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wealth, what does distance learning mean for families with students in need. >> hundreds of cots are set up inside one of san francisco's biggest convention centers as the city turns this place into a temporary homeless shelter during this pandemic. >> bay area 10 impacted by coronavirus, threatening a run strike. they want the governor's help. abc 7 news starts right now. >> announcer: now your health, your safety. this is abc 7 news. >> tonight the united states has confirmed more than 215,000 cases of coronavirus, doubling the total in just the last five days. at least 5,100 people have died. as the number of cases surges, california governor gavin newsom is urging other states to issue stay-at-home orders. >> what are you waiting for? >> eric garcetti is joining a growing push for people to wear face masks in public. >> this isn't an excuse to go

out. ademic yeaniahrhe >> we know that this is difficult. we know that tis is a challenge. we have to rise to that challenge. >> in the bay area there are now more than 2,700 cases as we enter the critical period in fighting this virus, kind of a tipping point. at least 69 total deaths. santa clara county remains the hot spot, now nearing at least 1,000 confirmed cases and 32 deaths. san francisco also surging with nearly 100 new cases reported just today. northern neighboring mend see know county confirms 4 cases. lake county has no cases so far. gavin newsom confirms schools will stay closed through the academic year. >> many students have adjusted to online learning but the move is making it did difficult to reach others without necessary

resources. >> even in silicon valley, educators are trying the best with the tool ls they are able to offer. >> here's amanda del castillo. >> as distance learning becomes common practice, what's being done to bridge the digital divide? some might think student access to tech is typical. we're learning that is not the case. >> i always tell people it's like going to universal studios where you see like here's silicon valley, look at all this wonderful stuff. when you look behind, not all districts are created equal. >> it's lfr deployed close to 1,000 chrome books to students who need them. earlier this week, students saw the same, chrome books on loan to help with distance learning. providing a gadget doesn't mean anything if students don't have connectivity. >> we're looking at vendors to get hotspots, looking t asolutions about how can we radiate the wifi that we have at different schools. >> on wednesday, the state superintendent of public

instruction announced $100 million in funding will go to local educational agencies. money would administrators to accomplish a list of goals including implementing a distance learning infrastructure, ec quit able and accessible to all students. >> we are in a crisis right now and that, from my perspective, should be the focus. >> brian wheatley with the evergreen teacher's association says they're in a position to make a significant difference by providing resources, tools needed to keep every student on track. >> the worry is that this situation could actually expand that gap because we essentially here in silicon valley, we are the center of all this wealth and yet we are also the center of an incredible economic inequality. >> as the state confirms students won't be back to school this year, the race is on to bridge the digital divide. abc 7 news. new at 11:00, everyone in los angeles is now encouraged to

wear a non-medical mask to combat coronavirus. that's a recommendation from the mayor. it comes the same day the california department of public health says people are not required to wear masks but are helpful. volunteers are sewing thousands of masks based on a kaiser approved template to help medical workers who face a critical shortage of n95 masks. >> we had hundreds of volunteers signed up across the bay area and across the country to make these masks for our health care workers. >> the cdc is reviewing its guidelines on who should be wearing masks. >> tomorrow a major change is coming to san francisco's largest convention center. part of that massive facility will be turned into a temporary homeless shelter to try to help with the covid-19 pandemic.

j.r. stone is in the newsroom with the details. >> the goal here is social distancing. sochl those i talked with said the current shelters in san francisco are packed to the brim and that should not be happening at a time when everyone is distancing. >> hundreds of beds are laid out and ready to be used as a temporary homeless shelter at misconey west. a section of san francisco convention center. >> we have identified room for at least 400 people. >> news of cots and supplies has been spreading on the streets. phillip lakemore came to the convention center a day early in hope of getting in. >> they should have done this a long time ago. there's a lot of people in the streets. >> it's unlikely lake be able to use this. it will start thursday but for those tightly packed in shelters. lakemore hasn't been automobile to get into a shelter as of

late. >> you couldn't find shelter. >> right. >> the goal with misconey west is to free up space in other city shelters so that the homeless population is better distancing during this covid-19 pandemic. supervisor matt haney has concerns and questions about this. >> if we can truly have distancing, that's better than what we have now. but what we should be working towards are hotel rooms and individual rooms for all these folks so they can stay distant from each other. >> while hotel rooms have been secured by some in the past, this is about hosting 400 individuals in this one large room. >> i did talk with a restaurant owner in that care near moscone west and some of the folks that lived around there. no one had any major issue with the decision to house the homeless at that location. certainly lot of heavy hearts for those individuals.

dan, ama, now back to you. >> thank you so much, j.r. in the south bay at the santa clara county fairgrounds dozens of cots and other supplies arrived today. they're being turn sbood a makeshift shelter for the homeless. this will provide a place to practice social distancing. >> with the pandemic hitting bay area businesses very hard, some tenant rights groups are calling for statewide rent strike next month. cornell barnard has that story. >> we have had all of our events through june cancel. >> tara thomas is a wedding floral designer but all the weddings she was planning are now gone to the coronavirus shelter-in-place order. now the rent is due. >> right now it's really a choice between making sure i have enough money for food and for health care versus rent. >> monica perez is a teacher from pittsburgh with support and a mortgage to pay.

>> struggling before this happened. >> but monica and members of a.c.e., the advocacy group calling for a statewide rent struck if governor newsom doesn't help. >> i want the governor to cancel the rent and mortgage. >> she says the rent strike started early in her neighborhood. >> we have four units that are all striking because they don't -- they are also in the same situation. >> governor newsom has called for a moratorium on evictions but bay area leaders say more needs to be done. >> it would be a nightmare if people ended up homeless. >> matt haney joined a conference call calling for residents and mortgages to be frozen. >> we've got to make sure people aren't burdened with additional debt. >> hain knee and other leaders calling on the governor to help.

no word yet from the governor's office. cornell barnard, abc 7 news. for a city by city look at these eviction moratoriums in the bay area, going to our website, abc7news.com. we're getting a glimpse of the scope of the financial impact the coronavirus is having. in a survey, almost half of the businesses that responded say they have made staffing cuts. another quarter plan to cut staff in the next few weeks. more than 40% of businesses say they have had to close and have lost all of their sales. overall the city of san francisco faces a potential $1.1 billion to $1.7 billion budget deficit over the next two fiscal years. >> some miles matter in one order. san mateo county is limiting outdoor recreation to five miles from a person's home. napa county website is in the process of extending the the

shelter-in-home order and will follow guidance from the state. san jose's city council approved a paid sick leave ordinance for workers affected by coronavirus. final approval is expected during next tuesday's meeting. >> we have a complete coverage site of the coronavirus pandemic on our website abc7news.com. that includes one of the most clicked on stories on what you need to know about the extension of the shelter-in-place order for the bay area. >> a lot more to bring you. alarming new details about a train derailment in los angeles, why it was a deliberate act. and only on 7, a bay area part time emt describes battling coronavirus on the front lines. and catch a special edition of "night line "kwf abc 7 news at 11:00. now sparking outrage and covid-19 crackdowns.

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at xfinity, we're committed to keeping you connected. find great offers and value, today, at xfinity.com did you know that people born from 1945 through 1965 have the highest rates of hepatitis c, but most don't know they're infected? people can live for decades without symptoms, but over time hepatitis c can cause serious health problems. if you were born during these years, the cdc now recommends that you get a blood test for hepatitis c. so talk to your doctor and find out if you have hepatitis c. it could save your life. know more. the world health organization estimates the number of coronavirus cases globally could reach a million in the next few days. president trump warns the number of u.s. cases is likely to increase drastically. abc news reporter marcy gonzales

has the latest on the pandemic's impact across the country. >> reporter: across the u.s., more than 5,000 deaths now reported from covid-19, a startling surge from just one month ago when the virus had killed just one american. vice president mike pence saying white house modeling suggests the situation in hard-hit italy may be the most comparable area to the united states. and president donald trump underscoring the immediate threat. >> many difficult days are ahead for our nation. we are going to have a couple of weeks starting pretty much now but especially a few days from now that are going to be horrific. >> some health care facilities in new york city pushed to the limits. >> all these patients here beuse we a ll. the >> reporter: and now this field hospital set up in central park to treat the growing number of coronavirus patients. stay-at-home orders in place

there and in most states including florida where two holland america cruise ships are off the coast awaiting clearance to dock. between them, more than 200 passengers are reporting symptoms and 4 have died. the governor for now only committed to allowing floridians on board into the state. >> there's no time. these people need to get off the ship. >> urgent concerns as cases surge and nearly a third of hospital patients are on ventilators. >> if these numbers continue we'll be maxed out on on on on n ventilators by the weekend. >> now a six week old baby has died of complication from the virus. new details tonight. a train engineer is accused of deliberately derailing a train yesterday while trying to crash into i anavy medical ship

helping@coronavirus response. the train hit a con korean barrier at a fence. the usns mercy is at the port of los angeles serving as a hospital. prosecutors thought the engineer was suspicious and didn't believe it was helping fight covid-19. in just two days 34,000 licensed health professionals have signed up to help with the state's covid-19 response. it's part of governor newsom's health corp. one of those answering the call say part-time emt worker. she spoke with melanie woodrow. >> reporter: alison crawford is a second generation first responder, her father a retired fire captain. two years ago crawford got certified as an emt. >> i remember when i told him he was just over the moon. he said you've always had this in you. you've always been someone who's run toward people in need. >> reporter: crawford typically

works one 12-hour shift a week. >> there's a level of intensity and a level of focus with my partners. >> she is definitely in contact with people suspected of having the virus. >> any time someone has flu-like symptoms, we treat them as if they have covid-19. >> crawford recently took this video of doctors exiting the hospital to meet a patient brought in my ambulance outside, something you typically don't see. >> that's a covid case. >> her training now serving her well. >> one of the first things when we join is we have a mask fit specifically for us where they put a hood over us and we spray stinky stuff around it to make sure the seal is correct. we make sure it is around our nose and around the jaw line. when i come home from my shift i strip down my clothes, spray everything down. i keep a can of lysol down there, spray down my boots and everything.

i put on my robe, come upstairs and take a calculated route to the shower. >> she has to. she's protecting her husband and almost 7-year-old lawyer. >> lucy, she's in bed now. she'll come running out. she gets it. she totally gets it. she's seen my dad's helmets. she's seen the siren that we have. we have one of the fire sirens at my parent's house in santa rosa. >> reporter: understandably crawford's husband worries and sometimes she does too. >> it's the down time, the in between time that's really stressful. in the middle of the night if i hear him cough or -- i'm taking everybody's temperature constantly. so, i have three pretty intense jobs right now. >> home schooling mom, business professional, and first responder. >> what you are raised by a first responder, life is just different. my dad is -- he's my best friend. and the hardest thing through all of this is that i haven't been able to see him.

>> crawford recently answered governor newsom's call for health care workers to join the state. >> that's a no brainer, especially after being quarantined with a kindergartener for three weeks. you can just call me now. on behalf of all first responders, we're ready. >> she says they've been waiting and training for this noemt. >> we've got this. we're all in it together. >> in san francisco, abc 7 news. >> what a remarkable woman. on the peninsula, a new medical station is ready to deal with a possible surge in coronavirus patients. abc 7 news got a tour inside the facility that was set up in about 24 hours at the event center where coronavirus testing is also taking place. the new facility holds 250 beds. >> we hope we never need this facility, but we want to be absolutely prepared because when that time comes and you need space, you want to vitt. guard s ast bay a 5-year-old

girl was bitten by a coyote at afternoon. sky map 7 technology there. the girl was taken to the hospital for non-life threaten injuries. the park is closed because of this incident and officials are searching for the coyote. >> we hate to deny you drew's face, but we're having technical issues. >> his voice is still there. >> we've got a nice clear night out there. temperatures going to get chilly as the hours wear on. live doppler 7 right now, what's going on. a lot of nothing right there. clear skies. we are rain free, but the same cannot be said as you head into the upcoming weekend. clear and chilly overnight tonight, sunny, breezy, and mild both tomorrow afternoon and friday. and then we'll kind of flip the script and show you rainy and cooler weekend on the way for satuin is and 50s.

52 in the city. 48 in santa rosa, 47 in fremont, 52 the current temperature in concord. we do have a frost advisory in effect for lake county and a freeze warning in effect for mend see know county from 2:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. for subfreezing temperatures. it will get chilly in northern california tonight with the temperatures dipping below 32 degrees. 35 in santa rosa, 32 kei i can't, 45 in the city under plenty of stars. will recover nicely in the afternoon. a lot of sunshine out there on your thursday. go into the 60s. pretty average for this time of year. 75 in oakland. 61 in san francisco. 67 in san jose. 68 in santa rosa. we're dry on friday but the weekend we bring back the storm impact scale, light to moderate rain with occasional downpour,

similar to last week. rainfall total a third of an inch to three quarters of an inch of rain. hour by hour, saturday afternoon, there you can see the rain moving in from a north to south fashion. so, the second half of saturday is certainly wet. then those showers are really just on and off throughout the overnight period even into sunday. this is 11:00 a.m. in the morning. you see a lot of green on your screen across northern california. we'll track the showers to finish out the weekend. we are anticipating snow in the sierra. take a look at these numbers. as we accumulate through saturday and sunday, watch what happens. we'll measure this in feet. late season snow. you can see some areas getting close to two feet of snow. so, here's the accuweather 7-day forecast. sunny, breezy and dry for friday. there are those showers, both saturday and sunday, it's gray, chilly, with the on and off rain in the 50s. shower may linger on monday but we'll get rid of the rain and by

tuesday and wednesday we will dry up, bring back the sunshine and most cities will head into the 60s. >> all right. thank you so much, drew. join us tomorrow for a special town hall as abc 7 confronts hate crimes against asian-americans during this covid-19 pandemic. we'll have a panel of expert contributors and real time audience interaction. we want to hear from you. you can catch it live at 4:00 right here on abc 7. and tomorrow on "good morning america" wean air force veteran made of doing what's right,. not what's easy. so when a hailstorm hit, usaa reached out before he could even inspect the damage. that's how you do it right.

usaa insurance is made just the way martin's family needs it - with hassle-free claims, he got paid before his neighbor even got started. because doing right by our members, that's what's right. usaa. what you're made of, we're made for. usaa there are times when our need to connect really matters. to keep customers and employees in the know. to keep business moving. comcast business is prepared for times like these. powered by the nation's largest gig-speed network. to help give you the speed, reliability, and security you need. tools to manage your business from any device, anywhere. and a team of experts - here for you 24/7. we've always believed in the power of working together. that's why, when every connection counts... you can count on us. who honorably serve, but are so much more. here's to the moms and dads, the grandmas and grandpas. here's to the athletes, the adventurous, the determined.

here's to those who have better things to do than worry about their benefits. because now there's ebenefits, where you can easily access and track all your va and dod benefits online, all in one place. register for your free account today at ebenefits.va.gov. then get back out there. the city of santa clara electric utility silicon valley power is going to give every residential customer a $30 credit on their bill over the next few months. no action is needed. silicon valley is suspended all water and power shut offs due to non-payment. they're also with most of the bay area on lockdown, we're wondering how 7

news viewers. here is a look at a day in the life.

that's a cute pooch right there. >> i might know that dog. >> you may know that dog. >> its name might be louie. >> let's go on to sports. >> larry has the latest for us. >> an exclusive interview with gabe cat letter, how he's staying sharp while the season is on hold. stunning news out of the nfl,

♪ every day it's getting closer ♪ ♪ going faster than a roller coaster ♪ ♪ a love like yours will surely come my way ♪ ♪ hey, hey, hey ♪ every day it's getting closer ♪ ♪ going faster than a roller coaster ♪ ♪ a love like yours will surely come my way ♪ ♪ hey, hey, hey babies aren't fully developed until at least 39 weeks,

which means babies born even a few weeks early can have breathing, feeding, and learning problems. if your pregnancy is healthy, wait for labor to begin on its own. a healthy baby is worth the wait. now sports from abc 7 news. >> good evening, gabe kapler should be in his first week of the regular season managing the san francisco giants but obviously coronavirus has shut down the sports world. meanwhile, kapler joined us today on our "with authority" podcast. he could be the nest most

he loves ice cream. spent 12 years in the majors, one in japan, grew up listening to his dad play classical piano. he and the giants are getting creative staying ready for the season. >> i think there's a number of ways that players are able to stay in baseball shape right now. i just pulled up a wilmer flores instagram where his wife is flipping him baseballs and he's driving them into a net in their yard. this is unchartered territory. we're trying to be creative in the way we prepare for the season. >> with authority. >> kap was a great guest. this is shocking but not april aldon smith signing a one-year deal with the cowboys. all pro d

smith is parentally sober now and assuming the nfl does reinstate him, he would rejoin his old line coach in dallas. >> this is not how i envisioned this. >> we are so desperate for live sports right now, we are watching warrior star steph ray play a simulated golf game. he's a good golfer. this was not his night. get up, get up. while we're talking about the curries, steph posted this video. little shannon curry working out like dad. we're doing our push ups. is that a hand stand? no, no, next we're going to do sit ups. man, the curry kids are so cute!

i notice cam and i have similar whe ams coet toake the rightt and use a food thermometer. let's see how our teams are doing so far -- team 1? we just got 100 points. we separated our raw food from our cooked food. team 2? we got a 100-point green card for proper hand washing before our meal prep. referee: we've reached a critical safety point in the challenge. okay, team 1, let's check this out. uh-oh, not a safe internal temperature for those hamburgers. that puts everyone at high risk for food-borne illness. you get a red card -- undercooked. always read and follow the package cooking instructions and use a food thermometer. let's see how our winning team cooked it safe and avoided problems. well, i just kept focus on the four food safety steps -- clean, separate, cook, and chill.

and we followed the package cooking instructions and took the temperature. can you cook it safe? all right. that is our report. we appreciate your time. i'm dan ashley. >> and i'm ama daetz. thanks for joining us. next, a special edition of "nightline." >> we'll see you tomorrow. have a good night.

♪ ♪ ♪ >> tamron: welcome to a special edition of "the tamron hall show." we've seen hospitals around the country reaching their breaking point, and health care workers being pushed to the brink. but it's not just those infected with coronavirus who are suffering. it's causing a ripple effect of pain and heartache throughout the medical system. from pregnant women having to give birth without a loved one

present, to a woman in seattle whose early-stage cervical cancer surgery was canceled. this pandemic is pushing doctors to make hard choices for their patients. my first guest, zach branson, was scheduled to undergo a life-saving liver transplant last week, but it was canceled due to the coronavirus. zach's doctors told him that, without a new liver, he may have just weeks to live. zach joins us from "cyber hall" in colorado. zach, you were diagnosed with a rare liver disease at birth. at age 15, things took a turn, and you've struggled pretty much your entire life with this. as i understand, it's made you make really big decisions, including being single at this point in your life. and h