i say again the shooter is not dead but in custody and in stable condition. >> inside his mind. we're learning more about the army doctor accused of going on a rampage at ft. hood. his ties to our area and what his family is saying. good morning, everyone, and welcome to "news 4 today." i'm barbara harrison. >> and i'm craig melvin in for joe krebs on this friday. it is november 6th, 2009. there's a live look outside. the capitol there in the background. we've got some stars. we don't see the sun jus yet, tom kierein. when's it coming up? >> 6:41 is sunrise this morning. we have a clear start but it is chilly start but not as cold as it has been the last few mornings. we're generally in the upper 30s to near 40 now. by 9:00, bright and sunny, mid-40s. during the early part of the afternoon, maybe a few clouds overall. mostly sunny. highs the low 50s today. the winds will pick up, too. a rather blustery afternoon. overnight tonight, it should be clear. we'll have that just pas full moon up again. temperatures will be near 40 by midnight. then frost widespread, likely all around the region from the atlantic beaches all the way into the mountains, including southern maryland and the entire region. frost is likely for saturday morning. then during the day on saturday, should be bright and sunny and mild during the afternoon compared to the start. should make it to near 60. milder on sunday. morning lows in the low 40s, afternoon highs mid-60s with bright sunshine. even a bit warmer and more mild on monday. near 70. take a look into next week coming up. stay tuned. next update's at 5:11. >> thanks, tom. >> let head out to the roads, see how things are moving. a little bit better day today, hmm? >> so far, so good. we're keeping our fingers crossed. the most important news for montgomery county commuters may be the fact that the traffic computer has been patched up. it is repaired at least temporarily while authorities are finding a long term repair. the bottom line is you should find most, not all traffic lights on cycle, normal rush hour flow this morning. there may still be some exceptions but that's the general rule. 270, montgomery village on down, no early issues. headed through northeast, new york avenue, kenilworth avenue looking fine. looks like we're doing okay most of the roads in northern virginia. back to you. >> thanks, jerry. the big story this morning, that massacre at our nation's largest army post, ft. hood, texas. investigators say an arm psychiatrist, nidal malik hasan killed 12 people and wounded more than 30 others. this morning he is in stable condition. we have team coverage, beginning with jay gray in ft. hood, texas. >> reporter: there is an eerie silence at ft. hood now just hours after what officers have described as a rain of fire here. >> this has been a tragic incident and our hearts and prayers go out to those who have been impacted. >> reporter: 12 people dead, 31 injured in the most violent attack ever on a u.s. military base. >> there was a single shooter that was shot multiple times at the scene. however, he was not killed as previously reported. he is currently in custody and in stable condition. >> reporter: the investigation, which continues this morning, will focus on that suspect, a fellow soldier, major nidal malik hasan. the 39-year-old army psychologist was recently promoted from captain and was transferred to ft. hood in july from walter reed medical center where he'd been stationed for six years. hasan, originally from northern virginia, enlisted in the army straight out of high school but was only recently preparing for his first deployment to the middle east. >> i have nothing to add about major hasan. >> reporter: publicly, army officials aren't saying much about major hasan. privately, though, they're asking the same questions so many are right now -- how and why did this happen? >> it's -- it's heartbreaking, i guess. we're supposed to be defending the country, and it's just very -- it's tragic. >> reporter: a tragedy that even those who prepare for the horrors of war could have never imagined. this morning, army investigators along with fbi agents, continue their work. today is a day of mourning here. the post is open, but still on a high security alert. jay gray, nbc news, ft. hood, texas. >> baseommanders and the pentagon said that they had no early indication of a motive for the shooting. >> muslim leaders are condemning the attacks. they are also urging the public not to respond with further violence or harassment. last night representatives from the council on american islamic relations and other speakers offered prayers and condolences for those involved in the tragedy. they also expressed their concern about retaliation against the muslim community. some said they are already getting hate calls and e-mails. >> i hope that all of those who intend to cause any harm to americanuslims would think about that. there are families who are suffering and mourning today. let's show a sense of compassion and let's not take violence on innocent people who have nothing to do with that death. >> the suspect's motives have not been confirmed by authorities. folks, stay with news 4 for continuing coverage of the ft. hood shootings this morning. we'll have the latest updates on our website as well. that's nbcwashington.com. time now 5:05. a teenager in prince william county accused in a string of vicious crimes. why police say women are not safer because he's off the streets. >> montgomery county says it's solved the problem with its traffic lights, but does that mean your commute will be any better today? we'll let you know just ahead. >> tom's going to let us know if that weekend is going to be pretty nice. we've got some breaking news on this ft. hood shooting that we've been telling you about this morning. the death toll has apparently gone up. it's gone up to 13 now. >> we'll go to kimberly suiters who's live in our newsroom with more on this. >> good morning. they've been talking about the death toll being at 12, injured 31. now one of those injured has died, so we are at 13 now dead because of the ft. hood shooting that occurred yesterday. 30 injured total. welso have this recent update that the suspected shooter, malik hasan, is on a ventilator. he is unconscious in the hospital. he was the army psychiatrist would was -- he was shot four times himself but he did survive the attack. initially it was reported by military officials he was killed. he was not killed. he did survive. unconscious and on a ventilator. the latest news is that now one more person has died after the shooting rampage yesterday, putting the death toll at 13. craig, barbara, back to you. >> all right, kimberly. thank you so much. that shooting spree has hit home in our area, hundreds of miles from the scene of the crime. that's because the gunman was born in our area, went to medical school here, even worked at walter reed for several years. >> we're going to go out to megan mcgrath now. let's see what she has to tell us. >> reporter: good morning. that's right. 39-year-old nidal malik hasan worked six years at walter reed medical center. he also grew up in the northern virginia area, has a lot of family here, including in falls church. hasan himself even lived here just a few months ago before moving to ft. hood, and so he has a long history in our area. now, hasan graduated from virginia tech. he went on to the army's medical school in white oak. he worked as a psychiatrist. he had a job at walter reed army medical center. there he counseled wounded soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorders. and sources tell news 4 that he was unhappy about a recent performance evaluation, a poor performance evaluation that he received from his job at lter reed. he was also upset apparently about his upcoming deployment overseas to the middle east. now, a devout muslim, he attended prayers at a mosque in silver spring. apparently he came often, wearing his army uniform. colleagues say hasan wanted the united states to get out of iraq and afghanistan, and his aunt tells "the washington post" that her nephew actually wanted to be discharged from the army, even offered to repay his medical expenses but that heould not get out of the army. he was distressed about that and again distress bd his upcoming deployment to the middle east. he recently lived in silver spring at an apartment come mention in silver spring. coming up in the next half hour we'll talk to neighbors there, their reaction to all this. back to you in the studio. >> megan mcgrath in falls chur. . we have megan there, kimberly in in the newsroom and jay gray out in texas. >> before that at 5:11, time for traffic and weather on the 1s. tom is here with his forecast. >> good morning. starting off this friday morning with a clear sky here. it's 42 in washington, near 40 in prince george's county. we're in the mid pd upper 30s elsewhere. low 40s on the eastern shore. just a little below freezing in a few locations in the mountains. we are above freezing, a few clouds through central virginia. the winds will pick up, gusting to 2miles an hour. a chilly day. highs only the low 50s. then tomorrow, a bit milder after a freeze in the morning, all around the region. afternoon highs should make it to near 60 with bright sunshine. sunny on sunday, into the mid-60s. upper 60s monday. a look into next week, that will be in ten minutes. barbara and craig? >> thank you, tom. >> at least we don't have the traffic to worry about this morning. well -- >> what a mess the last two days. >> not as much as we have had. >> just getting started. we know that. what's happening out there now? >> good morning. actually we're in pretty fair shape. again, the headline of the morning at least at this point is the traffic computer in montgomery county is back online at least temporarily. that is very good news. out on the interstates, 270 through germantown, headed south toward rockville, no early issues. lanes are open. had some overnight road work on the beltway in montgomery county around river road. that should be pretty much wrapped up. south of town, the wilson bridge, both directions we're doing fine. so, good news so far. just the way we like it. >> yeah. thanks, jerry. >> good for a friday. our time now 12 minutes after 5:00. a major smuggling bust involving millions of dollars and a murder for hire plot. what the suspects are accused of trying to sell on the black market. >> two men in our area indicted on arson charges and just wait until you hear what they did for a living. >> and d.c. schools chancellor with some big news. we'll tell you why michelle rhee is smiling these days. it's sad. it's heartbreaking, i guess. we're supposed to be defending the country. >> complete shock on the nation's largest army post after a gunman goes on a deadly shooting spree. good morning, everyone. i'm kimberly suiters in the newsroom. we are following the latest after the fallout of a shooting spree out the at ft. hood in texas. this is what we know at this point. in the last few minutes, the numbers have updated. the numbers of the dead, that is. 13 people were killed, 30 others were hurt when major nidal malik hasan opened fire at the soldier readiness center at ft. hood. that's where soldiers who are about to be deployed or who are returning undergo medical screening. hasan, who is an army psychiatrist, was shot four times. he did survive. he's in stable conditio we're told he's on a ventilator and unconscious at this hour. investigators are trying to determine his motives. there are reports h was about to deploy overseas after thanksgiving and that he had often argued with others in the military about the wars in iraq and afghanistan. we also know that hasan had family in the area. he got his medical degree in bethesda, and is also a 1997 graduate of virginia tech. i'm kimberly suiters live in the newsroom. craig, barbara, now back to you in the studio. >> thank you, kimberly. this morning we're learning more about the army officer who gunned down dozens of people yesterday in ft. hood. he, as we just heard from kimberly, has ties to our area. nidal malik hasan was a lifelong muslim and attended a mosque in silver spring, maryland. that's where we find tracee wilkins with the story there. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, barbara. we were told by someone who knows him that he was a devout muslim and they tell us that when he came to pray in this area, this is where he would come, here in silver spring, to the muslim community center. now according to "the washington post" they're saying that in his military records he did not claim any religious affiliation, but a former imam here tells the post he attended prayer at least once a day. he says, i don't know what got into his mind. they tell us that he came to pray at least once a day here and that when he came here, he came in his army fatigues. now as you mentioned just a few minutes ago, he's a 1997 graduate of virginia tech, a 2003 intern who did his residency with the walter reed army medical center, and also got his doctorate in psychiatry from the -- from uniformed services university of health sciences in bethesda. he has strong ties to this area. was born in northern virginia, spent quite a lot of time here and here at this community center as well. i'm tracee wilkins live this morning in silver spring. back to you. >> thank you,racee. there are new charges for the man accused of plotting to kill two prominent politicians and kill people at shopping malls. 27-year-old tariq mehanna of massachusetts allegedly conspired with two other men. authorities say the men tried to get into terrorist training camps and when they failed they allegedly talked about killing two members of the executive branch. u.s. troops in iraq as well and shooting mall shoppers. a federal jury returned a ten-count indictment yesterday. one of the men is working with authorities. the other is believed to be in syria. >> some good news for commuters this morning. traffic light problems that paralyzed drivers in montgomery county the last two days are over. we are told that a computer glitch that put traffic signals on the fritz have been fixed but only after many headaches and frustrations. smooth sailing, smoother sailing on the roads. certainly a good way to end the week. it's been two days of coruel commutes. the computer system that coordinates traffic signals crashed early wednesday morning. county executive ike leggett says that problem has largely been fixed. he thanked drivers for thish patience. earlier, he said he also felt their frustration. >> my wife, who was stuck in traffic, called me on the telephone and she said, i'm calling you not as your wife but as a constituent and i want you to do something about the predicament i'm in. it so happened that i was in the same predicament, unable to get to the location that i wanted to get to in a timely fashion. >> some individual lights, though, are still not responding but officials hope to have those fixed sometime this morning. ride on buses will be free again to help ease the congestion. >> a grand jury has indicted two prince george's county firefighters on charges of arson. 46-year-old jerome engle of bowie and 24-year-old james martinez of damascus are accused of setting a house fire in riverdale last year. both men volunteered with the riverdale fire department. martinez is a career firefighter with montgomery county. if convicted, they could each face more than 50 years in prison. a 15-year-old boy has been charged with violent sex assaults against women, all in manassas. the attacks happened in the areas of coverstone drive. prince william county police say that five women were attacked. the latest tuesdain a local park. the attacks took place just blocks from the teen's home. >> he was attacking from behind so that, obviously, that puts the victim at a disadvantage. in this case, the victim was able to give a detailed description, which helped. >> because the crimes are so severe, the prosecutor in prince william county will consider whether to certify the 15-year-old suspect as an adult. well, it's back to work for the redskins after their bye week. dan llie has a look at how they're preparing for the falcons in this morning's sports minute. >> good morning, everybody. your sports minute starts with the redskins who continue to prepare for the atlanta falcons. the skins going down to hotlanta, trying to jump start their season. the offensive line continues to be a major area of concern and probably the main reason the 2-5 skins are ten-point underdogs. wizards news now. mike miller out seven to ten days with a sprained a.c. joint in his shoulder. he injured his shoulder on wednesday night against the heat. the wizards' next game tonight against the pacers in indianapolis. thursday night college football. 23rd ranked virginia tech on the road in greenville, north carolina, taking on the ecu pirates. tech up 6-0. tyrod taylor can't find anyone open so he keeps it by himself, scrambles to the far sidelines. this kid is good. dives in. does he get in? yes. touchdown, and the hokies take a 13-0 lead. they go on for the 16-3 win. that's your sports minute. i'm dan hellie. everybody have a great friday and an even better weekend. >> all right. >> ready? >> time for weather and traffic on the 1s. >> let's go to tom kierein. tom? >> good morning, barbara and craig. starting off this morning with a clear sky, but it is quite chilly, but not as cold as it has been the last few mornings. we're in the mid and upper 30s, above freezing from the shenandoah valley to the atlantic beaches. now 42 in washington. near 40 in prince george's county, upper 30s in fairfax and montgomery and arlington counties. near freezing out in the mountains this morning. a few clouds over central virginia. we'll have overall a mostly sunny day with highs only reaching low 50s and a blustery northwest wind. sunny on saturday, sunday and monday with a gradual warming trend but a widespread freeze likely tomorrow morning. then maybe a shower late on tuesday. on her wise, most of next week looking dry. jerry, how's the traffic? >> tom, take a live look around northern virginia, headed into the district. 395 northbound to and across the 14th street bridge, moving along well. don't have any early issues to report. good news there. elsewhere, if you are headed out and about along 95 up to the beltway looking good. out on the rails at this hour, all the -- everything's looking good. in it row rail, marc, vre, no delays. barbara and craig, back to you. >> sounds pretty good. >> yeah. 5:22 now. here's a bizarre story, how a man showed up to his own funeral alive. >> and michelle rhee's big news. why the d.c. school's cncellor is in an especially good mood today. >> here's another reason to get mad at the airlines, like we didn't have enough of them. why you could end up shelling more -- shelling out more money for your ticket even after you've already paid for it. we'll tell you right after this. imagine going to a funeral and the person that you're paying your respects to is actually alive. it happened in brazil. a man believed to have been killed in a car crash stunned his family when he showed up to his own funeral alive. authorities had identified him incorrectly. >> there's word the d.c. school chancellor michelle rhee plans to tie the knot with an ex-nba player turned politician. "the washington post" reliable source says rhee has confirmed her engagement to kevin johnson. he is the current mayor of sacramento and a former point guard for the phoenix suns. this won't mean rhee will be leaving the washington area, at least right away. that's what we're told. the post reports no date has been set so they'll continue their long-distance relationship for now. but i guess with a ring on her finger. >> congratulations. >> yeah. that's terrific news. our time now 5:26. we're learning more about the man accused of the shooting at ft. hood. his family spoke out overnight. what they had to say about the allegations against him. >> plus, parents are outraged in our area. where another kindergartner was dropped off at the wrong bus stop alone. >> and could this topple the iphone? the new gadget intores starting today that could be the next big thing. people tell stories of soldiers ripping their uniforms apart and basically applying first aid. we've put a great investment in soldiers' first aid and taking care of each other. i'm sure this could have been much worse. >> tragedy at ft. hood. overnight, the death toll grew to 13 after an army doctor opened fire. also new today, more details about the local ties and what his family has to say. good morning, everyone. welcome to "news 4 today." i'm barbara harrison. >> and i'm craig melvin in for joe krebs on this friday, november 6th, 2009. we take a live look outside there. as you can see, it's all clear here in the capital city so far at least. the question, though, is will it be like that all day, tom kierein? >> looking good into the weekend, although pretty which iy this morning. not as cold as it has been the last few mornings. temperatures are above freezing from the shenandoah valley to the atlantic beaches. near 40 near washington. as we look at the view from space, a few clouds across north/central virginia. quite a bit of sunshine this morning. the winds will increase today gusting to 25 miles an hour as afternoon highs climb in the low 50s with lots of sunshine. sunrise 6:41. sunset at 5:02. clear tonight. the winds will diminish. widespread frost likely tomorrow morning. temperatures down near or below freezing as we start off saturday morning, but a nice warm-up as winds shift into the southwest tomorrow. a bright and sunny afternoon on saturday with highs near 60. on sunday should be milder, morning lows low 40s. afternoon highs mid-60s. a tad milder on monday. a look into next week coming up this half hour. next report at 5:41. >> thanks, tom. >> thank you, tom. let's head out to the roads now. >> they're looking a little bit better. >> we are cautiously optimistic we have a better commute. 270 looking good. college park west to silver spring to the american legion bridge, you should find the lanes open. there had been overnight road work on the outer loop of the american legion bridge. that should be wrapped up. elsewhere at this hour headed in through southeast, most of the major roadways doing fine. 66 is okay. out on the rails this morning, everything is beautiful so far with no worries. barbara and craig, back to you. >> all right, jerry. thank you. >> thank you, jerry. horrific outburst of violence. that's how president obama describes an army psychiatrist's deadly shooting rampage at ft. hood yesterday. the military says nidal malik hasan killed 13 people in the attack and wounded 30 others. hasan was shot himself several times, but he did survive. he is now in stable condition. people who live and work at ft. hood say they always felt safe on the base. that sense of security is now shattered. >> i mean, it's a huge community, but you have to know someone. >> soldiers are out there fighting for our country, and then something like this happens. it's just -- it's ridiculous. >> it's not clear why hasan went on that deadly shooting spree. this morning, the massacre is also hitting close to home. the accused gunman was born in the washington area, went to school here and even worked at walter reed. megan mcgrath continues our team coverage from falls church where nidal malik hasan's family lives. good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning, barbara. that's right, nidal malik hasan has very strong ties to our area. he actually worked a number of years as a psychiatrist at walter reed army medical center. he grew up in northern virginia and has relatives here, also still living in the area. now until a few months ago, hasan himself lived in the d.c. area. now, he graduated from virginia tech, went to the army medical school in the white oak area and he worked as a psychiatrist at his job at walter reed army medical center. he counseled wounded soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorders. now, sources tell news 4 he was unhappy, though, about a poor performance evaluation he received there at the hospital. he was also upset about his upcoming deployment overseas to the middle east, his first deployment. now, a devout muslim, he attended prayers at a mosque in silver spring and apparently often came wearing his army uniform. colleagues say that hasan, though, wanted the united states to get out of iraq and afghanistan and hasan's aunt tells "the washington post" that her nephew wanted to be discharged from the army and even offered to repay the army for his medical degree, but that they would not let him out. and, barbara, we'll have much more coming up in the next half hour. back to you. >> thank you, megan. >> hasan just left maryland for ft. hood a few months ago. so what set him off? that's what we're all trying to figure out. nbc's jay gray is live for us in ft. hood, texas, this morning. good morning. >> reporter: that's the big question that has yet to be answered and it may be some time until it's answered. we do know this morning that army investigators along with fbi agents are continuing their work here. today has been declared a day of mourning here at the post. it is open but still under a high level of security as they try and answer that question and several others that linger after what was a terrible day here at this base. >> jay, let's -- really quickly here, i know you've got to get to a lot of other things but i want to ask you a few questions. first of all, the mood today on that base, i imagine that it's fairly palpable. can you describe that for us? >> reporter: yeah, i think for the most part still stunned disbelief. of course, there's a lot of sadness. this is the nation's largest military facility. it's the largest post in america. but it's still a tight-knit community. it's still a close-knit community. and everyone knows someone affected by what happened here today. the numbers went up this morning, as i'm sure you've been talking about. now we've got 13 dead, at least 30 injured. there is a real fear among those who are watching all of this that that number's going to continue to increase. there are several people in critical condition in area hospitals. >> the folks who were shot there, the folks who were injured, i understand that they were processing there? these are the folks who are getting ready to deploy. is that correct? >> reporter: yeah, craig, that may be what is toughest for a lot of people here, the people that calft. hood home. these were their friends preparing to go to the front lines in afghanistan and iraq. they werin what they call the soldier readiness center which is where they go for their final immunizations, for dental work, to fill out their last will and testamenbefore they move to the front lines in the middle east. they don't expect an ambush on their home turf, in their home. in fact, officers tell us that nobody really would have had a weapon during this because they don't carry a weapon here. this is their home. they feel safe. of course, that's going to change as well. and it appears at this point -- again, it's early in the investigation, but that major hasan's weapons were not army-issued, that they were his own handguns, one of those a semiautomatic weapon. >> jay gray live for us this morning at ft. hood, texas. we'll check bac in with you during our 6:00 hour. thank you so much. the violence at ft. hood has been acknowledged by a number of leader here in d.c. including, of course, president barack obama who was briefed by defense secretary robert gates and chairman of the joint chiefs, admiral michael mullen. >> it's difficult enough when we lose these brave americans in battles overseas. it is horrifng that ty should come under fire at an army base on american soil. >> mr. obama asked all americans to keep the victims and their families in their properthought prayers. the house of representatives held a moment of silence for the fallen at ft. hood. the lawmakers took a break around 6:00 last night to remember those who lost their lives and to pray for their ith continuing coverage of the ft. hood shootings. we've got the latest updates on our website as well, nbcwashington.com. >> our time is 5:37. it's been two days of traffic nightmares in montgomery county. we're going to tell you if you can expect another terrible commute today. >> also, people at wall street suddenly at the front of the line f the swine flu vaccine. we will tell you why and some some of the new fallout. >> tom's forecast just ahead. getting ready to start a string of nice weather, right? >> yeah, it will continue into the weekend. a chilly pattern for today. starting off this morning with temperatures generally above freezing from the shenandoah valley all the way to the eastern shore. right now generally in the upper 30s to near 40 degrees. it's 42 in washington. out in the mountains a few isolated spots are a little below freezing but by this time tomorrow morning we'll have widespread freeze. between now and then a chilly day under way. just a few clouds around this morning into the afternoon hours with highs reaching only the low 50s and a blustery northwest wind gusting to 25 miles an hour. swirling the leaves around. then by dawn tomorrow, widespread freeze from the mountains to the beaches. afternoon highs, though, with sunshine near 60. mid-60s on sunday afternoon and a gradual warming trend into monday as well. highs in the upper 60s. we'll take a look into next wk coming up in ten minutes. i'll show you photos from my latest school visit, too, at 5:51. >> can't wait to see them. >> sunny weekend, nice roads, it's friday. how are the roads looking? still good? >> craig's going to jinx us. he's going to jinx us. stop it now, young man. we're doing pretty well so far. 270 southbound germantown right here to montgomery village and points south, no issues to report. the traffic computer is back online. as a bonus, ride on buses in montgomery county are free again today so that is very good news. out at the wilson bridge, no worries. 95, any overnight road work headed to the beltway has been taken care of. bay bridge, okay. b-w parkway and 95 headed to baltimore coming south also looking good. back to you. >> all right. thanks, jerry. >> thank you, jerry. our time is 5:42. why some people in our area are about to get a break on their utility bill. >> also, parental outrage in our area. where kindergartners have been dropped off at the wrong bus stop several times. >> has google come up with the next big thing? the new gadget some are calling the iphone killer. this is a base that has sent so many soldiers time after time after time to iraq and now afghanistan. they're one of our most active bases as well as our largest base, so they have really borne a lot of the responsibility for the war on terror. and so to have that happen in this particular base is really heartbreaking. it really is. >> heartbreaking and tragic, words you're hearing a lot when describing yesterday's terrible and stunning shooting at ft. hood in texas. i'm kimberly suiters live in the newsroom. we are following the latest developments out of ft. hood. this is what we know at this hour. 31 people were injured originally. now it is 30 because another person has died. 13 people have been wounded, 30 -- i'm sorry. 13 people dead, 30 now wounded. at the military base in waco, texas, yesterday. hasan himself was shot four times but did survive. he's listed in stable condition but the latest update said he was unconscious and on a ventilator. there's no word right now on a motive. there are reports that he was being deployed overseas soon and that he wanted president obama to pull troops out of afghanistan and iraq. we know that dr. hasan treated others for combat stress and just something of note. his first name, nidal also means struggle. reporting in the newsroom, i'm kimberly suiters. back to you. >> thank you, megan -- excuse me, kimberly. the man accused of plotting to kill two prominent u.s. politicians and shoot people at american shopping malls has been indicted onew charges. a federal jury returned a ten-count indictment yesterday on 27-year-old tariq mehanna of massachusetts. he allegedly conspired with two other menment authorities say the men tried to get into terrorist training camps and when they failed, they allegedly talked about killing two members of the executive branch of the u.s. government. u.s. troops in iraq and shooting mall shoppers. one of the men is working with authorities. the other is believed to be in syria. >> well, hopefully you won't have to worry about scenes like this for your morning commute today if you live in montgomery county. we're told that traffic computer that caused all the problems with the traffic lights is now fixed. that should mean a much smoother commute as you head out the door this morning. it's been a long two days for commuters, including county executive ike leggett. leggett thanking drivers for their patience. earlier, he also said he felt their pain. >> my wife, who was stuck in traffic, called me on the telephone, and she said i'm calling you not as your wife but as a constituent. and i want you to do something about the predicament that i'm in. it so happened that i was in the same predicament, unable to get to the location that i wanted to get to in a timely fashion. >> some individual lights still are not responding, but officials hope to have those fixed sometime later this morning. just as jerry mentioned a short time ago, ride on buses will be free again to help ease congestion today. for the third time this month, a kindergartner has been left at the wrong bus stop in alexandria. th latest incident happened last week. a student at george mason elementary was supposed to go to after an afterschool program. that student boarded a bus instead. she was dropped off at a bus stop even though there was no parent to meet her. school officials say that's a clear violation of school policy. >> we take them very seriously. the parents are upset, and we, too, are upset. >> it's always scary to think that the -- you know, kindergartners getting off the bus without someone being there, but my daughter takes the bus. and we actually hen't had that experience. >> in the previous two incidents, a student from miles crouch elementary and a child from mt. vernon community school were dropped off without hire parents to greet them as well. a substitute driver or teacher was involved on each of those occasions. >> 14 people are facing charges in what authorities are calling a cigarette smuggling ring in our area. the group is accused of buying 77 million contraband cigarettes from undercover agents in virginia and they're smuggling the smokes to new york over the last year. what's more, investigators say two people in the group paid an undercover hit man to murder a couple they believe had stolen from them. allegedly paying more than $8 million exchange for cigarettes. meanwhile, a grand jury has indicted two prince george's county firefighters on charges of arson. they're charged with setting a house fire in riverdale last year. both are volunteer firefighters with the riverdale fire department. 46-year-old jerome engle of bowie and 24-year-old james martinez of damascus. martinez is a career firefighter with prince george's county fire chief spoke about engle. >> he a blight on this organization, it turns out, and it's unfortunate that he chose this path. our skilled investigators finally tracked him down and he's going to be held accountable for this actions. >> if convicted, both men face more than 50 years in prison. >> well, good news for folks in virginia. looks like that electric bill may come down. dominion virginia power has agreed to settle a pending rate case that would give some $400 million back to customers and drive down monthly electric bills. the company had been seeking a rate increase. this case is the first to go before the state corporation commission under virginia's new law which governs electric utilities. >> well, you're going to need to have your heat on this weekend because we'll go down to freezing, aren't we? >> by this time tomorrow morning. looks like a fabulous weekend finally for a change. dry weather for a weekend so plan your outdoor activities accordingly. just now beginning to see the first light of this frida morning. there's capitol hill in the eastern horizon in the distance. right now 42 in washington. sunrise is still 50 minutes away. right now upper 30s in fairfax and montgomery counties. arlington, the district and prince george's county, right near 40 degrees. it's also near 40 in charles, calvert, st. mary's and anne arundel. farther to our west and north, in howard county, frederick and loudoun through prince william and fauquier, down along the blue ridge it's in the upper 30s. upper 30s in the shenandoah valley. all these counties in blue are under a freeze warning. this would be the first freeze of the season, perhaps even here in the district and arlington. but especially in southern maryland, the northern neck of virginia and stafford and spotsylvania counties as well as many locations on the eastern shore by this time tomorrow morning, widespread freeze is possible. now over the last six hours we've had just a few clouds coming in from the north as high pressure's building in with a northwesterly flow. we may have a few clouds around. i visited the fetszer stone elementary school in woodbridge yesterday. what a beautiful day. i talked to the third graders there. we had a blast. it was so much fun talking to them about weather. they asked a lot of questions. i asked them a lot of questions, too. i want to thank teacher sharon sipers for inviting me. wonderful staff at the feather stone elementary school in woodbridge, virginia. traveling today we should not have any travel problems weatherwise. much of the nation is looking settled again. a little bit of snow, light snow perhaps from upstate maine through northern new england into upstate new york. maybe a little bit of rain for the upper midwest, a little snow for the northern rockies. perhaps some rain from seattle to near san francisco. so for our region, though, a dry pattern all the way into the first part of next week but a chilly day today with a blustery northwest wind picking up this afternoon, gusting to around 25 miles an hour. highs only reaching low 50s this afternoon. clear tonight and the winds will diminish. by this time tomorrow morning, widespread freeze likely from the mountains to the atlantic beaches. saturday afternoon, though, bright sunshine, winds shifting to the southwest ought to get us up into the upper 50s to near 60. milder weather for sunday and monday. as we look into next week, highs in the 60s perhaps again on tuesday. but there's a chance of some showers tuesday evening as the continue comes in. that will usher in some cool and blustery weather for wednesday. that's the way it looks this morning. >> all right. >> thank you, tom. >> there's your weather. let's take a look at the roads out there. >> hi, jerry. good morning again. >> good morning. there's good news to report. the traffic computer in montgomery county which caused so many headaches the last several rush hours has been at least temporarily patched together and for now things are looking much, much better. some intersections may still be affected a little bit but generally speaking we're okay. this is downtown rockville where everything is looking good. along i-95, 395, virginia, no worries, travel lanes are open. the news gets even better. out on the rail this morning, all marc, vre and metrorail reporting no delays. and ride on is free in montgomery county today. so, good news all the way around. back to you. >> thanks, jerry. appreciate that. folks, if you plan to ride metro this weekend you can expect some delays, though. add 30 minutes to your route starting tonight until sunday. track maintenance will have trains sharing one track between the cheverly and stadium-armory stations on the orange line and between braddock road and huntington on the yellow line. metrobus routes 52 and b-7 will be rerouted due to roadway construction. sunday morning, 13 bus routes will be rerouted because of a marathon that will close pennsylvania avenue northwest between 13th and 14th streets northwest. >> you've got your holiday flight booked. you think you're good. now comes news that could leave you stuck on the ground and very frustrated. some airlines are already canceling flights because they're not profitable which means if you've already paid for your trip, there's a chance you may need to get a refund and rebook. it is most common in smaller airports and also affects people who booked their flights months in advance. now comes the really annoying part. if prices have gone up since you booked that flight then your refund won't cover the increase if you need to rebook on a different airline. wow. later this morning, the latest employment report will be released, and some economists fear the rate could surpass 10%. that's a level not seen since june of 1983. despite recent positive ecomic reports, employers say they aren't adding jobs for several more months. today's report will be released at 8:30 this morning. >> walmart cutting prices again. this time on dvds. discount store is selling top ten pre-order movies for $10 onne. that includes the "star trek" and latest harry potter movies. the deal includes free delivery for its entire dvd and blue ray catalog, excluding box sets, though. target and amazon are also dropping movie prices since walmart's big announcement zblfrngs today there's a new smart phone on the market, too. verizon is rolling out its droid smart phone. it's powered by google's android operating system, hence the name. the new phone has a touch screen as well as a sliding keyboard. it sells for 199 bucks with a two-year contract and mail-in rebate. >> wall street is back in the hot seat again, this time over reports financial firms have received the h1n1 vaccine ahead of many clinics and hospitals. citigroup, goldman sachs, morgan stanley and the new york stock exchange each say in statements they followed procedures by requesting vaccines with the new york city health department. the health commissioner insists no firm received special treatment. lenox hill hospital received 200 doses, the same amount as goldman sachs. >> it is upsetting, yes. it is. because if you're on the priority list, you should be first. >> you have no idea how many high risk people there are at goldman sachs but i'm sure it's not as many as lenox hill. >> the cdc says it has more than 35 million doses of vaccine available to go out, and they are urging health officials to make sure doses are delivered to those at greatest risk as rapidly as possible. the banks are pledging to vaccinate only high-risk employees. and a flu outbreak has left st. hugh school in greenbe -- st. hugh school closed today. the arch die says closed it bess 40% of the faculty and staff are home with sick family who have the flu. there are 128 students at the school that has kindergarten through grade eight. school officials say it will re-open on monday. again, st. hugh school closed today because of the swine flu outbreak. >> the health care bill is headed to a vote tomorrow. democrats say it will be close. today house lawmakers will debate final amendments to the health care reform package. brooke hart live on capitol hill for us this morning with the latest on that. >> reporter: good morning, craig. president obama had planned to come to the hill today to try to unite democrats behind the house reform measure. he will now do that tomorrow as backers and opponents try to get in the last word. >> we're here. >> reporter: with the clock ticking to vote time, opponents of reform mounted t a last stand. >> we will not be silenced on this, and we will kill this bill. >> reporter: several thousand people came out. >> kill the bill! >> reporter: many aiming signs at president obama. >> this bill is the greatest threat to freedom that i have seen in the 19 years i've been here in washington. >> reporter: at leaders' urging, activists jammed house office buildings. this was near house speaker pelosi's office. at least a dozen people were arrested. democrats' plan would cost $1.2 trillion over ten years, expand coverage to % of americans and create a government-backed public option for those who can't get coverage through their work. the aarp endorsed the plan. >> we think this is the strongest bill we've seen to date. >> reporter: the group showed proof of support from its member ages 50 and older. then came backing from the american medical association. president obama seized the moment. >> i urge congress to listen to aarp, listen to the ama, and pass this reform for hundreds of millions of americans. >> repter: democrats have to rely on their own to pass the measure. republicans are united against it. one hurdle for democrats is trying to convince about 40 members thato public money from the reform measure could ever be used to cover abortion. leaders are expected to tweak the measure until the end. live on capitol hill, i'm brooke hart. craig and barbara, back to you. >> brooke, thank you so much. have a great weekend. >> reporter: you're weome. you, too. thanks. >> coming up on 6:00 here is the latest out of ft. hood, texas. 13 people dead, 30 others wounded after an army psychiatrist opened fire. that gunman, major nidal malik hasan, was shot several times but managed to survive. hasan transferred to ft. hood just this summer. before that he worked at walter reed right here in washington. he was also born in our area and went to medical school here, too. why did he do it and how are people reacting to the deadly rampage? those are some of the questions we'll address this hour. good morning. thanks for waking up with us this morning for "news 4 today." i'm barbara harris. >> glad to have you with us. i'm craig melvin in for joe krebs. it is friday, november 6th, 2009. let's take a look outside. we can kind of start to see it there in the distance, tom kierein, the sun starting to slowly make its way up. >> yeah. it's light hitting the upper atmosphere anyway but won't reach the surface until 6:41 this morning. we are off to a chilly start but not as cold as it has been the last few mornings. generally above freezing, in the upper 30s from the shenandoah valley all the way to the chesapeake bay and on the eastern shore. near 40 in washington and the nearby suburbs. now 42 in washington. over the last six hours, just a few clouds drifting in from the north. overall, a mostly clear morning and a few clouds by late morning, into early afternoon. and a blustery wind will increase, too, gusting to 25 miles an hour as we only reach the low 50s for highs by mid-afteoon. sunset will be at 5:02. a clear night tonight with that moon up. we'll be in the mid-40s by mid-evening, near 40 by midnight. widespread freeze and frost likely tomorrow morning all the way from the mountains to the atlantic beaches. then saturday afternoon a bit milder with sunshine, near 60. even milder for sunday and monday and more sunshine, highs mid and upper 60s both days. morning lows in the 40s. >> great. sounds good. >> enjoy. >> appreciate it. >> let's head out to the roads with jerry now. >> yeah, montgomery county, of course, saying they've got those traffic computer problems solved. how are the roads looking, jerry? >> good morning. yes, indeed, looks like from all the intersections we can find looks like things are moving al. a very light volume of traffic. the computer is back online. there are still a few scattered intersections which may be a problem, but montgomery county authorities are dealing with that. they are few and far between. much better. as a bonus, the ride on service, ride on all day today in montgomery county. this is 29, upper randolph road, obviously moving along nicely. light volume of traffic. out on the rails at this hour, metrorail, marc, vre reporting no delays on this friday morning. barbara and craig, back to you. >> thanks, jerry. >> thank you, jerry. how could something like this happen? that's what investigators in texas are trying to figure out this morning a day after an army psychiatrist from the washington area went on a deadly rampage at the nation's largest military post. >> nidal malik hasan opened fire yesterday at ft. hood. that's near waco, texas. it was about 1:30 in the afternoon. 13 people are now dead, 30 others are injured. jay gray starts our team coverage with the very latest from ft. hood. >> reporter: there is an eerie silence at ft. hood now just hours after what officers have described as a rain of fire here. >> this has been a tragic incident and our hearts and prayers go out to those who have been impacted. >> reporter: more than a dozen people dead, at least 30 injured in the most violent attack ever on a u.s. military base. >> there was a single shooter that was shot multiple times at the scene. however, he was not killed as previously reported. he is currently in custody and in stable condition. >> reporter: the investigation, which continues this morning, will focus on that suspect, a fellow soldier, major nidal malik hasan. the 39-year-old army psychologist was recently promoted from captain and was transferred to ft. hood in july from walter reed medical center where he'd been stationed for six years. hasan, originally from northern virginia, enlisted in the army straight out of high school but was only recently preparing for his first deployment to the middle east. >> i have nothing to add about major hasan. >> reporter: publicly, army officials aren't saying much about major hasan. privately, though, they're asking the same questions so many are right now -- how and why did this happen? >> it's -- it's heartbreaking, i guess. we're supposed to be defending the country, and it's just very -- it's tragic. >> reporter: a tragedy that even those who prepare for the horrors of war could have never imagined. this morning, army investigators along with fbi agents, continue their work. today is a day of mourning here. the post is open, but still on a high security alert. jay gray, nbc news, ft. hood, texas. >> jay gray just mentioned that they are mourning in texas. the washington area also especially shaken by the shooting. that's because the gunman, nidal malik hasan, was born here. he spent years working here before transferring to ft. hood as well. so, we've got team coverage this morning. we've got megan mcgrath live out in falls church a little bit later. that's where part of his family currently lives. we've also got tracee at the mosque where he spent time worshiping. >> muslim leaders are condemning the attacks and are urging the public not to respond with further violence or harassment. last night representatives from the council on american-islamic relations and other speakers offered prayers and condolences for those involved in the tragedy. they expressed their concern about retaliation against the muslim community. some said they're already getting hate calls and e-mails. >> i hope that all of those who intend to cause any harm to american-muslims would think about that. there are families who are suffering and mourning today. let's show a sense of compassion and let's not take violence on innocent people who have nothing to do with that. >> the suspect's motives have not been confirmed by authorities. >> we'll have much more on the deadly rampage at ft. hood throughout the newscast. >> also coming up, "news 4 today" is helping find jobs for you. the four things you need to do to find a new job. >> also, for all of you who spent the past few mornings and afternoons and evenings stuck in traffic, we got some great news to start your weekend. >> and we'll have your weather and traffic together on the 1s next. we're not quite at sunrise yet. got over a half hour to go before that. 42 degrees here in the nation's capital, but it is brightening out there right now, and we can see a beautiful day on the horizon. we're awaiting a weekend that tom says is going to be good one so we'll have his report coming up shortly. in the news, montgomery county drivers, you should have an easier drive to work this morning. the county says it's fixed the computer system that coordinates traffic signals. that system crashed early wednesday morning, causing two days of traffic tie-ups. the county's ride on buses will be free again today to help ease the congestion. boy, it was a mess out there the last few days, wasn't it? >> it was interesting because yesterday evening we all got this e-mail from montgomery county and it was almost as if there was a guy working on the system. he's kind of tinkering with it. all of a sudden like, hey, that worked. >> fixed! >> he called someone. hey, i think we got the problem fixed. >> it was not fixed about 4:00 yesterday afternoon because i got stuck in traffic in montgomery county. there were so many people who probably took off early from work to try to beat it. >> traffic should be nice this morning, your forecast looks fantastic for the weekend as well. >> never too early to talk about the weekend. bring it on. we need a weekend, for a change, that's dry. it does appear that finally, after three weekends in a row with rain, this one's looking dry. right now off to a chilly start and a dry start on this friday morning. it is above freezing from the shenandoah valley all the way to the eastern shore. right now near 40 in washington and prince george's and arlington counties, montgomery and fairfax in the upper 30s right now. generally in the upper 30s all around the region except out in the mountains where there a a few isolated spots where it's a little below freezing. a few clouds in eastern west virginia, through central virginia this morning. we'll have a mostly sunny day and a blustery wind coming in out of the northwest, gusting to 25 miles an hour this afternoon as highs reach the low 50s. then by this time tomorrow morning, expect a widespread freeze. even those areas that have yet to have their freeze so far this fall season, including washington and arlington, prince george's county, southern maryland, northern neck, many areas of the eastern shore, the first freeze of the season tomorrow morning. all around the region we'll have freezing temperatures from the mountains to the beaches. afternoon highs near 0 on saturday. sunday and monday a bit milder. highs mid and upper 60s both days with morning lows in the 40s. remaining dry. a look into next week in ten minutes. >> yummy. sounds terrific. thanks, tom. >> just as we mentioned, those lights are fixed in montgomery county. jerry, is it having a measurable effect yet? can we tell a difference? >> at this early hour, not so much. i think it is a positive thing, though, as we take a live look at the capital beltway at river road where the overnight road work has been wrapped up. looks like everything's moving along pretty well. river road just wond one of a couple hundred road that's were terrible yesterday. south of town to the wilson bridge, no worries. travel lanes are open there. very quiet as we get going through northeast and southeast washington. by the way, in monomery county, ride on bus service is free today and that is just an added bonus. some of the intersections may still be a little jumpy, but much, much better. back to you. >> thanks, jerry. >> thank you. 6:12 the time now. coming up, a pair of local firefighters charged with starting fires. >> plus, d.c. schools chancellor michelle rhee's big announcement. form are professional athlete who she's planning to marry. >> also coming up, the four things you need to do to land a new job today. ws heartbreaking and tragic. words we're hearing when describing yesterday's stunning and devastating shooting at ft. hood. i'm kimberly suiters life in the control room. the milliitary says major nidal malik hasan, an army psychiatrist, killed 13 people, wounded 30 others at the military post near waco, texas, yesterday. the name nidal, by the way, means struggle. hasan himself was shot several times, four in all, but he did survive. he's listed in stable condition. the latest medical reports we're receiving is tt he is unconscious and on a ventilator. there is no word right now on a motive. there are some reports that he was being deployed overseas soon, after thanksgiving, and that he wanted president obama to pull troops out of afghanistan and iraq. now, hasan was not only an army major. he was also a doctor who was treating others for combat stress. reporting live in the control room, kimberly suiters. now back to you in the studio. >> thank you. we continue to learn more about nidal malik hasan and his life. he once lived and prayed in our area. hasan is a lifelong muslim. he used to attend a mosque in silver spring, maryland, and that's where we find tracee wilkins this morning. can you tell us some more about him? >> reporter: well, he attended -- he would come to pray here at the muslim community center in silver spring when he did pray. we're told by folks who attend this center that he would come here every morning for that prayer service. when we asked them about their reaction to what's happened here, they tell us that they were very surprised to hear that he was the gunman. >> very nice, humble person, and educated person, even a doctor. he told me he was a doctor. i didn't know that he was a psychiatrist. but i talked to him about maybe three, four years ago. after that, i've been seeing him here until maybe a year ago, coming to the mosque like at this time, early in the morning. and it's only those dedicated muslims who can get up early in the morning from the bed and come for this prayer. not many people come. about 25 to 30 people come here every day. and he used to come here every morning. that's all i know. >> reporter: now, that man who did not want to be identified went on to tell me that he also met his brother one time as well. he says that he was very active here at this center. that he also did volunteer work, like helping to plant flowers and trees here. he said that he came every day and that they would have conversations but just about religion. he said he had no idea about any of his political affiliations or ideas about politics or the war. he said that once again he was completely shocked to hear that this was the man who did it. he thought he was a very peaceful man and a kind man. in silver spring, i'm tracee wilkins. back to you in the studio. >> thank you, tracee. >> president obama's pushing back his visit to capitol hill so he can make his first trip as president to walter reed later today. the white house says this trip, however, was planned before the massacre at ft. hood. ft. obama will now meet with lawmakers tomorrow to seal the deal for health care reform. house lawmars plan to vote this weekend. it will be close but democrats say they are confident that they've got the votes that they need. their plan would expand coverage to 96% of americans. it would cost $1.2 trillion over ten years. and that plan would also include the so-called public option. republicans say they plan to vote "no." a grand jury has indicted two prince george's county firefighters on arson charges. 46-year-old jerome engle of bowie and 24-year-old james martinez of damascus are both accused of setting a house five in riverdale last year. both men volunteered with the riverdale fire department. martinez is a career firefighter with montgomery county. if convicted, they could each face more than 50 years in prison. >> later this morning, the latest employment report will be released, and some economists fear the rate could surpass 10 that's a level not seen since june of 1983. despite recent positive economic reports, employers say they aren't adding jobs for several more months. today's report will be released at 8:30 this morning. and we're finding jobs 4 you. if you're looking for a job you're in good company. nationwide, it's estimated there's one available job for every six people who are looking. experts believe there are ways to get your resume to the top of the pile, though. they first suggest networking, face-to-face, tailoring job search to specific career goals, learning a new skill and touching up on your interview skills. >> people say that the interview's decided within the first 20 or 30 seconds so coming in with a warm smile, a firm handshake and a very concise, 20 to 30-second elevator pitch. >> experts also suggest lowering your expectations for pay. there may be someone else willing to do the job for less. >> in sports, the redskins are looking for a few good men to step up on the offensive line. >> dan hellie has details now in your sports minute. >> good morning, everybody. your sports minute starts with the redskins who continue to prepare for the atlanta falcons. the skins going down to hotlanta, trying to jump start their season. the offensive line continues to be a major area of concern and probably the main reason the 2-5 skins are ten-point underdogs. wizards news now. mike miller out seven to ten days with a sprained a.c. joint in his shoulder. miller injured his shoulder on wednesday night against the heat. the wizards' next game tonight against the pacers in indianapolis. thursday night college football. 23rd ranked virginia tech on the road in greenville, north carolina, taking on the ecu pirates. we start in the second quarter. tech up 6-0. tyrod taylor can't find anyone open so he keeps it by himself, scrambles to the far sidelines. this kid is good. dives in. does he get in? yes. touchdown, and the hokies take a 13-0 lead. they go on for the 16-3 win. that's your sports minute. i'm dan hellie. everybody have a great friday and an even better weekend. >> ready for the weekend? >> i am. i am ready for the weekend. it's going t be a nice one, too, apparently. >> let's ask tom about that. good morning again. >> the weekend is ready for you. yeah. >> good to know. >> whether you want it or not, it's coming. this morning around the region off to a clear start. it's chilly. not as cold as it has been the last few mornings. we are above freezing from the shenandoah valley all the way to the atlantic beaches. generally upper 30s to near 40. now 42 in washington. eastern shore near 40. out in the mountains it is below freezing in a few location temperatures there are dipping down to near 30 degrees. we have just a few clouds coming in from the north, will be with us from time to time today. overall, lots of sun. highs reaching the low 50s, though. a blustery northwest wind gusting to 25 miles an hour. tomorrow morning a widespread freeze from the mountains all the way to the atlantic beaches. afternoon highs, though, near 60 with sunshine. sunny sunday and milder. mild into monday, too. as we get into next week, remaining on the mild side but maybe a few showers late on tuesday. now, jerry, how's the friday morning commute? >> tom, take a live look, top side of the beltway. left is the outer loop as you come toward university boulevard, continuing past old georgetown road. at that point on the outer loop just after old georgetown road, authorities were checking for an accident. we'll keep you updated. on the rails this morning, metrorail, vre and marc all looking good with no early issues to report. very good news on a friday morning. >> yeah. some good news for somebody that we see pretty regularly. next, d.c. school chancellor michelle rhee's big announcement. she's engaged. we'll tell you who she plans to marry. >> also, today's your last chance to try to get some ticket to a washington tradition. what you need to do right now. we'll tell you after the break. there is word this morning that d.c. schools chancellor michelle rhee plans to tie the knot with an ex-nba player turned politician. "the washington post" reliable source says rhee has confirmed her engagement to kevin johnson. he is the current mayor of sacramento and a former point guard for the phoenix suns. the post reports no date has been set, so they'll continue their long-distance relationship, at least for now. >> well, if you want tickets to this year's christmas tree lighting you might want to logon right now. that's because the online lottery to get tickets ends today. the christmas tree lighting is set to take place december 3rd. to sign up, go to nbcwashington.com and search "lights." >> our time is 6:26. coming up in the next half hour, we have team coverage of the shooting at ft. hood in texas. we're learning more about the alleged gunman and his life in washington, where he grew up, lived, worked and prayed every morning. a man who grew up and worked in the washington area goes on a deadly rampage at the military's largest army post. this morning, another person has died. as we're learning more about the life of major nidal hasan. good morning. thanks for waking up with us this morning for "news 4 today." i'm barbara harrison. >> i'm craig melvin in for joe krebs. it is friday, november 6th, 2009. we take a live look outside and we are just minutes away from the sun being up on this friday, tom kierein. >> yeah, it's about 12 minutes away, sunrise. as we take a live view. the national cathedral in the foreground. a lemon/turquoise glow on the horizon. right now it's a chilly 42 degrees in washington, and, yes, our sunrise will be coming up shortly. and temperatures around the region are above freezing for the most part, from the shenandoah valley to the beaches. right now upper 30s to near 40 in montgomery, fairfax, arlington, prince george's counties. 42 from in washington. it's in low and mid-40s near the waters but elsewhere it's in the upper 30s. except out in poun tans where it has dipped in many locations, near 30 degrees this morning. as the day progresses, by 9:00 in the mid-40s with lots of sun. a few clouds in and out, mid-afternoon as the blustery northwest wind increases, gusting to 25 miles an hour. sunrise 6:41. highs this afternoon reaching the low 50s only so a blustery and chilly day. so dress accordingly before you leave. temperatures by sunset, which is at 5:02, will be down into the 40s again. then by midnight near 40. widespread frost and freeze likely this time tomorrow morning from the mountains all the way to the beaches. a sunny afternoon, though, tomorrow near 60. milder weather and continued sunny sunday and monday. i'm back at 6:41 with another update. >> all right. thanks, tom. >> thank you, tom. t's check on the roads out there. >> montgomery county, of course, says they fixed those traffic computer problems that they've been dealing with over the past few days. do the roads reflect that? >> they do, indeed. chopper 4 was over route 29 as you make the trip through white ohka short time ago. not much to worry about. just typical volume. no major hang-ups to report. so very good news there. we do have reports, though, of an accident georgia avenue near new hampshire avenue possibly an overturned vehicle. authorities checking on that. elsewhere at this hour, take a look here, southbound 270 getting reports of an accident just below montgomery village with authorities headed over to check on that. travel lanes should be open after that headed down to the split. back to you. >> jerry, thank you. >> thanks, jerry. military investigators are trying to figure out what led an army psychiatrist to go on a deadly shooting spree at the nation's largest military post. they say nidal malik hasan killed 13 people and wounded 30 others. he was eventually shot several times, but managed to survive. he's now on a ventilator and unconscious at a hospital. it all happened at ft. hood near waco, texas. jay gray has the latest on the investigation from ft. hood. >> reporter: there is an eerie silence at ft. hood now just hours after what officers have described as a rain of fire here. >> this has been a tragic incident and our hearts and prayers go out to those who have been impacted. >> reporter: more than a dozen people dead, at least 30 injured in the most violent attack ever on a u.s. military base. >> there was a single shooter that was shot multiple times at the scene. however, he was not killed as previously reported. he is currently in custody and in stable condition. >> reporter: the investigation, which continues this mning, will focus on that suspect, a fellow soldier, major nidal malik hasan. the 39-year-old army psychologist was recently promoted from captain and was transferred to ft. hood in july from walter reed medical center where he'd been stationed for six years. hasan, originally from northern virginia, enlisted in the army straight out of high school but was only recently preparing for his first deployment to the middle east. >> i have nothing to add about major hasan. >> reporter: publicly, army officials aren't saying much about major hasan. privately, though, they're asking the same questions so many are right now -- how and why did this happen? >> it's -- it's heartbreaking, i guess. we're supposed to be defending the country, and it's just very -- it's tragic. >> reporter: a tragedy that even those who prepare for the horrors of war could have never imagined. this morning, army investigators, along with fbi agents, continue their work. today is a day of mourning here. the post is open, but still on a high security alert. jay gray, nbc news, ft. hood, tes. >> we will have much more on this in a live report from ft. hood a little bit later in this hour. >> just as jay mentioned there, the washington area especially shaken by the shooting. the gunman, nidal malik hasan, was born here, spent years working here before transferring to ft. hood. news 4's megan mcgrath picks up the story from falls church, virginia, outside the house of some of his relatives. megan, good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning. nidal malik hasan has very strong ties to the area. as you mentioned, he was born in northern virginia. he grew up here. he has a number of relatives who still live in the area, and he himself, of course, worked in the area. now, he worked for six years as a psychiatrist at walter reed army medical center. he counseled wounded soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. now, sources tell news 4 that he was upset by a poor performance evaluation he received from the hospital recently. also he was unhappy about his upcoming deployment to the middle east. now, hasan graduated from virginia tech, got his medical degree from the uniformed services university in white oak. hasan lived in silver spring for a time at the white oak's tower apartments. folks there say they are absolutely stunned by what's happened. >> i mean, it's strange that this other guy would do this. i would never have believed that because he seemed tow calm and, you know, he was never upset with anything whenever i saw him. >> reporter: and federal agents went to a home in bethesda last night not far from the medical school where hasan got his degree. hasan apparently rented a room in that home for a time. they apparently talked to a person who lives there. that person declined, though, to speak to the press. now, hasan's aunt tells "the washington post" that her nephew wanted to be discharged from the army, that he even offered to reimburse the army for his medical degree. she tells the post that he had been taunted for his -- for being a muslim after 9/11 and that he was unhappy, increasingly unhappy with being in if military, was trying to get out but couldn't. back to you in the studio. >> megan mcgrath live for us in falls church, thank you. >> it is now 6:35. we'll have much more on the deadly shooting at ft. hood throughout this newscast and what he did while living in the washington area. >> also, three students left alone in recent weeks. now a local school district is making some changes to its bus system. >> the government has another deal for you. the president will sign a new bill into law today that could give you $6,000 to $8,000. >> as always, we'll have your weather and traffic on the 1s up next. th "today" show is next at the top of the hour. we'll go live to matt lauer in new york to talk about what they've got this morning. matt? >> hey, good morning to you. coming up on a friday here on "today," complete coverage of that tragic shooting rampage at ft. hood. the death toll now snds at 13. the alleged gunman, military psychiatrist, major nidal malik hasan, did he snap because he was about to be deployed, or could it have been a well-planned attack? we'll talk to the base's commanding officer about that. plus, fallout from wall street firms being given hundreds of doses of the swine flu vaccine. what the cdc is now ordering the health departments in all 50 states to do. and what that could mean for you. all that plus "today" gets punked meredith, ann, al and i show up for a photo shoot that goes very wrong. we'll tell you more about that when we get started on a friday rning here on "today." back to you in washington. >> all right. we hope you have a great weekend. we'll see you in a few minutes. >> you, too. we'll see you soon. >> tom kierein, word on the street is we're in for a nice weekend. true, false? >> the street's looking good, too. >> good. >> we are going to have a great weekend coming up so plan accordingly. there is the sunrise. live view from our sky watcher camera. sunrise up there at the camera elevation at 275 feet a little bit earlier than it is at the surface, which is at 6:41. let's take a look now at the temperatures. it's 42 in washington, near 40 in the nearby suburbs and most of the rural areas are in the mid and upper 30s and above freezing all the weather watchers are reporting this morning. out in the mountains, though, it's a little below freezing in a few places. we have a few clouds drifting in from the north. they'll be with us the middle part of the day. highs reaching the low 50s and a blustery wind will increase, gusting to 25 miles an hour this afternoon. a widespread freeze likely this morning from the mountains to the atlantic beaches. afternoon highs climbing, though, with bright sflin to near 60 tomorrow. a beautiful sunday on tap. lots of sunshine, 40s in the morning, afternoon highs into the mid-60s. may make a little bit milder on monday, perhaps pushing 70 degrees by monday afternoon. now coming up in ten minutes, i'll show you photos from my latest school visit as well as what's happening across the nation for your national travel forecast. that will be coming up at 6:51. >> okay. thanks, tom. >> let's take a look at traffic. we hope we have a better day today. we think we will. >> yeah, montgomery mncounty saying they fixed the problem with the traffic signals. has it had an effect? >> it has. the secondary roadways with the traffic lights appear to be much better. we are not without issue. chopper 4 is or an accident. 270 southbound, the one we told you about just below montgomery village. collection of vehicles on the left shoulder but police are there on the northbound side. a bit of a delay as you head south out of germantown past the accident scene, but again, the good news, lanes are open. by the way, ride on bus service is free today in montgomery county while they continue to tweak the traffic lights. all of them should be online here hopefully working order by this afternoon. most of them are in fun kxing order right now. elsewhere, the trip in from the west along interstate 66 no hang-ups. right now travel lanes open. watch out for the sunshine delays as you head east, manassas, fair oaks, centreville and beyond. back to you. >> thank you. >> "news 4 today" helping you find jobs. the four things you need to do to land a new job today. >> a local school district changes its bus rules after three students are left alone. >> we will go live to ft. hood, texas, to see what the mood's like and what's planned for today. 13 people de the ft. hood gunman, nidal malik hasan has local ties to our region. he once lived here. as a matter of fact, he was born here, he worshiped he. hasan is a lifelong muslim who attended the muslim community center in silver spring. folks there are in disbelief this morning. that's where we find tracee wilkins. she's live with more on hasan's personal life. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, barbara. yes, this is where he lived for a long period of time, and when he was here, this is where he would pray every day. now, this morning folks headed in for prayer service, the 5:30 prayer service, and many of them were thinking about this tragedy at ft. hood. one man tells us that early morning service is attended by the most devout muslims because of the hour, having to get out of bed that early in the morning. they tell us that that was his prayer service. that is the prayer service nidal hasan would come to. he tells us they would pray together. when you heard the news and you heard that it was him, what was your first response, your first thought? >> he couldn't do it. but if he had done it, he must be out of his mind or -- i mean, this is outrageous that he would do anything like that. i couldn't believe it. >> reporter: and when you all would pray, did he ever say anything about the wa did he ever have prayer for the war? did he ever talk abo -- >> no, no. >> reporter: that man who did not want to be identified went on to tell us that he also never discussed any of his political beliefs with him as well, that they would just pray together. he says he was also a volunteer here at the community center. he would plant flowers and trees. he brought his brother here from time to time. he says that he just simply cannot believe that he is the gunman i'm tracee wilkins, live this morning in silver spring. back to you in the studio. >> thanks, tracee. >> we continue our team coverage now. 13 people are dead, 30 others are wounded after an army psychiatrist opened fire at ft. hood in texas yesterday. the gunman was also shot. this morning that gunman is in the hospital and the ft. hood community is just now starting to come to grips with what's happened there. jay gray live at ft. hood this morning. i understand we're starting to find out a little bit more about the person who shot the suspect. what can you tell us about the shooter? >> reporter: yeah, craig, we know that it was a contract police officer, understanding that most of those involved in this incident were military personnel. in fact, only two contract officers working with the army here. she was the first to confront the gunman and actually fire back. there initially were repts that she had also died in this firefight here at ft. hood, but she did not perish. in fact, went through surgery overnight. we are told she is in stable condition. of course, she is being lauded as a hero this morning, and obviously there are many who believe that her quick actions and her response helped to save several lives here. >> ft. hood the largest military base here in this country. are they back open this morning? is it back to business as usual at ft. hood, or is that not the case, jay? >> reporter: yeah, craig, i don't think it will be business as usual for quite some time. you talked about this being the largest military installation in the u.s., and it is, but it's still a very tight-knit community. everyone here knows someone affected by what happened here today. it hits them at home. it's something they don't expect. we talked to several officers who say, hey, we don't carry gunsere. this is our home. we're surprised at what happened. obviously, though, they're under a heightened sense of security today. >> all right. jay gray for us in ft. hood, texas. thank you so much. we appreciate it. meanwhile, back here locally, school officials in alexandria are putting some new procedures in place after a third student in recent weeks was left alone at a bus stop. the latest case involved a kindergartner in george mason elementa elementary. she was put on a bus last week. no parent was there to meet her. all bus drivers are being sent letters stating they will face disciplinary action if they continue to violate the policy. the students are also wearing stickers to match them with their corresponding buses. st. hugh in greenbelt is closed on this friday. it was closed because 40% of the faculty and staff are home with sick family who have the flu. there are 128 student tests school that has kindergarten through eighth grade. school officials say they plan to re-open st. hugh monday. >> today president obama will sign a bill into law to benefit all homeowners, not just first-time homeowners. cnbc's courtney reagan joins us live with more on this story. good morning, courtney. >> reporter: hi. good morning, barbara. yeah, that bill actually will do a lot. president obama's going to sign a bill today that extends unemployment insurance as well to millions of people who face losing those benefits at the end of the year. the measure does also extend the popular tax credit for first-time home buyers through april and offers money to some repeat buyers. the house and the senate passed the bill elier this week. fannie mae is offering more help for people facing foreclosu foreclosure, letting them stay in their homes and rent them for up to a year. you'll have to prove you can't afford your current mortgage but that you could pay the rent. the move comes as fannie mae is asking the government for anher $15 billion loan after it reported a nearly $19 billion quarterly loss. back to you in d.c. >> okay. have a good weekend. >> reporter: thank you. you, too. >> today there is a new smart phone on the market. verizon is rolling out its droid smartphone to compete with apple's iphone. it is powered by google's android operating system. the new phone has a touch screen as well as a sliding keyboard. the droid sells for $199 with a two-year contract and a mail-in rebate. >> this morning news 4 is helping to find jobs for you. this morning, general dynamics information technology is looking to fill a number of positions that include system administrator, systems engineers, i.t. security engineers and systems integrators. to learn more and apply, go to nbcwashington.com and search jobs 4 you. well, if you are among those looking for a job, you're certainly not alone. here's why it's so tough to find one. nationwide, it's estimated that there are a lot of jobs that folks are looking for. one available job for every six people who are looking. so how do you get your resume to the top of the pile? number one, network and don't rely on facebook or e-mail. you need to do it face-to-face. number two, tailor your job search to meet your specific goals. don't apply for jobs that you know you're not qualified for. number three, use your time off to your advantage and learn a new job skill. finally, number four, touch up on those interview skills. >> people say that the interview is decided within the first 20 or 30 seconds, so coming in with a warm smile, a firm handshake and a very concise 20 to 30-second elevator pitch. >> here's something else to keep in mind. you might have to take a pay cut. there are lots of folks out there looking for work. that means there is someone who is probably willing to do the same job you're applying for, for a lot less. >> we're going to talk about the weather now because we've got a great weekend coming. on the chilly side. >> many frustrated homeowners who have leaves piled up on the lawn. good weather to attack them this weekend. a live view showing the sunrise if a clear sky over washington on this friday morning. now at 6:52 it's a chilly 42 degrees in washington. and the temperatures around the region are generally above freezing all the way from the shenandoah valley to the atlantic beaches we're in the upper 30s to near 40 degrees. as we look at the view from space over the last six hours, we've had a few clouds drifting in from the north and west, but they tend to dry out just a little bit as the giant head does come in from the west. that's some kind of a front that i'm not familiar with. now as we take a look at this view, this is the featherstone elementary school in woodbridge, virginia, where i visited yesterday. i had a terrific time at the featherstone elementary school. was invited by teacher sharon cypress who's next to me in the back. we had a wonderful time talking to the third graders there. they asked me a lot of questions. i asked them a lot of questions, too. they love my video of tornadoes and the views from the space station and the space shuttle looking down on the earth. what a great time. and i loved my visit to the featherstone elementary school in woodbridge in prince william county yesterday. well, across the nation shouldn't have any travel problems today weatherwise other than a little bit of snow in far northern new england to maine, perhaps parts of the northern rockies. flight delays seattle to san francisco from some rain. dress your child warmly. chilly morning. in the 30s and 40s through the next hour or two. by 9:00 in the mid-40s. by noontime should be near 50 degrees. then by later on this afternoon, only the low 50s and a blustery northwest wind gusting to 25 miles an hour. then tonight we'll be cold. by this time tomorrow morning, a widespread freeze is likely from the mountains to the atlantic beaches. sunny saturday afternoon with highs near 60. into the mid-60s on sunday afternoon. upper 60s monday afternoon. looking into next week, next chance of any precipitation may come late on tuesday. the motto at featherstone elementary school is "hearts, hands and minds sharing the future." and we had a great time. it was a -- have a great weekend. i had a great time yesterday. >> cool. montgomery county says the traffic computer that's been broken the past few days is fixed now. do the roads reflect that? >> absolutely. as we take a live look here at one of the real sore spots over the last couple of rush hours, old georgetown road, the intersection of democracy boulevard. look at that. lots of space between the vehicles. been watching the traffic lights over the last couple of minutes. they are cycling properly. everybody's havi a decent commute over there. good news. out on the rails at this hour, we do have issues on marc rail, brunswick train 878, 15 minutes behind schedule. stay with brunswick line train 892, 6 minutes behind schedule. vre and metrorail reporting no delays. reminder, ride on bus service in montgomery county no charge today. back to you. >> all right, jerry. thank you. >> thank you. kimberly suiters is in our newsroom with more on the top story this morning, the deadly rampage at ft. hood in texas. >> barbara, a final update now on the situation at ft. hood as well as the alleged shooter's connection to our area. first off, the military is saying that major nidal malik hasan was an army psychiatrist who killed 13 people, wounded 30 others at a military post near waco, texas, yesterday. the name nidal, by the way, means struggle. hasan himself was shot several times, four in all. he did survive. he's listed in stable condition. last report said she was unconscious, on a ventilator. there are reports he was being deployed overseas soon, after thanksgiving. that he wasn't happy about that. that he may have been harassed for being a muslim, that he wanted president obama to pull troops out of afghanistan and iraq. of course, there are the local ties, too, with family in falls church. a 1997 graduate of virginia tech, got his medical degree at bethesda, was at walter reed medical center counseling soldiers with ptsd himself. that's it from the newsroom. i'm kimberly suiters. barbara, craig, now back to you. >> thank you, kimberly. >> the "today" show will have lots more on that coming up. >> that's it for us for now. we thank you for being with us. be sure to have a great weekend. we'll see you monday morning, 4:55 a.m. >> have a great weekend.