send your e-mails to mcginty's mail bag.he address, mailbag@wusa9.com. 9news now will be right back. [ male announcer ] where did all the obama stimulus money go? friends, donors, campaign supporters, special interest groups where did the obama stimulus money go? solyndra: 500 million taxpayer dollars. bankrupt. so where did the obama stimulus money go? windmills from china. electric cars from finland 79% of the 2.1 billion in stimulus grants awarded through it went to overseas companies. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. >>> in the mail bag tonight, more comments regarding the atrocity in aurora, colorado. but now, some of you are zeroing in on the movie showing where it all happened. she hears people that -- one of the dozens people massacres. first of all, school is out. the child was with her family under the circumstances, her age is not the issue. this little girl lost her life, her mom is now shot and paralyzed. this woman is dealing with so much, she doesn't need to be scolded. i hear you, but i

send your e-mails to mcginty's mail bag. mailbag@wusa9.com. 9news now will be right back. [ male announcer ] where did all the obama stimulus money go? friends, donors, campaign supporters, special interest groups where did the obama stimulus money go? solyndra: 500 million taxpayer dollars. bankrupt. so where did the obama stimulus money go? windmills from china. electric cars from finland 79% of the 2.1 billion in stimulus grants awarded through it went to overseas companies. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. >>> in our mail bag tonight, the penn state punishment. audrey from woodbridge is glad justice is finally being done. i don't know that such a punishment is fair for people that had nothing to do with this, but i'm glad the people that helped cover this up are being brought out into the open. many children could have been spared if one of them had followed up on the information they knew to be true. i as the mother of three boys would have done anything to stop it. but michelle from hyattsville sa

send your e-mails to mcginty's mail bag. mailbag@wusa9.com. 9news now will be right back. >>> in the mail bag tonight, there's nothing but power outages and pepco. kim says she was shocked by the story we ran last night on the family with the special needs child whose power had been out for days. my son also has special needs/seizures and we are on a priority list with our power company. i cannot imagine how i would care for my child without electricity to run his oxygen and suction machines. pepco and clay anderson should be ashamed. after every storm, i thank god that i don't have pepco. kim, the good news is that family's power is back on. but a lot of people are feeling the same frustrations you're talking about, including david who has written us from a town called, my ipad. it's a new day when they surpass the combined efforts of auralling county board and the governor's office, still out of power failed. then, there was this from dan in rockville. i am tired of hearing all the talk about what a poor job pepco is doing

send your e-mails to mcginty's mail bag.ag@wusa9.com. 9news now will be right back. >>> in the mail bag tonight, today marks one of the most important and historic anniversaries anybody could ever imagine. 110 years ago, an engineer named willis carrier invented air-conditioning. the wusa9 facebook page was over heated with respect from dozens and grateful viewers who talk about where they like to keep their thermometer. 76, 77 during the day. 68 to 70 at night. in the winter, 70 or below. i have this theory that it keeps the germs at bay. okay, keep on telling yourself that. yours is far from being the coolest comment. check out this from diana. i really like the cool, so during the day, 65, 70. evening 58 to 65. but jeff trigger replied, 65? some of you must be rich. 77 during the day, 70 at night. you know what, jeff, i'm with the cool people. sometimes it's worth it to pay extra for a good night's sleep in a nice chilly bedroom. not everybody feels that way. tim adams, for example, my significant other swears that the op

send your idea to mcginty's mailbag. >> anny will be back to tell us when will the sun be back. >> but first two days of storms have folks bracing for the rising water. we'll show you how to prepare up next. >>> last night's storms triggering flash floods all over the place. down in alton high water still at south joy street between columbia pike and army navy drive shut down this morning. the work crews working to clear out the water and the lanes reopened by midday. >>> flooding has become a way of life for the folks in the bloomingdale neighbor in northwest d.c. for the third time in eight days summer storms have flooded their streets and water has backed up in their basements and this is smelly nasty water. >> we're talking about raw sewage coming up? >> yes. it's really bad. >> sounds really bad. the storm drains in this area are about a century old and d.c. water crews are walking through the pipes clearing them out. so far they've found nothing to explain why the flooding has suddenly become oh, so bad. >>> we aren't sure if a few sandbags might not help out those phone, but d.c

that e-mail mcginty's mailbag, the address mailbag@wusa9.com. >>> maryland state police can once again collect dna samples for people arrested for serious crimes at least for now. that's because supreme court justice john roberts temporarily blocked a maryland court of appeals ruling that barred it. the case centers on the conviction of alonzo king jr. he was found guilty of a 2003 rape. roberts' order will remain in effect until king responds to the appeal. he has to do that by the 25th. >>> the storms are still coming. topper tells us when they might be over, the forecast coming right up. >> but first virginia commuters get ready to shell out some bucks. the airport authority has the profile for rate hikes from the dulles -- proposal for rate hikes from the dulles toll road. >>> now we've got a heads up for you if you're a commuter using the dulles toll road. the cost to drive that road could start soaring next year. the metropolitan airport authority released possible toll rate increases today. if approved, the cost of driving through the main toll plaza and exit ramp booth would co

send your e-mails to mcginty's mail bag.he address, mailbag@wusa9.com. 9news now will be right back. [ male announcer ] where did all the obama stimulus money go? friends, donors, campaign supporters, special interest groups where did the obama stimulus money go? solyndra: 500 million taxpayer dollars. bankrupt. so where did the obama stimulus money go? windmills from china. electric cars from finland 79% of the 2.1 billion in stimulus grants awarded through it went to overseas companies. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. >>> in the mail bag tonight, the wusa9 facebook page overflowing with comments. that's the fellow in maryland who threatened to go to a job and shoot up everybody. linda mckneel write, i'm concerned that as much as this guy was a threat, we can't treat him like a criminal until a crime was committed. intent of law is not the same as breaking the law. nor is owning guns. where is the nonbiased, full rounded story? one week after aurora, a very well armed and perhaps unbalanced man says,

e-mail your thoughts to mcginty's mailbag, the address mcginty'smailbag@wusa9.com. >>> coming up in a minute hiv no longer passed from person to person, that is the goal of the research now being talked about as the district hosts the huge interference aids conference. >> up next barack obama and mitt romney shift their presidential campaigns back into high gear. somebody else made that happen. my father's hands didn't build this company. my hands didn't build this company. through hard work and a little bit of luck, we built this business. why are you demonizing us for it? it's time we had somebody who believes in us. someone who believes that achievement should be rewarded not punished. we need somebody who believes in america. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. >>> that ad probably reminded you of this, but we'll tell you anyhow. it's back on the campaign trail today for the presidential candidates. the two put their campaigns on hold following the colorado shooting, but today romney was in colorado looking for support from small business owners. >> if you're em

send your e-mails to mcginty's mail bag. the address, mailbag@wusa9.com. 9news now will be right back. 9news now is sponsored in part by nissan. >>> in the mail bag tonight, we got a bit of a backup as i was away last week. we have to get to this one from craig in king george, virginia. came in wednesday on pepco's problems, which is all anybody was talking about. craig says those who would fix the problem by moving the lines under ground are being foolish. buried lines must be highly insulated. insulation breaks down relatively quickly. overheadlines, contractors, animals, mother nature conspire against buried lines. when the insulation breaks down, innocent people could be lek tri cuted. seems to me it would be cheaper to keep our trees pruned so they could stand the higher winds. people are frustrated. you can't blame them for looking at some permanent solution. pepco will review the idea of varying power lines and see if it makes anymore sense than the last time they looked at it. and then there was this from dan in rock

share your thoughts at mcginty's mail bag. or you might want to share your conversation on the wusa facebook page. >>> still ahead, spoiler alert, well not exactly. but we will take a look at strategies to avoid learning the results of the olympics before you want to know. like if you want to watch them tonight, for example. but up next, some good news for commuters trying to cross the anacostia in the morning or any other time of stay. stay with us. special interest groups where did the obama stimulus money go? solyndra: 500 million taxpayer dollars. bankrupt. so where did the obama stimulus money go? windmills from china. electric cars from finland 79% of the 2.1 billion in stimulus grants awarded through it went to overseas companies. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. >>> typically we like to issue commuter alerts about things that make your life more difficult. tonight, one that will make it easier. a new ramp opened today from southbound i-295 to the 11th street bridge in d.c. this new bridge is expec

send your e-mails to mcginty's mail bag.ddress, mailbag@wusa9.com. 9news now will be right back. >>> in the mail bag tonight, the chick-fil-a story has some legs or some wings. sorry, couldn't resist. our good friend, deb, in arlington says folks aught to marry who they want to marry. however, i stand by the right of chick-fil-a. where their charity money goes is no one's business. they serve all the folks who want the food. as long as it doesn't interfere with the sandwiches, it shouldn't matter. people can choose not to eat the chicken and chow down elsewhere. that's right. freedom of speech and freedom of choice. but scott from lexington park, maryland, says really? it's all about the politics. if you ask me, what kicks this into high gear is president obama said he supports gay marriage. that's what the republican pounced on as we all know, we want to get him out of the white house and all the haters will vote for willard. being mitt romney's first name. why has this gotten so nasty? let me see if i understand this corre

send your e-mails to mcginty's mailbag. the address mailbag@wusa9.com. 9 news now will be right back. [ mosquitoes buzzing ] ♪ [ female announcer ] repel mosquitoes without spraying your skin. try off! clip-on repellant. in minutes, its fan surrounds you, head to toe with effective odorless protection. whether it's at a game, enjoying family, or just relaxing, repel mosquitoes away without a spray. off! clip-on. keeps bugs off. sc johnson. a family company. >>> in the mailbag tonight the proposed rate hike for pepco, the power company saying it needs more money at least in part to invest in previously neglected infrastructure. jim says no. they have not been losing money. they have been making a profit. if they did not take part of that profit and invest in the business, then what is there to make people think they will put money into their business if they get more profit instead of just putting that money into their pockets? so no. they do not deserve a rate hike. that is, unless they are going to be fined a lot and that

send your e-mails to mcginty's mailbag, the address, mailbag@wusa9.com. 9 news now will be right backhe mailbag tonight something i almost never share with you. that is an anonymous e-mail, but i make an exception for a woman who claps to be the wife of one of those -- claims to be the wife of one of those linesmen working like crazy to get those lights back on. i, too must wait to get the power back on. linemen work hard hours with hardly enough sleep in this hot weather. we must learn to be patient. i know this is hard, but look at how many outages there are. it takes time to put lines, let alone poles back up. just remember next time the linemen work hard and are doing the best they curran these circumstances. ma'am, thank -- they can under these circumstances. ma'am, thank you for that and this situation reminds me of an unpopular war where we forget to thank the troops who are fighting it the best they can. if we've got an issue, it's certainly not with the people on the front line. then there was this from john in virginia. i've lived in the same neighborhood almost 25 years in

. >> that was itn's lawrence mcginty reporting >>> in alabama, it was a different kind of fourth of july blast. crews there blew up the 13-story building complex at the university of alabama. the rose towers as they were known housed more than 30,000 students and faculty over five decades. some of the alumni came back to watch a piece of their past come tumbling town. it will take three weeks to clean that up. >>> in illinois, there was a train derailment and bridge collapse. it is not clear which happened first. several of the 138 train cars being hauled across the state were mangled in the wreckage. the train was carrying coal from wyoming to wisconsin. there was another derailment at the very same spot three years ago. >>> finally, in missouri, how about this? patriotism can never start soon. newborn babies were wrapped in red, white, and blue bunting at a maternity ward outside st. louis. hospital volunteers put the finishing touches on the blankets right down to the stars. >>> now, for a look at your national weather, we turn to msnbc meteorologist, bill karins. he has your weather

. >>> this send your e-mails to mcginty's mailbag, the address mailbag@wusa9.com. 9 news now will be right back. [ male announcer ] where did all the obama stimulus money go? friends, donors, campaign supporters, special interest groups where did the obama stimulus money go? solyndra: 500 million taxpayer dollars. bankrupt. so where did the obama stimulus money go? windmills from china. electric cars from finland 79% of the 2.1 billion in stimulus grants awarded through it went to overseas companies. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message. >>> in the mailbag tonight pepco under the gun again today this time at a hearing in montgomery county where the local pepco president tom graham was struggling even to get his apology right, but john in chantilly says give the guy and the utility a break. all of the power companies did a very good job of restoring power in the face of unprecedented damage to lines and infrastructure. that derecho was not an isolated afternoon summer thunderstorm. it was a historic unprecedented event for this region even considering isabel. to get t

. >> i'm derek mcginty. if you have the opposite of working from home tomorrow or to use unscheduled leave, governor martin o'malley has declared liberal leave for state workers and the governor says please stay home if you don't have to go out because so many traffic snaps are out and those trees are -- signals are out and nose trees are down all over the place -- those trees are all all dover the place. in virginia those workers are allowed to use liberal leave. we'll let you know more tonight at 11:00. >>> nearly 48 hours after friday's violent storm and nearly a million homes and businesses still in the dark tonight. pepco, dominion power and other utilities say help is on the way, repair crews from as far away as texas headed this way, should be on the streets later this week. this afternoon using my iphone spotted a crew at the corner of nebraska and everett street in northwest. customers throughout the area have complained that when they go online, there have been no signs of trucks in their neighborh

mcginty asked me what the ratio was. that's going to be on my blog. check the video on the capitol. lightning struck the capitol. they had a tremendous amount of lightning along with the high winds and heavy rain. but that's quite a strike. and we said this earlier. it's five times hotter than the surface of the sun. >> was this at the start of the storm? >> i don't know what time it was. >> okay. >> it was probably the height of the storm. about 10:30, 11:00. >> yes. . >> that's pretty intense. let's share the same clock. it's a little -- shot. it's a little quieter tonight. dew point 62. that's really good. dew points in the low 60s, that's really bearable. winds out of the south, southwest at 7. pressure rising to 2.69 inches of mercury. there is some 70s going on. 72 in martinsburg and 78 in hagerstown. we're looking at 79 down in fredericksburg and 79 over in andrews. it's a little more comfortable than those that don't have power in the burbs. some showers from illinois back into kentucky and also into tennessee. the good thing is, these are going to stay to our south. these a

. >> tuesday on 9 news now a union leader told derek mcginty the staffing of pepco linemen had been cutlf over 15 years but try as we might, our gary nuremberg never got an answer from pepco's president. a specialist says as a monopoly pepco has the responsibility to answer. >> the president of the company ought to know that and be willing to disclose it and if he's not, the regulators whose job it is to extract performance from the utilities ought to demand it. >> right before air pepco issued this statement, so i read it expecting an answer. they told us that the restoration effort now, the resources are actually larger than 15 years ago and tell us they've hired 59 new unit line personnel through 2009, but when i pointed out that still didn't answer our question, what about the missing linemen? they said right now they're focused on getting those remaining customers back with power. >> so basically these are union claims that these linemen through attrition or whatever have been cut in numbers. do we know, has that happened? >> we've asked repeatedly to get the pepco side of this to