[captioning made possible by constellation energy group] >> good morning and welcome to "11 news saturday morning." i'm jennifer franciotti. lisa robinson has the day off. i'm lowell melser. happy new year. >> you are just everywhere. >> what day is this? >> right. >> what year is this? john collins joins to us look at the weather. we have a little rain moving in. >> yes but it has been nice. up to 50 yesterday for the high. took a long time getting there. we will be in the neighborhood today but the change is there is something out there coming in. earlier -- i mean like yesterday and day before that and day before there was a big storm causing problems in the central part of the nation. snow and severe weather with tornadoes and everything else. there may be some severe weather to the south and southwest with the storm, but for us it just means it will be a rainmaker when it comes in later today, tonight and first part of tomorrow. at the moment we are picking up clouds coming in ahead of the storm. all the rain is in west virginia and westward back into indiana and parts of kentucky and tennessee. for the first part of the day it will be pretty nice and reasonable testifies. details on the new year weather in a minute. >> our big story, police are looking for a teenager missing from northwest baltimore. she is from north carolina and was visiting baltimore family members when she disappeared five days ago. >> baltimore police are asking community members to take a close look at felicia sa barnes's picture. she had been visiting family in northwest baltimore for the holidays but disappeared more than four days ago. >> based on preliminary investigation in appears she left on her own. doesn't appear there was any foul play at this point. but we are still in the stages of the investigation to confirm that there was no foul play. >> according to police barnes was last seen at the reisterstown square apartments. family members told investigators the teen left overnight monday possibly to get some food. she was reported missing around 1:30 tuesday afternoon. barnes was wearing a navy pea coat with a hood, blue jaeans friends gathered it pray for her return. >> i think this is to give everybody the hope we needs to actually know that she's coming home and it is just so everybody feels better and she's going to come home. >> you can hear the distress in felicia's mother's voice. >> family members says barnes has no history of running away. it appears she left with the cell phone but left other personal items. police have tried calling the phone but haven't been able to reach her and she's had no contact with family or friends. >> the baltimore city police department is talking about the strides it made the last year to improve public safety. baltimore city recorded the lowest number of homicides in 25 years. >> according to figures provided by the baltimore city police department the city's 2010 murder rate is down 6% compared to last year's 238 killings. 2010 saw 223. that is the lowest since 1985's 213. >> just not a cause for celebration. the numbers are not a cause to celebrate. the 200 homicides are 200 too many in baltimore city. but 200 is better than 300. >> overall crime is down 3% compared to 2009 including drops in property crime, violent crime shooting. they credit a new strategy instituted several years ago target violent repeat offenders and reduce nonviolent arrests which experts say often put young men in prison and gang culture. >> we have brought down murder and violent crime rates by arresting 30,000 fewer people. that is a town's worth of people. >> experts say the steady drop can go a long way for charm city. >> safer streets and others quit schools. if you have both of those not only will people stay in the city but come to the city and pay taxes and it will attract other businesses. >> felix vaughn has lived here 50-plus years. ers not convinced the statistics are translating into a safer baltimore. >> i commend the commissioner on his diligence in trying to resolve these as best he can. but as long as society is somewhat warped things are going to happen. >> we compared cities with similar populations to baltimore. this year boston had 72 murders. charlotte 56. >> baltimore city fire officials are investigating the first deadly fire of the new year. the one-alarm fire was shortly after 3:00 this morning in west baltimore. officials say they arrived at 5038 queens bury avenue to find heavy smoke from a basement from the row home. inside they fond the body of an unidentified man. officials believe he died from smoke inhalation and burns. the siskauskas under investigation. in anne arundel county fire officials want to know what sent a business up in flames. it broke out just after 5:30 at the old stein in edgewater. firefighters say they were met with several challenges when they got there including heavy smoke and shooting flames. >> we asked for additional assistance due to the weather conditions and also there is no hydrants in the area for water supply. we had to run a hose line three-quarters of a mile. >> the restaurant was opened by a couple from germany in 1983. no one was hurt. >> shifting gears, baltimore ushered in the new year with a dazzling fireworks show that lit up the inner harbor. mild temperatures had the downtown packed for the countdown. >> the ball dropped in new york city as well. fireworks flew over sydney harbor and vietnam hosted a rare western style countdown. >> kurt gregory has a look at the celebrations all over the world. >> new zealand the first major city to welcome in the new ye . kwraoyear. then the skies over the iconic harbor bridge in sydney, australia, lit up in spectacular fashion. in japan the 15-ton bell at tokyo temple told. that was to honor 2011. similarly in beijing, and the big bell temple. in the united arab emirates fireworks were launched from the world's tallest building to be officially opened january 4. thousands turned out to watch the clock strike 12 at moscow's red square. brilliant fireworks and snow for a memorable scene. and celebrations continued in johannesburg, south africa, only months after hosting soccer's world cup. champagne corks popping in paris at the foot of the eiffel tower. while in london the most famous clock in the world, big ben, rang in the new. and a tradition continues in new york. hundreds of thousands jam into times square to greet 2011. >> 2011, hard to believe we are here now but we want to look back at the year that was here in maryland from sandstorms to fires to -- snowstorms to fires. >> 2010 kicked off with the u.s. sending aid to haiti. the ship comfort deployed to the region devastated by an earthquake. our reporter lowell melser made the trip. >> this is the main staging area where the most critical patients are picked up. these two patients are waiting to be taken back to the comfort. how they get to this position is a very delicate process. >> it was comfort in her own way. baltimore mayor sheila dixon tried to give residents following the december 2009 conviction on embezzlement. >> the citizens will be assured that we won't miss a step. >> but by february the first african-american female mayor stepped down and new mayor stepped up. >> i will execute the office of -- >> then the snow came and came and came. two back-to-back blizzards buried maryland under inches of snow, enough to last most of us a lifetime. and we learned just how much snow our roofs and gutters can take. from the snow toeplts to extreme heat the summer of 2010 was set sizzling. 58 days in the 90 alleys, seven days over 100. the crazy weather continued into the fall with a november tornado that all but took out an east baltimore apartment complex. >> the fact that nobody is dead and there is not serious injury is a miracle. >> unforgettable headlines. convictions in the murder of ken harris. a terror plot uncovered in catonsville. the block burned in a five-alarm fire and within hours firefighters attacked another fire in mount vernon. the state's first slots parlor opened in cecil county. governor o'malley won his job back. national leader in the civil rights movement passed away. dying just before a visit to coppin state university where a ceremony was held in her honor. but 2010 will go down as the year of the sink bug, or maybe we should call them stubborn bugs because we are still finding them crawling all over the walls. for ravens fans we are going into 2011 excited. they are in the playoffs for a record third year in a row. so, here is hoping for a super new year. >> oh, yes. on our website we rounded up the best stories from you. your best photos and videos are on wbaltv.com. click on local news. >> hard technology. >> you still have sink bugs, right? >> i live in the city so i don't see them as much as in the county but the studio is infested with some of them. it is 5:12 and 33 degrees. a book more than six decades overdue is now back on the shelves at enoch pratt central library. >> a stink bug just flew by. mild weather for this time of year in the midwest. a sad story, residents cleaning up from deadly tornadoes that killed six. >> and right now you are taking a live look outside. john has the forecast. stay with us. "11 news saturday morning" is just getting to help avoid dental problems my dentist gives me act restoring mouthwash. act kills germs, restores minerals strengthens enamel. act restoring-- for strong teeth act now. >> if you are trying to prop your eyelids open take a look at the radar and there will be changes. yesterday was pretty nice, up around 50 for the high. we have clouds moving in now in advance of the next weather maker, which will be rain, not snow. that is a nice way to start the new year. we had an awfully cold december with a little bit of snow. a threat of a big snow but it missed us west of the bay. parts of the eastern shore got a lot. now we have a sizable storm coming in with severe weather in the form of tornadoes and a couple of days ago a lot of snow in the northern plains and rocky mountains. for us just a rainmaker. just getting into west virginia but we have clouds this morning. currently it is 31 at the airport. 37 at the inner harbor. relatively mild temperatures. should be in the 20's normally. the average is 20's. 82% humidity. 30.10 the barometric pressure and wind calm. it will be a southerly breeze that will keep the temperatures up. south wind yesterday allowed us to get to 50 at the airport and 47 at the inner harbor. we had our fair share of clouds earlier and that held the heating down. it might have been warmer if not for the clouds. typical high it time of year is 42 and typical low is 24. so we are above the mark. most of december we were way below. yesterday the lows were 24 and 32 so we are running a little warmer than that with a 31 reading at the airport, 36 at annapolis, 32 cambridge. ocean city 35 and 37 edgewood. parkton 34. westminster 39. frederick 28. oakland, again it has its nose up in warmer air at 50. down in the valley at frostburg it is 38 degrees. so the potential is to warm up a little bit today. the problem is that we have this system moving in with its clouds and eventually the rain and then behind it there will be some chilly ari establishing more typical temperatures. you see the change coming. st. louis is 30 but kansas city 12. there is a cold front right in that area. by this evening it will be in west virginia moving eastward and ahead of the front rain developing this afternoon and tonight so. for today cloudy skies, rain showers developing this afternoon and continuing tonight into tomorrow morning. south wind three to seven miles an hour. 47 to 51 the high expected. so, 51 for the high today with rain late. rain in the morning on sunday and a high of only 48 degrees in the afternoon during the game we expect rain-free conditions and sun breaking through. dry for most of next week. 40's for highs, 20's and 30's for lows with mixed precipitation by next friday. >> the new year brings big changes to healthcare for young and old and we will look at the new laws. >> if you are still up with us after celebrating new year's eve chances are you may not be feeling so well. we have some hangover remedies. >> a sneak peek at the movies. hollywood hopes the box office will bring big block busters ine [ alarm clock buzzing, indistinct conversations ] [ female announcer ] important events can sneak up on you. oh, i am not ready. can i have a couple weeks? 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[ female announcer ] go to yoplait.com to start your two week tune up. >> some advice on keeping the new year's resolution of losing weight. we start with good intention of exercise routines and diet plans but most of it fizzles within weeks. experts say that is because we try to do too much too soon. small goals are easier. set five-pound weight loss galls or shoot for exercising three times instead of every day. experts say setbacks are ok. >> don't try to start a seven-day a week and 800-calorie diet. you are going to be hungry and miserable. >> enlisting the help of a friend or spouse can help. diaries can help because seeing what you are eating and how often you work out can be a reality check. it is new year's day and that means if you overindulged last night ringing in the new year you are probably paying the price this morning. we have advice on how to help that hangover and maybe prevent it next time. >> it was like you want to die some days. >> it is it dastardly horrible feeling of headache, nausea, exhaustion, lethargy. it is a spectrum after heavy drinking. >> movies have been made about it, products have been made to cure it and the number of rumored cure-alls are endless. the hangover. what is it? >> a mixture of dehide days ago and the toxic compounds and alcohol can lower blood sugar. >> dr. john kelly explains the only guaranteed way to avoid one is to not drink any alcohol. but if that is not in your plans this weekend is there some other way to prevent one? >> it is probably a reasonable idea to sayville -- to say i will have one drink per hour. if you finish it quickly you may want something hydrating but doesn't have alcohol. >> in addition, dr. kelly says to make sure you are well hydrated and rested before you start the evening and that you have some food in your belly to slow the alcohol's absorption. in spite of that, if you wake up new year's day with a hangover is there a way to cure it? >> hot water and lemon. >> eggs, milk and sugar and stir it up and drink it. >> drink more water. lie in bed a few hours and advil helps. >> the truly proven remedies remain. rehydrate yourself usually with water or maybe broth or maybe some sort of sports drink. but all of the other possible remedies have never been proven to be able to be an absolute way to cure the hangover. >> i think water was definitely the most common theme. dr. kelly also says it is dangerous to mix alcohol and car feign because car feign keeps you -- caffeine keeps you awake and it dehydrates the body. movie fans, up next we have some previews of some of the films you can look forward to in 2011. first here is a look at some events going on around town this weekend. can i eat heart healthy without giving up taste? a man can only try... and try...and try. i heard eating whole grain oats can help lower my cholesterol. it's gonna be tough...so tough. my wife and i want to lower our cholesterol, but finding healthy food that tastes good is torturous. your father is suffering. [ male announcer ] honey nut cheerios tastes great and can help lower cholesterol. >> this is a time dedicated on t the past year. 2011 there will be movies. we take a closer look at what we can expect from hollywood. >> "the green hornet" is a rich playboy with vigilante justice on his mind. staying in action mode we have an assassin avenging the death of his teacher in "the mechanic." then we have battle los angeles." in april look for jake gyllenhall to be in "source code." even though paul giamatti was nominated in "barney's version" is one of the first dramas followed by the company men. center man facing a challenge of someone assuming his identity it unknown and matt damon fighting fate to be with emily blunt in "the adjustment bureau." there are tons of animated movies starting with nonio and juliet. johnny depp is in w are rango and we have "hop" and on tax day a caged bird flies south for love in "rio." >> looking for laughs? adam sandler is in "just go with it." we have a one-week break from marriage in "hall pass." three friends have one last hurrah in "take me home tonig tonight." then we have your highness. >> further down the road expect summer block busters like cowboys and aliens and kung fu panda 2. >> coming up we will look at the top stories. >> the new year debuts with devastating tornadoes across the south and midwest leaving at least six people dead. we will survey the damage when we return. >> a storm that generated all of that severe weather out to the west is beginning to move in. it promises to produce some wet conditions later today. we have the forecast just ahead. >> welcome back to "11 news saturday morning." thanks for joining us. we will look at the top stories but first we want to check out the new year's day forecast. >> it is all right considering what we have had going into -- or coming out of the old year, things are looking pretty good. even to be talking about a chance of rain is looking better. so, that is what we have in the forecast is a chance of rain. but it takes warmer temperatures to get that. so, to get something you have to give something away. for the first day of the new year a mixed bag. we are fine this morning. temps relatively mild all things considered. around freezing but clouds are moving in advance of the rainmaker out there. the first of the showers coming into west virginia at this time. the stronger storms will be to the southwest today. there is a chance of severe weather near the gulf coast region. yesterday they had tornadoes in ill. the day before that big snows in the dakotas and plains states. so, this storm is wimping out a little bit but that is fine. all we get is rain that is good. details for the first of the year weather coming up with the insta-weather plus forecast. >> our weather here mild but parts of the south and midwest reeling from a violent line of tornadoes. tornadoes have left at least six people dead in arkansas and missou missouri. >> an outbreak of tornadoes in the heartland. this is cincinnati, arkansas, a tiny town of 100 on the oklahoma border. at least three were killed. a twist are packing 140-mile-per-hour winds touched down around 6:00 a.m. homes and farm buildings were reduced to rubble. >> this is our house. this is all that is left. moving northeast the system produced at least 11 tornadoes that tore through missouri leaving at least three dead. in robertsville, missouri, about 40 miles southwest of st. louis, homes and a church destroyed. devastation everywhere. >> we knew the storm was coming and as we heard the wind pick up it sounded like a tpraefreight . >> more destruction in benton. buildings mangled. vehicles tossed about. tornadoes also reported in illinois and mississippi. a new year's eve that won't soon be forgotten in the nation's heartland. >> look act other top stories, a search continues for a missing north carolina teen who had been visiting family here in baltimore. 16-year-old felicia barnes was last seen tuesday at the reisterstown square apartments. investigators say she was wearing a navy pea coat with a hood, blue jeans, tur kwoeus shirt and white slippers. in north carolina family and friends hope for her safer return. >> you hear the distress in felicia's mother's voice. it is very stressful. felicia is like a daughter. >> maryland state police have teamed up with city officials in the investigation and anyone with information on felicia's whereabouts is asked to call baltimore city police. >> baltimore police are investigating the 223rd murder of last year. a 50-year-old man was shot and killed around 6:30 friday morni morning. despite this baltimore did end the year with the lowest murder rate in 25 years. in baltimore county police are investigating an accident that killed a pedestrian in parkville. investigators say the victim was hit by a dodge durango just before 6:00 yesterday morning at white marsh and walther boulevard. there is no word if the driver will face charges. the enoch pratt library is getting an overdue book back. this takes you back. it is 65 years overdue. >> i was looking at the script and it says that you were supposed to read that but the prompter said i was supposed to read it. that is my excuse. >> that is ok. you are sticking to it. >> as far as the weather is concerned, something is on the way but it is not snow. that is the good news. our forecast is just ahead. when i melt to sleep with unisom sleep melts i get to sleep faster, stay asleep and wake refreshed. melt to sleep fast. unisom sleep melts. >> in sioux city snow fell in such big chunks it felt like snowballs. flakes fall being the size of quarters caused poor visibility. it is coming across nebraska and iowa dumping snow and ice and keeping temperatures below freezing. every cold weather city has one of these notorious for the crashes under icy conditions that photographers wade for the pictures. that was the case here in colorado springs, com, where cars were slip-sliding away as the icy conditions made the slope anything but. on three occasions it looked like a pinball machine for the cars. as you can imagine, insurance agent and body shop mechanics will be pretty busy. >> oh, no. >> they were sliding pretty fast, which means they had to be going fast to start with. i don't know, i think people try to move too quickly when storms come in. we don't have the icy part of that. it is the same storm, just different results. we warmed up nicely credit up to around 50. so we are relatively mild this morning with most of the readings above freezing. you can see on radar we are in the baltimore area i just circled it in yellow and in is a little shower activity out in northwest west virginia that is just beginning to touch garrett county. so, temperatures there are well above freezing. warmer there than here near the bay. so, it is coming and we have a chance of rain eventually in the baltimore area. right now it dry, just clouds and the temperature 31 at the airport, inner harbor 37. humidity is down. that is a dry reading for early morning. 82%. 30.10 the barometric pressure. high at the moment. so, we are in good shape. looks like this morning we will be ok as far as the rain but this afternoon things will change. 2010 was a year of contrasts. we had 58 days where it was 90 degrees or hotter, 100 days -- i should say seven days where it was 100 or hotter. there were a number of records there. then on top of that earlier we had 58.7 inches of snow all in one year. maybe we will back off this year a little bit. right now 36 in annapolis, 37 easton, 35 on the boardwalk. 37 edgewood. 34 parkton. westminster 37. frederick at 28. 33 hagerstown and oakland 50. frostburg 38. well above freezing in far western maryland. so, rain is what is in the forecast today as this weather system moves in. there is the storm maker. the cold air is out in the northern plains. the upper low is over minnesota right now. the cold front is you can see what is happening. look at the cold temperatures. single digits out of canada. 12 at kansas city, 30 st. louis. there is the front. it is moving east but we have the shot of warm air ahead of the front so that will keep us mild today. here is what the map will look like this evening with the front coming in to western maryland and it will pass through tomorrow morning. looks like it will push the rain out of the area by the time football comes in the afternoon. today the forecast clouds. rain showers developing. south winds three to seven. 47 to 51 the temperature range. if the clouds get thick we will be in the upper 40's mostly. the future cast, rain to the west and by 2:00 in the afternoon we are cloudy with the rain just west of us. some time after 2:00 rain moves in and stays with us until about just before 1:00 when the lower eastern shore may pick up rain but we will be getting some sun in baltimore. at least that is the game plan. a him bit of snow in the great lakes. then here is the forecast. rain this afternoon and evening and stepping into the morning with the sun breaking through sunday afternoon. 48 the high. 44, 44, so a little clinicalier next week but average -- a little chillier next week. a mix of precipitation at the end of the week. >> the enoch pratt central library got a big surprise in the mail this week in the form of a book long overdue. 65 years old overdue. john wolfe checked out the chinese language book in 1946 because he thought it might help him when he was sent to the pacific. wolfe, now 84 and living in france discovered it recently and decided to extend it back with a letter explaining what happened. >> we were so conservative separated and -- captivated by the letter and we decided all the smiles he brought us is worth more than the $6 fine. >> the late fee on the book would have been nearly $5,000 if the library didn't have that $6 max. but officials decided to waive the charge. >> that was nice of them to do that. very honest of him to return the book. at the stroke of midnight new laws kicked in for health insurance companies. up next we will detail the changes that affect just about everyone. >> first, here is a look at last night as winning lottery numbers. hope you have them the hi >> happy new year. that is a tradition that never seems to get old. about a million people packed into new york city's times square to watch the ball drop at midnight. workers shovelled out the remnants of a 20-inch snowstorm and put the usual antiterrorism precautions into effect. while much of the focus in new york was on the ball drop, another notable event as well took place friday in the staete capital. andrew cuomo was sworn in as governor of new york effective midnight. in the simple and private ceremony he became the stay's 56th governor. the name cuomo rings a bell, his father mario was state governor from 1983 until 1994. andrew says he is not wasting time getting down to business and plans to hold a cabinet meeting at 8:30 this morning. lieutenant governor robert duffy was also sworn in. >> with the new year comes changes in the healthcare laws. the reform passed by congress this year has brought in changes some of which take effect today. >> the new year would change the way many of us get healthcare. under the reform law president obama signed in march. >> the insurance companies can't cap off any more about how much benefits you can get. >> the administration knows there are plenty of skeptics and is still trying to sell healthcare reform as good deal for taxpayers. >> insurance companies can't discriminate against children without preexisting conditions. >> one new provision should help anyone with a job and insurance. employer plans have to spend 80% to 85% of your premium dollars on services related to medical care. for those on medicare the doughnut hole is getting smaller. >> it is a gap that exists for seniors that spend a certain amount on drugs and in the part d drug plan. starting this year seen kwrors who are in that gap will get a 50% discount on brand name drugs and smaller discount on generic drugs. >> seniors will get preventive benefits and have access to the ends of life counselling that gave birth to the talk of dead panels. -- defendant panels. they will be urged to talk to older patients about ends of life wishes. many of the biggest changes including a mandate that everyone buy health insurance won't kick in until 2014. >> the law also has a new rule for people with flexible spending accounts. there will be restrictions on using the funds for over-the-the countermedications. >> have you noticed gas prices are on the rise again? >> it is strange. sometimes they go up and sometimes down. now on the upshot. we will look at the impact as they hit the roads for the holidays. >> coming up we will look at the orioles' new first baseman and high school football plays ofba >> happy new year, everybody. on the final day of 2010 the orioles land their first baseman for 2011. perp perpbding a physical derrek lee will sign a one-year contract for $8 million to $10 million. he was once one of the big should beers for the cubs. he hit 46 in 2005. now they get a 14-year veteran off a season with 19 homers and 80 r.b.i.'s. he is an upgrade. he has won three gold gloves. else the third new infielder with mark reynolds at third and j.j. hardy at short. as we bid farewell to 2010 we have one last look at some great and tremendous high school football players of the year. enjoy them. ♪ >> great kids doing great things. we have a cavalcade of bowl games today and the latest on the terror pins search for a new head coach at 6:00. >> >> it is 33 degrees on tv hill. here is a look at the next hour. >> including a family's new year that starts with their frantic search for a missing teen. we will have details on the investigation. >> and i will take you on a world tour of new year's eve celebrations. >> clouds here and out to the west with rain. we will talk about the new year forecast. >> as we come to the close of another year with our military stationed around the world we are reminded of our loved ones who are making sacrifices for our liberty and pursuit of happiness. for that reason we take our regularly scheduled editorial time to share greetings from those in the military to families in maryland. they will be available on wbaltv.com. click on editorials. from the wbal tv 11 news family to yours, happy who will details. >> hi, i'm a specialist from roanoke, virginia states d in south korea. i would like to give a shout out to my fiance in baltimore, maryland and i love you and miss you and happy holidays and i will be home soon. >> i'm stationed in south korea. i would like to say hello to jealousy, michael, dave in baltimore and the family. i thank you for all you have done throughout the year and i love you guys and miss you. god bless you. >> this is dean warner in okinawa, japan. i want to give greetings to my sister and brenda and her husband pail. >> we are stationed in japan and we had like to say hi to meemau and the family in baltimore. happy who will details. >> happy holidays.