my brother is devastated. i mean, he dealt with his little angel >> this uncle in texas gets emotional as a family of six is feared dead in the wake of hurricane harvey. today the race to save more families continues as president trump arrives in the disaster zone. thanks for joining us. i'm kristein sze. president trump and first lady melania are meeting right now with officials in corpus christi. the decision was made not to send them to the heart of the disaster in houston so it wouldn't interrupt the rescue operations. officials say so far at least sevenle several thousand rescues have saved people from their homes, but the death toll is

climbing. the storm is blamed for at least seven deaths. abc news reporter lana zack is live in the area with the very latest. lana? >> reporter: hello, as you can see. the rains continue to fall here in houston, just in harris county we now have an updated total. 1 trillion gallons of water. to put that all into perspective, that's enough to fuel niagara falls for 15 days. historic flooding has brought southeast texas to a standstill. president donald trump and the first lady had a touched down in corpus christi where they will see firsthand the devastation harvey left behind. >> there was of epic proportion, nobody has ever seen anything like this. >> reporter: just northeast rescuers are rescuing residents trying to stay above water. life-and-death moments playing out over hundred of square miles. they have saved more than 6,000 so far, but thousands more are still waiting to be rescued, and

the flooding is only getting worse. >> i didn't even imagine that it was going to be this catastrophic like this. this is horrible. i have my 2-year-old. he told me he was scared. >> reporter: local dams are on the cusp of overflowing. officials releasing water from two reservoirs to avoid catastrophic structure damage, but that water threatening homes water surging into already flood-ravaged towns and cities in south texas. we saw firsthand how evacuated residents are filling shelters beyond capacity. the emergency shelter at the convention center in downtown houston was meant to house 5,000 people. it's now well beyond its capacity at nearly 9,000 and growing. >> not going to turn people away. >> reporter: hospitals across houston are facing power outages and rapidly dwindling supplies. they are now racing to evacuate patients. >> if you start to run out of supplies and you can't treat people, it's a big problem. >> reporter: and there's now an emerging health concern. that is the problems with water here in the houston area.

the epa is going to start testing those waters to see if the come tam nantz like chemicals or sewage have now polluted those supplies. reporting live from houston, lana zak, back for you. >> laura anthony is in houston helping shoulder some of the reporting duties for our sister station enabling their reporters to tend to their families and homes. laura is traveling with a convoy of boats heading to neighborhood where rescues are needed and joins us live from richmond, texas, just outside houston. laura. >> reporter: hi, kristen. this scene is, unfortunately, playing out all over this area. this is richmond, texas, just outside houston to the west. this is a very hard-hit neighborhood today. we've been watching this scene unfold all day. you can see the boats. these are many of them civilians boats going in, taking people out. these are folks who may have been resting easy a day or so ago because the water hadn't

gotten to them yet but it certainly did get here overnight and into today though at this point we're thinking it's receding a little bit. let show you some of the rescues that occurred here this morning. we've seen whole families come out. we've seen babies, small children. many of these folks just coming out with the clothes on their backs, and whatever they could carry inside a plastic garbage bag, maybe two or three garbage bags. joining me now is j.j. morales. j.j., you came out here to help. you've done a whole bunch of these rescues. what are you seeing? >> i've seen people freaking out. they want to come out because they seen the water going down and yesterday they didn't want to come out because the water was pretty high, so today when the water went down, they are bringing the kids and the family because they know it's going to get worse. >> reporter: why is it going to get worse, j.j.? >> because the reservoir we have has two exits and now they say that the reservoir, a portion of the reservoir overflowed. as they let water out, ain't got nowhere to go and the water is

coming this way. >> reporter: these are the neighborhoods just below the reservoir, correct? >> yes, ma'am, maybe 10, 15 miles away from the reservoir so the water ain't got nowhere to go, it's going to go this way. this used to be a no flood zone but now it's getting flood. >> reporter: that's typical. all these areas that weren't expected to be flooded are flooded. the bayous, the waterways, everything is full. >> to the left and this side right here we have the brassos river and that's two or three inches about to overflow, and then we've got the bayou. everything is overfloating. >> reporter: you folks are going to stick together, right? >> yes, ma'am, yes, ma'am. we ain't got nowhere to go. people getting stranded on the house. we've got a second story house h.anything happens we go to the second story. >> reporter: thanks so much for talking to us. that's what we're seeing, everywhere we go folks coming together trying to help each other through it. again, as we're speaking here another boat coming out. this one looks like a civilian

boat. you guys doing ago? as we're standing here people are just continuing to come out. live near houston, texas, laura anthony. >> so heroic for all the volunteers to be out there. thank you so much. the u.s. coast guard is deploying more california crews and supplies to the gulf coast. a five-member team from sacramento left yesterday. the crews are equipped with 3,000 pounds of search-and-rescue equipment including an all-terrain vehicle. search-and-rescue boats and medical supplies. and as harvey continues to batter texas, residents of new orleans, louisiana are on alert today. the mayor is urging people to stay home amid serious concerns about flooding there. officials say only 90% of the city's pumps are operable. the warning comes on an already somber day for new orleans as today marks the 12th anniversary of hurricane katrina making landfall. this is video from august 2005. that hurricane and the

subsequent levy breeches killed more than 1,800 people. for more now on the dangerous conditions there and along the gulf coast, let's turn to meteorologist mike nicco. mike? >> reporter: kristen, hi everybody, yes. eventually we'll turned our attention to louisiana because that's where harvey is going and where the heaviest rain will be the next several of days. right now up towards gavelston and beaumont port. that area is getting pounded. 9 circulation is just barely hugging the coast. can you see almost like an eye developing in the cloud structure but notice it goes from houston all the way over to tampa, the influence and all that moisture moving into the southeast is going to pile up over the next several days and cause flooding there. a lot more localized and not as devastating, but areas you see in red, magenta, that's going to be six to eight inches of rain in the 24 to 48-hour time frame in the western sections of louisiana around memphis and also in the panhandle of florida and alabama, so the shift is

going to change, kristen, as we head through the next couple of days. >> all right. thanks a lot, mike. >> the victims of hurricane harvey need your help, and the red cross is telling us cash donations are the best way to do that. one easy way to donate is to text the word harvey to 90999. that will add a $10 automatic donation to the red cross on your cell phone bill. you can also call the red cross at 1-800-help-now. by the way, abc 7's parent company disney has just pledged $1 million to the red cross for hurricane relief. and abc will host a day of giving on thursday to benefit people impacted by hurricane harvey. the day will kick off right here on abc 7 mornings before handing the baton over to "good morning america." donations will go to the american red cross with the money going to neighbors most impacted by the storm. download the abc 7 news app for more information and to get the latest updates on harvey. developing news now in the south bay. a newspaper delivery man is

hospitalized in grave condition right now after a hit-and-run driver struck him and took off. it happened this morning near monroe terrace and south monroe street in san jose. abc news reporter matt keller is live at the scene. matt, hats intersection reopened? >> moore park avenue has opened back up after being closed for several hours this morning. it happened in the middle of moore park avenue. the victim was left behind, and now the search for a hit-and- driver. san jose police were blocking a very busy road this morning. for hundreds of drivers on moore park avenue at south monroe street this was an inconvenient detour. for one man just delivering newspapers around 5:00 this morning with his wife and the minivan, this was devastating. police say he delivered a paper and tried to walk back across moore park avenue when a vehicle hit him and drove off. the man in his 60s had life-threatening injuries. thankfully he was less than a mile away from valley medical

center. >> i mean, that's -- probably the only thing that's kept him alive so far is he's been so close and one of the best trauma centers in northern california. >> the vehicle crimes unit took over the investigation. a witness gave a description of the suspect's car and evidence left behind could help find the driver. police say the suspect's vehicle is a dark toyota sedan with damage to the front and driver's side. a mirror and other parts were left at the scene. >> someone is going to drive home tonight or someone is going to be somewhere that's going to have new fresh damage to their car that someone is going to notice. we ask them to please give us a call and let us know if they see something like that. >> reporter: i just got an update from san jose police. they have another detail on the suspect's vehicle that they are releasing. they are saying it is a 2007 to 2009 toyota camera. reporting live in san jose, matt kell ker, abc 1 news. >> matt, thank you. new this mornings residents at a san jose apartment complex are dealing with a big mess. this car plowed into the side of the building after a drive-by shooting and police chase. it happened on clonalial way and

winchester boulevard. police say they got a call with a man with a gun around 11:00 last night or they got a call reporting that. when they got to the scene, witnesses told officers the man actually fired the gun. no one was hit but then police got a big break. >> when office others responded and interviewed witnesses the suspect vehicle happened to drive by. the officers followed. >> reporter: it appears the suspect hit some parked cars during the chase before crashing into the building. police say the suspect was taken to the hospital to get checked out. no one else was hurt. berkeley renews its free speech debate. up next a live look to berkeley where the mayor is trying to stop controversial commentators from speaking at cal. plus, san francisco is adding up the cost of a right wing ral it's one beautiful destination wedding. >> and then -- >> i'm out! >> surprise ending next "right this minute." my name is jamir dixon and i'm a locate and mark fieldman

for pg&e. most people in the community recognize the blue trucks as pg&e. my truck is something new... it's an 811 truck. when you call 811, i come out to your house and i mark out our gas lines and our electric lines to make sure that you don't hit them when you're digging. 811 is a free service. i'm passionate about it because every time i go on the street i think about my own kids. they're the reason that i want to protect our community and our environment, and if me driving a that truck means that somebody gets to go home safer, then i'll drive it every day of the week. together, we're building a better california.

security versus free speech. that's the latest battle being waged between uc berkeley and the city of berkeley will. the city wants the university to cancel its upcoming free speech week featuring some controversial commentators. abc 7 news reporter amy hollyfield is live in berkly. amy, you just spoke with the mayor. >> reporter: i did, kristen, and he told me he knows that protesting is in berkeley's dna. he supports it. he supports freedom of speech, but he also has to weigh the fact that he has to protect this city and protect the people here. >> i feel in the interest of

public safety that milo and ann coulter, not clear whether steve bannon is come. they should not be allowed to speak on the berkeley campus. >> reporter: talking about a scheduled appearance by milo yiannopolous next month and ann coulter and steve bannon. they are worried about violent protests from are the masked activists of antifa. >> i think antifa is a gong and we need to deal with how we deal with these extremist groups who are using peaceful protests to commit mayhem. >> reporter: ben shapiro is also set to set at berk lay couple weeks before. we asked the planners that have event about the mayor's call for the conservatives to stay away. >> it really is interesting that the mayor's response to all this violence is to blame the conservatives when in fact it's these antifa thugs, these really lawless people who are being allowed to run rampant in that community and on the campus of uc berkeley.

so instead of coming down on conservatives and trying to shut down their rights to free speech, he really should be telling the police officers and the community to stop tolerating the sort of lawless behavior that's going on there. >> bringing speakers that are going to provoke extremst groups, i think the organizers need to think very seriously about their responsibility for the community's safety and whether it's appropriate to bring other conservative thought leaders that may not be so incendiary. >> reporter: a spokesman for the university says cal can't legally cancel an invitation that a student group has put out, but the mayor says the lines of communication are open. he does have scheduled meetings with university officials and also berkeley college republicans. live in berkeley, amy hollyfield, abc 7 news. >> amy, thank you. frisco mayor ed lee says the city shouldn't have to bear the cost of mobilizing for the right wing rally that never

materialized at chrissy field. the total peeled for overtime, putting up fences and other logistical moves is being calculated. he's prepared to send the bill to the national park service who okayed the permit for the event. a surprise visitor on the bay bridge this morning. the photo that you have to see that's making the round now on social media. and a live look right now from our east bay hills camera. looking eastward. you can see a day heating up for us, and more intensity ahead, too, so

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oh, deer. the hp is trying to figure out how a four-legged commuter ended up on the bay bridge. the department tweeted out this picture with this caption. this morning our officers stopped a doe for a toll evasion. didn't have a buck, sorry. >> i like that. that's good. >> she was a buck short. it's possible the little deer wanted to be part of a commercial. a crew was filming on the bridge overnight. the chp says the doe stopped, looked at the officers before making her way back into the woods on treasure island. there you go. >> the only way it would have been better if it was a male and a six-point buck. >> is that how much it cost these days? >> at that time of the morning probably four. i got caught in the traffic, not from the deer but the commercial shoot. >> oh, right. >> what are we doing? >> 30 people deep, sitting there for ten minutes, what can possibly be going on. >> is that why you were late to work? >> that's the story i'm sticking to, yes. >> that's a good story. what's the weather story? >> it's changing.

changing for all of us. for the bert if you don't like the heat, but let me tell you what's going to happen. might as well just jump right in and get you prepared starting thursday and all the way through at least monday evening, more than 3 million of us are going to be under an excessive heat watch as another heat wave is coming and this one is going to be even longer than any we've had so far this year. but so far let's talk about this. touch them all. maybe kristen knows that reference, baseball reference and that's what the fog do this morning as it moved over the east bay hills valley. that's the big story today, the fact that we're getting a little researching breeze and the heat is's being. hazy sunshine and more clouds and a little drizzle near the coast tonight and possibly in the east bay hills and when it comes it does not leave for seven to ten day disease. look at this, 13 degrees cooler in livermore and 16 in fairfield. 108 in both of those neighborhoods yesterday. that a record tying 108 for livermore. 72 right now. that's pretty comfortable. 28 in brentwood and 80 in los

gatos, everybody else in the 60s and 80s. usually 50s in the san francisco and along the coast. let's see where we end up this afternoon. 16 in san jose to 94 in gill roy. on the peninsula from about 82 in palo alto to millbrae at 75. 62 to about 64 along the peninsula coast and downtown san francisco 66. advertised about 70 this time of the year. 85 in san rafael and vallejo to 90 in calistoga, look at that. cloverdale and lakeport upper 190s. 72 in berkeley and 72 in oakland to 82 in fremont and 1 in hercules and 129 to 96. so still hot inland. it's going to be about 10 to 15 degrees cool ker than yesterday so you ought to notice that. a look at san rafael, 67 degrees right now. definitely cooler than this time yesterday. cleaner air at noon. 770s and 80s for the rest of us. 70s and 80s and 50s and 60s and 70s and 50s and 60s with the

clouds returning at 12:00. in fact, can you see cloud cover for all of us tonight. 53 in santa rosa to about 67 in antioch. my accuweather seven-day forecast. if you like today, we'll do it again tomorrow but look at the heat thursday all the way through labor day inland. 100. 80s to 90s around the bay and some of the warmth will slip to the coast. can you see a few 70s sneaking in there thursday through saturday. definitely not saying good-bye to summer, kristen. >> touch them all. touch every base. otherwise that home run doesn't count. >> fishing for complement or just being really nice. people in dublin are obsessing over the super friendly seal. watch what

coming up on "abc 7 news at 4:00," a possible new use for the piers from the old bay bridge. the plan that could give you a chance for some spectacular new views, and pets, plants and pills. valuable tips on keeping dogs and cats safe. that's tonight at 5:00. finally people in ireland are known for their friendliness, but it seems even their animals are getting in on the act. the irish coast guard posted this video on its facebook page. it shows a super friendly seal waving hello to a crew in dublin. look at that. the guard says it was conducting a training exercise yesterday when it spotted the seal and

just couldn't resist waving back. people are obsessing over the seal posting comments like cuteness overload. amazing, and waving in the waves. what do you think? >> makes me -- puts me in a good mood. that's fun. >> right? >> that's cute. got to the teach the act to the ones at pier 39. >> the ones that just belch. >> lie around all day. >> from all of us here at abc 7 news, thanks so much for joining us. "who wants to be a millionaire" is coming up next. the news continues online at abc7news.com and on the abc 7 news app. looks like that's going to be a little cooler, right, based on the shot. >> cooler today and tomorrow and gets hot thursday and stays that way through the holiday. >> labor day weekend. labor away. >> thanks a lot. bye.

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>> welcome to whiz kids week. we've got a bunch of young people with big brains and big dreams here today, all of them trying to win a million dollars. can they do it? only one way to find out. let's play "who wants to be a millionaire." [cheers and applause] ♪ welcome to the show, everybody. it's whiz kids week here on "millionaire." [cheers and applause] today's whiz kid is an expert in presidential history, but most importantly, he's a fan of "the bachelor." i like him already. here for some dating advice, from tucson, arizona, please welcome 13-year-old preston helfand. [cheers and applause] how are you, sir? >> nice to meet you. >> good to meet you, preston. ♪ how are you, my man? >> i'm great, and what about you? >> i'm doing great. thanks for asking.