next at 5:00, contra costa county's ambitious new plan to ramp up distribution of the coronavirus vaccine. how it plans to achieve its g i by june. plus the new plan to speed up what has been a very slow rollout of the vaccine here and across the state. also tonight, covid at the zoo. co two gorillas in san diego test positive. this may be the first outbreak of its kind. and using your smartphone to spot the virus. what can be a possible break through by bay area researchers. with that, we say good evening. i'm dion lim and i'm ama deatz. we begin with new efforts to spd une

mass vaccination sites and one east bay county putting distribution into high gear. abc7 news reporter laura anthony starts us off with a new push in contra costa county. >> reporter: krk contra costa becoming one of the first to ramp up vaccination distributing. >> our goals is to not have vaccines sitting in the freezer. our goal is to have it all in arms as soon as it comes in. >> reporter: the county has two clinics to complete vaccinations in phase 1-a, which includes those working in a variety of health care settings, from dental offices to home caregivers. >> we are saving a life, if not others, too, by not being sick, you know. so it's a good thing to do. >> reporter: through its online registration system county health officials are beginning to assign

will include educators, health care workers and those over the age of 75. >> i'm just happy to be getting it. there are others who aren't and they really need to. >> it's not just about making the vaccines available and having the network which is critical, but it's also about making sure that we really do this in an equitable way. >> reporter: contra costa county is also dramatically expanding partnerships with retail pharmacies like rite aid and safeway, among others. in fact, here in contra costa county most will learn they're eligible through their health care providers and at that point they should be able to get the arcyine from a local retail county officials estimate they'll need to vaccinate 725,000 people, about 80% of eligible residents to achieve herd immunity, hopefully inhe on the peninsula we saw the bay area's first mass vaccination clinic today. san mateo county is offering drive-through appointments for

health care workers and people in long-term care or assisted living facilities. as you can see, there were long lines of cars at the san mateo county event center on this first day. >> we have these bold ambitions and the governor is the leader of the state of california, and rightfully so. what we want to do is we want to end covid simply and to get this economy stimulated and the only way that we're going to do that is rolling out this vaccine. >> keep in mind if you live or work in san mateo county you do have to fill out an online form to make sure you're eligible. meanwhile, more nan 1 million doses of the covid vaccine are waiting in state warehouses, the governor today did clear up how the state plans to speed up the backlog but it does come with valid concerns. abc7 news reporter stephanie sierra joins us with the very latest. >> reporter: we are getting a closer look at how the state is expanding the network of

vaccinators and some of the biggest hurdles surrounding a faster rollout. >> get it out of the freezer into people's arms. >> reporter: more than 2.4 million covid vaccine doses have been shipped to california, yet only around 31% have been administered. up slightly from 29% reported friday. that puts california last on the list, far behind new york, florida, and texas, for the percentage of vaccine used. according to bloomberg's vaccine tracker. so what is being done to aid the backlog? >> this motion of an all-hands-on-deck. >> reporter: the governor announced 14 new categories, which includes a variety of specific health care rules, like physician assistants, nurse mid-wives and psychiatric technicians that will help with administering the vaccine. this is in addition to pharmacists, dentists and 15 national guard strike teams. but what about nursing students? >> we've been in touch with the california board of registered nursing who has been in contact

with the state, with hopes to allow 30,000 nursing students who have just been trained and certified to administer vaccines to help aid the backlog. have you heard about this and would you consider it? >> yeah, in fact, enthusiastically so. our fire agencies and our nursing schools will be essential and critical. >> reporter: another change newsom talked about is loosening the tier phases to ensure covid doses don't go to waste. >> if there's a dose sitting there and there's no one queued up, we want to be able to move to other priority groups. >> reporter: this means those in tier 1-alike frontline health care workers and residents of nursing homes will still have priority before teachers, for example, in phase 1-b. but mike wasserman who sits on the committee, is worried the rush could force those out. >> we need to be cautious that in our haste to improve the numbers to get a total number of vaccines out that once again

older adults and the poor women of color who care for them are left at the back of the bus. >> reporter: the governor also announced an additional 1,000 contract staff like emts, rns and respiratory therapists will be on the ground within the next week to help hospitals that are overwhelmed across the state. live in the newsroom, stephanie sierra, abc7 news. >> thank you. >> and ao helpingo speed up the rollout, stadiums turning into vaccination super stations. the governor announced pet co park in san diego hopes to see 5,000 health care workers vaccinated every day. dodgers stadiumti well and the oakland coliseum may join the list. this friday the board will look at a request to use the plots for vaccinations. levi is also expected to become a vaccination site. the california federation of

teachers wants to delay in-person learning. they're calling for a halt in all k-12 in-person learning in i california. they would require public schools to reopen within two weeks of the counties leaving the most restrictive shutdown tier. the union's president says the lives of teachers and students shouldn't be put at risk. meantime, the university of california is planning for a return to preliminary in-person instruction systemwide, but not until next fall. uc officials say robust research advancements and the availability of covid-19 vaccines give them hope that more normal experience in the a next academic year. on-campus learning with limited expectations has been suspended at all ten uc schools since last spring. stanford has said it no longer has plans to bring freshmen and of mores back on campus for the winter quarter because 43 students there tested positive for coronavirus.

meanwhile, undergraduate s, assa new at 5:00, gorillas have tested positive for covid-19 at the san diego zoo. in the first known instance of the virus being transmitted to apes. a gorilla troop was tested last week after two of the animals at the safari park began coughing. it's suspected eight gorillas got the virus from an asymptomatic staff member. they say they followed all safety measures and the zoo says it's hopeful for a full recovery. >> they're doing okay. they're experiencing some mild symptoms and we continue to observe them, but they're drinking, they're eating and they're interacting with one another. so we'll continue s die zoo been demr researchere a new device has a potential to revolutionize the fight against

covid-19. it's designed to diagnose the virus in a fraction of the time with the help of something you may already have in your pocket. >> reporter: from the beginning of the pandemic, testing enough people to track the spread of the covid virus has been a slow and frustrating struggle. what if there was a faster way? >> targeting sample. >> reporter: in a lab at the university of california, researchers are about to demonstrate a device that can not only detect the virus quickly, but also indicate how much is present. all it takes is a marriage of nobel prize winning science and consumer electronics, namely a cell phone. >> and it turns out that the phone cameras, which have been getting better and better over time, are just as capable, if not better, than laboratory instruments. >> reporter: we first met university of california bio engineer dan fletcher nearly a decade ago when he was pioneering the use of cell phone cameras to spot and diagnose diseases around the world. but in the case of covid, he says the key is having a test result the phone can see. >> that allows us to have that

molecular recognition and turn it into a fluorescent signal that the phone camera is sensitive enough to pick . >> reporter: enter virology vi researchers researchers the institute with jean editing. >> it was discovered in 2012 to be something that we could use for genome editing and now there's very few labs in the world who haven't used knit some application or not. >> the gladstone team added a protein that would react to the rna or genetic material of the covid-19 virus. >> i'll slide it into the sa's esent, the protein triggers a second molecule to emit a fluorescent signal. >> now it's ready for imaging if we turn on the laser light. >> back at the fletcher lab, the test is being coupled with a smartphone camera that can detect the fluorescent glow.

>> now we are seeing the line is glowing, indicating this is positive. >> reporter: the test took about 30 minutes, but researchers say heavy viral loads have been detected even faster. they say the goal is to have a test that could be used quickly with normal swabs in real world settings. >> it means a police department, a doctor's office, an airport, a school, an employer, where this device could be used before people enter. >> reporter: while there is still testing to be done, researchers are kpoexcited abou the potential impact a quick and accurate test could have in beating back the pandemic. these advances are fascinating. just last year, another member of the on tmon anobel prize f p techloorheto insurrection. the local lawmakers stepping in to speed up the process. plus the new covid scare after maskless lawmakers sheltered in

place after the riot. also, the fbi is warning of armed protests ahead ♪ ♪ digital transformation has failed to take off. because it hasn't removed the endless mundane work we all hate. ♪ ♪ automation can solve that by taking on repetitive tasks for us.

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and talk to your eczema specialist about dupixent. if your financial situation has changed, we may be able to help. national guard troops are on their way to washington, d.c. for president-elect joe biden's inauguration. currently about 6,200 are there. the pentagon has authorized up to 15,000 national guard members to protect the capitol in response to last week's violence. an fbi bulletin today warned that pro-trump extremists are planning protests leading up to the inauguration. the fbi obtained information for an armed group calling for an uprising at all capitols if the president leaves early. governor newsom says our state's capital building is secure. >> everybody is on, i think, a high alert in terms of just making sure that everybody is

safe and protected, people's free speech can be advanced, but there's no agencies to increase security at statehouses across the country following last week's riot at the house capitol. house democrats formally introduced an article of impeachment today charging president trump with incitement of insurrection. we spoke to local representatives about what's next and the efforts to get the votes, liz. >> reporter: yeah, the house democrats are hoping to vote on this as soon as this week, maybe wednesday or thursday. they say they need to move fast and there needs to be accountability. >> we have to do everything we can do to remove this man from the white house. >> reporter: following last week's insurrection at the capitol, more than 200 congressional democrats arechme

eric swalwell. >> he's a threat to all of our lives because of what he did last week, inciting an attack on the capitol and because of plans for the capitol to be attacked again before inauguration. >> reporter: democrats say impeachment is not their first choice of action and our first calling on the president to resign. >> he's not going to do that. we think that's the best thing he can do for the country. next best thing would be for pence to invoke the 25th amendment and to get the cabinet to go along with removing president trump. >> reporter: house speaker nancy pelosi has given the vice president until tomorrow to do that but democrats aren't holding their breath and are prepared and ready to impeach for a second time. this time for willingfully inviting violence against the government of the united states. >> this was an attack, again, on our democracy, on the people of our country, it was an attack on the capitol building ngress.emrs and he has got to be held accountable for inciting this coup and this insurrection. >> reporter: 17 gop lawmakers have sent a letter to president-elect biden urging him

to stop impeachment from moving forward, saying it will only incite more division. >> i hope the democrats don't go down this road. i do not see how that unifies the country. >> reporter: right now it's unknown how many house republicans will support the democrats' efforts. lee and swalwell will remaining hopeful. >> we hope that republicans recognize the gravity of what happened. >> privately, there's some. but, again, do they have enough courage to do it??? >> reporter: we'll see what happens. they hope to vote on this by as soon as next wednesday. congresswoman lee also said she believes the president could be criminally charged, but that is out of her jurisdiction. >> and liz, real quick, before you go. we also learned that democratic congresswoman from new jersey has tested positive for the virus. she believes she got it while sheltering in place at the

capitol. do we know, has this become a superspreader event? >> reporter: that is a big concern and eric congressmanwom congresswomen lee said they were in the same room and there were dozens of republicans there not wearing masks. when they asked them to put on a mask, they were laughed at. >> quite a response. we shall see what happens in the coming days. many thanks to you. moving along now, we could be in for a mix of sun. the living room-slash-classroom- slash-office. observe how gig-speed internet from xfinity powers the gaming tablet, the school tablet and the extremely sticky tablet.

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the morning fog definitely added to the mood at the palace of fine arts aquatic park and the bay bridge this morning. look at that. someone is in the water going for a swim. still too cold for that. didn't stop that swimmer. oh, two swimmers. they are all abo it aua waseut at some point.

let's check in on our forecast. >> yeah, ama, it is definitely too chilly for me as well. i do want to show you what it looks like along the coastline. we still have rough surf out there. look at this live picture. although the waves are not nearly as large as they were over the weekend, the northwest swell will be building again, which is have a high surf advisory has been issued for 10:00 a.m. tomorrow until 3:00 p.m. wednesday. the large breakers anywhere from 20 to 25 feet, favored locations will see up to 30-foot waves and that means there's a risk of sinker waves, rip currents and coastal erosion. denitely be careful and never turn your back on the ocean. we also have a coastal flood advisory as the king tides continue tomorrow morning. san francisco high tide almost 7 feet at 11:26 in the morning. that's from 5:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. tomorrow. if you're going to head out for

a walk, be careful. you know where the usual areas are that flood. live dop ner 7 showing you a veil of clouds and a look from our pier 39 camera. mid-50s from san francisco to oakland, san jose 58, morgan hill 50 and half moon bay right now. a lovely view as we look towards the financial district and those temperatures, 56 santa rosa and one last live picture, some high clouds in santa cruz. also it looks calm, don't be deceived because it is pretty hazardous along the coastline. showers are expected the next two days, warming trend later this week and high temperatures expected to reach near record levels as we head toward the weekend. hour by hour, tomorrow morning at 8:00 a.m., a few hours expected in the north bay. this is not a widespread event. as we head towards wednesday morning there's another shot of seeing a little bit of moisture.

most of you may just end up with drizzle on wednesday morning so just keep that in mind. and then some lingering clouds wednesday afternoon before temperatures begin to rise going into the latter part of the workweek. tomorrow morning upper 30s to the mid-40s, so it will be chilly again. there will be fog, especially out toward the delta and along parts of the coast, along with cloudy skies. a look at the afternoon temperatures, anywhere from the upper 50s, from places like san francisco, to the low 60s, san jose, concord and also in oakland. the seven-day forecast, you will notice morning showers for the north bay followed by drizzle on wednesday morning and then look at those temperatures. they start to rise well above average, upper 60s to low 70s inland. the records are certainly possible as we head toward friday and maybe into saturday and sunday. so it's not going to really feel like january here in the bay area, but we are going to see at least the possibility of a few showers the next couple of days.

ama. >> thank you. still ahead, the snake that can twist itself into a lasso. you have to see it to believe it. stay with us.

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and don't change or stop your asthma treatments, including steroids, without talking to your doctor. are you ready to du more with less asthma? talk to your asthma specialist about dupixent. if your financial situation has changed, we may be able to help. streaming apps, so you can get our newscasts, breaking news and more with our app on apple tv, android tv, fire tv and roku. just search abc7 news bay area and download it. coming up at 6:00, one of the most influential tech ceos in silicon valley has an idea of how we should get people vaccinated against the coronavirus and it's a lot different than what we've been doing. plus a six-year-old lawsuit against fast track finally comes

to a close. 7 on your side has been following it all and brings you the surprising conclusion. that's all coming up in half an hour on abc7 news at 6:00. finally for now, a couple of animal stories we wanted to in san t santa cruz they had their hands full trying to round up some cattle. some folks tweeted udderly ridiculous, hope you'll get them moo-ved soon. >> then there's a crazy video of a snake scaling trees with a technique never before seen. you can see the brown snake lassoing itself up a pole which is not easy to do. understanding this movement helps scientists figure out how to deter them from attacking starling bird nests. this particular species of snake lives on guam, which is one soegz away from the bay area. but i have many friends there.

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enrollment ends january 31st. tonight, the horrific new images emerging inside the attack on the capitol. and just in tonight, what we've now learned about the potential vote whether to impeach president trump for an unprecedented second time. tonight, the new and difficult images now emerging. a rioter seen throwing a fire extinguisher at a line of police officers. several hit in the head. rioters pulling another officer by the legs, beating him with a pole holding the american flag. rioters chanting "hang pence" the presid, que,cy?"octsavedorw incitement of insurrection, after the president's own words in the weeks leading up to the attack and what he told