>> the tree was on his head. all you could see was the neck and the shoulders and the paint shared. >> witnesses described a horrifying scene in fairfax county. a fallen tree brushes a car killing the driver. >> 8 heat wave continues. more delays on metro. ♪ >> lindsnity is leaving, call-in fans to take to the internet. "good morning washington." begins now at 5:00 a.m.. >> live and in hd, this is "good

morning washington," on your side. >> this is wednesday, july 18. i n cynné simpson . >> i and steve chenevey. there -- i n steve chenevey. >> let me tell you -- i cannot remember. such a long time. hot weather outside right now. air temperatures are going to soar. a heat advisory will go into effect at 11:00 until 9:00 this evening. montgomery county, silver spring -- you are looking at a heat advisory. the heat index may rise to 109 degrees. it is a very warm start 2 hour day -- 81 degrees at reagan national airport. highs today are 95 to 100. it will feel about 5 to 8 degrees warmer than that. showers and thunderstorms in the

mid to upper 70 posture night. tomorrow, temperatures remain in the upper 80's to lure 90's, with temperatures high threat the afternoon. >> thank you so much. it is 5:002 right now. this has forced metric to allow water on that the system. >> jummy olabanji is in bethesda to explain what happens today. >> good morning, steve. when temperatures get as hot as we just talked about, metro says they can slow down trains to 35 miles per hour. even though they are below ground when trains are above ground moving slowly, they will move just as slowly here. a long line may be longer as temperatures continue to rise. rails were so hot that for hours the trains could not go pastorate -- faster than at 35

miles per hour on above-ground tracks. it could be the same today meaning longer waits. >> a much more crowded platform and i have ever seen. >> metro officials say that slowing down the trains is based on several criteria, including the actual temperature of the rails. direct sunlight can cause the rails to rise to 135 degrees. if that happens, you can almost guarantee the trains were not move as fast as long. a.c.t. move is applauded by some customers -- the safety move is applauded by some customers. well water is allowed on the trains the you see might not be a guarantee. we found passengers sweating on a train with no cold air. >> it it's hot outside. it is hot on the trend. you want to be comfortable. >> metro officials say you should be ok this morning for the rush hour.

as the day goes on, the sun goes up -- it it's even hotter. later on, we could go back to that slowdown of 35 miles per hour. >> thanks for the advice. we are following a developing story out of great falls virginia. investigators spent the night clearing the scene where a huge tree fell, crushing a car and killing the driver inside the vehicle. it happened last night on georgetown pike. john has an update for us. >> this morning, police on the scene. a tree-cutting crew. the road is still closed. this accident happened just before 7:00 last evening. the driver was sitting in traffic when the tree came crashing down. georgetown pike has been shut down for hours while crews work on removing the massive tree that paint a black mercedes. the driver was killed on impact.

>> the tree was on his head. all you could see was the neck and the shoulders and the pink shirt. >> the tree was old and rotted. this morning, it is still unclear why it fell across the road. a site that witnesses will never forget. >> it was too late. all you heard was a big crash. >> day response turn from rescue to recover. the tree was almost 6 feet in diameter. fairfax police say the victim was a man in his 60's. >> we do not see this in the absence of severe weather. >> the victim has not been identified. fairfax county police tell us that they will try to open at least one lane here on georgetown pike for the morning rush hour, but then they will close to it again as cleanup continues. >> thanks so much.

i want to get an update on the morning commute. >> as a result of that closure the georgetown pike, as we just saw, that will push traffic onto leesburg pike. if you normally travel route 7 you will understand why your traffic is going to be unusual. the beltway is moving at 66. they had overnight construction that had the road closed for 30 minutes. everything is moving. we will give you normal travel times on alexandria, to and from the wilson bridge, for commuters on route 50 and new york ave. metro it starts with normal service. back to you. >> news this morning of two people hurt when a car slammed into a restaurant in and they'll, virginia. look at this video.

-- annandale virginia. two victims were taken to the hospital with minor injuries. police are looking into what happens. investigators are looking into what caused a fire in the northeast. it started at a trash transfer station in then in the road. no reports of any injuries. >> the parents of a high-school football player who died are suing the school board for not doing enough to prevent his death. edwin miller collapse at football practice in july of 2009 and later died of a heat stroke. the lawsuit claims the coaches did not ensure his safety and were not prepared for any emergency. >> today on the campaign trail president obama will attend any event in the district. republican mitt romney will attend a town hall in ohio. the romney campaign will have to deal without an ad feautring

barack obama singing and al green son. they had then pull it because of a copyright law. their use of the sun qualify as -- the campaign said their use qualified as fair use. >> still ahead on "good morning washington," an update on attempts to block the federal health care requirement for welcome to hotels.com. summer road trip, huh? as the hotel experts, finding you the perfect place is all we do.

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good morning. it's wednesday, july 18. giving you the green light on 95 between richmond and baltimore. traffic moving nicely right now along northbound 95. headlights are the northbound side into springfield. georgetown pike is closed in both directions at walker road as they remove some dangerous trees from the highway. next is traffic on 270 at old

georgetown road, nothing complicated. metro rail is running on normal service. steve rudin now. >> we will be cranking up the heat and humidity for one more day. there's a heat advisory for the entire metro area. all of montgomery county, all of prince george's county. south of prince william county in southern maryland, all under the advisory until 9:00 this evening. temperatures have a difficult time falling overnight. its 81 degrees at reagan national. 76 at dulles airport. when you walk outside this morning, you will feel it. there's a heat index of 106 later this afternoon. actual high temperatures in the mid to upper 90s. the wind will be out of the south. there may be a thunderstorms tonight, courtesy of a cold front. some storms may linger into the day tomorrow with highs in the upper 80s to 90's.

the extended outlook in a few minutes. >> as we wait to see when rg3 will sign his contract with the redskins, he is on display sfx: sounds of marching band and crowd cheering sfx: sounds of marching band and crowd cheering so, i'm walking down the street, x: sounds of marching band and crowd cheering just you know walking, sfx: sounds of marching bandnd and crcrowd cheering and i found myself in the middle of this parade honoring america's troops. which is actually quitfitting because geico has been serving e military for over 75 years. aawh no, look, i know this is about the troops and not about me. right, but i don't look like that. who can i write a letter to about this? geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance.

>> you are watching abc 7. >> seven attorneys general trying to block the federal health care law 's requirement for contraception. it was dismissed yesterday. the judge said the states failed to prove they would suffer immediate harm. the general services administration is undertaking some cost-cutting measures.

the acting administrator tells federal news video that he is cutting bonuses for high ranking managers by 85% and instituting a hiring freeze. it comes amid a review of the agency in the wake of the conference spending scandal. >> the white house visitor center will close 415-month rehabilitation project. there will be interactive exhibits, a better book store and a model of the white house. a temporary facility will open next friday and it will be just southeast of the white house. >> robert griffin iii, the folks at adidas are confident he will be on the field. >> they have released a new ad featuring the quarter that. -- quarterback. >> it's a pretty cool video, if you watched the whole thing. it's over minutes long.

i don't know how much airplay it will get. really cool. >> he shows a lot of swagger. we just want to see that on the field. >> they are working on it. >> i understand he's getting three-quarters of the money upfront. there is sad news for knicks fans. >> the team announced it will not be matching the offer to jeremy lin, so he will be going back to texas. tuan pham took to the internet to express his frustration. >>-- one fan took to the

internet. >> ♪ ♪ >> jeremy lin started out in texas and then was picked up by the knicks. and his career blew up last year and now he's making more money than rg3. >> i guess you need the dough and you are the jeremy helbii used to know. >> lin-sanity continues. and the heat continues. it will stick around one more day. and then finally a little relief on the way. lower humidity and slightly cooler temperatures for the weekend. waiting for the sun to rise in about a half-hour. mostly cloudy to partly cloudy skies as we start the day.

81 degrees at reagan national airport. we have not fallen below 80 degrees yet. in sandy spring in montgomery county, looking at 72 degrees at this hour. prince william county, woodbrige looking at 77. prince george's county hyattsville looking at 80 degrees at this hour. heat advisory from 11:00 this morning until 9:00 this evening. it's for the entire area including the district and southern maryland. he'd indices -- heat indexes may exceed 109 degrees. later this afternoon we may have spotty showers and isolated thunderstorms. the cold front will drop in from the north. a cold front will have the potential to bring stronger storms to night into the day tomorrow. daytime highs tomorrow will be a little cooler, low 90's. here's our forecast today, 95-

100 degrees. it will feel a lot more uncomfortable compared with yesterday. that's thanks to the heat index readings. wind out of the south at 5-10. let's get the rush-hour commutes. >> the rush hour is beginning on the beltway. nothing complicated at the american legion or the wilson bridge. ben eisler in baltimore. metro will starting on normal service. no disruption for marc rail or vre. great falls has a disruption as they remove trees along georgetown pike near walker road. leesburg pike, route 7, will take most of that traffic. travel times in our favor on the beltway and 66 between centreville and 495. this is in rockville. there's an accident on shady grove road near 370. >> a major bookstore chain

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>> in the air. in foul territory. >> it was a nice move, but it came at the wrong time, for the wrong team. bell was a great catch. the twins keep catching everything. and orioles first baseman named mark reynolds made a pretty nice place, but it was a little late. u do geyou do get credit for the catch. >> the orioles now trailing the yankees by 10 games. >> and nationals park there was a thriller of a game that had to go some extra frames. >> hello again. the nationals lead the mets eight innings last night. they played some of the best

defense of this s season and. then came the ninth inning. it was a new york lead in the bottom of the ninth inning. desmond's course. that ties the game at 3. this game was going into extra innings. after the mets scored again to take the lead in the top of the ninth inning ripped to the right. harper there. . not in the nationals continue to battle. the bases loaded. the mets throw wild pitch. here comes zimmerman. 5-4. now they're leading 3 and 1/2 games in the national league east. have a great day. >> it is 79 degrees it. the news continues at 5:30.

>> witnesses describe a disturbing scene on a busy street as they rushed to help the driver whose car was crushed by a tree. unfortunately, their efforts were

>> this is "good morning washington," on your side. >> straight ahead, it could be a frustrating day for metro rail passengers. how the heat wave could lead to delays at stations. good morning, washington. it's wednesday july 18. i am steve chenevey. >> i am cynne simpson. steve rudin has the forecast. >> it's only going to get more uncomfortable as we move through the morning and afternoon.

already have a heat advisory for much of the area. 81 at reagan national, 72 in gaithersburg. 77 in clarksburg. loaded the areas shaded in orange. it includes the district prince george's county, maryland, looking at a heat advisory from 11:00 this morning until 9:00 tonight. heat index readings may approach 109 degrees with actual high temperatures between 95 and 100 degrees. tens of thunderstorms later on in the day. more on the extended outlook in a few minutes. back to you. thank you. the extreme heat has forced metro to make an exception to one rule. customers will be allowed to carry water again today on the metro system. >> but the heat could lead to delays. jummy olabanji is live in bethesda to explain. >> good morning. when we get really high temperatures outside like 100 degrees, is even hotter on the

tracks. when they get more than 135 degrees or higher, metro issues as low order. that means the outdoor trains will slowdown to 35 miles an hour. that's because there could be kinking on the tracks, which would cause bigger problems and might cause some sort of systemwide closure. that's why yesterday afternoon we saw the high temperatures and metro implemented the slowdown. the trains were moving about 35 miles an hour. when that happens, that means people wait longer for trains. that is a systemwide problem. that was the issue during yesterday's evening commutes. you are able to bring water on board those trains when it does gets this hot because you may be waiting a little longer for trains and some of the trains don't ever conditioning. -- don't have air conditioning.

in bethesda, the trains are running at their normal speed we are told, this morning. as the sun rises and the temperatures begin to rise, they could go back to those slowdown orders. make sure to pay attention until wjla.com. if there are any slowdowns, we will let you know on air and online. reporting live from bethesda, jummy olabanji. >> thanks so much. a teenager from canada is recovering after getting his hands stuck in the metro escalator. this happened last night at the smithsonian station's national mall entrants. the 14-year-old was on the escalator going down when his flip-flop got caught in the bottom of the escalator. he was taken to the hospital and is expected to be ok. >> a terrible story from fairfax county. a developing story from great falls.

cleanup continues after a big tree fell onto a busy road, crushing a car and killing the driver inside. it happened along georgetown pike. that's where john gonzalez is this morning. >> you can probably hear the chainsaw behind us,. the road is still closed this morning. a tree cutting crew is here still taking care of the tree that crashed down yesterday evening. now they're cutting down the second tree that they believe poses a danger. georgetown pike is still closed. it has been for hours while crews work on removing a massive tree that pinned this small black mercedes around 7:00 yesterday evening. it flattened the car and the driver was killed on impact. the 40 country that was 100 feet high was old and rotted. but it's not clear why it toppled across the road. the response turned from rescue

to recovery. a crane was used to lift the massive tree that measure is almost 6 feet in diameter. victim was a man in his 60s. >> the tree was falling and then you heard a big crash. it was too late. >> you can see workers cutting down the second tree that they believe poses a problem in this area. it's another old, rotted tree. we understand the driver was simply waiting in traffic on georgetown pike when the tree came crashing down. he has not been identified. police tell us this morning that they will reopen one lane for the morning rush hour. then they will have to be close -- reclose the road later. >> thank you very much. let's find out how traffic is this morning. >> lisa baden. >> of leesburg pike there is the closure that john was

describing. they still have work to do. with that closed. route 7 will take most of that traffic. i don't have anything complicated on the dulles greenway or the dulles toll road. inside the beltway looks good, on 66, and 395, travel times working for us. looks good to and from the american legion bridge. looks good on 270. there's a collision in rockville on shady grove road near 370. a lot of rescue squad on the scene with this accident. metro rail on normal service. back to you. thank you. vincent gray supporters plan to make their voices heard today. dozens of people expected to gather at the wilson building for a rally this morning. three people died to his campaign to pleaded guilty to campaign fraud charges. the mayor says that he will not resign. investigators looking for the person who brutally attacked a

well-known democratic strategist. >> surveillance video shows david mercer walking into a northeast d.c. 7-eleven on thursday night. at one point a suspect appears to swipe his cellphone and then mercer confront the man. both men left the store. a witness describes what happens next. >> when the man came outside, he -- the man just knocked him out cold. he hits his head on the concrete. >> a friend says that mercer is improving but still has a long road to recovery. police have identified a suspect but have not made an arrest. >> pushing 80 degrees on this wednesday morning. >> still ahead 7 is on your side with a push to increase bone marrow donation. our guest

>> you can see it in person at the national aquarium in d.c., the no. snakehead. good morning, washington. >> that's a good place to keep cool on this wednesday. a warm start today. our temperatures will begin to feel even more uncomfortable as we move through the morning and

afternoon. there's a heat advisory until 9:00 tonight in the district, prince george's, montgomery, prince william, southern maryland. could see heat indexes to 109 degrees. 81 degrees already at reagan national airport, 76 at dulles airport, 83 in annapolis. highs expected well into the mid to upper 90s. i would not be surprised if some areas hit the 100 degree mark later this afternoon along with stronger showers and thunderstorms. better chance of storms tonight into the daytime tomorrow courtesy of a cold front. coming up, the extended outlook. first, lisa baden has traffic. >> in rockville, more rescue " and is on the scene of a crash. this is shady grove road near 370. add extra time to go to the metro. travel times working on 95. this is northbound traffic. the headlights are leaving

newington towards springfield. southbound is headed away from us if on the right on the way to fredericksburg and richmond. that's pretty good. in good shape as far as 270. nothing in baltimore on 95. metro rail is on normal service. >> 78 degrees. >> alarming news for baseball fans in detroit. find out what was going on inside the stadium last ni

>> coming up the 6:00, we will have an update on lifestyle factors making a difference in the fight against alzheimer's. in the battle of the social media networks, facebook is not always king. we will tell you who ranked the best. we will talk with a d.c. woman who is among the final four of the co-host surge of kelly ripa.

we will talk with her in about an hour. >> lots more still ahead. last month we told you how good morning america's anchor is battling a rare blood disease. it sparked an increase in blood marrow donations all across the country. later this morning people and was lives have been impacted by bone marrow donations will be on capitol hill asking others to register. nadia is the national account executive of recruitment. this is african american donor month. >> it is. >> why is it important to focus on african americans? >> only 7% of 10 million donors are african-american. we don't have enough people in the registry.

>> robin roberts highlighted how fortunate she is to have a sister as a match. so many people spend huge amounts of time waiting and hoping to find a match. >> they do. the longer person waits, the worst they are off. >> people may think it's difficult to register, but not so much. >> you brought the kit. >> people fill out a form so we can get contact information. from there we will have them to a swab the inside of their cheeks. we do four of those and we submit that to the registry and sit there and wait. >> people will have an opportunity today to use one of these and register. >> we will be on capitol hill from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. in 1204.

>> we spoke about how robin roberts has increased awareness of the need for bone marrow registry. but the need is still there. >> absolutely. need every minority group. we are looking for everybody not just african-americans. we need more people across the board. it's a great thing to do. you can save a life by joining the registry. it's a big deal. >> and it's not hard. it only takes a few minutes. >> that's right. thanks. >> 7 is on your side with news about a weight-loss pill. a prescription diet drugs now has fda approval. doctors consider it to be the most effective of a new generation of such drugs. it is for overweight people have at least one way related condition like high blood pressure diabetes, or high

cholesterol. now to the penn state scandal. the university says it will respond within days to demands for information from the ncaa. that will decide whether penn state should face penalties. this is after the child abuse scandal. the n.c.a.a. is investigating if penn state lost institutional control over its athletic program and violated ethics rules. penalties could include a shutdown of the football program. last night it was business as usual at detroit even though police were investigating a bomb threat against the stadium. police say that somebody called in a threat to around 8:00 last night. spectators, players, and the media were kept in the dark while stadium security frantically and quietly searched for a device, which was not found. the caller has not been found. and they lost. we are hearing the 911 call made

by the mother of a dallas cowboys receiver after her son allegedly attacked her. >> i cannot continue to let him do me like this. i am tired. i'm going to put an end to it today. i'm tired. >> that is the voyageice of angela bryant. she said under son grabbed her in the chest and pushed her in the face. police said that she had bruises. he is charged with one count of family violence. he declined to comment. it turns out canadians are now wealthier than americans. >> and ford is under investigation. >> some vehicles are under investigation for unintended acceleration. this involves 730,000 escape s. -- suv's and an identical

tribute. one death has been reported. ford says it will fully cooperate with the investigation. united continental the pilot's union has authorized leaders to call a strike once they secure a legal right to stage a walkout. the union is protesting the lack of progress to win a contract and has been in negotiation more than two years. a spokesperson from united says it's not uncommon at this point in negotiations, but it was expected. some americans may be singing " oo canada." the average canadian household is about $40,000 wealthier than americans. the canadian job market is also fairing better than ours. that is business news. live at bloomberg headquarters in new york, linda bell

reporting for abc 7 news. back to you. >> thank you. $40,000 is significant. heat today. >> and humidity. heat advisory goes into effect at 11:00 this morning until 9:00 tonight. a little change tomorrow, but we will not feel a big difference until friday. we have changes along with thunderstorms, some which could become strong later in the day into the evening. right now outside the sun is about to rise. we will look for a sizzler today. 81 degrees at reagan national airport. we have not fallen below 80 degrees so far today at reagan national. dew point levels hovering around 70. at children's hospital in the district, 80 degrees. it feels like 84. woodbrige and prince william county looking at 78 degrees. upper marlboro looking at 78 degrees in maryland. feels like low 80's. areas shaded in aren't under the

heat advisory this morning into the afternoon and evening. all of southern maryland and fredericksburg, heat indexes around 105-109 degrees. 76 at dulles airport right now 72 in gaithersburg. projected daytime highs will be in the upper 90s across much of the area. not looking for record breaker at reagan national. it will feel like 105-109 degrees. showers and storms overnight. a few of them may linger into the daytime tomorrow and will become strong especially later in the afternoon with ties in the '90s. today, 95-100. wind out of the south at 5-10. not much relief. temperatures tonight will fall into the '70s. not as hot and uncomfortable tomorrow. mostly cloudy with thunderstorms likely. upper 80s to mid 90's. let's get an update on traffic. >> we have been checking out 66

and 95 in virginia, pretty good. nothing on 395. looks pretty decent between the beltway and the 14th street bridge. looks good in baltimore on 95, 70, between baltimore and hagerstown running at a good pace. 270 traffic starting to grow in volume between 8109. mass-transit running on normal service. we will take you to newschopper 7. there's a crash in rockville maryland. they are hauling away everything on shady grove road. traffic is able to get through. one lane blocked. the police officers are getting ready to leave that area completely. how about that? >> glad to see some movement. 78 degrees. >> still to come, you don't mess with the queen. kathy lee gifford

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>> may the dog should stick to fetching. he is the star of the oscar- winning movie "the artist." he got a little distracted and decided to hang out instead of going to the plate. >> he retired not so long ago.

>> just relax. talk-show host kathie lee gifford might have to apologize. she has upset the queen of soul. >> this happened on monday. she was assessing the possibility of aretha franklin becoming a judge on american idol." she said that if the show was looking for a younger demographics not a lot of kids with no who aretha franklin is. the queen of soul send an e-mail saying that her fans range from very young to very old. so katy the sort of apologized. >> was-- kathy lee gifford.

>> was that a real politic? -- a real apology? much more coming up in the next hour. >> bracing for another scorcher. why metro is concerned that extreme heat could lead to problems on the trains.