warmer locally and by that much more we'll be colder tomorrow afternoon. yep, a big change coming in the front. we'll stay in the 40's. mainly clear skies this evening. as we head to overnight, only about 32 for a low. it will be cloudy late tonight and early tomorrow morning, there could be flurries or snow showers as falling temperatures in the afternoon. friday into the weekend, that's part of the seven-day outlook. i'll be happy to present to you coming up in a few minutes. >> we'll see you in a bit. we go to breaking news of a stabbing on a metro train near the federal center metro stop and it's causing rush hour delays. diane cho is live outside of the metro station. you told us earlier that the victim appears to be a good samaritan, is that right? >> that's right, alison. we're told that the victim was actually trying to help someone else during an attempted robbery when he was stabbed in the hand. this is where it all ended here outside of the federal center metro stop. and i want to show you what's going on behind me. you can still see there are several officers remaining here on the scene. but everything else has pretty

much resumed back to normal. we have video of the alleged suspect as he was being taken into custody with blood on his hands here outside of the metro stop. at this point, we have not confirmed whether authorities said that was the suspect involved they were waiting for one of the victims to be returned to the area to make a positive identification on him. metro spokesperson said this happened around 3:30 this afternoon, the suspect got on the train on the l'enfant plaza stop headed to the new carrollton area. at some point, the suspect tried to rob someone on the train. another man tried to intervene to help. the suspect stabbed that man in the hand. again, we're told that he is expected to be ok. now, some of the trains, we're told were delayed earlier because authorities were busy trying to collect evidence on the trains. we're told that took about 20 to 30 minutes. we're told that everything should be resumed back to normal at this point. but there might be some residual delays because of that investigation. back to you in the studio. >> thank you,diane.

to that story that jennifer donelan broke on 7. the indianapolis colts player that made the interception that set off the patriots' deflategate scandal is in a scandal of his own. d'qwell jackson is accused of punching a man in a parking lot confrontation. jennifer joins us now with what the victim told abc 7. jennifer? >> let me lay out the scene for you. this is the pizza restaurant where the delivery worker works. down here, these are private parking spots and we're right off the u street corridor. parking is a premium. here's the parking space that is the scene of this alleged crime. it was his interception that started deflategate and now indianapolis colts linebacker d'qwell jackson is at the center of his own personal drama for allegedly beating up this pizza delivery man over a parking spot. >> trying to kill me for no reason. >> 41-year-old jose bonilla

fuentes said he had no idea who jackson was when he pulled into a private parking space last night. it was in an alley behind a condo building which was just steps away from his job. the italian kitchen on u street. he said while he was in his car, jackson emerged and was angry. >> won't let me go. really angry. and he said i told you before. no you never told me. i've never seen you before. >> that's when jackson got physical. >> my neck everywhere, my hands and i'm going to kill you because i tell you don't park here. >> he grabbed his cell and called police. >> i try to call somebody and say somebody is trying to kill me for no reason. >> police arrived and that's when bonilla fuentes claims jackson asked him not to press charges. >> please don't do nothing. don't do nothing. everything i have in my pocket i give it to you. i say no.

>> back here live there is a surveillance camera pointed right down here where it all happened. question is was it caught on tape? as far as this pizza delivery worker, he's the father of three. he said he couldn't go to the hospital that night because he has a daughter with special needs at home. the indianapolis colts say they are aware of the arrest but had no further comment and we had no comment today from jackson. reporting live from northwest, i'm jennifer donelan, abc 7 news. >> thanks, jen. hopes tonight that this incredible video of a deadly plane crash can lend some answers as to what went wrong here. a transasia flight crashed seconds after takeoff in taipei taiwan killing 26 people. 17 others are still missing. rescue workers managed to pull about a dozen of the plane's 58 passengers to safety. investigators say the pilot radioed that he lost an engine just minutes after takeoff. and then moments before the crash, you can see there on the dash cam video, the engine on the left wing does appear to

have been stopped. transasia says this is the newest plane in its fleet undergoing a full safety inspection just last week. as for the investigation, the plane's black box has been recovered. alison? >> incredible. meanwhile, the national transportation safety board is investigating what's being called the worst accident in new york's metro north history. six people are dead after a commuter train crashed into an s.u.v. just north of new york city. it happened yesterday afternoon during the height of rush hour. investigators believe the s.u.v. driver was trying to cross the tracks after the gates came down. the driver and several train passengers died. >> the district is increasing the number of radio coverage tests in the metro. this is in response to that deadly smoke incident earlier this month. firefighters had trouble using radios during the january 12th electrical malfunction in the l'enfant plaza tunnel. the mayor's office says the entire underground system will be tested once a week instead of once a month. the tests would start on january

23rd and have already found nine failures. those issues have since been corrected. >> there are calls for change tonight after a 911 operator's response to a frantic caller many take a listen. >> so two people were struck. >> yeah. they just went. >> let's stop whining, ok? it's hard to understand you. >> the girl calling had just seen her father struck and killed by a hit and run driver on the b.w. parkway. stephen tschida joins us now with more information on the operator tonight. stephen? >> alison sunday night the call came into this 911 center from this frightened frantic, confused girl believed to be about 13 years old. now, while the search for the hit-and-run driver continues, we can tell you the man who took that 911 call well, right now, he's not taking anymore calls. >> the call came into the anne arundel 911 center after 9:00 p.m. a girl pleaded for help.

>> ma'am! stop yelling! i need a location. >> the girl's father had just been fatally struck while changing a tire on the b.w. parkway. his fiancee injured. though her cell phone provided a location, the operator continued to press the young teenager for specifics. >> 295. that's good. we're located now on a highway. now, that's a pretty long road. >> some who have heard the recording are troubled. >> so two people were struck? >> yes. they both went. >> let's stop whining, ok. let's stop whining. it's hard to understand you. >> that's a little callous. i mean regardless of whether they're a 13-year-old or not, i think you should show a little compassion. >> meanwhile, at the 911 center there is no f the man who took the call. >> unfortunately, he used a very poor choice of words. >> he's now on an administrative job pending the outcome of an investigation into the incident. >> the possibility of retraining it could be the possibility of discipline. >> which could be termination. stephen tschida, abc 7 news.

>> meanwhile, a baltimore grand jury has indicted bishop heather cooke for that car crash that killed a cyclist. the 13 count indictment includes homicide by motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, manslaughter and texting while driving. police say cooke's blood alcohol level was nearly three times the legal limit when she struck thomas polermo back in december. the episcopal diocese of maryland suspended cooke after the crash. >> confirmation hearings are now under way for the secretary of defense nominee ashton carter. he addressed several topics today including the islamic state. >> in coming months the iraqi security forces assisted by us will begin to take back territory from isil and i think you're right, but it's important to get that territory back soon because you don't want them to settle? and you don't want the population to settle in to have isil rule them in their barbaric way. >> coming up on abc 7 news at 6:00 this evening, senior

political reporter scott finland has the latest on jordan's response to the killing of one of that nation'ss by isil. and abc 7 wants to give you a chance to discuss the escalating terror threat. your voice, your future the fight for freedom airs monday night at 7:00 on our sister station, newschannel 8. our panel of experts will take a look at the impact of terror groups and what steps should be taken to protect americans. go to wjla.com/town hall. there you can learn about how you can join the live studio audience. >> and ahead on abc 7 news at 5:00, the new evidence presented in court against a man accused of playing on young men at local beer pong tournaments. >> the stores that are selling products that could be putting your health at risk. >> a woman's basement floods after her water main break is fixed outside of her house. coming up we'll tell you what took so long to fix it. and why she had to live two weeks with no heat or hot water.

>> full day kindergarten is in jeopardy if prince william county as they grapple for a way to cut money from their budget. jeff goldberg is in manassas with other options on the table

and what happens next. jeff? >> alison it begins tonight at 7:00 when school board members start sharing and talking about options with members of the public. none of which they say are good options. the school board chair says he was surprised when he found out about the board of supervisors tax plan which is keeping rates much lower than he expected which in turn means less money in the classroom. deliver the news to any parent in prince william county. >> that's a big cut. >> and the idea of an $11 million cut does not sit well. same goes for bill lopez and brandon hepner students at hilton high school. the district says the budget shortfall will likely not allow for a reduction in class sizes. something students like hepner and lopez says is already a serious problem. >> it's a little too packed and hard to get the teacher's attention with so many kids. >> near impossible because they have to manage so many different things. and it's really hard for them. >> the board will likely not be giving raises to teachers, may be cutting bussing for specialty

programs and is considering the possibility of cutting all day kinkeddergarten at schools across the district. >> it's a frustration that's been six or seven years in the making. >> the school board chair milt johns who has been on the board for 12 years, says the past seven years funding from the board of supervisors is not enough to keep up with the growth rate of 2,000 students per year. >> there are very few large programs left in the budget that we haven't already cut where we can find $11 million. >> don't want to cut all day kindergarten kindergarten. >> three of this woman's children passed through the schools and two of her grandchildren are around kindergarten age. success, she says, starts early. >> kindergarten is a big part of that. that's the foundation. >> we spoke with the office of cory stewart, the board chair for -- the board chair for the board of supervisors here in prince william county. he tells me rest assured, there will be more money for schools

before the budget is finalized and that board members have every intention of preserving all day kinkeddergartenkindergarten. jeff goldberg abc 7 news. >> keep us posted. thank you. life is slowly returning to normal for a maryland woman who went two weeks without heat or hot water as her basement flooded. >> a "7 on your side" investigator chris pabst explains tonight what makes this case so unusual is the problem started when a broken water main outside of her house was repaired. >> when we first met rose king nine days ago, she was exhausted and upset. >> it's not right. >> the 64-year-old grandmother was in day five of no heat or hot water. what she did have was a basement filling with muddy soot. >> if i was living in a sophisticated neighborhood, i think the problem would be taken care of. >> on january 14th a water main outside of her home broke. after wssc repaired it her basement flooded.

she quickly stacked what she could upstairs and called the utility which did send a crew. but apparently they were in no rush to ease her suffering. the day we interviewed king, no one was working for the third straight day. >> i shouldn't have to live in this place like this. i shouldn't. it's not my fault. >> "7 on your side" reached out to the water company to see what was taking so long to make the repairs. two days later, we returned to king's home for an update. when we arrived, wssc representatives had just spoken to her. the pipes were being repaired. and her basement was drying. she still had no heat or hot water. >> i need somebody that's listening. >> wssc gave "7 on your side" this statement. "we deeply regret the way this situation evolved. there is a breakdown in wssc's internal communication at several levels that resulted in repair delays. we will review our processes immediately and work to ensure this does not happen again."

monday one week after we first met king, we checked in again. the work was done and the heat was on. >> you got a new water heater. >> uh-huh. >> for the first time in two weeks, she could shower in her own home. >> the agony is over. >> we were out live at the "7 on your side" help center. wssc has agreed to pay for everything that king lost. it turns out a sewer line was hit when that water main was being repaired. that's what caused the flooding. now, the reference to the communication breakdown that wssc made was king was offered a hotel room to go to while the repairs were being made. the water company thought she took them up on that offer. she did not. therefore, they saw no need to hurry up with those repairs. 7 is on your side today with the utility phone bank. here in our help center we have representatives from d.c. area in and outside of virginia and maryland. these are government agencies and local nonprofits. they're here to help you. call the number 703-236-9220.

these men and women are here to answer your questions with any utility problems you may have. it may be gas, electric, water, may be billing. you may have issues with your service. we're here to help you because 7 is on your side. in the newsroom, chris pabst, abc 7 news. >> ringing off the hook already then. >> you can hear it. >> weatherwise, what's in store?big changes? >> yeah. going to get really cold again and maybe again. used to this pattern, huh? warm up by saturday. >> used to it. that doesn't mean that we like it. >> we like today. >> yeah. scorecard to keep up. today, spectacular. let's get a review of the day. this was the view from the district in the weather bug network and plenty of sunshine through the day. temperatures climbed into the 50's for most of the afternoon in the city of washington and especially points south and sunset time coming up in a couple of minutes. gorgeous sunset with the high clouds will kind of reflectome of those long red rays of sunlight here.

53 degrees at the moment in gainesville. 55 has been the high. winds out of the south at 5 miles per hour. 42 degrees right now in frederick. highs are 45. the farther north you went, the cooler it was. you can see the warmer air and the darker green a little bit cooler. so it was only so much oompf that this system had of bringing the winds up. it's ok. here we are february 4th and we're still in the upper 40's in spots. that's not bad at all. tonight, we're going to drop but only to about freezing in most areas by morning as clouds roll in and they'll be rolling in ahead of that. yes, a blue line with triangles will cross over tomorrow. of course what that denotes is a cold front. and the cold front will bring some gusty winds and maybe a flurry and maybe a snow shower. definitely a change in the weather pattern. highest temperature of the day likely to be in the morning to late morning and then falling in the afternoon. temperatures are falling already behind the front. 18 in chicago. 11 degrees in michigan. upper peninsula and the closer you get to the mountains, a

little touch of the cooler air. 41 in pittsburgh. still mild on our side of the picture. here comes the front. timing wise 6:00 in the morning, the front will be through. the surface front will be through and take a little time the cold air kind of lags a little bit behind but the breezes will pick up. we're analyzing some areas of snow flurries and snow showers. perhaps more moisture and more snow showers north along the i-95 corridor and stretching back across the lower lakes. it's a progressive system and the upper level winds will power it through. it will help yield the development of a pressure area. fortunately or unfortunately, depending on -- snow lovers would love for me to take that low and bring it up chesapeake bay and dump two feet of snow. that's not going to happen. the storm will push out to sea. that will be that. we'll see clearing skies in the afternoon and gusty winds. plenty of sunshine and plenty of sunshine into the day on friday as well. and as that system moves out of the way, there's another cold front that's going to pay us a visit saturday night or sunday. so here's our story through the day tomorrow. snow flurries or snow shower in the morning. breezy and colder throughout the day. temperatures will fall.

wind chills probably in the teens by this time tomorrow afternoon. so a big change coming our way. and as far as the next seven days goes it looks beautiful into friday. saturday, we'll be beautiful too. upper 40's with some sunshine. and speaking of saturday got something interesting to talk about? it's the fairfax city chocolate festival again this weekend coming up. so it will be very pleasant. as we get into sunday that next front will bring clouds back and probably some rain. 30% chance we're seeing now. this is a low end forecast now. probabilities aren't too high. 30% chance of rain late sunday and if things work out right, then possibly it could change a mix of snow sometime monday before moving out to sea. we'll wait on that a bit longer. >> if you eat enough chocolate saturday, you won't care what happens. you'll be so happy. >> that's right. >> thank you, doug. see you later. >> coming up on abc 7 news at 5:00, usual mood at the trial for the man akudz of using the game beer pong to intoxicate young men and sexually assault them. >> what you bought at a dollar

store that could be hazardous to your health. that story coming up. >> but first, here's what's coming up in primetime tonight here on abc 7.

>> 7 is on your side with a health matters report right now. many americans, it turns out, doesn't know what's putting them

at risk of cancer. according to an american institute of cancer research survey, people continue to blame cancer on factors they cannot control like poll nuclear power, food additives. even though none of these things have been proven to be risk factors. the controllable risk factors are actually simple diet and lifestyle changes like eating less processed meat and not smoking. >> you know, you may be putting your health in danger when you shop at those dollar type discount stores. that's according to an environmental watchdog group that recently tested some items purchased at those stores. and as suzanne kennedy shows us tonight, many of those items contain dangerous chemicals. >> they are popular stores that offer household items at cheap prices. but do the products sold dollar type stores come with a hidden price? an environmental watchdog group recently tested items purchased at dollar general, dollar tree, family dollar and 99 cents. the items tested that campaign for healthier solutions says

more than 81% had dangerous chemicals chemicals. >> what consumers should know, number one, is where these products are coming from. if indeed the products are actual ly actually full of the core carcinogens that they found. >> it can lead to birth defects and reduced fertility. and lead which can cause learning disabilities. these are a few of the items that the report found to be problematic. a vinyl tablecloth. a shower curtain and children's headbands. items that on the surface seem safe. we checked out what she bought at this northeast family dollar. she was disappointed to hear that some of her items could have posed a health risk. >> this is what in a poor community or a low income communities, this is what you can expect. so i'm not surprised. >> carrie shops these types of stores once a week. she says she'll be more watchful of what she buys.

>> kind of like taking our lives in your hands, you know. you're selling us these products. i'd like to think, you know the products are good products. >> critics of these stores and some of their product say consumers deserve better and the change should offer shoppers better merchandise. >> we reached out to all four stores involved in this study and we heard back from just two of them.eneral said this in a statement. "customers can shop dollar general stores with confidence knowing the company firmly stands behind its products. family dollar issued this statement saying "we monitor and manage all private brand and direct import products to ensure compliance with all applicable laws. "for the full statement, you can go to our website at wjla.com. >> coming up on abc 7 news at 5:00 d.c.'s streetcar has already faced months of delays to its opening. now, a new debate is swirling over its very design. what that means for this troubled project ahead. >> i'm kevin lewis live in rockville. after the break, i'll explain

how beer pong could send a man to prison for up to 140 years. >> the "7 on your side" help desk is open for business tonight. if you have problems with your utility company or you have any questions that you want answered, give us a call 703-236-9220. we'll be checking with horace holmes in a few minutes.

>> jury is out tonight on a man accused of getting teenagers drunk at beer pong tournaments and sexually assaulting them. >> 40-year-old joey poindexter was convicted of a similar crime just last week. kevin lewis is live outside of the courthouse with the unusual move that poindexter made at trial. kevin, tell us about it. >> yeah leon poindexter apparently wasn't a big fan of his defense team who had taken the case pro bono so he fired them. the judge told poindexter it was "ridiculously stupid decision" but acknowledged he couldn't stop the man from making that call. and so in a very bizarre twist here, joe poindexter has spent the week cross examining own alleged victims.

joey poindexter was a household name in a competitive beer pong circuit. police say he used the social sport to lure young intoxicated men to this gaithersburg home where he'd assault and sodomize them. that alleged streak ended last october when an 18-year-old local college student reported poindexter to police. a search of his home uncovered dozens of other potential male victims on various electronic devices. during closing arguments today, prosecutors picked away at poindexter saying he screwed up. he made photos and videos of every terrible thing he did in an organized system where he put his trophies five layers deep in his external hard drive. that's what you do with your sex assault trophies. you hide them. prosecution played one of those videos in court where a teenage male victim could be heard repeatedly slurring the words no. and stop. poindexter who fired his prestigious legal team and is now representing himself told the jury he can't be proven guilty because his face never

appears in the pictures or videos. the 40-year-old saying the state is not infallible. they make mistakes and this is one of them. this case is full of holes. >> after nearly four hours of deliberating today, the judge sent the jury home around the stroke of 5: reconvene tomorrow. if found guilty on all eight counts in this case, joey poindexter could spend the next 140 years in state prison. live in rockville, i'm kevin lewis, abc 7 news. >> time now for a look at today's top stories. indianapolis colts linebacker d'qwell jackson faces a misdemeanor assault charge in the district. police arrested jackson last night for allegedly punching a pizza delivery driver in a dispute over a parking spot. jackson made the interception that started the deflategate investigation of the new england patriots. >> the prince william county school board meets tonight to discuss more potential budget cuts. all day kindergarten is among the programs facing elimination or reduction. the board says it's running out

of options after years of growing enrollment. >> and 17 people remain unaccounted for after a plane crashed in taiwan. transasia plane went down in taipei killing at least 26 people on board. plane's final moments were captured by several vehicle dash cams. rescuers pulled more than a dozen survivors from the watery wreckage. >> back here at home the district is performing bridge and tunnel safety inspections that could cause some traffic backups. the right lanes of pennsylvania avenue westbound to the ramp, to 695 closed for a short time today. the work continues again on friday in the left lane from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. the connecticut avenue bridge in southwest near the entrance to the national zoo will also be impacted on friday. the right lane will close going north and southbound. time for a check on the traffic situation with bob emler in the wtop traffic center. hi, bob. >> hi, alison. on 270 northbound plenty of

volume headed north and up through 121 in clarksburg. no incidents along the way. there is a new crash on the beltway on the outer loop after gallows road and working on the incident in manassas where the truck is on fireestbound before -- make that 234 prince william parkway and 95 southbound there's a bit of volume over the occoquan from route 1. beyond that, a new crash reported south of stafford along the left side on the southbound side of i-95. look at some cameras now and things are generally good here on the beltway getting up to the american legion bridge on the inner loop. volume up to the toll road and past the bridge at 270 and southbound 395 headed south to the pentagon. just volume delays getting to landmark. i'm bob emler with 103.5 wtop radio. >> the virginia department of transportation says that two big piles of dirt in arlington aren't going anywhere. it turns out they're two expansive to move. the mounds are at the route 50 washington boulevard interchange and made up of construction debris covering at least four feet in soil. that debris is from a recently

completed route 50 interchange project. vdot is committed to planning hundreds of trees on this site instead of paying millions of dollars to move the dirt. >> interesting. coming up on abc 7 news at 5:00 he dove into the ice to save a dog. what he says was the last thing that went through his mind before taking the plunge. >> so this one, this style here is called the g.g. and it's called mackenzie. >> what's so special about this jewelry? meet this week's harris' heroes and you'll find out coming up next. >> coming up tonight at 6:00 the u.s. and other nations are upping the fight tonight against isil in light of that horrific execution of a jordanian pilot. our senior political reporter scott

>> most children probably wouldn't consider braces a fashion accessory, at least not a desirable one but two young girls are changing that notion and raising thousands of dollars in the process for a good cause. meet this week's harris' heroes gigi and mackenzie, creators of bracket ears. >> all right. what we're going to do is take a peek. >> inside casey and lisa's kid friendly columbia dental practice, there's a burgeoning business. >> are you having a hard time getting the rubber bands on? >> that's transforming unused

surgical skilled brackets and plastic bands for bracelets into jewelry. the two daughters mackenzie and gigi are the creators of bracket ears. >> i know some people don't like getting braces. makes it sort of fun and you can change the colors and everything. >> the start-up company sells earrings including miniature ones for dolls and now bracelets. >> you just pull the strings. >> not for profit but to raise money for autism organizations. >> pediatric dentist have a lot of autistic patients and i thought it sounded like a great idea. >> howard county autism society has been one of the beneficiaries. >> so i definitely would like this partnership to flourish. >> the girls have learned a lot about the world as the family traveled to china to find a manufacturer and the whole process has taught them the power of an idea. >> i think that all kids can really do is they want to -- if they have an idea, they should stick with it. it might end up in a really good

idea. >> their dad says he hopes they've also learned another important lesson. >> you can teach your kids to try to pay it forward. at the end of the day, we need more people to kind of help out. >> and that's right. that's what they're doing. so far it has raised $13,000 for autism organizations. and the impact is growing. they're being sold now by amazon and he says he's been contracted by companies in south america and europe to sell bracket ears there as well. as a condition, the firms have to donate at least 10% of the proceeds to a charity of their choice. they are continuing to pay it forward. >> that is fantastic. >> love it. >> good for them. >> coming up next here on abc 7 news at 5:00 new problems for d.c.'s streetcar. the new concern over a critical part of the project that's already months behind schedule. >> plus, what went through this hero's mind the second he jumped into icy waters to save man's best friend. >> whether it's gas, water electricity, if you have any questions or concerns about your

utility 7 is on your side we are here in our help center and we have the panel of experts behind us to answer your questions about your utilities. number to call is

>> take a look at this icy rescue. a dog in michigan is lucky to be alive thanks to the u.s. coast guard. a group of officers worked to save this yellow lab after it fell into a freezing bay yesterday. two officers decided to just go ahead and jump in the water and reach the dog. >> they put a line on me and from there, i just asked if i jump in here are you going to be able to bring me back? and they said yes. roger that. i'm jumping in. >> that hurts just to look at it. the rescue took just under an hour and the lab was warmed up and taken to a shelter for observation. she was later reunited with her owner. >> wow. well, tonight, 7 is on your side giving you a voice on what can be the maddening process of sorting out a problem with your utility company. horace holmes live in the "7 on your side" help center with what kind of problems we're hearing from these callers. horace? >> this time of year a lot of us are having trouble staying on

top of our utility bills. we have a channel of experts that are here in our "7 on your side" help center to answer your questions, they've been here since about 5:00 this afternoon. experts from organizations like prince george's department of social services maryland legal aid, fairfax department of cable and consumer services and also the d.c. people's council and we have with us from d.c. people's council sandra frye who is the people's council herself. what kind of questions are you getting? >> good evening, horace. we are getting questions that are similar to the questions that we get at the office. questions about high bills. questions about competitive energy suppliers. those companies that come and try to sell energy to consumers as well as the new change in pepco's billing. there's a new billing format. a number of customers are calling about that. so similar to the types of questions that we get every day. so we're doing what we do every day. and the message that we are

getting with respect to high bills, there's things that consumers can do. you call out or we can arrange for the companies to have billing payment arrangements. in addition there are energy efficiency measures that they can take as well as get energy assistance from some of the energy companies such as the d.c. energy office. >> ok. there's help out there. >> there is actually help out there. we would like you to call our office at 202-727-3078. >> thank you so much. thanks for being here with us. we're getting lots of calls and you can get in on it too. our number here at the hotline is 703-236-9220. that takes you right into our help center. our experts will be here until 6:30 to answells. back to you guys in the studio. >> all right. you got it, horace. maybe you're feeling lucky today. and you don't need horace holmes. how about just going out and buying a powerball ticket? tonight's jackpot up to $317

million! you know it's been nearly a year since the powerball total climbed above $300 million. it's back up there tonight. a falls church man has won a $1 million powerball prize. the virginia lottery says that his ticket matched the first five numbers but missed the powerball in the january 24th drawing. he bought the winning ticket at a gas station in virginia. winning numbers were 16 19 20 29 33 and powerball number was 10. he says he doesn't expect the money is going to change him. >> all right. well, tonight at 6:00 mixed emotions today from governor larry hogan's first state of the state address. what he has to say about maryland's future. and hearings on the metro smoke incident. now the ntsb plans to get to the bottom of what happened. that's tonight on abc 7 news at 6:00. >> all right. well enjoy the weather while we have it. >> i know. wish we could hang on to this. in the 50's today and sunny. >> 50's today. close to 60 in fredricksburg.

so nice change. but it's a push of warm air ahead of a cold front. let's get started and show you the storm scan coverage of this cold front and the area of the snow running through it stretching right now from st. louis northeastward through cleveland to buffalo and that band will come our way. i don't know if every flake will stay with it. we may have a couple of snow showers or couple of flurries. friend of mine that posted on my facebook page, t.j. miller is a commercial pilot and just landed in cleveland. took off from chicago in the snow and landed in cleveland and this is the look right there at hopkins at the airport. so plenty of snow for snow lovers. do you really want to see that at reagan i don't know. any case so don't have to worry about that tonight. just a few clouds. tomorrow, the warm temperatures will transition back to winter time. 51 in the nation's capital now. drop to 32 overnight with cloudy skies. and early tomorrow morning, that cold front, same one will come in and our computer model analyzes a few little snow showers or snow flurries with it. i think the most you'll notice though is what happens during the late mor

afternoon when the winds turn to the northwest and it gets gusty and colder and temperatures fall. wind chills in the teens by tomorrow afternoon. there will be plenty of sunshine and plenty of sunshine into the day on friday. our express forecast for thursday, snow showers or a flurry possible in spots in the morning. falling temperatures, gusty winds in the afternoon and the next seven days shows sunshine and cold weather on friday. warmer, look at that. upper 40's on saturdays. sunday and monday sunday will be mild and then sunday night that's another cold front. and another low pressure area approach. 30% chance of some rain. possibly mixing with or changing to snow on monday if a whole bunch of stuff happens to get enough cold air in and clearing skies resume after that. i think that said enough for now. back to you. >> all right, see you soon. thank you. >> it's always fun. now they go with their hats and pick the hat, you know, all the high school kids getting all the publicity. first wednesday in february is college football signing day. it's become a bigger deal than it was in my day. carried live on national television. bigger even when my son signed with ucla.

locally, maryland had a good day signing the offensive lineman boware and the terrapins lost their number one prospect isaiah prince who chose ohio state over the terrapins. randall edsall announce the terrapins got the 295 pound defensive lineman adam mclean george's high school, number one prospect in the state. robert burton spent the day at dematha high school with a young future star. >> dematha's jire george a basketball player turned football player is now a stag turned commodore. >> where does this moment rank? >> two. number two. right after that moment that i saw him and kissed that little boy and now seeing him become a man. >> he'll spend his college years competing in the sec at vanderbilt. >> get an opportunity to play on the highest levels that i can, you know. it's a dream come true. >> and he's no stranger to nashville. his father eddie george played seven seasons in tennessee. but he tells us signing this is the beginning of his own legacy.

>> i'm walking my own path, you know. using the blueprint that my dad gave me. >> everywhere you go you can't deny who your dad is. you look just like him. but he handled this you know in great stride. >> he loves his father. his father is very involved but i'm very glad that he stands on his own two feet and he knows who he is. >> meanwhile, back in nashville, where eddie lives. >> golly, just to be able to hop in my car and be right there at the game in 20 minutes beautiful thing! >> from hyattsville, maryland robert burton abc 7 sports. >> and when he's ready, i'm sure robert, he'll want to follow his dad to the nfl where today, boston is celebrating the world championship. cold snowy boston. to catch a glimpse of the superstar m.v.p. tom brady. malcolm butler hometown heroes. those folks are hardy in the northeast. snowiest week in boston history and couldn't keep them away from the patriots who are the world champions.

let me take you down under. australian golfer richard green playing the 15th hole left-hander pushes it towards the bunker. for pete's sake. look at the rake. it hits the rake toward the hole and here it comes. are you kidding me? first hole-in-one ever. richard green with the shot of the day! a miracle shot hole in one. now hear this. this just in syracuse men's basketball has just issued a self-imposed ban. they will not be involved in the post season this year. more on this coming up later. just breaking. self-imposed ban by syracuse men's basketball team. >> that's big. that's huge. >> that's big. >> all right. good deal. coming up next here on abc 7 news at 5:00 the new complaint that's passing down on d.c.'s already troubled project. as a small business owner you wouldn't deliver just half of what you have to offer to your customers. so why are you settling for half-fast

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with d.c.'s streetcar. >> our d.c. bureau chief sam ford explains the mounting complaints. >> the streetcars were supposed to start moving passengers early last year then late last year then early this year. still no opening date in sight. if you ask people here on eighth street about them. >> no need for it. >> today, the council's transportation committee chair called a roundtable on overhead streetcar wires but it was really about streetcars riod. are they worth the investment? we should find out exactly what we'll be committed to doing and plan it properly. >> the new acting director of ddot criticized the whole program that he called ad hoc saying d.c. bought a few streetcars and tried to build a system around them. >> so you don't build the system around the car. you bring the rolling stock to fit into the environment that you hope to enhance.

>> there's the issue of overhead wires many a lot of people don't like them. congress passed a law prohibit prohibiting overhead wires in the central part of the city. and the old streetcars seemed to be able to run fine without overhead wires. in today's testimony, they said that these streetcars cannot run anything but a short distance unless they have the power coming from overhead. the council voted an exception for h street. that's just another question about the future of a system that planners want to expand city wide. as one business leader put it -- >> so it's stuck in traffic with everybody else. it's not better and people won't choose to use it. >> i'm sam ford abc 7 news. >> that's it now for abc 7 news at 5:00. we're monitoring a winter weather alert. doug will tell us what you need to know about the morning commute. >> plus maryland's new governor delivers his first state of the state. what he had to say about budget cuts and taxes. >> and uyou heard it first on 7 here.

what led to the arrest of an nfl player and left a d.c. pizza delivery man with scratches and bruises. >> first at 6:00 a winter weather alert. we're monday -- monitoring for the potential of snow and bitterly cold temperatures. doug hill tells us what to plan for and when. >> hey, maureen. it's 50 degrees here in arlington outside of the belfort weather center talking about snow tomorrow morning and maybe some flurries. let's get you into it. look at the temperatures, been delightful today. it will turn colder as the front continues tomorrow. wake up to temperatures near 32 degrees with cloudy skies and the chance of a few flurries or snow showers they'll all be heading this way early in the morning from a cold front that's moving through ohio right now. and our computer model suggests about 7:00 or 8:00 in the morning we could have some snow showers moving through the area. good news is it will be a fast

moving system and we'll see sunshine back in the area before noon along with falling temperatures and very gusty winds. so that is the weather story we'll face for the rest of the day and things will settle down as we head through the day on friday. there's another chance of wintry weather as we head through late sunday night and monday. the big story, i think, is the temperature roller coaster. upper 50's in spots today. bitterly cold with the winds tomorrow afternoon maureen. >> thank you, doug. in his first state of the address, maryland governor larry hogan paints a grim picture and his message earned mixed reviews from lawmakers. maryland bureau chief brad bell is live in annapolis tonight with details. brad? >> well maureen, the new governor came out swinging today. he campaigns with basically one promise. to get maryland taxes and spending under control.