bradenton 69. bartow, one of the coolest spots on the map at 66 degrees. most of us above the average high for this time of year. to start the day. we should be low to mid-50s but tomorrow still above average from start-to-finish but with the extra clouds and chance of rain and storms through the day that will at least keep our temperatures lower than what they are today. cooler air arrives early friday. dry from start-to-finish. and then the weekend comes. this is where there are a bunch of question marks about the timing, intensity and the temperatures. associated with this next area of low pressure that will roll across the state and bring possibly some slightly cooler air reinforced behind that system. so, again, we'll continue to fine tune this forecast but there is at least a chance there could be some strong-to- severe storms throughout the weekend. so we want to continue to update you on that and of course we will. this is florida's most accurate 7-day forecast. find me on facebook and twitter. >>> 6:18. caught on camera -- a clerk fights off an ar

and let's move into bradenton, bradenton, step away from the microwave and check out what's going on here. we have 31 blocked both directions at 63rd avenue east. meliek on the street is live. and looks like we have a tow truck onscene. this is good news here. hopefully it will wrap up soon. right now, the investigation still going on. so 15th street is the alternate instead of 301. back to gene and gayle. >> thank you, leslee. >>> 8 on your side is revealing a frightening report about the people who take care of our children at school. a state report found dozens of educator ins sarasota county did not undergo background checks as required by law. >> our ryan hughes joins us live at the sarasota county school head quarters. the state randomly picked 80 workers and found more than half never under we want the rescreenings. >> reporter: gene, good morning to you. the report shows that the here in sarasota randomly and discovered that more than half did not undergo the background check. a glaring report found that dozens of workers employed by the sarasota school district never had bac

>>> a shooting overnight on the streets of bradenton. i'm lindsay logue with those breaking details right now at 5:30. >> also this morning, a tweet sent by former florida governor jeb bush is spreading like wildfire now but not in a good way. what he posted just three days before the next presidential primary. >> and dishing up a new "dirty dining" report. the famous tampa restaurant facing more than 200 violation this is morning. >>> thank you for joining us on this wednesday. >> leave extra time to get where you're going this morning. there's a lot of fog out there. you're tracking where it's thickest but you say visibility is low in places? >> yes, in some places, but not we're going to have pockets of very dense fog, we're talking under a quarter-mile in spots. use extreme caution. then there you see a quarter mile then your next door neighbor 10-mile visibility which is unlimited essentially. that is the issue. and janelle is going to show you the different traffic cameras depicting just that, very foggy ones and ones not as foggy.

. >>> still to come, big crowds are expected in bradenton but the skies are off limit. >> drones are banned from a regatta this weekend because it could cause a lot of ba da ba ba ba >> there will be a no-drone zone in bradenton for the regatta. thousands will crowd the river walk. you have the fireworks. >> yes. >> yes. fire officials are worried that drones can be a danger. john rogers joins us live in bradenton with more. >> reporter: more and more people are buying these drones. they don't wanted to take any chances with the event this weekend. this saturday, some of the fastest boats in the country >> you will see a super saturday. california might have superbowl sunday. bradenton, palmetto, super saturday. >> reporter: while 100,000 people will be focused on the water, law enforcement will be focused on the skies making sure there are no drones. copters are not allowed at the event. >> there are two reasons. interference and safety. >> reporter: while the race is going on, helicopters will be flying overhead looking out for manatees. officials don't want the drones interfering

in the bradenton and palmetto area, keep that in mind. and over here in polk county, folk, eastbound i-4 just past the polk parkway, fhp says we have a crash there. no delays but a possible fatal accident so we will keep an eye on that throughout the morning. that's a look at weather and traffic on the 8s. back to gene and gayle. >> thank you so much. >>> well, we are just days away from the gasparilla distance classic. >> and when we hit the starting line, there will be a lot of new shoes on the route. how metropolitan ministries is benefiting from someone called the shoe giver. >>> and big changes for cuba. up next, news channel 8's jeff patterson is in havana with a look at how traveling to the >>> this morning the u.s. takes another step towards normalizing u.s. relations with cuba. patterson is in cuba to explain how this relates toward the move of lifting embargo. >> reporter: the u.s. secretary of transportation is scheduled to be here in havana today to sign a historic agreement that will allow u.s. commercial airlines to fly here

back to you. >>> breaking news in bradenton. deputies on the scene of a shooting that sent one person to the hospital. shots were fired along 5th street east in bradenton early this morning. our assignment desk is making phone calls now to find out if deputies are actively looking for the gunman. keep it here, we have a crew headed to the scene and we'll bring you live updates as soon as we get new information. >>>>>> a university of tampa bay football star in big trouble, busted by pinellas county deputies as part of an internet sex sting. rodney dunigan joins us live in pinellas county outside the jail this morning. this is part of a very lengthy investigation. this guy's name is mckenzie mac crowder, 23 years old, investigators say he bonded out a few hours ago, bond set at $50,000 so he's a free man this morning. this 23-year-old football star started an on-line conversation with what he thought was a 14- year-old girl, turns out that 14-year-old girl was a detective. he didn't find that out until he showed up yesterday for

and five degrees warmer in bradenton. we don't have the thick fog this morning but we may see lowering of clouds around 7:00 this morning. what i want you to notice is, sea fog hanging just off the coast may sit around all day long. and it's going to be warm and humid with the high of 830. in weather and traffic on the 8s at 4:38, i take you through eight days and what temperatures you can expect. >>> we have a good drive as far as congestion is concerned, we don't have that but we have issues and they are in the sarasota and bradenton area. and let's start off in the sun coast area for our friends that live down there. what you need to know before you head out the door, 301 both directions is blocked at 63rd avenue east and that's due to an unfortunate fatal crash this morning. 15th street is a good alternate in sarasota, you've got the left lane take anway both northbound and southbound on i- 75 to construction for that diverging diamond intersection. and university is blocked both directions underneath the interstate.

bradenton, south 75 past state some lanes. downtown st. pete, injury accident, central avenue at 119 street. that's a look at weather and traffic on the 8s. back to gene and gayle. >> all right. thank you so much. >>> well, the music world is >> straight ahead, the newest piano prodigy that's barking up a new tune. >>> and then a 9-year-old who packs quite a punch. coming up, we will meet this pint-sized fighter whose future is very bright. >>> move over ronda rousey, this little girl is making the rounds and winning fights. but has the heart of a seasoned fighter. she has been boxing since she was seven years old. her dad took up the sport to lose weight but all she wanted to do was get in the ring. >> i won my first match and i felt so good when they pulled up my hand because it was my first match and i won. and now i'm undefeated. i can't wait for the next fight. >> you go girl, right? she is now training for the golden gloves and her coach is a former pro boxer. he claims he has never seen such young talent combined with such strong de

lindsey mastis is live from fhp in bradenton. it's really impacting people in our area. >> reporter: it is. just this morning, hearing not crash, that's not the only one we have this morning, and it's morning. that's exactly why the florida highway patrol is doing this awareness week they are meet here at 10:30, really focusing on the consequences. they are hoping that will help the drivers realize they need to stop when the crashes happen, and you know, one legal expert tells us there's all kinds of reasons why people are not stopping. >> it could be everything from they are maybe not supposed to be out, maybe they are breaking their curfew or they are on house arrest, or second, they feel the wrong place at the wrong time, and safety may be an issue for them. >> reporter: state law requires drivers to stay on the scene they are also supposed to help anyone injured if they can. legislation from 2014 requires drivers who flee the scene of a of 4 years in prison. the ramifications are something that families like the gimsons know

>>> i'm on top of a hot spot in bradenton. u.s. 301 is shutdown in both directions from a fatal accident at 63rd avenue at state road 70. take u.s. 41 around this. i'll have more detours coming bay area bridges. >>> good wednesday morning. morning. i'm allison kropff. >> i'm mark rivera. >>> in alabama and mississippi six twisters touched down last businesses. >> eight states are under a threat this moment from alabama to indiana. we are talking about severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and even damaging winds. in other parts of the country, flooding. weather experts say you can blame this on one weather system for everything we are seeing across the country. you can see the damaging tornadoes there. look at that wind spinning. somehow nobody was hurt. the damage is extreme. at least six and up to nine tornadoes are been reported in mississippi and alabama. now we know they are all from the threat of severe thunderstorms and flash flooding continues this morning in the southeast. >> the fact is we only lost material things. there

in the garden-like setting of the catholic church in bradenton, 14 statues greet visitors, but one sits empty. somebody made off with the five foot high mother mary statue. the church was upset. was it a heart break to you? >> oh my god it's like what on >> reporter: almost a week after the statue disappeared, a road crew saw it hidden here almost a mile away. >> one of them spotted it and said there's a saint in the bushes here. >> reporter: undamaged and in the same weather worn condition sat. >> they said mary can't be in a bush, so they retrieved her and when the authorities explained where it was from, they brought her to us this morning. >> reporter: church members are relieved the statue is back. >> thank god we found her, oh my gosh. >> reporter: happy about that? >> yeah, i love the blessed mother. she means a lot to me. >> i don't know why anybody would do something like that. crazy world now days. >> reporter: your reaction now that it's back? >> really bad. >> reporter: they figure the thieves found out the bolts rusted after rocking the statue. >> reporter: she'll undergo r

fbi bradenton amother says something bad almost happened to her daughter. she didn't want us to use her name or show her face. they grabbed by daughter and proceeded to pull her that way, that direction. >> are her 1-year-old daughter was walking with her friend before 6:15 p.m. >> she got loose and ran to her friend and the friend had already began to run. they called 911. >> reporter: bradenton detectives searched the neighborhood. i know the guy is still throughout. >> reporter: detectives say there was a drunk man in the area approaching kids but no attempted abduction. >> i don't see why she'd be so upset if nothing happened. keep your kids close. you can't trust anybody or any area. it doesn't matter the part of town you live in or who you are. it doesn't matter. these people are anywhere and everywhere. >> reporter: detectives ruled this suspicious . if you have information about the case call the bradenton police department. thank you. now to breaking news. sarasota police are investigating a double shooting the leg and rushed to the hospital the in

bradenton is 58. cooler in northern areas. 51 in brooksville. i checked in with the weather watcher betty in plant city and she says 54. let's go through the long range forecast. high pressure has been keeping us nice and sunny through the weekend but it will bring us a southerly wind. one storm system stays to the north torso we only add in a 30% chance of a few afternoon showers but watch what happens on wednesday. a stronger storm system will come through across the gulf of mexico, a line of storms late wednesday, then much cooler, we go from highs in the upper 70s today, tomorrow and wednesday. to highs only in the low 60s. leslee, how about traffic on the 8's? speeds but we have accidents that pop apd. keeping an eye on -- popping up. keeping an eye on this one. this is in lanes, seeing a slow down here southbound on bruce b i-75. the morning. there is a lot of construction in the area as well. george road. this is off to the side of the roadway. great drive on the courtney cam bale causeway. it will take you seven minutes to travel between

and let's hop down into bradenton, 53rd avenue east at 56th court. and fog on i-4 right around mango road. and also thick i-75 at fowler ba da ba ba ba >>> 6:30 on this wednesday morning. welcome to news channel 8 today. i'm gene ramirez. >> and i'm gayle guyardo. in our top stories this morning, allison huffman, the woman accused of hitting and killing a tow truck driver on the howard franklin bridge is still behind bars this morning. she has a $750,000 bond. this is not huffman's first arrest. 8 on your side dug up her >>> a suspect in a sextortion case. he is accused of contacting an 11-year-old using a messaging app. the girl told her father who contacted polk deputies. >>> a live look at a foggy morning in the bay area. you can see it's soupy as you head out the door. give yourself extra time for morning commute. this say live picture where conditions are soup this morning. and some parts it looks clear but you never know when you will drive right into that. >> exactly right. so leaving downtown tampa and heading east, you will say it's nice whe

i'm the first female chief in bradenton. but it transcends male or female but who you are, the ethics you bring to the profession and to the job. >> she serveed 3 0 years with the st. pete police department before pursuing that position as bradenton's new chief. >>> florida law that helps disabled drivers could go national. davidally -- david jolly offered self-service to place that decal on the pump with the number that way if disabled drivers need help they can call someone for assistance. >> you see on many pumps there may be a red button. perhaps it is out of reach. some don't have one at all. >> it was an ordinance in hillsborough but became law in the state of florida. >>> only donald trump would attack the last republican president in a republican debate. poll numbers show it may have paid off for him. and craig patrick is here to tell us why. >> you had the pundits after the debate saying that donald trump cannot do this without hurting himself. you don't go after a republican president where the former president is

pactually up closer to 60 in pbrandon, bradenton, sarasota. pwhile we look at temperatures, pyou're saying that's lovely pstuff, dave. pgoing to be in 70s. pno it's still i think going to pstay in the 60s for highs. pright now we're 16 to 20 degrees pcolder than we were yesterday at pthis time. pbrisk winds, seven to 14 miles er hour. pseeing a few gusts over 20. pthis hour as well. pand i think even with sunshine ptoday, thanks to that northwest pwind, what we're going to, we're pgoing to keep temperatures in pmid 60s for highs. pnot bad late february. pyeah we're ten degrees below pnormal. pit's been worse. pmostly clear tonight. pnow grab your jackets tonight pfor most of us getting back into pthe 40s. pthen 62 tomorrow. psunshine and unseasonably cool pweather. lease stay off the coastal pwaters again. pi know that front is well pthrough and sun's out you got to pgive it one more day out in pgulf. pnext seven days you see that no prain chances to speak of and ptemperatures stay on punseasonably cool side for at pleast through saturday. pan

i'm also on top of an accident in manatee county in bradenton. this one is on cortez road at 20th street. injuries are reported. you have police as well as e.m.s. on scene. it looks like a couple lanes are blocked at the intersection. so far you can see you are in the green. polk county drive times look great. lakeland on i-4 eastbound through westbound between polk parkway east and west is taking you 13 minutes. if you have any problems on the roads send me an e-mail. i'm your road warrior. i'll look into any traffic if you see a safety issue i'll get you answered. my e-mail is roadwarrior@wtsp.com. >>> we are off to a nice start for your monday. a lot of cloud cover. we are doing okay this morning as far as visibility. we are not seeing any thick fog. it has warmed up our temperatures or rather kept them from cooling off overnight having a blanketing effect. we have a lot of 50s and 60s. 58 sarasota. 59 bartow. looking quiet over the performing arts center in sarasota. we have a good amount of cloud cover and moisture out there. it is not at th

let's take a look at bradenton now. you're leaving bradenton headed into sarasota at university parkway. that is where the county line is. we're seeing a little bit of a delay southbound because crews are out there picking up the cones and clearing the construction that is tying up two lanes and has had the exit to university from southbound i-75 blocked so you want to keep that in mind. move over and take a live look here at 275 at fowler avenue. traffic getting busier but holding on to a nice drive. back to gene and gayle. >>> spring training is starting in the bay area but this morning, you won't see the fanatic anywhere near clear water. >> very funny. >>> fulfilling three promises during a wedding ceremony high in the sky. the unconventional wedding that brought customers to tears. . >>> a washington couple is still on cloud nine after a touching and unusual wedding ceremony. christy larson married the man of her dreams 30,000 feet up in the air and she did it for her cancer. they planned to grant her to see where

in bradenton, clifton french, abc action news. weather team in florida, abc action weather. >> it's like the wild weather day out there. hope. ly it will calm down a little bit. >> as many warnings and watches we had, no reports of damage across our area. honestly it could have been a lot worse, even with all that was going on. now, the beach is getting a little choppy out there and the winds will continue to pick up out of the northwest. that will bring in colder air. and there is a look at rainfall totals. this is the good news out of it. it's actually, believe it or not, been dry over the last couple of weeks. a lot of folks picked up between one to two inches of rain. that extends all the way up, down along i-4. so you don't have to put water in your pool because there was plenty of water across the i-4 corridor. look at pasco county, no measurable rain. you get no rain in pasco. measurable rain. and then bulls eye from i-4 over to the beach. and then manatee county as well. about an inch and a half of rain in central manatee county with temperatures right now primarily in the mid-70

lot better but there's a fatal crash in bradenton. there. tons of flashing lights. killed. this happened at u.s. 301 and 63rd avenue east. u.s. 301 blocked now, both northbound and southbound while crews continue to investigate out there. i can tell you this is just if you're in the bradenton area and heading out the door now map. here's where the crash is, your alternates, take whitfield to 15th street east or even 33rd street, both of those as we zoom in, you can see they are in the green, so not seeing any backups there, it's still early as the morning commute pushes on, we might start to see more congestion on the alternates. i'll keep an eye on it and let you know how they are doing along with when 301 reopens. elsewhere we're in pretty good shape. this is what it looks like on the tampa side of the howard frankland bridge. no crashes or breakdowns. traffic up to speed. how long is it going to take to you get across? 9 minutes across the causeway, 6 across the howard frankland. just 8 minutes to cross the gandy bridge. >>> :5:50. consumer alert for toyota. faulty compu

let's talk about bradenton. big issue going on in the sun coast area for those of you who live down here, 301 is blocked both directions at 63rd avenue east. and take 15th street instead. street. he has a live view of the double fatal crash that has both lanes take anway at 301. again, it's 63rd. and you can activity out there, doesn't look like it's going to be clearing any time soon. i will keep an eye on it for you throughout the morning commute. that's a look at weather and traffic on the 8s. now back to gene and gayle. >>> 8 on your side is revealing parents uncomfortable this morning. we dug up a state audit that found glaring errors involving the very people who work with our children. the report shows dozens of educators in sarasota county did not undergo background checks as required by law.

this was at a bradenton's walgreens. david west was visiting his girlfriend at the farm. and i unlucky for the criminal, west is also a trained fighter. he did some damage here. when he saw the thief trying to steal the medication, he jumped into action. down the would-be robber until the cops arrived. >>> this is exciting, more big changes at tampa international airport today. it's the grand opening for two food companies, bay coffee and tea company and aunt ann's will open. the new restaurants are part of a $1 billion expansion project at the airport. >>> so exciting to see the airport grow like that, isn't it? >> it is. and one of my favorite airports in the world. it is so efficient and now we have local companies that you will be able to eat, love it. >>> 5:08, comfortable. one of the reasons people might be coming into our airport because our weather is so great the this time of the year. 51 degrees at 8:00 a.m. we warm up to 67 quickly by lunchtime. and 73 at 3:00 p.m. and now after 3:00, i think that's when the winds get stronger. so there will be an evening breez

ptampa at 53 degrees and mid 50s paround the bradenton area. pwe'll quickly, and i mean pby 9:00 we'll be close to 60 pdegrees. pby noon time, close to 70 with plow to mid 70s expected for high ptemps this afternoon. pvanessa? p>>vanessa: so far it's been an puneventful day on the roadways. pthe latest crash we're following pis causing some concerns but preally, delays are not terrible pat this point. lan for five minutes or so of pdelays northbound along 50th pstreet. pthis is the sky fox shot near pthe selmon expressway where pwe're seeing a crash that's pblocking maybe one, possibly two artially right lanes so just premember your move over law in pthat area. pyou're probably going to be pslowing down anyways because it pis a bit of a congested area panyways. pso five minutes is your travel ptime through that stretch. pwe'll keep you posted how this pclears out. p>>russell: well, beyonce may not phave many fans of the tampa olice department. pso far, no officers, none were pconcert at raymond james pstadium. pher super bowl performance is pon

that's what a mothers what happened to her in bradenton. it happens a week ago near this intersection. the man grabbedher daughter's arm and tried to pull her away while she was walking away with her friend >> she got loose and ran to her friend and her friend already began to run. they did have their cell phone onthem so they called 911. detectives ruled this case suspicious. >> coming up, rodney looks at the weather report of suspicious activity happening that day in the same area. >>> new this morning, the florida teenager arrested for practicing medicine without a license. he told severalnews outlets, he's denying all fraud charges. >> he called himself doctor love. police arrested him ontuesday at his office on west palm beach. >> he's out on bond and talking for the first time since his arrest >> lindsay logue is live with an update on this story

sheriff says it all started when deputies responded to a fight at a home on boo-kelia circle in bradenton. a woman called 9- 1-1 to say her husband -- 50 year old marc stoddart -- had been drinking and threatening to hurt them both with a knife. the sheriff says when deputies got there the man had cut his wrists and was standing outside holding the knife. the deputies reportedly told the man to drop it -- but they say he charged forward and was shot and killed. the deputy who fired his weapon is on leave while the shooting is under investigation. developing out of st. petersburg, a 4 year off a shot! thankfully, no one was hurt. police say the boy had been playing outside a home on yale street south when he chased a cat under the house. hidden in a crawl space -- the boy found a revolver. he took it onto the porch and fired one round into the ground. the boy's family says the gun does not belong to them. investigators believe someone may have tossed the gun under the home to hide it. terrifying moments for several families in clearwater over the weekend after 2 small children almost drown

. >> bradenton deck tifrs searching this neighborhood, there was a drunk man being reported in the area approaching kids but there is no attempted abduction. >> investigators trying to gather more information and they are asking folks here if they have any information to >> in the meantime, >> keep an eye out for your kids especially in the morning hours when they are headed out the school. now,reporting live until bradenton this morning. >> rodney dunigan abc action news. >>> today city council members will discuss a plan of decriminalize--those found up to 20 grams of marijuana would receive a $70 fine. >> for example, over 100 predators and offenders living in the one mile area of the vmaps neighborhood. draw an ordinance. nearly $50, 000 fine where a woman died after being forcibly removed. back indecember. barbara dawson received to leave the hospital after complaining she was short of break. >> when she did not leave, the hospital called the police who handcuffed her in the parking lot. she died a shorttime later from blood in her lungs. >> the head of the los angeles in bit coins

more than twice what customers in bradenton pay at less than $17 a month. some you're paying is going to overtime. ten employees have racked up at least $100,000 over a decade. one driver claimed $200,000. but you wouldn't guess that based on the dozens of trucks that head back to the yard hours before the shift ends. >> a driver may have to come back to the office or to our yard to attend a meeting. >> that needs to be determined. we have to get out and do an evaluation. >> reporter: as far as the men in truck 1277, one resigned and the other was terminated. >> any of these guys say, we only had six dumpsters to take care of, would they be telling the truth? >> they could be. >> then is that fair to fire them if they don't have enough work to do? >> if they don't have enough work to do, that's something we have already instilled in our employees to report back to our yard with your supervisor. see what other work is out there. >> will we see anybody sitting under a tree for two hours this time next year? >> i don't think you will, i promise you that. >>> n

we're monitoring an overnight shooting in bradenton. one person is in the hospital recoverage from gunshot wounds. abc action news anchor lindsay logue joins us live with an update. good morning, again. >> reporter: good morning. while the victim is in the hospital the shooter at this hour is on the run. deputies are still trying to figure out who pulled the trigger and they are still working to find out if the suspect and the shooter -- or the suspect and the victim rather knew each other. the shooting happened before 2:00 at this house on 114 59th avenue east. dozen of deputies swammed the home and blocked off part of the street overnight. they had evidence markers placed in the road and on the sidewalk near the house. at this point it does look like this is an isolated incident. deputies still can't tell us what led up to the shooting. suspect description but as we said the man shot did survive and can hopefully help determination piece -- deputies piece together this crime. more from the manatee county sheriff's office, as soon as w

across the cultural coast bradenton 75. sarasota 76. polk county upper 70s. dry on our future cast model. our winds will be out of the east to start in the morning. a little east to southeast flow. a few mid and high level clouds possible east of i-75. the beach is staying beautiful for you. if you are taking the boat out seas one to two. bay waters a light chop. tide time early in the morning. last high tide will be late tonight. chance of rain once again late monday night tuesday into tuesday night and the first half of wednesday. looks like we'll see two waves of action there. on and off. your seven-day forecast shaping up like this. warm through the weekend. in fact by monday 79 degrees. starting early tuesday right through midday wednesday. dry and cooler by thursday. you can keep on top of the weather. just download our 10 news app. it is new and improved in the apple and android store. you'll have access to the temperature maps and sky 10 network cameras. >>> if you think you won't fall for a tax scheme think again. i'm mark rivera. all new at 5:30, th

recovered this raccoon in a south bradenton neighborhood. it had a cross bow arrow in its back, and was in extreme pain. it was not alone though. a few weeks earlier they got a similar call from the same neighborhood about a duck shot >> no matter how much of a past wild life can be, they're still protected and you can still be cruel to them. >> reporter: florida strictly forbids intentional cruelty to any animal, including raccoons. it mali officials want to -- you want matily efficients want the public to know this activity is wrong and cruel, and also can be very dangerous. >>> plans are moving forward to extend the semman express way over gandy boulevard. they approved a contract to draw up designs for the promise. they hope to break ground by 2017, and have the road over by 2020. the new road will be 30 feet in the air and connect to the gandy bridge. it will be a toll road, but the amount of the toll hasn't been set yet. >>> a bronze colored fiber glass statue of mother mary stolen almost a week ago from a back on its pedestal. someone

acts stunning the family. >> also new developments this morning after deputy shoots and kills a bradenton man. the deadly encounter forcing them to open fire. >> good morning, we have breaking news, someone was bridge, a tow truck driver was hit, police looking forget the person that hit him, driver of this happened in the northbound lanes of the howard frankland. possible fatal crash, more on that coming up in a few >>> we start this 5:30 half- hour with bringing news after a deadly morning on bay area roads. florida highway patrol now searching for the driver that ran over a tow truck driver on the howard frankland bridge. >> fhp not telling us too much at this time. only around 2:30 this morning that tow truck driver was loading a car on the back of his truck when he was struck by a black volkswagen killing him. the driver of that vw took off, fhp is now looking for him. if you have any information you should call the fhp. once again they are looking for a black volkswagen with heavy front end damage. there's quite a scene now at the crash site. if you're heading out the door you need

that dog was named after padi the dog from bradenton. it passed the florida senate with unanimous support. >>> tonight, there are two newly diagnosed cases of the zika virus in florida. the statewide total is at 18. the bay area total remains at three. all of which are in hillsborough county. all of these cases were travel related. >>> so if you want to travel cheap, pack your bug spray. concerns over the zika virus are taking a big bite out of vacation prices. our own penny pincher peter bernard shows us the bargains out there. >> reporter: the evicts of the zika virus are devastating. doctors believe there is a connection between the virus babies with small heads and brains. it is expanding rapidly. >> you can find deals to the caribbean, brazil. >> reporter: zika combined with terrorism and the plunging stock market is forcing travel prices down. travelers are being cautious. >> we are seeing some people who are concerned thinking about altering their itinerary. very few cancellations. we have had a couple of pregnant woman who want t

sarasota, bradenton. heart leaned i 49 in lakeland and 49 around haines city, auburn dale and bar tow about 54 in lake we'll. thursday, if you liked today, we'll keep it on roof for you. winds will be up just a little bit more. and i do mean just a little bit. they were fairly palm today, 2 to 12 miles per hour from the northeast. low 70s are back. mostly sunny skies are whack. phenomenal weather is back for the entire day. highs range from 71 to 76 degrees. chris call river to arcadia and everywhere in between. water, if you are going out fishing and you do it like you do, you put several poles, right. high tide around 1:17. low tide at 5:42. as we have been talking about, the mornings are cool but that is where we should be. we are a little above average in your seven-day forecast for saturday and sun day mid-70s for highs. 78, 79 on monday and still tracking another storm system but not for another week. it looks a little lighter, too. keep checking back. we'll have more on that forecast when we get st

the tick ebar in bradenton says the landlord is forcing them out of business at the end of this month. his reason he doesn't think the restaurant is successful. >> digging into the facts tonight. jarrod holbrook, this doesn't make sense to the owners. >> reporter: restaurant owners say they have always turned a stable profit from day one and feel they are being pushed out because of agreed. for bruce, it's more than just an outdoor waterfront restaurant. >> besides being my 4-year-old son's big sand box, it has meant a lot to my wife and my family. >> reporter: bruce has owned the tick ebar in bradenton for more than five years. >> this business has been our heart and soul over the last five and a half years. >> reporter: bruce just found out from his landlord that his lease is not getting renewed. in a letter sent to bruce, the landlord feels, quote, the tenant has not operated its business in a successful and productive manner. >> i appreciate all your service. >> reporter: at the end of the >> it's heart wrenching. it really is. >> reporter: heart wrenching because bruce says they

bradenton, you're starting the day at 48. and it's also 48 in fish hawk which is significantly warmer than yesterday, up to about 11 degrees in tampa. by the afternoon, sunny sky, light winds, a high of 70, really nice outside. in weather and traffic on the 8s at 6:38, i take you through the next eight days to see how >>> more breaking news this morning. a terrifying moment in the middle of the night when a truck crashes right into a carport, landing on top of two other cars. and take a look at the damage left behind at this gibsonton home. >> and just 15 minutes ago, we learned who the driver is and what he is now charged with. news channel 8s lindsey mastis is live from the scene of the alafic riverfront community. bring us up to date. >> reporter: absolutely. good morning gayle. we now have the name of the driver but before we go to that, immaterial you to look at what damage -- to that, i want you to take a look at the damage this guy did with his pickup truck. it looks incredible. i was told by a neighbor there was a she

phere's a shot from the bradenton pbeach. pi actually put this camera into pthe weather show about 15 pminutes ago, i couldn't see the pwater. pthat's how fast the fog now pbeginning to clear out. pbut there are some areas pvisibility. pbrandon eighth of a mile. pbartow half mile. phalf mile in sarasota. ponce this lifts out, you see the ptampa cam, how pretty it is. pwe're starting in the lower 40s pfrom hernando county north. psarasota has dipped back to 49 pdegrees. pi think with the sunshine, a plittle north wind today, keep ptemperatures about 69 or 70 for pa high temperature. plovely, lovely, lovely. ptonight overnight lows will dip pback to about 50 in tampa. pas you go east of 75, you go pnorth of tampa, you're going to pget back in the upper 40s. pyou're going to need your pjackets first thing for thursday pmorning. pyou'll be shedding the jackets pwith the sunshine and mild air ptomorrow afternoon and a high ptemperature of 70 degrees. phonestly, it's nicer from there. phow about 72 for friday and a pgood solid mid

and locally in bradenton, trials that haven't even happened are in question. the attorneys of bradenton accused triple murderer avalos says the state can't move forward with the capital murder trial. >> those cases will probably be put on hold until we decide what the legislature is going the death penalty in the state of florida. >> reporter: and the florida attorney general's office argues that this ruling should not apply to former cases, so it should not apply retroactively. also we know that florida lawmakers are under a lot of pressure. they have six weeks to get this legislation revamped. i'm carson chambers, abc action news. >> thank you, carson. >>> want to get to breaking news on the zika virus. the cdc is now reporting six new travel related cases right here in florida, including a second confirmed case in hillsborough county. and doctors at the mayo clinic say florida could see locally transmitted cases by the summer. listen to this, there is a confirmed case in texas that was transmitted sexually. that's the first time we're hearing that. scientis

the biggest issues happen to be in bradenton, a fatal crash, 63rd avenue at u.s. 301. not seeing delays because traffic is light in the area but some lanes are blocked. and whit field -- and whitfield and 15th are clear. >> thank you. >>> in an 8 on your side health alert, the zika vivos spreading. there's now a second case here in hillsborough county. >> as josh benson report, that brings the total number of zika cases in florida to 10. >> reporter: of the florida cases are in hillsborough county. and the others are in miami- dade, lee and santa rosa counties. with the mosquito-borne virus exploding across the america, health officials want everyone to be prepared. spreading. health officials believe all nine cases in florida were state. the world health organization calling the situation a, quote, they are expecting at least 3 million infections over the next year. >> a coordinated international response is needed to minimize the threat in affected countries and reduce the risk of further international spread. >> reporter: zika is linked to a birth defect that leads

and also around bradenton. again, with a few fair weather clouds for most of the state we are dry and clear. just a few showers between the straits around miami over to fort lauderdale and the northern bahamas is where we are seeing a couple stray showers. we talked earlier in the 5:00 hour about all the severe weather that hit california. that's this system winding up here. you can see the first snow falling over the rockies for areas of colorado and wyoming. as that sweeps across the central and southern plains it will be pulling in very warm, humid air ahead of it. we are looking to stay warm for changes start to come in. look at the temperature contrast from 28 in denver to 80 degrees in san antonio. quite a big difference in the warm air that's being pulled up over the gulf to the cold front that's bringing in that snow over the rockies. now, as we look ahead to your evening plans, a pretty fine evening. nice and warm. light winds. little humid and sticky, yeah, but temperatures in the upper 60s. our avera

and no delays throughout the bradenton area. of it. eastbound i-4 just past u.s. 27, we have an accident but no injuries involved but traffic it's so light. and pinellas county, coming off the gandy bridge, westbound heads up, a dethe tour until about 6:00 a.m. that's about two hours from now. meanwhile, you are diverted on to roosevelt. and then hop on 275 and take it back down to gandy boulevard and wrap around. that's a look at weather and traffic on the 8s. and now back to gene and gayle. >> all right, leslee. >>> vice president joe bide season heading to the oscars. >> yep, still ahead, the role he will play in the all-star hollywood event. >>> and the cost of auto insurance. the least and most expensive cars to insure. you're watching news channel 8 today. find me on social media, say your pet, tell me what you're doing this weekend. get a busch gardens fun card now and let the fun begin. pay for a day, dive all year, splash all year, thrill, get your fill, and celebrate all year. climb, launch, roar, and soar all year. pay for a

that is typical right between the bradenton and sarasota area. and that usually wraps up by 6:00 a.m. april side from that. state road 64, roughly nine minutes. got a good drive across the sky polk parkway is up to speed and a wonderful drive from i-4 between each entrance, 11 minutes and it continues to be a great drive as you move into tampa this morning. that is a look at weather and traffic on the 8's. back to gene and gayle. >> okay. thank you. >>> it is a topic a lot of people are talking about. diversity in movies. the results of a new report that ranks film making companies for their diversity efforts. you have to stick around to see who is on top. >>> mood altering music. the way tunes can help us relax before a big medical pressure. >> a mass shooting suspect due in court. the condition update on the surviving victims of the kalamazoo shooting spree. you're watching news channel 8 . >>> developing this morning, the michigan man accused of killing six people in a random shooting spree is expected in court later this morning. investigator

i will tell you why they are illegal. >> drones banned from this weekend's event in downtown bradenton. >> those stories and sports coming up on newschannel8. the station always on your side. the new caramel macchiato from dunkin' donuts. and a caramel-flavored swirl uplift your mood. indulge in a hot or iced macchiato today. >> right now on newschannel8 at 6:00. >> disgust and outrage. will a rally organized by a rape supporter go on in tampa. >> and taking matters into their own hands. makeshift speed bumps. in a bay area neighborhood. >> not just a nuisance. why drones are banned from a major event this weekend. good evening. i'm stacie schaible. >> i'm keith cate.

one person is hurt in a shooting in bradenton. lindsay logue is heading there now to the scene, she'll bring an update at 5:00. >> the florida panthers helped the bolts last night in the playoff picture. the usf women got beat by louisville. >>> 4:43. a beautiful evening, in japan for a launch. japanese scientists launching this rocket that could help answer some of astrophysics' biggest questions. it will be studying some of the most powerful phenomena including black holes and cosmic ray particles. >>> an update on a newborn found in a toilet at a california subway sandwich shop. we first told but this yesterday morning at 6:00. now we're seeing the surveillance video showing a homeless woman walking into that restaurant's restroom and leaving 15 minutes later. police say teenaged workers saw a trail of blood when she left the bathroom. stall where she was and then found a newborn floating in the toilet. that is when one rushed out and called 911. >> oh my god, there's blood. >> is somebody holding the baby? >> no. >> did somebo

>>> yeah, unfortunately we're dealing with a fatal crash in bradenton. corey dierdorff is on his way there now. he's on 275, just got off the howard frankland, around the olmerton area. traffic now where he is pretty good. if you're this -- in that area you have you should have to trouble. overnight we had that fatal crash u.s. 301 at 63rd avenue east. we know at least one person killed in this crash. right now 301 completely blocked in both directions, your alternate, whitfield to 15th, you could also take 41 or 75 depending on where you're coming from or where you're going but for the moment and probably for some time while they continue to investigate 301 completely blocked in both directions. we'll keep you updated throughout the morning on that fatal crash. elsewhere, again, 275 over in pinellas county, 22nd avenue north looking great. pushing 70 now from bridge-to- bridge. back to you. >>> 5:02. two men are in critical condition, a third recovering after a late-night shooting in dade city. investigators tell us it happened at a property on withlaco

in at the bradenton auditorium taking over for the current chief. she comes from st. pete, spent 27 years with the st. pete police department where she was an assistant chief. >>> two men accused of kerik out -- carrying out last august's deadly bombing in a are in court for the start of the trial police continue to hunt for another 15 suspects believed to have helped plan the attack. 20 people including 14 foreign tourists died, more than 120 others injured in the august 17th bombing. >>> two valentine's day burglars are charged with stealing more than $1,000 in electronics and valuables from guests at a popular clearwater hotel. >> abc action news reporter michael paluska explains how detectives believe those teenagers pulled off their crime. >> reporter: we're talking about at least four guest rooms hit in a matter of minutes, burglars had free reign of the entire ninth floor. 18-year-old camry clark isn't smiling in her valentine's day booking photo, because she faces a litany of felony charges. police says clark and a 15-year- old juvenile used

. >>> police are searching for three men in an early morning shooting in bradenton. it happened just before 2:00 this morning on 59th avenue east. police say several cars parked on the street were also struck by bullets. >>> tonight an nfl hopeful facing criminal charges right here in the bay area. former university of tennessee lineman matt crowd era cued of exchanging sexual messages with someone he thought was a 14- he used phone apps kck and whisper. the dangers these apps can do and what you can do to keep your kid safe out there. kara. >> reporter: absolutely. whisper is one of those apps that parents have to worry about. when you go on the home screen, one of the first categories is nsfw. if you open it up, you can see why. a lot of the content is sexually related. deputies say this is one of the tools they used to catch this football player, matt crowder. 23-year-old matt crowder proudly wore the orange and white as a tennessee ball. tweeting pictures with young fans and quoting the bible. now he is charged with exchanging sexual messages with a deputy posing

he asked the driver to go to bradenton. he told the cabbie he had a gun and demanded his wallet, cell phone and the cab. the crook drove north in the taxi. working. if i was any information call >>> happening today. a new life for a church with a lot of history. the new baptist church will have a super sunday celebration service. the church on north oregon avenue burned to the ground a year ago. you're looking at the dedication at its new location in temple terrace. >> it is up and down, but we've done the best we could and we've gotten to where we need to be and here we are today going into our new home. thank the lord, it is just a great, great blessing. it is really good! >> nice to see them back. that service starts this morning at 10:45. >>> now to a developing story. in a few hours the united nations security council will hold an emergency believing. north korea's rocket launch is in violation. you can barely see it right there. leader kim jong un ordered the launch. >>> marco rubio is waking up he took a lot of hits

in bradenton i'm on top of a crash. this is at 53rd avenue west of caruso road. live to i-75 and veterans expressway looking really good. same thing in polk county. we are seeing fog. it is not really affecting majors just yet. polk parkway and i-4 still running smoothly. bobby? >> we have fog out there. hillsborough. let's start there. downtown tampa is okay. you get out towards the i-75 corridor and i-4 that's where we are seeing a quarter of a mile visibility. that extends from there through quarter of a mile in lakeland. which has come up. davis island seeing a little fog in eastern pasco county. zephyrhills a mile and a half of visibility. getting better in parts of northern pinellas county. expect fog there. feather sound area is doing much better. it was really thick on the western edge off the howard frankland bridge. sarasota about a mile. bradenton is improving. it is getting thicker south of sarasota with venice zero miles visibility. an 8th of a mile in some places. brooksville is looking decent as far as brooksville goes in the morning. there is a lo