The big spring/summer-like warm-up continues! We’re stuck in a warm pattern, and this will lead to afternoon temperatures 25 to 30 degrees above “normal,” or average. Average high for this time of year is 50 degrees. We’re still in winter though, in case you forgot. . . Spring officially starts March 20.

So what’s responsible for the big warm-up? An area of high pressure to our south that hasn’t budged much over the past couple of days. Air flows clockwise around high pressure, and the placement of this high is sending us a southwest wind. This is a warm wind direction since the warmer air sits to our south. This wind is pulling up the warmer air mass, thus leading to unseasonably warm temperatures for our area.

Most areas have record highs for Wednesday in the mid-low 70s. But we expect to be around 5 degrees above that. And we stay sunny.

Now look at the weather pattern below for Thursday. . .
Pretty much the same pattern will be in place, although winds may be in more from the west Thursday, but still a warm wind direction for us. Record highs also expected to be broken Thursday. Most areas have a record high in the mid-70s for Thursday, and we should be a couple degrees above that, with some areas being around 80!

Friday things start to change. A cold front will move through (where you see the green, which is rain) overnight Thursday into early Friday. At this point we can’t rule out a few light showers, but it shouldn’t be a big deal. Some showers could linger into Friday morning, but it looks to be breaking up as it moves through the area.

Friday looks to be a dry day after the cold front moves through in the morning. But now a different weather pattern sets up for Friday and into the weekend. Now an area of high pressure will sit to our northwest, and with the clockwise flow around the highs, we’ll see a northerly wind develop. This will pull down a cooler air mass. “Cooler,” relatively speaking, to the record highs we’ll see this week. By that, I mean temperatures will drop in to the mid-upper 60s for Friday. This is still 15 degrees above our normal high of 50 degrees.

Over the weekend we should be in the mid-60s with the most likely chance for rain on Sunday into Monday.
The big question: Will we see snow again before next winter?

Answer: Chances look low. However, I wouldn’t completely rule out a quick shot of colder air before we get stuck in the warmer pattern. We’ve seen snow in March, and April, but if any were to fall it would have a hard time accumulating. Remember: we are still in the El Nino pattern, and El Nino has been historically strong this time around, and it’s not done yet. El Nino is responsible for large temperature swings and wild weather patterns.

Although chances are low, next winter looks more promising for our next snowfall. Some models are showing us getting cooler by the middle to end of the month.

The Mercer County Sheriff’s Office is mourning the loss of one of their beloved, loyal companions.

Sheriff Jack Kemler announced on Tuesday that K-9 Officer Nero passed away on March 2 from an undetermined medical illness, suspected to be heart-related. He was partnered with Officer Pat Papero for the past seven years. Nero passed away in his sleep overnight.

“Our heartfelt condolences go out to Officer Papero and his family, who provided Nero with a loving home and great life,” the department wrote in a statement.

Nero was an 8-year-old German Shepherd and was in service for seven years. He primarily lived with Officer Papero and his family. Nero provided explosive security for large-population events throughout Mercer County. He assisted in the search for explosives at the Princeton University 2013 bomb scare and has also worked on security detail at Super Bowl XLVIII.

Authorities say police officers revived an unconscious woman after she allegedly was attacked by her 78-year-old husband.

The officers went to the Evesham home shortly before noon Tuesday after a caller reported a dead woman was in the front yard.

The woman was unconscious, but officers used CPR and a defibrillator to revive her minutes later. She remained hospitalized in stable condition Wednesday, but further details about her were not disclosed.

Authorities say John Teti was charged with attempted homicide, aggravated assault and evidence tampering.

They say evidence at the scene led police to believe that the woman had been attacked. He was arrested at his Barrington home a short time later.

Teti's bail was set at $350,000. He was due to make his initial court appearance Wednesday afternoon.

Philadelphia’s Morgan Berman is the founder of sustainability app My MilkCrate, which promotes "sustainable options for dining, shopping, transit, and many other lifestyle categories." She took part in the $400,000 Pressure Cooker event at the 2014 Forbes Under 30 Summit in Philadelphia. Berman shared her experiences with the Philadelphia conferences and the state of Philly's start-up community upon learning that Forbes’ Under 30 Summit is moving to Boston. What follows are her opinions and not those of NBC10.

It was late summer 2014 and I was eagerly packing my bags for a much needed vacation, before ‘hitting go’ on what would be a very soul-sucking, yet fruitful crowdfunding campaign for our company, MilkCrate. On an entrepreneurial whim, I applied to the Forbes Under 30 Summit Pressure Cooker Pitch Competition.

As a founder, you get used to rejection way more than lucky breaks. So, when I got a call from Forbes saying I was one of the Top 5 finalists I swear I said, “Are you sure?” Taking place on the main stage, the competition certainly became one of the most highly anticipated portions of the conference. Judges included AOL founder Steve Case. The excitement and pressure were thicker than whiz.

Spoiler alert: We didn’t win. Yet, while it sounds cheesy, I felt like we did. Nothing will ever scare me as much as doing that pitch. My new found fearlessness is priceless. This event pushed us into the spotlight, earning press coverage from all over, and helped us secure our first funding.

Fast forward to the fall of 2015. Forbes and Young Involved Philly co-hosted an award ceremony, and MilkCrate, as the decided underdog to the well-lauded Scholly, won Startup of the Year. Getting to say “We won Startup of the Year at Under 30” still turns a lot of heads. But, the lesson I’ve learned, and that I think Philly has learned, is that big names and tenuous external relationships aren’t nearly as important as the more long-lasting, homegrown relationships you can build right here in Philly.

I’m not in a position to weigh the economic and political choices or consequences of the Forbes Under 30 Summit moving to Boston. What I can do is share my view as an entrepreneur with a front row seat to what Forbes has and has not meant to me and my company.

Forbes brought people from all over the world to our city. It made us feel shiny and special. And, we deserve the acclaim. But I can honestly say that not one person that I met there (Taylor Hanson doesn’t count, I just bumped into him at a buffet table ← #humblebrag) has made a shred of difference in my company or, I think, for Philly. They came. They left. They came and left again. This time for good (?).

Much like Philly, I put a lot of value on the Forbes halo. But at the end of the day, what did it get us? It made us feel special, lessons were learned -- it helped us learn what we are capable of becoming. And that is enough. Now we can focus on what truly matters -- building an independently functioning business (and city) and raise ourselves up by our own bootstraps.

Let’s channel that energy. Let’s double down on our investment in local startups, particularly ones that overlap with existing civic efforts. Let’s address issues like eliminating poverty, and improving education and environmental sustainability.

I know the City of Philadelphia put a lot of work into building that relationship, and I'm glad they did, but I’m also 100 percent fine with Forbes leaving. It’s time. We are no longer an early stage startup city. We can do this on our own.

I’m not just saying this because I was born and raised in this city. I feel a supernatural need to proselytize on its behalf. I’m saying it because, when I look back on the last two years of my company, the ups and downs, the only things that have truly mattered are the relationships I made with the people here.

So let's focus on the present and the future. For the present? We have a whole slew of cool homegrown things coming up: Philly Tech Week, MADV, The Angel Venture Fair, and other programs and events that are strengthening our local startup community. The future? We have the fastest growing population of millennials, a great cost of living (at least in comparison to San Fran), and a plethora of civic and university programs like StartupPHL and Blackstone Launchpad. We are going to be just fine.

And if Philadelphians need one more reason not to mourn the loss of Forbes --take comfort in the fact that when we visit Boston next fall (and we know we will), my company’s free, green Yelp-like app, My MilkCrate, will help you navigate the scene. Find farm-to-table restaurants or a local craft beer with ease. And when you return home, we can remember that we helped Forbes Under 30 get off the ground. Like democracy. Like great startups. Like cheesteaks.

Click here to find out more about MilkCrate and its mission. The My MilkCrate app is available for download for Apple and Google devices.

A Philadelphia Police officer is recovering after he crashed his vehicle while responding to a shooting.

The ordeal began Wednesday at 1:39 p.m. when a plain clothes narcotics officer was patrolling the area along the 1600 block of E. Hunting Park Avenue. The officer witnessed an unidentified gunman open fire at a tan Toyota Sequoia, striking a man inside the vehicle in the underarm.

The gunman then jumped into a white SUV and drove eastbound through an alley, according to investigators.

Police say the SUV was later found unoccupied at Coral and Valetta streets. Meanwhile the gunshot victim was taken to Frankford-South Hospital. Officials have not yet revealed his condition. Police also say another person may have been struck during the shooting but they have not yet confirmed this.

An officer who was responding to the shooting was also involved in a car accident on Pratt Street and Roosevelt Boulevard at 1:40 p.m. The unidentified officer was taken to Torresdale Hospital and is currently in stable condition.

Police continue to search for the gunman. They did not provide a detailed description of the suspect but say he is a black male with a dark complexion and beard, wearing a white shirt.
 

A year and a half after two women were shot and killed inside a Philadelphia home, police have identified a second suspect in their murders.

On February 24, 2016, police issued an arrest warrant for 27-year-old Ronald Dorsey from the 1100 block of E. Upsal Street. Dorsey is wanted for the shooting deaths of 67-year-old Dollie Evans and 57-year-old Ruby Thomas.

On August 23, 2014, police responded to a report of gunshots inside a home on the 4700 block of Vista Street. When they arrived they found Evans on the couch suffering from a gunshot wound to her head. They also found Thomas on the floor of a second floor bedroom with an electric cord around her neck and a gunshot wound to her head. Both women were pronounced dead at the scene.

Three days later, police arrested 25-year-old James Mears in connection to the double homicide. He was charged with murder, robbery, conspiracy and other related offenses.

After an investigation that lasted more than a year, police determined Dorsey was involved in the murders as well. He is considered armed and dangerous and is known to frequent the area of the 2100 block of Edmund Street. If you have any information on his whereabouts, please call homicide detectives at 215-686-3334/3335 or call 911.

The Vine Street expressway closed Wednesday night and will close again late Thursday night.

I-676 closed in both directions between the Schuylkill Expressway (I-76) and Broad Street (Route 611) interchanges in Philadelphia Wednesday at 11 p.m. and will remain closed until 5 a.m. Thursday due to overhead bridge construction. It will close again Thursday at 11 p.m. until 5 a.m. Friday.

The construction is part of a four-year, $64.8 million project to replace seven structurally deficient bridges over I-676 between 22nd and 18th streets and to make landscaping and streetscape improvements above the expressway. The construction began in April, 2015 and is expected to be completed in the fall of 2019.

The following detours will be in place when I-676 east is closed:

• From I-76 east: Exit at 30th Street/Market Street (Exit 345); right at Arch Street; left at 30th Street; left at Market Street; left at 16th Street; right at Vine Street to the ramp to I-676 east;
• From I-76 west: Exit at 30th Street (Exit 345); take Schuylkill Avenue to Market Street; right at Market Street; left at 16th Street; right at Vine Street to the ramp to I-676 east
• Traveling east on Benjamin Franklin Parkway intending to use the 24th Street on-ramp: Follow Benjamin Franklin Parkway around Logan Circle and bear right onto Vine Street east; follow Vine Street to the ramp to I-676 east. 

The following detours will be in place when I-676 west is closed:

• To I-76 East and West: Exit I-676 west at Broad Street (Route 611) Interchange; take 15th Street south; right on J.F.K. Boulevard; right on Schuylkill Avenue and follow signs to I-76 east and I-76 west;
• From 16th Street north of J.F.K. Boulevard: Follow 16th Street north; right at Spring Garden Street; right at 15th Street; right at J.F.K. Boulevard; right on Schuylkill Avenue to ramps to I-76 east and I-76 west
• From 16th Street south of J.F.K. Boulevard: Follow 16th Street north; left at J.F.K. Boulevard; right on Schuylkill Avenue to ramps to I-76 east and I-76 west.

CLICK HERE for more information on the bridge construction project.

Police arrested a man accused of killing one person and injuring two others during a stabbing spree along a Philadelphia block.

Ronald Stanley, 55, was arrested and charged with murder, criminal homicide, aggravated assault, simple assault and other related offenses.

Police say Stanley walked into a Cricket Wireless store on the 5500 block of Baltimore Avenue around 2 p.m. Tuesday and approached a 31-year-old man who was paying his bill at the counter. He then stabbed the 31-year-old in the chest, police said.

Stanley then left the store, climbed into the unlocked car of a 51-year-old man waiting outside and stabbed him in each hand, according to police. Stanley then got out of the vehicle and walked towards a 30-year-old man who was watching repairs on his car at a nearby auto mechanic shop, police said. He then allegedly stabbed that man in the chest as well before fleeing the scene.

"The guy who stabbed him walked up behind him and swung him around and stabbed him and walked off," a witness told NBC10.

The 30-year-old man collapsed in the middle of the roadway and later died from his injuries. The 31-year-old and 51-year-old victims hopped into a car together and drove to the hospital. They are both in stable condition.

Officials say witnesses directed responding officers to the area of 58th Street and Baltimore Avenue where they found Stanley. Police also say Stanley was in possession of the murder weapon at the time. They have not yet revealed his motive and said the attacks appear to have been completely random. 

"They're clearly unprovoked attacks at this point," said Philadelphia Police Lieutenant John Walker. "We're not sure what the motivation is behind this male."

The homicide was one of six that occurred in Philadelphia on Tuesday.

An investigation is underway after the body of a dog was found inside a metal cage in the Willow Grove section of Upper Dublin Township.

Officers were called to the area of Welsh Road near Blair Mill Road Wednesday where they discovered a dead female Pit Bull Terrier between the ages of 6-months and a year. Investigators say the dog was inside a metal cage that had been wrapped in plastic and sealed with tape. They also say pieces of drywall were used as the bedding for the crate.

Investigators believe the dog died from suffocation and had been dead for at least three days before her body was found.

If you have any information on the incident, please call the Upper Dublin Police Department Detective Division at 215-646-2101.

Residents in a Center City high-rise were evacuated Wednesday night due to a fire.

The fire started on the sixth floor of the Academy House building on the 200 block of South 15th Street around 7 p.m. Wednesday.

The building was evacuated. Firefighters placed the fire under control at 8:38 p.m. No one was injured during the incident and residents were eventually allowed back inside. Officials continue to investigate the cause.

Only a day after citywide violence claimed the lives of six people, four more shootings occurred in Philadelphia, killing one man and injuring four others, including a teenager who was an innocent bystander and a person in a wheelchair.

The first shooting occurred at 1:39 p.m. Wednesday on the 1600 block of East Hunting Park Avenue. Police say an unidentified gunman shot a man who was sitting inside a tan Toyota Sequoia. The victim was struck in the underarm and taken to the hospital for treatment. Investigators say the gunman fled in a white SUV. Police later found the vehicle unoccupied at Coral and Valetta streets.

A Philadelphia Police officer who responded to the shooting was also injured after he lost control of his vehicle and crashed on Pratt Street and Roosevelt Boulevard. He was taken to the hospital where he is currently in stable condition.

The second shooting occurred on the 4000 block of Green Street at 5:44 p.m. Police say a suspect and a 25-year-old man were arguing in the street. The argument soon escalated into violence when the suspect took out a gun and fired at least six shots.

The 25-year-old man was struck once in the head and once in the right forearm. A 16-year-old boy, who police believe was an innocent bystander, was also struck in the right knee and once in the right foot. Both victims were taken to Penn Presbyterian Hospital. The man is in critical condition while the teen is stable.

Witnesses told NBC10 the shooting occurred in an area where dozens of children were enjoying the record-breaking warm weather.

"It went from hearing kids playing to hearing kids screaming," said Sasha Faust. "There were some really upset children. Their parents were rushing them into their friend's house." 

The witnesses also said they spotted a gold car leave the scene but didn't get a good look at the shooter.

The third shooting occurred at 7:50 p.m. when a gunman shot a 27-year-old man several times on the 2800 block of Huntingdon Street. The man was struck four times in the chest, twice in the back, once to the left side of the face and once on the right side of his neck. He was taken to Temple University Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 8:08 p.m. Police recovered the weapon and arrested the suspect at 25th and Cumberland streets. Police have not yet identified the victim or suspect however.

Finally at 8:17 p.m. three gunmen opened fire on an 18-year-old man in a wheelchair on the 7200 block of Limekiln Pike. The victim was struck once in the face and once in the buttocks. He was found on the sidewalk beside his wheelchair and taken to Einstein Hospital where he is currently in critical condition. Investigators recovered three shell casings only a few feet away from the victim's wheelchair.

"Why he would get shot is a total mystery to me," said Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small. "Why you would shoot someone who is pretty much defenseless." 

No arrests have been made.

Wednesday's shootings followed a violent Tuesday in which six people were killed during shootings and a stabbing spree in Philadelphia. The younger brother of NBA player Dion Waiters was one of the victims of Tuesday's homicides.

Rashetta Robinson, a mother who lives near where the teen boy and 25-year-old were shot, told NBC10 she's concerned for her son's safety given the recent violence.

"He'll be 13 next week," she said. "I'm scared to let him go anywhere or do anything because there is so much violence and crime for no reason." 

Philadelphia Police lieutenant John Walker urged community residents to find better ways to resolve disputes.

"They've got to start learning to resolve these conflicts in a better way," he said. "There is no reason to pull out a gun. Let's pick up books and talk to each other. Create dialogue."

If you have information on any of the shootings, please call Philadelphia Police.

A hit-and-run driver slammed into an unmarked police car early Thursday, leaving two Philadelphia Police officers with minor injuries.

The force of the rear-end crash at Erie Avenue and G Street in Philadelphia’s Juniata section around 3:30 a.m. caused the unmarked police car to crash into the Coca-Cola bottling plant at the corner, said investigators on the scene.

Doctors at Aria Health Frankford treated the 24th District officers for minor neck and back injuries, said police.

After the crash, the driver of the dark sedan, which should have front-end damage, took off westbound on Erie Avenue.

The crash didn't do any visible major damage to the building.

Police in Delaware joined in the search for a missing 11-year-old Newark boy.

Daran Boyles’s parents called police after the 11-year-old left his home along Kenmark Road in the Todd Estates community around 2:10 p.m. Wednesday then didn’t return home at night, said New Castle County Police.

County police search the surrounding community Wednesday night but didn’t find any signs of Daran – who stands about 5-feet tall with short brown hair and brown eyes. Daran was wearing a red polo shirt, black hoodie, black pants and multi-colored orange sneakers when he went missing.

Investigators asked anyone with knowledge of Daran’s whereabouts to contact police at 302-573-2800 or visit the NCCPD website.