a little later. abc 7 news meteorologist sandhya patel is in oahu right now. she sent us these pictures of the beautiful weather she's had up till today. she said people there are worried. >> there are a lot of people who -- locals who have been panicking with the approach of hurricane iselle. they have started to buy so much water that the stores have run out of water completely. and now the actual bottling companies that sell the water just to the stores is now opening up their stock to customers. >> sandhya says she saw a lot of people packing their bags and trying to leave the island a day or two early today. tiffany wilson is talking with people here worried about their flights to hawaii. she's live tonight at san francisco international airport with that part of the story. >> reporter: well, dan, there is some good news. some flights are still getting out. one left just about a half an hour ago, but we've certainly seen a couple of cancellations

and a lot of very anxious passengers. many of planned their trips for months and that's only bound to get worse as the storms make landfall. fear of the unknown led to very different strategies for hawaii-bound passengers today. >> we're so worried about the hurricanes, but we're trusting. >> reporter: with her vacation hat firmly in place, lisa arrived hours early. >> there's several other flights we may be able to get on. >> reporter: she spent the past year planning the trip and not even a double dose of hurricanes could keep her home. >> we just want to get there. >> reporter: susan murray took a different tactic. >> we had a whole week planned there. >> reporter: she cancelled their flight, schultz and numerous activities when she realized the two hurricanes would be the unwelcome third and fourth wheel to their romantic getaway. >> i'm disappointed, very disappointed, but i can't fight mother nature. >> reporter: they're making the best of it with a trip to san diego now, taking a rain check on hawaii. >> turning 60 next year and that's my birthday present to myself. >> reporter: yung song just

hopes to make it home before the storm. >> my husband told me everybody go crazy. >> reporter: hawaii hasn't seen a hurricane in 22 years, so people are rushing to stock up on essentials, leaving store shelves empty. song already knows their first stop. >> we need to go to costco on the way back home. >> reporter: the eye of hurricane iselle is expected to pass over the big island tonight. hurricane julio will follow on her heels, making 8-year-old alexio nervous. >> i don't want a hurricane to hit me. >> reporter: at this point most flights remain unaffected, but travelers can expect delays and cancellations as the storm meets land. at sfo, tiffany wilson, abc 7 news. >> now a couple of questions. will passengers get dinged for changing flights? and what about hotel accommodations? coming up later, what are your rights when disaster strikes. stay tuned, 7 on your side's michael finney will have some answers in just a few minutes. and if the hurricanes were not enough, the islands were hit by a 4.5 magnitude earthquake just before 9:30 this morning.

actually the new figure now is 4.3. the quake hit about six miles off the northern tip of the big island. there are no reports of any damage or injury. we have developing news right now out of iraq where the u.s. military has launched an emergency humanitarian effort to bring life-saving supplies to thousands of ethnic kurds who are under threat from the islam incompetent extremist group isis. about 40,000 members of iraq's ethnic tribe have tried to find refuge in the northern part of the country, chased from their homes by isis forces. abc news has learned three military cargo plane dropped food, water and medical supplies to the refugees. more supplies are on the way. the u.s. has not ruled out the possibility of air strikes against isis as the group makes rapid advances in northern iraq, seizing control of cities and key infrastructure. a federal ground jury has indicted a man on charges he deliberately set last year's massive fire in yosemite.

prosecutors say keith matthew emerald ignored a ban on fires during a hunting trip last august. he started a fire, it grew out of control and ended up burning 400 square miles. prosecutors say emerald lied to a federal agent by saying he did not set the fire. emerald faces five years in federal prison and a quarter million dollar fine if convicted. the bay area woman who successfully flew from san jose to los angeles was arrested again today at los angeles international airport. 62-year-old marilyn hartman was detained by airport police officers in a presecurity area of terminal seven at 11:15 this morning for violating conditions of her probation. police say hartman was seen getting on an express, an airport express bus in downtown l.a. this morning. authorities believe she was looking for a way to stowaway on get another flight. >> she spent about one hour here at the airport going into several terminals in what appeared to be that she was scouting them out.

>> just yesterday hartman pleaded no contest to a trespassing charge and was put on two years probation by a los angeles county judge and ordered to stay away from the airport if she didn't have a ticket to fly. fremont police are searching for two gunmen who bound a 55-year-old woman with duct tape and robbed her as she took care of her baby granddaughter. the robbery took place on deep creek road about 2:45 yesterday afternoon. police say the men responsible entered through an unlocked rear door. the baby, we are glad to tell you, was not hurt. walnut creek police credit this surveillance video shared on social media and in news reports with catching a suspected thief. the video shows this guy getting out of a pickup and taking a package that had been left outside of a home on trotter court. that large box happened to contain a little more than $100 worth of diapers and baby formula. the fbi joined antioch and pittsburg police to target some of those cities' most

crime-plagued areas, arresting people including this man. police a he had a loaded gun when he was arrested. an amazing sight today in a north bay city. a massive rare redwood tree was uprooted. look at this thing. hoisted to a new location to save it because this piece of history was in the way of progress. it happened near santa rosa. the excitement droou a big crowd and wayne friedman is there to bring us the story. wayne. >> reporter: cheryl, it's all over, large drama on a small stage. a community and a commuter railroad feeling pretty good about themselves and a tree with a great chance of living for many years to come. it was almost too painful, too dramatic to watch. a transplant operation in public in broad daylight. >> you're always afraid something is going to go wrong. >> reporter: wrong? what can go wrong? people transplant trees all the time. but this one is 50 feet tall,

weighs 45 tons and has earned a special place in the heart of the city. >> i didn't know it until i read it in the paper. >> no, it's not just a tree, it's a very rare albino redwood. one of very few in the world. >> reporter: translated -- >> it's got male and female, both on the same tree. >> reporter: that's right. >> it's the same tree with two different sets of genetic programming. >> reporter: if it were a human, would it be confused? >> absolutely. >> reporter: although the confusion started only after the future smart commuter train planned a route through here which threatened the rare tree and turned it into a cause. >> it's because it represents something unique and wonderful. >> reporter: so the railroad raised $150,000 in funds and donations. after weeks of preparation, here is your photo op. >> didn't you think it was beautiful? >> reporter: sure. the freak giant tree, placed it over power lines en route to a new hole not far away. but is it far enough?

>> i think this is going to be something that scientists are going to be studying and neighbors enjoy and hopefully we'll survive. >> reporter: translated that might mean save a tree, love a new commuter train. in this unique community, the concept is no longer that far-fetched. wayne friedman, abc 7 news. >> pretty amazing, huh? still ahead, what are your rights as an airline passenger when disaster strikes? >> what to expect when traveling during a hurricane season. we'll go over airline and hotel rights and travel insurance policies. also ahead, nine more victims of the jonestown massacre are discovered. why the remains are now in the hands of homeland security. plus, deep dissent. what prompted this all-out response in san jose. >> and why students in richmond are getting tens of millions of dollars. who's behind this big bankroll? >> when abc 7 n

specially trained firefighters climbed into a manhole at a mobile home park on center road in san jose this morning. residents heard what sounded like tapping coming from the manhole about 8:30 this morning. it was thought to be coming from a woman trapped underground. rescuers checked out several hundred feet of a three-foot wide storm drain. >> while they were down in the hole, they could clearly hear people talking at the other end and they can also hear cars in a rhythmic motion going over what sounded like a pipe behind them. >> kind of wild. the firefighters say today was the second time in the last year that they responded to a report of a person possibly being trapped inside that same pipe. the state department is urging china to allow a lawyer

freed from prison today to come to the united states to reunite with his family. he is a human rights lawyer dominated for a nobel peace prize three times. he was released today after serving eight years for inciting subversion of state power. speaking in san francisco today, his wife says he is in bad shape. >> i remember his voice was very powerful, very strong. but yesterday in our conversation, his voice was very, very weak. he's losing the air, kind of losing it. and i -- she felt that he's not doing too well. >> he is staying with his brother in china, but government officials are not allowing him to say much to his wife. officials are now working to identify the cremated remains of nine victims of the jonestown guyana suicide. authorities were called after 38

containers of remains were discovered. officials will notify family members once the remains are identified. that work is being done by forensic scientists at delaware's homeland security department. the bodies of the jonestown victims were brought to dover air force base back in 1978. remember, more than 900 men, women and children, followers of people's temple cult leader jim jones died after drinking cyanide-laced kool-aid. many of them were from the bay area. kill switch technology for smartphones moved one step closer to being the law in california today. the state assembly passed a bill aimed at taking the profit out of stealing smartphones. it would require smartphones to have software to enable their rightful owners to disable them. many police chiefs and major cell phone companies support the law. cell phone thefts account for more than half the robberies in some california cities. the senate has to vote on small modifications before the governor can sign the bill into law. the consumer product safety

commission is recalling nearly a quarter of a million flat screen televisions because of issues with the stand. they are made by vizio and the recall affects their e series tvs sold between late 2013 and mid-2014. the models are 39 and 40 inches. -- 42 inches, i could say. the televisions have faulty stands that could tip over. to find out if your set is among those being recalled, we have information on our website, abc7news.com. well, you've been hearing that hawaii is bracing for two powerful storms tonight. after they hit, people will need a lot of help. >> absolutely. as michael finney is here with firsthand knowledge of what's to come. >> reporter: as you guys have been reporting, it will be less than a day and hawaii will take its first direct hit from a hurricane in 22 years. that's when hurricane aniki hit. so what should they expect? well, in 1992 i was in hawaii covering that hurricane for abc

7 news. there were six deaths, nearly $2 billion in damage. vacationers forced into emergency shelter for days. it was completely shut off from the outside world. here's a quick visual aid on how much debris was washed up here. this beach access sign stands three feet tall. >> i'm losing it. >> how so? >> i need to get off this island. >> reporter: boulders were thrown through hotel room walls by wind and water. clean water was in short supply. phones were out. and food was scarce. it was the most destructive hurricane in recorded history to hit hawaii. this one could be worse. now, after seeing that, you might not want to fly to hawaii today or tomorrow and major airlines are waiving change fees for flights to hawaii today and tomorrow. however, there are restrictions. some airlines are tighter than others. for example, hawaiian airlines will waive the change fee but you must use the ticket by august 12th.

that's when the storms are expected to pass. united and delta airlines will let you use the tickets for a year. however, you may have to pay a higher fare if you fly after august 12th. hawaiian hotels are giving guests a break. the hawaiian tourism authority says most hotels won't charge a fee for cancelling a reservation this weekend. hotels also are offering so-called distress rates. now, those are discounts for guests who get stranded because of the storms. hotels are also ready with extra food and water, power generators and additional staff. when traveling to tropical locations this time of year, you really should consider buying travel insurance. most policies cover hurricanes, but you need to read the fine print. you must buy the insurance before the hurricane is named, otherwise the policy will not pay. you want a policy that says you are covered by a hurricane if it is threatening your destination, not just destroying it.

if there is a mandatory evacuation, most policies will pay. but if you wait until the evacuation is called off, then you will get nothing at all. you have to keep track. >> critical bits of information there. thanks, michael, very much. well, richmond leaders unveiled a few program to overcome perhaps the greatest barrier to inner city children taking their education to the next level. laura anthony has our story. >> reporter: for many high school students in richmond, get the grades is one thing. being able to pay for college quite another. but now city and school leaders plan to take full advantage of a $35 million grant from chevron to make sure all kids can afford that next step. >> this will make sure that every single young person in the city of richmond during the course of this funding is able to attend college if they want to, if they figure out how they're going to get in. we will make sure that the money is available. >> reporter: the money comes with chevron's community

investment agreement with richmond as part of its refinery modernization. at kennedy high, for example, about two-thirds of students graduate, but many do not go on to college because they simply can't afford it. >> these scholarships will help a lot of students and help me a lot because my family may not have the best job, but it will help me a lot by the scholarship. >> what happens with our kids is that they don't see options for themselves. and they see all the barriers. they can start to believe it, the community can believe it, the faculty can believe it. >> reporter: the exact criteria for distributing the promised funds hasn't been worked out yet but the hope is to come boyne it with other sources, scholarship and financial aid programs to ensure a fully paid path to college for all richmond kids. laura anthony, abc 7 news. well, this is a sight that is making the tourists happy at san francisco's pier 39. the sea lions suddenly returned to the docks today. they're back. a little more than a month after they vanished all of a sudden, the sea lions have been a

popular attraction since they first arrived back in 1990. they were a fixture for 20 years until 2009 when they mysteriously vanished for three months. marine experts say breeding, feeding as well as construction projects are probably the reason for all this coming and going, but it's nice to have them back. >> just a few minutes ago we talked about two hurricanes about to hit hawaii. well, there is another hurricane that is certainly worrying forecasters. it's called hurricane bertha and it's crossing the atlantic, and it may dump nearly a month's worth of rain on britain in just a few hours this coming weekend. the risk of flooding certainly an issue. strong winds could also be a problem. we'll of course be tracking this one for you. in the meantime, reports of a strong el nino washing us out of a drought are fizzling. forecasters have predicted an 80% chance of el nino this fall. that is an unusual warming of ocean temperatures which can lead to increased rainfall. well, that number is down to 65%.

it doesn't necessarily mean a fourth dry winter, so of course we'll just have to wait and see. >> that is exactly what we don't need, another dry winter skblrchlts let's talk about the weather forecast for the next few days anyway. >> spencer christian outside. >> let's go right to live doppler 7 hd. we've got a few clouds in the sky and a few high clouds over land areas and coastal areas as well. here's a view of the clouds from the east bay emeryville camera. 62 degrees right now in san francisco, oakland 67. mid-70s at san carlos, san jose, gilroy, 59 at half moon bay. here's a view at the golden gate bridge. you see the clouds hovering above the golden gate there. traffic is flowing nicely, i'm happy to say. it's 79 right now in santa rosa, napa 71. low to mid-80s at novato, fairfield, concord, livermore. one more live view right across the street from abc 7, we see much more blue sky in this direction and these are our forecast features. we'll see fog and low clouds near the coast and bay

overnight. some spotty drizzle is possible tonight and during the overnight hours and the steady pattern that we have developing now will be with us into next week. our overnight lows will be generally on the mild side as they have been the last couple of weeks actually. upper 50s to just above 60. for the most part fog will be quite prominent along the coastline tonight and some patches will be locally inland and across the bay. tomorrow, here's our forecast animation starting at 5:00 tomorrow morning. the beginning of our rush hour, there may be some areas of reduced visibility because of patches of low clouds and fog that will drift locally inland. if you're a local commuter, bear that in mind. there could be a couple of spots of drizzle tomorrow morning in the early morning hours but look at how the clouds pull away during the afternoon hours. by mid-afternoon tomorrow we'll have mainly sunny skies, even on some coastal areas with typical summertime range of 60s at the coast to 90s inland. let's start in the south bay

with highs mainly in the low 80s. 83 at morgan hill. on the peninsula, we'll see highs mainly in the mid-70s, low to mid-70s from redwood city to palo alto and mountain view. low 60s on the coast at pacifica and half moon bay. in and around san francisco, we'll see highs mainly in the mid to upper 60s, from 66 downtown to 65 in the sunset district. north bay highs, 60s on the coast, stinson beach. 80s inland, 86 santa rosa, 87 calistoga and 80 at napa. east bay highs range from 72 at oakland to 75 at union city. fremont to 77 in castro valley. the inland will be a little warmer 89 at fairfield, 87 at livermore and 90 at antioch. here's the accuweather seven-day forecast. we'll have a nice steady pattern all the way through the seven-day period without much fluctuation. highs near 90 in our inland locations, near 80 around the bay and mid-60s on the coast. it's nice to have a string of days like that with little

significant change from time to time. dan and cheryl. >> all right, spencer, thanks so much. still ahead, surprise visitor. raising voices, raising hands. find out who got these kids so excited at basketball camp. and it doesn't only happen to older folks. new at 6:00, the lifestyle factors hurting the memories of young as well. that's at

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pepper jack. hey pepper jack. ruff ruff, ruff ruff. he's a spicy one. annnnnd... delicious. tillamook pepper jack, tastes better because it's made better. california is developing a fast track for students at medical school. the pilot program at uc davis has six students on track to finish med school in three years instead of four. some students get to do hands-on training in their first year, but they don't get summer breaks. students also graduate with far less debt. last month governor brown signed lentili legislation authorizing the program. aspiring basketball players enjoyed a surprise meeting with warriors new head coach steve kerr. he visited the camp run by the

nba franchise in walnut creek. 150 campers got to ask kerr questions about elevating their own games. kerr said it reminded him of his own youth. >> when i was a kid, i used to come to camps like this all the time. then when i got older, i started teaching them. i had a camp myself in tucson for 12 years, my own camp. so it's always been something i've really enjoyed, just working with kids and being on the court with them. >> a lot of fans remember kerr playing gym rat as a young player. his sharp shooting led arizona to the final four. he also played more than a decade in the nba. he's going to start his first coaching job in the fall. a big day for us here at abc 7 tomorrow. we are teaming up with our parent company, disney, a national nonprofit called kaboom and local residents of oakland to build a new playground. this is some time lapse footage yesterday of all the

ground-breaking activities. the big build takes place tomorrow. it will take about six hours. here is where the new playground will be when it opens in a week or so. concordia park is right by frick middle school. >> we are excited to get to work on that. still ahead here, the gear is being rolled, the speakers are being set up and the stage is getting checked. then double checked. >> get ready for outside land 2014.

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that ball wasn't in. get your eyes checked. help me out here. download the best mobile app today. so you can always have the advantage. chase. so you can . coming up new at 6:00, trying to solve america's immigration crisis and the mother and daughter's battle to cross the border. it's a story you'll see only on 7. from 7 on your side, the one thing you don't want to do if you pay your bills automatically each month. that's all coming up on abc 7 news at 6:00. >> all right, thank you very much. see you then. the seventh annual outside lands music and food festival ready to rock this weekend in san francisco's golden gate park. >> great stuff coming too.

organizers say this year will be bigger and better, more bands, more stages and more food and drink tents. >> there will be six stages plus a tent for the djs. chefs, wineries and brewers will get their own stage. >> there are wines and beers on sale that will not only be paired with food but also music and comedy acts. >> it's not just about music, it's about food. we have over 70 local restaurants out here. we have over 36 wineries from northern california. 16 craft breweries from here. so you're really getting a taste of the bay area, not only musically but beyond. >> well, they expect 200,000 people at the concert ts weekend and organizers are bragging they brought in 750 portable toilets. very important for all of this. >> tomorrow's headliners are kanye west and the arctic monkeys. tom petty plays on saturday

night. >> sorry we ended welcome to "world news." tonight, the breaking news. is the u.s. getting ready to launch air strikes against militants in iraq? martha raddatz and jon karl standing by live. the one-two punch. hurricane iselle about to slam into hawaii, the first in more than 20 years. the second hurricane right behind it. windows boarded, shelves empty, tourists stranded tonight. and ginger zee with the newest track coming in now. the verdict is in tonight, the moment at that front door, the man who shot the young woman through the door. she was looking for help. he says he was frightened. what the jury has decided tonight. and what do you think? look at this video, the bear standing tall in one american neighborhood. so many there have seen him. tonight our ron claiborne in that town, what he's found, is this bear for real?