making news in america this morning, the death toll in the california mudslide disaster rises as we get a new view of the devastation. >> i didn't think it would ever turn into something like this. we've never seen anything like this before. >> 100 homes destroyed. this car washed away in a river of debris. water service could be out for several months, and this morning the shocking development, why emergency cell phone alerts were never sent. president trump strikes a different tone when it comes to the russia investigation. his new response when asked whether he's willing to answer questions under oath. a young man, the picture of health, falls victim to the flu. this morning his father's tearful warning to everyone about just how dangerous the flu virus is this season. a man attacked by a bear in florida needs 41 stitches to

recover. >> i came outside and he was right there. >> what happened just before the rare attack? plus, eric clapton's new health struggle. we see what 23 feet of snow looks like. and the woman who just returned her dead christmas tree to costco and got a refund. and good thursday morning, everyone. i'm kendis gibson. >> and i'm maggie rulli in for diane macedo. we begin with the rising death toll in the california mudslide disaster. >> yeah, at least 17 people are dead and dozens are believed to be missing around the town of montecito in santa barbara county. hundreds are stranded with roads cut off and no water supply. >> meanwhile, as we see new video of the raging floodwaters, we're learning why residents never received emergency alerts that were supposed to warn them of this danger. this morning, rescuers going door to door searching for

survivors in southern california, placing an x when it's all clear. >> i didn't think it would ever turn into something like this. we've never seen anything like this before. >> reporter: powerful mudslides funneling down these hillsides left barren by last month's fires. abc's kayna whitworth flying over the damage. >> if you look out there, you can see all of these homes completely surrounded in mud in all areas. i mean look at this. the rocks and mud have pushed down out of the canyons and collapsed trees, they moved cars yet somehow just to the left was completely spared. >> reporter: new video shows the mudslide's power and speed. an empty car in burbank bobsledding down the street as a muddy mess washes downhill. >> oh, my god, mom. >> reporter: marco farrell and his family scrambling to safety as a wall of mud hits their home. >> close the door. get, get, get ready to go out. wake dad up. >> reporter: the farrell family,

some of the lucky ones surviving the ordeal. but the death toll is rising. at least 17 people have been killed including roy rohter, the founder of a catholic school. and this morning, pictures surfacing of some of the missing, 12-year-old sawyer corey and her sister morgan. peter flore last seen at his montecito home and ken liatis who hasn't been heard from since tuesday. >> this is unbelievable. >> reporter: at least 400 hopes are damaged or destroyed and the evacuations still ongoing. it could take weeks or possibly months to restore drinking water in montecito. meanwhile, the busy 101 freeway now a mud-caked mess. it's closed until monday. two local whale watching companies are offering emergency ferry service to evacuees. and there's word this morning that emergency cell phone alerts did not go out to montecito residents until after the mudslides began. county officials tell the "los angeles times" they were afraid that future warnings would be ignored if nothing happened this time.

now to washington, d.c. and president trump's apparent change of position about the russia investigation. he seems to be backing away from a possible interview with special counsel robert mueller. also, the president finds himself in the middle of a challenging debate over immigration. abc's lana zak has the details from d.c. lana, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, kendis and maggie. here in washington lawmakers say they're increasingly close to coming to an agreement that would protect the 800,000 d.r.e.a.m.ers in this country. meanwhile, expect the white house is going to face increasing questions about the president's most recent tweets about the russia investigation. abc news has confirmed that special counsel robert mueller has told the president's lawyers he is likely to request an interview with the president, but asked directly if he was willing to meet with mueller, the president hedged. >> i can only say this, there was absolutely no collusion, everybody knows it. >> reporter: president trump had previously said he was willing to meet with investigators. >> would you be willing to speak under oath to give your version of these events?

>> 100%. >> reporter: on twitter the president dismissed it all as, quote, the single greatest witch-hunt in american history, adding republicans should finally take control. he was asked to explain what that means. >> how do you want republicans to take control of the russia investigation? >> thank you very much, everybody. >> do you want them to shut down the russia investigation? >> thank you very much, everybody. >> reporter: the senate republican leading one of the investigations seemed to balk at the president calling for republican control of the russia investigation. >> i don't intend to have a discussion with the president on that point, and i hope he doesn't call me and tell me the same thing that you said he said. >> reporter: meanwhile, congressional negotiators say they are closing in on a daca deal to protect undocumented immigrants who were brought to the united states as children. the president insists that congress must agree to fund his wall, but republicans on the hill seem to temper expectations. >> it depends how you define wall. that wall doesn't have to be 2,000 miles of solid wall.

>> reporter: now, republican jeff flake says he believes that congress will come to an agreement before the january 19 spending deadline, but, kendis and maggie, it is not clear yet if daca will be part of that bill or a stand-alone. we do know that senate majority leader mitch mcconnell has pledged that he hopes to have daca done by the end of this month. >> quite a few deadlines coming up in d.c. our lana zak, thank you. speaking of immigration, the trump administration says an immigration sweep at 7-eleven stores across the country are only the beginning. agents hit up nearly 100 stores in 17 states and d.c. in the predawn raid arresting nearly two dozen people suspected of being in the country illegally. the store owners may also face fines and criminal charges for employing undocumented workers. a legal victory for the trump administration this morning in a battle over who controls a consumer watchdog. a federal judge has ruled president trump can appoint his budget director mick mulvaney as acting director of the consumer financial protection bureau. a woman selected by the outgoing

director of the agency sued to keep the job. she's expected to appeal the ruling. another high-profile republican is retiring from congress. darrell issa harshly criticized former president obama during his tenure as a house committee chairman. he's the 30th republican who has announced he will not seek re-election in november. overseas trains are finally reaching tourists stranded in the swiss alps. in case you're wondering, here's what nearly 23 feet of snow looks like. it's incredible. locals say it was the biggest storm in a generation. about 13,000 tourists have been trapped because of the risk for avalanches. >> all right. well, nothing like that back here at home. let's check your weather for this thursday. there is, however, another storm system that is moving across the central plains bringing snow and ice to northern states and rain and ice farther south. the strong winds could produce blizzard conditions in parts of

minnesota, iowa and wisconsin followed by bitter cold temperatures. the same storm brought heavy snow to the rockies where it was welcome in ski towns like breckenridge which saw about ten inches. perfect conditions for some skiers there. and still ahead, another close call at a major u.s. airport. how a plane nearly landed on the wrong runway. but first a stunning revelation from the governor of missouri. the secret recording prompting him to admit he had an extramarital affair. plus, caught on camera, the dramatic moment a construction crane comes crashing down.

i'm eric greitens. i'm a navy s.e.a.l. i'm a businessman.

i'm a native missourian. but most importantly i'm a very proud husband and father. >> well, that's missouri governor eric greitens during his campaign billing himself as a family man. well, this morning he's admitted having an extramarital affair. but he's denying some explosive allegations that he blackmailed his mistress to keep her quiet. a local tv station aired a recording in which the unnamed woman reportedly claimed the governor took a photo of her naked and threatened to release the image if she ever went public. overnight the governor's lawyer denied any blackmail calling the accusation about the nude photo false. police in orange county, california, are investigating the death of an ivy league student who disappeared last week as a homicide. the body of 19-year-old university of pennsylvania sophomore blaze bernstein was found in the brush around the park where he was last seen. bernstein was home on winter break and had reportedly been picked up by a friend to meet up with another friend in the park. his family just wants answers.

>> our family is devastated by the news, and we like so many of you around the world loved blaze. blaze was a brilliant, colorful and charismatic man who shined light on all of the lives of the people and communities that he touched. investigators say bernstein's friend had cuts on his hand but blames it on a fight club he was in. that youtube star logan paul is facing new fallout after posting a video that showed an apparent suicide victim in japan. youtube's parent company google is now dropping paul's channels from its advertising service. he's also being dropped from the online series "foursome." paul has since apologized for the video. and coca-cola, they're making a bold, new move trying to put some fizz back in sales of diet coke. the company is adding four new flavors to its classic diet coke including ginger lime, feisty cherry, zesty blood orange and twisted mango. the move comes after bottled

water recently unseeded carb natured soft drinks as america's favorite drink. coming up, the father of a healthy young man who died from the flu shares a warning that everyone should hear. also ahead, the teacher arrested after protesting her boss' pay raise speaks out as the superintendent gives his side of the story. and we hear from the man who survived a terrifying bear attack in florida and has the scars to prove it. she'll love us. right? we are the new light & fit greek yogurt with zero artificial sweeteners. zerooooo! ooh eye contact. be cool. ♪ ♪ yeah girl, 13 grams of protein. 90 calories. yaaasssss! (loudspeaker) clean-up in the dairy aisle. we're the new light & fit greek nonfat yogurt with zero artificial sweeteners. come and get us. your body was made for better things than rheumatiod arthritis. before you and your rheumatologist

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warning everyone no matter what your age, get the flu shot. kyler baughman of pennsylvania died from septic shock just days after his flu symptoms began. he finally went to the hospital when his fever kept rising but it was too late. >> you know, whenever you have fever and you have it multiple days, just don't let it go. get it taken care of. >> again a reminder, experts say it's not too late to get the flu shot. although it's only about 30% effective, it can still help lessen the symptoms. it takes about two weeks for the vaccine to take full effect. and here's just more evidence of the toll this flu is taking. one school near charlotte, north carolina, is closing for the rest of the week after 160 students came down with flu-like symptoms. a baltimore hospital says it will investigate the circumstances behind a disturbing video. a man says that he recorded hospital security guards wheeling this woman to the bus stop wearing only her hospital gown then leaving her in the

cold. he called 911 and says medics brought her back to the hospital. now, that hospital confirms that she was discharged from the emergency department saying, quoting here, this unfortunate event is not representative of our patient-centered mission. while there are many circumstances of this patient's case that we cannot address publicly, in the end we clearly failed to fulfill our mission with this patient. the faa's investigating another close call at san francisco international airport. an aeromexico flight nearly landed on the wrong runway tuesday heading straight toward a virgin american flight packed with passengers before air traffic control alerted the pilots. it's the second close call at the airport in recent months. in july an air canada flight nearly landed on a crowded taxiway. the former head of the transportation department will now investigate the chaos in new york's jfk airport this week. bad weather and a burst water pipe left thousands of people stranded. as of wednesday, 5,000 pieces of

luggage were still stuck at the airport, and it could be two weeks before some people even get their bags back. a rally is planned today in louisiana for the teacher arrested during a school board meeting there. deyshia hargrave was handcuffed after protesting a $38,000 raise given to the superintendent. now, the board president says hargrave spoke too long about a subject that was not on the agenda. >> by silencing my voice they've also taken away or tried to take away my first amendment rights to speak, and i'm appalled at this, and you should be too. >> the school superintendent is now speaking out for the very first time. he says the marshal who arrested hargrave acted correctly because she was not following the protocol of the meeting. >> go to the podium. state your name. you have three minutes. that way there's no ambiguity if somebody received the authority to speak or not.

our people know what to do, and when it happened, that person, our -- that marshal acted in what we ask him to do. >> the core issue here, the teachers union says they haven't received a raise in nearly a decade. the city prosecutor says he will not press charges against hargrave. one man now sharing his frightening tale of survival after being attacked outside his home by a bear, but here's the real kicker. he lives in naples, florida. andrew meunier says he was letting his dogs outside when he came face-to-face with a four-foot bear. >> i came outside, and he was right there. and i tried to run, and it wasn't fast enough. i tried to go like this to get back in, and it just did one of these, and i kind of flew that way and got myself together and somehow got in the door. >> what a close call. you see the size of that gash. andrew had to get 41 stitches.

all right, up next in "the pulse," the music legend who says he's going deaf. also ahead, lights out. what caused the power outage at the world's biggest technology show. plus, how a woman got a full refund for her dead christmas tree in january. it's a long-distance run. and you have the determination to keep going. humira has a proven track record of being prescribed for nearly 10 years. humira works inside the body to target and help block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to symptoms. in clinical trials, most adults taking humira were clear or almost clear and many saw 75% and even 90% clearance in just four months. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal, infections and cancers, including lymphoma have happened as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections,

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when the power goes out. >> that's tough. >> yeah, people had to use the lights on their phones to see some of the products during that outage at the las vegas convention center. >> others just said that's enough. we're going outside. as it turns out, it was the rain that caused the problem creating a so-called flashover on a transformer, but the outage lasted about two hours. tough at an electronics show. >> and it's too bad there's just not enough to do in vegas when that happens. >> what are you going to do? quiet town. >> yep. next to to an unexpected refund that caught our attention. >> what do you think about this one? a woman brought her christmas tree back to costco asking for a full refund last week because it was dead, but most christmas trees are dead by january. >> exactly. so another customer posted this on social media to try to shame her, but she got her refund. she got the last laugh. yes. don't hate the player. the game. >> hate the christmas tree game. all right, finally, a man finds out that black ice, guess what, it can be painful.

>> so, this is in northern virginia here. he's heading to work, just a normal day, oop, and then ends up slipping, sliding. >> he's doing so well. he can make it. no! >> down goes -- >> i'm actually really impressed by how long he stays up. >> he does. he slides for a little bit. >> he's got skills. they're not used to it in virginia. >> yeah. brian boitano would love his skills there on the ice, so he's fine. his wife tweeted this out on social media. >> he's fine but she can't stop laughing. >> yes. she got a good laugh out of it. more news after this. ut of it. more news after this. out of it. more news after this. i even accept i have a higher risk of stroke due to afib, a type of irregular heartbeat not caused by a heart valve problem. but no matter where i ride, i go for my best. so if there's something better than warfarin, i'll go for that too. eliquis. eliquis reduced the risk of stroke better than warfarin, plus had less major bleeding than warfarin. eliquis had both. don't stop taking eliquis unless your doctor tells you to, as stopping increases your risk of having a stroke. eliquis can cause serious and in rare cases fatal bleeding.

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it is 4:27 on this thursday morning. a live look outside at the embarcadero and bay bridge. let's see how it looks traffic and weatherwise. hi, lisa. quite extensive with low clouds creating reduced visibility. petaluma, can't see anything there. half mile along the coast. emeryville and oakland looking at reduced visibility. current temperatures are milder this morning due to all the cloud cover. 46 in novato. 55 for you in hayward with 55 in san jose. so, yes, two to ten degrees warmer today. a lot of clouds. it will be cool for the most part and we'll talk about temperatures in your neighborhood. most of you near 60 today.

sue? a look at our emeryville camera. you can barely see the headlights at the bottom of your screen. so fog is really an issue this morning. taking a look at the san mateo bridge. not a problem traffic wise but we do have a traffic issue in vallejo where it is very thick fog i'm speaking of, and problems with a big rig accident near american canyon. we'll update that in a couple of minutes. lisa and sue, thank you. the end of an era for a neighborhood falling into the ocean. the last red tagged house in pacifica is coming down. abc 7 news reporter amy hollyfield live for us in pacifica. amy? >> reporter: hi, reggie. here sits the house. one last look of it right here behind me. this is the last few hours that it will be here. it's fenced off, and later this morning it will be gone. here is the view from sky 7. you can see how close to the edge it is. the backyard and back patio are gone. they have fallen into the ocean and, of course, the city fears

the house will be next. in a purchase agreement the city of pacifica took over ownership and will demolish it today. the former homeowners will be here to watch it all happen. they say this has been much more than a building to them. >> it's about as part of my heart as any pet i've ever loved. i put that much into it. >> reporter: she and her husband say this is their favorite place on earth. they bought the house in 2009. they worked hard to save it. they hired an engineering firm to move the house 30 feet away from the cliff. they wanted to relocate it, but they never found a suitable lot. so today it will be demolished. the homes across the street will have an unrestricted view of the ocean. the question is will they be next? reporting live in pacifica, amy hollyfield, abc 7 news. >> big changes for those families. amy, thank you so much.

the faa investigating another close call at sfo. this involves a flight coming in for a landing tuesday morning. >> aeromexico 668, go around. >> the controller noticed when the plane was about a mile out it had lined up on the wrong runway. the runway had a virgin america flight on it filled with passengers. the faa says the aeromexico pilots were using a guidance system used in bad weather to help with the approach. in july an air canada flight mistook a crowded taxiway for 28 right. the plane flew as low as 59 feet off the ground before the pilot aborted the landing. rent in the bay area is super expensive. now the effort to expand rent control across the state will take a big step forward today. they will hold a hearing to discuss repealing the law that prevents cities from