got to live not one dream, but three or four dreams. >> the legacy of john madden, the iconic face of the sport of football, and near and dear to bay area football fans. we are hearing about his true legacy from some of those who knew him best. kumasi: we are waking up to another morning of slippery roadways. we are giving you a check of the conditions. you can see it is wet out there. we look at the trouble starts -- spots to help you plan out your day. >> you are watching abc seven

mornings, live on abc seven and wherever you stream. we are going to look at that very wet forecast. >> as weeee you will notice a lot of rain in the north bay. this is a level 1 system. this has filled in, in the last hour or so. wet weather. fairfax, some rain. just some scattered showers. over into the east bay, you can see highway four. it is like shower activity. more offshore on the peninsula to half moon bay. as we had eastward from hayward into fremont, a little drizzle. visibility reduced from concord 2.5 miles. this becomes more isolated in the afternoon. snow over the higher peaks. we are seeing that in the valley like. -- the hidden valley lake. look at the highs, upper 40's to

50. as conditions wind down, a colder air mass moves in. a break the next several days into 2022, but it is not going to last. details of when we resume our wet pattern in a few minutes. kumasi: developing news in the fight against the rising omicron variant. california to become the first state in the country to top 5 million reported coronavirus cases. what is more alarming is the percentage of the covid tests that are coming back positive, approaching 10%, a number we have not seen all year. amy hollyfield getting local perspective on the situation in the bay area. amy: it is looking like christmas with a super-spreader event. it looks like it is outpacing what we saw from the delta variant. here are the numbers from the state department. the positivity rate is at 9.7%.

that is more than quadruple what it was two weeks ago, on december 15, at 2.3%. officials say this surge shows how contagious the omicron variant is. >> if you are like me, you are getting calls from friends and relatives more than the last 20 years -- i got it or was exposed to it -- and that is even in vaccinated people. it is clear we are going to see a lot of cases. amy: the demand for testing is high. counties are trying to meet the demand. they're pointing the situation is likely worse right now than we know. cases take a couple of days to show up in the count. we are first seeing a surge in hospitals. health officials are encouraged that the variant does not seem to be causing as severe illness as the previous strains. if you have had two or three

shots, you now have a high level of protection from getting so sick you need to go to the hospital. reporting live, amy hollyfield. >> we are looking at more cancellations due to covid and the rise from omicron, and this is a big one. no new year's eve fireworks in san francisco. the city has canceled the show for the second year straight. officials say it is a proactive measure to protect public health and essential frontline workers. randall scott says bars and restaurants at fisherman's work were counting on extra business from thousands of new year's eve revelers after a tough two years struggling throughout this pandemic. >> those people that are in the public health department -- we have to abide by the rules. it hurts. it hurts. >> some waterfront restaurants say they are closing early new year's eve to keep staff away from large crowds. >> the fireworks are a no go this year in san francisco.

for where you can watch the magic of the show, the connected tv app has a fireworks display, available for apple tv, android tv, and amazon fire. >> tribute touring in for the man known as the soundtrack to the nfl. john madden died unexpectedly yesterday at the age of 85. he was a titan of football, with an influence that spans decades. after growing up in the bay, mandan would become a hall of fame coach, hoping deliver the oakland raiders their very first super bowl championship, super bowl 11. after coaching the raiders for 10 seasons, he transitioned to the broadcast booth, where he spent three decades calling some of the biggest games and super bowls. he won 15 emmy awards as an nfl analyst, and is known for the megahit "madden" videogame franchise. this morning, amanda del

castillo is your memory him through those who knew him. amanda: with john passing, the bay area lost one of his own. he and his high school teammate dominated. >> i played the three major sports at the time -- football, baseball, and basketball. amanda: he gave us a glance inside his high school yearbook. he is picturedhe is picturedhe i number 34 -- madden in number 54. although the two lost touch, he could not shake madden's outgoing spirit. >> when i think of all he achieved in the sport of football and beyond, it is a very sad day, and it is a big loss for the bay area. amanda: for stan madden exchanged text messages as recently as monday. stan: it was a relationship i had no business being in, you

know? i'm just a guy on the radio and this is john madden. amanda: he says he did his first broadcast with madden in the summer of 2000. live collins became a favorite among listeners. stan: it became part of all of us. john was a bay area guy who got to live three or four dreams. amanda: dreams that opened doors for others. george atkinson attributing his own play for coach maddon. -- madden. george: we were driving back to santa rosa from san francisco. we had an unbelievable conversation. he was responsible basically for me making the team. amanda: and in pleasanton, where madden retired, he was cohost of a bocce ball tournament. >> he is an iconic figure. he's done so much for the game. it is an nfl game about him.

i'm not an oakland raiders fan, but i'm a john madden fan. he was an incredible coach, and he will go down in history. amanda: abc 7 news and pleasant oaks. >> use the abc 7 news app to too send a push alert and be the first to know when news breaks. >> more top stories coming your way at 6:00. axing san francisco's tilted tower. the new idea engineers say will help save the sinking millennial -- millennium tower. >> what the rain did to help out our drought. >> and the trends of 2022 that could pop in t - [announcer] the more we learn about covid-19, the more questions we have. the biggest question now, what's next? what will covid bring in six months, a year?

if you're feeling anxious about the future, you're not alone. calhope offers free covid-19 emotional support. call 833-317-4673, or live chat at calhope.org today.

>> rain lingering overnight and

into this morning. no doubt we have been seeing plenty of these slick roads and a very rainy december. how much did it due to our drought? of the major northern california reservoirs, only these three are seen increases in water, compared to where they were a year ago. at the rain has given all of our reservoirs a big boost, to bring them closer to where they should be. hetch hetchy, which supplies much of the bay area, is the only one to be above its average capacity. lisa: we look at some of the other reservoirs and we are certainly seeing an uptick. leak shasta, 49%. like orville, 71%. -- lake shasta, 49 p p coralville, 71%. we have at least 20 to 30 inches to catch up, but certainly making an impact this december, and even in january, we will see

rain. santa rosa, highway one looking wet as we get down to vallejo. scattered showers in the east bay from oakland to san leandro. in the peninsula, more rain will be moving in. mount hamilton is right around freezing. he could see a rain/snow mix. about three to six inches at the resorts, but upper elevations could see up to two feet, and then we will get a break for several days. this is the way it will play out from 8:00, 9:00. we have more rain through the afternoon. we are barely at 50 degrees today. wet and slippery out there. also fog to contend with. >> i saw some fog this morning coming across the golden gate bridge. heads up for that. standing water continues to be a problem. flooding around the bay area. the volume of traffic is pretty light. it is a holiday week.

the bay bridge toll plaza, no metering lights, what it is raining. we have standing water just past the toll plaza. a big problem continues to be castro valley westbound, with a truck that went into the center divide and up through a fence. that investigation. but we slow speeds of about 20 to 30 mph. >> thank you, sue. it is not just the humans loving lake tahoe. >> another warning about a tiktok challenge. amazon's alexa apparently suggesting a potentially deadly idea. >> more history being broken by amy

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search for the skier who disappeared on christmas day. the search effort means additional resources been deployed, including a helicopter that is able to track during extreme weather. several other rescue crews and ski patrols are also involved. he recently moved his ski pass was last scammed on christmas in heavy white out conditions at the lift that takes skiers to the very top of the resort's mountain. rescuers are facing high avalanche danger, strong winds, and heavy snow. he is an experienced backcountry skier and is believed to have been carrying avalanche gear. kumasi: a coalition of law enforcement groups will propose -- oppose a proposal for a safe legal drug infection site in california. supporters of the bill said that these sites would reduce overdoses. however, opponents argue that it

would legitimize drug use. at least for law enforcement agencies gathered to oppose the bill, say it would pave the way for the eventual utilization of all illegal drugs. overdose deaths have skyrocketed to a new high in 2020, with more than 700 in the city. jobina: new developments in san francisco's saga with the sinking millennium tower across from the salesforce tower on mission. according to "the chronicle," engineers plan to anchor the foundation to the bedrock 250 feet underground. 18 concrete columns, known as pyles, would be used instead of the 52 originally proposed. engineers believe it will level out the weight and stop the building from tilting any further. city inspectors say the tower has already tilted another inch, but remains safe. a board of supervisors subcommittee will get an update on the situation next thursday, january 6. jobina: we all strive for new

year's resolutions. kumasi: if one of yours is to step up your keep your denim. there are so many types of denim jeans, skinny jeans, lowrise, bellbottoms. jeans are even known to cause a generational divide. we spoke with alisa garcia to get some advice. >> women are really starting to embrace the jeans and the silhouettes that work best for their body shape. of course you are going to have a ton of different styles because everywoman's body is different. kumasi: her biggest advice is to get yourself high wasted jeans. they're flattering for pretty much everybody type. as for color, go for faded black or dark or indigo. jobina: i can get behind that. i'm just glad she did not say lowrise. i feel like that does not -- it does not work.

kumasi: very 2005, r 2 something like that. jobina: and that whole year just did not work. kumasi: [laughter] this is a vibe, though, what we got going on. jobina: yeah, a little pattern action. lisa: green on there because the rain shower activity is going to linger into the afternoon for parts of the valleys, the peninsula. it is a different system where the north bay will be clearing out. santa rosa looking at some showers. we are into walnut creek. it is cloudy. a little mist and drizzle is not amounting to much. the roadways are wet. into the south bay, we can pick up the pink. the big picture, it is certainly a statewide event. we have sierra snow all the way down through yosemite and rain showers through southern california. this is our winter storm warning

through 10:00 tonight, with an additional couple of inches. back home, it is a level one. that wintry mix by hidden valley lake, mount diablo -- it is going to be cool. but as we go through the afternoon, you will notice the concentration in san francisco, points south, over into the east bay -- here we are at noon time. this is taking its time pulling out. think east a valleys and the peninsula will see more rain. we clear out through thursday. overnight lows, very cold friday and saturday. around 30 degrees, in the 20's and some of our protected valleys. a stretch of about four dry days after this level 1 system today. and then we are going to see a return to pretty good rain and mountain snow. even though december was good to us, we are not going to shut it off. sometimes, that happens with a little bit of a dry spell. we will get into the colder

nights and back into wet weather in 2022. kumasi: rob marciano's live with what is coming up on gma. rob: we have lots coming up on gma. the surging covid cases nearing a record daily average, with omicron and delta surging amid new concerns about at-home rapid tests detecting the new variant. dr. rochelle walensky joins us with the decision to cut isolation times, and more. also ahead -- honoring a true giant. tributes pouring in for nfl hall of famer and broadcasting legend john madden, whose incredible impact on the game and the bay area. plus, the end of the year money moves you want to make right now that could save you big on your tax bill for 2021. an katy perry one on one before her las vegas residency kicks of.

new year's eve rocking a cohost sierra joins us live before the countdown to 2022. hope you guys have your new year's resolutions ready to roll, because new year's eve is just a couple days away. jobina: rob, what is yours? rob: same as it always is. just to be a little bit better person, check fail miserably at. we will give it a go this year. kumasi: keep it vague, rob. you cannot fail. jobina: exactly. ours are so vague we do not even know what they are. we achieve them no matter what. kumasi: we will be right back. rob: i hear you. setting expectations

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while you monitor and set account alerts. and using their own chase mobile app, they can set big savings goals. all with no monthly service fee. chase first banking. jobina: you know who is also loving all this snow we are getting in the mountains? the dogs. the owner of this dog went out for a morning stroll after 24

inches of powder fell in one day in truckee. my goodness. a total of 202 inches of snow have been reported in the sierra just this month. and this dog is so cute. kumasi: they do make it look fun. what was supposed to be a kid friendly activity could have been a catastrophe. mom kristin asked challenges for her two-year-old. the first two were kid friendly, one challenge came up that is downright dangerous. this challenge has been popularized on the social media app tiktok. >> what it actually told her to do was to partly in, and then touch the exposed prongs with a penny. kumasi: parents are encouraged to set parental controls on their devices to make sure these so-called challenges like that dangerous suggestion are not something your kids do. jobina: an oakland woman

continues to make jeopardy history. last night, amy snyder one for the 20th time, i'd for the most wins -- tied for the most wins for a woman of all time. she has 760 $8,000 in winnings. she is also the first transgender contestant to qualify for the terminal of champions. if snyder wins 12 more games, she will talk to missiles our for place all-time -- she will top third place all-time. if you want to watch amy's run at history on jeopardy, it is always weeknights on abc 7. ken jennings? kumasi: i know. ken is like, i will see you. how many does he have? jobina: i looked it up and i was like, ok. kumasi: i like ken. jobina: i do too, and i'm excited for amy. kumasi: back open in the bay

area. a new way you can get your new year's your catch on the table, and that starts today. jobina: u.s. citizens now able to travel with an expired passport. but there are plenty of catches before you want to try this yourself. kumasi: and the party must go on. one north bay family is sharing its plan to still host a holiday get-toerand the reason why. jobina: as we had to break, bringing you a live look outside. m tahoe, all th

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get at&t fiber, plans starting at $35 a month for a year. limited availability in select areas. call 877.only.att. >> moving forward -- finding solutions. jobina: tracking the rise of the omicron variant in the bay area. record spikes of new cases in

some local counties. indoor mask mandates returning and another. an booster shot mandates depending on where you work. >> john madden's grin is from ear to ear. kumasi: from daly city to his oakland radars super bowl. tributes to john madden pouring in this morning. jobina: the final day of a marathon stretch of rain, but not for too long. checking out conditions on the roads, the new year's eve forecast and the next round of weather not so far off. kumasi: good morning. it is wednesday, december 29. you are watching abc 7 wherever you stream and we are checking in with lisa. lisa: this is the last in the wave of ongoing showers we are going to see today. before we get a break new year's eve, new year's day, -- don't get to set on the dry weather lasting. the thing at the showers from

bernville to santa rosa, down through san rafael -- here is the richmond-san rafael bridge. as we go further south, there is more offshore on the peninsula. cloudy into the east bay. a little rain/snow mix. the cool temperatures are at 3000 feet. as we go through the 9:00 hour, you can see the peninsula. 2:00, it is beginning to get a little more scattered in north bay. we talk about the dry spell, the cold one, coming up. kumasi: happening now, problems remain for those who are still stuck in all this snow in the sierra. a winter storm warning is in effect until 10:00 tonight. drivers should expect slick roads through today. thousands of people still do not have power. as of 9:00 last night, the

utility said more than 70,000 customers in the sierra were in the dark, and many in hard-hit and hard-to-reach areas covered by snow. the city of south lake tahoe activated its emergency operation center to manage the road conditions and this extreme weather. but the bumper -- bumper-to-bumper traffic and fog yesterday, as you can see in this video. some service stations do not have any gas or food. it is hard to come by for people trying to get back to the bay area. >> i'm in this car and it is literally no movement. >> a lot of the gas stations were out of gas. chevron, 76. kumasi: i-80 reopened after caltrans cleared the highway. other vehicles can now travel to the nevada state line. jobina: not to the drastic search of covid-19 cases in

california, and specifically the bay area. multiple counties, including maren and san francisco, are seeing more daily cases than at any point during the pandemic. check out the seven day average chart, using data compiled by the e.u. -- the new york times. the spike at the very right tells you how quickly infections are spreading. this morning, amy hollyfield is tracking the growth in the bay area, and laying out the road ahead for us. amy: good morning. the numbers are in from the christmas holiday weekend, and they are high from across the state. we saw 3400 cases a day from christmas day through monday, and that outpaced the summer surge. here are the numbers from the state department health. the positivity rate is at 9.7%. that is more than what it was ws two weeks ago. it was at 2.3%.

this shows how contagious the omicron variant is. it does not appear to be causing severe illness at the rate that we have seen. officials give the vaccine the credit. >> it does seem like the main thing that protects people is the level of immunity they had. with omicron, you are going to see a lot of cases and a lot of illness. if you have had three shots, you have a very high level of protection to protect -- to prevent you from needing to go to the hospital, getting very sick, and dying. amy: the marion county -- marin county official is calling this the surge on top of the surge. christmas, they set a record. yesterday, another one. the number of people in the hospital is climbing, but it is not overwhelming. the number of people in the hospital is up 37% across the state from the beginning of the month. reporting live, amy hollyfield,

abc 7. jobina: contra costa county is joining five other bay area counties to require everyone to wear a mask in indoor public places, no exceptions. the local counties that now follow that order are colored red on this map. yellow allows an exemption for certain environments like gems and offices. that is the exemption that contra costa illuminated. kumasi: north bay's sonoma county is encouraging workers to get booster shots. at this point, it is just a recommendation for private companies. this is a requirement for school employees and health-care workers, including pharmacists and dentists. jobina: santa clara is encouraging employers to require booster shots, and the county issued a booster mandate for anyone working in jails and homeless shelters. the goal is to prevent the omicron variant from adding to the strained health care system.

>> it is a limited measure to focus on vulnerable populations that these workers interact with. they protect the workers and coworkers, and it is to ensure continuity of operations in these critical sectors as cases rapidly rise. >> no exception will be made for those with religious and medical exceptions. on february 1, they will be barred from working in these high-risk settings if they do not have a booster shot. one family is planning to go on with plans for a new year's eve party, but they are shelling out $1500 to get their guests covid tests to ensure everyone is safe. the marin county resident plans to provide guests with an at-home diagnostic test. the process takes up to 20 minutes, faster than a regular pcr tests. testing all guests comes at a hefty price tag. he is willing to pay since his children are too young to be vaccinated. >> we are going to be living like this for a long time.

did he use to how we do things and limit the risk is important. -- getting used to how we do things and limit the risk is important. jobina: outbreaks occur even with people that are fully vaccinated, so they are advising everyone to cancel new year's eve plans. if you have questions about covid-19 vaccines, you can ask our team. head over to our vaccine page and click on the big blue box. kumasi: the death of john madden today. the coach living in pleasanton once said he never worked a day in his life, but his influence will span decades, the football field to the broadcast booth, to one of the most successful videogames of all time. andrew, on madden first gained fame during his tenure stent as the coach of the raiders, having taken the job at just 32 years old. he never had a losing record. he led the team to seven afc title games, winning the super

bowl in the 1976 season. >> john madden's grin is from air to air. andrew: it was his work off the field catapulted him to stardom. after retiring from coaching at just 42, madden began with a new career in television. his larger-than-life personality made him a natural on camera, a constant presence in american homes for more than 30 years, appearing in commercials -- john: boy could i go for a nice cold light here. i thought i would pop into my favorite hangout. andrew: even on "saturday night live." john: here is a sad guy. andrew: but it was the decades he spent in the nfl broadcast booth that made him a household name. he was skeptical about becoming a broadcaster but turned out to come a natural, earning 16 enemies with his distinctive, powerful voice. and sense of humor. john: this is a bucket. since the last game, they had a

baby bucket. andrew: not to mention his talent with the famous telestrator, changing how the game looked on tv. john: if he takes this and dumbs it on that, he will be the player of the game. andrew: making him a fan favorite. john madden famously giving a turducken to the winning team of the thanksgiving game he called each year. his fear of flying leading him to travel across the country logging 80,000 miles each year in a custom-built bus he named the madden c with two bathrooms and a full kitchen. he would become the namesake of a videogame empire. on madden was 85. no cause was given for his death. he is survived by his wife of 62 years, and two sons. abc news, new york. kumasi: you can share the lasting legacy of john madden on facebook. we put this together so you can

share right now on your profile. jobina: a new warning from pg&e. imposters posing as billing agents are trying to get your money. kumasi: looking live at the big board of the new york stock exchange, up right now by about 50 points. jobina: and new at 6:00, fighting to survive. on oakland restaurant that opened at the start of the pandemic, doing all it can to stay open. the business is now being featured on gma. lisa: we have some morning rain showers that will linger into the afternoon in some parts of the bay area. live doppler 7 picking up on a rain/snow mix toward clearlake. santa rosa, wet, as well as petaluma. take you further into around martinez, we can see frank on canyon road -- franklin canyon road. this is the peninsula. showers have arrived. a little bit of drizzle. upper elevations of mount hamilton, temperatures in the

low 30's. a bit of a rain/snow mix. with the blanket of clouds overnight, we are in the 40's. it is a little milder. look at the snow. on hundred 59% of average this year. last year, -- 159% of average this year, making improvements. the winter storm warning goes through 10:00 tonight. upper elevations could pick up an additional foot. we are in the 40's, but once the clouds cleared tonight, we are going to begin a stretch of very cold weather. 1:00, the heavier downpours on the peninsula in -- 9:00, heavier downpours in the peninsula. finally getting into that clearing. with the rainfall amounts lesser in the north bay, this is a different system, that the fog is with us, and then the cold weather for about four days. sue: we have wet roads to prove it. i thought we would give san jose a bit of love as we look outside. light volume for traffic overall today. it is those speeding through the water, standing water, flooding

areas that is causing troubles this morning. we had an earlier problem on castro valley boulevard, westbound 580. that has been cleared. if you are trying to get up to tahoe, if you have been trying to get up there for the past few days, it has been tough because the roadways have been closed. we have caltrans reporting that 80 is open with chains required. 88 through parkwood is still closed. 50 also is open with chains required. it looks like a little window to get through. that is constantly changing, so make sure you get an update. we mentioned that earlier accident cleared 580. we do have a stall at castro valley causing a bit of a slowdown.

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kumasi: flags are flying at half staff at the nation's capital following the death of former senate majority leader harry reid. he served in that role from 2007 2 2015, and steered the passage of then president obama's affordable care act. terry reid's career started in congress in 1983, when he was elected to congress representing nevada. he had been battling pancreatic cancer for four years. an airport was named in honor of reid. current senate majority leader chuck schumer wrote he was a tough as nails, strong, caring and compassionate, and always went out of his way quietly to help people who needed help. former president obama adding he would not have been president

were it not for harry reid's guidance. he was 82. a new class of bus drivers just finished nine weeks of training to figure out how to drive a bus on some of the most challenging streets in the bay area. the new drivers will help with a major staffing shortage. entry-level pay starts at $42,000 for a bus driver and goes up to $70,000 a year after four years on the job. jobina: the u.s. state department is allowing some expired passports to be used by american citizens who are right now. there is a backlog because of the pandemic, so many people are not able to renew in time for upcoming international travel. people who have tenure passports that expired after january 1, 2020 can still use them until the end of march of 2022. passports have to be unaltered and in your possession. jobina: a warning from pg&e.

imposters are out in force, posing as billing agents, saying power is going to be shut off unless they pay an overdue bill. imposters told a man to use the zell quick pay -- zelle quick pay app. he did not realize the money was going to the cooks. >> they think they need to make a payment to keep the lights and gas on. don't fall for it. pg&e would never call you to threaten you to make a payment immediately to avoid service disconnection. jobina: pg&e says imposters have targeted thousands during the pandemic, with most reports coming from san jose, followed by oakland and san francisco. people were threatened with power shutoffs. even if you own money, pg&e says you will get a notice in the mail with an option for a payment plan. a victim lost $2000.

michael finney and the 7 on your side team have been going back and forth over these types of zelle scams, including with bank of america customers. you can find the reports and answers for yourself. kumasi: money report. apple is handing out gigantic bonuses to some engineers in hopes of keeping them from changing to other tech companies. apple is trying to keep those engineers from defecting to facebook's parent company, metta. the cupertino-based company did not comment on the program. but apple has done the same thing, hiring away key metta employees. american airlines is getting a new chief. i assume we wwe wwe wwe of issues to solve, but he is

bowing to improve -- vowing to improve profitability. shares in american airlines have gone up more than 15% this year. there are recent concerns about the new omicron variant. now let's take a live look at the new york stock exchange. can see we are up right now by about 75 points. jobina: there is a new wearable trying to break into the fitness marketplace, and it is a ring -- more precisely, a smart ring. movado says says says says says blood oxygen, steps, and calories. it even can tell you why you slipped the way you did, and alert you when your body temperature goes up, for those trying to conceive. more details will be announced next week at the consumer electronics show in las vegas. movado says it will be among the most affordable health devices.

bring a slice of new york city into your home. papa john's is expanding their menu, adding a new york style pie. it will be available for pizza lovers at papa john's restaurant starting now through march of next year. it comes with eight oversized slices, perfect for folding, if that is your thing. kumasi: new at 6:00, a 6:00, a 0 holiday surprise for one proud oakland restaurant you will see on good morning america. jobina: i actually love this place. it serves israeli cuisine and open right as the pandemic kit. all the ingredients they use are organic and sustainable. like many bay area restaurants, paying the bills has been tough during the shelter in place order. the chef says through it all, she has tried to save jobs.

>> my decision was to cut hours so everyone hurts just a little bit, and not cut people, so no one hurts a lot. >> these people are my family, and i know how hard they work to make this place successful. jobina: to see the surprise, stay tuned for gma at 7:00, right here. i will say they had this eggplant dish over rice with chickpeas and the sauce. kumasi: didn't you bring that into the station one day? that smelled so good. jobina: that was it. you know me and my microwave. kumasi: i'm trying to work and i'm like, what is that smell? [laughter] yes, i remember that. that smelled so good. jobina: i'm about it, definitely. lisa: we are talking about some rain shower activity in the north bay, but look at clearlake. have the rain/snow mix. as we get down further south, highway one, over into the east

bay, highway four has been looking at some scattered showers. you can see out in the some green. that is going to move on shore. a little rain/snow down through mount hamilton, the rain/snow mix. temperatures are milder in the 40's. you are not going to get very warm today. the system moves out late tonight. we are clearing to start thursday. even colder friday morning, but sunny into new year's eve and new year's day. we have more rain on the way. this system could bring once again 3, 5, or six feet of snow. we're talking multiple feet of snow. sunday, not looking bad.

we are looking at the drying trend in terms of the wet weather ending this afternoon. anywhere from a 10th of an inch in the north bay, maybe a third to a half inch in the peninsula. we have cold mornings, highs in the low 50's. kumasi: thank you, lisa. you can keep an eye on the weather, including doppler seven, anytime. you can find it on the bay area app, available on roku, andrew -- android tv, and apple tv. jobina: here is a holiday tradition that continues to thrive year after year. that is the sound. san francisco has been recycling christmas trees for 35 years. all you have to do is put your tree next to your compost bin the night before your scheduled day. they do ask that you remove all the tinsel, lights, and ornaments. come on, now.

i need to know who is doing this. clearly, somebody did, because they put that out there. if the tree is larger than six feet, cut it in half, please. last year, san francisco recycled more than 500 tons of christmas trees, turning them into mulch for landscape projects. kumasi: a belated christmas present for star wars fans. the second star wars series will hit disney plus after the hugely successful men delorean. -- "the mandalorian."andaloriann there will be a new episode every wednesday. disney is the parent company of abc 7. jobina: [laughter] kumasi: i will take this one. new at 6:00, new year's eve is around the corner, and sierra is talking about how she is going to be leveling up for the new year. this is going to be the fifth time sierra is cohosting with ryan seacrest.

sierra: it is going to be incredible energy and we are going to dance the night away. get ready to have the time of your life. kumasi: you can expect to see a number of star-studded performances including travis barker and walker hayes, and for the first time ever, we are ringing in the new year with a countdown from puerto rico with actress roselyn sanchez, in spanish. jobina: that sounds fun. kumasi: the best way to watch all of this on friday night, dick clark's new year's rock and eve, -- rockin' eve. there is a short break for the news at 11:00. i have a lot -- a feeling a lot of people will be in their houses. it is a little sad. jobina: we are going to make it work. it's going to be a vibe. it's going to be an inside vibe. i don't know exai don't know vibe is going to be. we are going to work it out

because we must. kumasi: we have to be safe in 20 and healthy. jobina: that is all we need. kumasi: as we had to break, let's take a live look outside to see what we see at 6:56. you love to see the city limits like that. it lows. this holiday season, we want to enjoy the gift of being together. for peace of mind, take the first step in knowing. because it might just be a cold, but you want to be confident. the binaxnow covid-19 antigen self test has the same technology used by doctors and detects multiple variants. so in just 15 minutes, you can test, know, and go. available in stores and online. ♪ ♪

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kumasi: here are the seven things to know this morning. covid cases on the rise in southern california, with no sign of slowing down. the rate has quadrupled from two weeks ago. jobina: mask rules are changing in several bay area counties. contra costa has joined five bay area counties that require everyone to wear a mask in indoor public places, no exceptions. kumasi: paul of fame coach john madden has just died. he coached the oakland raiders for 10 seasons, winning a super bowl with the team. madden was 85. jobina: a pilot program launches

today allowing people to buy crab right off the boats at fisherman's wharf. lisa: our level 1 system is with us. it lingers into the afternoon. higher elevations looking at a rain/snow mix. there is fog out there, slippery roadways. get rain the next several days. sue: lisa putting much said it. slippery roadways. we do not have major accidents. we are looking at the richmond san rafael bridge. we do have a bicycle in the slow lane. kumasi: betty white is turning 100 years young in just a few weeks. she says that eating healthy is not on the list for her longevity. she says she enjoys watching jeopardy and doing crossword puzzles and being positive. her birthday is the day after mine, january 17. capricorn season. jobina: let's go.

[laughter] kumasi: laughter, the key to longevity. good morning, america. covid surging. new infections near record highs as the demand for testing soars and long lines grow and now the new concern the fda saying rapid antigen tests may be less sensitive to omicron. what it means as health officials cut isolation time for some in half. cdc director dr. rochelle walensky joins us this morning. travel mess. hundreds more flights canceled this morning as airlines scramble to fill staffing shortages. will the new shorter covid quarantine guidelines now put air travel back on track? slammed. millions in the west on alert for heavy snow falling at record rates causing danger on the roads.