now from abc7, live breaking news. >> the last three or four years. now at 5:00, the bay area's historic wildfire emergency. officials say these types of fires are only getting worse. but when it comes to the lightning complex fires that are currently threatening the region, we are slowly starting to see some signs of progress. and here's the very latest look at where things stand this morning. the lnu lightning complex is torching more than 351,000 acres in the north bay. the scu complex in the east and south bay more than 360,000 acres. and the czu complex nearly 80,000 acres in the santa cruz mountains. so, combined, they have burned an area that is larger than the size of rhode island. good morning, everybody.

it is tuesday, august 25th. >> is it smoky in there this morning, kumasi. >> i find it gets smokier as the day goes on. early in the morning, oh, it's not too bad. and then it comes back. no, we're not done here. >> for anyone without air conditioning, you might be like me. the windows open in the middle of the night woke you up. i hope that did not happen to you. mike is back right now to give us a forecast for today. mike, i hope you have some good news. >> i do. but let me tell you, even those of us with air conditioning are suffering as you can probably tell from my voice this morning. it tends to draw it in. we can't our houses air tight enough. everyone is suffering, just different degrees, i guess. i want to show you the fog out there because it is mixing with the smoke and low visibilisibii in many areas and slowly funneling off towards the east. air quality is unhealthy in the

south bay. unhealthy for everybody in the east bay valleys. it's moderate around the bay, thanks to that localized sea breeze that is about 1,000 feet deep the marine layer is and you can see up around napa and fairfield and vaccaville and sacramento and sensitive to unhealthy and same thing up in lake county. here's a look at the west, northwest wind at 20 miles per hour and that is trying to draw in some locally cooler air and also some cleaner air. but as you look at the day planner today, we're all under the spare the air. we'll jump from 50s and low 60s at 7:00. we'll stay in the 60s at the coast and be near 80 to near 90 as we head through the bay and inland during the afternoon hours. we'll talk more about the smoke and how much longer i think it will last coming up, reggie. >> that's important. thanks, mike. the czu complex fire that is burning in santa cruz and san mm mateo just 13% contained.

we'll get another update later on this morning. 276 structures have been destroyed and that number is expected to go up. cal fire says a majority of those destroyed are located in the santa cruz mountains. here you are with our first look from this video in the bonny doon area in the santa cruz mountains. it shows one home after another reduced to ashes on empire grade. meantime, teams of residents have formed to help fight and protect their homes. >> we're willing to put our own lives on the line to save others and that's all it is. >> here's the thing, cal fire has warned residents staying behind in an evacuation zone is not just illegal, but also puts firefighters in harm's way if they have to stage a rescue. we already know that six people had to be rescued on sunday. crews battling the scu lightning complex fire in the south and east bays have a tall task today. keeping the fire away from i-5. they want the keep the flames

west of the freeway so it doesn't burn further outside of the santa clara lines. jobina is at the live desk with more on this. jobina? >> thank you, kumasi. the focus on the freeway as crews are evacuationered oe ereorders hav downgraded to a warning and the czu is the second wildfire in state history. it's burned more than 360,000 acres and is 15% contained. abc7 news was embedded with the crew as it entered the fire zone at henry co state park. access is one of the main complications firefighters face there p. >> there's only a few roads up in this part of it. a lot of rolling terrain and just small roads and getting large vehicles up here is somewhat difficult. >> their strategy for fighting the flames is to burn out areas

around homes so when the fire gets close there will be less dry brush to ignite. the scu fire has destroyed 12 buildings and has injured five people. kumasi. >> thank you, jobina. you can follow fires statewide with our exclusive wildfire tracker and update would the latest information we get from cal fire. you can see where fires are spreading and get containment information in realtime and we also have all the evacuation info we need to know and air quality data. abc7 news fire tracker is available right now at the abc7 news app and our website ab abc7news.com. now the way people are helping. go back to santa cruz county where evacuation sites are being overwe overwhelmed by generous neighbors. although monetary donations are still best, a centralized center has opened up to gather and sort through everything that is coming in. here's abc news reporter chris s

winn. >> you see the ashes falling and those are people homes, shoes, couches. you can't wrap your head around how devastating it is. >> reporter: but in santa cruz, donations are now pouring in after the county opened its warehouse to accommodate those who wanted to help. >> the community outpouring here has been absolutely fantastic both in terms of volunteers and the folks dropping stuff off. >> reporter: clothing, bedding and personal hygiene products are requested. >> right now officials say the items they needhe most are blankets, sleepingrg atns are being collected and sorted here for distribution to evacuees through nonprofit organizations, as well as shelters and evacuation centers. janine was evacuated from scots valley last week and wonders if she will have a home to return

to. se stopped by to volunteer turning her pain into purpose. >> just feeling overwhelmed for all my friends and family that were displaced and hearing about people who have already lost r b a sensefeels veryvastatg. silienuiding many as they brace for what is to come. >> i have no words. that is what drives me to keep me going every single day no matter how long i'm here. >> reporter: in santa cruz county, abc7 news. some more good news. two san jose girls found a way to show their gratitude and thank firefighters. these horrible fires and we're so thankful for you. >> thank you so much. >> these two grateful girls had gifts for the two san jose firefighters. they presented them with cards, art and cookies all to thank them for their work on the czu fire burning to the west.

all right. let's talk about what's going on. start with our current conditions. and we'll just take a look at it feels a little bit better outside this morning. mid 50s to mid 60s out there. we have 57 in places like half moon bay and santa rosa to about 66 out in antioch, which is normally one of our warmer spots, as you would expect. as far as what is going on. look at the winds at the golden gate bridge. they are running anywhere from about 15 to 20 miles per hour right there. i apologize. that's the wrong live bug there and the wrong information. but as you head out today, yep, it's pretty much dangerous because of the air quality and the winds are going to back down just a little bit compared to yesterday. so, maybe that cleaner air that we saw yesterday afternoon won't get quite as deep into the bay as it did yesterday. here's a look at what the firefighters are dealing with and what the folks that live up in the areas are dealing with and the lnu lightning complex.

pretty quiet this morning. the closer you are to the coast, obviously, the cooler it is going to be and higher humidity. 55 degrees and 91% relative humidity and as you get over towards the hennessey fire 70 and 38. now, as we head deeper into today, you can see the winds aren't going to be quite as fast as yesterday. up to about ten miles per hour. as we head down into the santa cruz mountains, we'll look at the winds this afternoon. they'll pick up a little bit out of the northwest. that will keep your temperatures in mainly the 60s and 70s for highs today with higher humidity than some of the other places we're dealing with this morning. we'll look at the accuweather seven-day forecast coming up. the lnu lightning complex fire is giving firefighters really all they can handle. the crews are fighting back flames that are f rgpas ofin country all the way out to redwood valley floors. so far it's burned more than 350,000 acres in the areas of sonoma, napa and solano

counties. but here's some good news this morning, containment is rising and now it's at 25%. abc7 news reporter amy hollyfield is following this firefight and joins us live with the very latest. amy? >> we're here on the walbridge fire where cal fire says the weather is giving them a break and theynk the fire will continue to grow, they don't think it will significantly increase any more and they say it did not make a significant growth yesterday. so, they do feel like there is a bit of good news on this one. here is a look at the fire from sky7 yesterday in the hills. this is northwest near dry creek road. burned around 2,500 acres yesterday burning the total number of acres. residents have been nervously watching its progress and its destruction. it has burned homes in rural areas north of healdsburg.

some evacuees said they saw hope as they headed to bed last night. >> definitely blue skies over healdsburg before the sun went down and the smell of smoke is not as bad as it has been te last couple days. >> cal fire said the humidity helped them on this fire fight. they were also pleased that the predicted lightning strikes did not happen here. they were worried that would spark some new fires. officials said they ended yesterday in a better place than they expected. they absolutely like what they are seeing. but they say everyone must stay vigilant. reporting live in headlsburg. another police shooting of an unarmed black man. >> watched the video and was disturbing to say the least and we're asking everybody to be their better severals. >> a full look at monday's day

of action as the attorney for james blake joins "goma" this morning. this needs to be a broader united states. a black santa clara university professor talks about her intera

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everybody wins. now that's simple, easy, awesome. click, call or visit a store for details. fire evacuations have been ordered. an evacuation center is set up in san rafael. number three. overall the lnu complex in the north bay is now the third largest fire in california history. the fir now threatening the historic armstrong woods state

park. 351,000 acres have burned. the fire is 25% contained. number four. the number of homes destroyed by the czu lightning complex fire in santa cruz and san mateo counties is expected to rise. the fire has grown to 78,000 acres with 13% containment. and number five. it's easier to tell you the areas that have good air quality than those who don't. santa rosa and san francisco the only ones in green. san rafael and oakland and livermore in yellow. everybody else orange to red which means it is unhealthy for just about all of us. that will continue for several days. number six. we have smoke and fog that is mixing together creating visibility issues for our commuters this morning in the north bay and along the pninsula. as we look at the golden gate bridge, be aware we have a fog advisory issued here, as well. number seven. today is day two of the republican national convention.

first lady melania trump will deliver a speech from the white house rose garden. you can catch live coverage of the convention at 7:00 p.m. right here on abc7. new video has been released that captures the moment leading up to a shooting in wisconsin that is sparking outrage. that shooting of a black father has led to a second night of protests and jobina is at the live desk with more on that. jobina? >> thank you, reggie. video here shows you a new angle of the moment kenosha, wisconsin, police began to follow jacob blake around his car before opening fire and we do want to warn everyone watching right now, this may be uncomfortable to see. this video was captured on the same side of the street where the shooting took place and it appears blake is on the ground beside the car before he gets up to walk to the driver's seat. you can hear six gunshots before the video cuts out. there was a second night of unrest in kenosha. people set cars and businesses

on fire. police used tear gas to disperse protesters in front of the courthouse. wisconsin's lieutenant's gvernor said he understands the frustration over another black man being injured by a white officer. >> this was not an accident. this was not bad police work. this felt like some sort of vin d vendetta being taken out on a member of our community. >> two officers involved in the shooting are on administrative leave. blake remains hospitalized in intensive care. ben crump is representing blake's family and he will appear on "good morning america" today. >> thank you, jobina. this morning, a black santa clara university professor and her brother are at the center of a racial profiling incident on campus that has now gone viral. that professor in her first tv interview speaks with dion lim about the change she would like to see going forward.

>> there is no sanctuary or safe space when you are black in the united states. >> it doesn't matter that danielle morgan is an ivy league educated professor at santa clara university or that her brother is a classically trained musician who performed at carnegie hall. they were racially profiled and harassed by campus security who wanted proof danielle lived in her home. >> one of the officers said to me, which is you don't own this house. this house doesn't belong to you. >> reporter: as documented in a series of tweets that have gone viral, danielle describes the emotional trauma she and her brother, carlos, who was visiting for the weekend, experienced. >> as small and petty a statement i felt that to be, it had much broader implications that he was reminding me, you don't belong here. >> reporter: the president of the university was quick to issue an apology over the weekend. and monday evening,ngres to an

investigation. the campus safety officers involved would be put on administrative leave and there would be an evaluation of past and present safety records. danielle hopes to move forward and use her platform to make impactful change. >> i would hope for one this centers the voices of students both on santa clara's campus and else where who have had these experiences. this needs to be a broader conversation about racism in the united states. >> reporter: in santa clara, dion l irx signed a deal with an english team. to improve mental health for men, challenge stereotypes and break down boundaries. the company says its goal is to break the stigma around men wearing makeup. the founder says he hopes to give men confidence and more choices in their personal care. and now to the second man in our show wearing makeup this

morning, mike nicco. >> that is correct, sir. and, yes, probably more than you have to wear, also. so, let's take a look at what's going on and show you what's going on outside. golden gate bridge. as i talked about, those west, northwest winds at about 20 miles per hour. so, we're trying to push the marine layer which is very shallow at 1,100 to 1,200 feet into more valleys and clear things out at least temporarily this morning because that wind is going to back down a little bit this afternoon. so, according to the bay area air quality management district they issue the spare the air alerts and they say we have one today and tomorrow and i am looking at the conditions that says it will be extended a couple more days and lower humidity and warmer highs coming as we get deeper into the forecast. yes, we did not see as expected quite the lightning strikes of the past two events. and right now they are around

auburn and moving from the foothills into the sierra and the high country and moving away from us. so, any threat from that is over for us. let's talk about temperatures and focus on those. 80 in sunnyvale and 86 in san jose and 91 in gilroy. above average along the peninsula but barely. well, i'd say average here. mid to upper 70s. 74 to 78. 62 to 66 along the peninsula coast and 67 to 68 in downtown san francisco and 70 in sausalito. 60 to 62 north bay beaches and then about 78 in san rafael and everybody else in the low to mid 80s. 70 at richmond and 81 in fremont and as you head inland, we have 87 to about 92 degrees. temperatures warmer than average here. temperatures back into the mid 50s to mid 60s with fog and haze and low clouds. you've got it all tonight. our two coolest days are today and tomorrow. just gets a little bit hotter from here. guys, back to you.

>> thank you, mike. coming up on "good morning america" the policydatential da for people who are half mask wearers. people who let the mask slip down below their noses. >> in this morning's "gma first look" a new warning for half maskers. if your mask is only covering your mouth and not your nose, researchers say you are putting yourself and others at risk. >> likely start in the nose and the nose basically is the purveyor of all viral ill. >> reporter: a group of 43 researchers at the university of north carolina mapped locations in the respirato orory tract wh covid-19 likely infiltrates the body. they found that line e be moreelo beinfected. >> pick the nose as a fertile ground for infection. >> reporter: this picture from the study shows different parts of the respiratory system after being infected with the same amount of the virus. more green dots in the nasal

cavity indicating more cells infected in the nose. and we'll have much more from the researchers coming up at 8:00 a.m. with your "gma first look" abc news, new york. >> i don't want to see your nose. >> i don't try to judge. i just mind my business and move away. >> i am trying so desperately. i mind my business out loud. in my head, there is a whole story playing out. >> that is not minding your business. >> you're right. i can't help it. coming up next, as if they don't have enough to deal with. new reports coming to light of wildfire victims being targeted for price gouging during this crisis. 7 on your sid

all that suppressing smoke in the air can make us forget what blue skies look like and make us feel clauser phobic, too. this was about ten days ago. compare it to yesterday and you can see what a difference the wildfires are making to our air. it's just awful. and won't we rejoice when the

blue skies come back when they do. here's a look at the forecast for today. according to the bay area air quality management district, they governed our spare the air alerts and right through wednesday right now. our meteorologist will reassess and put out a new forecast. if they're looking at some of the stuff, extend the spare the air and the marine layer getting deeper and back off as we head deeper into the week with warmer temperatures and that's something we'll have to keep an eye on. so, spare the air alert today for sure today and tomorrow. wear a mask outside and the whole time is to save yourself from covid and from the fine particulate matter in the air. reggie? >> mike, thank you. california's attorney general is stepping up to protect wildfire victims from price gouging. coumer alert to suspend the law of supply and demand during the ster.the r kicksn any time governor declares a state of

emergency. most price increases on things like food, gas and medical supplies are limited to no more than 10% of what was being charged before. but santa cruz county's district attorney says complaints are still coming in especially about hotels. >> i've heard about various hotels and other things that are trying to take advantage of people who during these times of crisis want to jack up the rates for various things. and i promise you, if we find out that, we're coming after you, too. >> price gouging rules are meant to keep hotel prices in check when demand goe becau evacue need rooms. michael finny recommends keeping your receipts in case you need to contest a charge. we're coming back with another full 90 minutes of news as we await the latest 6:00 a.m. update on the complex fire that is burning through the santa cruz mountains. julian glover is standing by

with an update right after this break. plus, residents in the mountain neighborhoods refusing to go down without a fight. how some are forming fire brigades to battle the flames and why they say they have an advantage in defending homes on their own. and the grocery store side effect. how all this ash and smoke from the fires may now start

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live breaking news. >> this critical week as it relates to suppressing these wildfires here in the state of california. now at 5:30, california's wildfire emergency. firefighters reaching a critical point in containing what are already historic and deadly blazes across the state. a look at the map this morning showing you how large these lightning complex fires continue to grow in the bay area. altogether they're approaching a combined 800,000 acres of burned homes, forests and hillside terrain. and here's the very latest

on the size and containment of each individual complex fire. which are the fires that cal fire is grouping together by region. the scu and lnu lightning complex fires are now sitting as the second and third largest fires in state history. well, good morning, everybody. it is tuesday, august 25th. it is. there is some progress being made on the fires, that is good news. we will check in with mike now to see if we have any progress as we try to breathe some air today. hi, mike. >> today, maybe a little bit near the coast like we saw yesterday as the winds aren't going to be quite as fast as they were yesterday. so, the penetration of that clean air may be a little less today. here's the latest. you can see fremont and palo alto. unhealthy air for all of us. concord unhealthy air for all of us and let's head up to the north bay and as we get further

up in mendocino county and ukiah unhealthy air for all of us. in fact, another spare the air day today. you can see the haze on this map and some of the fog that will retreat back to the coast where temperatures will be pretty close to average. 66 in half moon bay and 67 in san francisco and little warmer than average around the bay from 70 in richmond and 81 in fremont and definitely warmer than average in the east bay. 90s will prevail once again. we'll talk about warmer temperatures coming up, once again, reggie. this morning once again awaiting today's update on how firefighters are preparing for an intense day ahead in the czu lightning complex fire. it is burning right now in santa cruz and san mateo counties. cal fire says most of the s cru bonny doon neighborhood. one home after another reduced to ashes on empire grade. only the brick chimneys remain at most of these home sites.

and right now that complex has torched more than 78,000 acres. it is just 13% contained. abc7 news reporter julian glover is live from scots valley awaiting this morning's news conference where hopefully, julian, we'll see that number go up. >> that's what we're hoping for, reggie. that news conference happening in about 30 minutes from now. favorable weather conditions on monday really help firefighters end their active firefight and we're hoping that was also the tale of much of monday when we get that report in just about 30 minutes. you remember yesterday that the containment doubled from 8% to 1 13% in that news conference and we hope to get similar numbers this morning. we know they have been very busy attacking the fire by the air on monday. we actually saw from sky 7 several of these water drops happening. crews also very busy throughout the day shoring up some of those containment lines both on the north end of the fire in san mateo county and the south and extending just south of the city of santa cruz.

and also we're hearing some of the humidity that was in the air actually helped contain and put out part of the blaze along the coastline yesterday. but, still, on the interior of the fire we're seeing home after home destroyed like we've seen in bonny doon and now hearing from residents who are nervous about what they're going to come back to if they do leave. >> our whole life is here. you see these things on tv and, you know, you think you know what to do. but when you're in that position, it's not as hard. it's not as easy as you think it is to pack up everyting and leave. >> we do expect that number of destroyed homes to continue to go up, unfortunately. some 208 homes confirmed to be destroyed atab weather, the damage inspection teams, they have been able to go out there and survey more of the land. still some 24,000 homes are being threatened between san mateo and santa cruz counties and, again, those evacuation

orders still standing with 77,000 people evacuated from those areas so far. give a second a break down and go inside and bring you that press conference live here at 6:00 a.m. at scotts valley. julian glover, abc7 news. in the north bay, the lnu lightning complex burning in napa, solona proving pretty challenging. and you can see that really difficult terrain that they're facing in this firefight. the fire is now threatening the historic armstrong woods state park but firefighters say they're keeping an eye on its progress. so far the lnu lightning complex fire has burned more than 351,000 acres, however, containment has climbed to 25%. now, breaking news from the abc7 live desk. at the live desk, we have a little relief this morning for people who are under mandatory evacuation orders for the scu

lightning complex fire. that evacuation order has been downgraded to a warning for people in parts of santa clara county. the scu fire is now the second largest wildfire in state history. it's burned more than 360,000 acres and is 15% contained. five people have been injured in the fire. 12 buildings destroyed.embed wo crew as it entered the fire zone. firefighters explained their plan of attack. >> we're burning out around houses. so to protect them and we're going to protect them by burning out around them and let the fire push off away from them. when the fire does come to it, there will be less to burn. >> two strike teams of 44 firefighters from texas are among crews fighting the flames. the goal for the crews today is to keep the fire west of i-5. reggie? >> okay, jobina, thank you. new this morning, a survival story. two men recovering from burns after narrowly escaping the scu

complex fire are putting the final touches and protecting their family home in santa clara county as flames quickly approached. >> they were leaving. and they caught themself. nobody was coming further. the only car on the property that didn't burn was the ranch. tom was able to find a battery that still had some juice in it with his bloody hands and rusted crescent wrench. now a total of four patients recovering from injuries related to the wildfires. new develops, investigators say this is the man wanted for stealing the wallet of a cal fire firefighter. he's accused of using a stolen credit card at the shell gas station and safeway on 41st avenue in capitola. the firefighter's wallet was stolen over the weekend from the bonny doon fire station. the thief drained the firefighters' bank account. the fires could create serious produce problems.

so, we're talking about tomatoes, melons, corn, peppers, pumpkins. all at bay area farms that are covered in ash. that means you'll have to give them an extra rinse before you cook them. produce prices haven't gone up yet, but because of supply and demand issues created by covid and the fires, that could soon change. one farmer explains why. >> pg&e cut the fire last week. we haven't been able to irrigate at all and then on top of that even, they closed the area off. so, we haven't been able to get anybody in here to pick anything either. some of our crops have overripened and those will be just considered a loss. >> local food banks may also be affected because they get their produce from farms across the bay area. and if you are looking for ways that you can help out, we have a list of resources on how yo can donate and support wildfire victims as well as information and how you can stay safe. you can find all of this on our

website, abc7news.com/takeaction. night one of the rnc convention not holding back with california under attack. if you want to see the socithe socialist biden/harris future for our country, just take a look at california. >> the biggest moments from the night, plus the president's pitch for four more years. plus, you've seen plenty of helicopters and planes helping fight these wildfires, but what about drones. how a local company is building the next break through in controlling the flames. but, first, we check in with abc7 news meteorologist mike nicco who is looking at the forecast this morning. >> hi, thanks for joining us this tuesday. let's start off with the conditions when you step outside temperature wise. we know the air quality is unhealthy for most of us and temperatures are a little bit cooler this morning. mid 50s to mid 60s. it looks like about 57 in gilroy and half moon bay and up towards santa rosa and some of the cooler conditions.

brentwood 66 one of the warmer ones out there. let's talk more about your commute. you can see the flags on the ferry building and a west, southwest wind at 11 miles per hour. just look how hard it is to see. a mixture of marine layer clouds and also smoke. so, wear a mask no matter what you form of transportation you're using for your commute today because it's going to be smoky. it's going to be at least a little bit smoother on the water. let's talk about what is going on above 1,000 feet. the winds aren't too bad and less than 20 miles per hour. 16 the highest. down where we live, we're down to about 12 in concord and that's about as fast as it gets. let's look at some of the fires and you can see it's calm and most of them and with the hennessey fire, look at that. 70 but 38% relative humidity. the temperature 56 but the relative humidity 58% and the walbridge fire and the winds not all that fast this afternoon 10 to 15 miles per hour. let's talk more about that reduction in visibility out there, jobina.

pretty brutal in some areas. >> yeah. it really is, mike. i have some video of that. our colleague j.r. stone was coming down southbound 101 and took this video of the fog in the area and as mike stated, this is also mixing with the smoke. so, i'm seeing this as far as the traffic maps on all of our areas around the north bay and also down in the peninsula and south bay. be prepared for that low visibility here. also just want to tap in very quickly to this crash i'm following in oakland. eastbound 580 past 98th avenue. we have multiple cars involved in this crash. full shut down of eastbound 580 and injuries have been reported and a couple ambulances are on the way to the scene there. so, heads up to you. also this morning, want to let you know that happening today muni is shutting down rail service again. just three days after it resumed. service was shut down for five months because of the pandemic. the director says an equipment problem and an employee's

positive covid-19 test caused a staffing shortage. all rail service will be provided by bus. it's unclear when service will be back. the director says covid has caused a lily everyone in the house is online and i can't get enough bandwidth to video chat with my book club. try 1 gig internet with at&t fiber. you get more bandwidth and hbo max included. so, everyone stays entertained. so i can just watch the show instead of reading the book? you know, if you turn on your subtitles... that's almost reading. get 1 gig internet with at&t fiber for $49.99a month for a year. no annualcontract. and now get hbo max included. limited availability in select areas. call 1.877.only.att

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the foggy glasses... and the muffled laughs. a simple piece of fabric makes a big statement: i care. wear a mask. let's all do our part to slow the spread. now your accuweather forecast with mike nicco. >> coming up on 5:44. want to take a look at the peninsula where we have a little mixture of smoke but a lot more of the low clouds and fog that are spilling in from the coast right now as the marine layer is about 1,200 feet deep. mostly cloudy and 58 degrees. temperature 57 to 62 through 7:00. mid 60s from noon to 4:00 at the coerele bay. 81 to 88 as you head through our inland neighborhoods. that's a little bit warmer than average. different districts have different ways of producing that

air quality warnings. you can see lake and mendocino counties under an air quality warning and so is the san joaquin valley. just hot and smoky everywhere across the state except for at the coast. kumasi. >> thank you, mike. now, to your voice, your vote. today is day two of the republican national convention and we will hear from first lady melania trump. this comes after a fiery speech by governor newsom's she took aim at california. >> immaculate environment and the democrats turned it into a land of discarded heroin needles and parks and riots in streets and blackouts in homes. >> republicans are rallying behind president trump to defeat former vice president joe biden in november. >> joe biden and the democrats are still blaming america first. donald trump has always put america first.

and he has earned four more years as president. >> the first lady will deliver her speech tonight from the white house road garden and you can catch live coverage of the republican national convention today through thursday at 7:00 p.m. right here on abc7. a silicon valley drone maker is helping fire suppression across the state. teaming up with federal state and local fire departments that have deployed its drones. the tech uses thermal cameras to help identify hot spots and track the direction a fire is moving. 3d cameras allow the drones to steer clear of obstacles. >> deploying a helicopter is expensive and slow and oftentimes puts the pilot and the crew at risk and with a drone you can get into tricky situations where risking a drone to get critical data may be well worth it. >> and this is really wild.

skydio is working to upgrade its drones even more so they can mobilize on their own at the first indication of the fire in sync with ground crews. let's take a zoom out to space to show you some of the smoke that has engulfed california. nasa says the trail of smoke running northeast to southwest, get this, 1,200 miles long. and the smoke isn't just impacting california, the red areas that you can see on this nasa image indicate aerosols in the air and particles believed to be from wildfires. those particles can be seen as far east as minnesota. well, how long do you think we have to wait, mike, before we have some kind of clearer air? i know it's hard to predict that. >> well, that's a great question. everyone is worried about that and the fires that are producing them. the bay area air quality

management district governs our spare the air alerts. they say today and tomorrow for sure. they have thursday when it is supposed to get healthier but the conditions out there are still saying we could probably extend that well past tomorrow. so that's something we're going to keep an eye on when they issue their latest forecast. so, i would say get used to this for more days past wednesday. all right, so, part of the problem, the lightning and thunderstorms and we really missed out on an event yesterday. thankfully auburn had a lightning strike earlier and remnants of genevieve moved away. just off the coast and giving us the southwest to northeast flow and that is what is trying to help alleviate some of the smoke concerns and that and an undercutting by this marine layer north, northwest wind at 20. that's why the closer you are at the coast the more likely you are going to have healthier and inland areas that will have unhealthy air ahead for several days and the humidity will go

down and temperatures will climb as we head through the forecast. 91 to gilroy in the south bay and palo alto at 78 and 62 to 65 peninsula coast up ander 60s downtown south san francisco and 78 to 73 through most of the north bay ond to 81 at fremont and inland 87 in san ramon to 92 in brentwood. my accuweather seven-day forecast. relatively the same tomorrow as the marine layer tries to hold on and then kind of gets squashed. thursday, friday, saturday and sunday with temperatures above average away from the coast and that's why i think also with that squash in the marine layer and th winds the air quality will remain pretty bad. >> thank you, mike. happening today the state's top health officil dr. mark ghaly will give an update in california and this comes after governor newsom hinted that some bay area counties could be coming off the state watch list.

>> i encourage san francisco it made some progress, progress being made across the spectrum on hospitalizations, icus and positivity rate, particularly over the seven-day period. and continuing vigilance in this very difficult period. >> the state's seven-day positivity rate has dropped to 5.6%. napa county was removed from the watch list last week. health officials say the most effective mask that you can use to protect yourself from both the wildfires and covid-19 are surgical and n-95 masks. also happening today, small business owners in san francisco will hold a protest outside of city hall. owners of places like gyms, liefhe canial rubs a theay they say many businesses are

on the verge of bankruptcy or are tens of thousands of dollars in debt and they plan to gather at 10:00 this morning. as wildfires are burning across the bay area and it continues to affect, obviously, our air quality. concern is growing now over how that could worsen covid-19. doctors say the haze you can see visibly is just the tip of the iceberg because even more troubling is the fine part particulate matter that is 20 to 30 times smaller than a strand of hair. that matter can make it deep into your lungs, increasing the risk of moving from a mild coronavirus infection to a severe one. >> if you are damaging the lungs to some extent by inhaling wildfire smoke even though that's only mild inflammation, that probably increases the risk of moving from milder to more severe disease. >> what can you do? i mean, other than going

outside. and closing your windows. doctors say the best defense is wearing a mask because if a smoke causes someone near you to cough, at least you'll be somewhat protected. we are tracking air quality on our website, abc7news.com. you see mike using this throughout the newscast and you can search to see which neighborhoods have the worst air depending on where you live and that updates in realtime. new at 6:00, the celebrity helping teachers out during the pandemic by buying school supplies on their wish list. but, first, it's something that looks like noah's arc. a similar scene in the bay area. peacock to llamas to cows. let me show you whe

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welcome back, everyone. the cow palace living up to its name because it is a full fire evacuation shelter forrmnn imaa. usually it's used to host the circus or dog shows. but this is the first time in recent memory atow palace has been used as an animal evacuation center and now housing some 150 animals. >> donkey and a horse who are best friends who were relocated from the fire zone to the cow palace and because they're best friends they're being sheltered together. >> we had a list and name cards and they took us right in and set up the horses. it's been fantastic. >> that's sweet. the cow palace says donations are needed, though, to help care for the animals. here's the forecast from the bay area and sensitive to unhealthy for all of us through wednesday. they will update this later on

today and i would imagine more days will be added to our spare the air alerts. let's take a quick look at czu fire. lightning complex. you can see the temperatures 60 and relative humidity, 100%. another good night for fire conditions there. fire fighting condition. southwest wind at 5 gusting to 12 and pick up to 14 as we head deeper into the afternoon hours. and the air will swirl a little bit through the santa cruz mountains from southwest to northwest depending on your elevation. that may be an issue. but the temperature there's definitely going to be cooler and the humidity higher than any of our other fires we are battling right now. >> thank you, mike. new this morning, a little good news. a southern california duo now turning the coronavirus pandemic into an opportunity to help others. amy griffith founded the nonprofit down for dance in 2017. they empowered those with down syndrome to build a stronger sense of self through dance classes.

the pair always wanted to go nationwide and covid gave them that chance through virtual classes. now down for dance teaches almost 90 dancers in 16 states. >> i love it. that made me want to do a little dance. >> me, too. .ause meth don't k would le m h >> oh, lesson, i like that. coming up next at 6:00, more team coverage of the wildfire

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you don't do this. we do this, together. bounce forward, with comcast business. now from abc7 live breaking news. now at 6:00, progress on the wildfire burning in the santa cruz mountains. here's a look at the destruction it left behind in bonny doon and entire neighborhoods wiped out as you can see there. so, here's an overview of where things stand this morning with the three major wildfires burning in the bay area. the lnu lightning complex in the north bay has burned more than 351,000 acres. it is 25% contained. the scu lightning complex in the south and east bay has burned mre than 360,000 acres. it is now the largest fire burning in the bay area and 15% contained. at