alarming covid variants found in the bay area. >> and a santa clara county debate accused of staging his ♪ ♪ it's the brand new chicken dance song uh ♪ ♪ get down heat it up like a sauna ♪ ♪ spin around one time if you wanna ♪ new chicken dance new chicken sandwich my juicy, thickest fillet yet. my cluck sandwich combos. only at jack in the box. introducing my brand new chicken. topped with mystery sauce and pickles on a brioche bun.

my cluck sandwich combos. only at jack in the box. ♪ tonight it's official. the uk and the brazil variants of covid-19 were found in the bay area. what doctors say you should expect. >> tonight i tell you about an all-new covid vaccine that could receive emergency authorization within the next month. a santa clara county deputy booked in the county jail tonight why prosecutors say he faked a shooting against himself. >> sunshine today i'll let you know who might see showers this weekend. abc news at 11:00 starts now. >> building a better bay area for a safe and secure future. this is abc 7 news. the virusn the from person to person. >> and it's official, tonight two highly transmissible covid variants found in the bay area

np. our news reporter luz pena in the newsroom with how they were detected this virus mu tats. a month ago a lab detected the california variant. now today the uk and brazil variants of covid-19 were also found. according to the cdc, the uk variant has been detected in 28 states. >> they are believed to be transmissible and contagious and now in the bay area. >> these variants are present in the community. >> inside the stanford clinical virlgy lash, the uk and brazil variants were found. >> in about 17% of the samples when we sequence. >> abc news got a look at the stanford lab where researchers screened hundreds of samples collected across the bay area. this doctor led the effort. >> i'm not surprised at its progression. but certainly all the twists and turns have kept i think everyone on their toes. >> almost a month ago ucsf

dr. charles chu found the california variant in the bay area. dr. chu says it was a matter of time for researchers to detect the two variants in our region. now what's the difference between the california, uk and brazil variants? >> one of the key aspects of the variants they have in common is all of them mutations in the spike protein. the critical region of the virus that binds the cells allows the virus to infect cells. as a result mutations in that region, the spike protein have been associated with possibly making a virus more transmissible. >> reporter: what gives the doctor some hope is this. people getting vaccinated. he says this is the only way to stop the variants from spreading. >> it's not unexpected that we will start to see cases and very likely will see increasing number of cases in the days to come. >> reporter: now medical experts tell me we need to strategically prioritize the regions where the

variants are dom nantz and increase vaccination empties as fast as possible. in the newsroom, luz pena, abc 7 news. >> thank you. and the highly kanls new variants add to the sense of urgency for a vaccine. as abc 7 news reporter j.r. stone explains there is a new weapon on the horizon in the fight against the virus. >> reporter: lure looking at the johnsonen jonds johnson covid vaccine receiving emergency authorization by late february in the united states. >> this is a single-shot vaccine in which you start to see efficacy anywhere from seven to ten days following the first and only shot. >> reporter: in test trial johnson & johnson says their vaccine was 66% effective overall in preventing moderate disease. 85effective agaite se and 100% at preventing hospitalization and death. pfizer and moderna are about 95% effective at preventing moderate

disease. >> there were essentially no hospitalizations or deaths in the vaccine group. this really tells us that we have now a value-added additional vaccine candidate. >> reporter: unlike pfizer and moderna, the johnson & johnson vaccine was tested in south africa where a highly contagious covid-19 variant surfaced there the efficacy fell to 57% for moderate disease. but johnson & johnson says storage requirements are more convenient for the vaccine. and stanford doctors say that could be a game changer. >> this can stay in the refrigerator. it would be much more like the annual flu shot which you can just get at the local pharmacy. >> reporter: if authorized johnson & johnson says thektd have 100 million doses available by june. j.r. stone, abc 7 news. in the south bay while santa clara county remains focused on getting people vaccinated, a

sober milestone today. >> one year later we surpass 100,000 cumulative cases. it's a milestone which none of us i think ever wanted to see. >> county health officials say they are vaccinating 6,600 people per day. they've got an ambitious goal over the next seven days, that is get shots in the arms of 60,000 people over the age of 65. in the east bay, alameda county revealed new details about the mass vaccination sites. the plan focuses on the oakland coliseum and alameda county fair grounds. right now the county says it's receiving 10 to 15,000 doses per week. the goal would be administer 5,000 doses per day each site. but like other counties it's facing a supply shortage. >> we are planning for a bigger distribution network than we actually vaccine right now. and keeping our fingers crossed that we'll get that supply. >> county officials hope to have the large sites up and running by mid-february. we know you have questions

about vaccines, questions you have sent to us personally. abc 7 news reporter lyanne melendez talked with experts to get some answered, including this one. >> haven't had the flu vaccine sido since the mid-1960s tp two times i ended up with high temperatures, 103, 104 degrees within hours of the shot. what do you suggest i do? a lot of people asking that. a reaction to a vaccine is normal according to the doctors because it means your body is responding to the vaccine, that vaccine is working for you. now, health experts say there should be no reason for anyone not to get the vaccine, especially older people. >> the question we get most often, how do i get the vaccine? the answer is, you've got to be persistent and register everywhere you can, the county, state, local health provider. if you have questions about the vaccine we can help you here. go to abc 7 news.com/vaccine. there you see the big blue box. click on that.

it will take you to a form. you can send the question to our abc 7 news vaccine team. we're tracking california's vaccination progress on the website as well. you can too. our vaccine tracker available any time on our home page, abc7news.com. new developments. a santa clara county deputy who says he was shot in an ambush on parole now facing a felony charge. prosecutors say they believe he made it up. our reporter matt boon details the saga on what the prosecutors began doubting the story. >> it was a night causing panic among local law enforcement. the call come from a santa clara county deputy claiming he had been shot at randomly near the uvas reservoir. >> he was lucky, ort s smith the day after it happened, points to the deputy's body worn camera struck by a bullet crediting it with saving his

life. after an extensive manhunt, the sailants were never found. and upon further investigation prosecutors say they never existed. the entire story fabricated. >> when you look at the evidence, the story didn't add up. >> deputy district attorney jason malins ski. he is leading the investigation against this man for falsely reporting a claim. >> deeply disturbing. >> he wouldn't reveal specific evidence yet. but says the analysis of the bullets was an important factor. in a statement sheriff smith wrote, quote if the allegations hold true the deputy's axes are not representative of the up standing men and women of the sheriff's office who risk lives every day to serve and protect our community with honesty and integrity. if convicted, he could face up to four years in prison. we were unable to reach gill for comment. according to the sheriff's office deputy gill is still under administrative leave. he is expected to be arraigned

in the coming weeks. reporting in san jose, matt boon, abc 7 news. stocks slide in their worst week since october. we'll tell what you this means for your retirement investments. plus park lites, patios and heat lamps. the bay area bundles up for outdoor dining. >> part of highway 1 washed away, gone, into the ocean. the warning tonight for any travelers. quite the storm. i'm meteorologist sandhya patel. i'll let you know when the next system comes in and whether it impacts weekend plans. >> first a look at jimmy kimmel live at abc 7. tonight's show unprecedented. you seem to be in front of like a backdrop they take baby pictures in front of at sears. >> it's halfway between the sears and. >> it shouts it's a boy is what

a disruptive week on wall street ended with the markets taking a big hit today. the sec now investigating after amateur traders joined forepersons to battle wall street hedge funds and cost the big boys billions. abc news chief correspondent rebecca jarvis has more on how all of this could impact your investments. >> tonight the sec rchg the extreme volatility rocking wall street. today the dow plunging more than 6 oh oh points. >> it's a casino atmosphere there. >> but companies like amc and gamestop saw stocks shoot back up with amateur investors buying again after trading apps like robinhood lichted restrictions.

frank fritz decided to jump in. >> it's a weird time we're living in. i had never thought i would invest in stocks casually like that. but i saw the opportunity, downloaded the app on my phone and did it. >> the newcomers going online to swap stock ideas with each other and red i had and trade on robinhood spent weeks buying up shares in struggle companies like gamestop forcing powerful hedge funds betting against the same companies to pay to cover their bets. >> the sec will probably look at two things. one, to what extent do platforms have some sort of obligation to warn or to educate new investors about the risks of investing in these types of stocks. and two, does this type of volatility inject systemic risk into the markets? >> rebecca jarvis, abc news. we're approaching the first full weekend of outdoor dining in the bay area since we are drying out from a wet week. restaurants are eager to welcome

back customers. it's a scene that hasn't played out in months. this was earlier tonight at honor kitchen and cocktails in emeryville. customers bundled up to enjoy a night out. >> the guests are so excited. you could see it, hear it in their tone. thankful people that we can provide the service and still be able to let our guests come in and dine and have a good time with friends and family. covid-19 safety protocols are required at all restaurants. if you plan on dining out this weekend. remember to wear your mask and prepare for social distancing. we have developing news on the central coast. governor nsom decling a san lui abyss poe and monterey because of damaging storms. this is drone video from monterey county near rat creek. heavy rain caused a section of highway 1 on the big sur coast to plummet into the ocean. the road was closed down before the storm the hit. by early this morning, the entire section was washed away.

>> this is going on and they are rebuilding the roads because we love the area. and the people coming here need to realize there are certain stretches that can be a little dangerous, especially in bad weather. >> caltran says that area is g going to be closed until further notice. >> good thing it was closed before it happened. >> um-hum. the blustery weather was too much for yosemite national park closed a fifth day to clean up. according to the "l. a. times" the park is looking at $200 million in damage. park rangers say winds knocked down at least 15 giant kwoiia ps before they could clear the trees it started snowing. a county supervisor says it's the worst he has seen in 30 years. >> three, four, five, six feet of snow on that damage. it's heart breaking. it's tough. it's unimaginable to just have that much damage.

>> yeah the park is set to reopen and monday. >> some of the trees are gigantic. lake tahoe saw plenty of snow the past few days. plow drivers in full force cleaning up 2,200 miles of road in north lake tahoe. tahoe city not much different. snow piled up on cars and walks. home orions spent horsepower shovrmg out driveways. >> you can't go anywhere. you can't go anywhere, snow wins every time. you have to shovel. just got to do what you got to do. >> like ski. work for some and play for others. check out the line of skiers at heavenly before the slopes opened this morning. please social distance. this is 11-year-old marina she is a tremendous athlete. great run on the cosmic wave. i would have face planted on it. >> i think a lot of us would have. well a major snowstorm isn't stopping a man in the sierra from doing the job he loves. man he should in the i diter

odd. dog walker tommy went on a adventure with six fury clients. gerald, margaret, brady, breen, ranger, yubuk. he is a native and used to the intense winters. and the dogs seem to love it too. do they? i'm looking at their faces. do they seem happy? maybe. >> can we get back to the fireplace, is that possible? how much of this do we have to do. >> let's just go back. >> sandhya, we don't have to worry about snow here. should be a decent weekend? >> yeah, it should be a nice weekend, larry and amma. we are getting a chance to just quiet down and dry out a bit. there will be a couple of areas that may see a few drops but not a game changer. let me show you the live doppler 7 right now. you will notice we have clouds around tomorrow morning, might find patchy fog as well. in the sierra nevada, it just dumped. i mean, we need the rain here and the snow there as you know.

we depend on it for our water supply and in the mountains they picked up, believe it or not, some of the highest totals were six to eight feet with that atmospheric river. here is a lovely view from the lake tahoe camera, the zephyr cove showing the snow on the ground. the pretty day this afternoon and this evening. statewide snow pack at 66% of average. so a big boost in recent days. and here a live look from the kgo roof camera. all quiet as i mentioned on the embarcadero. chilly and wind in the morning. sprinkles or a light shower chance basically in the north bay. and widespread rain expected early next week. temperatures right now in the 40s, 50s, first thing tomorrow morning you will see some upper 30s and our coldest inland valleys a few mid-30s around lake port. bundle up if you need to get out early in the morning. tomorrow afternoon, 40s, 50s for the highs. yes about average for this time of year. mostly cloudy in the morgt bay with the possibility of sprinkles, partly cloudy in the south bay. now i want to show you the hour

by hour outlook. there you see around 8:00 a.m., mendocino county areas will see a few showers tomorrow. the rest just clouds and then on sunday is when we have another chance for the north bay. that system is just going to stay there until monday. that's when it begins to make the push south ward. when it does everyone by monday evening as you will notice will start to see rain in the sierra. they'll be seeing more snow. into tuesday and more scattered showers are expected. rainfall totals right now, up to an inch w a inch qu but tmay stall. if that happens the totals go up. stay tuned. accuweather seven-day forecast, possibility of a few sprinkles in the north bay tomorrow. chance in the north bay sunday. and then it's a level 1 system, rainy gusty for monday with wet weather continuing on tuesday. early chance wednesday morning. and then after that we're drying out as we head into february, plenty of sun is expected, temperatures in the mid-50s to the low 60s.

so i think overall, if you have any outdoor plans for the weekend they're good to go. ama and larry. >> ama, we can go out and eat again. >> that's amazing. i just lost my job. with the kids at home and less money coming in, there'd be no way we could afford health insurance. my kids think i'm a superhero. but even superheroes need help sometimes. we found help at covered california. and not just us. 9 out of 10 people who enrolled got financial help. covered california. this way to health insurance. enrollment ends january 31st.

coachella is cancelled again. the public health officer for riverside county where the concert is held tweeted the announcement today. the coachella music and arts festival was praned for april. with you no official dates set.

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>> announcer: sports on abc 7 is sponsored by your local toyota dealers. with a 10-9 record it's up and down season for the warriors. golden state has yet to put together a winning street. the dubs were blown out on the end of back and back. stephen curry game high 27. phoenix countered with seven players scoring in double figures. . pulling way to a 119-114 win. steph and kerr continuing the theme of looking for consistency. >> 10-9, eight of the nine are just getting blitzed. whether you win or lose, you put yourself in a better position to become a more consistent team. that's where we have to get to if we really try to establish ourselves. >> we can do things well periodically. but we haven't put it together. and that's -- that's why we're, you know, just bouncing up and down from one night to the next.

>> women's college hoops number 6 stanford looking for the sweep of washington state. final seconds of the first quarter. arch bishop, hailey jones up and unin. showing the range, the triple is true. stanford leading the double denlts. jones and kiana williams scored 16. williams a 3. stanford pulling away and lacey hull she can shoot the three tao. stanford wins. 77-49. sharks won't have to play home games in the homes games scheduled in arizona against vegas had been postponed due to contact tracing within the golden knight's organization. four members of the organization including three coaches are in isolation. the two february games will be postponed for later in the season they'll nb san jose. super bowl lv a you had played a week from sunday. the chiefs defend the title against tom brady ant bucsp ramping up the covid protocols.

coaches and players tested twice daily leading up to the game. any player tested positive will be ruled out for the game remains on schedule for february hot stove news. the . louis cardinals are trading for colorado third baseman nolan aranado. still details to be worked out. but this is good news for the giants. he has always done well against surprise. the abc

all right. that is it for us for tonight. thank you so much for watching i'm a ama daetz.

>> i'm larry beil. coming up next on jimmy kimmel. [ cheers and applause ] [ cheers and applause ] ♪ ba da ba ba da ba ba da ba ba da ba ♪ ♪ "jimmy kimmel live" ♪