Strong rip currents. For thats lets turn to chief meteorologist doug hill. The strong currents will continue at least tomorrow and probably into friday as well and then into the weekend as cristobal, the hurricane responsible for this moves more quickly to the north atlantic, then we should see some improvement. Were looking at our weather bug station at 2nd street and boardwalk. The weather is not the problem, it is simply an effect of the rip created by the strong wave action well offshore from hurricane cristobal located well to the southeast of cape hatterasers. It will pass to the north, northwest of bermuda tomorrow. And the water should slowly lay down a bit as we head through, saturday, sunday, and into monday. As far as the rain goes were watching these little thunderstorm clusters north and west of martinsburg and west of hagerstown. Were thinking most will fall apart before they get anywhere close to the metro area. This is ahead of a cold front they will give us relief from the high heat and humidity were experiencing right now. 88 at Reagan National. 89 in fredericksburg. 90 in frederick. 87 in baltimore and when you factor in the dew point temperatures in the mid to upper 60s it feels a couple degrees normal. A chance of a storm possible north and west. Well highlight all the weather in greater detail in just a few minutes. A military pilot is missing after his fighter jet crashed in the Virginia Mountains today. The f15c went down near stanton, virginia this morning in a heavily wooded area. Kris van cleave is in the newsroom tonight with what we know at this hour. One witness said the force of the crash shook the ground miles away. The state Police Report finding a large debris field and a deep crater. The pilot of the single c 30 million fighter is still missing. Witnesses report hearing loud booms and seeing smoke coming from the hills. The f15 crash site is hard to access from the ground in dense woods outside of stanton, virginia. The orange flames and everything coming off the ground over there, it was absolutely shaking. I mean, you know, you dont expect to see Something Like that. The plane that crashed, a 30yearold f15c looks like this at 9 05 a. M. , the experienced Massachusetts International guard pilot radioed air Traffic Controllers in washington declaring an in flight emergency. Moments later radio contact was lost. Its not very common at all, and i cant tell you the last time we have had a mishap in the f15c model. First responders on the ground closed roads and began a difficult trek to the crash site as military helicopters searched for the pilot from the air. Its a traumatic event for everyone here. Were thinking about the family and keep your thoughts and prayers with them and hopefully well get a good outcome. We dont know if the pilot bailed out. Massachusetts air guard pilots are given ejection training every six months and the procedure for bailing out over woods is to dump Survival Gear to avoid getting tangled in trees. So its possible the pilot doesnt have access to a radio. And at last report that rescue mission was ongoing. Live in the newsroom, kris van cleave, abc7 news. Another part of the common commonwealth, the army is identifying the female soldier who committed suicide at fort lee in virginia. Paula walker, a yonkers, new york native was a Human Resources specialist. Police say she barricaded herself in an office on monday and shot herself in the head. The army post was on lockdown for a brief moment because of the incident. We turn to an emotional day in the courtroom for the mcdonnells corruption trial. One of the mcdonnells daughters was on the stand testifying about her parents relationship. Virginia bureau chief Jeff Goldberg is live outside the courthouse in richmond, what she also said on her mothers crush on Star Scientific c. E. O. Jonnie williams. Thats exactly how she described it. More on that testimony in a moment. Were just getting word from the Associated Press that the defense for Maureen Mcdonnell has rested its case. Still many steps to go in this process, however. The Defense Attorneys for governor Bob Mcdonnell rested this morning, now Maureen Mcdonnells attorneys are done. They only brought forward backing up the defenses claims that Maureen Mcdonnell had a crush on jonnie williams, she testified that her mother had a mild obsession with jonnie. I had never seen her talk about another friend in this manner. A 10,000dollar check as a wedding gift which she gave back, or as she put it in court, once we was a crimmal. Also addressing the defense argument of a broken marriage, saying behind closed doors there was tension, anger, arguments, but every time they went into a public setting, a switch flipped. They were putting on an act. She says her father confided in her in 2011, that i dont know what to do anymore, i cant make her happy. Shes always angry. Do you have anything to say . No comment, i love my parents. What was it like to talk about your parents marriage . It was hard but i love them both. One day after taking the witness stand himself, governor mcdonnell expressing relief. I think the end is in sight and thats good for all of us. And we are now one step closer to the end as the Defense Attorneys for Maureen Mcdonnell have just rested their case. That last few minutes here. And again Bob Mcdonnells attorneys rested their case as well. The big source of speculation around the courthouse today, when will the trial end and the short answer is we really dont know. We still have the prosecution to bring forward rebuttal witnesses and after that we still have jury instructions and closing arguments and then only at that point do we get to jury deliberations, which could take a couple of days. We dont know exactly how long. So no idea yet on what the timeline is going to be. It is possible that the judge told people inside the courtroom what his plan is moving forward. We want to get that information and well bring you that timeline, up to date information coming up tonight at 6 00. Until then, live in richmond, Jeff Goldberg, abc7 news. Jeff goldberg there reporting on that trial now in its fifth week. The u. S. Attorneys office is closing its investigation into the navy yard shooting. Prosecutors say they will not pursue criminal charges against Law Enforcement officers who responded last september. The decision was made after reviewing witness statements and evidence from several Law Enforcement agencies. Federal prosecutors wanted to establish the use of deadly force against aaron alexis was warranted. A major mass tonight on one of the regions busiest arteries to get in and out of the district. State highway officials in maryland say an unexpected problem with the paving project has now forced them to continue work on northbound connecticut avenue from Chevy Chase Circle all the way to 410. Stephen tschida live at the scene of the problem. So hows traffic at this minute, stephen . Alison, at this time of night it is always bad in this part of town. Tonight its really bad. Heres the problem. Right over here. You see that . That is northbound connecticut avenue. And most cars are standing still. Theyre trying to squeeze into a single lane and that is whats causing all this trouble. Paving supposed to go on overnight continued right through the morning and into the afternoon. Who approved this . Whose bright idea was it . Its incredible. Reporter squeezing northbound traffic on connecticut avenue to one lane, brought it to a standstill. Ive never waited this long for anything. Sitting in traffic had tempers soaring. Some motorists furious with the maryland Highway Administration for. Ifying them. For not notifying them. Hopefully they can send me a check for sitting here and waiting but i doubt that will happen. They blame it on base pavement under connecticut avenue saying its so bad it forced the around the clock work and the traffic trauma. Youre stuck, basically stuck. Some motorists want to know why they didnt get more warning. But the Highway Administration maintains the rapid deterioration of the pavement took them by surprise as well. Adding to the frustration news from the maryland Highway Administration that work on the northbound lanes wont finish until sometime tomorrow night, then it will begin on the southbound lanes into the upcoming weekend. Right in time for labor day. Exactly. Good move. So this traffic problem here is going to continue for the next few days. The best estimate that the Highway Administration can give me about when it might all come to an end, sometime saturday night. Their advice for drivers avoid this area if you can. Reporting live, stephen tschida, abc7 news. Sounds like great advice. So tune into good morning washington tomorrow morning starting at 4 30 and well have a look at how the project is affecting the morning rush. Jacqui jeras will have jack taylor will have updates in the traffic throughout the morning and well give you alternate routes on how to get around all that mess. Caught on camera. See why metro employees are being credited with saving the life of a man who jumped onto the tracks as oncoming train approached. An Old Office Building turned into a hightech Elementary School . Its a first for the metro area and well take you on a tour. An accused peeping tom arrested. The very public place hes accused of spying on young men. And a preschool employee accused of assaulting Young Children and Staff Members. Im Jennifer Donelan. Well have a live report coming check out this dramatic video of a rescue on metros red line. They are crediting transit staff and Police Officers with saving a mans life. A 22yearold man from d. C. Jumps on the tracks in an apparent Suicide Attempt and then tries to climb out just as a train comes. The man was not hurt physically, but he was taken to a hospital for a mental evaluation. That was really a close call there. Tonight abc7 has learned that police were called to a virginia preschool after a cook there allegedly assaulted some Staff Members and children. Only on 7 tonight, Jennifer Donelan is live from the Chesterbrook Academy in centreville with the details. Alison, kendis, the messening we heard over message we heard over and over again from Chesterbrook Academy is the safety of our children is our number one priority. Officials say here after the ordeal began yesterday, they called police. In this day in age, when you hear of this sort of allegation, it would leave any parent rattled. The Chesterbrook Academy preschool in centreville was quiet today after a bizarre attack broke out inside the facility yesterday. During which three very Young Children, the schools principal, and two Staff Members, according to police, were assaulted by an employee who sources said, just snapped. Its very scary. You dont know what could happen. Ricks children attend chesterbrook. Abc7 news learned of the attack today and Fairfax CountyPolice Confirmed officers were called to the preschool around 1 00 in the afternoon. The school is for babies as young as 6 weeks and up to children and prek. A spokesperson explained a cook who was a longtime employee had a sudden burst of uncontrollable behavior. Police say the cook who assaulted the staff and children is 33yearold Veronica Bailey of manassas, virginia. However police did not disclose how she allegedly attacked the children and staff. She was charged with five counts of assault and battery and one county of destruction of property. I know who it was. She actually had my kids in her room. She was a real nice person. Paramedics rucked to the rushed to the preschool, but said no employees or children required treatment. The employee is no longer with Chesterbrook Academy. I would be livid as a parent going and dealing with Something Like that. As for the suspect in this case, Veronica Bailey, as of this morning she was still locked up in the detention center. Police tell she will undergo a Mental Health evaluation. Parents received an email last night about this incident, the executive director was here on site yesterday to answer questions from parents. Several parents today standing by this school and say they absolutely love it and they feel safe with their children here and they feel happy with the actions the school took yesterday. Im Jennifer Donelan, abc7 news reporting from centreville. A followup to our eye Team Investigation into the abrupt closing of truland systems in reston. A Bankruptcy Court is apparently trying to track down the companys vehicles. When the Electrical Contractor abruptly went out business last month it told its employees to take the vehicles with them. Well now the court is trying to find them to auction them off. Its trying to reup revenue to pay off trulands creditors and possibly some former employees who never got paid. The national zoo is home to two female bisons with special names. The students at horrered University Howard university decided to name it harza and will mufrom Gallaudet University in honor of the first deaf person to be aelected to the South African parliament. These are the first bison the zoo has had on exhibit. They arrive saturday in honor of the zoos 125th anniversary. And they got here just in time for us to crank up the heat and for them to feel at home. Definitely. Hot today. Well get a break the next couple days and over the Holiday Weekend the heat and humidity will build back over the area here. Most of the summer was cool and it looks like well get a stretch of aboveaverage temperatures for a week or longer. I guess its time. Yep. Well start our coverage with a look at Congressional Country Club in bethesda. If you were crossing any of the rivers this morning, you may have noticed river fog. A whiff of that briefly in our time lapse. Just a touch of fog, quickly burned off. A lot of that along the river because were at the time of year where the water temperatures are mid70s to upper 80 degrees. And the air charcoalings off in the air cools off in the 50s and 60s so you get a bit of fog. Dew point at 64, so differential the late definitely the late summer feel is in the air. Temperatures all across the area have risen two to three degrees in the past hour. Sterling up to 89. 91 was the high a short time ago. We have been tracking thunderstorms on doppler radar, starting at the masondixon line, but theyve diminished as they go to the south. You can see the reds and oranges pretty much disappear approaching martinsburg. So except for upstream, most of the area will be fine this evening. A bit on the warm and muggy side. This activity is along a cold front that delivers somewhat cooler and noticeably less humid air friday. So well track this in case some additional storms hang together, but once we get the sunset i think that should take the energy out of the o. And these showers and storms should pretty much fall apart on their way to the southeast. 88 in fredericksburg, 83 in annapolis right now. And temperatures really hot again as we get to the central and southern plains. Well into the 90s. 93 at st. Louis. 92 in little rock. Whats going to happen is the slightly cooler air behind this front will arrive tomorrow. A nice day outside, a nice day on friday. Buts as we head through saturday, sunday, andlaid monday the heat and humidity will labor day monday the heat and humidity will return to the area. This frontal zone will wash out, but it will deliver the more pleasant air for the next couple days as it continues to the south and east. As we get through friday night and saturday morning everything is going to turn around and High Pressure to the south and east of us will return the heat and humidity. The leading edge of the warm front approaches. A slight chance of a storm saturday, a better chance on sunday and monday. A few clouds tonight, muggy and warm in the upper 70s. And in the upper 60s and near 70 in the morning. Less humid in the afternoon. Beautiful weather friday. But look at saturday, sunday, monday, tuesday. Partly sunny, hot and humid each day. Lower 90s. The best chances of thunderstorms will be on monday and again on tuesday. Not adial but at least ideal but at least its a threeday weekend. Still to come in a 7 on your side consumer alert, gasm continue to drop as we near labor day. So where can you actually find gas for under 3 . Youre not going to get a call out of the blue from the irs. 7 is also on your side with the one thing police say is a clearcut warning sign that a phone call is nothing but a scam. A