good morning, once again. thank you for joining us. it is 6:00 on this monday morning, september 20. i'm alison starling. we'll have your traffic and weather straight ahead. first we want to tell you some schools in ann arundel county will be closed this morning. chesapeake high, chesapeake bay middle, and folger mckinsey elementary will be closed today because of a broken water pipe. let's check in with meteorologist adam caskey. he's checking in with the latest on a nice monday and tuesday, and then, what, a return to summer? >> yes, we will return to summer-like conditions when it is officially autumn. the first full day of fall is thursday, and at that point we'll be up to 90 degrees. we're in the 60's for the most part. kensington district heights at 66.

85 the high temperature yesterday at reagan national. 7 degrees above average for this time of year. the average high 78. near 80 downtown. look at the record temperature, 94 set back in 1895. local high pressure overhead. that gives us a sinking motion in the atmosphere. just a few high, thin clouds. upper 70's in outlying areas. cooler. let's go to lisa baden. no major problems to report around the beltway south into richmond, north to baltimore, all clear. traffic moving at speed here on the beltway at new hampshire avenue. more to come in traffic in just a little while. now to alison starling. >> lisa baden, thank you very much. a traffic alert for drivers in virginia. major changes will take effect at one of the busiest sberks in

ties -- sberks in -- intersections in tysons corner. natasha barrett is waiting to update us. >> there are a lot of changes going on here. i drive through this area a lot. i went to the redskins game, and i saw the big sign, and i thought, what's going on here? we're talking about the area near international drive in tysons corner. this area has been under construction for so long, we have all been dealing with it. here's another change. it basically affects the ramp off camebridge road. route 123, going in the direction of reston and wolf trap, that's shut down. the new exit is off 123 to the frontage road. this is because of the ongoing issues of building the metro out here in the depul dulles area. get this -- it started friday night. you will notice the change come -- this morning coming in and

out of the area. the change goes all the way through the end of this year. live from tysons corner, natasha barrett, abc news. it is easier to get to interstate 95 in northern virginia. the southbound lanes between rolling road and 95 opened this morning. northbound lanes opened this morning. more charges expected to be filed against the accused serial stabber. michigan authorities will charge five new charges against elias abuelazam. he's suspected of stabbing people in michigan, virginia, and ohio. five of the michigan victims died. officers responded to a demeft -- domestic dispute when a man with a rifle shot at them

and they shot back. oliver cohen was killed. police are determining whether he died from an officer's appellate or a self--inflicted gun shot wound. a leesburg, virginia, man accused of killing his wife. la depfment leur is charged -- steve yone -- steven combs la fler is charged with killing his wife. "politico" reports that baucus is rolling back taxes on top income americans which president obama supports. republicans and democrats are asking for bush tax cuts to be extended temporarily. staying with politics. an old video put a new spotlight on a tea party favorite.

y dabbled -- >> i dabbled in witchcraft. >> that is christine o'donnell making statements on "politically incorrect." yesterday she made light of that controversy asking how many people didn't hang out with, quote, questionable folks in high school? secretary of state colin powell admits he used illegal immigrants to do work on his house. he made that admission on "meet the press." he said immigrants perform necessary work in the united states and should be put on a path toward legal status. well, it was a heart-breaker at fed ex field on sunday night. >> for the win from 35 yards away, he's got it! >> and then was zapped.

after four quarters, it came down to the kickers. how fans are coping today. makes for a rough weekend. >> good morning to you. everyone had high hopes of this redskins team going into the game after that win against dallas. things were starting to look good for the burgundy and gold. at one point they lead houston, texas, with a 17-point lead. things were moving in the right direction at the half. then it really came down to who had the ball last. this game went into overtime against houston and it came down to field goals. the redskins ended up missing that final field goal, giving the ball back to houston, they ended up making that final field goal and ended up claiming victory. it was a bitter sweet win for redskins fans who said they were happy to see that the redskins were finally moving the ball down the field and ended up putting points on its board.

at the end, it just wasn't enough. redskins fans were already looking toward the future. >> i think coming into the season, a lot of questions are being answered right now about what it's going to be like for us. >> that certainly is the sentiment. a lot of people looking at quarterback donvan mcnabb and mike shanhan saying things are already looking better despite yesterday. the focus is on the next game. >> we'll be looking ahead. thank you very much for that. it is 6:07. still ahead, one hostage hiker is home, and the families of the two others are asking for a deal. plus hurricane igor sets its sights on bermuda.

>> as a a slight chill spreads across melbourne, we'll find a way to perk you up. welcome back to "good morning washington." i'm adam caskey, meteorologist. a little humidity in the air. that will change. later this midday and afternoon, that will dry out the air, and dew points should drop into the 70's.

winds pick up to the north pushing in that cooler, drier less humid air. today a few degrees cooler than what we had yesterday, closer to 80 this afternoon. mostly sunny today, near 80. then near 90 for high temperatures with that warmer air near wednesday through friday, with a slight chance of storms. >> qatar airways, the world's five-star airline. using mass trans transit is a good idea. no problems reported at all. we'll go aloft to the news chopper 7 and the geico camera near georgia avenue. that looks like it is doing ok. the inner loop lights, traffic on the right, a little red we see from 95 past georgia avenue.

heavier volume, but steady pace. more from news chopper 7, but now to alison starling. now we turn to the latest on hurricane igor. it is starting to move away from bermuda. it is a category 1 storm, and it did pound that island, uproot trees, and knock out power to much of that british territory as well as flood streets. forecasters say it will miss the united states us but will cause rip currents and high surf. coming up in today's "money scope." "cops & robbers" ruled the weekend box office. an american just released from iranian prison says she feels 1/3 free. that story coming up. first this morning, the frantic search for a missing religious group is over. we'll have details in today's

in our "top stories" now, an important traffic alert for drivers in tysons corner. the ramp from 123 to westbound 7 is closed. drivers can get to westbound 7 by using 123 to frontage road. officials say this new traffic pattern will be in place until the end of the year. redskins fans are trying to come to grips with yesterday's loss to the houston texans. a field goal in overtime gave houston that 30-27 win. the skins are 1-1 on the season. redskins face st. louis next week. the leader of a california religious secretary undergoing mental evaluation after she and several followers disappeared over the weekend. concerned family members contacted authorities fearing members might be planning a mass suicide. the american woman held in iran for more than a year is back in the u.s., and she is finally speaking out. at the same time iran's

president is in new york city to speak to the u.n. emily schmidt is live with the latest on this story. emily, good morning to you. >> alison, good morning to you. sarah shourd is back in the u.s. she's talking about her release from that iranian prison after spending 14 months there. she is not talking about what it was like during the time behind bars. that is because her fiance is her best friend are still in prison in iran and there is no word when they will be freesed -- freed. she says she feels 1/3 free because her friends are still jailed. iran accused them of being spies. she insists they are not spies. mahmoud ahmadinejad is here, too, for the united nations general assembly. he told abc's "this week" americans should release eight

iranians the u.s. holds in prison in response fo to sarah shourd's release. she was released on $500,000 bail because of medical conditions. she said doctors were able to evaluate her and that she is physically well. reporting live, emily schmidt, abc news. alison, back to you. a virginia woman set to die by lethal injection this thursday. if the supreme court does not intervene, teresa lewis will be the first woman put to death in virginia in a century. she is charged with murdering her husband and separate son. her supporters say she is mentally handicapped and has repented. >> the death penalty is reserved for the worst of the worst, and

teresa lewis is not that. >> i think she is one of the most evil people i have met. >> bob o'donnell found no compelling ryan reason to stop the sentencing. the reverend jeffsy jackson -- jesse jackson will deliver the eulogy for walters. he taught at howard for 25 years. after that he directed the american leadership institute at the university of maryland. >> he was an activist scholar and a scholar activist. he wrote about what he knew. he analyzed about what he knew to be true. >> walters died of cancer. he was 72 years old. it is now 6:17. we turn to today's "money scope" report, and "the town" takes the top spot at the box office and the fed meets again to fix the

economy. >> we begin your "money scope" report with the fed meeting to discuss policy tomorrow. it is expected to focus on how to further stimulate the economy. there is speculation the fed will look for new ways to keep interest rates low. toyota settled with the family members surviving -- an accelerateor accident. four people were killed. the treasury department says bankers will support u.s. and foreign investors when the government sells all the g.m. stock it acquired in the auto industry bail out. "the town" was top at the box office. it took in $28.8 million. "easy a" second, "dental" third. that is your "money scope" report.

it is 6:18. we had a gorgeous weekend. we're hoping for a gorgeous monday. >> it is going to be. i think you can get away without having the air conditioner on. it is not that refreshing crisp coolness we get in the morning. >> a little more humidity? >> yes, and temperatures on the warm side, in the mid 60's for the most part. sometimes warmer than that. that will change. later on today and throughout the morning, it will be 10 to 15 degrees cooler. >> we're back to summertime. >> yes. 59 at reagan national. martinsburg, 65. come berland 6 -- cumberland 61. culpeper the cool spot at 60 degrees. clear skies. some clouds coming through late last night and early this morning. front pushing southward. it has pushed through the metro area. we have high pressure in place

now. a sinking motion in the atmosphere, and that will keep skies mostly clear and sunny for the day today. these are the current dew point temperatures. a measure of how much moisture is in our atmosphere at the present time. the higher the dew point, the more uncomfortable it is. 07's unbearable. 60's when you start to feel the dew point in the air. northerly winds will be pushing that drier, less humid air into our region throughout the day today. still a good drought going on. extreme drought in west virginia, the panhandle of west virginia and even western maryland. there is only one category less than that. we need rain. we know we need rain. there is a slight chance for showers. we get into more of a summertime pattern, maybe a few pop-up storms. high pressure with the northerly winds today. high pressure will move off

shore over the next couple days. that will give us southerly winds. upper 70's further west. upper 40's out west. mid 50's downtown. now to the weekend. >> we have plenty of traffic starting to hit the road this morning. 66, 95 between richmond and baltimore, only volume discussed. construction gone on northbound 95. now we'll take you on a quick spin. begin with delays between wood yard road and powerhouse road on route 4. then from 210 drivers, it is slow from old fort north to get to palmer road. 95 in the baltimore-washington parkway open, just slowing. see if we can pull up a geico camera. beltway moving well at new hampshire avenue. alison? >> lisa, thank you. 6:21.

65 degrees outside on a monday. still to come, should genetically engineered salmon be on the menu? and then oprah is talking to d.c. school chancellor michelle rhee. that is here today on 7.

america needs clean energy, and america needs jobs. wind power can deliver on both - but only if the senate encourages investment by passing a strong renewable electricity standard. with a strong res, we can keep 85,000 wind power workers on the job, and create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, too. jobs that america could really use right now. for american jobs, tell your senators to pass a renewable electricity standard today. 6:24 is your time now on this monday. from "7 on your side" the f.d.a.

is starting two days of hearings on whether geneticallly engineered salmon should be marketed and sold. this would be the first geneticaly engineered meat approved and sold. a bill for student athletes that would require kids to be removed from classes and games if they are suspected of getting a concussion. the redskins general manager will introduce that bill at a news conference later today. 6:25 the time on this monday. we still have another half-hour of "good morning washington." coming up, a rare trip for the first family. where the president went that made national headlines. good morning. i'm natasha barrett live from tysons corner. big traffic changes to tell you

about. stay with us. and i'm adam caskey live in the belfort furniture center. a few changes into tomorrow, however those changes won't last long, and we welcome autumn this

the win from 35 yards away, he's got it! >> straight ahead this half-hour, an overtime heart-breaker for the redskins nation. good morning, it is 6:29, september 20. i'm alison starling. much more on that coming up. first an alert for chesapeake high, chesapeake bay middle, and folgers elementary. each school will be closed due to a broken water pipe. now a quick look on traffic and weather.

adam caskey is here. >> noletis -- notice how quickly those clouds are moving. the winds are accelerating out of the north. that is going to depry our air out and -- that is going to dry our air out and translate to colder temperatures tomorrow morning. >> it will be a lot like the weekend, which will be a good thing. >> that's a great thing. fantastic weather over the weekend. cooler today, at least later this afternoon compared to what we had yesterday. yesterday the high temperature was 85. today closer to 80 degrees. upper 70's in the outlying area. tomorrow, a lot of sunshine and lower 80's. look at that parm-up. wednesday through friday chans chances of isolated thunderstorms. we'll have summertime air back in place that could create instability. i know we could use the showers. back to lisa now with a look at

our commute. traffic at 109. we're going to news chopper 7 to look in the geico camera at a crash. at enterprise road. traffic getting by. central avenue down from six flags and near enterprise road, 193. always a busy road this time of the morning. alison starling? we begin at 6:31 with another heads up for drivers. starting today construction on the dulles metro rail means major changes at tysons corner. natasha barrett is live from route 7 with what you need to watch out for. i understand you got caught up in it a bit last night? >> yes, i was making my way home from the redskins game, and i didn't know about this change, and i think a lot of people will

be in the same boat. i'm basically talking about off international drive near tysons corner mall. if you are heading in the direction of reston, wolf trap. these are major changes. all the changes on a daily basis and the traffic all because of what's going on with the new metro rail with the dulles project here. this is what you need to know. this is basically what's happening. it started friday, and you are going to face it today. the ramp from route 123 to westbound route 7 in tysons corner. a new exit from route 123 to the frontage road all for this continuing construction traffic for the metro. as i said before, it started friday night, but a lot of people won't notice it until today, like i did last night driving home from the game. you see the big orange sign, and you think, wait a second -- this has president been like this -- this hasn't been like this before. where am i going? this change will last until the end of the year. live from tysons corner, natasha

barrett, abc news. >> thank you for the latest out there. we move on to other news now at 6:32. more charges expected to be charged against the alleged serial stabber. michigan authorities will announce five new charges today including murder against elias abuelazam. he's suspected of stabbing 20 people in michigan, ohio, and leezeberg, virginia. police in college park issued an alert. a man not a student was attacked in the college park shopping center yesterday morning. three suspects took items from the victim's pockets and ran away. anyone with information is asked to call police. the doctor shot last week at johns hopkins hospital continues to recover. dr. david cohen is in fair and stable condition. cohen was shot by 50-year-old paul pardus distraught about his

mother's condition. he shot and killed his mother before killing himself. hurricane igor is on the move now. emergency officials in bermuda began to survey the damage this morning. that storm expected to steer clear of the u.s. forecasters say it will cause high serve and rip currents along the u.s. igor uprooted trees, flooded streets, and knocked out power to much of that british territory. they are big powerful storms. you don't know what to expect. >> it was hore identifying. >> residents rode out the storm in sturdy hotels. crews killed the b.p. well by pumping cement in the bottom of it. this comes five months after a drilling rig exploded killing

construction workers and sending gallons of oil into the gulf. president obama and his family spent part of their sunday at church. they attended services at st. john's episcopal church. it is near the white house. it is the fourth time he has attended services there at st. john's. well, it was a stunning comeback. it dashed the redskins dreams of victory sunday night. after trailing 20-10, the texans fought back to force overtime and in the end edged out a win over the redskins. more with how fans are reacting to this last-minute loss. what a bummer this monday morning. >> absolutely, alison. inside fed ex field you could feel the intensity of the fans hoping after coming off a win from dallas that they would pull out another win in week two. they managed to put 27 points on the board. in the end, it wasn't enough.

>> good block! it's intercepted. >> the redskins players and fans, a night of highs -- >> he has it! >> -- and lows. it looked like the redskins were headed for back-to-back wins. the texan offense diminished that lead and in the fourth quarter, the game was tied. the skins kicker attempted a field goal and missed. the texans came back to make a field goal of their own to take the win over the burgundy and gold. a bitter-sweet win for those on and off the field. >> i think this team is talented enough where we can bounce back after a loss like this. >> you can't let a team like houston go into overtime and expect to win. >> despite the loss here, fans are still trying to look for some of the highlights.

they say after the game last week against dallas when the offense did not scompore a touchdown that they were really -- did not score a touchdown, that they were really excited, and the work of mike shanhan was really -- reporting live, abc 7 news. >> thank you very much. it is 6:37. still ahead on "good morning washington" a u.s. hiker is speaking out after a year held hostage in iran. she said she feels only 1/3 free. plus, change is in the air. some of vincent gray's plans for the future of the nation's capital. first another check on traffic and weather every 10

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>> hi, everyone. this is tammy from the national zoo. come down and visit the birdhouse. good morning, washington! 6:40 a.m. on this monday morning. welcome whack back to "good morning washington." meteorologist adam caskey here with your forecast. sun is up in another 14 minutes. you can see mostly clear skies throughout the day today. winchester 55.

cooler in berkeley springs. at 51 in la platia -- la plata. let's go to the maps. you can see cloud cover along the cold front that moved through late last night and now early this morning. still pushing southward. the clouds have dissipated along that front. with high pressure in place, there should be a general sinking motion in action. a few high, thin clouds possible. it will be a little cooler. here is what we had yesterday. near 80 downtown. upper 70's elsewhere. especially further west in the shenandoah valley. tomorrow morning, noticeably cooler than what we have outside now. upper 40's out in the shenandoah valley. we'll talk about the seven-day forecast and the warm-up later in the week. now to lisa. things warming up as far as the volume. 66. normal volume. no worries now on the greenway

or the dulles toll road. in tyson they changed the traffic pattern. that has -- a small accident has been removed from the road. no problems to report from the wilson bridge in maryland. over on on 27 -- over on 270, here is the volume southbound out of frederick to get to germantown. alison? we have 65 degrees at 6:42. still to come, how the d.o.t. could take back political reform. plus we'll tell you what d.c.'s next mayor has planned for the nation's capital. a possible prisoner swap for two hikers think about the internet.

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it is now 6:45. an important traffic alert for the tysons corner area. the ramp from 123 to 7 is now closed. drivers can get to route 7 by using a new exit ramp from 123 at frontage road. this traffic pattern will be in place until the end of the year. redskins fans are struggling to come to grips with yesterday's heart-breaking loss to the houston texans. a kick in overtime gave houston that 30-27 win. redskins face st. louis next week. fewer people being killed in crashes caused by distracted driving. the number of people killed in such crashes fell by 6% in 2008,

but it still accounted for 16% of all traffic deaths in 2009. she spent more than a year in an iranian prison and now sarah shourd is speaking out while iran's president heads to new york to address the united nations. emily schmidt has the story. >> after 400 days in iranian custody sarah shourd is back in the u.s. and thanking iran. >> i want to express my sincere thanks to the government and religious leaders of iran. >> iran claims she and her fiance shane bauer and their friend josh fattal crossed the border into iraq. >> we committed no crimes and we are not spies. >> shourd says she feels only 1/3 free with two of her friends still in iran. mahmoud ahmadinejad heads to new york to address the united nations general assembly. he said americans should release

eight iranians held here in response to iran's release of sarah shourd. the families of the other two captives in iran have requested a meeting with ahmadinejad. so far no word on whether iran's president is open to the idea. sarah shourd was released due to medical conditions. she said doctors in iran say she is well. a change coming to d.c. parking meeting regulations, and this time the drivers would benefit. earlier this year the mayor extended hours of meters to raise revenue. gray says he will revisit the issue because it has angered so many people. gray says he wants to start a dialogue for the white house once he's in office. he told wtop radio he wants to discuss d.c.'s voting rights and

several other issues. gray says he wants to know where the president stands on statehood for the district. now let's turn to today's "politico" minute. taking back health care. mike allen is here on what it would take to dismantle the president's signature domestic issue. mike, good morning. >> this is definitely easier said than done. republicans are saying, repeal and replace. but they know better. they know there is no way president obama is going to sign any kind of repeal in health care no matter how many republicans are in congress. even if they get the white house in 2013, so much will already be done. they plan to whittle around the edges. the i.r.s. and the health department both have spent $5 billion to $10 billion each just

to implement health care. that's a place they can make a difference, cutback that money. >> also this morning we want to touch on one other thing you said. steven ratner, the car czar is out with a new book today. >> yes. we see that from day one the president's economic team was fighting among themselves trying to keep out of meetings, trying to keep memos away from the president. in one meeting the president said, "is this unanimous?" it turned out it wasn't. they had to call someone from across the street. so we see the president is always wanting to get other points of view. there is also a moment when larry sommers is trying to go through what's going on, and the president said, "where is the memo, larry?" >> oh, no, not in front of everybody? steven ratner has that new book out, "the car czar." let's get to traffic and weather every 10 minutes. adam caskey, take it away.

>> a cold front just pushed through the metro area and is continuing its southward movement. it will dry out our air. again, it will drop temperatures in comparison to yesterday. let's look at our weather cam. just a beautiful shot. clear skies to start our day. mostly sunny skies throughout the entire day today. a good way to kick off the work week. i know we need rain showers. we could use the rain northwest of town. we will have a chance of showers mid-week and even into thursday and then a slight chance of rain. 50 in damascus. district checking in at 65. also in damascus a wider view of our dew point temperatures. this indicates the amount of moisture in the air. the higher the dew point, the more stickier the feel outside. by 70 degrees it is uncome uncomfort -- 70 degrees it is

uncomfortable, 60 you start to feel the dew point, and that's where we are now. luckily we have a northerly wind today and that will push drier less humid air into our region and make it feel more refreshing outside compared to what we had yesterday and even compared to what we have outside this morning. extreme drought in west virginia and parts of the commissioner pan: -- and parts of the panhandle of maryland. unfortunately, no big relief any time soon from the drought. high pressure today, northerly winds. over the next couple days, highs going deep to move off shore. that will give us the southerly wind overhead and pump in more humid and hotter air as well. by wednesday and thursday, even friday, we're talking high temperatures back near 90. added humidity. a little instability that could cause a few showers wednesday and thursday. just a slight chance aand a few pop-up storms. a look at seven-day. let's go to lisa baden and a look at the commute.

we had an accident on the inner loop of virginia between 50 and 66 moved on the left side of the highway right now. watch for delays leaving little river turnpike to head up to 66 for you this morning. let's see what we can find in maryland. pull up a camera for you on the southbound side of 270. volume out of frederick into maryland, montgomery county. this is the outer loop delays now new hampshire avenue around to georgia avenue. now new hampshire avenue around to georgia avenue. natasha barrett joins us live in

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>> "faith and fear" on "good morning america" on abc. a major traffic change along a busy intersection in tysons, virginia. natasha barrett is here to break down the changes. >> big changes out here in the tysons corner area. talking about international drive near the mall. route 123 in the direction of wolf trap and reston. the road is changing. you see the traffic coming here? this is the way you will have to go, because the ramp is changing. this change is happening because

of the dulles metro rail construction happening out here. and it goes from last friday night all the way to the end of the year. back to you, alison. >> thank you very much. time for a quick last look at traffic and weather. lisa baden take it away. right in that area where natasha barrett is, there is an accident. chopper 7 flying over route 7, route 123, looking at the crash, moved in the immediate -- median area. both sides dealing with traffic changes and now a wreck. adam caskey? a lot of sunshine outside today. a refreshing north wind and fresh refreshing air. high temperatures near 80 degrees. just a few degrees warmer. look at that wednesday through friday. summer-like, hoot and muggy as well. slight chances for late-day storms. >> a nice monday though. >> yes.

>> that does it for us.