>> intense night. we have crewed fanned out for you. san francisco, east bay, north bay and south bay. >> two meteorologists also here. let's begin. >> we have a stormy night ahead. already very active. across the region. i'll take you into street level radar, before i do that i want to draw attention to the fact we have some heavy returns off the coastline. and it is heading in our direction. it will head to san francisco. expect downpours at 6:30. in san jose. that's what we're tracking right now. across the santa cruz mountains. highway 17 closed in both directions. due to the mud slides. light showers right now. it is raining. we are seeing some moderate cells. indicate td by the yellow here. we'll pull out a bit. reason why i want to pull out is

look what's brewing off the coast. very unstable air mass. these thunderstorms are heading towards us. about 100 miles away. keep in mind this storm is a powerful strong level 3 storm. we're just getting started. it's a 3 through tonight. heavy rain and thunderstorms. damaging wind gusts up to 60. downed trees and flooding on the roadway. san francisco gusting to 56 miles per hour. higher elevations atlas peak 51. the rain picking up between 5:30 and 8:00 p.m. that is when the heaviest rain will be coming through the area. wind, rain going sideways and a shaky view. warnings are in effect. >> flooding in the north bay. we have flash flood warnings in effect.

warning means flooding is occurring right now. the second one until 5:45. around green valley creek. we have seen rivers small streams crest above banks and likely more flooding on the way. wider picture the entire north bay and the heart of bay area under a flood advisory through the evening. heavy rain will make it a new threat. flash flood watch in effect. we're expecting more heavy rain over the next couple hours. we'll see more rises in the water level. and more water will go on the roadway. the numbers nearing 60 miles per hour gusts. at sfo. it's for that fact we have a high wind warning. in effect this evening. we'll see more wind gusts close to 60 miles per hour. so when meteorologist comes back she'll give you a closer look at the storm and the threats it

poses. >> several ferries have been cancelled for the evening commute. adding to the frustration for commuters. >> live in the ferry building with the details. >> i can tell you the wind is going to be a determining factor. this evening. already we have seen cancellations and even delays five to 15 minutes. if you take the ferry i hope you have or urge you to have a plan b in place. the winds are getting stronger. and you don't know what will happen. they may stop service. again right now we want to tell everybody the ferries are running. if anything changes we will let you know. for those going to the east bay you have a lot more option. for that plan b. transit and bart. which is adding cars to their trains. now it was really easy to find people this morning who were leaving work early just in case.

>> i have to leave early. i'm afraid i won't get home. >> and i'll have to swim. >> you're adding 125 spaces to people. if you add two cars to a train, you're talking about a ten car train carrying 250 more people on one trip. and they can make multiple trips. during the busiest times. >> now we had a scare this afternoon for about 30 minutes the civic center bart station was closed. trains were still running through there. but the station was closed. due to a leak coming from the upper platform. and i can tell you they fixed that incredibly quickly. so if you are taking bart either leave early. leave now or stay around the city and leave late.

>>. >> transit smart options to the. thank you. >> if you're heading home tonight out of san francisco. be careful. also be patient. it could take some time. >> vic lee is downtown at first and howard. >> right in the thick of traffic. >> first of all we're getting break from the rain here. as you know, this is a main artery to the bay bridge. it's always bumper to bumper during evening commute. now tonight's commute it looks about the same. as it always does. during a rainy evening commute. the difference i think is that most of the commuters here started early today. to avoid the storm. police are asking motorists to please drive carefully. >> reporter: san francisco police are asking you to slow down. be cool. be patient. >> allow space between yourself

and the car in front of you. and be prepared for quick slow downs or potentially emergency stops. >> the first street corridor to the bay bridge always crowded. during the evening commute. bumper to bumper traffic by late afternoon. today, the mass exodus began around 2:30. >> the storm is coming. >> i'm trying to get home. >> good luck. >> commuters thought yesterday's evening commute was bad. it was. >> are you leaving town early? >> yesterday it took three and a half hours to get home. >> yesterday i was in traffic for like two hours. >> getting home from the city today. well, it will be worse. today's the big one. the big storm. early afternoon the streets of san francisco were very wet. taking no chance. the odds of getting home on time were getting worse. >> this is probably ten or 20%

worse than normal. getting out of the city. >> you can see heading toward the bay bridge. that is not unusual traffic is moving smoothly. maybe a bit slow. >> thank you. a look at traffic conditions across the bay area. golden gate bridge on the left. bay bridge in the middle. traffic on highway 101 in san jose. you can see in san jose it's e slower and wetter. >> an up tick in crashes and the rain is worsened since then. we talked at 4:00. live with the officer. when people drive too fast. and of course our problems on the road and it did as so often the case hit the north bay first and hard. >> making his way up highway

101. wayne? >> good evening. we have been going up and down 101 all afternoon. dealing with the storm. it hasn't been a steady hard wind, hard rain. it's been coming and going. but when it comes, it goes very hard. bigger problem right now is we look at highway 101. heading north. there are 10,000 customrs now without power. in the county. and napa. we just received word of 6,400 and that came from pg&e. the wind came up, branchs have fallen. the situation remains fluid. fair fax for example, 2,000 people without power. the area arouthe numbers change constantly. these are the problems we were

warned about and people prepared for. >> there is a first time for everything. as lynn show shovelled a sand pile. never before had she filled a sandbag. >> i looked online how to do it. and i hopefully have the right technique. >> one of the little stories in the larger one. she had company. she made her first sandbags too. >> i have a back door that's the patio is has a deep area there. so i want to make sure it doesn't come in. otherwise i'm not too worried. >> and busy. making fast friends. >> what is the secret? >> that cone. put it on there and fold it over. and shovel it in. and take the cone off and tie it

up. >> let's hope there aren't anymore problems as we continue to head north. approaching highway 37. what surprises us at this point is the amount of traffic is not nearly as heavy as we expected. it's moving faster than we expected. then again the heavy rain hasn't hit yet. we'll have two and a half hours of that. it should be interesting. thus far here in the area, traffic is moving all right. there aren't a will the of puddles. there have been power outages. it could be worse. i'm not saying it won't get worse. it may. >> relief. thanks. >> probably will change as the evening progresses. but let's take you now for a look at conditions in the east

bay. >> live. it looks windy. >> it is. we have a lull in the rain. the creek is probably come down a foot since we last saw you. the trade off as you can see from the branch is that the wind has picked up. and as we saw today, when you have wind and rain and trees, you can have a big problem. >> reporter: a 50 foot tall oak tree came crashing down. missi missing people and homes but blocking both lanes of traffic. this woman heard the crash. >> it sounded like an explosion. the dog went nuts. i thought it was thunder. and i saw the tree had fallen. >> the roots gave out and with the recent rain, it came down across 9:00 a.m. this morning. >> along main street in downtown martinez, sandbags were placed in front of many businesses.

the mayor moved his insurance business. it doesn't flood as bad as it used to. but it can be a nuisance if several problems happen at the same time. >> that's when so many things come together. high tide and the hills being saturated and a lot of rain. so we're expecting that today. tonight. hopefully it won't happen, hopefully it will drain. >> it's a watch and wait game for the public works. >> we're checking drainage trouble spots. cleaning catch basins. flushing out culverts. >> around your own that might effect your property. it helps them and helps you. we're continuing to monitor this creek. you can take a heck of a lot of rain to make this a flooding problem. we have low lying areas around

the bay area and the east bay. keeping a really careful watch on. >> understandable. thanks very much. you can see the breeze. in the mountains now people are asked to avoid traveling to the see sierra for the next two days. a blizzard warning. it's been years since that happened. problems on interstate 80 right now because of a jackknife big rig. eastbound traffic is held. and westbound traffic is being turned around. ski resorts were open. but many had runs closed because of heavy wind. >> everybody should level set the expectations. and not plan to ski and ride tomorrow. friday, saturday and sunday. monday and tuesday of next week. it's going to be amazing skiing and riding. >> am track cancelled all keking bus trips to and from tahoe

tomorrow because of the winter storm conditions. remember you can monitor the weather where you live with the news app. free to down load in the app store. you can enable notifications so we can get you a push alert about any weather as hards or warnings. immediately. >> strong storm today creating dangerous conditions along the water. live near the beach in san francisco. where roads are closing and people are told to stay away. >> the coast guard telling us about their preparation for the storm. even as they go without pay. because of the government shutdown. >> another check on live

going to the beaches now. the storm led to dangerous surf conditions. >> live along san francisco great highway. part of which has been closed

now. >> there is a partial closure here. i want to tell you the wind has really picked up. and of course the rain. let me step out of the way. this is at great highway just lost my hat. you can see that partial closure goes all the way to slew. some really nice person is running after my hat. conditions really windy. and rainy. and earlier today we saw one man doing his best to hold onto his umbrella. at ocean beach there's a sign warning people to stay off the beach. due to dangerous conditions. still some people are out here, checking out the surf. walking dogs or even exercising. we have seen. we did hear a surfer got into trouble earlier. and almost needed to be rescued. we spoke with another surfer who stopped out to check the

conditions. >> who would get into this? >> anybody. especially somebody inexperienced. and doesn't know better. >> ocean beach is unforgiving. relentless. this is a by next to us. we have the strongest currents anywhere. >> the storm we had a couple weeks ago that was the biggest waves i have seen. they're nasty looking right now though. >> all right. we really saw the sand just blowing about earlier. we started our day in soma. and met individuals who despite the rain and wind had to do their jobs. putting in some windows at a building going up. back live here. i have my hat. what's your name? >> warren. >> warren, thank you so much. he ran all the way down there after my hat. i appreciate that. what are you doing out here? >> just looking at the waves.

i know it's a storm coming. i was watching them go straight up in the air by the rocks. just interesting. >> do you live here? >> yes. >> what do you think about this compared to a couple weeks ago? >> a lot worse than last week. that's for sure. i don't know -- i was reading online it says it will get maybe ten inches of rain of the that's quite a bit around here. >> warren, thank you for grabbing my hat. i appreciate that. stay safe tonight. >> this is the best we can do. we're live in san francco. if you don't have to be out in this, stay home. >> great job. and thanks again to the gentleman. >> we have to get him a news hat. >> we should. >> if all the rain wasn't enough a high surf warning is issued.

in place from tomorrow morning through friday afternoon. breakers could peak between 40 to 50 feet along sections of the coastline. >> the coast guard is urging everyone to stay off the water unless you have to. the storm like this brings a lot of hazards. high wind and low visibility. that's dangerous. >> the coast guard says anyone heading out on the water should file a float plan. and double check your safety gear. if you don't have to go, don't. >> great advice. good evening, everyone. thunderstorms have developed just off the coastline. moments ago. i'll show you where they are now. they are heading in our direction. we have numerous lightning strikes about 60 miles away. i want to track the cells. watch out for especially in the south bay, the santa cruz

mountains the summit. gilroy could be seeing thunderstorms with hail. a look at the strikes from the last couple of hours here. as they began to develop. just after the coast. everything is moving west to east. be prepared. head inside. especially if yu see any lightning out there. i want to take you closer to street level. downpou downpours right now. over an inch per hour. san jose heading into sunny vail. redwood city and middle field road getting steady light rain. we pan around across the peninsula. steadily light rain. inthe mission san francisco. the sunset district. daily city. into the north bay. also seeing some steady showers. it's more moderate. right around the radar sight.

live doppler 7. very active tonight. temperatures in the 50s. 60s and look at this view. it is just very shaky. violent winds. stay inside if you can. a stormy night ahead. showers and gusty winds tomorrow. lighter systems. friday and sunday. on our storm impact scale. this is a strong level three. through tonight. heavy rain. and thunderstorms expected with the damaging wind gusts to 60 miles per hour. we have seen the gusts 50 to 60 miles per hour. more downed trees and flooding on the roadway. hour by hour time line. showing yu what's going to happen. 5:30 tonight the heavy rainfall beginning to develop. reds indicating heavy rain. 6:30 could see torrential rain at times. along with hail and flooding on the roadway. 7:00 p.m. you maybe sitting down for dinner you'll hear the wind and the rain. be prepared. as you do notice there could be trees toppling.

8:00 p.m. still slow going. thunderstorms are possible. into 9:00 p.m. a narrow band across the east bay and san francisco. into the south bay. 10:00 p.m. in the mountains and south bay. 11:00 p.m. we see the action easing a bit. there will be pockets of moderate showers into the night. very high concern. storm impact concerns across the entire region. hydro planing and downed trees. small stream flooding and mud slides. debris flow. very high especially in the burn scar area. winds 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. 50, 60 miles per hour. by midnight the winds ease. not completely dying dun. live picture. they have been seeing fresh powder. chain control. on all roads heeding up to the mountains. just checked that for you. winter storm warning 5,500 feet until 4:00 a.m. friday. 6 feet for the peeks.

hold off on travel. it's not recommended. bl blizzard warning. gusty wind and white out conditions. tomorrow morning grab your umbrella. allow extra time. it's not widespread rain. pockets of showers. breezy. hang on to the rain gear. a slight chance of thunder. coastal flood advisory for the regions in green. high tide is coming in. high surf warning 5:00 a.m. thursday to 5:00 p.m. friday. breakers. 7-day forecast a level 2 tomorrow. scattered showers level 1 for friday. looking like a chaps saturday is dry. rain returns level one system sunday. and mlk jr. day is dry. down load the app and track live doppler 7. tomorrow we're keeping the showers and gusty conditions in

the forecast. it will be a rough ride. >> long

all right another look at life dop per 7. expected to get worse. just as more people head home from work. >> especially in and out of the city. >> on the road right now in san francisco. >> kate? >> traffic is certainly picked up since we last checked in. we turned off onto the ramp to get back onto the bay bridge. if you have someone who can jump in your car with you and get into the car pool lane, that would be a great way go. traffic right now, here we're switching the camera. you can see we are at a crawl. onto the bay bridge. and traffic was pretty tough coming into the city.

we made a full loop. we have gone onto the bay bridge initially. the car pool lane. that was a good way to go. traffic was light given all this weather today. and we turned back toward the city, we were going about ten, 12 miles per hour. that was a rough way back into town. wind is strong on the bay bridge. between san francisco and treasure island. be careful there. again if you can get onto the bridge now with a buddy, that would be the best way to go. otherwise maybe stay put in the city until all of the storm rain passes later on this evening. we will keep you posted. we'll be in the mobile 4. keeping track of the traffic and let you know as things progress. >> thank you.

all right. one last look before we leave you. live doppler 7. very active tonight.

>> just about the entire bay area getting drenched. this will be lasting several hours through your commute. thanks for joining us. >> world news tonight is next. we appreciate your tim tonight, four americans killed in syria. the deadly attack. a massive explosion. those four americans, two of them service members. just weeks after president trump claimed isis had been defeated. in this country, the major travel concerns tonight. dangerous driving already. and now, two major storms set to blast the east, bringing heavy snow and freezing rain. ginger zee has the timing of it all tonight. day 26 of the government shutdown. unpaid government workers from the tsa, the irs, the coast guard, all in line for food. and the workers missing mortgage and rent payments, trying to get unemployment. the government telling them it will take at least 30 days just to get them an answer. breaking now, the arrest at this hour. or