last night but it didn't matter. the holiday spirit was on full display. president obama and his family lit the national christmas tree last night. carson daly hosted the event. good morning. i'm sarah simmons. welcome to fox 5 morning news. let's get a quick look at the weather with gwen tolbart who is in this morning. >> good morning. a little chilly start to our day. what a great event there. bundle up for you are heading out. 35-degree at national airport. 25 at manassas. 30 at fredericksburg and only 26 degrees at dulles. skies are clear. ridge of high pressure in control. that is not all bad. we'll see that continuing today. our temperatures will be into the 50s. >> thank you. al-qaeda claims to be

holding a rockville man hostage. warren weinstein was kidnapped in pakistan last august. the head of al-qaeda says he is being held by the terror organization and is issuing a series of demands for his release. they refer to him as the american jew saying he will be released if the u.s. stops bombing afghanistan being pakistan, somalia and yemen. the senate has blockade democratic plan to tax the rich to pay for a plan to renew the payroll tax cut. it is the cent are piece of president obama's jobs plan. republicans also helped kill a gop alternative. expect to pay more to ride metro soon. the transit agency says a fare increase is needed to close a $124 million budget gap next year. the money is needed, they say, to fix escalators, add more police, rescue worker fatigue and pay for rising health care

and pension costs. it is still unclear how much rates will go up. talking sports night thrilling win for the georgetown hoyas. they beat alabama 57-55. look at that. wow! that snapped alabama's 24-game winning streak that spanned nearly two years. the washington caps remained winless under new head coach dale hunter. they lost to the pittsburgh penguins last night 2-16789 pittsburgh scored the game winner with less than three minutes remaining. calling all foodies and chefs. think you have what it takes to impress gordon ramsey? casey steigel has more on auditions for next season's master chef. >> reporter: if you have what it takes to be criticized by these three famous and respected culinary specialists, work well under pressure and

make an array of creative and tasteful dishes, then master chef season three needs you. >> we are looking for people who are passionate. we want to find people that are really passionate about food. people that really want this. >> reporter: the ingredients are simple to make it past the first round of auditions. >> we want them to bring a plate that represents who they are. we are looking at something that, if i look at that plate and look at you, i can know that that is the plate you brought. >> i want to open schools for homeless and i would like to teach them how to cook. >> i have a concept for a gourmet dinner club that of a been wanting to put together for quite some time now and i would love to be able to launch

that program. >> this is a unique opportunity. a programming reminder for you. our 10th annual stuff a truck campaign is today benefiting families in need across the d.c. region. w invite you to join us at four giant food locations today from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. stop by biand drop off your nonperishable food items and a check. all proceeds do go to the capital area food bank. -- stop by and drop off your nonperishable food items and a check. it is friday, december 2nd. we are getting even closer to christmas now. it is in the 30s out there if can you believe it. it is a cold one you wake up. good morning. i'm sarah simmons. welcome to fox 5 morning news. let's get a quick look at the weather with gwen tolbart who is in this morning.

tucker barnes, tony perkins, this all out at the stuff a truck locations so you are in here where you're nice and warm. >> you're right. a very, very chilly start to the morning. you want to put on a sweater or jacket if you are heading out. you will need it this afternoon too. we will be exactly close to where we should be temperature- wise. so those 70s we had a week ago, this is a reality check today. let's take a look at where we hit yesterday with our reality check for temperatures. 52degrees at national airport. that is exactly where we should have been temperature-wise. we hit 50 at dulles and 53 degrees at bwi marshall so we're pretty much in that ballpark and that is where things should be. temperatures not too bad later on today but this morning, they are chilly. ridge of high pressure in control so that is keeping utah clouds away. we have very, very clear conditions out there that. will continue into the course of today and set us up for

sunshine across the area. -- ridge ever high pressure in control so that is keeping our clouds away. today, we are heading in the low others once again and no shortage of sunshine. >> let's check in with julie wright. are you should you want to head out there with tony perkins. >> he owes me a pie. ill a be out there after 8:00 this morning. the rest of the crew is out there now. another gang is set up up in rockville as well. hopefully, you get to come out and do a little meet and greet. on the roads, lanes are open along eastbound 66. overnight roadwork that was in place at nutley street is in the process of being picked up and moved out of the roadway. your lanes are open if you are continuing on the other side of the beltway at southbound 270 leaving father hurley

boulevard. that's a check of your fox 5 on-timetraffic. ffic. in this morning's big story, a maryland man kidnapped and held captive in pakistan for months. now, al-qaeda's top lead are says he is being held hostage. sherry ly has more. >> reporter: this is the first that anyone has claimed responsibility for warren weinstein's kidnapping but despite the claims, al-qaeda showed no proof that he is still alive. the leader claims the terror group has dr. weinstein and will bargain for his release. weinstein is from rockville and has worked in pakistan for several years. the 70-year-old aid worker was kidnapped from his fortified home nearly four months ago. al-qaeda claimed it will release him for the u.s. stops air strikes in muslim countries and releases terror suspects. >> it is an expensive claim.

it is not just you stop bombing afghanistan and pakistan and there is also close guantanamo bay, release all members of bin laden's family. it is a series of demands that can't possibly be met. to me, the indication is that they're planning to kill weinstein. >> reporter: because it took so long for al-qaeda to come forward, the terrorism in the work believes that they did not kidnap weinstein but has paid for him and is holing him as a bargaining tool -- holding him as a barring tool as a way to hurt president obama. alan gross from potomac was sentenced to 15 years in a cuban prison for spying. now, senators from maryland are calling on cubans to release him. there was a letter sent to cuba's representative here in washington asking for cuba to

let gross come home. he has already spent two years behind bars. new this morning, police in leesburg are investigating a shooting death of a 39-year-old man. this happened in the 800 block of valmont terrace last night after 10:00. police found the man inside his house suffering from a single gunshot wound. also making headlines this morning, a d.c. postal worker is robbed right outside of his workplace. an employee worked out of the post office at 14th and t streets last night around 630:67:89 amap approached and ordered the worker to give him all of his cash and any money orders he had on him. the postal worker was forced into the back of the mail truck and locked inside. police are searching for the robber. d.c.'s liquor board says it will continue to suspend the

license of heritage india. a man was killed outside that club over the weekend after a fight that started inside spilled onto the street. six people were shot and stabbed in that brawl. the board says the restaurant was violating a number of safety issues and pose as a danger to the public. fox 5 is monitoring metro for you with news of another fare hike. the transit agency says it is needed to help close a $124 million budget gap for next year. about half of the amount would pay for rising health care and pension costs. any fare increase would take effect in july. public hearings would have to be held before any decisions are made on this. the senate blocked a democratic plan to tax the rich to pay for a plan to renew the payroll tax cut due to expire

at the end of the month. the president responded by saying that republicans chose to raise taxes on nearly 160 million hardworking americans because they refused to ask millionaires and billionaires to pay their fair share. three, two, one! president obama and the first family lit the national christmas industry last night as part of the and -- christmas tree last night as part of the annual pageant of peace. last night marked the 89th year for the tree lighting. the tradition began in 1923. carson daly hosted the ceremony which included performances from big time rush and appearances by kermit the frog and also santa claus. president obama speak briefly to the crowd and urged people to be generous to one another

during the holiday season. >> this season of hope, let's help those who need it most. the homeless, the hungry, the sick and shut in. in this only of plenty, let's reach out to those who struggle to find work, to provide for their families. >> this year's tree may look a little different. that is because it is a new tree. you may recall the previous christmas tree was knocked down in a windstorm last february . it had stood for 33 years. two of the women's most recognizable leaders make a pledge to work together. the map suspected in the disappearance of a local woman is -- the man suspected in the disappearance of a local woman is telling his side of the story. we'll hear it on the other side of the break. 

hillary clinton is in the isolated country of burma and has meat with the democracy leader. they had dinner at the home of the american representative. early this morning, the two held a formal meeting. gary giordano and on abc's good morning mark along with his lawyer and his three sons were also behind him. he denied having anything to do with gardner's disappearance and explained why he took out a $1.5 million accidental death insurance policy on gardner. >> when you select those, if i put three names up there, all three are covered. you can't unselect anybody. so i have children. i have a house, a large house and a lot of payments and if i go traveling and i disappear, i want them to be covered. >> he also said, contrary to reports, he was not drinking the day gardner disappeared and

also says they were not in a remote location, but 100 yards from a snorkeling store. a confession now from the woman accused of going on a crime spree here in our area. 26-year-old stephanie schwab is suspected in two bank robberies and two carjackings. she was arrested thursday. according to the complaint, schwab has confessed to twofort crimes. she is due back in court next week. we know the tough days of winter are just around the corn are. new rules for how the federal government handles closures and early dismissals during severe weather or emergencies. plus, we're also checking your weekend weather and your traffic. stay with us.

a little programming reminder for you this morning. our tenth annual stuff a truck campaign is today benefiting families that are in need here across the d.c. region. we'll be at four giant food locations today from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. stop by and drop off nonperishable food items or a check if you would hike to do that instead. all proceeds go to the capital area food bank. going to be a little chilly out there for tucker and tony.

>> i think that tucker will be at montrose. >> and tony is at brentwood. >> come on out. see the guys. can you do an ask the weather guys, ask them a question while you're out there. >> put them on the spot. >> get a little personal information. i'm here holding down the fort. cool conditions outside. take a look at just where we are today. we've got a very, very chilly start to the morning. i call this the reality check of the season. of a gotten the reality check with a nice winter cold so far. 21 at frederick. 27 at gaithersburg. we've got 32 at quantico and if we take a look to the far west, 27 at cumberland. d.c. at 35. and 28 degrees at baltimore. a real chilly start to your day under clear skies. ridge of high pressure in control and that is leaving us with no clouds at all across

the area and that is what is going to be the forecast into the course of today. plenty of sunshine. it will be very, very bright out there for you. you will get to enjoy it. a couple of things that are going to be happening. we do have a cold front that will be moving through but it will be a dry cold front. it will keep us a little bit cooler on the back side of it. we do expect to see as we move through into tomorrow cooler conditions still persisting but still sunshine so we've got a couple of good sunny days as a result of this nice ridge of high pressure in our forecast. i am happy to say that. for today, plenty of sunshine. seasonal temperatures, 56 degrees. we were right on the mark for where we should have been yesterday at 52. a northwesterly wind at five to 10 miles per hour. so a light wind flow. tonight in the city, clear skies, 36 degrees. i want to warn you, if you are in the suburbs, you are talking into the upper 20s or so. it will be a lot chillier there so prepare yourself.

quick look at the five-day forecast. a little bit of wet weather heads our way as we move through into monday and tuesday. let's take a look at traffic now. here is julie wright. >> on the roads this morning, you will find lanes are open. no incidents reported as you continue around the capital beltway. traveling to or from the wilson bridge, you are at speed. top side looks good ads well. southbound 29 is quiet coming in from briggs chainy down to the beltway. 95 and 295 off to a quiet start coming in out of laurel. downtown, northbound 295, again, this morning, they had the overnight roadwork that was blocking you off at the bridge. inbound 66 is good to go. no problems to report leaving manassas for the beltway. that's a check of your fox 5 on-time traffic. the federal government has issued some new rules on early dismissal and closures during severe weather and other emergencies. now, the biggest change, the possibility federal workers

might some day be told stay in your building. don't go home. fox 5's john henrehan has more on this story. >> reporter: there are about 300,000 federal employees in and around washington, d.c. the government is by far the region's largest employer. when the weather around here gets really bad, it is not hard for area roadways to become gridlocked to the point of paralysis. that happened on january 26th, 2011 during a fast-moving snowstorm. the folk at the office of personnel management who make the decisions on government closure or early dismissal have tried to learn from previous crises and they have now redrawn some of the rules. still in place, a go-no go decision on closing the federal government should be made around 4:00 a.m. during expected severe weather, those federal workers who very already qualified for telecommuting will automatically get that option. if there is an early departure for federal workers, it will be staggered depending on the employee's start time that day.

here is the new stuff. in the future, even with staggering, the government may declare a final departure time, say 1:00 or 2:00 in the afternoon. everyone must leave by that deadline. conversely, if daytime weather conditions deteriorate have rapidly, federal managers may ask their workers to stay in their buildings. >> my hope is that those shelter in place around a snow emergency, we'd be talking hours, not an overnight situation. but again, i would rather have people warm and dry and safe inside federal structures than i would risking running out of gas, being stuck by the side of the road, having to spend night in their cars. many did last year. >> reporter: employees at opm have already been issued survival kits with bags of food, water and more. >> a chemical light stick for illumination, a mask and a

whistle for signaling. the shelf life for the food and water, five years. all workers everywhere should be prepared for the unexpected. john henrehan, fox 5 news. a messy rescue operation. how some local volunteers are getting their hands dirty to help some tiny creatures. my name is lisa jones. >> i'm jenae. >> we are in germany. i work for dodge. wanted to send holiday greetings out to all of our family and friends in the washington, d.c. area. everybody that is in the d.c., maryland area, happy holidays. >> we love you. state farm. this is jessica.

hey, jessica, jerry neumann with a policy question. jerry, how are you doing? fine, i just got a little fender bender. oh, jerry, i'm so sorry. i would love to help but remember, you dropped us last month. yeah, you know it's funny. it only took 15 minutes to sign up for that new auto insurance company but it's taken a lot longer to hear back. is your car up a pole again? [ crying ] i miss you, jessica! jerry, are you crying? no, i just, i bit my tongue.

[ male announcer ] get to a better state. state farm.

now to a real fish tale to tell in northwest d.c. volunteers are getting their hands dirty in the chilly waters in one of the city's parks to save the smallest animals in need. beth parker has the story. >> reporter: no doubt you've heard the story about the one that got away. these volunteers and employees of the washington humane society are catching fish, some small. >> it was smaller than my finger nail. >> some bigger. >> they are doing it by digging through large clumps of algae. >> it looks like goo. >> very gooey stuff. >> i feel like i'm cleaning out the drain in the bathtub after a gave may dog a bath. >> they are actually coming to the rescue. you've heard of dogs being rescued. >> this is probably the first fish rescue i've ever heard of and ever done in the city. >> reporter: this other foot long pool of water in d.c.'s

meridian hill park is drained regularly. in the past, it wasn't a problem but this year, fish are living in the pool. >> we originally heard about it through a blog and one of our officers said no, we can't let this happen. >> that officer was michael treeblosser. he usually investigates animal cruelty. >> a dog that is out in man's backyard without any food, water or shelter. these are fish. if no one helped them, they would die. >> reporter: maybe you are wondering how fish got here in the first place. meridian hill is run by the nationals park service but they didn't stock this pool. in fact, a neighbor put the fish in here. >> while his intentions might have been good and he wanted to bridge beauty to the park, which it did, it wasn't in the best interest of the fish. >> reporter: so volunteers are searching for even the tiniest creatures. >> just got some layers so you

can kind of keep track of what you're doing without like squishing them. >> you might walk into a building on k street and see a building on k street with some -- and see some of them there. >> a fish tale with a happy ending. did the hoyas take down alabama? we'll have the highlights coming up next. first, let's take a look at today's my fox half off deal. $15 gets you a dozen cupcakes. that is a $30 value. head to myfoxdc.com and hook for the my fox half off deal on the right side of the page. 

guys... [ female announcer ] pillsbury cinnamon rolls with cinnabon cinnamon are an irresistible sunday morning idea. nothing calls them to the table faster. sunday morning ideas made easy. [ younger brother ] oh, do you want it? yeah. ok, we'll split it. [ female announcer ] made fresh, so light... ...buttery and flaky... this is half. that is not half. guys i have more. [ female announcer ] do you have enough crescents?

a thrilling late night win for the georgetown hoyas. take a listen. >> it's good! >> hollis thompson nailed a long three-pointer with less than two seconds remaining to beat alabama 57-55. it snapped alabama's 24-game home winning streak that spanned nearly two years. the washington caps remain winless under their new head coach, dale hunter. they lost to the pittsburgh penguins last night 2-1. jason chimera scored the only goal for the caps. the eagles in seattle to face the seahawks. philly turned into a dreadful performance. lip. ran for 148 yards and two touchdowned for seattle. they win this one 31-14. the writing was on the

wall. the minnesota vikings released former redskin donovan mcnabb. he went 1-5 as the starter before being benched. there are reports that dallas, chicago and houston could put in a claim to sign mcnabb. we still have plenty ahead. fox 5 morning news continues right now. now. straight up 5:00 now on this friday morning. the washington monument front and center. it is december 2nd now, 2011. good morning. thank you for waking up early with us. i'm steve chenevey. >> i'm sarah simmons. welcome to fox 5 morning news. let's say good morning to gwen tolbart. she is in for tony perkins as they get ready for stuff a truck. it will be a cold one. >> temperatures in the 20s and 30s. reality of december, folks. let's take a look at our maps and show you where things are headed. we have had no clouds. we have a ridge of high pressure in