>> building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions. >> it was poorly planned. they should have known that 30,000 people would want tests. it's been traffic armageddon, just a nightmare. >> students, parents, teachers, lined up, waiting to pick up test kits in an east bay city. >> you are watching abc seven news at 5:00. the demand for covid test kits created a traffic mess so bad that the fremont police department even advised people just to avoid the whole area. here is abc news reporter zach one test -- zach fuentes. >> lines of cars stretched

around the area. >> it's been traffic armageddon. just a nightmare. >> i thought i would drive in and drive out. . i was not expecting a line to rival disneyland. >> the tension could be seen and heard. >> we had to just be answered if -- be assertive, 'because -- because, otherwise, people wouldn't let you in. >> the fremont police department sent out this alert, asking people to avoid the area. >> find a parking lot. get out and walk. it may be faster. >> i just parked down the street, walked up here, and i'm about to wait another 40 minutes and . >> the district superintendent apologized and took responsibility this afternoon. at one point, he helped direct traffic. many say today's event could have been handled differently. >> they should have provided

kits to the school and everybody should have deleted up -- divid ed it up. it would've been better that way. >> there's another test pick up event tomorrow. additional locations are under consideration. despite frustrations, most people agreed on this. >> it's a little bit of a wait, but it's worth it. >> we need our kids to be safe when school starts. it's worth it to keep the kids safe. >> zach fuentes, abc 7 news. ama: the governor's office received the shipment yesterday and said it was distributing them across the state immediately. dan: the search in covid cases means californians will need -- the surge in covid cases means californians will need to wear their masks longer. it will be reevaluated in february. the surge is hitting

california's kids hard. more were admitted in the last few days than in last winter's peak. >> the good news is, the pediatric hospitals, children's hospitals, as well as many hospitals that take care of young people, they have been well supported. they are able to take on the current demand. are admitted with covid, are not being admitted to the icu. dan: the doctor says, overall, the state is better prepared to handle this current surge than previous ones, but he says californians need to turn up the immunity by wearing masks, getting tested, boosted, and vaccinated. ama: california has hit a new high positive in the right -- a new high positivity rate. an average of 45 people are

dying from covid each day. the number has trended downward over the last eight weeks. according to the director of covid response at ucsf's emergency department, overall, the state is experiencing low levels of serious disease and the death rate is down 16% over the last two weeks. dan: omicron continues to break previous daily highs, due to its high likelihood of transmission. but why? dustin dorsey spoke with a doctor who says it's where the variant lives in your body that makes all the difference in transmission and symptoms. >> we are all too familiar with the term, spreading like wildfire. normally used for flames, now used for omicron, because of where the variant lives in your body. >> there's a lot more in the big areas of the lungs. because that's closer to the nose and mouth and your tongue, you are expelling it a lot more. dustin: the doctor says there

are more places that can be risky. marin county surveyed students who tested positive after the holidays. many said they traveled out of state, participated in indoor sports and, attended indoor gatherings. >> anywhere you are spending a long time indoors, more than an hour, more than 30 minutes, then you really have to up your covid precaution game. dustin: you can be contagious for around two days before symptoms and roughly three days after. symptoms are often very mild, since the infection is not in the meat of your lungs. >> we are not seeing as much fever, causing the whole body to be sick. we're seeing more outside infection, runny nose, congestion, earaches, because of the congestion. dustin: the last symptom is starting to be recognized as more common than once thought: ear pain.

they re-created them in ear and exposed it to covid as a test -- the inner ear and exposed to covid as a test. >> if you've noted hearing loss or ringing in your ears, don't dismiss it. have it tested formally. in some of our patients, we've seen hearing loss was the only sign of covid infection. dan: -- dustin: the ears, likely infected through the nose, highlighting the importance of proper masking. reggie: folks waiting -- ama: folks waiting to get tested were in line for at least two hours. they said it was worth it, to protect their families. appointments are recommended. dan: this recent outbreak of the omicron variant has a lot of people running for the store for an over-the-counter rapid test. simply taking the test once isn't enough to tell if you have contracted covid-19.

abc's morning anchor explains. >> you think you've been exposed to covid. you run to the store, pick up a test. it comes up negative. you are in the clear, right? maybe. the over-the-counter antigen tests are capturing whether covid is present at that exact moment you take the test. it doesn't tell you if you have covid. you might still be positive, but you will need to wait to be sure. that's right, wait. according to the centers for disease control and prevention, those over-the-counter rapid tests were approved by the fda to be used twice over a three-day period, with at least 24 hours and no more than 48 hours between tests. if the second test comes back negative, you can assume you are in the clear and you don't have covid-19. if the test results indicate you are positive, you have covid-19. the cdc recommends that you take yet another test five days later, yep.

more waiting. if that test comes back negative, you can enter -- end your isolation, but you may still be contagious. if the test comes back positive, you are likely still contagious and can spread the virus to other people. you will need to continue to isolate, taking another test every day until the results are negative. dan: good information. the most reliable tests continue to be those pcr tests. they are highly effective at identifying the virus, but they only detect the presence of the virus. they don't tell you if you are likely to infect other people. that's because some people will test positive for weeks, maybe even months after they were infected with covid-19, and not be able to spread the virus. ama: now to covid-19 headlines. the cdc does not have plans to change the definition of holy vaccinated. two -- fully vaccinated. two doses of pfizer or madonna or one dose of -- or moderna or

one dose of johnson & johnson. an average of 629 children were admitted to the hospital, more than double the previous week. the cdc is endorsing the pfizer booster for teens between the ages of 12 and 15. boosters could be available starting tomorrow. dan: a lot of changes were announced today as hollywood prepares for awards show season. organizers of the grammy awards said they are postponing the show, scheduled for january 31 in los angeles with a live audience and performances. the recording academy said, after looking at the data surrounding the omicron variant, it was too risky to go forward with the awards show. a new date has not been announced. the golden globes will look quite a bit different than in previous years. the show will be televised, and the ceremony -- the show will not be televised, and the ceremony will take place without an audience or a traditional red carpet.

proof of vaccination, boosters, and a negative pcr tests is required. ama: changes have been announced for the sundance film festival, originally scheduled as a hybrid of virtual and in person screening events in park city, utah, later this month. organizers have said they are moving the entire event online. it's the largest independent film festival in the u.s. last year's event also took place online because of the pandemic. dan: he was training to be a sheriff's deputy, but his life was cut short. new details about the recruit who was shot and killed last night on an east bay freeway. ama: the fourth deadly freeway shooting in oakland that remains unsolved.

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mmm. hey jack, how'd you get this spicy cluck sandwich to have the perfect amount of spice? i call it, jack's spice squad. who's in the squad? [whispering] it's me. my new spicy cluck sandwich combo. it's my best chicken ever. dan: new details about the

sheriff's were heard who was -- sheriff's recruit who was shot and killed last night. out reporter has more -- our reporter has more. >> flags are at half staff. they were lowered to honor david, a recruit who died tuesday after being shot while heading home on 580. >> a toyota previous had struck the wall -- a toyota prius had struck the wall, and the driver was discovered to be shot. >> chp said at first it was thought to be a car crash. but when they got to the scene, they realized the car was crashed because he was shot. he was rushed to the hospital, where he later died. >> this is not usual, to come to work when a fellow academy is no longer here. >> the sheriff's office says

they canceled classes today and for the remainder of the week. they are offering counseling services to others in the class. >> we encourage the recruits to talk it out, get together. some people are probably running in the hills. people have different ways of grieving. we are letting that happen. there is no formal academy today. >> chp officials are leading the investigation and say they are still looking for suspects. they are now asking for the public's help, specifically from people who were driving in that area and have cameras on their cars. >> review the footage and see if you notice anything in your video cameras that could help us with this case. >> chp is asking if anybody has in formation -- any information to contact them as soon as possible. ama: over the last year, there have been several dozen highway shootings in oakland. last night's is the fourth deadly shooting since may, and all of them remain unsolved.

we have a look at what more can be done. >> the tragic shooting on i-580 tuesday night that took the life of a sheriff's recruit marks the fourth unsolved deadly highway shooting in oakland in just the past eight months. >> people screaming. >> there's a child bleeding from the head. >> last may, two people were killed in a piety bus -- party bus. a father was killed. in november, a woman was killed near the bay bridge toll plaza. why is it so hard to solve these crimes, and how can they finally be stopped? >> we as a community have got to be together -- band together and put an end to the trauma that is plaguing our communities. >> that is oakland's mayor today. she sent a letter to governor newsom, asking for more license plate readers and surveillance cameras on oakland highways. the mayor of antioch has been

advocating for more highway cameras. >> we can advocate for it. we can yell and scream at the top of our lungs, but the highways are controlled by the state. >> the governor's office did not respond to our request for comment today about any plans to install highway cameras. the mayor says she is hopeful it will be part of the upcoming budget. >> he recognizes the public safety crisis for what it is, and he has pledged to work with me and the state legislature. >> dr. lepage is an assistant professor of criminal justice at cal state east bay. the bigger problem is the number of untraceable ghost guns, he says. >> the short-term solutions, maybe long-term solutions -- one of the long-term ones, policy wise, might be trying to get some of the guns off the street. it could really slow down some of these violent acts. dan: still ahead, a top fire official is calling it for the

worst -- calling it the worst fire he's seen in his career. the latest into the

in a recent clinical study, patients using salonpas patch reported reductions in pain severity, using less or a lot less oral pain medicines.

and improved quality of life. that's why we recommend salonpas. it's good medicine. ama: philadelphia is grieving as a rowhouse fire killed 13 people, including children. bodies were taken from the scene in coroner's vans. the latest on how they are trying to figure out how the fire started and why so many people were inside. >> this is one of the most tragic cases in our city's history. >> a rowhouse consumed by flames. >> been around 30, 35 years now, and this is probably one of the worst fires i've ever been to. >> the deputy fire commissioner says more than two dozen people lived inside the two units. >> that's a tremendous amount of people to be living in a duplex. >> when crews arrived, they

found raging fire around the kitchen. >> the fire was moving. >> but those inside were not warned about the fatal flames. >> there were four smoke detectors in the building, and none of them operating. >> i don't know if they were replaced. >> at least 13 people, more than half of them children, did not make it out alive. >> it shocks you to your core. the first thing i did, check my fire alarms. >> sometimes people just need to be indoors. >> as crews investigate-- >> it's not necessarily suspicious, but we have all hands on deck because of the magnitude. >> it's tragic. it's heartbreaking. >> neighbors and the city mourn for the lives lost. >> please keep all these folks, especially these children, in your prayers. losing so many kids is just devastating. >> i'm mary maloney, reporting.

dan: devastating. a good reminder to all of us, let us check our smoke detectors. ama: carbon monoxide detectors, everything. dan: let's move on to the weather now. ama: our meteorologist is here with our forecast. happy new year. i feel like it's been a long time. >> happy new year to both of you. i want to show you a live picture. we are starting off january with what we are used too in the winter, fog -- used to in the winter, fog. thick pea soup. drive carefully. 50's from san jose to oakland. our sfo camera shows the fog overhead. 57 in santa rosa and concord. 59 a liberal -- 59 in livermore. there's a hint of sun. areas of dense fog and patchy drizzle overnight. we do have foggy mornings and

mainly a dry weekend sunday night into monday. high pressure diverting the storm track. everything is going over the top to the pacific northwest. we are looking at a dry pattern until friday. fog and clouds overhead. we will show you the computer animation going into tomorrow morning. it's a combination of the fog clouds, even a little drizzle out there as we go into the evening. it will linger. some peaks of blue -- peeks of blue. morning temps, 40's and 50's. visibility will be lower than where it is. misty in half moon bay. a few low-60's in san jose, santa cruz. scattered light showers.

it will be wet for your friday morning commute. let's time that out for you. friday at midnight, it is cloud cover. by the time the commute gets underway, 7:00, scattered showers. we will see the clo clo clo cloo and the sun breaking through going into the evening hours. rainfall totals, not a lot. a inch -- hundredths of an inch. it's a foggy morning. a light system bringing us showers. a chilly start saturday and sunday. another possibility of rain on monday, not a done deal yet. temperatures in the 50's and 60's. a little milder as we go into a new work week. ama: thank you so much. dan: californians could face $500 fines as the state imposes its first drought restrictions

to cut back on water use. there are a number of things that could prove costly if the broader runs off onto -- if the water runs off onto a side street when watering your lawn, using drinking water to wash down a sidewalk or driveway, and washing a car without using a shut off nozzle on the hose. ama: it's the 7th largest powerball jackpot ever.

dan: tennis star novak failed to provide adequate or appropriate evidence for not getting vaccinated. after a 12 hour standoff with government officials in melbourne, his visa was handled -- canceled and he was told to leave the country. djokovic traveled to defend his title. the tournament begins january 17. ama: happening today, a scaled-back version of the annual consumer electronics convention. typically, it draws massive crowds. some of the biggest companies are all participating very truly -- virtually.

attendees are required to be vaccinated and masked. dan: time to let your imagination wander. tonight nights powerball drawing has climbed to 600 -- tonight's powerball drawing has climbed to over $600 million. ama: this is the seventh largest powerball jackpot ever. it's rolled over 39 times so far. the lump sum payout is over $400 million. not bad. >> i would probably give it to the homeless shelters and all the people that have had their houses burned in california and the tornado victims. just all the victims. i would give it away. dan: what a nice lady. kimberly says one thing she would want for herself is a new car. if no one wins tonight, saturdays jackpot will increase to an estimated $730 million. ama has two tickets. ama: i won't be here at 11:00.

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tonight, the horrific fire in the northeast. the fire in a three-story row house, heavy flames shooting out from the second floor. firefighters working to knock it down. when the toll became clear, firefighters embracing one another. tonight, what authorities are now saying. we're on the scene. there is also news just in tonight from the cdc involving boosters and teenagers. and the battle tonight over schools. in chicago, for one, teachers voting not to return to the classroom. city officials there insisting schools are safe. and tonight, president biden on schools staying open. we're tracking two storms tonight. winter alerts across 38 states, from washington state all the way east.