emore. moving forward, finding solutions. this is abc7news. >> since the initial earthquake at 2:37 in the morning. >> it felt bigger than a 6.4. >> it was terrifying, loud, 100% scary. >> houses shaken off their foundation, widespread power loss, and mass power outages. at least two have died and 12 injured. good evening. dan: thank you for joining us. that earthquake struck around 2:30 this morning near ferndale in humboldt county. >> a few hours ago officials

gave an update on the damage and the help needed in the hardest hit areas. dan: we begin with liz ferndale, who joins us with the very latest. liz: we are in rio dell, talking about the hardest hit areas, this is being called ground zero for the damage from this earthquake. we are outside city hall, where people have been coming to get information from officials. they are handing out water to people because there is no water right now. when we arrived this morning, it was clear this was one of the homes that was shaken off its foundation when the quake struck overnight. we are told from a neighbor that the people inside were able to get out safely but they did have to run out as the shake was going on. this is one of 15 buildings red tagged by the city, meaning it

is unsafe to be occupied. it is one of at least 18 buildings that has been yellow tagged, meaning there is damage. one of the buildings that has the most significant damage is the napa auto shop. kenny the owner was sweeping up the glass. he rushed over after the earthquake early this morning. all the glass in the windows had been shattered. almost every single aisle had merchandise knocked to the floor so a lot of cleanup underway. nearby a home had its debt collapse. the man who lives there said he heard the big kaboom. this is how a woman described the quake. >> it felt like i was in a tornado. my house is on post and peers and it completely moved in circles. it was pretty terrifying. it was loud. 100% scary. >> like the wizard of oz type of

tornado. >> literally the wizard of oz type of tornado. we are not in kansas anymore. liz: just north from historic for an bridge is closed because of damage. this is the main road to get into the town of ferndale. thousands are without power and the water system is down in rio dell, so people are without water in this city for the next 24 to 48 hours until they can get the water restored. the city has set up for parties at the fire department, handing out cases of bottled water. the community is coming together, as we often see you during these disasters. this is a small, rural town and people are coming together to help the community cleanup. it's going to be a long road ahead. liz kreutz, abc7news. dan: it's a tough time around the holidays, but they are

pulling together as you say. ama: at this afternoon's news conference, officials address the extent of the damage and how long it might last. for details, karina nova is in the newsroom with the latest. karina: we have a couple tough days ahead of us. people in humboldt county are dealing with aftershocks and those are going to continue to be a concern. one was felt during the sheriff's press conference today, one of 50 already felt in the area. take a look. uninvited guest. karina: the earthquake hit in the middle of the night, causing major damage to homes and businesses. we learned more about the two people who died because of the quake. >> it was a 72-year-old and 83-year-old individual who did

not seek or did not get timely medical care because their a medical emergency happened at the moment of the earthquake. ems could not get there in time and we couldn't deliver them to the proper medical facility. our hearts and prayers go out to their families. it is very sad when we have loss of life. karina: officials say there a two primary issues, housing and lack of water in rio dell. 15 homes have been red tagged, not safe for people to be inside. the city is asking for anyone who can bring people in to help. there is no running water in rio dell. bottled water is being handed out at a distribution center and portable bathrooms have been set up. boil water advisories have been issued for people in the county who do have water. some people don't have water or power. right now 70,000 customers in

the county have no electricity. pacific gas and electric does not have a time for when it will be fixed. the red cross has established an overnight shelter for people impacted. dan: it's going to be a challenging couple of days for those folks as they wait for power and water. the earthquake jolted many people out of bed. that included jack durant, publisher of a eureka newspaper. jack tells us it was the strongest earthquake he has ever felt. >> i was sound asleep and hurt my wife yell, earthquake. i got out of bed and the whole room was shaking back and forth. i could hear crashing, glass breaking, wood splintering, everything rattling. i got out of bed and it stopped. we surveyed the damage and there was dishes everywhere, lamps falling across the room. propane tanks tipping over.

frames fell off the wall. there were piles of glass. it rattled the house. dan: jack durant and his wife got dressed quickly because of fears of a tsunami alert. there was none. he has not seen major damage but there are long lines at gas stations of people preparing in case of evacuation. ama: officials say the early warning system worked. >> the earthquake early warning system, the new system, was able to push out alerts 10 seconds in advance of the earthquake to some 3 million people in northern california. ama: the advanced warning gave people the opportunity to drop and get to a safe place within 10 seconds before the earthquake struck. dan: earthquakes are so common, there was a similar sized one in the region a year ago. >> this is an area called the

mendocino triple junction. we have three plates coming together in this area, the north american plate, pacific plate, and board up late. when they come together, it's very common to have earthquakes. this time last year, this date in 2021, we did have a magnitude 6.2 earthquake, but it was about 27 kilometers in depth. fewer people felt the earthquake. 10 kilometers deep, so shallow in nature and that's why a lot more people felt the earthquake. ama: today's earthquake gave people flashbacks of the 2013 napa earthquake. that 6.0 quake was the largest to hit the bay area since loma parada. the bay area is still recovering. we have the hard lessons learned from wine country about preparing for the big one. >> these are images of the 2014 6.0 earthquake in south napa.

this person remembers waking up to everything shaking. >> rubble in the middle of the street. went to the only store i could find open down here. >> today's magnitude earthquake is bringing back memories. >> i would go down 2nd street and 1st street and talk to the merchants and see how they were doing. i wanted to see them and give them a hug. >> jill was napa's mayor in 2014. she helped this city recover from the largest earthquake in the san francisco bay area is the loma prieta earthquake. she admits back then napa was not ready but today it is different. >> napa is ready. we have gotten the buildings reinforced. people have taken the indoor sprinkler systems and tightened

them down. reporter: in 2013 over 30 buildings were impacted in downtown napa. eight years later, scars are still visible. >> i have ptsd from earthquakes. i think about it all the time. reporter: today's earthquake is a reminder to be prepared for a city like san francisco. >> are we ready? the eternal question. we are much more ready than we have ever been. reporter: san francisco's executive director director for the emergency management department says the city has been increasing preparedness for the past 18 years. >> from an infrastructure perspective, we are better positioned for bridges to keep standing, water to keep flowing, power to come back on. reporter: luz pena, abc7news. dan: when an earthquake hits, you can trust abc7news to be on top of it, bringing live

interviews with experts and people who felt it. you can find that video available on the app wherever you stream. ama: still ahead,. internet for all. we tell you about the federal grant coming. dan: a judge rules on whether scott peterson will be granted a new murder trial.

dan: a judge rejected a new murder trial for scott peterson, nearly 20 years after he was charged and convicted of dumping the bodies of his pregnant wife lacey and their unborn child into san francisco bay. he claimed his trial was tainted by a rogue juror who lied about her history of abuse. a judge found there was not evidence that the juror committed misconduct during jury

selection. peterson can appeal this decision. ama: oakland mayor libby schaaf only has a few days left in office. earlier today she appeared to reflect on her eight years leading oakland. she is most proud of getting more housing built. >> over eight years, we created nearly 20,000 new homes. we could welcome the people discovering oakland's secret sauce and wanted to live here, but not displaced long time oaklanders. we doubled affordable housing production compared to the previous period even though we did not have funds. ama: the housing policies are being recognized by the states. it recognizes communities enacting policies that remove barriers to build more housing. it provides more than 25 million dollars in funding to speed up housing production. dan: a major announcement from

federal and state officials. california is a big step closer to what they call internet for all. zach fuentes monitored the announcement and has more on what it means. zach: select an valley is known as a hub of innovation, but internet connectivity leaves a lot to be desired, a fact that was highlighted during the pandemic when images like this caught attention worldwide. two young girls in salinas doing school work outside a taco bell because that's where they could get wi-fi. a tech expert says it is still a problem many of his college-age students face when he is lecturing remotely. >> they will send me a private message saying, my internet is not working, i am using my phone. the wi-fi is really bad. i keep asking myself, how come we are in an area where we are high-tech and i still have

students struggling with that? >> the complaints span generations and populations. this group of activists took to the streets demanding free wi-fi. federal officials say relief may be on the way. >> we are excited to announce california is receiving initial grants totaling nearly $9 million to plan for the deployment and adoption of high-speed internet surveys throughout the state. zach: they say it will go toward developing an action plan and identifying underserved areas. >> generations before us brought electricity and water to everyone in america. they built the interstate highway system. this is our generation's big infrastructure moment. >> no date has been set but the california public utilities commission says they will kick off a public engagement process to develop how the money will be used, a process they say will aim to be effective and

equitable. >> hopefully this can go the speed of the internet and we see it very soon. ama: taking a live look outside right now, it is looking gorgeous as we had to break. there is a spare the air alert (grandma) [in navajo] where are they? it is cold outside. (vo) wells fargo has donated $50 million dollars in support of indigenous peoples... including funding solar furnaces that convert sunlight... (grandma) come into the warm house (girl) hi grandma! (vo) into household heat. (grandma) [in navajo] are you kids hungry? (vo) doing gets it done. wells fargo, the bank of doing.

ugh, this rental car is so boring to drive. let's be honest. the rent-a-car industry is the definition of boring. and the reason can be found in the name itself.

rent - a - car? you don't want a friend. you want the friend. you don't want a job. you want the job. the is always over a. that's why we don't offer a car. we offer the car. ( ♪ ) sixt. rent the car. ama: back to developing news on the earthquake. look at this video of the damage along main street. business owners boarded up broken windows and removed the debris caused by the quake. you can see signs alerting potential customers about the closure due to the damage. in ferndale, the plate cracked concrete and buckled guardrails. this bridge is more than a century old, built in 1911. the chp has closed it to traffic while caltrans assesses damage.

if you have the abc7news app, you got the alert about the earthquake minutes after it happened. download it now to get breaking news alerts when they happen. dan: a spare the air alert is in effect for the second day in a row. you can see why from this video shot in oakland. pretty murky. the gray haze obscured the view of the golden. let's find out more about the conditions and forecast. >> the air quality is still suffering, as you know. it is moderate across many parts of the bay area, but around the santa cruz mountains we are not expecting a spare the air tomorrow. even though the haze will linger , moderate air quality is expected right on through your saturday, so for the next four days, expect moderate air quality. one thing that is for sure is did you notice the change in the air?

temperatures five to 10 degrees above yesterday, so not quite as cold. most of you had highs in the low to upper 50's and even overnight lows were not as bad. you are looking at downtown san francisco, 52 in santa rosa, 49 fairfield, napa, concord, low 50's. this is a gorgeous view from the east bay hills camera. low 50's from san francisco to oakland. san jose at 53 degrees and moon bay, 54. watching live doppler 7, we are seeing a lot of cloud cover to the north. a few sprinkles can't be ruled out around the north bay in the next few hours, but it's not a game changer if you get anything. here is a live view from the san jose camera, where you are seeing a few wispy clouds. winter starts tomorrow at 1:48 and a warming trend will follow for the holiday weekend. let's look at the computer

animation. tomorrow we start with some fog and higher clouds as well. thicker clouds in the northern part of the viewing area. this computer model keeps painting a wet picture, but as we get closer to the event, the rainfall intensity dies down, so at this point we go with a chance of showers on thursday. the rainfall projections are a couple hundredths of an inch by thursday night, if anything, so keep that in mind. some patchy, dense fog in the north bay valleys. you are looking at upper 30's to low 40's, a combination of high clouds. in the afternoon, you see heavier cloud cover to the north , less to the south. temperatures will be in the mid-50's to low 60's, about where you should be even though today's temperatures were two to five degrees below average. friday a weak system passes to the north. it's encouraging to see that

tuesday should be the start up some wet weather that may last through wednesday, possibly a little bit longer. a good pattern change could be coming, but until then winter begins tomorrow. there is a slight chance of a few showers thursday but towards the weekend, it's above average, mid-60's inland, low 60's coast. cloudier next week. rain is looking likely. dan: more rain, we needed. ama: veterinarians at the oakland zoo are hard at work nursing this mountain lion cub back to help -- health. it was rescued after a santa cruz resident found the cub on her property. staff named her holly and honor of the holidays. she is four months old and is critically ill. holly is being treated with fluids, vitamins, and medicine. when she is healthy, the zoo will find her a safe forever home. dan: look at the concern on her

sweet face. holly, good name. the san francisco giants were set to introduce their new prized free agent carlos correa this morning, but this morning the news conference was postponed. giants agreed to a 13 with the shortstop, but everything is on hold now. it's believed something came up as a red flag in his physical but there are no details at this point and it's uncertain whether this is a minor issue or could blow up the deal. ama: stay tuned because santa makes the rounds in san makes the rounds in san fran sometimes a cough isn't just a cough so it's better to be prepared.

keeping binaxnow™ handy makes it easy to test. and self test kits may be reimbursable with no copay through your health plan. with binaxnow™, you'll have reliable results in 15 minutes with the self test that features the same technology doctors use. and detects multiple variants, including omicron ba.5. so you can always be prepared with binaxnow™. the #1 covid-19 self test in the us now, it's official. the #1 covid-19 self test xfinity has the fastest internet and the fastest mobile service. that's right, xfinity just increased internet speeds... again! and xfinity mobile gives you can't-catch-me speeds. plus, save hundreds on internet for your first two years when you add mobile. the fastest internet, the fastest mobile service, and major savings? can't argue with the facts. get gig speed internet for $50 a month for 2 full years when you add xfinity mobile with unlimited data. plus, get $200 back. switch today!

ama: christmas came a few days early for seniors in the east bay. volunteers from the police and meals on wheels delivered presents to 60 homebound seniors. the gifts were picked from their wish list and included everything from jackets to pots and pans. some ask for things that reminded them of the holidays when they were kids. >> somewhere simple, like i like peanut brittle and i got it as a kid. some will be like, i want

raiders paraphernalia. the community steps up and does it. ama: meals on wheels delivers hot meals to seniors four days a week. they are in need of volunteers to drop off the meals year-round, not just holidays. dan: today santa put a spin on the holidays in true san francisco fashion. spending the afternoon on a cable car, he met with families from across the bay area, preparing wish lists and taking photos. >> everyone wants to smile and take selfies with santa. it's a cool event and only in san francisco. dan: if you would like to say hello, santa will be back with cable car visits tomorrow from noon until 4:00. he is so busy but it shows how important san francisco and the bay area is. ama: world news tonight with david muir is next. thanks for joining us. dan: our next newscast is in half an hour at 6:00. ama: see you then.

♪ entresto is the #1 heart failure brand prescribed by cardiologists. it was proven superior at helping people stay alive and out of the hospital. don't take entresto if pregnant; it can cause harm or death to an unborn baby. don't take entresto with an ace inhibitor or aliskiren, or if you've had angioedema with an ace or arb. the most serious side effects are angioedema, low blood pressure, kidney problems, or high blood potassium. ask your doctor about entresto.

for back pain, i've always been a take two and call in the morning guy. but my new doctor recommended salonpas. without another pill upsetting my stomach, i get powerful, effective and safe relief.

salonpas. it's good medicine. tonight, breaking news as we come on the air. this major holiday storm affecting nearly 100 million americans from the west to the south to the northeast. it's going to make christmas travel challenging this year. also, the deadly earthquake in california. and breaking late today, authorities are now preparing for a visit from president zelenskyy of ukraine, set to visit washington tomorrow. first tonight, winter storm watches and warnings across 30 states at this hour, from montana all the way east. blizzard conditions from minneapolis to chicago tomorrow. major cities and their airports getting hit just before christmas. the system moving east with snow, heavy rain, ice, dangerous winds, and right behind it, they're warning of life-threatening cold. wind chills in the single digits from washington, d.c. to philadelphia, new york to boston. rob marciano timing it all out.