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worried about starting the larger fire. >> worried about wildfire with bone dry conditions and wind gusts strong enough to rip down huge branches fire crews are on alert. i'm dan ashley. >> i'm carolyn johnson. the red flag warning went into effect the last hour mean thrg is a high fire danger. >> abc7 news reporter alan wang is live in berkeley with the story. alan? >> dan and carolyn, the red flag warning has been in effect for about an hour, but so far things are a lot more calm than they were earlier today. look at the neighbor's tree. it split in two with the largest part of it crashing into the second story of the neighbor's home over there. nobody was hurt, but now it has firefighters worrying what else neighbors can do.

>> it didn't crash through the roof, but it has landed on our roof. >> the east bay wasn't under a red flag warning, but the trees were blowing down around 3:30 this afternoon. two in this berkeley neighborhood including this red oak. >> i could hear the tree breaking and i felt something was going to happen. i looked out of the window. >> and the winds were worse last night. gusts up to 50 miles per hour. >> as i realized it wasn't rain and it was just wind. it was really windy. it was so noisy. it sounded like a rain storm. >> but it wasn't and that is the problem. >> the high winds combined with the dry weather and cram lig -- crack lig grass has a warning in the middle of what is supposed to be the rainy season. >> having no significant rainfall in the middle of january is something i have never seen before. >> and firefighters say all it takes is a spark from a vehicle to ignite a dangerous

fire. >> piece of chain hanging from under their vehicle and as it goes along down the road it causes sparks on thes asphalt. >> you have a situation that can blow quickly out of control. alan wang, abc news. >> we want the latest on the dry, windy conditions. sandhya patel is tracking the latest. >> and the winds have been picking up the last couple hours. let me show you live doppler 7hd. you can see why the warning is in effect. it is clear out there. we have low humidity and you combine that with the gusty winds. right now a red flag warning is going for wind gusts. it was just updated. north, northeast winds 30 to 40 miles an hour and humidity is 10 to 20%. the diablo range under the red flag warning until tomorrow morning. look at the gust. 38 at knoxville creek and 37 in the hills. here is the view from our camera which is bouncing

around. i will be back with a look at the record we saw today. the high temperature record and many more to come in just a few minutes. carolyn? >> sandhya, thank you. governor jerry brown said he will not declare a drought in california, at least not yet. he met with water managers and farmers during a stop in fresno. they all urged the governor to call this year's lack of rainfall potentially catastrophic. the governor says he will work with the water districts and exchanges and the farmers to maximize the existing water supply before calling a drought. a san jose couple that lost everything is furious an arsonist burned down their homes. he is responsible for more than a dozen fires in the past six days. and the neighborhoods near downtown where 101 meets 280. lilian kim is there live for us tonight. lilian? >> carolyn, the couple who lived in this home barely made it out alive. they lived in this house for

45 years and now they don't know what they are going to do. >> i am really upset because i had walls and walls of family photographs. >> in an interview with abc news, they lashed out at the man who has been terrorizing property owners near downtown san jose. theirs is one of those targeted. the couple lost everything. >> was it worth it to you? five minutes of pleasure to see the house burn down and the misery you caused and the misery you are causing people? >> the arsonist last struck on sunday morning. so far he hasn't used an ago sell rent. he usually sets ablaze objects leaning against a wall. this surveillance video captures the arsonist walking by one of his targets. this clip and other surveillance videos helped them put together this sketch of the volunteers have been given specific instructions. >> they are staying in their

homes. people should be grabbing for a phone and not for a weapon. they are looking out for anything suspicious and notifying the police when they see that. >> authorities are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. lilian kim, abc7 news. >> abc7 news received several calls tonight about an earthquake in vallejo. the 2.9 magnitude quake was one mile southeast of downtown you have lay hoe. downtown vallejo. there are no reports of damages or injuries though. a short time later a second microquake with a 2.3 magnitude struck the mill pea disarea. tonight the flu is taking a deadly toll in the bay area. santa clara, san mateo and santa cruz confirmed more deaths today. all tolled, 16 people in the bay area reporting flu have died because of the flu. among the latest victims, a 54-year-old person with underling health conditions in

sonoma county. the flu is hitting otherwise healthy and young people rather hard. health officials say it is not too late to get vaccinated. a woman from sonoma county died after plunging off a cliff in san diego. it happened while 25-year-old anna bachman posed for her sister taking pictures. bachman graduated from uc berkeley. san diego police believe she backed up too far and lost herbal and then sliped at sunset cliffs last night. she fell about 40 to 50 feet. two nurses saw what happened. they tried to revive her and it appears she died instantly. a community task force met for the first time to begin reshaping the way police work is done in sonoma county. the 21-member panel was formed in response to the fatal shooting of 13-year-old a an dough lopez -- andy lopez by a sonoma deputy. the task force will have three be jobs. first, issuing recommendations on how use of force incidents should be reviewed.

and then they will come up with a community policing plan and whether to turn the coroner and county sheriff into two departments. >> with andy's death it is the breaking point. this is it. it shouldn't have taken this for the community to open their eyes to what is going on. but now we can't let his death be for nothing. >> a santa rosa memorial to lopez has now been rebuilt. new photographs and flowers have been placed at this shrine. daughters of charity announced they will sell their network of six hospitals including three located in the bay area. the board of the catholic health system says they are looking at proposals from both catholic and noncatholic organizations. daughters of charity operates in daly city. san jose's o'connor hospital and st. louis hospital in gilroy. new details tonight. members of the sciu approved their new labor contract with

bart this evening. it ends a bitter labor dispute that included strikes in october and a family leave clause in the negotiated contract. a state senate committee killed the bill today that would have banned public transit strikes in california. a california ban on the use of hounds in bear hunting is having a dramatic impact. >> dan noyes is here now with an update. >> dan and carolyn, this is a big change for hunters and a victory for animal rights activists. ahead, an update on the impact it is having on bear hunting. >> also, a surprise announcement from a long-time east bay lawmaker. what the president is praising him for tonight. >> and some things just have to be seen to be believed. coming up, you will see what caused the big confusion for this little

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where queen mattresses start at just $699.99. sleep number. comfort individualized. use of hounds in bear hunting had a dramatic impact this year. the number of bears killed actually fell dramatically. >> this follows a heated battle in the legislature between hunters and animal rights activists. >> dan noyes is back to follow-up on an i team investigation. >> dan and carolyn, i first investigated hounds used to hunt bears in 2012, before the

law took effect. and i went back over the past week to talk to some of the key figures in the controversy to get their take on the big impact on the ban on hounds. >> state senator ted lou sponsored the bill to ban the use of bears -- hounds to bear hunt. >> sometimes the dogs would get in a fight and get killed and injured. it was inhumane to the bears and it was unsporting. >> before the law took effect they could equip packs of dogs with electronic tracking devices. when the hounds chased a bear up a tree, the hunter could come in for the easy kill. during the past year the hound ban slashed the number of bears killed by almost half down from 1,962 killed in 2012 to 1,002 last year. >> i am pleased the law is working as intended and people are complying with the law. >> these darkened colored zones are the approved bear hunt zones in california.

>> the head of the state fish and wildlife department's bear program tells us the number of hunting permits or bear tags sold was unaffected by the ban on hounds. >> we have had actually the same amount of dare tags sold this year -- bear tags sold this year. either the same number of bear hunters were unsuccessful or less turned out. >> morale is pretty low. i will be frank. >> he fought the ban as a member of california hounds for conservation. he says he can find a bear in a day or two with the hounds. without them it takes four or five days. he says because of the ban, many of the state's hunters are getting rid of their dogs. >> a lot of guys have sold their hounds or given them to states where you can take them in the field because they president whatted their dogs to live out their lives in the field. >> he blames the former fish and game president for the hound ban. this photo in 2012 of richards with a mountain lion he shot with hounds he shot in idaho

sponsored the ban here. >> california is a leader in terms of things we do here and then other states follow what we do. in this case we were trying to follow what other states have done. to me being humane is one of the principals we should have in our society. >> hunters have a hard time finding bears without the use of hounds last year. the fish and wildlife is considering extending the season to reach a quota of 1700 kills. they claim they are concerned about more bears in ter acting with people. interacting with people. but some say that is a false argument. most of the bears are killed in remote areas far away from people. >> thank you, dan. after 40 years of public service george miller says it is time to retire. miller made the announcement from his office in richmond today. he was first elected to the house in the late 20s. it was at the end of the vietnam war. now he says his most recent achievements on education,

labor and health care make him the most proud. his current and final term end at the end of the year. and president obama called miller, quote, an indispensable partner in developing and passing the affordable care act. abc7 news viewers are sharing their 49er provided with us. take a look. this lucky couple is going to seattle for sunday's game posing proudly with the tickets. and one of the cutest 9er fans you will sigh, zane, ready for another big win. you can e-mail your fan photos to you report at kgo-tv.com. post them on our facebook page or tweet them at abc7 news bay area. >> kids and pets in those pictures. you can't go wrong. a little girl is an internet sensation for her double take reaction. take a look at what happened. you are seeing her meet her father's identical twin brother for the first time. what? her wide eyes -- wide you eyed amazement says it all. her family can be heard seeing

her priceless reaction seeing the twins. this video posted on youtube has more than 2.2 million views. when her father holds out his arms she is not quite sure what to do. dad? she finally seems to get comfortable with the situation high fiveing and fist bumping her new found uncle. >> very cute. very big eyes. trying to figure it out. >> i imagine as a kid what you would think in that situation. let's get a check on the forecast. >> sandhya patel is back warm and dry. >> yes. and the fire danger is remaining high, dan and carolyn. the red flag warning for the hills has been extended until thursday morning now, thursday morning, not tuesday morning. live doppler 7hd is showing you clear skies right now. as we look at the high temperatures for today oakland airport was a record 70 degrees today. most other areas were warmer, but not record territory just yet. 70 redwood city and 70 half moon bay and 68 san jose and up toward santa rosa and 67

degrees and 65 in livermore. look at santa cruz, 76 today. plenty of 70s tomorrow and widespread records are expected. from our exploratorium camera, the financial district in san francisco is under clear skies. 53 in san francisco and 51 in oakland. the temperatures are dropping in the midto upper 40s around san jose and redwood city and los gatos. check out half moon bay. 59 degrees and really mild. this is normally what you would see as a high temperature for the day. but this is the current temperature as the wind is holding your temperature up. the sutro tower camera looking at downtown san francisco. it is cooling off though where you are protected from the wind. 37 in santa rosa and 39 napa and fairfield in the 30s and livermore 44 degrees and here is a view from our emeryville camera. looking toward the tower, the visibility is terrific. red flag warning for the hills until thursday morning. sunny and warmer the next few days and we are looking at record high temperatures right on through tuesday and

wednesday. here is what is going to happen. the high pressure has already built in. unusually strong ridge. it is going to block storms from getting here. all of the storms go to the north. we end up with the dry wind we saw today. record warmth. tomorrow we are expecting the numbers to come up even more. it will be a warmer day. the week ahead for san jose, look at the temperature trend. average high is 59. tomorrow is 71. the temperatures are coming up to the low 70s here. 73 degrees wednesday and thursday and only to taper for the weekend. back up again on monday. i know we need the rain, but unfortunately it is not happening. overnight temperatures, wide variety. coldest spots will be where the wind is not really blowing midto upper 30s and north and east bay valleys. for the hills you will see the temperatures staying up along the coast in the low 50s. everyone else in between. tomorrow afternoon it will be warmer. 71 in san jose in the south bay and 72 los gatos and 76 santa cruz. gilroy marked by an asterisk.

any asterisk you see here will be record territory. 70 in redwood city. 71 loss altos and 72 half moon bay. downtown san francisco is 69 degrees. 68 in daly city and in the north bay, the down sloping wind will really crank up your number. it is hard to believe we are in the middle of winter and we are talking about temperatures like these. 72 napa in the east bay and san leandro and newark and inland spots you will get into the mild to warm area as well. 69 livermore and 70 concord, fairfield, san ramon. accu-weather seven-day forecast, the 70s will take you into wednesday. the temperatures will trend lower at the coast on thursday and everywhere on friday. and then for the weekend we are dropping you to the 60s, but the rain will pass us by. it is dry, but cooler. monday temperatures back up. the fire danger remaining high. the red flag warning once again. dan and carolyn, it was just extended until thursday morning for the hells. >> thanks.

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match up on sunday for the nfc title and a shot at super bowl. seahawks have the top ranked defense in the league and also lead the league in talking smack. they said you are a reflection of your head coach and pete carroll is one fun loving guy and lets his team do the same. he and harbaugh go back as rivals since the uc and stanford days. after the game carroll asked

what's your deal? harbaugh dismissed the notion. >> i haven't seen where that is even talked about anymore. that might have been something four or five years ago, but i really haven't seen it as of late. it would be as irrelevant now as it would have been then when people made a big are deal out of it. irrelevant, irrelevant. >> oh we're talking about it. now pete carroll like harbaugh loves to compete. he has more fun on the sidelines than a any other coach in the nfl. it is a love for the game and the players who play for their coach. lynch running in beast mode style and the defense is sick. coach carroll talking about the back store with harbaugh. >> this match up is what everybody is looking for. it is an exciting one with a lot of background. i'm grateful it is coming from our division. i think our division really made a statement this year about how good we were. a lot of losses came within

the division. when you look at it, this is a fantastic match up with a great opportunity for both teams and we are thrilled about going for it. >> the temperatures reached 107 in melbourne. that's number one coaching federer. this year's australian open playing with a new racket for the first time in 20 years. back to back ace's in the third set and it is working so far. against duct worth and federer advances in straight sets. john easy neither was forced to retire with a foot injury. bracket. novak djokovic tested by lachko. hard to get the ball past djokovic. lachko is unable to put it away. you tbhee is coming here?

the forehand winner. know vac moves on to -- nova a k moves on to round two. we all can't wait for that game on sunday. >> what's your deal? >> up next the pastor who gives new meaning to being part of the i'm detecting increasing levels of happiness. ...and the speed readings are off the chart! paradise found! luscious locks. great glittering galaxies. the happiest place on earth keeps getting happier! explore more, and save up to 25% on select nights

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hose who've been deniedgets you there in just 60 seconds. ewelcome to covered california. now, you can no longer be denied coverage because of a pre-existing condition. enroll today at coveredca.com. wake up weather. we are talking about high fire danger in the hills. the temperatures will vary with the clear skies. 30s to 50s between 5:00 and 8:00 a.m. red flag warning for the hills has just been extended until thursday morning, 8:00 a.m. gusty winds, low humidity. fire danger will remain high

until thursday morning. nice niko will be tracking -- mike niko will be tracking it for you. dan and carolyn? >> thanks very much. a church pastor in boutte, montana put his sermon on hold so he could catch his beloved team. >> go out and serve the lord. >> thanks be to god. >> and i'm out of here. >> that is great. pastor tim christianson came back to finish the sermon after kaepernicking. >> he grew up a fan of the red and gold since he attended his first game in 1972. >> we like this guy. >> that is cool. >> coming up next, actor kevin kostner. >> i'm carolyn johnson. thanks for watching. >> appreciate your time as always. for sh expo andy and awful us here. have a great night.

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>> dicky: from hollywood, it's "jimmy kimmel live"! tonight, kevin costner, harry connick, jr. "i-witness news - the bachelor edition." and music from michael kiwanuka. with cleto and the cletones. and now, most definitely, here's jimmy kimmel! and now, here's jimmy kimmel! [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> jimmy: thanks for coming. thank you for watching. [ cheers and applause ] thank you for coming to visit.