weekend's powerful storm. >> all the rain is great news for santa cruz. the only reservoir is overflowing, easing drought fears for now at least. >> morning surprise in marin county, several boats run aground after breaking away from their moorings. >> communities in the santa cruz mountains haven't started drying out yet from today's storms and already they need to start getting ready for the bigger ones this weekend. >> abc 7 news anchor eric thomas is live with more on what today's rain left behind. >> reporter: they got some considerable rain here but fog has descended. however, that rain was very welcome here, even in spots where it caused problems. and yeah, it did cause problems. this is the second time since last fall that runoff from across highway 9 left her property a muddy mess. >> my daughter called me and said, mom, you better come take

a look at this. >> it is frustrating. totally, completely frustrating. >> glenn and donna own the swim center and a handful of cabins that sit on two acres surrounding it. last time it took three full days of shoveling to clean up the mud, rocks and trash. >> how long do you think it will take you to clean all this up? >> probably four days. >> reporter: they believe the slide was caused by an overflowing creek in the hills that overwhelmed the culverts meant to divert the water, and they have called off an out of town trip to stay behind and clean things up ahead of the next storm. while the smiths were trying to get ahead of the next system, some residents came down to see what this one did to the san lorenzo river. >> it's really high. more than you would think it would be. >> we have a rain gauge and since tuesday night, we've had between 10 and 11 inches. >> reporter: and these communities have just a couple of days to prepare for another similar blast of rain. >> roof is clean, gutters are

clean, wood is covered outside, i have a fire pit in my backyard. >> are you prepared for this weekend? we're getting more rain. >> i don't care, let it come. >> reporter: wise words because around here, the rain will come, like it or not. in the santa cruz mountains, eric thomas, abc 7 news. more rain is on the way over the next several days and a lot more. exactly how much? let's turn to abc 7 news meteorologist drew tuma who is tracking a series of storms. >> just an active pattern. these are back-to-back-to-back with little break. you still have some action on the screen. we'll get in a little closer and light showers at this hour from novato to san rafael over to berkeley into san francisco. a bit of a break around hayward and san jose but it's just a damp and dreary evening ahead. so light showers on the forecast tonight. a light system, up to a quarter of an inch of rain and minor ponding is possible. tomorrow and friday are quiet but look what happens over the weekend. this is going to be a washout of a weekend. saturday we have a moderate storm and then on sunday we have

a serious system moving in, a strong storm on the storm impact scale. this is going to rank a 3 on sunday. we have only had a handful of storms reach the status on sunday. heavy rain and wind causing concern for flooding and also wind damage. look at these totals on sunday alone. an inch and a half to 3 inches in our urban areas. in the santa cruz mountains, up to 8 inches of rain is possible in a 24-hour period. we'll have a much closer look at the current concerns with this system as well as the hour-by-hour forecast for the weekend coming up. >> you can track the rain with the abc 7 news app. just enable push alerts to get weather advisories on your phone or tablet. these powerful storms may force yosemite to close due to flooding. this is video from a flood ten years ago that caused extensive damage to roads and campgrounds forcing the park to close for two months. officials will decide in the next day or two whether to shut down the park, they're concerned

that intense rains will bring the merced river well above flood level. our other top story tonight, it's official, the city of oakland has a new police chief, mayor libby schaaf introduced anne kirkpatrick this afternoon. laura anthony is live at city hall with the story tonight. laura, hope she stays a while. >> reporter: that's right, dan. it appears at this point the city council here still needs to approve her contract, but it does appear that anne kirkpatrick is set to become this city's next top cop. seven months after she characterized the culture of her police force as a frat house, oakland mayor libby chaaf announced anne kirkpatrick as the city's first female chief. >> we were not looking for a man or a woman, but someone who would deliver leadership, someone who would hold the department accountable for a level and standard of conduct that i know both men and women want.

>> i am a leader who is cloaked as a woman. and i'm grateful for being a woman, but i will be your leader. >> reporter: anne kirkpatrick has 34 years of law enforcement experience, a former chief in spokane, she most recently worked in chicago. appointed by the mayor there to lead reform efforts. some hope she'll do the same here. >> she knows what she's getting herself into. she knows that we are a relatively high crime city that's in need of major reforms, both in how the police interact and treat residents and in how we fight crime and reduce violent crime. >> reform is where we have policies and procedures and we direct behavior. reform. i am more interested in transformation. that's the change of thinking. that's the cultural change. >> we've got to give her a chance, like we do everybody. we've just got to give her a chance to see what's going to happen. >> reporter: in oakland,

kirkpatrick will not only have to gain the trust of a skeptical community but also the support of the rank and file. >> oakland police officers are welcoming the fact that we have a new chief and are looking forward to moving into the new year. >> reporter: kirkpatrick does plan to live where she works. >> i just told everybody i've got to save up some money. y'all are expensive. >> reporter: in oakland, laura anthony, abc 7 news. the appointment of the new police chief means all seven of oakland's top leadership positions are now held by women, including mayor libby schaaf, the fire chief, and venus johnson. dan noyes is looking into who is anne kirkpatrick. tonight at 6:00 he'll have reaction from chicago where she had her last job. on to some other news, a tech bus hit and killed a woman in saratoga last night. the woman was hit around 5:15 at the intersection on campus of west valley college.

the bus is operated by a charter company under contract with google. the 51-year-old victim does not appear to have any connection to west valley college. the crash is under investigation. a man is very lucky after he climbed out a bathroom window to escape flames inside his motel room. this morning's fire broke out at the gold coin motel. the man told investigators he had a bag of e-cigarettes and he was working on one of them. that bag burst into flames when the man stepped away to use the bathroom. crews kept the fire contained to the one motel room. first responders have moved in and station 87 is open once again. abc 7 news was in pittsburg today where there's now one more big engine to respond to calls for help in eastern contra costa county. the fire marshall tells us they dodged a bullet there were no major catastrophe's during the station's three-year closure and he says shorter response times really matter.

>> if you have somebody who's having a heart attack, you know, minutes do count. seconds do count. if you've got a fire, the difference in a six-minute response time versus a ten-minute response time can mean the difference between replacing your content and replacing your entire house. >> station 87 was closed in the wake of the economic downturn due to the loss of property tax revenue. home prices have rebounded, so property tax revenue is up as well. the county now has enough money to reopen this firehouse. a man from san francisco got lost while hiking in the sierra, spending nearly 24 hours in the cold and snow. it was cold. early tuesday morning the man called 911 from camp connell. he had started hiking about noon on monday. the calaveras county sheriff's office showed this picture of his rescue about five hours after he called 911. they used snowmobiles to get him because he was trapped off a forest road covered in very deep

snow. the man was not injured. he said he became disoriented but had enough food and water to survive. he took shelter under trees and walked through the night whenever he got cold just to keep moving. but he's safe and sound now. the fight over health care. >> the first order of business is to repeal and replace obamacare. >> so what does that mean for the millions of people covered under cover california? the answer coming up. plus a warning if you own a cat. a pet food recall includes some very popular brands. we'll have the story. also the california congressman who spent $600 in campaign funds on a rabbit. and the bay area company transforming the way peopl

the first order of business is to repeal and replace

obamacare. >> they can repeal, but they have nothing to put in its place. >> heated words on obamacare today as president obama visited capitol hill to urge lawmakers to preserve the law. the outgoing president met with democrats and urged them to work with republicans on possible replacement plans, but he added only if republicans keep coverage levels for americans the same. over 5 million californians have insurance as a result of the affordable care act. if repealed, there could be serious consequences for the state. for more on the kbabimpact, let turn to lyanne melendez live in the newsroom. >> we know that president-elect trump wants to keep a few provisions like covering those with pre-existing conditions and keeping children under 26 on their parents' policy. repeal and replace is expected to have a significant impact here in california because roughly 25% of all americans covered under the law live in the state. there is no doubt the affordable care act has pushed californians

to buy health insurance. take the 2013 uninsured rate in california. 17% before the law was passed. and in 2015, that rate reached a historic low of 8.5%. and under covered california health plans, those who can't afford the cost of health insurance have benefited the most. more than one million consumers receive federal subsidies to help them pay their monthly premiums. gabriella is one of them. she's 26, single, makes a low living wage and will pay $78 a month for health insurance. >> it can help me really well, especially on my other payments that i do have to deal with. >> if the affordable care act is repealed, she says she won't be able to afford a more costly health plan, an california would not be able to continue to subsidize consumers already rnd the plan. the state receives more than $20 billion a year in federal assistance. >> it's really hard to look for insurance on the side if you

don't have a good job, you know, because, one, your job is not paying you so much to help you pay your bills and then you've got to pay on top of that your health insurance. >> if repealed, insurance brokers believe the changes won't happen overnight. >> that's going to take at least a year to two. >> he agrees the affordable care act has many flaws and needs to be revamped. some of his younger clients find ways around it because the tax penalty is so low. >> the tax penalty currently is 2.5% of the annual adjusted gross income, right? so 2.5%. i have a client that makes $100,000 and 2.5% is only $2,500. >> if his client had to pay for insurance, it would likely cost him more than $6,000 a year. lyanne melendez, abc 7 news. >> of course there are a lot of bureaucratic hoops to go through before obamacare can be repealed. we have the ins and outs on our website, abc7news.com. search for paumcare. california democrats are tapping a former member of the obama administration to help

them with legal challenges that may pop up during the upcoming trump administration. former attorney general eric holder and his law firm will serve as outside counsel to both the state assembly and the senate. chad may says hiring eric holder is a waste of taxpayer money and the state should be relying on its attorney general for any challenge to the trump administration. san diego congressman duncan hunter, who gained notoriety last year when he used a vaporizer to protest a vaping ban on planes, he's back in the headlines. this time it's because he reportedly spent $600 in campaign money to fly a family rabbit. the san diego union tribune says other expenses included video games, oral surgery, a resort 78 and a jewelry purchase in italy. a spokesman says the congressman has reimbursed $62,000 that may have been incorrectly documented by the house ethics office. the spokesman also says the congressman deliberately told the newspaper about the rabbit expense to show how easy it is

to misconstrue simple mistakes as unethical conduct. a major laptop maker is recalling thousands of batteries due to the possibility they could overheat. >> 7 on your side's michael finney is here with that story. a lot of overheating batteries. >> it's these new kind of batteries. toshiba announced the recall of 83,000 laptop batteries from panasonic. that's on top of the 91,000 previously announced. the batteries can overheat, causing burn and hazards to consumers. you should check the back of your pc to see if you have one of the recalled batteries. here's the part number you're looking for. it begins with g71c. you're urged to remove the battery and go to toshiba's website and follow instructions on how to get a replacement. cat owners take note. j.m. smucker announced the recall of certain lots of three different cat foods. all the cat foods contain low levels of vitamin b1. that's something that's essential for cats.

the affected cat food are nine lives, special kitty and ever pet. deficiency of thiamin can lead to decreased appetite, vomiting and weight loss. in extreme cases it can lead to neurological damage. no illness connected to this recall has been reported. for more information, go to abc7news.com and check 7 on your side. you may have heard their commercials on the radio or seen the infomercials on tv. but the better business bureau has downgraded the rating of mypillow from an a minus to an f. you're looking at the youtube video from mypillmypillow. the bbb says the special two for one offer is really the regular price. the spokesperson says he's very sorry and called customer service the most important thing. >> it is, thank you, michael. well, it's official. connor cook will start for the oakland raiders on saturday in their wild card playoff game in houston.

cook will be the first quarterback to make his first nfl start in the playoffs. abc 7 news was at raiders headquarters in alameda as coach jack del rio made this big announcement. cook is the team's third-string quarterback. he was pressed into service last week after backup matt mcgloin got injured. he said being nervous, hey, that's part of the game. >> i was nervous last week just being activated, you know. you know, being inactive all season long and finally knowing that i was one play away, i was preparing like i was the guy. >> well, now he is the guy. cook's last start was in college. last night he got advice on how to handle his first start from his quarterback coach at michigan state. watching the raiders game going to be a popular idea this weekend when you see the wet weather we have on our way. live doppler 7 even tonight we've got a damp and dreary night ahead. from redwood city, san mateo over to hayward, even south into sunnyvale, some light showers at

this hour. that continues as we head north, even over san francisco. just some light drizzle that will be with us at least through the next six hours. it's a chilly dlifl out there. a lot of numbers in the 40s right now. we're holding at 51 in san jose and oakland and santa rosa at 50 degrees. after midnight the rain will ending from north to south so we will have clearing skies. dry tomorrow morning and temperatures thanks to the cloud cover not falling too far from where they are right now, mainly in the 40s. on your thursday it's going to be a dry day and actually a lot of sunshine on your thursday. 51 in san francisco, 54 san jose, 51 concord and 52 napa. friday equally as dry and then everything changes over the weekend. our first system arriving on saturday will be a 2, a moderate system. we'll have morning showers picking up in intensity in the afternoon and evening. that will coincide with gusty winds, 30 to 50 miles per hour. the north bay and santa cruz mountains a soaking 1 to 3

inches. most areas youtside of there, anywhere from a quarter to an inch and a quarter of rainfall. on friday it's cloudy and dry in the evening. the rainfall picks up early in the predawn hours on saturday and it's going to stick with us through the entire day on saturday. future weather showing you on-and-off showers even by 10:00. this dark shade of green you see encompassi encompassing most of the bay area. then this system gets an injection of energy on sunday so it gets upgraded on the storm impact scale on sunday. this will become a three on sunday. we've only had a handful of storms reach this status so it's uncommon across the bay area to see morning heavy rain and wind like we're going to see on sunday. flooding concerns and wind damage, look at this rainfall. urban areas as much as 3 inches of rain on sunday and the santa cruz mountains could see as much as 8 inches so this is a very strong storm. future weather showing you these pops of yellow and orange, that's the heavy rain and this is going to stick with us through the entirety of sunday

so the weekend at this point does look like a total washout. on sunday we had those wind gusts to contend with. future tracker wind gusts show they pick up saturday evening and continue throughout the day sunday. by sunday afternoon winds anywhere from 30 to 50 miles per hour. so the concerns we are watching as we go into the weekend, creek, stream and river flooding. we'll get a lot of rain in a short amount of time so we'll be monitoring that. debris flows are possible on our burn scars and downed trees and power outages are possible. if you lose power, you can always watch abc 7, keep up to date with the forecast using the abc 7 news app. it's going to be very handy this weekend. accuweather seven-day forecast, dry two days and then the weekend. it is rainy and breezy. right now sunday morning looks to have the height of that storm a 3, even into monday it's still stormy with rain likely tuesday and into wednesday so the weekend will feature some very heavy rain. >> if you have weekend soccer games, baseball games, they're done. they're done. thank you, drew. >> we want to thank abc 7 news viewer brandon for this picture

of umbrellas on the streets of oakland. share your pictures with us on social media using #abc7now. well, intel doubles down on 5g. the next step in mobile, next. then at 5:30 on world news with david muir. >> kristen, dan, stay tuned. the dramatic showdown on capitol hill. president obama versus the incoming vice president. also tonight two officers ambushed, shot in a walmart and you'll see it. the commuter crash, the train that did not stop. more than 100 passengers injured and we're on the scene tonight right here 2for abc 7 news. and made in space. new at 6:00 the dreams of some south bay teenagers coming true aboard the international space station. that and more comin

of reach for far too long:s have health insurance.that's been out how? they enrolled through covered california. it's the health insurance marketplace where you'll find a range of plans from leading health insurance companies that offer you the best combination of quality, rates, and benefits. and, through covered california, you may get financial help to pay for coverage. to get covered, you've got to get going. open enrollment ends january 31st. visit covereca.com today. check this out. a san francisco drone maker has developed the world's fastest production drone. they are claiming that the draco

drone can move at 75 miles an hour. tech crunch clocked it at 100 miles an hour. the drone can do 360-degree barrel rolls. hang on. as well as quick drops and recoveries. it also records hd video and you can see -- as you can see here clearly in this company video, which is pretty breath taking. intel is also thinking about speed tonight. the santa clara company announced a new high-speed 5g modem that can be used in cars, phones and in your house. exactly how fast 5g will be really isn't clear at this point but it's expected to be four times the speed of 4g, which is what most of us have on our phones now. intel is hoping that getting in the game early will make it the go-to supplier for this technology 5g and it seems to be paying off. just today bmw said it will partner with intel to deliver their atutonomous vehicles. and tesla has started mass production of lithium ion

batteries. it brings an industry to america that's been dominated by china, japan and south korea. batteries for the model 3 are expected to begin production in the spring. when it comes to texting at the movies, apple seems to be saying if you can't beat them, join them. reports are out that apple might be adding theater mode to its iphones. sonny dixon has leaked information on apple products and he is tweeting that the ios 10.3 update will feature a theater mode in the form of a popcorn-shaped control center icon. apple has had a patent on such technology since 2012. well, nasa is going where only hollywood has gone before. the space agency will launch two space crafts to explore asteroids. one will visit asteroids circling jupiter to learn about the origins of the solar system. another will visit an asteroid made of metal and iron that may have been the core of a planet

at one point. >> it may have been the longest 14 miles of his life. coming up, you'll meet the man who just

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well, raider nation, you can watch your team kick off wild card weekend right here on abc 7. >> that's right. abc 7 news reporter wayne freedman will have live reports from houston on saturday when we take on the texans in houston with the live coverage starting at noon on saturday. you know, he's going to have a complete wrap-up with live postgame interviews as well after the game. >> so tune in wild card weekend, it begins this weekend. as for what's coming up toenigh at 6:00 p.m., ama daetz is here. coming up, oakland's new police chief seems well suited for the job with a background as a reformer. the i-team has found out she has her critics. and the lessons all of us

can learn ahead of this weekend's powerful storm. and michael finney shows us what's hot at this year's consumer electronics show. a hint, we'll be hearing voices. that's all coming up at 6:00. dan, kristen. >> thanks, ama. finally tonight, the next time you complain about exercising, consider this athlete in france. >> robert just set a world record for cycling about 14 miles in one hour at 105 years old. seriously. >> the self-proclaimed world's oldest athlete told reporters he wanted to go faster but he didn't see the clock that told him how much time he had left. he said all he wants to do is prove that you can still ride a bike at his aim. >> his secret is eating plenty of fruits and veggies, no smoking, daily exercise, a 9:00 p.m. bedtime and drinking wine only on occasion. >> which is interesting. >> yeah, not the typical french lifestyle. >> can't argue, he's 105, still going strong. >> world news tonight is coming up next. i'm kristen sze.

>> and i'm dan ashley. for all of us, we appreciate your time. we'll see you at 6:00. >> bye-bye. tonight, the showdown. president obama on capitol hill. the vice president-elect mike pence there at the same time. the president now trying to save obamacare. the vice president-elect saying it will be repealed. and we ask what then for the 20 million now insured because of it. also tonight, today it was day president-elect trump promised he would reveal what he knows that others don't about the hacking during the election. instead, mocking u.s. intelligence on the eve of the report. the commuter crash in new york city tonight more than 100 passengers hurt, and we are on the scene. two police officers answering a call. ambushed at a walmart. the video tonight. and speaking out for the first time in 20 years. one of the menendez brothers in his own words tonight, and what he reveals about t