At least 41 shots were fired into a crowd of people in North Philadelphia leaving five people, including a young boy, hurt.

“Everybody was just outside enjoying the nice weather,” Philadelphia Police Capt. Frank Palumbo said.

Suddenly dozens of gunshots were fired from across the street at North 20th Street and Susquehanna Avenue Saturday night just after 11.

Bullets struck four men and a 5-year-old boy.

“One officer quickly grabbed the 5-year-old child who was shot in the knee,” Palumbo said.

The boy was rushed to St. Christopher’s for Children, Palumbo said. “Fortunately he is going to be fine.”

The men shot range from 21 to 48 years old. Two were listed in critical condition, two were listed in stable condition, police said.

It was unclear if any of the shooting victims are related.

At least four men in hoodies could be seen running from the scene, police said. It was unclear if all of them fired shots but it’s believed the gunshots came from more than one shooter.

“They deliberately fired into the group,” Palumbo said.

Police gave no motive for the shooting.

Adam Rippon, who became the first openly gay figure skater to make the U.S. Olympics team, was honored on the steps of New York City hall. 

Rippon was honored Friday by Speaker Corey Johnson, council members Daniel Dromm and Jimmy Van Bramer, and many LGBTQ advocates. 

"Adam Rippon is an out and proud role model for all LGBTQ people," said Dromm, who chairs the Council's LGBT Caucus. "His message of empowerment -- that it is great to be gay, and that we can excel at anything -- resonates with those who embrace the concept of equality and justice for all. Adam is not afraid to speak truth to power and has used his fame to stand up for LGBTQ young people across this country.

Rippon got into a headline-grabbing spat with Vice President Mike Pence during the Olympics over the politician's stance on gay rights. 

Continued patience and cooperation is sought from Lincoln Drive commuters as the city continues its $12.1 million renovation project on the pothole marred road with lane closures this week.

Temporary single lane closures between Wayne and Wissahickon avenues will begin Monday, Streets Commissioner Carlton Williams said. Lanes will be intermittently closed from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., in order to avoid peak travel times.

Additionally, night time closures between Ridge and Wayne avenues will continue to allow for the installation of a new sewer at Harvey Street and work in the southern section of the roadway. Drivers traveling between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. will be detoured to Ridge Avenue and Walnut Lane. Since the work involves full closures of the roadway, driver in both directions should expect to take an alternate route.

Detour signs will be in place.

The $12.1 million project, which began this summer, seeks to smooth the road, which was littered with more than 500 potholes after this winter, to improve traffic and pedestrian pathways. The road will be milled and resurfaced. And a new guide rail and new sidewalks will be installed along parts of the roadway.  

The road will also include architectural improvements as the retaining wall north of Forbidden Drive will receive a new finish.

The Philadelphia Streets Department is trying to keep traffic flow impact to a minimum during peak evening and morning commute hours. For the majority of the project, two inbound lanes will be maintained during the morning rush hour and two outbound lanes will be open for the evening commute.

The nearly two-year restoration is slated to end in 2019. To stay updated on its progress click here.

Delaware State Police are looking for a man accused of robbing a Home Depot on Saturday morning in Wilmington, Delaware.

The man, who officers say took landscaping power tools from a display and then exited the store without paying, fled the store after he was approached by an employee, according to investigators. When approached, the man allegedly told the employee that he had a knife and to stay away from him. The employee reports that the man then fled on foot towards Society Drive. The employee was not injured.  

After further investigation, police believe that this man is responsible for shoplifting from that same Home Depot earlier that morning.

Police are seeking help in identifying the man.  

He is described as a 40 to 45 year old black male with an average build and a goatee. He was also reported to have a skin pigmentation condition which was visible on his arms and face. Anyone with any information about the incident should contact Trooper A. Desiderio at 302-761-6677, or they can report the information online by clicking here.

A skateboarder is accused of leading police officers on a foot chase after they tried to stop him from skateboarding down the Rehoboth Beach boardwalk.

Robert D. Kellam was charged with resisting arrest and criminal mischief Wednesday night after he allegedly fled from an officer who tried to tell him it was illegal to skateboard on the boardwalk. Kellam almost collided with a group of people as he exited the boardwalk and the officer lost sight of him, police said.

The officer contacted a bicycle patrol officer who found Kellam, still skateboarding, inside First Street Station, according to investigators. Kellam allegedly continued to evade arrest, however, and he led the officer on a short foot pursuit before he was apprehended.

Rehoboth Beach Police would like to remind visitors that it is illegal to skateboard on any of the sidewalks from May 15 to September 15. It is illegal to skateboard on the boardwalk all year. 

One to two inches of rain could fall Sunday into Monday leading the NBC10 First Alert Weather Team to issue a First Alert for possible localized and flash flooding.

The First Alert is in effect for Philadelphia, the lower Pennsylvania suburbs, Delaware, South Jersey and the Jersey shore from 6 p.m. Sunday through 7 a.m. Monday.

While a widespread one to two inches is likely overnight, some areas of southern Delaware and New Jersey may see pockets of two to four inches of rain. The spots with those rain totals will be areas that see the heaviest thunderstorms before the steady rain overnight.

The heaviest of the rain should be gone by 7 a.m. Monday but some localized flooding could continue, especially in poor drainage areas, through the morning commute.

Stick with the First Alert Weather Team on the NBC10 app and NBC10.com for the latest on the potential for flooding throughout the night.

Flash flooding caused damage to homes in Mount Holly, New Jersey. One neighbor's backyard and basement filled with water while another neighbor's truck fell partially into a sinkhole.

Flooding and wet roadways slowed commutes Monday. Drivers even spent hours stuck behind floodwater on the Schuylkill Expressway eastbound.

Soaking overnight rain caused flooding in parts of the Philadelphia region overnight, including a stretch of the Schuylkill Expressway (interstate 76) in Montgomery County.

The eastbound lanes of I-76 were closed from The Blue Route to Belmont Avenue due to flooding that left drivers stranded for more than six hours overnight.

Manayunk’s Matthew Christopher got stuck on the highway near the Conshohocken/Route 23 Exit around midnight. He spoke to NBC10 just after 5:30 a.m.

“There was a period when we didn’t really know what was going on,” Christopher said.

Crews then came and knocked on drivers' window to alert them about what was going on.

By 5:30 a.m. some tractor-trailers were able to get by the flooding but drivers in passenger cars were being directed to turn around and go the wrong way on the highway.

Traffic was slow on the westbound side but the roadway remained open.

Get the latest First Alert Traffic conditions.

Detoured drivers need to take surface roads like Route 23, Lancaster Avenue or Ridge Avenue/Pike to get back on I-76 at Belmont or City avenues.

Flooding also caused problems along Route 38 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and at Richards and Glenhardie roads in Tredyffrin Township, Chester County.

Rain began to lighten around daybreak and as it moves out, the flooding should begin to subside.

If you see a flooded roadway turn around and don't try to drive through as you may not know how deep the water is.

At least two students were hurt as a school bus overturned in a ditch along a New Castle County, Delaware, road as rain fell Monday morning.

The bus driver slammed on the brakes around 6:30 a.m. along Summit Bridge Road northbound between Armstrong Corner and Old School House roads in Middletown to avoid striking another vehicle, Delaware State Police said.

“The bus drove off the road into a ditch causing the bus to overturn,” police said in a news release.

At least two students suffered minor injuries that required hospitalization, police said.

NBC10 is working to find out where the bus was heading.

Expect traffic delays in the area, police said.

A new study found that kitchen towels, especially those used for multiple jobs, are likely to be packed with bacteria such as staph and E. coli.

Due to flash flooding, roadways, like Route 38 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, were flooded early Monday, stranding drivers. One driver said he and his passenger had to climb out of the sun roof of his car and wait for a rescue.

The Red Cross is in need of blood donations and has launched a new campaign to attract the attention of donors. 

As part of the campaign dubbed Missing Types, the letters A, B, and O — symbols of the main blood groups — will disappear from corporate logos, brands, social media pages and websites to illustrate the critical role every blood donor plays.

"Every day thousands of patients across the United States rely on generous blood donors for critical blood transfusions," said Gail McGovern, president and CEO of the Red Cross. "However, we have seen a troubling decline in the number of new blood donors. We urge the public to roll up a sleeve and fill the missing types before these lifesaving letters go missing from hospital shelves."

In fact, over the past four years, the Red Cross has seen the number of new donors decline by about 80,000 a year. With only 38 percent of the population eligible to give blood, and just 10 percent of those actually giving blood yearly, that's only 3 percent of the population, NBC News reported. 

U.S. health officials say they need to collect more than 13 million blood units annually to meet the needs of patients. The Red Cross provides around 40 percent of that total.

According to the America's Blood Centers, a network of non-profit community blood centers, U.S. hospitals need 40,000 pints of blood daily for accident victims, cancer patients, those undergoing surgeries and people treated for inherited blood disorders. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients.  

A recent Red Cross survey found a disconnect between the public's perception of blood donations and the realities of patient transfusion needs. Nearly 75 of those surveyed underestimated how frequently blood transfusions occur and more than one third of never considered that blood may not be available when they or a loved one need it. 

That's what happened when 12-year-old Tymia McCullough, who is battling sickle cell disease, arrived at a South Carolina hospital last year for a blood transfusion — her blood type was not available.  

"It was the scariest, most frightening moment of a mother’s life, because I thought that she would not be able to get it," McCullough's mother, Susie Pitts, told the Red Cross. "In that moment, in that experience, I was very afraid. I was scared for my daughter’s life — what was going to happen if she didn’t get the blood she needed?"

With no widely used cure, McCullough relies on regular blood transfusions to treat her sickle cell disease, an inherited disease that causes red blood cells to form an abnormal crescent shape. 

After eight hours, the hospital was able to get the needed blood supply for McCullough's transfusion. 

"Blood shortages are not uncommon in the United States and can only be prevented when more people roll up a sleeve to give," the Red Cross said in a news release. 

The Red Cross campaign comes ahead of World Blood Donor Day on Thursday, June 1. Among the companies joining the #MissingTypes campaign are Adobe, Anheuser-Busch, Google, PayPal, Mastercard and Oreo. Celebrities are also bringing attention to the need of blood donors, tweeting their names with the missing letters.

To learn more about how to donate blood or to find a drive near you visit www.redcross.org/give-blood.

After a man drove into floodwater and got stuck along River Road in Conshohocken, a passing truck let him grab on and drove him to safety.

The rain couldn't have wrapped up at a better time for a decades-old tradition in Delaware. The 44th annual Saint Anthony of Padua Italian Festival is taking over Wilmington this week. And it's expected to draw as many as 75,000 people.

Let’s just keep this a secret between us.

Wawa is offering up some colorful treats on its secret menu this summer.

Folks who press the flapping goose on the ordering screen at Wawa kiosks will unlock some sweet treats including brightly-colored lemonades and a rainbow-swirled bagel (cream cheese please), the company told NBC10.

Hold on, isn’t this supposed to be a secret?

“You didn’t hear it from us,” Wawa said.

Wawa didn’t say if the colorful lemonades will have different flavors, as well. Guess you will just have to order one to find out.

The Wawa secret menu is nothing new. Aficionados of the convenience store chain will note that pressing the goose has revealed other secret items in the past, including some for Wawa Day earlier this year.

They are out, and they are biting! NBC10 went out with crews doing their best to knock down the number of mosquitoes who are out in high numbers much earlier than normal due to the rain.

Hiring a moving company can be expensive. The average cost of moving within your own state a hefty 23 hundred dollars. When you're looking for someone to transport your most precious possessions there are some things to consider.

DON’T FEAR CHANGES
Modern cars can both drive and park themselves. Asking a tiny object called a cell phone a question can get you all the answers. You can buy a tiny airplane with a tiny camera on it and fly it over traffic jams, storm damage, or even your ex-wives’ house, etc…etc…etc.

It’s called progress. Let us not fear changing something first developed 47 years ago!

Currently there's no Category 6 for hurricanes. But there should be.

WHY ADD A CATEGORY 6?
They changed the Fujita scale, which measures tornado intensity. They already have a different hurricane scale in the Pacific. Building construction has improved a lot since the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale was developed in 1971.

Building construction? What does that have to do with creating a new, higher category for hurricanes? The “Saffir” part of the scale was a Civil Engineer, who helped base the scale on structural damage and not just wind speeds. And, in 2001, Robert Simpson explained the reason he objected to the creation of a Category 6:

“…when you get up into winds in excess of 155 mph you have enough damage…it’s going to cause rupturing damages that are serious no matter how well it’s engineered.”

Well, it’s 2018 now, and some buildings can withstand 155 mph winds. In fact, Dade and Broward counties in Florida have new building codes requiring “critical infrastructure” buildings to be able to withstand Category 5 winds.

IT’S NOT A GOOD SCALE ANYWAY….

The Saffir-Simpson scale considers the SIZE of a storm. It doesn’t consider the amount of PRECIPITATION it produces. The strict scale has led to mass confusion and underestimation of tragic storms like Agnes, Katrina, Sandy, and Harvey. There is plenty of room for improvement.

Some scientists have suggested completely new scales that try to better account for multiple storm dangers (such as Kerry Emanuel’s “Hurricane Intensity Index”). In the meantime, why not expand the current scale to account for the “strongest of the strong”?

Damage doesn’t go up in a simple way as winds increase. It’s an exponential increase (double wind speed and damage is 4 times greater). That makes it even more important to have a better damage scale.

The current wind speed ranges are:
*20 mph for a Category 1(74-95 mph)
*14 mph for a Category 2
*18 mph for a Category 3
*26 mph for a Category 4

So if we have a reasonable range of 22 mph for Category 5, that leaves 180+ mph (sustained winds) for Category 6. If we do that, only 7 hurricanes in the Atlantic/Gulf/Caribbean rate that high:
*1935 “Labor Day” hurricane (185 mph)
*1980 Allen (190 mph)
*1988 Gilbert (185)
*1998 Mitch (180)
*2005 Rita (180)
*2005 Wilma (185)
*2017 Irma (180)

Who does it hurt to put those 7 in their own category?

THE CLIMATE CHANGE FACTOR
As explained above, the implication that a 190 mph hurricane won’t cause significantly more damage than a 160 mph hurricane has been shattered. That is no longer a reasonable excuse.

There are more Category 4 and 5 hurricanes now than in the past-even the recent past. In my above example, there was only ONE Category 6 before 1980, but 3 since 2005. The increase has already begun, and this trend is bound to continue.

The main graphic that comes with the above research shows the strongest storms have increased the most since 1980.

And what about the future? A new study by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) used 22 actual hurricanes and “placed” them in the average climate expected by late this century. What would change?
https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=245396

The basic answers were not surprising to many climate scientists, but the amount of the changes were remarkable. Take Hurricane Ike (from 2008). It could have 13% higher winds, moved 17% slower, and be 34% wetter in that warmer future climate. The combination of “wetter” hurricanes plus slower movement multiplies the future flood risk. That means more Harvey’s.

Some of the modeled storms did weaken a bit, or move a bit faster-but none were drier. The average rainfall increased 24%!

And the expected intensity increase would just continue the trend seen in the 1980-2016 trend graphic above. Some computer models project fewer overall hurricanes in our warmed future. But it’s the most intense ones that cause, by far, the most loss of life and damage. They are already known as “The Greatest Storms on Earth”. These new studies show that our changing climate already is, and will continue to make them worse in the future.

Category 6? Why not?