for joining us. i'm walter allen((jen)) and i'm jen 3 epstein. but first, we start with the weather... a lot of rain is headed our way... (take 3bx) 3 (jen and not only do we have to worry about *driving in it, it could make the zika virus emergency just declared in our area, even worse. we have team coverage on this, and we start with dave. 3 3 (dave 3 showers and storms developing today, with breezy condtions as well. rain chances around 80%, with high temps in the mid 70s. tonight will be breezy and cooler. low temps in the upper 40s. mostly sunny, breezy and cooler for friday, with high temps in the lower 60s. 3 ((dave and standing rain 3 ground for mosquitoes... which is really a concern right now, with the mosquito-borne zika virus now an *emergency in hillsborough county. fox-13's shayla reaves is on the story. shayla: how can people protect themselves. 3 3 3 3 3 3 no closed captioning is available for traffic. 3 3 millions of tax returns are on hold this morning.. because of a computer glitch at the internal revenue service... 3 the agency says it's stopped accepting electronically filed tax returns because of problems with some of its computer systems. right now -- they're not saying how long it will take to fix -- but are hopeful that it could be by sometime this week... possibly even today.. the outage *doesn't affect those who have already filed their returns. 3 (walter) fox 13's alcides segui is looking into the irs computer failure... a live update in our next half hour. 3 3 ((jen)) new this morning... citrus county deputies are looking for 3 people who went on a crime spree-- stealing peoples' wallets behind their backs. 3 ((jen police believe these 3 women robbed 2 people last week. these surveillance pictures are from the publix in inverness. police say 2 of them talked to an elderly grabbed her wallet. they made off with 500-dollars in cash... then spent 15-hundred dollars at an office max. the pair is also accused of robbing a a clerk at sally's beauty supply in crystal river. police believe they are responsible for similar thefts last year. 3 3 (walter) happening today: a man caught with *explosives in his apartment... is heading to court. 3 (walter there is a federal detainment hearing scheduled for "michael ramos." he is currently being held in the pinellas county jail. federal agents raided his home on monday after a business partner reported him. they say they found eight live pipe bombs, along with tear gas, grenades and ammunition. ramos told agents he had no plans to use the explosives. they also say he has *no ties to terrorists. 3 (jen dozens of burglary victims are getting their jewelry... electronics and other things back. deputies found the stolen stuff inside a lakeland apartment. they arrested two men for a string of break-ins that spans the bay area. 3 ((jen)) fox13's kellie cowanreports on the arrests from the hillsborough county sheriff's office. 3 kellie: police say they actually followed the pair of burglars to a home in pasco county where they were caught in the act and arrested dustin peters and harry daymon are facing a myriad of charges including grand theft and armed burglarya&a search of peters' lakeland apartment uncovered an estimated 200 thousand dollars in stolen jewelry, electronics, family heirlooms and other pricey household items...this afternoon victims were able to reclaim some of the items stolen from them, while the men police say did it are behind bars "i was devastated, more for my wife's jewelry than anything elsea&things i bought her over the years"" they would case the locationsa&they were armed kellie: the hillsborough county sheriffs office tell us more than 30 home burglaries have been linked to the pair they've arrested, they expect that number, as well as the amount of stolen property, to increase as their investigation continues. kellie cowan, fox13 news. (jen) 3 several gun bills are moving through the state legislature in tallahassee... (walter) and wednesday, the florida house passed some that would let people with concealed weapons permits, openly carry their guns... and, bring them onto state college campuses. 3 (walter they also passed a bill that would let lawmakers carry concealed weapons onto the chamber floor... and, into committee meetings. house members debated the measures for three hours... democrats say: all those guns would be bad for tourism... saying: we're the sunshine state, not the gunshine state. they also argue: more guns on campus, would make colleges more dangerous. but republicans, were strongly in *favor of the legislation, saying: mass-shooters *look for gun-free zones to won out in the house, but companion bills will likely die in the senate. 3 (walter) however, a bill that would curb recreational shooting in residential areas, is on its way to governor scott's desk. it would punish people who fire their guns for *fun in urban areas, with a first-degree misdemeanor charge. there are exemptions for shooting in self-defense, and accidental discharges. 3 (jen) a bill that would require florida high schools to offer "computer coding" as a "foreign language" option... is headed for a vote. it has received *overwhelming support from state senators. under the bill, students could choose to take computer coding, and get two foreign language credits. but there's a catch. parents and students would have to sign statements, acknowledging that they realize computer coding might not meet foreign language requirements for *colleges in other *states. if passed, the new policy would take effect in the 2018/2019 school year. 3 3 for the first time in 8 years.. season tickets for the tampa bay buccaneers are going to cost you more.. fans will pay around tickets in 2016.. a 10-game season pass will run you anwhere between 400 and 1,250 dollars.. last year that range was 300.. to 9-hundred and 90.. but despite the increase -- the bucs ticket prices remain some of the cheapest in the league.. the aveerage per-game ticket price ranks 22nd amongst the n-f-l's 32 teams.. 3 ((jen)) helping you cheat on your diet.((walter)) the new flavors from ben and jerry's... that puts ice cream back on the menu for many who thought they had to avoid it! 3 ((walter and... talk about going "deep cover"... the man who was just arrested for faking his identity... for during this extended visit from your extended family, all you want is a peaceful moment to stream your show. and you need enough bandwidth to share with a full house of hungry users. lightning internet from bright house networks. the speed you need. and now connect to... standard tv and 50 megabit lightning internet... only $94 a month 3 (jen - you'll want to grab an umbrella before heading out this morning. skytower radar shows rain. dave is tracking conditions... and when we can expect the rain to arrive. you can also get up-to-the minute weather information by downloading the skytower radar app. it's free for 3 your android and apple devices. 3 (jen) developing this morning: the south koreans say: their rivals to the north... are preparing to fire a long-range rocket... and *they're ready... to shoot it down. 3 (jenhere's why they're so concerned. as you can see, the missile launch site is very close to south korean territory. north korea "observation satellite"... that's going up on a rocket... sometime this month. but officials in seoul (soul) and washington say: no way, this is a banned missile test... and the white house is concerned, because it's long-range enough to possibly *prohibit it from carrying out any nuclear or ballistic missile tests. 3 (walter in pennsylvania: the bill cosby criminal case is moving forward. wednesday, a judge *denied the defense's motion to have the case thrown out. cosby is charged with "aggravated indecent assault." he's accused of drugging a woman, and forcing himself on her, back in 2004. prosecutors just re-opened the case, based on a deposition cosby gave 10-years ago. but cosby's lawyer argued that the comedian only agreed to give that deposition, because the former district attorney promised he *wouldn't be charged. yesterday the judge decided: that *verbal promise, wasn't legally binding. there's another hearing set for next month, to determing if there's enough evidence to send this case to trial. 3 wiki-leaks founder "julian assange".. could soon be spending time behind bars. assange said he would turn himself into police tomorrow... if the united nations finds he has lost his case against the united kingdom and sweden. a u-n group is deciding whether the three years assange spent in constitutes illegal detention. he took refuge in ecuador's british embassy to avoid extradition to sweden ... where two women have accused him of sexual assault. 3 catholic preist for decades -- swindling parishioners out of thousands of dollars. mena" officiated masses, funerals, a wedding and heard area. mena faces about 30 police say he sold tickets york and see the pope during his september visit. 3 (jen/ all eyes on new hampshire now, for the next presidential primary... but not these guys. more republicans have dropped out of the race... including, rick santorum... he's now endorsing marco rubio... that announcement late last night... a few hours after kentucky senator rand paul announced that *he's ending *his run for president, as well. paul's campaign wasn't able to rally the youth vote, quite as much as he'd hoped. there are now *nine g-o-p candidates, left. (jen come look at this... it's one of the biggest chinese new year's parties outside of asia... and it's turned a traditional english garden in london... into a dazzling site. it's the magical lantern festival... combining colorful lights and music... and all sorts of chinese culture, like artifacts and furniture. the festival runs through march sixth, but the actual lunar new year is before that... in just a few days. 3 (jen we're entering the year of the monkey. people born in 3 that year are supposed to be quick-witted, curious, innovative and mischievous... their lucky numbers are 1-7-8... for those of you playing the lottery this year... and the lucky colors are: white, gold and blue. famous monkeys include: julius caesar... leonardo davinci... celine dion... tom hanks... mick jagger... and miley cyrus.. 3 3 time to check the forecast with dave. 3 3 it is 5:__: time now to find out what's happening on the roads - with our 3 3 no closed captioning is available for traffic. 3 3 "everything but the cow." that's what ben and jerry's is saying about their new *vegan ice cream. there are four non-dairy flavors... all made with almond milk... they altered two classic recipes: chunky monkey and chocolate fudge brownie... and they added two new ones: coffee caramel fduge... and p-b and cookies. that last one features chocolate sandwich cookies and crunchy peanut butter swirls. yum! 3 3 (jen) now here's something you can *like and *share with your friends. (walter) "facebook" is celebrating a birthday today... users... get the gift! 3 back in 2004 by mark zuckerberg and his roommates at harvard. facebook is calling today "friends day" and making new collage videos for users... made up of their friends. that should show up on your page sometime after noon today... and you can choose to share it with friends. 3 ((walter)) every once in awhile, we get to cover a story that really means something to us personally. ((jen)) and today, it's my turn... 3 (jen and yay... it's a fun story!!! and it's also a dream come true for me. come along on a one tank trip to sea world... where you can hang out with the pengies! hope you're as excited as i am. 3 as journalists, there are stories that challenge us, disturb us and even drive us nuts. but this next one... is none of those. this story... *delighted me. it involves something i absolutely love... and have been known to squeal over... penguins! now you can too... in a special experience that's just a one tank trip away. 3 there's a land miles and miles away where the penguins swim and play.. no, this isn't the beginning of a fairy tale.. it's the start of my one tank trip. 32 degrees and snowy..it's the perfect climate for these black and white feathered birds.but you don't have to travel to across the globe to see these cold weather tank trip to sea world penguin. it's such the guests right into the 280 penguinsa& waddling through their icy cavesa& and yeaha& these penguins stay busy. and their visitors do penguin exhibit, where guests penguins play. or there's a more private tour.. where you penguin. this is experience. "oh my gosh"and if you're a penguin lover like me.. you'll have no problem adapting to the climate.. and whatever **else comes your way. you experience the cold first. then you hear everything.. the vocalizations. probably about with you. penguins have an a thing" good. it's so worth it. it's easy to see why t.j. surrounded by a couple as an avriculturist, he also of the birdsa&always sure they have the most fulfilling life possible. wonderful job, coming in here little of a difference (as i tear up) laughs he wasn't the what happened next.. was this is the best day of my life. "oh my gosh! look at all of them!" they're very photogenic. not camera shy at all. that's righta& i got to go on the ice... and spend some quality time with the penguins. "and only very very special people like me actually get to sit on the ice with them." just like me. it's super cool to be able to share this with you. "i feel a penguin nipping me in the bud right now and i don't care." 3 3 you can choose from a variety of tours.. based on your love of penguins. the first is included with regular admission and takes you inside the penguin habitat. or there's the penguin up close tour, which takes you behind the scenes.. and allows you to touch one of the birds! oh.. and you don't even have to go to sea world to see the pengies... the park has a penguin cam on their website! 3 ((jen)) 3 there could be a medical breakthrough... in the fight against *diabetes.((walter)) how it would work, after the break. 3 ((walter and... something old, something new, something *borrowed... but not legally. what happened to one woman's wedding dress... right in her own front yard. (vo) if you have type 2 diabetes, you may know what it's like to deal with high... and low blood sugar. januvia (sitagliptin) is a once-daily pill that, along with diet and exercise, helps lower blood sugar. januvia works when your blood sugar is high and works less when your blood sugar is low, because it works by enhancing your body's own ability to lower blood sugar. plus januvia, by itself, is not likely to cause weight gain or low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). januvia should not be used in patients with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. tell your doctor if you have a history of pancreatitis. serious side effects can happen, including pancreatitis which may be severe and lead to death. stop taking januvia and call your stomach area which may be pancreatitis. tell your doctor right away and stop taking januvia if you have an allergic reaction that causes swelling of the face, lips, tongue, or throat, or affects your breathing or causes rash or hives. kidney problems sometimes requiring dialysis have been reported. some people may develop severe joint pain. call your doctor if this happens. r using januvia with a sulfonylurea or insulin p may cause low blood sugar. to reduce the risk, your doctor may p prescribe a lower dose of the sulfonylurea or insulin. your doctor may do blood tests before and during treatment to check your kidneys. if you have kidney problems a lower dose may be prescribed. side effects may include upper respiratory tract infection, stuffy or runny nose, sore throat, and headache. for help lowering your blood sugar talk to your doctor about 3 it's 5:--, on thursday, february fourth. i'm walter allen.((jen)) and i'm jen epstein and there are strong concerns this morning about the zika virus in florida. in fact, governor rick scott has declared a state of emergency over it. he'll be in tampa today to offer an update on the state's effort to keep everyone safe. 3 (jen there are at least *nine cases across four counties, including hillsborough. the others are in miami-dade, lee.. and santa rosa counties. so the state is stepping-up mosquito spraying efforts... and expanding outreach and education. there is no indication that the virus has been transmitted *within hillsborough county, or that any mosquitos here are carrying it. the areas around the homes where the infected people live are also being inspected. our two local cases are to non- pregnant women who traveled to other countries. they have been treated by doctors and are expected to be o-k. 3 3 3 3 no closed captioning is 3 3 ((jen)) 3 millions of tax returns are on hold this morning.. because of a computer glitch at the internal revenue service... 3 ((jen fox-13's alcides segui is on the story for us... alcides, what's going on? 3 3 3 "taxpayers can continue to prepare and file their tax returns as they normally would. taxpayers can continue to send their tax returns to their e-file provider; these companies will hold the tax returns until the irs resumes accepting electronic tax returns. taxpayers who have already filed their tax returns do not need to take any additional action." 3 3 thanks, alcides. 3 ((walter a controversial meeting, that was supposed to take place in downtown tampa, along with dozens of other cities around the world, has been *canceled. it was being organized by a group called "return of kings." the so-called "masculine movement" believes women are *inferior to men. they were planning to gather at curtis hixon park this saturday. but last night, the event was canceled. the group's leader said: he couldn't guarantee the members' *safety. 3 ((walter hillsborough county commissioners want to protect animals, that are up for adoption. they don't want to see those animals end been convicted of animal abuse or neglect. so, they're creating an "animal abuse registry." offenders would be *required to register, or be fined. and the list would go online, so animal adoption agencies and the public can acccess it. the database will also include the offender's address, so neighbors will know who they're living next to. 3 ((walter and in pasco county... deputies are searching for a thief who stole hundreds of dollars in energy drinks. officials say this person took more than 800-dollars worth of 5 hour energy and red bull from a publix in land o' lakes last week. they loaded up their of the store. officials stolen similar items from multiple publix stores pasco county. if you know anything call the sheriff's office. 3 3 (jen) new this morning: we could be closer to a *cure... johnson-and-johnson is joining forces with a bio-tech company called "via-cyte"... they're hoping to speed-up development of the first stem-cell treatement, that would presumably *fix the life- they've already started testing it in a few diabetic patients. it if works as well in patients, as it has in animals, researchers say: it would end the need for frequent insulin injections, and blood sugar testing. it would be, in essence, a cure. it likely wouldn't be available for several years... but the good news is, down the road, it could also treat type-two diabetics, who use insulin. 3 (jen and a new proposal from the pengaton this morning: to help with family planning. the military is offering to pay for freezing sperm and eggs, for personnel. it's part of an initiative to make military service more appealing and family friendly... and, they also hope to retain more female troops... it's a big issue, since a woman's childbearing years... her 20's and 30's... overlap her military service years... and it's also piece of mind for those in uniform who are hurt on the battlefield... with this program, they'd still be able to have children. the program will likely cost about 150-million dollars over five-years. it will be offered through "tri-care," the military's health care plan. 3 3 body back, but a florida man who was shot and paralyzed by a deputy... could get millions of dollars. 3 (walter/ a federal jury in south florida just awarded "dontrell stephens" 23-point- one million. he was shot two-and-a-half years ago, in palm beach county. it was caught on dash-cam video. deputy "adams lin" testified that he thought stephens had a *gun... but the video shows: his hands were *empty. this case was among several that sparked debate about the shootings of unarmed black men. 3 3 (jen) oh man, imagine this. it's a newlywed nightmare. a package containing a wedding gown... was *stolen right off the new couple's doorstep. 3 (jen tiffany and fred mastro-pasqua got married in october. they sent her wedding dress out to be dry-cleaned. the couple says: u-p-s stopped by to deliver the gown on monday, but no one was home. the deliveryman kept the package, and started to pull-out of their driveway... that's when a gold s-u-v pulled-up. a man got out, and claimed to live there. he signed for the package using the name 3 "i'm just really sad about it. a wedding dress is something that has a lot of sentimental value. i can tell you that my mom and i spent two or three weeks just going around to the different bridal shops in the area and we finally found one." 3 --jen/ tampa police are investigating. tiffany and fred say: this is the *second time in less than two weeks they've been hit by a package thief. they also had a new cell phone stolen from their front porch. a u-p-s spokesperson says: they're looking into the situation. 3 3 ((dave)) 3 3 3 3 ,,3 3 (wally if you're just waking up... take a look at skytower radar... rain, and lots of it is in the forecast. dave has the timing of the wet weather... in just a few minutes. you an also download the skytower radar up... for the latest weather information. 3 it's free for apple and android devices. 3 high school kids, get around town. the hillsborough county school district and "hart" are teaming-up... and starting march first, will offer free rides on any hart bus! kids just need to show their student i-d. the school district says: this will allow students who *don't have a car of their own, or someone to drive them... to participate in after-school activities. the district also hopes: the exposure to public transit will help change a car-centric mindset, and get students thinking about alternative transportation. 3 (jen and good news if you're looking for a *job. home depot is accepting applications... for lots of positions. the home improvement chain is hiring more than 13-hundred, at its 30 tampa locations. the hiring surge is due to the upcoming spring season.. their busiest time of the year. people are inspired to make changes at home. so, they're looking for everything from cashiers to sales people. you can apply on the home depot website. 3 3 (walter) we're just three- days away from super bowl 50 in san francisco... and, enforcement officials say there's "no credible threat" to sunday's game. the nfl senior v-p of security says: he's satisfied with all the precautions and policies enacted so and he's confident in the safety of everyone involved. officials say: they've learned from the recent attacks in san bernardino and paris... and they're ready. homeland security secretary "jey johnson" says: there are layers of security in place, that are both "seen and unseen." 3 (walter speaking of the big game, one player will hit the field with a very heavy heart. denver defensive lineman, antonio smith, plans to suit-up... despite learning of his father's death this week. smith joined the broncos this season, after being released by the oakland raiders. his father was 55-years-old and had been incarcertated for more than 20- years. 3 ((walter)) turning to baseball: a big money decision is expected today for drew smyly of the tampa bay rays. 3 the 26-year-old left-hander asked arbitrators million, to three-point-75. the rays argued for less... three-point-two million. smyly was 5-2 in 12-starts last season. now, let's talk hockey! fox-13 sports director chip carter tells us: the lightning lived- up to their name last night... *electrifying the home crowd. 3 a fun game to watch tonight in 3 amalie.....the redwings and lightning are the national game on the nhl's rivalry night....and games like this live up to it.... 3 watch the left post....jt. brown, is wide open...and buries it, lightning are up one nothing...... the lead doesn't last long, turnover just over the blue line, detriot makes the quick transition, off the long rebound, gustav nyquist, finds a 3 hole...but take another look because i want to show you, ben bishop almost makes the save with his stick....... lightning on the power play, watch the right side of the screen, near the boards, tyler johnson....that is a perfect shot, two one third, watch number eighty six..off the left post, perfect past and nikita kucherov buries it...three one on the power play goal......... lightning win three one..... willie taggart and the bulls have a solid day recruiting, fourth in the american conference, they end up with two four star players and nine three star players, according to rivals.com... taggart seals up local talent.....hillsborough's defensive back michael hampton and wharton's devontres dukes sign with usf....the bulls also get a four star receiver, darnell solomon, from miami central...marshall and temple were making a big push for solomon, so that's a big commitment for willie taggart and he also gets four star safety craig watts from st. pete..... so looking at the rankings, basically this is where just about every recruiting site works it out, bama number one, fsu right behind them.... ohio state, michigan and clemson go three, four and five....florida is eighteenth, miami twentieth and usf sixty fifth.... 3 check out these pictures from tampa international airport. it looks like some sort of 3 display... but this is actually a real dog! 'superdog max' visited the airport yesterday. he seemed a little more human than canine while he posed for the camera. 'max' is a 6-year-old poodle... who's also a licenses service animal and therapy dog. he's known for his fuzzy, red leg fur--- and of course all his unusual talents. 'max' can 3 3 3 3 no closed captioning is 3 3 3 (jen ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls... are you ready for the thrills, the chills... the fried food fiesta? well, it's all there, at the florida state fair... and opening day is 3 (jen and we knew just who to send... charley belcher! (walter he's out there already... shining bright even 3 *before they turn the lights on. good morning! 3 3 right now, finding quick cover, so you can continue favorite show in the great outdoors. and you don't need further interrupting your otherwise- perfect afternoon. echo from bright house networks. eliminates dead zones, so you can stream confidently all around your home. and now connect to... standard tv and 50 megabit lightning internet... only $94 a month lowe's presents: how to put your foot in your mouth. man, wish my yard looked like yours. hey, the grass is always greener on the other side of the... sorry. now get 20% off sta-green fertilizer, at lowe's. 3 there's something really cool out at cape canaveral right now. (jen) for the first time, we're getting a look at the capsule that will "one day" take us back to the moon! fox's derrol nail got "up close and personal," with "orion." 3 out: "... fox news." sorry, no verbatim script available 3 3 there's much more to come on good day.((walter)) let's turn it over to russell and laura - to find out what's ahead in our 6 o'clock hour. 3 a public health emergency has been declared in hillsborough county as state leaders scramble to prevent the spread of a devastating illness .. coming up, how rain could complicate their 3 ?what is a 'trumper-tantrum'? iowa caucus winner "ted cruz" comes up with a new word as the candidates hit the road in new hampshire. 3 and ... time is running out for a california lottery winner to claim a 63 million dollar prize ... but, there is an even bigger prize, that has yet to be claimed here in florida. 3 3 3 now at havertys furniture, it's our annual presidents day sale. which means it's the perfect time to create the perfect home. now through february 15th, everything in our store is on sale. plus, we're offering thirty-six month, no interest financing. come in today for our best prices of the year. with havertys, your home can be perfect. even when life isn't. sfx: knocking. we're early! the presidents day sale. from classic to contemporary, i don't know what i'm doing. i can't find anything just when i think it's just not going to work. this woman that works there comes over and asks can i help you? and he was so happy, to do it amazing right? i never would have expected would have thought that anyone would find that do that. make that go out of their way for me. right then, right there i couldn't believe it he was so helpful i know it's such a small thing but it made me smile

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