finale one day after the giants walk off the field at oracle park. tonight the push for social reform in major league sports. veteran athletes and coaches are weighing in on this moment -- >> also ahead, a couple who built a life -- for them moving on will not be easy. another woman who lost her home and is now living with her parents, the threat of the pandemic feels closer to home. still her optimism remains strong. also tonight, walking down the countdown, the push to save the census in the south bay. >> building a better bay area for a safe and secure future. this is abc 7 news. less than 24 hours after a wildcat strike began across much of the professional sports

world, the situation continues to develop tonight. >> in the nba players have agreed to resume playoffs after the unprecedented walkout, but wnba games are postponed for a second night. the nhl postponed two stanley cup playoff games scheduled for today. at least four major league baseball games are called off including the oakland a's. after playing texas last night, they postponed tonight's series finale. let's get to larry beil for the latest on the a's and the giants. >> the shooting of jacob blake caused much of the sports world to shut down for at least a few days while nba players did decide they're not going to continue with the season in orlando. other pro teams are supporting the movement. you mentioned the a's postponing their game with texas. the message we're hearing over and over is enough is enough. >> when the game ended, we had a deep conversation as a team on

what do we want to do? we're seeing other sports teams, our peers doing things to shine the light on what's going on in our country. we've been trying all kinds of things and we're not seeing enough action. so this is a good start. everybody was on board. >> these aren't comfortable conversations we're having. this is a serious problem. being able to have these uncomfortable conversations is where it starts. >> nine nfl teams canceled their practices today. the 49ers did practice. afterwards coach kyle shanahan emphasizing that the 49ers support the players and the social justice movement. >> stuff lots of our players have been dealing with their entire life, that people have been dealing with for hundreds of years. now that there's cameras and stuff out there, people see it a lot more which is why i truly believe it will eventually

change. it's not happening fast enough obviously. >> we mentioned the giants did not play last night. their game with the dodgers. they played a doubleheader today. so they are continuing on. there have been really emotional responses to the situation in wisconsin. we'll share that with you coming up tonight. >> larry, thanks very much. players are calling their actions a boycott. others say it meets the definition of a strike. whatever you call it, it would have been unthinkable ten years ago, maybe even five years ago. abc 7 news anchor eric thomas shows how some former pro athletes and a long time civic leader view it. >> former university of san francisco basketball star bill cartwright played 15 seasons in the nba, six with the powerful chicago bulls teams. he said pro sports has never seen anything like this. nobody has. >> i've got friends of mine who

are shocked, and i say to them, this has been going on for a long time, where have you been. >> the police shooting of jacob blake in wisconsin tapped into a deep well of pain and anger for today's pro athlete. that's why every nba team scheduled to match up in the first round of the nba playoffs decided yesterday not to play. >> thank goodness that we're fighting. thank goodness that we have guys who are not afraid to put themselves out there. >> it's not just basketball. several major league baseball teams with games today decided to take the day off in protest including the giants and the a's. former nfl pro bowl defensive end turned activist michael bennett to took place in a live stream called rise up for justice. >> these athletes know the power they have with their voice and being able to articulate what obnd millions of and what they dollars may have kept athletes, escily athte oolor

from going pu civil rights atto will brown says those days are gone. >> i'm please thad the compensation component no longer retards people who need to speak out from speaking out. >> major league soccer and the wnba have joined the boycott with the other league. it may not end there. in emeryville, eric thomas, abc 7 news. cleanup is under way in downtown oakland after a night in demonstration in response to the jacob blake police shooting. business owners and employees spent the day ceiling up holes in store fronts and sweeping broken glass. owners of the mud labs cafe tell abc 7 news the cost of the damage from last night totaled in the thousands as well as a few days of lost revenue. oakland police tweeted six or 700 people marched through the streets last night and several were arrested. now to the fires. we are seeing some improvement thanks to more favorable weather conditions.

czu complex -- is 21% contained. the massive lightning complex learning east and south of the bay at 35% containment, 10% improvement. in the north bay containment of the lmu lightning complex is unchanged at 33%. cal fire is warning of trees falling on homes, cars and roads. >> they tweeted this video today, their work knocking down dangerous trees. most evacuated residents there are allowed to return home. >> we have doubled up on patrol efforts and security checks moving forward. we want to make sure we have additional personnel this this area to assist with a safe return home for those neighbors. >> 445 homes have been

destroyed, mostly in santa cruz county. officials say damage inspection is about 60% complete. stephanie sierra is in the santa cruz mountains on this fire. stephanie, what can you tell us tonight? >> ama, we continue to see significantly less smoke in this area. the cooler air not only helping fire crews but inspection teams combing through the neighborhoods to assess the damage. we met several of those crews actually checking in at the fire department right now. they were helping a family who lives just a few miles from here who just learned their home burned down. at the corner of acorn and leafwood in bolder creek, there's very little left. this address was home to mandy and matt for 17 years. >> i don't want to go through the rubble.

>> reporter: the two built their life together in this purple tiled house. >> a lot of memories. i don't know -- it's just raising our kids and having puppies and kittens and jumping on the trampoline and all the friends of our children coming over and playing and having sleepovers and dinners and all of it. it's just a lot. we were just a regular family doing regular things. >> but now. >> we just got here. >> reporter: only a few tiles remain. their home destroyed, and this isn't the first time. >> our first home burned down right there. so that's our rebuild. >> reporter: it's those stories of loss that surround these hazy skies in the santa cruz mountains. one house gone next to another untouched. >> i'm so sorry. >> reporter: it seems unfair, but they don't see it that way. >> even though it's really hard

to lose our home, i'm just very grateful that we're safe and we're together. >> reporter: holding on to each other, embracing. >> i know from experience we'll find treasures in there that will mean a lot to us. >> reporter: what memories may have been left behind. we're back live in ben low man with a look at how conditions are continuing to improve. we were in this exact area and we could not see a car in front of us. now these hazy skies are improving. these families want to return home as soon as possible but cal fire is reiterating it's not safe to do that yet. as you pointed out, a lot of downed power lines and the roads aren't repaired yet and power hasn't been restored. the website they've been talking about in a lot of the press conferences that will identify when neighborhoods can safely reopen.

wlooif in ben low man, stephanie sierra, abc 7 news. one fire victim is feeling the sting of living through a personal tragedy during a pandemic. her family is risking staying with elderly parents because they have no other choice. abc 7's chris reyes on what gives her hope and courage to move forward. >> reporter: listen to the way megan talks about her home. >> beautiful original glass in the window, just so charming. there will never be another one like it. >> reporter: now you'll understand why this moment was so delicate. she gave us permission to drive by her house in boulder creek. this is the first time she's seeing a video of what's left behind. >> that's it. we loved it so much. it was my first home purchase together. >> we love everybody on that street. we love where our house is. >> it was such a special house and it can never be replaced.

>> reporter: i asked her how she knew right away it was her house just from glancing at the rubble. >> because everything is so familiar, it's just covered in ashes. >> reporter: megan, her husband and two kids are staying with her dad ed, adding to their stress, staying covid-19 safe. >> my parents are in their mid 70s. it was not my first choice to come here. >> reporter: they made the choice because it could be months before she can go back home. her neighbors lost their houses, too and so many others in boulder creek. this is what her be loved community has looked like in the last week and a half. the roads are still closed so she hasn't been able to see the burned remains in person. >> i don't want to go. i want to go but don't want to go. we pray for the whole community and just hope we all get through this together. >> reporter: they had just moved into the house last month, but their intention was to raise their family in boulder creek. the fire hasn't changed that. through her tears, also the conviction to rebuild. >> yes, i want to build a new

story and i don't want to give up. the only way i can see to do that is to keep going in the same area on the same property. >> in los gatos, chris reyes for abc 7 news. as president trump prepares to speak at the republican national convention, the vice president is getting attention for what he said about a federal officer killed in oakland. the window is closing to fill out the census. california has a lot riding on this simple form. the new rollout to get everyone counted. new video of the shark encounter in the pacific and the coast guard

data collection efforts for the 2020 census are set to conclude by the end of next month. that's why communities across the country are g residents to complete the

questionnaires online. in santa clara county, the stakes are higher with the diverse population. >> reporter: with a little over a month left until the 2020 census deadline, census takers in santa clara county are making a final push to deliver an accurate count. roughly 25% of households still have yet to respond, many in the hispanic and latin x communities. >> i think there's fear based on anti immigration rhetoric by this administration. >> reporter: that's why the county is working with non-profit organizations to send canvassers into certain neighborhoods that have historically been undercounted. >> a thing that makes us stronger than anything else, our diversity creates a challenge when it comes to actually reaching out to people and explaining to people why participating in the census is so important. >> reporter: today this group went door-to-door in east san

jose dressed in easily identifiable t-shirts and with ipads in hand. over the past three years the mo fund its census program, calling it a worthy investment. >> we have an opportunity to have better schools, better hospitals, better public services likely bay area, better roads. >> reporter: the all-important message that every person counts. >> you have to go to 2020census.gov. this is for your children, for your next generation who are living here. our next chance will only be in the next ten years. get it done today. >> reporter: in sclera kolegisla clara county. vice president mike pence mentioned oakland but left out important context to the deadly shooting of a federal officer. abc 7's melanie woodrow has the story. >> reporter: at the republican national convention, vice president mike pence paid

tribute to david patrick underwood. >> people like dave patrick underwood, an officer in the department of homeland security federal protective service who was shot and killed during the riots in oakland, california. >> reporter: underwood wasn't in the streets of oakland the night air force sergeant stephen grio is accused of shooting and killing him. he was a contract security officer, guarding the federal building. it's context that may have been lost on anyone visiting to vice president pence last night who wasn't familiar with the story. investigators san jose grio took advantage at a time when the nation was mourning george floyd. he and his partner used the protests as a cover according to special agent in charge john bennett. >> there is no evidence that these men had any intention to

join the demonstration in oak lapd. they came to oakland to kill cops. >> pat underwood was murdered because he wore a uniform. he wore that uniform to signify his authority to protect the federal courthouse. >> reporter: he's also facing charges in connection with the earlier murder of sergeant damon gus wyler. melanie woodrow, abc 7 news. we're in the middle of a

the national highway transportation safety bureau has a smart phone apps that automatically alerts drivers if their car is included in a recall. you can download the app on google play and from the apple app store. >> hi there, everyone. it is good to see some better air quality across many parts of

the bay area this evening. i want to show you the view from the mt. tam cam. you see the fog rolling in, the higher humidity and the fog. certainly helping the firefighters in increasing those containment numbers. live doppler 7 showing the fog along the coastline. as we look at the fire conditions in the north bay near the lmu lightning complex, 45% relative humidity, north wind pretty light, 92 near the hennessy fire, but the winds are light and as we take a look at the conditions near the fire, the woodward fire, it is socked in, misty, 100% relative humidity. one last stop, the czu lightning complex fire, relative humidity 69%. the winds are onshore even though they're up to 11 miles an hour. that will continue to help the firefighters out there. air quality right now, you'll notice it's unhealthy. we have many areas in the greens and yellows in the north bay,

the east bay which is gooed to moderate air quality. we haven't seen that in a while. san jose poor air quality along santa cruz. in the mountains, still seeing bad air quality. the spare the extended. temperatures upper 50s to the upper 80s. warmer than where we were yesterday. tomorrow the warming is going to continue. so tomorrow morning low 50s to the low 60s. hazy and foggy. the fog is going to be limited to the coast and the bay, and then tomorrow afternoon, taking those temperatures up into the mid 90s, range 94 livermore, fairfield, 96 in antioch. san francisco 68, 75 oakland, 86 san jose. 72 degrees in santa cruz. tropical storm laura made landfall as a major category 4 hurricane last night leaving behind a trail of destruction. right now radar is tracking

bands of heavier rain around little rock, arkansas. tornado watch boxes have been posted. that's going to be the threat along with the flooding rains an strong winds they have been experiencing, currently packing winds of 40 miles an hour. it has weakened and is expected to weaken as it makes its northeast ward turn going into friday. this will be a big rainmaker along the mid atlantic states to the northeast over the next few days. the accuweather seven-day forecast, puck eightifluctuatin quality. cooler for your saturday and hopefully that will help the firefighters as well. next week could be problematic, early next week. heat will be building, upper 90s and mid 60s coast side. the wind switches direction which could make things a little worse for the firefighting. we'll keep you posted on that. stay tuned. dan and ama. >> thank you, sandhya. stay here with us.

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as we all fight the coronavirus pandemic, california is mandating face masks to stop

the spread. abc 7 wants to remind you to wear a mask for you, your loved ones and your community. please, wear because you care. coming up on abc 7 news at 6:00, fema has a different way of responding to disasters these days. "7 on your side's" michael finney looks at what's changed and how they'll help wildfire victims. did you catch what was said at the republican national convention about puerto rico. here at abc 7 we work on building a better bay area every day. tonight you'll hear the story of a group working to build a better normal, all coming up in half an hour on abc 7 news at 6:00. finally tonight, new video showing the coast guard crew that decided to jump into the ocean for a much-needed break and found themselves confronting something out of the movie "jaws." >> all swimmers --

>> a shark showed up and was headed toward the swimmers. the crew had not been off the ship for weeks when they decided to cool off. all precautions were in place including a armored shark watch who quickly went to work. >> heading for the bow. heading for the bow. turn back. >> get on board now. >> put the boat between yourselves and the swimmer. >> it later joined other sharks and eventually swam off. dramatic video. >> "world news tonight with david muir" is next. we appreciate your time. from all of us here thank you for joining us tonight. we'll see you again at 6:00. >> bye for now.

tonight, hurricane laura slams into the u.s. as a category 4 hurricane. the death toll growing tonight. the hurricane making landfall in louisiana in the middle of the night. winds 150 miles per hour. homes and buildings leveled. roofs torn apart. a skyscraper shredded. half a million customers now without power tonight and those who didn't evacuate are now calling for help. powerful winds derailing a mile-long train. and the new danger as the skies clear. hurricane laura causing a chemical plant fire. nearby residents told to shelter in place. meteorologist rob marciano, part or our team riding out the storm, he's standing by tonight with the latest track and where this storm will cause significant trouble next. there is also news tonight about the teenager who came from a neighboring state, now accused of firing into a crowd of demonstrators who