now from abc 7, looive breaking news. >> breaking news of a train accident in washington state. six people are dead at the scene. take a live look right now. the amtrak stratrain that derai near tacoma, went off the tracks over interstate 5. amtrak train 501 derailed in dupont, washington, near olympia. see on the namap. the train left seattle and was headed to portland at the 250i78 when the derailment happened. jessica castro from abc 7 mornings is monitoring. >> hi, natasha, right now in the hours of the crash, investigators trying to figure out exactly how this deadly crash happened. at least six people have died. all of those were passengers on the train. at least 77 are hurt. that's from the train and the cars below. and i do want to show you one

more time, this live look at the situation. at this very minute. you can see there, the train still dangling from the tracks. this is the southbound side of interstate 5. it is still shut down. the derailment happened just before 8:00 this morning. there were at least 78 people onboard the train, itself, when it crashed. it was traveling about 81 miles an hour. and it was actually the first train carrying paying customers on a new route for amtrak. it was reportedly equipped with a brand new locomotive. >> the first car was on the ground, the second car was, like, the passenger, was down and the third was dangling and the fourth and fifth were up on theprobably about 30, 40 peoplet on the freeway just standing, like, about 20 ems started flooding toward the area. >> and right now, as we take another live look out there, this derailment has actually impacted amtrak service all across the west coast. including right here in

california. the coast starlight runs through the bay area. i also want to show you this post here from amtrak on twitter, saying if you are worried about a loved one call 1-800-523-9101. natas natasha, back to out. >> we're tracking this breaking news as it develops. download the newly updated abc 7 news app for the latest on the kras crash. turn on push alerts to get updates like this one we set out before 9:00 this morning. also tracking this mess, chaos in the skies the week before christmas after a power outage at the world's busiest airport. the power is back on. we're checking out flight aware right now. more than 400 flights have been canceled today. it is affecting some flights out of the bay area, too. abc 7 news reporter tiffany wilson is live at sfo. how's it looking now, tiffany? >> reporter: hi there, natasha. well, good news is some of hose flights out of sfo to atlanta are on time today. i'll be home for christmas is going to. be a difficult promise to keep for some passengers because the

flights that were canceled, now they're having a very difficult time getting rebooked on new flights. frustration and fatigue radiate from this atlanta couple. they've been at sfo since yesterday. >> the flight got canceled some time midday. we just got stranded here at the airport. >> reporter: delta can't rebook them until tomorrow. these ladies on a canceled frontier flight this morning received even worse news. the next available flight to atlanta isn't until after christmas on december 28th. >> well, we have no plan. there's no way we can get out of here. just cry. >> reporter: yesterday's 11 hour power outage, atlanta hartsfield-jackson international airport to a stand still. more than 1,000 flights have been canceled as a result. georgia power blames a fire in an underground electrical facility. the mayor says the fire was so fierce it knocked out the backup system. a spokesman for sfo says what happened there is not likely to happen here. >> the airport gets its power from two different places.

two different cities in san mateo. normally it's about a 60/40 split, but the airport can run 100% off of a single location. >> sfo also has generators so passengers won't be left in the dark. while reassuring, those details don't matter to these passengers. they just want to get home. >> hard to be away from family. we need to get back. >> reporter: just a few steps away, this new mom is thrilled her flight to atlanta is on time. she says nothing could keep her from home over the holidays. >> i would have just had to drive with a baby all the way across the country. >> reporter: as you can tell, there is good news. all of the flights leaving this afternoon from sfo to atlanta are on time. live at sfo, tiffany wilson, abc 7 news. >> that is good news, thank you, tiffany. new this morning the 9th u.s. circuit judge who's been accused of sexual misconduct is retiring.

the "washington post" reports at least 15 women claim he inappropriately touched them and made lewd comments. the allegations go back several decades. and a statement today, judge kozinski apologized saying "i've always had a broad sense of humor and candid way of speaking to both male and female law clerks alike. no doing so, i may not have been mindful enough of the special challenges and pressures that women face in the workplace." a regional director with the democratic party resigned after he was accused of sexual misconduct. this is craig cheslog's twitter page. he stepped down on thursday after a 23-year-old woman accused he sexually assaulted her at the weston hotel last year during a convention in which women were discussing sexual harassment prevention and the metoo movement. he does not acknowledge any wro wronggoing. he says he's stepping down to prevent distraction to the party. on to a final good-bye now. mayor ed lee was honored at san francisco city hall yesterday nearly a week after he passed away from a heart attack.

colleagues, friends and family spoke in front of a packed audience celebrating his life. the fellow mayor spoke with abc 7 news. >> ed was an incredibly collaborative, warm, generous person and that came through so clearly. >> it's not just san francisco that will miss ed lee. so many people across this country, throughout the bay area, were touched by his leadership, his kindness, and his amazing example. >> well, ed lee's family set up a fund in his name at the san francisco foundation. it will benefit non-profits and social causes that were important to him. and the tributes honoring mayor there will be a opportunicommuny candlelit tuesday at portsmithih square. we have more on our website, abc7news.com. if you have a toy to spare this season, sacred heart could use your help. they're dealing with a shortage

they need 8,000 more toys for kids in need. the south bay charity is already handing out holiday food boxes right now. abc 7 news reporter matt keller is live for us in san jose. good morning, matt. >> reporter: good morning, natasha. it's going to be a busy day at sacred heart. it's also going to be a busy week. today, though, it's all about the food. but they're hoping to have all the toys they need to deliver by the end of the week. if you could capture the need in silicon valley in one video, this may be it. the line for sacred heart community services holiday food distribution went around the brock and then some. sacred heart in san jose has prepared more than 3,200 boxes to go along with a turkey or ham for the giveaway that goes through wednesday. it provides enough food for a big holiday meal. >> this time it's my son and his best friend and his best friend's girlfriend. and i'll probably get a turkey. so i'm going to have them over. it's going to be a quiet dinner

for the four of us. >> reporter: a big reason sacred heart does this is so families can continue their holiday traditions without taking money away from the monthly bills. >> that's like me. like you work rot of hours, you know, my girlfriend works a rot of ho lot of hours to provide for our family and pay our rent. it's pretty outrageous, you know, we work our butts off every day, so, you know, we do what we got to do to survive in this silicon valley. >> reporter: it's not just food being given away at sacred heart, 6,200 kids are registered for the toy box. parents will be able to pick out toys and books for their families on thursday and friday. >> so fun. i love seeing the parents come and the volunteers are really great helping them choose toys. >> reporter: sacred heart still needs more toys. they're about 8,000 short. if you'd like to help, go to our website, abc7news.com, we've got information there for how you can help and donate. reporting live in san jose, matt keller abc 7 news. >> matt, thank you. san jose firefighters battled smoke and flames at a

homeless encampment this morning. what investigators are saying now about its connection to other recent fires. twitter is cracking down on violent and abusive content. the images they're censoring starting today. good morning. i'm meteorologist mike nicco. actually tracking some rain. check out the storm impact scale. we had to dust it off since it's been so long. let me show you what it has in store for us. a sneak peek of a 1, a light storm on the way tuesday night into wednesday.

welcome back. we have new details on the big fire at a homeless encampment in san jose. police say an arsonist likely started that fire amane be linked to other fires over the weekend. take a look at firefighters battling the flames near tully road east of monterey early this morning. they put it toout in ten minute. the good news is no one was hurt. police are speaking to witnesses. a driver led police on a high-speed chase earlier this morning. a witness at the scene told us two people were taken into custody and one may still be on the loose. it's not exactly clear why the chase started, no injuries were reported. from southern california now where exhausted firefighters battling the massive thomas fire are getting a small break. they're taking advantage of calmer winds to mount an attack on flames threatening the coastal town of montecito just outside santa barbara. the fire has grown to 270,000 acres now. picture an area larger than new york city and boston combined.

evacuations remain in effect for monteci montecito, that is home to celebrities like oprah and ellen degeneres. the fire is 45% contained. families who call santa rosa's fire ravaged coffey park are doing the best to get into the holiday spirit. event organizers gave them food, toy and christmas trees. everything was donated. coffey park residents called it a bittersweet event. >> you got christmas trees during christmas spirit, christms music, you invite people out and this is what you get. the neighborhood is alive again. after the first time after the fires, the neighborhood is alive. >> reconstruction for some of those homeowners could begin as early as the spring. tensions are growing between president trump's legal team and special counsel robert mueller. a trump transition attorney says mueller improperly obtained e-mails between transition officials. abc news reporter kenneth moten has the details from washington. >> reporter: special counsel robert mueller versus president trump's legal team.

>> are you going to fire -- >> no, i'm not. no. what else? [ inaudible ] what are you, surprised? >> reporter: the president critical of new developments concerning e-mails from his transition team, e-mails requested and obtained by the special counsel investigating russia meddling in the 2016 election. >> they're spending millions and millions of dollars. there is absolutely no collusion. >> reporter: no word on what mueller's team was specifically looking for. a trump transition attorney is crying foul sending a letter to congressional leaders alleging the e-mails were improperly provided to the special counsel. >> that argument borders on frivolous because it's from their server. government documents. it's very clear when you begin the process there's no expectation of privacy. this is a federal criminal probe p . i don't think that's a real serious argument. >> reporter: our legal analyst says one serious argument, trump's team citing attorney/client privilege in some e-mails. mueller's spokesman rejected allegations of wrongdoing, saying "when we have obtained

e-mails in the course of our investigation, we have either the account owner's consent." >> end their concerted effort to undermine the credibility of the 3450u8 er mueller investigation. >> reporter: the president's teams and mueller's lawyers expected to meet face-to-face. white house officials suggested the investigation is almost over. mueller's team has not indicated that. especially after the recent guilty plea of ex-national security adviser michael flynn. kenneth moton, abc news, washington. starting today, san francisco-based twitter is enforcing stricter rules on violent and abusive content. hateful images or symbols will be weighed in the same way as graphic violence and adult content. that includes threats of violence and physical harm. if the user wants to post symbols of images that might be considered hateful, the post must be marked sensitive media. also beginning today the company will ban accounts affiliated with organizations that, quote, use or promote vie lenolence ag civilians to further their causes. owner of the california panthers putting the team up for

sale now. potential buyers in the bay area are already lining up. the big names who want in on a potential deal. and a live look outside right now from our emeryville camera. meteorologist mike nicco coming up with today's accuweather forecast.

weaving your own shoes... by out of flax. or simply adjust your thermostat. do your thing, with energy upgrade california. and now to your morning money report. the owner of the carolina panthers is celebrating the nfl team as he faces allegations of sexual harassment. "sports illustrated" reports jerry richardson is accused of inproecht l inappropriately touching female employees and asking some whether he could shave their legs. richardson will not begin the sale process until the last game of this season. there's already some buyer interest. music mogul sean kocombs tweete

out saying i'd like to buy the panthers, spread the word. steph curry also tweeted out, i want in. colin kaepernick replied this morning, i want in on the o ownership group, let's make it happen. just in time for the holidays, gas prices are down a little bit. latest lundberg survey finds the average price of a gallon of regular is down 3 cents from two weeks ago to $2.51. prices are expected to go down even more because gas supplies are high right now. and no surprise, gas in san francisco is the highest in the entire nation at an average of $3.22 a gallon. the lowest, by the way, in jackson, mississippi, $2.14 a gallon. now your accuweather forecast with mike nicco. >> yeah, you don't need me to tell you it's been a very dry month. the numbers are pretty impressive. we're on day 18 and already had 16 dry days. this will be our 15th consecutive day without rain. that's about to change. as we do have some wet weather coming into the forecast. until then, look at this, these are the rain totals for december. some of us not even having measurable rain yet like

livermore and san jose. the rest of us, 1% of where we should be. we'll get back to that in a second. let's talk about temperatures. low to mid 50s out there. 59 at half moon bay. 58 at napa. los gatos, 58. here's the way it looks from mt. tam. hazy, not a spare the air day. most lly sunny with clean, dry air. breezy and chance of rain. wednesday in my last accuweather highlight. thursday, we jump right back into the dry pattern. let's take a look at high temperatures today. we're at that at half moon bay, 59. 61 to 64 around the bay. 62 inland around livermore, also up around antioch. 66 in san jose to 68 in santa rosa. some of our warm spots. gorgeous shot from emeryville as we head up toward the lunch hour. as we look through your accuweather 12-hour player upper 50s to 60s not only at noon but also by 4:00.

mid 40s by midnight. mid to upper 30s in inland valleys. 41 to 45 around the bay. 46 to 47 along the coast. here's a look at live doppler 7. hardly any clouds. go up north, here's our storm. not very impressive, is it? it's not. a fast-moving one coming from alaska with limited moisture. it will cool things off and make it a little breezy. here we are at 7:00 tomorrow evening. moderate rain up in ain up in ap county. noon to 4:00, moves through the heart of the bay. 4:00 in the morning to 7:00 in the morning, moves through the south bay. by the end of the commute wednesday, it's gone already. sun's coming out. the breezes are kicking up. look at the rainfall totals as we go through when we wake up at 4:00 in the morning, about .05 to maybe a tenth of an inch of rain. that is trending much drier than the last couple of model runs. that is not going the way we want it to. it's a 1 again on our storm impact scale. very light storm. it could mess up wednesday's morning commute. and then what it will do is take the 60s out of the forecast for

several days. temperatures back in the mid to upper 50s where we should be. the winds gust up to 25 to 30 miles per hour so may knock trash cans over. most of the dead leaves or the trees, limbs and all that, they're already shaken out of that from the windstorms we've had. >> we had the spare the air days before because of the fires burning down south. is that all better? >> with this storm coming in, it's going to push all the smoke down to the south and bring us a real long stretch of pretty clean air. >> all right. >> noise observation. >> you teach me well, mike. i listelisten. i listen. still ahead a "star wars" fan in the hospital gets a final wish. find out who paid him such

a remind e we're on 24/7 on the abc 7 news app and abc7news.com. today on our website don't miss it, we posted the new family photo of prince william and duchess kate from the royal family's christmas card. you know, just in case you're not going to get one in the mail, look at it there. >> what? aw. >> if you're logging on to abc7news.com from your phone, download the abc 7 app to get beaking news alerts and tune in for the latest news and weather on our newscast, abc 7 news at 4:00 p.m. a dying air force veteran wished for something out of this world. his fellow "star wars" fans certainly delivered. darth vader, himself, surprised ron in his hospital room in new

hampshire with an invitation to a screening of "star wars: the last jedi." local firefighters arranged to have an ambulance transport him to the local theater. organized by his daughter, #ron'slastjedi. >> unbelievable, all these people are here. i thank god for "star wars" fans. >> i never would have believed it would have turned out -- this is incredible. >> a local cinema provided tickets to the family and all the friends. "star wars," by the way, produced by the walt disney company. disney also owns abc 7. certainly touching. today we have something to celebrate, i want to bring joey smith up here. our stage manager has been at abc 7 news for 40 years. joey smith. it's his very last show. how blessed are we? >> he's still -- >> yes, we are very blessed. i'm going to miss you, you know that. we talk a lot off camera. weave been an institution here. >> go ahead, take a seat. take a seat. >> take us out. go ahead.

>> we got 15 seconds. >> we have 15 seconds. what are we going to talk about? what are you going to do in retirement? >> oh, just visit the grandkids. enjoy the wife. >> all right, suzy, you heard it. >> we adore you, joey. "who wants to be a millionaire" coming up next. we love our joey smith.

>> welcome to whiz kids week. some very smart young people are here playing with us today. each of them hoping they can add a million dollars or so to their college fund. this is gonna be fun, so let's play "who wants to be a millionaire." [cheers and applause] [dramatic music] ♪ hey, everybody, welcome to "millionaire's" whiz kids week. [cheers and applause] so let's welcome our first whiz kid who won two persuasive writing awards at a model united nations competition. from raleigh, north carolina, 15-year-old maya burchell. welcome, maya. >> how are you doing, mr. harrison? >> well, first of all, you're incredibly polite. i'm good. >> thank you. no one ever asks how i'm doing, so thank you very much. i'm having a great day. i would be better if i could give you a lot of money. >> i'd like that, too, for sure. >> well, you're about to face 14 questions. the money value's growing from $500 all the way up to