up. but first, this story. a family with a 6-month-old on life support has been given more time before doctors end life support measures. >> we first brought you the story saturday night. as kingston's parents were making one last plea to keep their son alive at oakland's children hospital. >> our reporter is at the hospital where family and friends rallied in support. carlos? >> reporter: the breathing machines were supposed to be turned off at 1:00 this am afternoon, but the hospital gave the family more time to explore options. >> we love our baby! let him live. >> reporter: dozens of family and frenlt friends rallied out hospital to keep the 6-month-old on life support. >> this is one of the most devastating things that i've ever been through. >> reporter: the parents have been praying for a miracle. their baby has been on a

ventilator since suffering a severe brain injury due to cardiac arrest at their home six weeks ago. they've seen signs of life and are asking for more time. >> he's moving. he is wiggling his toes. he's moving his foot, as well as his hands. >> reporter: on friday, kingston's parents were informed that his life support would be discontinued by 1:00 p.m. today due to irreversible brain damage. they made the decision without consulting the parents. >> i don't think that's fair at all. they had the meeting behind our back. >> reporter: the hospital cannot comment on the case, but sent a statement that reads, every effort is made to allow the family to grieve recognizing that certain patients are sent to us in such grave condition that they will not benefit from additional care. they say the parents were notified about the pending

decision, but have decided to give them more time to weigh options. >> i'm just waiting on kingston to prove them wrong. >> reporter: kingston's parents say they're looking for a second opinion from a doctor and man to transfer their son to a different facility. in oakland, "abc7 news." >> carlos, thank you very much. now to the story we brought you at the top of the broadcast. three students hit by cars across the bay area this morning, including one that left a middle schooler in critical condition tonight. lyanne melendez has more on the one factor that all of these crashes had in common. >> reporter: the first accident happened at 7:15 this morning. a 10th grader at antioch high school was dropped off by a parent when she was hit in the cross walk. the driver did not stop and ran off. >> the individual driver sped off. but there were witnesses, including the parent of the young lady that was the victim.

>> reporter: police were able to identify the car and are now looking for driver. less than an hour later, two cousins were hit in the same cross walk. this time the driver stopped to help. police say the driver was blinded by the sun. >> they were not able to see as clearly. that's why this incident happened. >> reporter: all three students were taken to the hospital and released. e-mails were sent out to parents asking them to talk to their children about the proper safety measures to take when crossing the street. the school added staff at the cross walks today. >> as a parent telling your child to make sure that you look both ways, that you get the attention of the driver before you cross the street. >> reporter: that was a brentwood mom after a 10-year-old from ed fa hill middle school was struck this morning. >> she was breathing, she was not responsive. they airlifted her to uc davis

medical center. >> reporter: police say all of them were driving east bound, and their vision may have been obscured by the sun. lyanne me len decembelendez, "a" saturday night, on stoney point road, police identified a victim as 37-year-old matthew heck. according to the press democrat, surveillance video shows the driver oh of a small white car stopping for up to 20 seconds, driving around him and taking off through the parking lot of a nearby roundtable pizza. a high stakes hearing is set for next monday where brett kavanaugh and the woman accusing him of sexual assault will testify. she claims he assaulted her when they were teenagers.

the president says he wishes democrats would have brought it up earlier. >> i talked to him earlier. he said he didn't do that. and he wasn't at the party. so there's clearly somebody is mixed up. >> i don't know enough about dr. ford and her allegations yet. obviously if judge kavanaugh has lied about what happened, that would be disqualifying. >> a vote on kavanaugh's nomination was originally scheduled for this thursday. >> i talked to him on the phone today. what is did he say to you? >> well, he didn't do that. and he wasn't at the party. so, you know, there's clearly somebody is mixed up. >> i don't know enough about dr. ford and her allegations yet. obviously, if judge kavanaugh has lied about what happened, that would be disqualifying. >> for the latest on this story,

download the "abc7 news" app. >> didn't mean to run the same comment twice, obviously. the professor has said -- was said to be terrified about going public, according to the reporter who broke the story initially. melanie woodrow is in the newsroom with the latest on this aspect of our coverage. >> reporter: we're getting a better sense of the timeline of events today from that washington post reporter, who spoke to the palo alto university professor, christine blase ford. this is the high school yearbook photo of christine blase ford in 1983 at holton arms school in bethesda, approximately a year after she says brett kavanaugh physically and soouexually assaulted her at a party when they were teenagers. >> she was terrified about going forward. she didn't want to speak on the record. >> reporter: that was in july when kavanaugh was on a short list before being nominated. following the nomination, ford

sent a letter to senator dianne feinstein. she said she felt feinstein honored her request for confidentiality. but as reports surfaced last week about the later, ford had a change of heart about her anonymity. >> she felt like somebody would likely out her. >> reporter: brown says ford felt a civic duty to speak out. some are questioning what they are calling her 11th hour decision, brown says ford disclosed the alleged attack in 2012 and 2013. >> in a time of me too, this is imperative. every single woman should be behind her 100%. >> reporter: karen is an activist, arrested three times during kavanaugh's confirmation hearings. she says she paid a $35 fine each time. >> totally worth it. i would do it again in a heart beat. >> reporter: she believes cavanaugh should withdraw his nation.

>> kavanaugh could serve for 30 years. it's not about our lives but our cildren's lives and what kind of society they will grow up in. we cannot have this man on our supreme court. >> reporter: he says he categ y categorically denies the allegation. president trump praised kavanaugh today as one of the finest people he eve ever known and supports going through a full process to hear everybody out. melanie woodrow, "abc7 news." >> melanie, thanks. a uc berkeley professor suspended after accusations of sexual harassment decided to retire. the paper says the decision was announced in an e-mail to the dean of the college. the professor was initially suspended for three years without pay, starting august 13th. he's accused of harassing a graduate student between 2012 and 2014. still to come, local search and rescue. up next, first responders tell us what's different about hurricane florence than other

disasters they've seen. a popular ferry operator gets some powerful support. so it's full speed ahead for captain maggie. the president announces new tariffs and one bay area company breathes a high of relief. apple's new plan. if you're clumsy with your iphone, added piece of mind will not come cheap. i'm at at&t, we believe in access. the opportunity for everyone to explore a digital world. connecting with the things that matter most.

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look at this video. a tornado late today in central virginia. we have reports of at least one person kid, one roof has collapsed, cars flipped over. roads are closed, lots of downed trees and powerlines, and a lot of people are now left sitting in the dark. >> the death toll from hurricane florence continues to grow. it now stands at 31. authorities say more than 500,000 homes and businesses are still without power in north and south carolina. crews remained out in full force today, rescuing people trapped in the flood waters. some of those are quite harrowing. check out this one. >> oh, my gosh! >> that's an airboat crew,

rescuing a family that spent four hours in the water after their truck was stuck crossing a river. experts say florence may result up to $22 billion in lost economic output and property damage, putting it in the top ten of the costliest hurricanes to hit the u.s. it has been a chaotic last sefrt d several days. >> task force four provided this video of the rescues they performed over the last four days in new bern, north carolina. the team leader said he's been amazed by the resiliency of the people they helped. >> so many people have lost their homes, they have no place to go, yet many of them are more concerned about what we need and how to help us. >> the team arrived in the region before florence hit, which was a first for them. they usually arrive after a storm comes through. >> they say unlike previous

deployments, they're being moved daily to other areas hard hit by the flood waters. >> the american red cross is organizing a relief effort for people affected by the storm. you can make a $10 donation by texting the word florence to 90999. in marin county, the future of the angel island ferry remains in limbo. locals want to see it stayed, but the state has gotten a bid from a larger company. wayne freedman joins us live. wayne? >> reporter: good afternoon. they love their angel long island ferry here. they regard it as a piece of history. and now it's become a rallying cry. here where nautical tradition and pricey real estate have learned to co-exist. this one-mile stretch of water and ferry run have come to symbolize history and small business under attack.

they call her captain maggie. five generations of her family have plowed these waterways, including her son sam. they have run the ferry since 1959, but the future is a question mark, since the california department of parks puts a service contract up forbid. captain maggie said the state is asking for too much. >> they had us maintains ramps, that's the state's responsibility and taking care of their restrooms. they had us doing all sorts of things on our docks just for use of their staff. >> reporter: the much larger blue and gold fleet did make a bid and could win it. hence a show of support today. >> i think you have a community in support of a locally owned business. >> we don't need to get rid of all the small businesses that have been part of the bay area for generations. >> reporter: state parks have said little since this began. captain maggie remains

determined. he says whatever happens, she will not leave. >> they can't stop us. we've been doing this for a long time. the contract is not exclusive, and we'll continue to support the community as it supports us. >> reporter: even in the last hour, this story changed. state parks received a letter from state lands citds citds cit inconsistencies in this process. people will probably start talking and listening. wayne freedman, "abc7 news." >> wayne, thank you. researchers at ucsf are hoping to unmask the dangers of some of the newest tobacco products out there. the university received a $20 million grant from the fda and the national institutes of health. they say they'll hone in on emerging tobacco products, popular with young adults like e-cigsets and flavored varieties. >> these things have just taken

off with kids. lun li unlike cigarettes, e-cigarettes are used more by kids than adults. >> a recent study shows that e-cigarettes are associated with higher heart attack risks. late word that president trump will impose tariffs on about $200 billion worth of chinese imports. 10% will go into effect next week. 25% in january. however, apple's appeal for help over the proposed teariffs appears to have paid off. apple watch is spared from the latest round. shares of apple stock jumped after the report came out. there is also consumer news about apple tonight, as well. >> michael finney is here to tell us more about that, for

those of us that are a little clumsy with our phone. >> anal is introducing new ways to pay for pro- >> apple care by the month. it replaces the high-end iphone in case they are damaged or stolen. it's an extra $15 a month. and beginning friday, the three major credit reporting agencies are required to offer you a credit freeze free of charge. a credit freeze prevents lendors from looking at the account. that all but stops financial laws from identity theft from occurring. here in california, freezes have cost $10 for each reporting agency, and another $10 from each one to remove them. ask you trust amazon.com

reviews? amazon is investigating reports that some of its employees have been showingntnal data for product reviewers. also, allegedly for sale, services to the negative reviews and restoring banned accounts. we'll find out what happens. new amazon facility could bring 1,000 jobs to stockton. the company just announced it's opening a new fulfillment center on new castle road. employees will pack and ship orders. no word on when it will open or when they start the hiring process. hi there, everyone. let's check out live doppler 7 hd. we have a you few patches of low clouds along theest co-. but quite a contrast back east. what's left of florence, still

causing problems. as you look there, heavy rain isn't doing to move up the east coast. it did bring historic flooding in the carolinas. up to three feet of rain has occurred. flood watches up and down the entire eastern seaboard. so keep that in mind if you have travel plans. really the rainfall will continue through late wednesday and by tuesday and late wednesday night. that moisture will be moving off the coastline. here is a look at our local weather and what you can expect. we're basically going to see low clouds tonight, and seeing some breezily, below average, and much warmer weather midweek. a live look right now, as you noticed, a marine layer is regrouping over ocean beach and we're seeing breezy conditions along the coastline. blue skies with a little bit of

low cloudiness entering the chi picture. san jose, 69 degrees. low 60s to low 80s sums up the temperature range for today. so below average for this time of the year. you see what surrounding the marine layer. 79 in vacaville and 69 in livermore. tomorrow morning, cool start in the north bay. mid to upper 40s there. for the rest of you, 50s. tomorrow afternoon, look at the temperatures. not where you should be for this time of the year. 63 in san francisco. 59 in half moon bay. 74 in santa rosa. 66 in oakland. upper 70s around concord, antioch, fairfield. 76 in livermore. 73 in san jose and 67 in palo alto. you can check out temperatures any time you want hour by hour.

it's going to get much warmer on wednesday. numbers in the upper 80s inland. sikt on the coast. temperatures will be near 70 at the beaches. low 90s inland. friday, the heat will ease. so he will be getting the kind of warmth we expect to see in september. coming up later on this week, below average tomorrow, warming it up for your wednesday. a good ten degrees warmer inland from tuesday. and then warm to hot for your thursday. fall begins this saturday, 6:54 in the evening. and temperatures are going to fall. >> thanks so much. the massive plume of smoke in southern california. what triggered chevron's mistake, next. and michael finney looks at how facebook is changing because of privacy concerns and fake news. plus, additional steps that you can take to keep your information safe.

that's you could generate yourat home.rgy, or to save energy, unplug unused appliances. do your thing, with energy upgrade california.

a massive burnoff at the chevron oil refinery was started by a power outage. a smoke blum could be seen for miles today. the outage triggered the flare this morning so built up gases would not be trapped and create a real hazard. it looked so bad, firefighters called other agencies for backup before learning this was a controlled burn. people living nearby, though, understandably were also worried. >> i thought it was a fire, of course. it looked like my building that was on fire, but it was like the next one next to it. >> it's a bad pollutant. this just means the air quality gets worse. >> schools nearbyby kept kids inside. a british diver is suing elon musk for his defamation after musk repeated claims that

the diver is a child abuser. he helped rescue 12 thai teenagers in july. the lawsuit seeks damages and injunction against musk to have him stop talking about ellsworth. in less than an hour, elon musk will make his amountmennou on who will be the first passenger to the moon. he announced last year that two passengers will make the trip aboard his dragon spacecraft. musk will explain tonight why all that has changed, and we'll have the details tonight on "abc7 news" at 6:00. >> talk about traveling. a captain and her epic voyage. you'll hear firsthand what it was hike to travel halfway across the world. that's ahead. >> but first, we want to thank douglas for this picture of a pelican diving for food at moss landing.

so close. share your pictures with us. >> you may see it on air or online on abc7news.com. stay with us.

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tonight, several breaking stories. president trump's supreme court nominee in turmoil. judge brett kavanaugh's accuser now saying she is ready to testify, ready to go public. tonight, what she's accusing him of, and now kavanaugh himself saying he will testify. and tonight, one key republican saying brett kavanaugh has told him he wasn't even there. also breaking at this hour, the deadly tornado just touching down. the images coming in as we come on the air. the emergency playing out from multiple tornadoes now, all part of florence. and tonight, the story behind that incredible moment. the military humvee underwater, four people, including a marine, rescued. tonight, the outrage after multiple explosions outside boston. homes erupting into flames. this evening, the gas company still