tires. >> but snow is good news for the ski resorts, check out the conditions in south lake tahoe, thanks to lake tahoe tv. >> they've gotten six new inches of snow there, and kirkwood has over it's inches. all chair lifts were closed because of the high risk of avalanche. we have live team coverage on the storm where you live. >> and abc 7's weather anchor, spencer christian starts us off. >> the passed off. we still have rain falling up in the north bay. we're getting a closer look right now. you see a line of showers that indicated by the orange and yellow there, it looks like we have heavy downpours from

hillsboro. here's the storm impact scale. we can expect light to moderate showers and occasional downpours as we saw there in the north there's a possibility of isolated thunderstorms and we'll have gusty winds in the hills. the wind is strong just about everywhere right now. look at that line, in fact, two lines of steady rain sweeping through between 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., moving southward, right down to the south bay, parts of the east bay, through the santa cruz mountains, and the cold air will produce sno a closer look in just a few minutes. dan? >> okay, spencer, thanks very much. in the north bay, rain and wind got the attention of people there all day. cornell bernard continues our live team coverage with that story from petaluma. cornell? >> reporter: yeah, we're seeing a break in the rain right now. but as spencer said, more is on

the way. the morning commute was pretty messy, but check it out. afternoon commute right now is looking pretty good. up in santa rosa, erosion control measures to keep roads from flooding appear to be working tonight. the storm gave rain gutters a big workout wednesday morning and made for a soggy drive down 101. the rain lasted well past the morning commute. there was street flooding in san rafael and a few downed trees like this one in novato. a power line snapped and the storm prevented some people from leaving their homes for several hours until pg and e could repair it. tree crews were busy. >> it's more dead and dying debris that could lead to flooding, that can clog up our creeks. >> reporter: lowenthal says thas

it appears to have done the trick. >> which really shows that the work we've done over the last four months has been paying off. >> reporter: check out all this snow falling. the blizzard could dump more than five feet. it's good news for santa rosa ski and sports. >> we have people waiting outside to get in. rentals going out, waxes coming in. people preparing their gear, getting ready to go up. >> that was cornell bernard reporting. and here's a look at the pg&e power map. most of the outages are in the east bay. sadly, when the power goes out, some people behave badly. matt keller spotted several cars just blowing through an intersection in san jose after a traffic light went out. >> reporter: we're here at the intersection of hamilton avenue and sagemont.

and this intersection does not have power. we've been seeing people blow right through this intersection. we have a truck oming up. it's dangerous. watch this person, blowing right through, probably doing about 40 miles per hour right through the intersection. luckily, no one was coming. it's obviously dangerous, because it's raining and dangerous because people are not paying attention out here. >> a reminder from police, the safest thing to do is treat a non-working signal simply like a four-way stop. >> here's a reminder to drive safely so you don't end up upside down like theis driver. >> reporter: i'm along more ah goe way, where a water main broke this morning and caused havoc with traffic all afternoon long. they're still working on repairing the break here. they haven't begun to work on the huge hole, the crater in the

middle of the road. at 5:00 a.m., with rain pounding down, a water main burst on the shoulder of maraw goe way. it bubbled up into the yards of six homes before east bay mud got a grip on it. >> it's on a cast iron main in an area that's an extremely high pressure zone. that may be one of the reasons the pipe might have broken. >> reporter: the fractured asphalt damaged a gas line. crews had to enlarge the hole to ten feet by 30 feet to make repairs, meernianing the hole n eats up most of the lane causing impact to traffic flow. rain slicked roads caused this landscape truck to flip over. no one was injured, but more backups to endure for this man and his dog bugs. >> i just left lake tahoe last night. i heard the storm was coming in. so i bailed out of there.

cut my trip short. >> reporter: the blizzard is in full bloom now in the mountains, and snow lovers are driving through the rain to scoop up deals at local ski shops. >> it's really setting up to be a perfect storm. it's going to be really good, light weight, fluffy powder, great for skiing and snowboarding. we've seen a lot of people coming up, trying to grab last-minute gear before they head up today, tomorrow, it's going to be a wonderful weekend. it's going to be a wonderful few weeks. >> reporter: i'm leslie brinkley, abc 7 news. >> thank you to lynette in pittsburg for sharing this video of a downpour that hit her neighborhood this morning. share your pictures and video with the #abc 7 news now. we could share them on the app, the website. we have breaking news from southern california. a couple from joshua tree is

facing child cruelty charges after three children between 11 and 14 years old were found living in a large box on a property that had no electricity or running water. let's give ah pictuyou a pictur the san bernardino county sheriff's department. just a sad picture. the children are now in the custody of the children and family services. now new information on i.c.e.'s new operation. they've arrested 232 people over the last four people, including two people in san leandro and vallejo. libby schaaf announced that the arrests were imnepts. today the white house press secretary called it outrageous. >> i think's outrageous that a mayor would circumvent federal authorities and put them in danger by making a move.

>> mayor shaaf stood position. and san francisco announced additional funding for legal services to defend those detained by i.c.e. leanne melendez has more from the newsroom with how that monday l money will be distributed. >> it's city money. in addition, the mayor is working with the state to get $7 million more. san francisco city officials are warning the trump administration there will shabe as many attorn necessary to represent those undocumented immigrants who have been detained by i.c.e. >> here in san francisco, we have to be and we always be a supporter of our immigrant community. it's part of our dna, it's who we are. >> earlier, san francisco set

aside $7.6 million for legal defense services, but now the city will spend an additional $3.5 million a year. $2.5 million to legal defense organizations and 1 million dollars to the city attorney's office. they are asking for funding for every immigrant illegally detained. >> our goal is to make sure that here in northern california, every single immigrant that comes before the court, that the trump administration tries to deport, has legal representation. >> legal services have been strengthened, even before president trump took office. and now there's a 24/7 multi-lingual hotline. >> we have attorneys on call to go to the detention center. >> reporter: at any time. >> yes.

>> reporter: without a lawyer, many undocumented immigrants often get deported quickly. this woman won her case, it allowed her to stay. she says that gave her the opportunity to study at city college, and she is now a certified therapist, working with children with autism. >> and last year california approved $45 million in its budget to also expand legal services for immigrants throughout the state. in the newsroom, leanne melendez, abc we're asking you to sound off on what can be done about gun violence. >> the next time you go through flying in severe weather, we'll have a story.

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well, it's time for you to join the conversation. we want to hear from you. get out your phone, go to abc 7 news.com/vote. >> tell us which you prioritize to curb gun violence. you see the choices are gun control at24%, mental health at 21% and both as ways to prioritize, curb gun violence, 54% right now. >> so the recent school shooting in parkland, florida prompted this, so did the visit by the

congressman to schools. >> he took tough questions from students. >> i want to talk with you about how you're feelin' right now. on the issue of school safety and gun violence. >> reporter: all 90 students at this school turned out for today's assembly featuring north bay democrat huffman. >>en we' >> we've always allowed reasonable restrictions. >> reporter: the visit comes two weeks after nikolas cruz opened fire inside a parkland, florida high school. 17 people were killed. the result, anxious parents and students across the country. he was asked to come in and talk to students about gun safety and violence. and he was glad to

he talked in petaluma and told them a step in the right direction would include a federal ban on assault-style weapons and back ground checks. some students are look for more. >> some kids don't know where to start. they want to help. >> i'm amazed at these florida kids that are just kind of creating their own to that question. tat's rather remarkable. you may want to do that. start up a club or something right here at casa grande. >> reporter: the teachers say arming them is not the issue. >> arming teachers is not the solution. >> reporter: huffman says the passion of students like these is even having an effect on supporters of the powerful nra. in petaluma, eric thomas, abc 7nes7 news. we want to hear from you. which do you prioritize? >> both is still the biggest

vote getter, while gun control is at 24% and mental health at 21%. >> go to abc 7 news.com/vote. >> and the lift is on. >> the launch of a new weather sat light went flawlessly from cape canaveral, florida. it will take a position to monitor weather conditions over the pacific. it is technology on board that has scientists, meteorologists, and firefighters excited because of the advanced capability to track storms and lightning. david louie has more on what this means to us notice bin the area. >> reporter: the launch of a new weather satellite is expected to have a big impact on predicting storms and spot being wild land fires in the western united states. the payload is made up of six advanced technology instruments,

each with specific tests. the sat light is a twin to an identical satellite known as goes east. the new sat light will take up a geostationary spot over the pacific. an instrument called an abi already has proven its capability. >> one of the fires in the santa cruz mountains last years was detected by abi before anybody knew it had started. >> reporter: samantha edging ton is a physicist with asicist wita one of those who helped developed this technology. it can enable earlier and more reliable warnings allowing time for people to take cover or evacuate. imagine all this lightning

develops. a pilot using the new technology will be able to avoid the strikes. >> to be able to take that data and forecast it really means a lot for us during the summer months. transition to when we get to the fire season and the higher resolution is going to make it easier for us to see hotspots from the sky before anybody will see them on the ground. >> reporter: goes s will undergo testing before it takes the place of an older sat light. >> i like that stuff. >> he's getting quite excited over that. >> it is going to be interesting when it's operational. let's get to the forecast. it really came down. >> i was notice wrong position, i got so excited to see those sat light images. i'm just all over the place. here's live doppler 7, and you can see we have some rain developing in the north, now expanding a bit.

it's mainly light rain, some areas of locally moderate to heavy downpours, but generally light rain. the remainder of the area will get this later as it's moving from north to south. check out this view of the clouds. we have some dark clouds and wide open areas of clear skies. temperatures range from 53-55 degrees. only50 in gilroy and 52 in half moon bay. nice view of the golden get a bridge where traffic is flowing clearly. chilly in the north bay, but temperatures in the low 50s in napa, concord and livermore. here's a look at our surface wind right now. not quite so gusty as it was earlier in the north bay, but we still have gusts of 32 miles per hour at fair field, 29 at hayward. generally, it's still a windy

evening. a wind advisory remains in effect for the bay area hills. we'll see winds out of the south, 15-35 miles per hour with gusts to 45 miles per hour at times. there's still a possibility of downed tries and power lines. another live view from the east bay hills camera. a dramatic view, and these are our forecast features, skatured showers through the night and tomorrow. a possibility of thunder, isolated thunderstorms, snow over the higher peaks and a drier pattern develops for sunday and monday. let's talk about our next storm, the one coming in for saturday and sunday. it ranks one on the storm impact scale. it will produce scattered showers, freezing conditions, chance of isolated thunder tomorrow. it will be cold with snow levels between 1500 and 3,000 feet. notice how the big wave of steady rain you saw down to the south bay there later tonight will move on out. by

mixed pockets. maybe pockets of downpours. and snow in the higher elevations of sonoma and mend see know county. that will continue through the night and into saturday morning before things start to dry out a little bit. low temperatures tonight inland, low 40s around the bay. only in the low 50s for the most part. we have a starm warniorm warninf sierra until saturday night. we have a blizzard warning in effect for the tahoe area. gusts over the higher peaks will be around 100 miles per hour. and white oaout conditions of

course travel there is not recommended. more rain comes in next tuesday. looks like it will be pretty light. it may get heavier on and thursday. roses are red,

over the future of the san francisco flower mart, >> developers want to temporarily move it from brandon street where it's been for years to the embarcadero. >> melanie woodrow has the story. >> reporter: the florists pride themselves on creating arrangements that stand out. >> i have to know where, you know, that i have a reliable source to go get my product from. and that's kind of what we've built our reputation on. >> reporter: now florists worry that change to the location could jeopardize their business. the flower marketwas purchased in a multi-million deal years ago in a plan to develop a mixed-use project with a new state-of-the-art flower market. meaning vendors will have to move for the time being. piers 19, 19 1/2 and 23 have

been chosen. >> we have no faith that this is something that is feasible. >> our staff has visited it. weigh thi we think there's going to be a lot of in and out with trucks going up and down, the pier that already has a lot of congestion, a lot of tourists, workers and residents. >> the traffic is actually lower than the traffic at the current site. >> reporter: construction could begin within two years. >> nobody likes change, but in the future, once it's built, i think it will be a wonderful location. >> reporter: and last up to three years. with florists hoping the temporary location will pan out. >> having that kind of uncertainty for may businey bus terrifying. >> a schoolworker says crucial care to some cancer patients is being delayed. >> i feel that our veterans have

sacrificed and deserve the care. >> when she tried to report the problem she was

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live where you live. this is abc 7 news. today storms started as a level two on the storm impact scale. it's now ranked one, and it's not over. we do expect rain to keep falling for the next few days. >> let's bring back spencer christian. >> just because this storm's ranking has been reduced, don't underestimate the strength of this storm. you can see live doppler 7, rain is spreading. here's the storm impact scale, a one through tonight. the possibility of isolated thunderstorms. gusty winds in the hills that gusts up to 45 miles per hour at times. there's another storm coming tomorrow, i'll give you the low down later. steady rains have prompted mandatory evacuations for 30,000 people, including montecito

where the january storm triggered mudslides and killed 21 people. tomorrow's impending storm is impacting ventura county where they're placing sandbags and tarps on the ground to try to keep land from washing away. last year, it cost close to $2 billion to fight wildfires, more than 80% came from the north bay fires. the federal government will reimburse california f most of the fire fighting cost, the state will need to cover about $371 million. the wildfire risk is rising as the drought continues to worsen. you're looking at the latest map which was released today, and a map of drought conditions from a year ago. you can take a clear look at what's going on. almost the whole state falls into some category of drought. last year only a quarter of california did.

stocks fell sharply as investors worried that tariffs on aluminum and steel will impact them. the dow closed around it's a steeper drop. a social worker says one bay area facility's crucial care has been delayed. and when she documented it, she was punished. >> we have the story of one veteran advocate. >> reporter: when her own son joined the navy, karen decided she wanted to serve the nation as well. >> i sold my house, my misbig a moved to california. >> reporter: she went from miami to social work for veterans in palo alto. >> i feel that our veterans have

sacrificed and deserve the care. >> reporter: as a social worker at the palo alto va. hospital she helps patients with cancer, she helps them navigate a complex system called veterans choice. it's supposed to help them receive community care when they can't get proper treatment through the va. >> they do not offer radiation treatment. so 100% of veterans that need radiation are referred to the community. >> reporter: karen says since august some of her veteran's choice referrals have been repeatedly denied or delayed. >> can you please process this? is there a delay? that doesn't get answered. nothing worked. days go by and the referrals aren't processed. >> reporter: meanwhile, veterans wait for radiation and express frustration to karen who says many are getting sicker. these are vets who are often too ill for other types of treatment or need radiation before receiving surgery or

chemotherapy. karen says in response to her aggressive advocacy, she received e-mails from her spear year -- superiors, banning her from meetings. >> she has to defend her job and integrity, all because she's trying to advocate for veterans and better patient care. >> reporter: she hired a whistle blower attorney to help remember. >> she retained our firm. and when they saw that she was retaining our firm, they didn't give her the hearing. they just went behind the back doors and gave her, basically, a lower rating score for her performance. >> reporter: after that performance review, karen and her attorney fired a whistle blower complaint with the office of special counsel, alleging mismanagement and violation of law, and providing e-mails showing karen's attempts to give veterans their radiation reevls. a spokesman for the v.a. told me he's not at liberty to discuss

personnel issues, and says that the palo alto va is within current guidelines. according to the data, for the last four months of 2017, september referrals took on average nine days. in october, the average was 22 days. in november, the average was 25 1/2 days. in deteriorati in december, the average was 17 days. they went on to say va palo alto is always working to resolve issues and in no way do we feel we are perfect, however, the data provided shows that we are working properly to provide veterans the care they need in a timely manner. after my conversation with karen, she got a memo, she was allowed back into the patient meetings. however, she has never been able to address those discipline issues and is still working with patients beyond five weeks and waiting for radiation.

>> the harm that's happening here is happening to our veterans. and delays are still happening, in spite of all this. but i'm going, of course i will continue on. and to advocate and adhere to the core values of the united states department of veterans affairs because it actually has a meaning to me. it's not just something that i wear on my name badge. >> reporter: in palo alto, for abc 7 news. >> the help that brought one woman to tears of happiness. >> how michael finney was able to get her more than she was hoping for. and add together science, technology, and math and what do you get?

t live doppler 7 shows the next wave of today's storm approaching the bay area. you can access radar anytime on the abc 7 news app. it's free to download for both apple and android devices. a group of girls from oakland got to celebrate the start of women's history month. >> we went along on their behind

the scenes tour. >> reporter: the free warriors tee shirts were just the beginning. a bomb-sniffing dog demo and a chance to give him a belly rub. bridger's in the prime of his career, but these tech ridge girls are just getting started. from the airline office. >> i can see the gates in front of them. >> reporter: to the airport ramp. united gave a behind the scenes tour. >> this is my first time on an actual plane. >> reporter: of an industry that was almost all men once. >> having women who look just like them, speak to them, talk about their careers, that really brings a spark. >> reporter: that spark is the mission of tech bridge, helping girls defy stereotypes. >> oh, you're a girl, you can't really do these things. you can't run as fast. you can't participate in something. and it's really amazing and empowering to see these women doing things. >> reporter: all thanks to brave women. >> plenty of women took that

very first step and pushed the envelope. >> reporter: middle school is the time when these girls are figuring out what they want to be when they grow up. >> they have a thousand questions. and they're figuring out what they want to do. >> reporter: maybe a sports executive. >> the group that i oversee, he put on that parade. >> reporter: maybe a pilot. >> i have three kids. so you can have your career and have your family too. you can live anywhere. wei we started our day in denver. >> reporter: of course they don't have to grow up yet. >> you can play video games on there. >> reporter: but when they're ready, their future is clear for takeoff. jonathan bloom, abc 7 news. the rain we saw today will continue into the weekend but it won't be a total washout. >> spencer will be back with your forecast next.

i we worked with pg&eof to save energy because wenie. wanted to help the school. they would put these signs on the door to let the teacher know you didn't cut off the light. the teachers, they would call us the energy patrol. so they would be like, here they come, turn off your lights! those three young ladies were teaching the whole school about energy efficiency. we actually saved $50,000. and that's just one school, two semesters, three girls. together, we're building a better california.

get excited. we are just days away from oscar

sunday. can you catch all the fun and glamour here on abc 7. the coverage begins at 1:30 with the red carpet, then at 3:30 the oscars opening ceremony. then the academy awards with host jimmy kimmel. you may see them in your neighborhood, door to door sales people trying to get you to switch to their home security system. in truth i took the bait. >> a north bayview viewer says s got stuck with a whole bunch of problems. >> a vallejo neighborhood was offered a system with cameras. it seemed too good to pass up. however, things didn't work out for this viewer who wanted out of her very long contract. yolanda jackson recalls the day a sales team fanned out in her neighborhood. the salesman told yolanda many of her neighbors were switching their alarm system to vivant

home security. the salesman offered her a system with four security cameras which yolanda had wanted. >> several times we've had packages disappear off the doorstep. >> so she signed a five-year contract at $82 per month, it's a little steep. >> let's see how it goes. >> the doorbell camera kept going off line. two packages were stolen from her doorstep. the new camera never captured the footage. she kept calling vivant. >> and they wouldn't call me back. i would have back. >> reporter: she spent hours on the phone troubleshooting problems, but it didn't help. >> my anxiety level kept going up. we're not getting our money's worth. >> she said vivant wouldn't let her out of the contract. >> i would have to pay $2400. no. i'm not paying $2400. >> she contacted us.

we contacted vivant. they told her it wasn't working properly because she didn't have enough internet to support four cameras. they said we responded to every request and did all we could to get her system to work including sending cetechnicianso her home. we offered to remove a couple of cameras but she preferred to cancel. >> seven on your side was so, i can't thank you enough. it almost makes me want to cry. >> that's why we're here. when a salesman comes to your door urging you to switch alarm companies, don't act so fast. make sure the salesperson has a license. in this case they did. make sure you know all the terms of of about you -- before you sign. take a few days. >> the telephone number is 415-954-8151. you can reach me on my facebook page and through abc 7 news.com.

>> take a few days is good advice for so many things. >> absolutely. >> when weather happens where you live, be sure to snap a photo or video and share it with us. we' we've already had great share your post so we can find them. and right now we'll find out if you have the opportunity to make more rain pictures. >> it's still happening. here's a look at doppler 7 in the north bay. mainly light rain continues to spread. during the overnight hours we'll see the storm break up a little bit into pockets of scattered showers. as the cold air sweeps in, some of the higher elevations in the north, even mt. hamilton could see some snow. highs will be mainly in the low

50s tomorrow. looking at tahoe, it has snowed heavily. this is the three-day tahoe forecast. blizzard warning in effect until 4 clo 4:00 tomorrow morning. travel to tahoe the next couple days is not advised. wait until sunday if you want to go. here's the accuweather seven-day forecast. sunday is going to be a dry day, drying out for oscar sunday. a little milder on monday. and active weather for tuesday, wednesday. >> thanks, spencer. a hot going on lolo >> they have decisions to make. getting ready for the draft, will they be looking for a replacement for

good evening. the 49ers brass is at the nfl combine looking for players to draft. and a huge question is whether they will take a linebacker because of the offfield issues involving rubin foster. they say foster has put the team in a tough situation. he was arrested last month by

los gatos police on suspicion of domestic violence and possession of an assault weapon and that follows a marijuana possession charge back in alabama. that aside, big picture for the niners, optimistic, team on the rise. >> the way you get people to feel good about 6-10 is start 0-9. glad we didn't do it the other way around. but it still was our record. we got a lot of work to do. >> in tampa, when we were trying to turn it around, there were years we finished strong. that doesn't guarantee success the next year. so it's back to trying to improve our franchise in every way we can and back to good old-fashioned hard work to make sure we do carry the momentum that we had forward into next year. >> university of arizona basketball coach shawn miller is not wandering off quietly into the cactus. he's come out fighting in an espn report that he offered $100,000 to play for the wildcats. miller says he has never paid a recruit or knowingly broken any

ncaa rules. the school is supporting shawn miller. he will coach tonight against stanford. >> i'm outraged by the media statements that have been made and the acceptance by many that these statements were true. there was no such conversation. these statements have damaged me, my family, the university, deandre aden and his incredible family. the one time someone suggested to me paying a player to come to the university of arizona i did not agree to it. it never happened. and that player did not come to the university of arizona. >> hmm. women's hoops, pac-12 tournament, fifth seed cal taking on washington. huskies came in 1-17 in the conference but took a three-point laid thanthre three-point lead thanks to

mambe amber melgosa. cal wins it, 71-68. they'll face ucla tomorrow. last night after the warriors won their game, klay thompson casually mentioned how cool it would be if the dubs ran the table. that would be 24 straight wins. that would tie the war your streak that opened the 73-win season a couple years ago. they may have to went a lot of those games, because the rockets have won 14 straight and will host the celtics saturday night on abc 7. steph curry was swinging his golf clubs in his hotel room. this is the result. busted grass tab busted grass table, it appears. when you feel like you're in the pga tour, #idiot. the official pga tour replied

"golf is hard". and repairing furniture is not that easy either. >> join us tonight on cable channel 13. a woman could become the next owner of harvey weinstein's company. fears growing as the white house hits back. what would you do if agents visit your family without any notice. >> local breaking news on twitter @abc 7 news bay area. >> for spencer christian and all of us, we appreciate your time and hope to see you again at 9:00 and 11:00.

♪ this is "jeopardy!" today's contestants are a technical writer and manager from minneapolis, minnesota... an editor from levittown, pennsylvania... and our returning champion -- a data analyst from nashville, tennessee... whose 1-day cash winnings total... and now here is the host of "jeopardy!" -- alex trebek! [ cheers and applause ] thank you, johnny. thank you, ladies and gentlemen. welcome, everyone. $12,199 is a little below our average for winnings by "jeopardy!" champions,

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