in both directions. the highway patrol says skyline is closed indefinitely until the county can assess how severe the erosion is and how to fix it. officers discovered it two hours ago. >> the damage is along the southern edge of san born county park. drivers are asked to find another way around. to a cleared out highway. this highway would normally be packed with cars. instead, empty. good evening. >> thanks for joining us. the sun came out today. in some places, the damage is done. >> highway 17 is closed tonight after repeated mudslides in the same spot. >> right now, they are playing the waiting game, unsure when it will be safe to reopen the road. >> david is live near the mudsli mudslide. >> reporter: you can see how quiet highway 17 is.

it's closed since this morning because of concern that that slide back there is going to be sliding again. you see there's dirt along the center divider. a front loader is trying to keep more rock or debris to come down. a landslide expert is on site to make a final determination whether it's safe for 17 to be reopened tonight or not. engineers and guyologi ologgeol worried this isn't done sliding. the risk is evident as you see small rocks tumbling down. there are larger rocks and boulders that could crash down on to the southbound lanes that were unexpectedly closed this morning. the geologist is using flags to track the hill's movement. >> what is done -- he set markers in the slide. he is tracking how much -- if you look at it, you can see a little bit of movement. it's hard over time to see how much of it's rooted.

he has sensors in the slide. he is gauging how much of the hill coming down. >> reporter: this hill wiped out two vehicles. an abc 7 news van and a pickup truck earlier week. they don't want to risk a more serious injury or death if it continues to allow traffic to drive past. once again, long detours for anyone trying to go between san jose and the pacific coast. bypass roads are narrow. big trucks can barely make the turn to exit highway 17. drivers backed up in traffic alerted chp they saw this man get out of his car on 17, drink beer and urinate in public. they questioned him when he reached the detour. he got aggressive with an officer. >> he was trying to pull out some type of pocketknife. he wasn't going along with the instructions that the officer was giving to him. he secured him in the car until other units could get here. >> abc 7 news. that's not the only road

closure in the region. south, the situation is also dangerous and challenging in the santa cruz mountains. matt keller has that story. >> reporter: we came across this sinkhole. it pales in comparison to what we saw south of the glenwood cutoff. i'm on glenwood drive or what used to be glenwood drive. i have never seen such a massive hole in a road before. a lot of people who use this road to get to work in the morning. but it will be a long time before this is fixed. more damage just around the corner. a mudslide covered up with a tarp. if you get in trouble, often times help is around the corner. the chp not only showed up overnight, the officers got out, in the pouring rain, helped take the trailer off, turn it around and reattach it to the truck so the people inside could drive out. all of this in a very dangerous area.

>> it's a rather steep cliff full of mud and water. probably not fun to go down there. >> reporter: public works reports 56 incidents in the mountains. take a look at the dangerous conditions if you are heading to the sierra. interstate 80 is blocked west of blue canyon because of this mudslide. they posted video of crews cleaning it up. the chp says they can't reopen the free way until they know the hill has stopped sliding. mudslides have been a problem on highway 50. just the past hour, there have been at least three full highway closures around kyburz. they have been clearing it. both directions are closed. a section of highway 37 won't be reopening any time soon. look at that. sky 7 flew over the flooded section this afternoon. today, they announced it will remain closed until at least february 24. that's two weeks from now.

cars are being diverted around the flooding which resulted from a levee break on private property. a swamp-like scene north in sonoma county. overflow from the russian river surrounds homes and fills vineyards as you will see. there's a large landslide just north of the river near the community of rio nito. for more on what's happening, let's go to wayne freedman. >> reporter: good afternoon. the creek is the problem tonight. the river crusted at 1:00. fife creek comes down through the mountains. it's caused a backup that continues. this is church street. it's hardly draining at all. this is water going into a storm drain very clearly. there's nowhere for the water to go. that's why the people in this neighborhood are still stuck wading in and out.

the last remaining surge from yesterday's downpour passed through at 1:00 p.m. today. the russian river reached 34 feet. downtown, hardly a threat to this generation or the next. locals know this wet winters a threat comes from fife's creek. today, crews reinforced a section of a road used by school buses where fife washed away the soil beneath. >> it's the fife creek that got me again. >> reporter: it's the creek that has residents almost up to their knees in water, praying for it to recede. this is the trouble spot. >> next seven or eight days. >> still. relentless. >> reporter: when the sun came out, look what it revealed. this is what remains of highway 37. today, they announced this three-mile stretch will be closed until february 24th.

thanks to a broken levee it's a lake taken over by nature, large and small. highway 37 remains the north bay's most pressing problem. its closure impacts tens if not hundreds of thousands of drivers. the 5,000 residents here while hardly happy know their drill all too well. >> i'm concerned about other places. >> reporter: wayne freedman, abc 7 news. more trouble. last month a road caved in on a tiny bridge. now, three homes nearby have been hit by flooding from the creek. the homeowners believe the city may be at fault. they say the city didn't clean a culvert which caused rain runoff to flow into their homes. one family plans to move out. they say the wooden floors will have to be torn out and replaced. the city says it was due to a combination of multiple factors

calling the situation, quote, a perfect storm. yesterday's storm was not so kind to boats. several snapped from their docks and floated in the bay. five ended up stranded. some of them sinking slowly. abc 7 news was there as men worked to pump water out of their sailboat. >> for conditions about the weather or your commute, track it all with the free abc 7 news app. enable push alerts. right now, we have this report for you. >> i'm not completely innocent. but i'm not guilty of everything i'm charged with. >> on the eve of his trial, he told us he is no angel. but claims he never tried to have nine people, witnesses in his white collar case, murdered.

are you capable of violence? >> no. not at all. >> the 39-year-old was originally arrested in 2013 on 50 counts, including insurance fraud and embezzlement related to his work as a manager at a recycling company. in late 2014, the grand jury indicted him on ten additional felonies, for allegedly soliciting fellow inmates. >> there were two witnesses that allege he approached them, one of them, solicited them and conspired with them to murder some of the witnesses of the original crimes. >> that was the prosecutor assigned to the case at the time. the d.a.'s office would not comment for this story. according to prosecutors, there was a hit list. the proposed methods included stages car accidents, drug overdoses and robberies that had, quote, gone bad. >> it's completely false. >> is there a hit list? >> the hit list that they made in their own handwriting. >> he told us it would make no

sense for him to hire inmates here at the jail to kill witnesses in his white collar case because up to that point, he was facing a relatively light sentence. >> i wasn't looking at a lot of time before the alleged murder conspiracy came. i had no intention of trying to murder any witnesses. i'm looking at life. i'm looking at never going home. >> his trial starts tuesday with jury selection. he will act as his own attorney. abc 7 news. tensions between mexico and the united states ratchet up. why mexico is warning its citizens living here to take precautions. strategy shift. president trump considers a new travel ban. >> a church faces political backlash. the four words someone to see. >> you will see more sun like you are looking at in this picture over the weekend. find out when the storms are returning back. sev seven-day forecast coming up.

>> coming up on, we will talk about free stuff.

president trump is considering signing a new order. speaking to reporters on his way to his resort for the weekend, mr. trump said the new order could come as early as next week. he maintained the justice department will win in the courts. the process may take a while so he wants to act now. >> we will win that battle. we have a lot of other options, including filing a new order. >> any new travel ban will face similar challenges. a judge in the ninth circuit court of appeals requested a larger panel to reconsider the decision that the three judge panel made yesterday. that means in theory, the ninth

circuit could reverse itself without the government asking itself to. mexico issued a warning to all its citizens living in the u.s. take precaution following thursday's deportation of a mother in arizona. mexico has been asking people to have their papers in order. >> reporter: this latest warning comes after a woman, an arizona mother of two, was deported thursday. that action initiated protests by her supporters. this is not the first time the mexican government has expressed some urgency through its u.s. consulates. it did so in november after the presidential election. since then, mexicans living in the u.s. have been asked to have their papers and documents in order. this lady who only gave us her first name says she's following those recommendations. >> i came to get my passport for the same reason donald trump is doing. i'm working on my visa.

i don't know how it's going to happen. >> reporter: the government points out those who don't have dual citizenship should begin the process now. passport offices have seen an increase in the number of applications. it's not only mexicans applying. >> this month has been busy. mostly because of the ban. between 30%. >> we have to be prepared. >> reporter: in the case of the arizona mother, she had been arrested and convicted in 2008 for using a fake social security number. ice said her immigration case underwent review at multiple levels of the immigration court system. including the board of immigration appeals and the judges held she did not have a legal basis to remain in the u.s. regardless, many mexicans fear anyone can now be a target. a banner welcoming immigrants and refugees at a church is standing tall again

after being vandalized. this is a photo of the back of the sign in front of st. jude's episcopal church. the banner is actually a replacement of the original but stolen in early january. >> if you don't like the message, come and talk to us. we talk about having courageous conversations. we don't all agree on everything in this church. but we know that we want to try to figure out ways to talk to each other. come and talk. >> reporter: the reverend said it was put up at the recommendation of parishioners and overall they have received positive feedback from the community. a san francisco sheriff was the target of protests this afternoon after a 100-year-old woman was evicted from her home. we were at city hall as demonstrators shouted shame as the sheriff. they evicted iris who failed to

pay attorney fees following a legal battle. the demonstrators worry about her health following the eviction. >> i am terrified for this woman. what is going to happen when she's told? i don't know. >> the owner of the property to offered to let her live at the apartment for the rest of her life if she signed a document to let it convert to condos. she wanted to buy the apartment at a discounted price. new developments in the case of the girl scout robbed outside a supermarket. today police releases this sketch of the suspect. he is described as a black teenager about 5'4" with acne on his forehead. the 12-year-old girl and her mother were selling cookies outside when the robber pointed a gun and took the cash. this was a girl scout selling cookies. police donated money to the girl and bought her remaining inventory of cookies. really nice of the police

department to do that. here is a look at live doppler 7. the last of the showers passing through. we will see the showers like you are seeing here on street level radar, highway 101. we are enjoying lots of sunshine out there. from our russian river area, i want to point out a flood warning continues until 9:50 tomorrow morning. minor flooding has been reported and will continue. keep that in mind. it's above flood stage. flood warning for central sonoma county until tomorrow morning. we have one more flood warning to report. this is until 9:15 tomorrow. it's the rivers and creeks are still running high. there's a concern about flooding there. how much rain did we get in six to 12 inches in places like santa rosa, over a foot of rain. san jose, one and a half inches of rain. san francisco, almost three. same thing with oakland. to date, we are well above average for this time of year.

in the case of santa rosa, 205% of normal. oakland, 153% of average. if you are heading up to the mountains, you have heard mudslides closing 80, parts of 50, until 10:00 tonight, winter weather advisory. tough driving conditions over the west slope. in the tahoe area, a winter storm worning. until tomorrow morning. do watch out for black ice, hazard out driving conditions. they are expecting more inch flz snow. great to see blue skies. even the birds are enjoying the temperatures. upper 50s to below 60s. another live picture from our roof camera. clouds mixing in with sun. we look towards telegraph hill. mid to upper 50s for everyone except concord at 60. pretty shades as we see the sun there through the clouds. areas of fog overnight tonight. dry and sunny this weekend. rain returns the middle of next week.

6:00, maybe a sprinkle or two. don't worry about it. the showers winding down. tomorrow morning at around 4:00, we will start out with fog and then it quickly starts to burn off. you will be seeing bright skies for the rest of your day. the fog that you need to watch for primarily in the east bay valleys. keep that in mind. temperatures starting out in the upper 30s to the upper 40s. a cool start for your morning. for the afternoon, it's sun s sunshine. if your kids have games tomorrow morning, 24e withey will not wo about the rain. chinese new year's parade this saturday 5:15. the weather couldn't be better. 60 at 3:00 p.m. if you arrive before the parade. sunshine, 57 degrees at 6:00. at 9:00 p.m., clear skies. some years, we have had rain. rain chances return middle of next week. thursday, it's a two moderate, in strength with heavy rain, strong southerly winds. a quick preview thursday

evening. then we will see more shower chances. seven-day forecast featuring sunshine for a change this weekend. i know. two on the storm impact scale thursday. rain chances return wednesday night. enjoy the mild spring-like weather tuesday near 70. >> perfect parade weather. >> great parade weather. i hear rain for chinese new year's parade is good luck. >> it has rained. >> year of the rooster bringing good luck. >> thanks. from orchids to antiques, it's time to get outside. that's next. solar power in a suitcase? new at 6:00, the project by bay area students that will light schools half a world away. ge

people who protect wild horses are concerned about what the trump administration could do to mustangs protected under federal law. efforts to keep healthy herds in

the wild are hurting the horses. tonight at 11:00, we investigate this issue and the white house reacts. a museum is nursing this little guy back to health. someone found a female beaver this week in a carport in pittsburgh. they have given it antibiotics and is nursing her back to health. the museum believes beavers are being washed away from all the storm water. they can't find their way back to their preferred streams. it's friday as you know. you know what that means. >> today, michael is live. you are answering questions and giving things away. >> we are. we're having a great time down here. a lot of people have wandered by. we would invite you to come out here. we will be here until 7:00. we are taking your questions and concerns. here is my concern. the first item we have been giving away every year for at least 20 years, maybe up to 25,

it's a 65th annual pacific orchid and garden exposition. it's been going on in san francisco for that long. we have been a part of it for nearly a quarter sun tur centur. it runs february 24 through 26. this year's theme is big ideas for small gardens. it focusing on learning about pollination and helping plants thrive. it will feature a live auction, live music and flowers from all over the world. $15 value. the first 400 people that contact us will get in for free. it's a great deal. you ought to get in on this every year. people really enjoy it. our next item is the big antique show that occurs over in alamida on the third sunday of every month. free parking and free tickets. everything for sale is at least 20 years old. the show we're talking about is sunday february 19.

it's a $10 value. it's at the fairgrounds. you get all of the items by going online to abc7news.com. there you will find the free stuff. i'm michael finney. >> great stuff. before we move on, some silly kid jumped in front of you and said something dumb on the air. we apologize for the offensive language. live tv. a park ranger has trouble posing for his staff picture. >> take a look at this final image. it's great.

abc 7 is your home for the warriors showdown tomorrow with the oklahoma city thunder. catch all the action. coverage starts at 5:00 p.m. tomorrow. >> followed by after the game. tomorrow right here abc coming7 news at 6, we have this. >> millions of gallons of water being released that's not close to being full. why officials have no choice. in this building, they are the innocent victims. >> a celebrity lawyer who has worked cases involving o.j. and donald trump takes on san

francisco's sinking skyscraper case. some residents don't want him. the secret of the glowing warms that's shedding light on the battle against alzheimer's disease. >> thanks. we will see you then. a dose of cute to start your weekend. >> we deserve cute right now. look at this. a pair of guinea pigs off to a race this friday night. they are putting safety first. you can see they have cute matching helmets. >> check out lacy's battle with deep snow. the bulldog struggling. she does seem to be enjoying herself. >> finally, getting perfect picture can be difficult. ask this indiana park service officer and his k-9. it took multiple takes for him to get the dog to look directly at the camera. >> how cute? the dog wanted to show its affection. here we go finally, the perfect portrait. very serious both of them. >> triple the cuteness. great way to start the weekend. world news tonight is next.

>> we appreciate your time. we will see you at 6:00. tonight, breaking news here. president trump hits back. after a major defeat in court, that decision not to reinstate his immigration ban. tonight, new reporting from our team. what is the white house planning next? what president trump just revealed. also tonight, the high drama. the controversial education secretary and the protesters blocking her today. as town halls now erupt in anger across this country. >> all: do your job! do your job! >> many voters asking, can you promise we will not lose our health insurance? the monster winter storm. thousands of flights cancelled and delayed. and, look. passengers trapped in traffic jams. some walking along highways to make their flights. and tonight, the next major system now hitting this weekend. america's tallest dam. this evening, the massive crater, growing in size. authorities