all together and avoid the spur. i think it's going to abwhile before they can open -- to be a while before they can open up the lanes. they're waiting for a tow truck to help with the jackknifed tractor-trailer and cleanup at the accident scene continues as well. let me show what you it looks like on a map so you get some perspective on the northbound side of the spur. it's right here before montrose road. for all of you that head on the inleer:of the -- inner loop of the beltway, you want to continue on the beltway and go ahead and exit at route 355. 355. then you'll just avoid that delay all together. if you're one of those that heads on the outer loop of the beltway, we'll take a live look

there at connecticut avenue. this is not affecting your drive after connecticut. you can exit on to 270 beyond the accident. it is not affecting that side of 270. we'll go back to a live look from sky 9 once again. it's going to be a while before they can clean up this accident. two vehicles and now a jackknifed tractor-trailer as well. maryland state police are on the scene. i'll keep you posted on this situation. back to you. we are getting a chance to peer into the future. the big yellow bus is stopping in alexandria, virginia at thomas jefferson high school. the work high school students are doing there in neuroscience is amazing. they are moving things with their mind. >> try to move forward. there you go. >> reporter: the power of positive thinking can be a moving experience. >> i've been training for months to learn how to meditate to control the chair. >> reporter: after months of studying the brain and with

help from research partners, he is moving his wheelchair with his mind. >> we can see the data for the left and right side of the brain. >> reporter: the red cap is picking up brain waves, the part we access to move our extremities. the wires on the cab send the signals to a computer which relays those commands to a motorized wheelchair. think it and the chair moves. the students at the high school came up with the idea in 2005. >> the name we've used is mind controlled wheelchair. >> reporter: ever since it started seven years ago, seniors in his neuroscience class have picked up the project trying to advance the research each year and it's taken a giant leap forward this year. it was even recognized by president obama. >> they can do much more than they think they can do. >> the hardest part of this is actually concentrating. >> reporter: students get help from neurological experts at

northwest university. national instruments provided the microprocessor which talks to the wheelchair. partnerships like these are essential according to the doctor and not just for financial support. >> if you have just the teacher and the students, what is doable is constrained by the knowledge and the skills of the teacher. those are the boundaries. you're not going to step outside that ballpark. >> reporter: that's also why he took his students to the society of neuroscience conference in d.c. this year. >> we're able to see their implementation of real scientists if around the world actually and what they've done. >> reporter: they never imagine add career in neuroscience before the class but now they can't imagine doing anything else. but they're not done with their moving experience at thomas jefferson just yet. >> we would write a program that would essentially train the computer to learn what to look for in each person's

brain. >> is that wild? is that amaze something imagine the applications? troops coming home from war and they're quadriplegics and can't move. they can just think and move t. if you have a cool school, e- mail me and maybe we'll be profiling your school. it was just breaght taking. it really -- breathtaking. it really with us-- >> it really was. >> 11 of the semifinalists from virginia came from thomas jefferson high school. amazing. our time is 6:21. we're ready to reveal the winners in our kindle fire sweepstakes. >> all you had to do was like us on facebook and you were entered. the winners are? >> joanne sutton and don murray. congratulations to joanne and don. you don't have to do a thing. we will contact you and tell you how you'll be getting your kindle fire. >> you'll be -- we'll be giving away more stuff on our facebook stage so go to

facebook.com/wusa9 and like us and you'll be ready for the next sweepstakes. today's question of the morning is women tend to get a better deal when than men when shopping for one of these. is it a, a cell phone, that's my guess, b, a car or c, a computer. >> our facebook friend amanda made us laugh. she writes a, a cell phone. no, dad has always been good at getting good deals. b, a car, no, dad is good with this too. so it's got to be c, a computer. dang it, dad is also good at that too. >> came do you think is the correct answer -- what do you think is the correct answer? we'll tell you at 6:53.

never in my lifetime did i think i could walk 60 miles in 3 days. 60 miles in 3 days is-- is huge. if my mom can fight and beat breast cancer, i can walk 60 miles. you just put one foot in front of the other, and you know that you're walking for such a great cause that you just keep going. (man) that you have all these people coming together for one common goal. (woman) the goal is to bring an end to breast cancer. (woman) the fund-raising was the easiest part. people were very giving. complete strangers wanting to help. if i can do this, you definitely can do this. (woman) i'll never stop walking, not till we find a cure.

(woman) and it has to end, but it starts with us. i knew someday i was gonna do this walk. it is the most rewarding experience i have ever had in my entire life. we can do this. you can do this. we can all do this together. (man) register today for the... and receive $25 off your registration fee. because everyone deserves a lifetime.

welcome back. 6:25. your weather first. we've got some showers out there. you can see them along 66 toward the eastern shore and this next batch of rain looks like it's going to mainly hit from d.c. and points south for the next several hours. so we've got some rain in the forecast this morning but sunshine by midday. mid-afternoon temperatures will

top out a lot cooler than yesterday but still not bad, in the middle 50s. andrea and mike? >> thank you, howard. in sports the capitals brief run the top of the southeast division is over. >> they'll be back. they're back in second place at least for now. caps skated against the panthers last night. florida scored three times in the third alone. caps lose 4-2. they take on montreal on saturday. wizards also in florida last night taking on the magic. brian anderson hit three six pointers for erld. -- ford on. had 23 points overall. wizards lose 109-103. nick young had 24 points for the wiz. one uconn fan calls last night's game against georgetown embarrassing. that fan would be this guy, the one sitting next to me. the hoyas hosted the huskies. they win 58-44.

that's right, 44 points for mike's guys. the fewest points connecticut has scored in 13 years. lucky number for them. maryland went looking for its first win in miami since 1970. the terps rallied back from a 16-point deficit in the second half to go to double overtype. miami freshman shane larkin scored six points in double ot and the terps still haven't found that wing in miami. they lose it. monika has an update on the mess on the 270 spur. a check on the presidential campaign. learn the words that tripped up mitt romney and the endorsement newt gingrich is expected to pick up today.

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. welcome back. we're back at 6:31 with a traffic alert. monika has been telling you about this. this is awful. sky 9 over northbound 270 spur just past democracy boulevard. you can see the accident there, the flashing lights. two separate wrecks have closed the road. police just started letting some cars go by on the right shoulder. coming up in just a moment, monika is going to tell you how to get around this if this is part of your commute this morning. thank you for starting your thursday with us. i'm andrea roane. hope the day is going better for you. mike hydeck here. glad you're with us. howard bernstein live on the weather terrace, umbrella in hand. it is warm yuf without the coat -- warm enough without the coat. >> it's barely raining. i think i can put this down right now. in other spots it's not barely

raining and that will be the case for the next few hours. we'll have showers around but a much better afternoon and much cooler than yesterday when we made it up to 72. our day planner on this thursday morning calling for the showers around for a few more hours. by noon, though, sunny, 53. we'll top out about 55 with a 5:00 p.m. temperature of 54 degrees. two batches of rain have kind of become one elongated one along route 66. you see that second area coming in from west virginia. showers from front royal through central and northern fauquier county through much of prince william and fairfax now coming through the district. everything is sliding off to the east or slightly south of the east. north of d.c., you get north of leesburg and rockville, i don't think we're going to see too much more. temps 40s to low 50s. we just talked about the problems on 270. that's right. the weather is mild but the traffic stinks. take a look at this. on the northbound side of the 270 spur, maryland state police have been dealing with a multivehicle crash and a jackknifed tractor-trailer for about 45 minutes now and they

just opened that right shoulder. you can see traffic trying to squeeze through on the right shoulder past the accident scene northbound on the 270 spur after democracy but before montrose road. you know, all the lanes were blocked long enough that it's caused that one big delay. i know it's after river road on the inner loop of the beltway and then solid on the spur. so if you're one of those commuters that uses this as your route in the morning, i suggest that you avoid the spur all together, even though you see the right shoulder getting by. it's going to take a while for such a big backup to clear up. i'll show you on a map to give you perspective of where it is and then what you can do. the delay on the inner loop begins after river road and then on the spur it is solid trying to get through the accident scene with the right shoulder getting by. what you can do is go ahead and stay on the inner loop and use 355 as your alternate route even though georgetown road will work. let's show what you it looks like on the southbound side of 270. i think this delay is because everyone can see what's going on on the southbound side as

well, although the lanes southbound have remained open this whole time. we'll show you what it looks like on the outer loop of the beltway. normal slow traffic from 95 to georgia avenue. again northbound 270 spur before montrose road. only the right shoulder gets by the accident. i will of course keep you posted on the situation there. coming up at 6:43. back to you. >> thank you, monika. so far a smooth morning commute on metro, fingers crossed, but you never know when a problem like a cracked rail is going to pop up. >> that's because they've been popping up a lot more in the last two years. delia goncalves is tracking it for us, pun intended. she's live at tinley town station. >> reporter: hopefully on smooth cracks. this was the scene. we were here last week when there were some major cracks here and a huge delay for lots of passengers. i just heard back from metro spokesperson dan who e-mailed me a short time ago saying it's important to note that this

january and last january we had six breaks so it appears that the numbers are about the same for this year and last year. let's take a look at numbers, though, for the last three years that shows a pretty dangerous trend that's scary for a lot of folks. 19 rail cracks in 2009. 33 cracked rails in 2010 and last year we suffered through 49 rail cracks. i'm told these breaks could be caused by cold, water corrosion, or simply a misalignment of the rails. and when the trains pass over those misaligns rails, it causes stress and therefore they break. so metro says they're working on the problem but it's going to be a long fix. in the meantime metro says the best recourse for passengers, keep your phones handy. sign up for metro text alerts so at least you can get a heads up. maybe reroute your commute when and if the next break happens. mike, back to you. >> good advice.

those text alerts, you get the information ahead of time. thank you. delia is live at the tinley town metro station. thanks, delia. at 6:36 we turn to the presidential campaign. we're just two days away from the caucus in nevada. mitt romney is defending something he said to abc news. listen for yourself. >> i'm not concerned about the very poor. we have a safety net there. if it needs repair, i'll fix it. i'll not concerned about the very rich. they're doing just fine. i'm concerned about the very heart of america, the 90%, 95% of americans who right now are struggling and i'll continue to take that message across the nation. >> people picked up on just the one line on twitter about "i'm not concerned about the poor." his opponents pounced as well. >> i am fed up with politicians in either party dividing americans against each other.

>> later this morning, newt gingrich will pick up the endorsement of businessman and reality tv star donald trump. >> president obama is proposing new laws to allow more americans to refinance their mortgage. the president announced the plan wednesday in his speech at james lee recreation center in falls church. if approved, the changes could help more than three million homeowners whose loans are not held by freddie mac or fannie mae. it could also help more people who are under water on their mortgages and now owe more than their homes are actually worth. >> folks who shop for a home that they could afford, secured a mortgage, made their payment each month, they were hurt badly by the irresponsible actions of other people. >> however, the republican controlled congress would have to pass the president's proposal and that is unlikely to happen, especially in an election year.

coming up on 6:38, jessica doyle is watching your money. she's in the web center. >> that's right. good morning. i'm helping you make more money on the side. depending on who you ask, the average working american is not making any more money right now than back in 1999 when you factor in inflation and costs but we need more money for a new car, for our kid's college fund, maybe retirement. so here's some ideas for making money in a side job with opportunities you can find online. first up, check out this website. it's a website that sells hand made goods a lot like amazon for the crafty folks. if you make stuff at home, you can sell your stuff right here. next up, we have free lanceswitch.com. you'll find a directory of freelance jobs. there's a focus on graphic design, writing and programming so it really runs the gamut. in the same vein, we have elance.com. you'll find software development, partialing and

research. finally, do you like kids? sitters.com will help you find a job as a baby-sitter, nanny, pet sitter, tutor and senior care provider so you can even like pets instead of kids. every little bit helps, guys. there you go. >> we already know that just having a pet will lower your blood pressure. the smithsonian said go ahead, make my night. clint eastwood showed up. >> the hollywood legend came to washington last night to help open the new warner bros. museum at the museum of natural history. he also received the bicentennial medal. the knew 3-d theater will show free screenings of humphrey bogart films this weekend. time now 6:39. february is national heart month. in nine minutes we'll help you get heart healthy as we talk with a cardiologist. howard says it will only be in the 50s today. still not too bad for february.

good day to take a walk. a look ahead to the weekend straight ahead.

never in my lifetime did i think i could walk 60 miles in 3 days. if my mom can fight and beat breast cancer, i can walk 60 miles. (woman) the fund-raising was the easiest part. people were very giving. complete strangers wanting to help. i knew someday i was gonna do this walk. if i can do this, you definitely can do this. we can do this. we can all do this together. (man) register today for the... and receive $25 off your registration fee. because everyone deserves a lifetime.

good morning. 6:43. we have a traffic alert on the northbound side of the 270 spur. you're looking live at the accident scene. it's been ongoing for about an hour now before montrose road but after democracy boulevard. traffic is now getting by along the right side of the roadway. but it was blocked long enough to cause delays for about two miles heading northbound from the beltway on to the spur and past the accident scene. this involves several vehicles and a jack knifed tractor- trailer and that is why maryland state police had to block off the road for such a long time. sky 9 is now panning and zooming out to show you the delay. again which begins on the inner loop of the beltway trying to get up the spur. so if you're just heading out the door and you know about this now, plan ahead and do not get yourself stuck in this traffic. i'm going to first show you the

delay at bradley boulevard coming off the inner loop of the beltway. you can see there all that red. those are the brake lights on the inner loop right here trying to get on to the spur. stick to the inner loop and use 355 as your alternate to get north. then you can work your way back to 270 if there's where you needed to go in the rockville or bethesda area. we'll show you what it looks like on the southbound side of 270. this is your gawkers block. you have all the lanes open but everyone on the southbound side can see what's going on the northbound spur. that'sities' caused this delay. two lanes -- that's why it's caused this delay. two lanes getting by to the right. i'm going to end with a live look in virginia at least with some good news. it looks great here in landmark. a few brake lights before you get to shirlington and the 14th street bridge. an update on the spur at 6:58. back to you. at least it's not all bad this morning for commuters. a few sprinkles this morning. will that continue through the day? >> no, it's going to end here mid- to late morning. better chance also for this

next batch of rain to get areas that are along and south of that line. let's say interstate 66 over to route 50. you're south of those areas and south of washington, better chances of rain. up north you may be done in places like germantown and frederick. here's a look at the bus stop forecast. we've got those scattered showers around right now. wet streets as monika was just showing you and temperatures from the low 40s north to the low 50s in southern areas. sunrise 7:14. won't see the sunrise due to the clouds but we will definitely see the sun set. the sunshine will be returning midday. 54 by 1:00. not too much warmer than that the. 55. some areas maybe 56, 57. that's still a good 15 degrees cooler than yesterday. 72, not a record but a way too warm day for early february and by 5:00 p.m. we're back down to 54 with northwest winds 5 to 10. batch of rain which pushed through overnight this is toward the delmarva, parts of senior maryland and the -- of southern maryland and the

eastern shore. this is what we've got to get through the next several hours before we'll see the sunshine this afternoon and see a few leftier showers across parts of the shenandoah valley getting into the park and fauquier county. north of town again not that much activity. some light stuff may get over toward winchester and martinsburg. it's these areas along and south of 66 like this shower north and west of warrenton. it's all moving towards the east, southeast. we'll have to watch out for that the heavy stuff just about to move in toward easton as well on the eastern shore. and some lighter showers here in washington. and if you guys in southern maryland, well, you're going to see more showers on and off. there it is north of amissville and northwest of warrenton. that has a little left to it and slow you -- a little heft to it and slow you down this morning. mid-40s north to around 50 south of town. a little recovery and mid-50s later on. as we look at forecast today, 55, afternoon sunshine. 30s tonight. low 50s tomorrow to about low

50s on saturday. sunday could be early rain or snow shower. highs in the up ir40s -- upper 40s. february is here even though it doesn't feel like it temperature wise. it's also american heart month. tomorrow is the day to wear red to raise awareness for heart disease in women. some heart healthy advice for both sexes. we're joined by dr. susan bennet, card olist at -- cardiologist at american heart center. over the years we heard that men are always the focus of news stories. but more and more women are getting spoken about. are they getting the message and changing their lifestyle? >> it's definitely making a difference, all the campaigns like the american heart association go red for women campaign and other campaigns have increased awareness. we've seen that over half of the women now can tell us that heart disease is a very important disease for women to pay attention to. unfortunately they often think it's somebody else, another

woman, not themselves that's at risk. still some work. >> we want to help people to pay attention and save their lives. what are some of the risk factors to look out for? >> one of the biggest risk factors for men and women is smoking. it's a very potent risk factor. other things are hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes and lifestyle things. poor diet, poor nutrition, being overweight and not exercising much. >> are a lot of these found in regular checkups or should there be more screenings throughout the year for women in high risk pools? >> one way to approach it is when you come in for thage physical, your doctor will choke your blood pressure and off -- will check your blood pressure and often your cholesterol. ask what your numbers are and don't -- if your doctor says it's fine, say what is it? what's your blood pressure. it should be less than 120 over 80. >> there's a kit available that can help you chart your

progress yes, med star washington hospital center has had a campaign called listen to your heart. you can go onon your website and -- you can go on their website and get sent a tool kit. >> tomorrow is the big we are red day. we have these pins we'll show you tomorrow and they're nice enough to turn jib people with ties as well -- to furnish people with ties as well.

it is 6:53. we're looking at some showers around especially along and south of 66 and south of route 50. we'll have the showers for a few more showers and sunshine midday. afternoon highs in the mid 50s.

andrea? >> thank you, howard. today is thursday, february 2. here's a check on the news before you go. federal workers could be in for a third straight year of a pay freeze. the house approved a bill stopping any pay hikes for the feds and for congress. it would not affect the military. the plan now heads to the senate. a d.c. police officer is recovering after she was hurt on a motorcade detail. she was hit by another car and thrown from her motorcycle yesterday afternoon at 14th and f streets in northwest. she's expected to survive. the capitals allowed the panthers to score three times in the third period last night. d.c. loses to florida 4-2. the loss knocked the caps out of first place in the southeast division. time now to reveal the answer to our question of the morning. here was the question. women tend to get a better deal than men when they're shopping for one of these things. is it a, a cell phone, b, a car, or c, a computer? >> always the surprise answer,

it is b, they get a better deal than men on a car. >> interesting. >> if you believe it. >> not going to say how my wife bought a car. i wish we got a better deal. one more check of weather when 9news now continues.

welcome back. 6:58. we've got some rain showers around this morning but the afternoon turns sunny, mild, not at warm but mild in the mid- 50s. 30s tonight with 50s tomorrow. maybe a shower or even a flurry possible sunday morning. that's pretty low chances. monika? big story of the morning has been this accident on the 270 spur northbound before montrose road. you're taking a look live at it from sky 9. it was to vehicles and a jackknifed tractor- trailer. you've got two right lanes now getting by but look at the delay on the inner loop. it begins right after river

road on our mdot camera as you try to head north on to the 270 spur. i was going to call it about two miles -- two mai delays head -- two-mile delays. the two right lanes are getting by. this is 95. incident free through springfield. we had a big rally yesterday on wall street. this morning we're looking higher as well. cbs this morning is next. get this. they're going to have scientists on who believe sugar is just as dangerous to your health and alcohol and tobacco. also, a rare glimpse behind the scenes with the patriots and the coach bill belichick. we'll be back in 25 minutes with a live check of weather and traffic. you can get weather and traffic all at wusa9.com. we'll be back with you bright and early tomorrow morning at 4:25. till then have a great day. look at punxsutawney phil. the celebration continues.