of downpours on their way tonight. >> let's talk more about the storms tonight. we have reporters fanned we will start in the east bay. riders are complaining because transit driver decided to drive through floodwaters. >> reporter: take a look behind me. this water has come down a great deal at the 880 under pass. this was a lot higher when they were letting big rigs down earlier. but this too is close to traffic. a transit bus went through

standing water. erika joy was taking an ac transit bus when this happened. she took cell phone video of the driver motoring through several feet of standing water, high enough to seep onto the floor of the bus. ac transit officials are not happy. >> no operator with ac transit is ever instructed to drive through standing wall. that is against procedure and protocol. >> reporter: investigating what is happening at this flooded intersection and said the driver could be disciplined. >> we don't expect a bus to drive through standing water and we don't expect rers to be on buss that are going through standing water. >> reporter: the portion was closed to all traffic because of flooding. oakland police over their loud speaker were telling cars not to

chance driving through the road. only big rigs were being allowed through this morning. that doesn't mean every car driver was listening to police. >> if you get stuck, you are on your own. >> reporter: the driver of this bmw stalled out. the car might still be there if not for a big rig that helped with a push. frank widener died to wade through the water that came higher than his knees. >> i need to get home. valentine's day. >> reporter: it is closed to traffic. it was not as high as it was. we saw a big rig make a u-turn.

the pumps that normally keep the area dry are not working. no estimate on when it will be fixed. ac transit is looking into the circumstances why the bus went through the water. thank you. >> water pouring down a hillside in sausalito. >> abc7 news wayne freedman has been on the scene since early this morning. joining us live with the latest. >> reporter: similar to a fatal slide that happened in the same area in 1982. this one wasn't fatal but a close call. you have a neighborhood concerned about mud and water. a water logged muddy hillside that destroyed two homes in the early hours. >> devastating.

debris everywhere. >> 3:00 a.m. >> reporter: he feels like miracle survivor. susan gordon suffers escapes and scratches and still the problems mounted up. pg&e cut the main. >> we were told that there were potentially two breaks. we know they secured the main on both sides. >> reporter: sausalito had soils engineers inspecting the hillside. the mayor declared an emergency. the city concerned. >> my concern is that we find the stability degraded by this moisture and we have more slides. >> unbelievable. >> reporter: despite being

evacuated, some people got into their homes to gather belongings. zack garza videoed this from his rear deck. >> about 15 feet away. >> reporter: you spoke to the lady that was in yothat house. >> she is flustered. i don't think she knows what is going on yet. >> reporter: live picture now as we look at the water coming off the mountainside. that is the same amount of water now as we saw earlier today. it is not abating. susan gordon is in relative good shape. when the house went down the hillside, she lost everything she owned. and lost her beloved cat named

peaches. there is a gofundme page. >> so sad. thank you. in the north bay, sonoma county issued an evacuation adviser living near the russian river. >> the river water already chin high in some streets. if you are evacuating watch out for other flooded parts of the area. >> we have attempted to block roads, and many areas still dangerous. >> elsewhere in sonoma county, this is what it looks like in highways 121 and 12. the area has been flooded since yesterday. of course detours are in place. >> let's check in with meteorologist sandhya patel who is tracking the wave.

>> let me take you into level radars. very light returns right around 116. we are tracking some showers over geysers, little bit of rain snow mix. now creeks continue to flood. the advisory has been continuedn until 7:45. cresting at 32 feet 2:00 a.m. tomorrow. flooding expected to continue. level 2 tonight. isolated thunder is possible. here is a time line. 8:00 p.m. the next wave. and pushing into the south bay by 11:30 tonight. what is going to follow is going to be interesting. i will be back with an hour by

hour look with your next wave by friday. >> thank you. in the south bay today's storm created anxiety for people who lived near creeks with a history of flooding. reporter near los gatos. >> reporter: that is correct, just 24 hours, the lexington reservoir is you can imagine why people are so concerned about the level. they have learned from past experience how fast levels can rise. >> i remember when this happened i looked at the creek and went

to work and came back and found my house had flooded. >> reporter: the big unknown is what happens if we get warm wetter that melts in the sierra. >> i am concerned when that starts to melt is that going to raise the level of creeks all over again? >> reporter: run off can vary considerably. this is run off from the hills above saratoga as it flows towards san francisco bay. valerie reservoirs are over capacity. road pavement made slick by the rain caused a spin out. causing a temporary closure. the rain didn't dampen a free

valentine's photo op in front the city hall. >> reporter: rain doesn't stop long. >> what does the rain mean it you? >> a hug and a kiss. >> reporter: if there were an above normal snow melt in the sierra, it would not have a direct impact on the reservoirs here in south bay. remember, you can track the rain and check the weather conditions where y live with the abc7 news app. you can get the most up to date forecast and check out live doppler 7 and enable push alerts to get any new weather warnings or hazards. coming up we take a look at

proposal to build housing in the b.a.r.t. station. a

. abc7 news is committed to building a better bay area. and this week we are looking at the challenges for b.a.r.t. >> requiring a district to develop housing at its station. laura anthony is live at the lafayette station tonight. >> reporter: this new law won't affect all b.a.r.t. station for instance in orinda b.a.r.t. doesn't own the parking lot. but here in lafayette, this new law can result in a major

transformation. california's new law is as much about local control as it is about transforming parking lots into transit villages. >> the bill is unnecessary. it is a power grab by b.a.r.t. and its supporters. >> you can already start to see it. >> reporter: the district will proceed responsibly now that it is law and won't force a plan on any municipality. >> we have always approached it in a partnership with cities. >> reporter: pleasant hill has long had a transit village and hundreds of units with more under construction and walnut creek has approved a project that will include a replacement of existing parking. >> parking is a major concern for us. >> reporter: there is still

skepticism. >> we want to make sure that we collaborate with them closely and that they do consider the nature of our town, the character of our town and the success that we have had in developing high density units near public transportation. >> reporter: these projects will move forward in some form or orr fashion over the next couple of decades. with that said, here at lafayette, there are no definite plans for a transit village or housing. at least not at this point. in lafayette, laura anthony, abc7 news. a lyft driver said his fatherly instincts kick into high gear when he saw a toddler barefoot wandering. >> he is cherishing his own

little ones more than usual. >> i saw this baby. rain is pouring it is 40 degrees outside. >> reporter: what he witnessed while driving for lyft tuesday night shook him to the core. this video that has since gone viral dale found a toddler alone in an apartment complex parking lot at 10:30. >> barefoot, it was heart breaking. >> reporter: he says his instincts just kicked into high gear. >> i knocked on a few doors and nobody recognized the baby. we sat in the car into santa rosa police showed up.

>> reporter: this neighbor didn't want to be identified but found another toddler wandering weeks ago. police say this case was not neglect and most likely wandered outside the >> i was inconsolable. >> reporter: he says he is not a hero. >> just do the right thing. >> that toddler is safe and at home and we are glad to tell you just doing fine. >> let's check in on the weather once again. we may not be totally done yet with the showers. >> we have more showers heading our way. i want to show you live doppler 7 right now.

activity is minimal spotty and light. street level radar showing you where. temperatures right now in the 40s and 50s. the top spot over a foot of rain in venado in sonoma county. over 8 inches. 3.5 in san francisco. just over three in oakland. napa 4 inches. sfo redwood city 1.5 now the atmospheric river is aimed at southern california but here is what we are watching. an area of low pressure developing. cold unstable air coming in our direction. right now they are chaining up on all roads leading to tahoe. it has turned to snow now.

winter storm warning until 4:00 a.m. saturday. two to four let's look at sierra travel. friday snowing, saturday snowing. we go into sunday. that is your opportunity to go. dry for your president's day, you are good to go if you are heading up on monday. it is breezy outside. localized flooding risk continues. we are looking at cold showers and cold over the peaks friday through sunday. on our storm impact scale it is now a level 2. scattered downpours with the flooding possibility. hour by hour we go. 7:00 p.m. tonight.

930 it is over san francisco north bay, east bay, by level 30. some of this turning to snow as we head towards late tonight and going into late tomorrow. first thing tomorrow morning do look for temperatures in the 30s and 40s. colder than this morning. expect snow showers around mendocino county and the hills. make sure you have your umbrellas around. still have scattered showers. level 1 system for tomorrow. a chance of thunder and hail. you will likely see hail out there as well. snow in our highest peaks. you see spotty showers. 8:00 a.m. over highest peaks. brief downpour at 11:00 a.m. on friday.

going into saturday we will keep that trend going and that duplicates on sunday as well. additional rainfall from now through friday night. anywhere from a .1 of an a .1 oa combination of high tide leads to the potential of flooding. wave heights coming up. becoming a level 1 for the next three days. a wintry mix friday, saturday, and sunday, of showers and snow showers. snow levels coming down to 2,000 feet for the weekend. if you have plans for president's day, going to be nice and dry out through the middle of next week. 88 to 104% of average. sierra snow pack, 135% of normal. this is good. >> good to hear.

coming up "7 on your side"

in the south bay, crews are clearing up a crash in the santa cruz mountains. pretty bad as you can tell. >> it was raining at the time but unclear what caused the crash. the chp has not confirmed if anyone was hurt. this is one of several incidents including downed trees. pet services can be expensive. how can we save money on it. >> we know just the guy to ask. >> we spend some money. it is amazing. last year americans spent almost $30 billion on veterinarian services for their pets. how to save money for your furry family members. more than a quarter of all pet

owners worry they will not be able to afford their pet's medical treatment. >> we want our dog to be healthy, but cost more to keep them healthy than us. >> pet owners spend from 9,000 to 13,000 for medical treatment over the course of an animal's lifetime and the cost can continue to rise if your pet needs a prescription. consumer report health editor says before you buy the meds directly from the vet consider shopping around. >> you can buy a lot of your pet medication from cvs or walgreens. >> some pharmacies will give you the same discounts on drugs they offer regular human customers. onli online pharmacies is another way to fill your pet's

prescriptions. but important to buy from a safe site. >> make sure they are storing medication correctly and dispensing the right kind of medication. >> reporter: always follow the label's direction. if you have questions ask your veterinarian. and if you can plan ahead, here is another tip. the american society for the prevention for cruelty to animals recommend you consider spaying or neutering your pet that could prevent health problems in the future. >> thanks. >> the rain is putting

coming up tonight we are

keeping close watch on trouble spots in the bay area. plus meteorologist drew tuma will show you where we are when it comes to the rain totals for the season. and building a better bay area and the challenges facing b.a.r.t. how it stacks up to other transit systems. coming up in a half hour. >> to finally hear the rain putt a damper. >> on roses. >> the roses and bouquets of flowers were getting soaked. some people still lined up to get flowers and others didn't want to wait in the rain. >> i was at safeway picking up lunch and tons of people buying flowers so still love out there. i am kristen sze. >> and i am dan ashley.

for all of us here, we will see you again in half an hour. when it comes to reducing the evsugar in your family's diet,m. coke, dr pepper and pepsi hear you. we're working together to do just that. bringing you more great tasting beverages with less sugar or no sugar at all. smaller portion sizes, clear calorie labels and reminders to think balance. because we know mom wants what's best. more beverage choices, smaller portions, less sugar.

balanceus.org tonight, several developing stories as we come on the air. the white house now revealing tonight the president will declare a national emergency to get more money for his border wall. tonight, democrats firing back, calling this a lawless act, and a gross abuse of power, amid news tonight the shutdown will be averted. the major storms and the emergency unfolding tonight. homes pulled off their foundations. you will hear the woman screaming from inside her home as it slides away. we're on the scene tonight. the deadly takedown near a u.s. naval base tonight. a man crashing his vehicle, then charging the guards. the images coming in now. a major turn tonight, breaking news in the investigation into an alleged hate crime attack on actor jussie smollett. chicago police have found the men in this surveillance and what we've now learned tonight. it comes just hours after the