>> we are several hours into this at this point. what took so [ inaudible ]? >> there were approximately 88,000 customers without power. there was a system failure that resulted in a fire. we were working safely and as quickly as possible to address those issues. and as we learned more about what happened, we'll be able to provide additional information about that. but our top priority is always going to be the safety of the folks that are in the community, our responders, along with our partners here at the city. and we are working with fire

department during this process to make sure that our teams were safe who were going into the areas as well as the fire department themselves. we were making sure we were doing a safe and reliable job on this situation. >> one of the 85,000 people restored, where did that power come from? was it rerouted or -- around this truck conversation? >> there are a number of ways it is brought back in. there is rerouting, there are repairs. we're going to continue to do that to get everybody back on until this afternoon, until later this afternoon, yes. >> the power station is functional [ inaudible ]? >> we are going to continue to work on it and update it and fix it, yeah. >> a quick question from the chronicle. >> [ inaudible ]. >> i have to double-check that and get back to you. >> [ inaudible ].

>> they're still on generator, yeah. >> [ inaudible ]. >> that was -- yes, it has started and it will be completed by q1 of next year. so, the procession is a long-term process. there is construction going on there and we will be hopefully finishing up that $100 million upgrade by the first quarter of 2018. >> chronicle. >> [ inaudible ]. >> you know, that's something we're going to start looking at through our recovery efforts. we're going to start getting together with different city agencies that work with our business organizations. you know, certainly if there is an opportunity to calculate these things and seek reimbursement for them, we will. but that's going to be something we're going to cover in our recovery. one more question. >> will rerouting the station,

will that overtax the rest of the system and tonight everyone is going to come home and turn on their lights and short the entire city? >> well, we're working -- our top priority is always the safety and reliability of our system. the plan to restore is in a way that is doing just that, to safely and reliably provide power and energy to our customers. we're working -- our restoration plan will enable a safe restoration of power. >> all right, thank you, guys. this is going to be our last press update. we will be sending out media advisories for one on ones after this, okay? >> there is the word from both pg&e and the department of emergency operations that basically this situation now is affecting only 3,000 customers, which is the good news because earlier when the power went out this morning, there were almost 90,000 customers who lost electricity. >> yeah, let me go ahead and recap some of the information for you. power outage hit around 9:20 this morning. this map shows just how big the

outage was stretching from market street to the presidio. 80,000 customers were affected at its peak. that number is down to 3,000. sky 7 shows smoke. you see it right there, that was pouring from the substation at lar kin and turk. that's where this all started. >> we had an equipment failure, a catastrophic failure of one of our circuit breakers. when the circuit breaker failed, it created a fire around the breaker. >> we needed to extinguish the insulation that was burning surrounding the breaker. we were able to successfully do that with a dry chemical agent. we did notice some flare-ups and so then we applied co2 to the fire. >> the outage knocked out the lights and service at the montgomery b.a.r.t. station. pitch black inside. quite a few businesses also had to close today including banks and restaurants. >> we lost a lot of business. it was a big day for us, friday. we lost breakfast, lunch and we

have all the employees here. we can't let them go because the power coming being ba, we'd be in big trouble, too. >> at 1.300 traffic signals were out, 200 remain without power. there is congestion throughout the city. the mayor said there were no injuries reported because of the outage. >> the outage had a huge effect on people in and around downtown san francisco. abc 7 news reporter kate larson spoke with some employees and businesses and kate joins us live now from union square. >> reporter: you know, alma, larry, the lights are still out here in parts of union square. we're at post and stockton and it's still quite a problem around here. but the fact that pg&e is saying they are making progress makes sense because we actually just drove west up to van ness and franklin. of course, always the busy area during the evening commute. the good news is those lights do seem to be back on as well as lights we saw on montgomery and market. but here in union square, kind of bad news all around for employees and businesses who

lost out big time today. not only that, but there were several emergencies because of the outage. fire fighters rushing from one call to another in downtown san francisco during a power outage to rescue people from many's worst nightmare. >> scared me. as soon as you got on the elevator, the lights went on and went blank. >> reporter: a building security guard on gary street says an employee got stuck in this elevator 30 minutes. >> i was making sure he was okay, you know, kept saying call his name out, yeah, are you all right? yeah, i'm okay. then when they finally came and cracked it open enough, i could give him a bottle of water. >> reporter: what type of buildings have you been responding to today? >> hotels, older buildings. >> reporter: we ran into charles villegas an elevator technician who says he was called to help eight people out of elevators today, mostly hotels around union square. a busy day, but he says there

are actually worse scenarios. >> we had a natural disaster hitting the city, it would be pretty bad. >> we're restoring the electric. >> reporter: pg&e crews doing their best to move through sluggish traffic caused by dark signal lights while businesses were reduced to scribbled door notes of closures. >> we open at 7:00, it was crazy busy. everything we received for the people, the checks, we do it by hand. we still had to calculate the tax, everything. so, it's not fun to work. >> reporter: doing his best to keep the restaurant running, customers in the dark. without electricity they can only do and serve so much. how much business do you think you're losing? >> a lot. probably 10,000 for now. >> reporter: back out here live, even some of the big department stores like macy's had beentoda.

i peeked inside. there was not a soul in there. i checked in with the cafe again. they normally close between 10 and 2:00 p.m. they are already closed. a lot are in the same boat now. i'm kate larson, abc 7 news. >> definitely feeling the effects. thanks, kate. the power outage stranded two window washes next to the saint mary's cathedral. the aerial platform was stuck when the electricity went out. they were stranded several hours suspended above the street. the workers were eventually rescued and are okay. >> a power outage caused problems for drivers all day long. take a look at this. gridlock, sky 7 showing us dozens of intersections across the city where the traffic lights went out and they turned into chaotic four-way stops. we have a look at our live traffic map showing the back up that exists now. you can see the areas in red moving the slowest. the worst traffic is normally on

a friday afternoon, getting off and getting on the bay bridge. we have another live look. this is the view from the skyway in downtown san francisco. and you know what, i mean, this is actually a typical view. >> pretty average. >> in fact, it might be slightly better than some friday afternoons. but obviously traffic impacted everywhere around the city. and so we will keep you posted on the traffic situation because it's going to be slow going. >> yes. let's give you the time line. this all began at 9:19 this morning when a circuit breaker failed at a power station. 11:45 power was restored do 10,000 people. but 2:00, 13,000 people. 3:30, 3,000 customers. power is expected to be on for everyone by 5:00. >> the outage was miss tiysteri the early hours. maybe there is a hacking situation going on in the grid. >> abc 7 news anchor kristen sze

is here what people were posting. kristen. >> the power outage had been trending all day with people using social media as you mention to document their experience. benjamin feldman tweeted this picture of the montgomery street b.a.r.t. station. in the dark, people using their phone lights, you can see, to find their way out. and tom tweetsed this picture of gridlock at 3rd and market street. you can see just how far the back up extends with the intersection lights out. and san francisco's mayor ed lee tweeted this photo of him meeting with the staff at the city's office of emergency services. now, many employees also took the work outside. take a look at this one, 179, some people try to make the best of the situation. bell a postsed on instagram what happens when her favorite pet store is closed.

now haunted chips posted on instagram a bright idea, if you will, charging a phone using an emergency solar panel. now, many people are also posing a serious question. is this possibly connected to the outage last night in long beach that temporarily crippled business at the port? and of course some of you might have also heard there was a situation in new york city as well with an outage that really jambed up the subway here. these are pictures from sister stations by the way. s.f.p.d. tried to address that. they tweeted, s.f.p.d. understands concerns regarding coincidence of outages in other cities. pg&e identified that the power outage is due to equipment failure. larry and alma? >> all right, kristen, thank you so much. a day of traffic chaos and business lost around san francisco, we are staying on top of the problems caused by today's power outage. we'll take a look at the bright side from the financial district. also ahead. >> calls, i was going to come and pickup my money and lo and

behold, they were closed. >> only on abc 7 news, a big shock for customers when a popular consignment store locks its doors permanently with no explanation. and. >> i'm going to have to hold it in your hand to find out. >> memorabilia is about to go up for bid here in the bay area. why some people say it's worth paying a quarter of a million dollar

in addition to the power outage in san francisco, we're also following a breaking news in the south bay. san jose police investigating an officer involved shooting that happened around 12:30 this

afternoon near the intersection of louis and center roads. they were responding to a call of a man with a knife and during the interaction with that man, an officer fired a shot injuring the man. the suspect was taken to the hospital for treatment. his current condition is unknown but we do have a crew on the way to the scene and we'll bring you live updates as soon as they become available. >> a long-standing popular consignment store in walnut creek has suddenly shut its doors leaving customers in the lurk hundreds of thousands of dollars. >> laura anthony live in walnut creek with a story you'll see only on 7. laura? >> reporter: this is consignment plus home furnishings. the reason the store closed suddenly this week, they filed yesterday for chapter 7 bankruptcy. that is a total liquidation. that explains why customers keep coming up to the front doors, finding them locked. one by one customers walk up,

see the chain and read the sign on the front door. walnut creek consignment plus home furnishing store, a store that abruptly closed on monday. >> the doors are chained and it says permanently. they're closing up. >> reporter: she's been shopping here for years. they just came to look this time, but that's not going to happen. >> we don't know. this has always been a very interesting and wonderful place to come to. >> they even gave me an account number, they gave me my receipt. >> reporter: alicia has a bigger problem. she's consigned several pieces of waterford crystal, some of them sold. the rest are now locked inside. she's due a check for $476. >> about a week ago they gave me a call and they had some funds for me. and they asked me if i want to either get it -- come in and pickup or what have you, but never indicated they were going

to be closing. >> consignment plus furnishings is permanently closed. >> reporter: the sign gives customers little guidance except for a call or letter with instructions. same thing for the sign on the so far no one we talked with has received that information. we reached out to the owner patty evans, but so far no response. in walnut creek, laura anthony davis, abc 7 news. >> wells fargo agreed today to increase its class action settlement lawsuit by $32 million. the san francisco bank says it will pay $142 for any account opened without permission. that is in addition to the fine levied in september. also announced today it will extend claims for fraudulent accounts that may have been opened going back to 2002. a u.s. federal judge today ordered volkswagen to pay a $2.8 billion criminal penalty

for cheating or diesel emissions test. it comes six weeks after they pleaded guilty to conspiracy and obstruction of justice. it is paying more than a billion dollars in a civil case brought by the government and spending $11 billion to buy back cars and offer other compensation. >> silicon valley comic con kicksed off in less than an hour second year in a row. a san jose based company is auctioning off rare movie memorabilia. abc 7 news reporter tiffany wilson takes a look at what's up for grabs. >> reporter: you saw it on the screen, now you can put it in your home. >> having the actual piece of the actor actually used is very, very rare. >> reporter: the clock from back to the future, commander reicher's uniform from star trek, and superman suit worn by christopher reeve. >> it starts at 65,000. we think it can go over 100,000. >> reporter: if you don't have room for this in your house, don't worry, they have nearly

200 items all sizes and price points. $50 is the lowest opening bid, and this "star wars" storm trooper helmet is the crown jewel. >> we think that could go up to 250 ,000. >> reporter: the co-owner of san jose based company screen used says collectors especially love props from the '80s and '90s thanks in part to technology. >> things are changing in the movie industry where they're going computer graphics, cgi. and so if you have back to the future today, they probably wouldn't have hover boards, it would be done on the green screen. >> reporter: it's tough to explain the magic of owning these iconic pieces. >> you have to hold it in your hand to find out. >> reporter: but you'll have to open your wallet first. yeah, a lot of looking but no touching unless you buy those items this weekend. the online auction opened earlier this month. the real live auction will take place sunday starting at noon. in san jose, tiffany wilson, abc 7 news. >> looks pretty nice down in san

jose. >> absolutely. i think it's going to be a great weekend, spencer. >> i love this weather today. high temperatures nearly 80 degrees in many locations and last check even santa cruz was 7 77. >> wow. >> sunshine all across the bay area, although a few clouds may move in over the weekend. let's take a wider look right now. you can see the clouds moving out right now. it will cool us down a little bit, not likely, though, to produce any significant rainfall. here's the beautiful rooftop camera looking at blue skies over the embarcadero. currently 73 in san francisco, 74 in oakland. mountain view and san jose 66 degrees. 80 in gilroy, 66 in half moon bay. east bay hills camera, 75 degrees in santa rosa, fairfield 76 nap, novato, 78 concord, 74 livermore. this is the view at the golden gate. a few whispy clouds.

partly cloudy and mild this weekend. not quite so warm today. we may see isolated sprinkles over the new york times bay coast over the weekend. light rain possible early next week. look for mainly clear skies except for a few high clouds moving through. low temperatures will be in the 40s tonight, inland areas, mid to upper 40s. low 50s right around the bay. tomorrow look for hazy sunshine, a few high clouds moving by. it will be a bright sky tomorrow with highs ranging from low to mid 60s at the coast to upper 60s and low 70s near the bay and low to mid 70s inland. tomorrow is earth day. looks like it's going to be a great day for it here. early morning hours we may see some patchy coastal mainly in the north bay. the remainder of the day will be mostly sunny and mild with high temperatures moving into the mid 70s inland by late afternoon. as we get into the evening hours it is still going to be relatively mild. forecast animation starting 6:00 tomorrow morning shows as the clouds i showed you earlier move closer to us we could see spotty coastal drizzle.

mainly along the north bay. that will move on through and we'll have hazy sunshine which i also referred. early hours into early sunday morning where we might see some spotty drizzle along the coast line and that will be mainly bright skies over the weekend. cooling down just a little bit but it will be nice and pleasant. here is the accuweather forecast seven-day forecast. we don't see any rain developing until, oh, actually early next week. for the weekend it will be dry. mild to moderate cooling down a bit on sunday. we'll see increasing clouds on monday. tuesday we have a weak rain maker coming in which ranks 1 on the storm impact scale. several sprinkles may linger into early wednesday morning and start clearing out and drying up and warming up again late next week. >> all right, thank you so much, spencer. >> all right. if you can afford a home in san francisco, you might want to consider something a little bit different. how about an entire town that is up for grabs. plus. ♪ whisper words of wisdom, let

it be ♪ >> the man who grew up not being able to speak is singing out loud. how he's inspiring others. >> a live look at traffic at 4:22 on a get away friday. this is the macarthur mays. eastbound 80 traffic, oncoming traffic. pretty slow, a little bit better on the right-hand side for folks making the right-hand turn into san francisco.

what an afternoon for breaking news. we're now following a story in san francisco here. look at this man perched on the side of the cliffs. fire crews working to rescue this guy from a cliff near china beach. these are live pictures from sky 7. the man is stuck on a steep cliff and fire crews tell us the tide is coming in. his grip seems pretty tenuous right there. they're trying to figure out how he got there in the first place and how to pull him off the cliff. it's not clear how he got stuck, but we'll keep monitoring that situation and bring you live updates on the air and online

just as soon as they become available. >> music fans worldwide are commemorating the one year anniversary of the death of prince. ♪ >> fans danced and sang outside of prince's paisley park home in minnesota. he died of an accidental overdose inside the compound at the age of 57. four days of events are planned at the complex. >> caitlyn jenner taking aim at the republican party. in her follow-up interview with diane sawyer, she could bolt the party over one issue. >> you mess with my community, you do the wrong thing with our community, you don't give us equality and a fair shot, i'm coming after you. >> jenner admits she did vote for donald trump, but has been openly critical of his administration. in february she tweeted the president to call her. he did not. you can see more of diane sawyer's exclusive interview on

a special 2020 tonight here at abc 7. >> for the ritzy price of san francisco you can leave the headaches of the town behind and buy a town in oregon. >> the small town of tiller north of medford is up for sale, $3.5 million, you can buy the tiny town, six houses, the shut ergen store, gas station, and rights to water and infrastructure. now, for another can own the elementary school. it's been on a downturn, well, for the last 30 years. when the timber industry crashed. but all this could be yours. >> yes. all right. back to our breaking news,s massive power outage affecting thousands of customers in san francisco. >> what is this? it's closed now. >> we lost a lot of business today. it's a big day for us, friday. >> stores closed when traffic lights went out. it's not all bad news.

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well, this is quick. an update to the break being news we brought you a few minutes ago. a man was clinging to the side of a cliff near china beach. the emergency rescue helicopter lowered a man down.

they snatched him off the side of the rocks. pulled him up, and he is now inside that chopper which is landing, as you see live here, via sky 7. so, he's safe and sound, still no details on how he got stuck on the side of the cliff. but all that will become readily known i imagine in just a few minutes. >> and here are the stories making your headlines at 4:30. right now 3,000 customers are without power in san francisco after a massive outage. that number was up to 88,000 this morning after a pg&e circuit breaker failed causing a fire at a substation. pg&e hopes to restore power to all of its customers within the hour. fire fighters had a busy day. reporter kate larson tweeted they had to rescue multiple peop people elevators after receiving 20 calls from downtown buildings. reporter eric thomas tweeted this picture at montgomery. temporarily closed due to a power outage. they were running on bhak up generators. at the peak 300 traffic signals were out.

most are fixed but it is still expected to cause chaos with the evening commute. abc 7 news reporter jonathan bloom is live near first and market. jonathan, how is it looking out there? >> reporter: well, it's a world of difference at this corner than just an hour and a half ago. about one minute before 3:00, the traffic lights here on market street came back on after the power outage made for one of the more unusual days this neighborhood has seen in a long time. >> a hand mixer here. i'm getting ready to make another batch of whipped cream for this cheese cake i have in here as well. only one problem. no power. >> reporter: plans for a potluck were foild at this architecture firm a part of town that's typically all business. >> there are so many people outside and they're all talking to each other which is kind of awesome. >> reporter: passing the time, but not helping the bottom line. >> we lost a lot of business today. it's a big day for us, friday, we lost breakfast, lunch. >> reporter: and ziggy's burgers

lost something else. >> all of this has to go. >> reporter: a fringe and freezer not cold enough to keep. >> the only thing we can offer is ice water. >> reporter: next door the liquor store is open. they'll even take credit cards. if only the whole rest of the block weren't closed. how has business been? >> terrible. there is no business. >> reporter: the outage snarled traffic around market street. >> i would say the pedestrians and the drivers are being consider at of each other for the most part. >> reporter: some waited their turn, others just waited. but there are things that can't wait. >> we've had drills for this and we're very well prepared. when it happened we knew just what to do. >> reporter: saint frances canceled nonurgent procedures and doctor's appointments. >> i'm trying to go to the doctor. >> reporter: and? >> the doors are closed. >> reporter: emergency services continued on generator power. >> we have enough power to last several days. hopefully it doesn't last that long. >> reporter: jonathan bloom, abc

7 news. >> san francisco mayor ed lee said there were no major accidents so perhaps people used caution and slowed down. live coverage of this widespread power outage continues on the abc 7 news app. we'll send out a push alert as soon as power is restored to everyone and we are still waiting for the final 3,000 customers to get electricity. we'll also bring you any breaking developments live here on abc 7 news. >> the man accused of killing three people in a shooting spree in fresno this week appeared in court today. kori ali muhammad's appearance was very brief because of an outburst he made in court. abc reporter alex stone has the details. >> reporter: muhammad's time in court was very short. >> give black people reparations. >> reporter: because he began yelling as proceedings got underway. the judge not allowing cameras to show muhammad's face. he immediately called off the arraignment, rescheduling it for may and ordering muhammad to get a psychological evaluation. muhammad was in court facing murder charges for allegedly

killing motel security guard carl williams last week, charges in the three killings this week haven't been filed yet. >> we just got another call six shots fired. >> reporter: it was tuesday when police say muhammad went on a hate filled killing spree on the streets of fresno after learning he was a suspect in williams' murder. >> he was going to kill as many white males as possible and that's what he set out to do that day. >> reporter: three white men were killed, 34-year-old zachary randalls a a father of young children. 37-year-old mark, also a father carrying groceries. and 58-year-old david jackson who tried to run from the gun fire. police say the shooting spree was a hate crime, not terrorism. alex stone, abc news, los angeles. >> two arkansas death row inmates are asking a judge to stop their executions, saying that their poor health could make the lethal injections especially painful. jack jones and marcel williams are set to be executed on monday night. their appeals come after

arkansas executed convicted killer adele lee by lethal injection last night was the state's first execution since 2005. >> governor knows this is the most grave responsibility he'll ever have and he takes that very seriously. >> lee's execution came despite protests and a flurry of legal challenges that spared three other convicted killers. arkansas had scheduled eight executions over an 11-day period before the end of april when one supply of lethal injection drug expires. mckesson is also in legal bat lsz in arkansas over one of the drugs used in the executions. >> mark: -- mckesson filed a case. it is the second of its lethal injection drugs. arkansas denies the accusation. mckesson is the nation's largest pharmaceutical

distributor. >> the commute to and from work can be a nightmare and it can also shorten your life, a surprising new study. >> scruffy museums. this one gives you a taste of the good life through ice cream. >> i'm spencer christian. we're looking down at a mild and tranquil ocean beach. changes are coming our way.

a warm day today. ice cream sounds pretty good. >> did you bring some? >> no. >> one woman took ice cream to the extreme. she has an ice cream museum. >> abc reporter rob hayes gives us a taste. >> round of applause? >> it's a place you can come. adults come in and feel like kids. it's fun. >> reporter: orange county mary ellis came up with an idea of pop up museum of ice cream. now she's moved it to a warehouse in downtown l.a.'s arts district. it's a typical museum. >> definitely not. i think the museum of ice cream, we have that name in our title. it's not a museum in the traditional sense. there are things you can eat, smem. that paper -- >> reporter: next to a roomful of bananas and a short walk from

the swimming pool full of sprinkles. >> the sprinkles are designed in-house. i got a packing slip yesterday. they were all written out. >> reporter: there is ice cream on the wall, ice cream op a face, even ice cream on a shoe. there is also plenty of ice cream to eat. >> we have black cookie dough and it tastes exactly like cookie dough. it has charcoal. it will make your mouth black. you have to taste and tell me what flavor it is. >> reporter: chocolate. >> it is a breakfast thing. >> reporter: scotch. >> scotch? blue berry french toast with maple syrup on top. >> reporter: that was my next guest. right on the tip of my tongue. >> now taste t you'll be able to taste it, tastes like a strawberry pancake. >> reporter: still tastes like scotch. it's a limited run only through the end of may. tickets will set you back 29

bucks. rob hayes, abc 7 news. >> announcer: now your accuweather forecast with spencer christian. >> today was a good day for ice cream, sunny and mild. still those are the conditions we have you can see on live doppler 7. high clouds giving us a mild filter. not as warm tomorrow as it was. mid to 60s at the coast. speaking of warm, we could use a limb warmth on sunday for the heller aviation airport in san carlos. our own meteorologist sandhya patel will be the m.c. for the event. larry circulating a petition to demand sandhya run the race. i of course would not participate in such a thing. the race maybe. ideal conditions for a run on sunday morning. skies mainly sunny. it will be relatively cool early in the morning. the race starts at 8:00 a.m. get there early and do your stretching and then do the run.

here is the al qaeda yu weather seven-day forecast. mild and dry weekend will give way to increasing clouds on monday. chance of light rain on tuesday, system ranking 1 on the storm impact scale. it will be dry by the end of next week. >> i think the entire department should be forced to run. >> just two. > i'm afraid i can't. thank you. president trump closing in on the 100-day mark, benchmark date set by past presidents. how is mr. trump ♪ words of wisdom, let it be >> a bay area native is

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president trump mentioned his first 100 days in office in a tweet this morning taking aim at the media. it's only been 91 days so far. some u.c. berkeley scholars are keeping track of exactly what mr. trump has and has not accomplished thus far. abc 7 news reporter lyanne melendez attended a symposium on fact checking the president's

time in office. >> no particular rush. we'll see what happens. >> reporter: president trump was talking about his efforts to revive the health plan. a different tone he had during the campaign. >> repeal and replace obamacare act. [cheering and applauding] >> reporter: today at this u.c. berkeley symposium, some believe mr. trump acted too quickly in trying to get rid of the affordable care act. >> i think all presidents have a difficult time during their 100-day period. it's a learning period. >> reporter: for example, only five days into his presidency, bill clinton tried to do away with the ban on gays in the military. but ended up with the don't ask don't tell policy. a watered down version. so, this is what the president is saying now. >> remember, it took obamacare 17 months. i've really been negotiating this for two months, maybe even less than that. >> reporter: a president's success is measured by the number of laws passed through congress. in the first 100 days president clinton had 24. george w. bush 7 and mr. obama

11. and president trump? >> he's passed 29 bills, which is more than obama passed in his first 100 days. >> reporter: but they haven't been significant legislative achievements except for one. >> he has one success. he has gotten the person on the supreme court. >> reporter: instead, the president has relied on executive orders to keep some of his campaign promises on immigration travel bans and epa regulations. some are being held up in court. >> what we're seeing right now, the sort of legislating by executive order is probably not the most effective means as what we've seen going on in the first 1 shun days. >> reporter: some say what the administration has done so far opens up a discussion about what president trump's 1,000 days might look like. u.c. berkeley lyanne melendez, abc 7 news. >> former president obama will make the first public appearance since leaving the white house on monday. mr. obama will participate in a town hall style discussion on

community organizing and civic engagement at the university of chicago. he ends a three-month period of relative silence since he left office in january. >> tomorrow is earth day and if you're looking to celebrate mother earth, you might want to head for the john muir house in martinez. muir who famously took teddy roosevelt camping is considered to be the father of american environmentalism. he raised a family, did much of his writing at the stately martinez home which is now a national historic site. tomorrow's earth day celebration begins at 10:00 a.m. >> tonight a story about autism and overcoming the odds, as a child growing up in marin county, michael didn't speak. >> well, now he's a professional baritone. we honor him as an abc 7 star, natasha from abc 7 mornings has his story. >> reporter:s he is ready to take the stage. the final performer tonight.

there is a lot of talent here. you might be feeling sweaty palms. not michael, he lives to perform. >> i love it. >> reporter: michael has autism and is often a man of few words. but just ask him to sing. and, well. >> ♪ sing, sing a song >> reporter: it's hard to get him to stop. ♪ sing out loud, sing out strong ♪ >> reporter: why would you want to? want italian opera? piece of cake. he'll gladly sing you the beatles. ♪ let it be >> reporter: his parents watched him walk away a winner last year. he has filmed a music video, a triumph after a hard beginning. they always wanted a family. >> i want one of each. >> reporter: after a daughter,

michael answered their prayers born in daily city. >> he looks so perfect. >> reporter: but kathy says as time passed she knew something wasn't right. >> we went to the doctor and i said he isn't talking. >> reporter: again and again they were told he would grow out of it. finally, the diagnosis. autism. >> i told arnold, i think i cried 15 minutes and i started thinking about what we needed to do. >> reporter: as an adult, michael says communicating is often isolating. >> because all of a sudden i did something wrong for them. >> reporter: it's music that connects him with the world and his biggest advocates are supporting his dream. his parents, now 80 and 75, say they often worry what will happen to michael once they're gone. but tonight happy tears. they're celebrating he's been chosen as an abc 7 star.

>> to live a normal life and be a star. my life after awhile didn't matter. it's all about him. >> reporter: it's showtime. ♪ when i am down -- >> reporter: the song, you raise me up. of course his mother is in the audience recording every performance. just look to the side and right there in the wings. this is the man who knows every word. ♪ they've been raising michael up for decades now. [cheering and applauding] >> reporter: michael's last name means star of heart. you see that in his music and his parents. for inspiring him with this incredible story we recognize michael as an abc 7 star. >> if you'd like to nominate someone to be an abc 7 star, go

to abc 7 news.com/starz. >> did you know it could affect your life-span? who is most at risk? >> and dan has a look at what is coming up at 5:00. >> larry, alma, thanks very much. an update on the power outage. >> there was apple, there was this. we remember a man who helped create the first personal computer, not so small as they are today. and the weird sighting caught on camera. all that and more when kristen and i see you on abc 7 news at 5:00.

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coming up tonight on abc 7 at 8:00 it's the toy box. shark tank, then at tep special

2020 with caitlyn jenner. abc 7 news at 11:00. >> biking may be the best way to commute to work. may not sound surprising. >> it can be good for your health compared to public transit. abc reporter chris nguyen has the story. >> reporter: biking can come off stressful. studies show cyclists are onto something. >> you don't have to sit there and feel road rage in traffic. you feel the wind in your hair and you're on your way. >> reporter: the cardiovascular benefits are clear. biking to work can cut risk of heart disease in half. not surprising says the acting codirector of bike east bay, an organization that aims to make cycling fun, safe and accessible. >> we know biking in traffic is frequently people's number one concerns. that's why we're advocating for new bike lanes and upgrading our streets. >> reporter: the study was conducted over five years involving more than 260,000

british commuters. those who took public transportation to work were more likely to suffer heart attacks or be diagnosed with cancer during the study. a good reminder that the dead time typically taken up by a work commute can actually be used to benefit your health. group fitness instructor gabby bikes to work and can't imagine commuting any other way. >> committing yourself to riding your bike to work is a built-in guarantee that you're going to get that small amount of exercise in your day no matter what. >> reporter: in fact, according to the u.s. census bureau, she's among the 15,000 workers in san francisco who bike to work on a daily basis. those numbers are expected to climb in the coming years. >> by the time you get to work, you're alive, you're vibrant and ready to get involved . >> reporter: a chance to break a sweat to live a longer healthier life. in san francisco, chris nguyen, abc 7 news. >> the bay area bike to workday will be held on thursday, may 11. if you want more info, just go to abc 7 news.com. >> all right. thanks for joining us for abc 7

news at 4:00. i'm alma daetz. >> i'm larry beil. abc 7 news at 5:00 starts now. >> this cliff climber found himself in big trouble. >> a shooting this afternoon in san jose. plus. >> all but 3,000 customers have been restored. >> restored electric. >> after eight hours the lights are almost all on in san francisco. >> the a's in las vegas? the baseball commissioner controversy. >> and why things are going from bad to worse for the giants. >> announcer: now from abc 7, live breaking news. >> and that breaking news is out of san francisco. a man has been safely rescued from a cliff near china beach just a half hour ago he was clinging to the rock surface. the rock face right there. it appeared his grip was at risk of slipping before he fell. rescuers in the chopper, you can see, were able to harness him and carry him away. >> fire fightersai