nd chills during the day. we'll stay below freezing through the day on friday. so definitely a chill of winter on the way. it's 21 in gaithersburg and 31 at reagan national among the warmer readings. everybody is going to drop through the teens tonight in suburban areas. warmest spots will be downtown and close to 23 with clear skies and icy spots and tomorrow we shift our attention to the strong winds. it will be partly sunny and windy. we'll get flurries winds gust to 40 miles per hour. temperatures in the upper 20's. wind chills tomorrow afternoon expected in the single digits around the area. and then it will get even colder as we go through the day on thursday. i'll share more in a minute maureen? >> thank you so much doug. if you weren't driving in it or trying to drive in it you certainly heard about it. the commute this morning was a mess. this is video of a crash on i-270. one of several in our area this morning. maryland bureau chief brad bell is live in silver spring. any improvement out there tonight? >> tremendous improvement as you can imagine.

and you can see right here new hampshire avenue. this is one of the real bottlenecks this morning. it's free and clear tonight. we can't say that the pavement is dry. it is still wet and doug has been saying it does have the potential to refreeze. you said there were several accidents. oh, my gosh. there were hundreds of accidents. we can show you some video of just how bad it was this morning. real confluence of events. snow coming right at the start of rush hour falling very, very heavily. the temperatures were in the 20's. every little bit of snow that fell stuck to the ground. now, people have described this as one of the worst morning commutes that we've seen in years so we asked the maryland state highway administration, they're responsible for keeping these roads clear how it was possible that it was like this and they say it was basically just bad timing. >> everything was ready to go. actually perfect.

came out in rush hour traffic, roads really got bad when our fleet couldn't move. they were stuck in traffic. >> that was it. the trucks were stuck in traffic along with a lot of the drivers. that's why people said they never saw any plows. they couldn't. they could only see the car in front of them and right behind them. you can only hope that things are a little better tomorrow morning. in silver spring brad bell abc 7 news. >> thank you brad. the decision not to cancel or even delay school angered parents in several virginia counties. fairfax county public schools sent letters to parents apologizing for the difficulties the decision caused. outrage spread on line as the twitter hash #closefcps came out. even teachers had trouble getting to work on time. >> it was just snow covered slush and you could see where it was still building. it has been awful! >> i'm angry and i think they

should have delayed the schools and made a call then. >> fairfax county public school officials said they made the decision early in the morning based on the best information at the time. the school district issued a second statement later in the day apologizing for not cancelling schools. frustration in loudoun county tonight after school officials there opted to keep the doors open. in some cases, buses slid off the roads while trying to take students to school. 7 on your side chris pabst spoke to parents in loudoun county. >> all you have to do is go on a social media site like twitter or facebook to see how irate parents here are. they're frustrated because not only do loudoun county schools stay open today, they didn't even have a late start. the kids had to try to get here at their normal time. and that led to all sorts of problems. this morning, despite temperatures in the mid 20's and plenty of snow already on the

ground, loudoun county schools decided to not announce any school delays or cancellations and with the timing of the storm, the commute was a very rough one. now, these pictures came to abc 7 from a viewer in loudoun county. now, in one, you can see a bus that slid off the road. in the other, a car slid into a bus. the roads were packed with snow. and loudoun county schools tells us that five fender benders were reported. school officials told abc 7 the strength of the storm simply caught them off guard. >> i know the people behind the decision. they're good people that have the safety of students in mind. made the best decision that they could. it wasn't a perfect decision as no decision is but they did the best they could. >> in july loudoun county schools got a new superintendent, dr. erik williams, and the parents who we spoke with said today was his first major test and he failed. in sterling chris pabst, abc 7

news. >> thank you. as doug hill mentioned, we expect the snow and water to refreeze overnight. stay with abc 7 and wjla.com for updates on this developing situation. we'll also post important information on both facebook and twitter. developing news out of richmond tonight where a judge sentenced former virginia governor bob mcdonnell to two years in prison. our crews captured mcdonnell as he entered the courthouse this morning. that two-year sentence however, may not stand. northern virginia bureau chief jeff goldberg is live in richmond with what's next. jeff? >> maureen, mcdonnell's attorneys have already started the appeal process. very likely the former governor is not going to be reporting to prison on february 9th which was the date handed down today by judge james spencer. before the judge issued his sentencing, governor mcdonnell made a statement to him saying this i stand before you a heartbroken and humbled man.

adding, i hold myself fully accountable. despite his sentencing far kinder than the prosecution had asked for former governor bob mcdonnell left court on tuesday maintaining he is an innocent man. >> i have never ever betrayed my sacred oath of office in any way when i served as governor. >> today's hearing consisted of testimony from 11 character witnesses all of whom spoke very highly of the former governor. the final and most notable was former virginia governor douglas wilder who said of the trial's impact on mcdonnell, he's been hurt and wounded. almost permanently. asking that judge james spencer temper justice with mercy. after hearing from the former governor himself, spencer then commented on the case and he said he was moved by the nearly 450 letters written on mcdonnell's behalf calling them most thoughtful and moving saying it was clear mcdonnell was a good and decent man. but he then added, all the grace

and mercy i can muster cannot cover it all. before handing down a sentence of two years in prison. >> nobody is above the law. not a high public official and not even the highest public official in the state. and that's what this case was all about. >> will never give up in this case until we achieve true justice for bob mcdonnell. >> and the u.s. probation office had recommended the sentencing guidelines of 10 to 12 years. the fact that the governor only received a prison term sentence wise of two years is certainly worth noting. up next is maureen mcdonnell who set to be sentenced on february 20th. she was in court today and before getting his sentencing handed down to him, former governor bob mcdonnell asking judge spencer to have mercy on his wife. live in richmond jeff goldberg abc 7 news. >> thank you, jeff. developing news out of baltimore tonight where a 15-month-old boy has died following a crash involving a maryland transit administration bus and an s.u.v.

police report the s.u.v. ran into the back of the bus at about 6:00 monday night. a woman was in the s.u.v. with the toddler was taken to the hospital. she's expected to survive and the crash is under investigation. next at 6:00 what is the future of the smartphone? new patents obtained by apple give us a clue of what's in store. power outages and inches of snow in the district. what the new mayor is saying about it. and we're keeping a close eye on temperatures across the area. how cold it will get.

>> breaking news out of fairfax county tonight. moments ago, school officials announced school will open two hours late on wednesday. central office will open at 10:00 in the morning. this is the only delay at this hour. stay with abc 7 for updates as we get them. the white house issued its first veto threat on the first day of the 114th congress. press secretary josh earnest said president obama would veto a bill forcing construction of the keystone x.l. pipeline. for newly sworn senate majority leader mitch mcconnell promised to pass the bill soon. john boehner was elected to a third term as speaker of the house. next tuesday, the president will host congressional leaders at the white house. 7 is on your side with a consumer alert from apple. the tech company acquired patent

for a phone that bends and another for smart glasses. these are two of 28 patents acquired by apple. the flexible phone includes two dozen drawings showing how a device like an iphone could be warped and contorted. the drawings also illustrate a flexible screen, flexible battery and flexible circuit board. next at 6:00 freezing temperatures overnight. what you need to know for your morning commute next. >> if you are in the city as i am trying to deal with the snow it's ice now and difficult. i'm sam ford. i'll have the story of how the city is dealing with the snow. coming up. >> hey, sam, not enough snow here? so the caps went to toronto. they are in the phone booth while bruce allen has everybody talking. is there a new general manager at the redskins park tonight? i have the very latest as

>> a lot of complaints this snow day from neighborhoods outside district. but there are also questions about how the district handled the snow and why schools were not delayed or closed. tonight, the streets are mostly

clear but the sidewalks are a different story. d.c. bureau chief sam ford is live in southeast washington. sam? >> yes, maureen. you know that the city passed a law late last year saying that residents will be fined $25, businesses $150 for not clearing their walks so this is the way a number of residents in the city coped today. with less than four inches of snow today, digging out wasn't a big problem in d.c. though traffic tie-ups early on were an issue. mayor muriel bowser came to the capitol hill neighborhood today to talk about snow with whoever wanted to talk admitting it's a worry of hers. >> absolutely. you know i want to make sure just as i've been in 7 1/2 years on council, make sure that we clear the streets. i did today what i've done each of those seven years around neighborhoods and seeing how we're doing. >> for most people we met -- >> had a little slippery. got to work on time.

>> it was a bigger problem uptown where bowser closed the city's reeves center and sent workers home after a power failure. 6100 customers lost power for part of the day. another big concern for the city, the homeless with this cold snap and snow the city had to find space for an additional 60 families. not to mention more than 100 at shelt shelter in a hotel that had been living in a car. >> i started staying in my car. my last place ended up in my car. >> then you came in here? >> yes. >> from the cold weather? >> yeah. >> city officials apologized for little today saying they handled the snow as well as they could. as for not closing or delaying the opening of schools, no regrets there either. >> kids were received at their schools and warm buildings with teachers that were there and ready to instruct them. >> of course the good news is that this doesn't actually -- this law with the fine doesn't take effect until next winter.

nevertheless, in a place like capitol hill here where i live it is important for pedestrians to be able to get through. a bit of a pain but probably a good law. reporting live from southeast washington, sam ford, abc 7 news. >> all right. sam, thank you. we have breaking news from el paso texas, where an active shooter is being reported at a v.a. clinic next to the william beaumont army medical center near fort bliss. the entire hospital complex we're told is on lockdown. no word on victims or arrests. we will have more details as they become available. and a tough day here for a lot of people in their cars. the kids buses, schools, thank goodness. >> tough commute. and tonight, the problem and tomorrow morning will be a problem with icy patches much won't be snow to be cleared but cold and icy patches. that will be a problem. and we have cold air and wind. we're not finished with the winter weather pattern at all. let's get started and look at the snowfall accumulations. check around the map and you'll see one of the highest numbers

is off to the west in front royal, five inches and everybody closer to the two to three range for metro area. couple of spots a little bit more. we've had much bigger snows. biggest snows that we've had a while. we've had bigger snows. problem was the time it started and the conditions it started in. started before sunrise when it was so cold everything iced over and delays over immediately. with temperatures in the lower 20's gaithersburg already, 25 in andrews. we'll refreeze everything that's slushy or mushy or wet outside. ice becomes a big concern. air temperatures this morning 14 to 24 degrees with clear skies and enough of degree to knock down the wind chill. see the streamers and bands, that's circulation across the great lakes that will bring lake effect snow and the winds will be so strong tomorrow that they'll transport some snow flurries to parts of our area. so the winds will pick up. we'll have highs in 20's but the wind 25 to 30 miles per hour gusting 35 to 40.

you'll push the wind chills the way it feels outside into the single numbers tomorrow afternoon. and then the core of the cold air comes in tomorrow night and thursday. in fact, thursday, will be the coldest day we've had all season with highs only in the upper teens to lower 20's. to a lot to keep an eye on here as winter kind of sets up shop for a while. this is a look at future wind chills. we'll kind of run through it here. you notice through the day tomorrow, wind chills in the single numbers. wind chills in the single numbers through the afternoon. wind chills in the single numbers through the day on thursday in many spots. in fact i don't think air temperatures will get back above freezing until sometime on friday afternoon. a very cold stretch. saturday, we'll see sunshine turning colder briefly. 30 degrees for a high. then we look ahead to the weekend. it looks like to the end of the weekend. sunday will be sunny. 37. clouds coming tonight. another weather disturbance that looks like it will start sometime monday morning. it may start as a wintry mix. snow and rain. but look by the afternoon will be close to 40. i think anything we have will be very limited and then we'll turn to somewhat milder definitely indication that winter may be

staying around for a little bit. maureen? >> thanks doug. feels like hockey weather. we're still not finished with >> this is the most exciting time of the year for the redskins. they have the new general manager tonight. i have latest for you. the georgetown hoyas are in the phone book tonight against marquette. georgetown looking for the

>> redskins are start to go rebuild their team from the front office first. it's being reported that the seattle personnel executive scot mccloughan is the new general manager here in washington venlt scot mccloughan is a great evaluator of talent and a quality guy. i know you'll hear the stories of his alcohol problem. he took the time off and address his demons and get that disease under control. he's doing well. this is a terrific addition by the president of the franchise and donatela will be here tomorrow to interview for the defense coordinator's job. maryland terrapins moved up to number 11 in the a.p. and ninth in the coaches poll. georgetown dropped out of the top 25. hoyas have a great opportunity to make some noise tonight against marquette. hoyas at 9-4. marquette at 9-5. watching his freshmen grow up quickly and the hoyas will

continue to get better throughout the season. the four freshmen combined for 36 points against creighton and trey campbell from st. john's high school says they are them do their thing. >> you know will be steering. when they go out there but no he's going to play with confidence. that's what i always say when i'm out there. just play with confidence. >> sounds like a st. john's cadet. baseball hall of fame opened its doors to four new members today. three of them were star pitchers. randy johnson pedro martinez and john smoltz all dominated in offense. craig bigglio got in as well. easy for me to say, doug. this is the first time that four guys have been elected in one class since 1955. i'm being thrown out of here! all right. wizards are back home tonight getting ready for tomorrow night's home game against the knicks. that was a big win last night in new orleans. randy whitman challenged his

club defensively and the wiz kids forced 18 turnovers. his 20th double-double of the year which is the best of the nba and the wizards snapped the three-game skid. there you have it. >> hall of fame! >> keep practicing. you'll get it. >> that's it. that's all i have. >> we don't want to keep hearing about snow but i guess we have to hear about cold now. >> yeah it's cold and icy patches tonight. take a look. early tomorrow morning, we'll be in range of about 14 to 20 degrees. so it's going to be very cold. warming upper 20's. strong gusty winds tomorrow. maybe afternoon flurry. tonight 11:00, latest updates of how cold we'll get tonight and we'll see if there are any winter storms in our future. >> oh! "world news tonight" is next. have a good night.

welcome to "world news tonight." and breaking now. nearly 30 states below freezing. interstates, highways covered in accidents. also the reports coming in at this hour. the major american city where they just felt the ground shake. ginger zee is right here. also breaking, is this a key piece of evidence in the disappearance of that passenger jet? what the new sonar images reveal. the power shift in washington. the behind the scenes gamble. the coup that fell apart. wall street murder and the privileged son charged. the new klums just revealed. and the other big reveal at this hour. america's oldest time capsule just opened. what did paul revere and sam adams leave us? good evening. and we begin tonight with the images coming in at this hour of