york and union city. knocking on the door of sunnyvale at this hour. we tracked this line officer you in the next hour. in about 17 minutes, it moves into sunnyvale in about 29 minutes. future weather shows you we'll be in and out of these downpours. we'll likely be tracking another round of downpours moving on shore. we may have some issues to deal with on the friday morning rush, as well. we'll detail that and our next storm not far behind this one. >> abc 7 news reporter is live in mill valley where the rain has been kind of intermittent today, right? >> it has. i'm actually dry right now. that wouldn't have been the case about 15 min you wanteds ago. this is just the rehearsal. the north bay is looking at today's double dose of rain. you are going to see some isolated spots.

but folks here expect it to be just baby steps. >> at stinson beach -- >> it looks like it just uprooted. >> a trial run. a fallen tree that's barely missed the driver gets crews in practice for potential bigger storms to come. >> we're getting there. working hard to be prepared. >> a wet morning commute meant the area meant for some tricky navigating and high water. then, blue skies. you could actually watch the moment the water was about to switch. >> every little bit helps. >> her first winter in her low-lying mill valley home. >> our concern, like everybody else, once the ground gets too saturated, that there may be some issues. we're in a low area. we're close to the creek. >> another reminder that it

could be just a test of the real soakers still to come. >> for months, the sheriff's department and other agencies have brn planning on what could happen in the hills, 23r examples, mud slides or trees down. and what could happen in the valley if this does flood badly over the next couple of months. now, the separation put to the test beginning today, so far, so good. reporting live, abc 7 news. >> all right, reggie, thanks very much. we expect to see more snowfalling in se,rra. right now, if you're driving along 80, you must use chains between cisco and trucky and on u.s. 50. >> there's rain here and snow 1 falling in the sierra. >> that's right. laura anthony is live with a look at the wintery weather there. >> hi, dan. in has been sort of an odd storm up here. lots of starts and stops right now. it's not snowing a few minutes

ago, it was snowing heavily. earlier today, down below, much to the dismay of some, it was raining. >>. >> the snow is coming in waves near interstate 80, a spurt of heavy showers then a break then some more. just enough to keep the snowplows busy. meantime, down the hill, it was a little too warm overnight. i thought it was going to blow in a huge storm today. it was 40 mile an hour winds this morning. it kind of died off. >> still, business owners here know how to weather the highs and lows of a high sierra winter. kerry wilson has lived and worked here for more than 30 years.

while the holidays are important to her business, it's not make or break. >> i think there's still dark clouds. so there's still po ten sh. >> okay, let's do this. >> after all, several years of drought has taught folks one thing. it's how to keep the faith. >> we have a lot more snow now than we did last year anyway. so i think it's been coming. every week we've had a snowstorm. i'm not worried that it rained. >> eastbound, we are just below summit. chain controls are in effect. the wind has been a factor up here all day, especially the ski areas where many different areas were on hold. so far, they tell us they've gotten about six inches of new snow. of course, it's getting colder tonight. the hope is that those accumulations grow considerably overnight. laura anthony, abc 7 news. >> all right, thank you so much, laura.

the rain and wind left a big mess this morning. a downed tree and power lines left state route 116 at first street. >> in san francisco, sky 7 hd was over southbound 101 at 280. it was slow goaling nor drivers exiting 280. >> if you see stormy weather where you live today and you can safely take a photo or video, you can share it with us. we may use it on air or online. >> now, some breaking news in santa clara. a muslim civil liberties group evacuated because of a threatening letter and suspicious substance. chris wynn is live with the very latest on the story. chris? >> dan, good evening. the building behind me is still under an evacuation order at this hour. if you take a look, you can see,

we are about fire and hazmat crews monitoring the area. this building is home to the capital of america islamic bay relations chapter, also known as bay area c.a.r.e. it's on the first floor which houses a number of other businesses. earlier this afternoon, a c.a.r.e. employee opened what she thought was a normal envelope in the mail. but they noticed some sort of white powdery substance inside that envelope who immediately called law enforcement who quickly responded. it's unclear if the contents are dangerous, but authorities aren't taking any chances. just moments ago, we spoke to the former president of bay area c.a.r.e. he's been encouraged by the support he's received from others. >> there may be a few hate people out there, but there's far more people who are understanding of others and are supportive when someone is unfairly maligned and targeted.

>> sky 7 hd. it's important to note that this office is located directly across from the largest mosque in the bay area. back here live, there's still no word yet as to when this building will reopen. we'll continue to follow this story and bring you more details on air and online at abc 7 news dot com. for now, live in santa clara, chris wynn, back to you. >> a similar letter containing white powder was sent to c.a.r.e.'s washington, d.c. office today. the f.b.i. has sent the letter to a lab for further testing. >> a suspect is now in custody in tuesday's pistol whip attack. police say 18-year-old armani miller of oakland kicked in the front door of a home, took cash and electronics and hit the nanny with his gun before

driving away in the family's porche. they say he was driving a car seen near the home at the time of the break in. that car was spotted in orinda by a camera specially designed to read license plates. >> this is a critical tool. >> in this specific case, this was the key piece of evidence that led us to where we are today. >> and the chief says more arrests are possible. miller will be charged with kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon and carjacking. >> just because it is raining doesn't mean this drout is any less severe. tonight, the east bay municipal utility district has come out with its list of excess water users. once again, it includes some well-known names. >> i really don't want to make that list, i'll tell you that. this list comes out on a regular

basis. this time, there are 1800 names on it. not mine, by the way. they are people in sports and also in the entertainment business on this list. and they represent just over 1% of all customers in the east bay. >> topping the list of excessive water users is this home in alamo owned by a wine maker. according to records provided by east bay, that address uses, on average, more than 111,000 gallons of water per day. anything over 1,000 per day is considered excessive. >> east bay has been releasing names of customer who is go over a threshold of excessive use. these are people who violated an excessive use ordinance. >> the second on the list is mark mastrook, founder of 24 hour fitness. we tried unsuccessfully to reach him at his home in lafayette.

>> an investment and wealth management advisor was listed under this address. he came in third. among the well-known names, buster posey's wife, chris tin, was shown to have used on average, 3,390 gallons of water a day at their home in lafayette. executive vice president billy bean was once again mentioned. you could see a repair crew, including a diver, working on his pool. to his credit, his water usage this time was nearly half of what it was in october. olympic medallist says an irrigation leak was the reason she made the list. in a statement, she says they have since stopped irrigating. the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band motley crew still owns this home. according to east bay, the agency has selected $400,000 in penalty fees since september.

in oakland, abc 7 news. >> and for massive new developments has some people saying where's the debrief. >> today's bhig vote on a project could change the face of san francisco. plus -- >> the big boost for a program that teaches students how to talk with a cop. >> michael finney reveals the best way to cash in on a gift card you don't want. >> the story behind a teenager rocking out his fellow

>> san francisco has a $2 billion program designed to

rebuild credit housing. today, city leaders looked at a plan that could transform a neighborhood beginning with a housing development which is the oldest in san francisco. abc 7 news reporter joins us live from city hall with more tonight. caroly in? >> reporter: well, those city planners approved the final environmental impact report this afternoon which means one step closer to reality for the petrero project. you've probably seen the terrace if you've driven i-280 through san francisco. the sprawling public housing complex on the south slope. tracy simmons has lived here for more than a decade. now, there's a plan to tear the terrace down. >> they need to do something. this mold is making people sick. >> the 606 units are dilapidated. they were built in phases starting in the 1940s.

today, the planning commission looked at the environmental impact report of a proposal that will replace all the public housing along the current residents to stay and adding at least 1100 new units. >> rebuilding it in a way that creates not pockets of poverty, but creates a mixed income community. >> everybody would love to see a project go through, but within reason. >> dennis lives down the street and thinks the project is too big and will cause too much traffic. >> getting movement of pedestrians and traffic and bus lines is a real challenge. and i really don't feel like they've met that very well. >> if the project is eventually approved, construction could take years before residents like eugene barrows can enjoy it. >> get busy. >> in san francisco, carolyn tyler, abc 7 news. >> a program to help teenagers

in iraq winteract peacefully an effectively got a boost today. 250,0$250,000 to lyric, learninr rights in california. they go out into the california and teach kids how to assert their constitutional rights but in a safe manner. >> a situation escalates so quickly. this sdpends on how an officer might perceive you or if you give the officer attitude. be respectful. be plit. polite. >> we want to prevent as many arrests as possible. as many incidents that could lead to negative consequences for our youngsters. >> hoping the program will relieve some of the tension that's been growing between law enforcement and young people specifically in oakland. >> what if you get a gift card that you don't really want? >> 7 on your side's michael

finney joins us with the answer. >> regift? >> there's one option. you've done this before. gift cards have a $32 billion a year business. about half of shoppers saying they plan to buy at least one this year. that, according to consumer reports survey. for people who don't want them, you can cash them in. >> you can buy store gift cards almost anymore. but not everyone likes to get them. >> i got a gift card that i have no interest in. so i just gave it to someone. >> another way to get rid of a gift card, print them for cash at many of the web sites out there. consumer reports check for them. >> these web sites buy your cards at less than face value and then resell them. that means you'll get less, sometimes a lot less, than they're worth at the store. >> a $100 toys are us gift card gets 80.50 at gift cards.com. but shrinks to $50 at monster

gift card dot com. >> we looked at 13 different gift cards and found that gift cards.com gave us the most money back. paybacks differ from site-to-site and from card-to-card. >> you'll generally get more cash back from popular retailers. walmart gets you around $90 at all the sites consumer reports checked. another option, you can get cash right away at coin star exchange kiosks found in stores throughout the country. you may not get as much money back as you would have on the web sites. this $100 walmart card gets only $71 here. giving a bank gift card makes it easier for the person who gets it. >> bank gift cards are easier to redeem. if they carry the logo of mastercard, visa, american express or discover, they can be deemed at any merchant that accepts those cards. >> keep in mind that those bank

gift cards usually cost $4-6 to purchase, sometimes $7. that's a cost to keep in mind. if you're giving a $25 gift card, you don't want to spend seven bucks. >> just a little while ago, it got awfully dark and started to come down pretty heavily. >> joining us with the accuweather forecast. >> alma and dan, we're going to be in store for several rounds of rain overnight tonight. live doppler 7 hd is tracking off with the heaviest of the showers now working through parts of the south bay at this hour. so we're going to zoom in to street level with live doppler 7 hd around the pleasantton and livermore area. live doppler 7 hd showing you shades of yellow on your screen. we just had a downpour move through the freemont, newark area. as we slide to the south, you do

notice right over santa clara. we do have a downpour that's slowly moving to the ooegs. pretty much, it's paralleling 101 at this hour. as we track that heaviest rain for you right here in about 11 minutes to san jose, you can expect that downpour to move right over you. and in about 37 minutes, the evergreen area can expect this downpour to move to the east. one area seeing some light rain right now. we move into morine county, san raphael just some verylight drizzle. but we're all in store for more rain overnight tonight. the north bay, santa rosa coming in close to an inch. and then as you go south and east, we start to drop off with some numbers. but san jose is kind of deceiving. you have .04 of an inch. you here likely going to pick up more in the next hour. current temperatures, it's chilly. we're going to hover at these numbers right now. san jose, expecting showers in

about 11 minutes where you live. still diminished tomorrow and then our storms moves in late saturday through sunday. showers and thunderstorms, another one moves on shore at 8:00. we'll track another wave by 10:00 likely bringing some stronger showers not out of the question. tomorrow morning, we may still be dealing with some light showers for your friday morning rush. by midday and into the afternoon, this really tapers to just mostly cloudy skies and we begin to dry out. in terms of wet weather, how much we can expect, i think anywhere from a quarter to a half of an inch of additional rainfall can be expected. a high surf warning still in effect. waves high as 21 feet through friday. some localized flooding through friday morning. 1-2 feet over the pass. you need your chains as that snow comes down through tomorrow. lows tonight, on and off waves

of rain, upper 40s to lower 50s. and then that rain, first thing tomorrow morning, you can expect it for the morning rush. showers moving through by the afternoon. here's your accuweather seven day forecast. a brief break in activity. saturday night into sunday, the storm impact scale, this one also looks like a two. we could have showers taper off monday morning and in the wake of that storm, temperatures really taper off. as you're headed out tonight, you need the umbrella and the jacket. >> drew, thanks very much. >> a million people have spoken. up next, what they're saying that's good news for the grumpy. and, at 5:30 on world news. >> stay tuned there in the bay area. breaking news tonight. the f.b.i. search right now. divers in a lake at this hour after the terror in california. our team on the scene and the

run away kmuter train, no conductor, passengers pounding on the door for help right after abc 7 news. >> new at 6:00 from 7 on your side, michael finney with what a bay area couple learned about their home warrantee protection plan when their water heater broke down. it is really

if dog tags issued to all soldiers are getting a new look. on the new tag, the service member's social security number will be replaced with a randomly generated department id number. the change was mandated in 2007, but it's taken this long to replace all the social security numbers on the tag. >> an air force base could be the proposed beneficiary of an expansion. it's one of five bases under consideration. the air force unvailed a plan

today that would add 75 new drones to an existing fleet of more than 300. it would also double the number of pie lots to 3500. >> call it good news for the grinchs of this world. it is a long held and widespread belief that the more stressed and out of control you are, the more your body will feel it. researchers say while happiness won't help you live longer, unhappiness won't kill you, either. unhappiness and stress don't, themselves, directly cause illness. >> t . >> >> a local teenager stars in what could be called the school of life. >> that's next on abc 7 news at 5:00.

get up to 48 monthsw interest-free financing on tempur-pedic, save $300 on beautyrest and posturepedic,

or choose $300 in free gifts with stearns & foster. the triple choice sale ends soon at sleep train. the drought is affecting at pg&e we've definitely put a focus on helping our agricultural customers through the drought. when they do an energy efficiency project and save that money they feel it right in their pocket book. it's exciting to help a customer with an energy efficiency project because not only are they saving energy but they are saving water. we have a lot of projects at pg&e that can help them with that and that's extremely important while we're in a drought. it's a win for the customer and it's a win for california. together, we're building a better california.

coming up tonight on abc 7 news at 6:00, an updated forecast from spencer christian. >> plus, the new warning system now in place in a flood-prone bay area neighborhood. >> and a local billionaire spending his own fortune to fight climate change. >> and what a professor learned about caffeine effects on the

brain after he had an m.r.i. scan twice a week for a year and a half. >> it's all coming up on abc 7 news at 6:00. we will see you then. >> but, for now, lunch at a local high school is more fun this week because of one student. ♪ >> playing a dune for his mission high school classmates during ability awareness month. >> his teacher says he has a special ear for music. and playing the guitar has helped him open up at school. >> learning songs quickly is easy. and everyone can know me better. >> talented guy. he plays guitar for his school's club and is in the school's mariacci club. >> that is our report. appreciate your time. >> world news is next.

>> we'll see you again in half an hour. breaking news. we're on the scene tonight. divers in a lake after the terror in california. the fbi searching the lake for possible clues. and tonight, investigators on what brought them there. also breaking, the city now on alert this evening after a u.s. warning. authorities now trying to prevent a specific terror event, telling american citizens there to be on the lookout. the runaway commuter train. passengers trapped inside with no conductor. pounding on the door for help. two major storm systems we're watching tonight. the state of emergency. drivers trapped there on a highway. >> wow! >> storms turning deadly already. and the scandal at the citadel. under fire after this image of cadets singing christmas carols. the outrage tonight.