vaccines we have now will still be effective. also state officials admit we're not getting as many vaccines as promised. will that mean a possible delay in getting it to people who are waiting for it? also here there's now an official plan for getting your kids back in school in person. how it will work and who will get back to class first. and how abc 7's david louie became an answer on one of america's most popular television game shows. >> announcer: building a better bay area. for a safe and secure future. this is abc 7 news. i'm not surprised that you have a case and likely more cases in california. >> that's dr. anthony fauci, of course, chatting with governor gavin newsom about the new strain of covid-19, which has just been confirmed in our state. good evening. i'm dan ashley. >> and i'm ama daetz. thank you for joining us. we learned today a man in san diego county tested positive for that fast-spreading coronavirus variant first detected in the uk.

>> this is a man in his 30s with no travel history who became symptomatic on the 27th. >> i don't think that the californians should feel that this is something odd. this is something that's expected. >> dr. anthony fauci says the variant was so prominent in the uk it was bound to spread to other countries due to people traveling. the infected man is not in the hospital because he hadn't traveled recently health officials do not believe it's an isolated case. san diego county health officials say another person who is living with that patient is showing symptoms and was tested today. the news comes on the deadliest day for california since the start of the pandemic. the state is reporting 432 new deaths. 29 of those were in the bay area. hospitalizations have continued to set daily records for three weeks straight. and icu admissions are at record levels. the number of new cases in the bay area was lower at 3,035. as the vaccine arrives in the state, federal and state health officials admit that the number of covid-19 doses is

below what was initially promised. as abc 7 news reporter mellie woodrow explains, there are plans now to catch up in the new year. >> reporter: tens of millions of doses of covid-19 vaccine were promised to be delivered nationwide by the end of december. but those numbers are falling short, including here in california. >> we know that the number of doses that have arrived into the state has produced less than what was originally professed. >> reporter: governor gavin newsom addressed the vaccine shortfall in both his covid-19 update and in a separate conversation with dr. anthony fauci. >> no, i'm not shocked. i'm not, quote unquote, disappointed. >> reporter: governor newsom said more than 300,000 vaccines have been administered in california so far. dr. fauci said he recently spoke with chief operations officer for operation warp speed army general gus perna. >> as we get into january the feeling is that we're going to gain momentum to be able to catch up. >> reporter: perna has said

everyone is working through how to administer the vaccine the right way and ensure it stays in accordance with the cold chain. dr. george rutherford is a professor of epidemiology for ucsf. >> would we be happier with more? of course we'd be happier with more. >> reporter: rutherford said right now a state committee is meeting to make decisions about who will receive the vaccine in the next month and a mav, once frontline health care workers have been vaccinated. >> i really look forward to getting the large majority of people who want to be vaccinated vakdsnated by the summer. >> reporter: in his conversation with governor newsom dr. fauci suggested april could be open season for most to receive the vaccine and that by early fall we could see some sense of normality return. melanie woodrow, abc 7 news. seniors and staff at a walnut creek retirement community got covid-19 vaccinations today. via monte is one of the first senior living homes in northern california to get the vaccine. the center partnered with contra costa county to serve the high risk population. one woman we spoke with said there was no doubt in her mind

she had to be vaccinated. >> i was going to take it. because it's important. ed to avoid covid. and protect other people too. yes. >> seniors living there say it's been a difficult, lonely time not being able to see their loved ones. they hope getting the vaccine could allow visits to happen sooner. tonight governor newsom is outlining a new plan to reopen california schools for in-person instruction as early as february. >> distance learning, i'm going to make this clear, will still remain an option for parents and students. there's a lot of trepidation. we recognize that. a lot of anxiety about going back into the classroom. >> the plan includes $2 billion in funding. young elementary students and students with special needs would come back first. the plan calls for increased covid testing and school staff and students would be required to wear masks. >> every school district's going to have to determine can they maintain physical distancing of

six feet with the space that they have. some districts will be better able to do that. others will be challenged. they'll have to make decisions accordingly. >> in addition to qualify to reopen counties must have fewer than 28 covid cases per 100,000 residents. right now alameda, marin, napa, san francisco, san mateo, santa cruz, and sonoma counties would be able to open. there are still a lot of things up in the air with the reopening plan. abc 7 news reporter matt boon spoke to parents and teachers about a possible return in february. >> we are ready as soon as we get the green light. >> reporter: katie castle is the patient of a second-grader in piedmont unified. while there has been pressure on the district to reopen, she says she's actually not eager to send her child back to school anytime soon. >> i am coming from it from a place of having a daughter who's been very successful at online learning. >> reporter: but access to distance learning has varied widely, especially in oakland unified school district. >> i still have students that

are not logging in at the times that they're supposed to log in. >> reporter: janine wendric is a second-grade teacher in oakland unified. she also has a daughter in the district. she says while many teachers want a vaccine before going back she feels satisfied with the governor's new reopening framework. >> i'm wok with going baokay wi soon as possible. i do like how the governor's proposing having masks for both students and staff. i do like how they're going to have testing available. >> reporter: oakland mayor libby schaaf says the district has not yet reached an agreement with teachers unions on reopening but echoed the need for a return as soon as february. >> i want these kids back in school. it is not just important for the children's education but parental sanity and our economy. all these things need our kids to be back in school. >> reporter: in a statement from oakland unified a spokesperson told abc 7, "we look forward to closely reviewing administration

plans to provide for a safe and responsible reowning and plan to fully participate in the upcoming legislative review." in oakland matt boon, abc 7 news. >> the stay-at-home order can be lifted when a region meets or exceeds 15% icu availability. the bay area is now at 7.5%. the greater sacramento region is at 17.4%. northern california, 31.5%. san joaquin and southern california, those regions remain at 0% icu capacity. and speaking of numbers, the fines are piling up for a danville restaurant. the place has been getting cited for the past 13 days for offering outdoor dining in clear violation officials say of the county's health order. the restaurant owners tell abc 7 news reporter unsar hassan he's staying open to help his employees. >> reporter: each night gabe mufarej opens his restaurant he faces another $1,000 fine. >> reason we are open is we have

about 25 to 30 employees and we cannot send them home without a paycheck. >> reporter: one of the few restaurants open for outdoor diagnose. in violation of a covid-19 health order. he says if he closes his employees suffer. some who have already run out of unemployment benefits. >> these people have mortgages. they have rent. they have car payments. they have little kids. and it's cruel to do this. >> reporter: mufarej says he's not trying to make a political statement. he knows covid-19 is real. he spent $45,000 in upgrades to become covid compliant. he says take out a loan isn't enough and is breaking even with outdoor dining. some lockeless sals say if soci distancing guidelines are followed they support staying open. >> i paid a lot of money to come to danville because there are some excellent restaurants here. and i don't want to see them go out of business. >> reporter: danville police chief alan shield says he's reviewed the health order with the city attorney and county lawmakers. >> we realize this is hard and it is hard when the rules change

as rapidly as they are. >> this is not the time to be fooling around. we're at the home stretch. we've got the vaccine. >> reporter: contra costa county board of supervisor candice anderson admits it's been a tough year for small businesses. but she says other restaurants are following the rules. and without naming names andersen says one danville restaurant is at risk of being shut down. >> it is potentially a real possibility that they will be shut down by our environmental health division. >> reporter: in danville unsar hassan, abc 7 news. people are telling us about the cost to treat covid if they don't have insurance. a reminder from covered california next. also we'll remember dawn wells, one of the stars of the '60s sitcom "gilligan's island." and the massive container cranes that sailed under the golden gate with just a few feet to spare. look at that. abc 7 news continues right after this. if there's anything that this year has taught us,

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with covid-19 cases and hospitalizations on the rise, covered california is reminding the state's uninsured residents to enroll by tonight's deadline to get coverage at the start of the new year. abc 7 news reporter chris nguyen explains why officials are making the push right now. >> reporter: this afternoon an urgent message to the uninsured in california. >> covid or other health issues could catch us out of the blue at any moment. >> reporter: peter lee is the executive director of covered california, a free service that connects californians with health insurance under the patient protection and affordable care act. wednesday night is the deadline to enroll if you want coverage to start on january 1st. not to mention the peace of mind that comes with it. the state says 1.2 million californians still haven't signed up for insurance, a concerning figure especially in the midst of the covid-19

pandemic. >> if you end up going into an icu and you walk out and weren't insured, you might have a $60,000 bill. now, the first thing you want is to get the right care at the right time. but you also don't want to go bankrupt because of getting health care. >> reporter: covered california has certified enrollment counselors across the state including the south bay where employees at gardner health services are ready to help. many applicants will qualify for a deep discount through the state's health insurance marketplace or even be eligible for medi-cal. >> use clinic services to try to keep you healthy as opposed to waiting until you're absolutely so sick that you have to either go to the emergency room or heaven forbid you have an episode where you just are so sick that you can't walk. >> reporter: and if having insurance during the pandemic isn't motivation enough, consider this. residents who can't provide proof of coverage will face penalties when their state income taxes are due. to help california's open

enrollment continues through the end of january. >> if you don't have employer coverage and you're struggling with your premiums or you're out of a job, you should be going to covered california to check to see what you're going to get. >> reporter: the coverage providing a critical safety net for the community as a whole. in san jose, chris nguyen, abc 7 news. dawn wells, who starred as the sweet mary ann in the '60s sit kovm "gilligan's island" has died. her publicist says she died in los angeles of covid complications. she had early tv roles on shows like 77 sunset strip and bonanza. then came "gilligan's island," the show that became part of american pop kurmt. wells appeared in numerous tv shows, movies and plays but her role as mary ann had the most lasting impact. she was 82 years old. >> i grew up watching her on "gilligan's island." small business supporters in pacifica are calling on the state to allow outdoor dining spaces to reopen effective immediately. they gathered at the pacifica brewery to air their grievances

before marching along highway 1, as you see here this afternoon. local restaurant and bar owners say they followed covid guidelines and spent thousands of dollars complying with state and local regulations. california began accepting applications for $500 million in grant money for businesses. the state is making the money available to small businesses and non-profits that have been affected and impacted by the pandemic. the grants will be offered in amounts from $5,000 to $25,000. the first round of applications ends january 8th. a late christmas gift today for the port of oakland. a tanker carrying the port's massive new cranes arrived in san francisco bay today. this was not an easy operation. workers had to lower the booms on the three cranes in order to fit them both under the golden gate and bay bridges. when fully raised, they'll soar 400 feet into the air, making them the largest on the west coast. local officials expect the cranes to provide an economic boost to oakland, allowing the port to attract the largest tankers from around the world.

>> what a great visual that is. well, when we come back, meteorologist drew tuma says the storm door is opening. these visuals will change here soon. what to women with metastatic we breast cancer.rs. our time... ...for more time... ...has come. living longer is possible- and proven in postmenopausal women taking kisqali plus fulvestrant. in a clinical trial, kisqali plus fulvestrant helped women live longer with hr+, her2- metastatic breast cancer. and it significantly delayed disease progression. kisqali can cause lung problems or an abnormal heartbeat, which can lead to death. it can cause serious skin reactions, liver problems, and low white blood cell counts that may result in severe infections. tell your doctor right away

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not a great start for california's snow pack. a team from the department of water resources conducted its first survey of the season today at phillips station off highway 50 not far from tahoe. the numbers there were good, 30.5 inches of snow with a water equivalent of 10.5 inches. that's 93% of the phillips station average. so not bad. however, statewide the snow pack is just 52% of average for this date. so we have a long way to go here to catch up. and meteorologist drew tuma is tracking, drew, at least a good dose of precipitation to come. >> yeah, dan, over the next seven days we are tracking several storms taking aim at california. tonight we're tracking the final rainfall of 2020.

some showers already falling in the north bay. let's show you live doppler 7 along with satellite. mostly cloudy skies will press in closer into the north bay where we have light showers from santa rosa up through healdsburg, cloverdale, light showers over into ukiah and clearlake. and this cold front is slowly going to slide south overnight tonight. here's the bigger picture on live doppler 7 along with satellite. there you can see the cold front defined very nicely, moving into northern california right now. and we're talking about very light showers overnight tonight as it's a pretty quick-moving front we are tracking. ahead of the front, temperatures mainly in the low if not mid 50s at this current hour. but this storm system, it is churning up our ocean current as we speak. so starting tonight at 10:00 p.m. we do have a high surf advisory that goes into effect along our entire coastline where current wave heights right now, anywhere from six to ten feet, but during the high surf advisory we could see breakers up to 20 feet.

so pretty active ocean current again. overnight tonight mostly cloudy skies with scattered showers. tonight, not as cold as last night. last night you'll remember we had temperatures in the 20s and 30s. tonight it looks like most cities will hold in the low and mid 40s with that cloud cover overhead. the storm impact scale, level 1 light rain system tonight through the early morning hours on new year's eve. rainfall less than about .2 of an inch. it will bring us some wet and slippery road conditions first thing tomorrow morning. so future weather, there are those showers in the north bay. about 9:00 we do expect that shower activity to reach the peninsula, the east bay, some light showers over the city, and then early tomorrow morning by about 2:00 a.m. we're still tracking some wet weather. by the time we all wake up and the sun gets up here, those showers are out of here. so during the daylight hours tomorrow it is a dry day. so rainfall estimates with this system, again, it's fast. we're talking about rainfall smites less than about.2 of an

inch across much of the bay area. so once that rain is out of here before the sun rises tomorrow, tomorrow is actually a really beautiful end to the year. you can see a lot of sunshine in the afternoon and temperatures in the upper 50s to lower 60s. so here's the accuweather seven-day forecast for the next seven days. for your morning clouds to sun tomorrow, 2021 begins on a dry note, and then we're tracking several rounds of wet weather. light showers on saturday. sunday it looks like the best chance will be in the north bay. and then early next week monday looks like a rather rainy day. tuesday is still unsettled. and dan and ama, one week from today we're tracking a stronger system which ranks at 2 on the storm impact scale. it's wet and windy. and this line of showers will certainly help to make a dent in our rainfall deficit. >> good. we're going into quite a pattern it looks like, drew. thank you very much. >> yeah. up next, "wheel of fortune" is a game about solving word puzzles. how one of those puzzles became a special moment for an abc 7 news reporter.

and be sure to catch the ball drop virtually on dick clark's new year's rockin' eve with ryan s

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is mandating face masks to stop the spread. that's why 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, part 3 of the investigative series "fire, power, money." see what it took to hold pg&e, a corporation, legally responsible for the 2018 camp fire, the deadliest wildfire in state history. and 7 on your side's michael finney will be here live. he will bring you the story of an east bay mother who lost her job, then lost her unemployment benefits to hackers. then bank of america made the situation even worse. that's oall coming up in half a hour on abc 7 news at 6:00. but finally here, a lot of you watch "jeopardy" and "wheel of fortune" every weeknight on abc 7, and a few even get to compete, like an east bay woman did not too long ago, ama. >> yeah, but she slipped up when solving a puzzle. what happened next was a special moment for our own david louie.

he joins us live to spin the rest of the story. david? >> reporter: well, ama, dan, can you imagine the kind of pressure contestants are under? they have lights on them, cameras, a national audience. well, just in the heat of the moment i never expected someone to actual blurt out my name. >> wheel! of! fortune! >> reporter: it's the tv game show fans have been watching for 45 years. only a few get to compete and spin the famous wheel for cash, dream trips and maybe even a car. insurance agent jacqueline rios from pinole was one of those lucky ones. imagine the pressure as the letters come up and you're hard pressed to come up with the correct answer. >> i will solve. >> okay. go ahead. >> under pressure by queen and -- >> reporter: hmm. looks like david, but what's the last name? >> david louie. >> reporter: what went through your mind at that point? >> i think at that point i was

just under so much pressure and i thought of you and abc 7 because i grew up watching you guys. and that's the first thing that came to my mind. so that's what i said.instantly incorrect but i figured i'd better say something than nothing. >> reporter: the correct answer of course is david bowie. >> well, i know who he is now. >> reporter: it turns out that wrong answer wasn't her undoing. >> i actually went to the bonus round and i solved that puzzle and i won. so i redeemed myself after that. >> reporter: jacqueline won $45,000 in the bonus round and total winnings of $64,000, which is a good start for daughter charlotte's college fund and a few home improvement projects. so bottom line, do you forgive me for popping into your mind when you gave that answer? >> 100%. >> reporter: oh, i'm sure glad she recovered from that mistake and ended up winning so big on "wheel of fortune." it is kind of nice, though, to know that someone has my name at the tip of their tongue, even

when david bowie is considerably more famous. what do you think? >> oh, i don't know. you're a rock star. that's so cool. >> i'm glad she redeemed herself too. i was going to feel really bad if she didn't go all the way. but that's awesome. >> you must have been really surprised, david. >> reporter: don't consider me a rock star. don't consider me a rock star. i'm not going to start belting out "under pressure" the way queen and david bowie did. >> oh, why not? you could pull it off. >> reporter: maybe you can, dan. >> we'll do a duet. we'll do a duet, ama. >> now you guys are talking. >> congratulations, david. that's great fun. >> yeah, that is a lot of fun. all right. thank you, david. and thank you all for joining us tonight. "world news tonight" with david muir is coming up next. i'm ama daetz. >> and i'm dan ashley. for drew tuma, and david louie, all of us here, we appreciate your time. we'll see you again in half an hour. bye for now.

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tonight, the breaking news just coming in. that new covid strain now spreading in the u.s. the more contagious variant first found in the uk confirmed in colorado. a member of the national guard. tonight, a second possible case there and now a confirmed case in california. the race to slow the virus as america records its deadliest day of the pandemic. more than 3,700 u.s. lives lost in just 24 hours. a 41-year-old just elected to congress dying from the virus in louisiana. and now soldiers called in to help at some of california's hospitals on the brink. plus, vaccine timeline trouble. as the nation falls far behind schedule. tonight, we have answers on why so few doses are making it into the arms of americans.