starts right now. >> major worries today about the wind putting fire crews in

southern california on the defensive. good afternoon. i'm kristen sze. we're getting a new information right now about the wildfires burning in los angeles county for one week. now, as you know, the total number of acres burned is holding pretty steady since yesterday. a combined total of more than 38,000 acres that is 59mi■!s. winds are pickg up all across los angeles, ventura county, and that is a big problem. the governor says 11 new fires that broke out overnight in southern california would mostly quickly extinguished. cal fire says there are a total of four wildfires now active in the l.a. county area, with two fairly small in size. as far as what sparked those larger fires one week ago today, the investigation is looking into possible links to utilities. abc news reporter melissa don has a look at how fire crews are trying to get ahead of fierce winds. >> reporter the fire danger isn't over. that's the message from officials in los angeles calling the fire risk still

critical. powerful winds that can fuel flames being felt today and expected to last until wednesday. >> we are carefully managing our operations to ensure that we can quickly respond to any new fires. in addition to the increased call volume across the city of los angeles. >> officials say the fire has not grown over the last two days, but a new brushfire did erupt overnight, this one in ventura county, about 55 miles from los angeles. the so-called auto fire stoked by high winds. >> the wind is blowing this fire right along the riverbed. >> officials urging everyone to be ready to evacuate, even if they just get a warning alert. >> we have lots of concerns about the red flag warnings. we've been monitoring the fires every day. >> during a brief lull in the wind, the mayor and fire officials took an aerial tour of the damage. >> a massive, massive destruction is unimaginable until you actually see it. >> workers who helped evacuate residents from a pasadena

nursing home last week were able to return the building. gone. >> when i first rounded the corner and saw the building. i couldn't control my emotions. this was our home. >> fema opening two disaster recovery centers in pasadena and west los angeles today. this is where they've already received more than 40,000 applications and provided $8 million in immediate assistance so far. melissa arden, abc news, altadena. >> so right now, let's get more on the wind threat in l.a. county and a look at what we can expect here. abc seven weather anchor spencer christian joins us now with the accuweather forecast. spencer those winds. >> oh, kristen. just a tragic and heartbreaking situation there. and the winds continue to be dangerously strong. here's a look at what's happening in the atmosphere that's triggering these winds. we've got the clockwise circulation around that high pressure system up north. the counterclockwise flow around the low down south, the strong pressure gradient between

these two generating powerful winds out of the east, south, east, northeast, i should say, across the entire state. and of course, in the area of those devastating fires down south right now, we're looking at wind gusts up to 45mph at browns canyon. we've got strong gusts in other locations as well. earlier today, we had reports of isolated gusts over 70mph. so this particularly dangerous situation as it's being labeled still under a red flag warning until 6 p.m. tomorrow, that includes los angeles county, ventura county, parts of santa barbara and san luis obispo counties. gusts up to well, generally between 50 and 60mph. sustained winds at 20 to 40mph. relative humidity dangerously low between 8 and 15%. and that warning, by the way, extends all the way down into san diego county. so right now we're looking at this area near the fire is considered to be the area that's at extreme risk from oxnard over to thousand oaks, out through santa clarita, and of course, down into los angeles county. now we're going to move

along and take a look at conditions here in the bay area. we have very calm weather here. the wind is calm. the sky is blue. 60 degrees in san francisco and hayward and redwood city right now, 59 at oakland, 64 at san jose, 57 at half moon bay. blue sky over the golden gate, looking northward 62 degrees right now in santa rosa. upper 50s at petaluma, napa, fairfield. we have low 60s in concord and livermore. let's check out our forecast headlines. it will be chilly inland again overnight. we don't have a frost advisory in effect yet as we did this morning, but temperatures will drop into the mid 30s. next few days will be sunny and mild here in the bay area. it will start to cool down though over the weekend, and the extended outlook calls for a continuing dry pattern. overnight lows will drop down into the mid to upper 30s in most of our inland communities. a couple places right along the bay shoreline, like fremont, may drop under 40 degrees overnight, and then high temperatures tomorrow under sunny skies, 60 one half moon bay and san francisco up to about 64. in many locations around the bay

shoreline up north, 65 at santa rosa down to the south bay. look for some pretty mild weather. up to 68 degrees at san jose, 67 at morgan hill. and here's the accuweather seven day forecast. temperatures remain above average on thursday. there'll be a little drop in temperatures on friday as the cooler pattern begins to develop. it gets even cooler on saturday, and on sunday and monday. look for highs only in the mid 50s. monday, by the way, dry conditions for the martin luther king junior holiday. so more sunny skies ahead, just a little drop in temperatures coming our way. and of course it remains dry. >> kristen spencer, thank you so much. in other news, republicans are considering placing conditions on disaster aid for communities like this one left devastated by the wildfires in los angeles county. today, house speaker mike johnson doubled down on a claim he first made yesterday. >> you've also heard us talk about our concerns with the governance of the state of california, state andal, and to the extent that there is complicity involved and the

scope of the disaster, then we think that's something that needs to be carefully regarded. >> johnson went on to say talks are underway about potentially paring disaster funding with a debt limit increase. democrats have come out in full force to slam that strategy. >> it is outrageous for speaker johnson to try to tie conditions onto this disaster relief, or to tie disaster aid to unrelated concepts like the debt ceiling. we should not be leveraging the pain and suffering of our fellow americans to try to force through policy changes. and when mother nature strikes, she doesn't care about party affiliation. >> president biden has already declared the fires a major disaster, and has said the federal government will cover 100% of the costs for the first six months. people in san francisco are stepping up to help wildfire victims by taking part in a donation drive in the mission, the civic social gathering space. manny's is

holding a donation drive. owner manny yekutiel says the response has been overwhelming. he says volunteer drivers will take the items to wildfire shelters in los angeles. >> as you can see all around me, my business is overflowing with donated goods. it's been really, really beautiful to see so many people come from all over the city to drop off toiletries and canned goods and toys. >> people can donate toys, nonperishable food, hygiene products, kids clothes and baby products. donations can be dropped off at manny's on 16th street and valencia between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. until noon friday. if you'd like to help people affected by the california wildfires, you can donate at redcross.org. slash abc to help the red cross respond and help people recover. it appears the sale of the oakland coliseum is finally just about done. the alameda county board of supervisors is meeting today and on the agenda is taking action on the long awaited deal. supervisors are

expected to take up the issue in about 30 minutes. the a's in oakland both agreed to sell their shares to the african american sports and entertainment group, but still need the county to sign off. the sale would bring in roughly $125 million for oakland. it would be a huge boost for the city, as it faces an historic $129 million budget deficit. in the south bay, the overdose death of a baby in 2023 set off calls for child welfare reforms in santa clara county. more than a year later, social workers say things have only gotten worse. phoenix castro died at just 13 weeks old in may 2023. an autopsy said she died of ingesting meth and fentanyl. phoenix's father was charged with felony child neglect and drug possession at the time of the baby's death. social workers demanded change. but in a rally today, they said an understaffing crisis continues to put children at risk. >> baby phoenix highlights the

devastating consequences of a broken system that desperately needs investment, attention and urgent changes. >> in san jose alone, the department of family and children's services has 23 vacant social worker positions. emergency response social workers are calling on their leaders to stop reorganizing and start hiring. life has forever changed for those who lost everything in the l.a. county wildfires. we head live to one area hit hardest how wildfire victims are coping (banker 1) let's hear it! (vo) with wells fargo premier a team can help you plan for your dream. (woman) i have this vacation home... (banker 2) so, like a getaway? (woman) yeah, but... it's also an eco-friendly artist retreat. (banker 3) so, you're expanding your business... (woman) ...and our family! can you help me plan for that? (banker 1) yeah! let's get started.

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joins us live from altadena, an

area just ravaged by the eaton fire. josh, today you caught up with some of those who lost everything. >> yeah. kristin. so many people lost so much. and in fact, there's in many cases, just nothing to come back to. we did find something pretty inspiring, though. a very large area with neighbors. just helping neighbors get the basic essentials they need just to get to tomorrow. heavy. heavy at a racetrack parking lot not far from the eaton fire. devastation. army of volunteers have come together for a massive relief drive. >> i'm kind of in shock still. i just kind of walking around, lost. i don't even know. >> lori lopez, among those lining up at first light in search of basic essentials. she last saw her altadena home when she left it before the evacuation order last week. she's terrified to see what it looks like now. >> honestly, they don't even let us go in there. i don't i haven't i don't any i don't know, i've just kind of been

bracing myself for the worst, i guess. >> so we found the house and you walk up the front path to the steps, those blue ceramic bowls that are still there. but there's nothing else. the entire house seems to have collapsed in on itself. that, i presume, was the basement. this is what lori will have to return to when she's finally allowed back home. and here in southern california, things very likely could get even worse. this new fire broke out overnight just north of l.a. county near ventura, as winds pick up all over again the national weather service issuing a rare warning for a particularly dangerous condition and the potential for explosive fire growth through tomorrow. >> everybody here urges you to remain alert, as danger has not yet passed. >> already, the firestorm in altadena and the 130 miles away in pacific palisades consumed more than 12,000 structures, most of them homes. at least two dozen people lost their lives in altadena. a once vibrant

community is now miles of gray ash homes and memories incinerated. people are still waiting to get back to their houses, but lori lopez has no idea what she'll do when she gets there. >> i don't even know. i don't even want to live there. it's. no, it's i never expected this being where we're located. you think the ocean. you think you don't think this is going to happen? i think it's a nightmare. i think, what am i going to wake up? >> yeah, you can imagine just the pain people are going through right now. there's an issue today. first of all, the winds haven't been quite as severe as had been feared through the day today. but there is still tonight and into tomorrow. and there is a concern that the strength of the cell networks, which is compromised, might mean people don't get emergency evacuation alerts on their phones. so officials are urging severe vigilance through the night tonight. we're live in altadena. josh einiger, abc seven news. kristen. >> josh, i'm glad to hear that. the you know, winds have not been quite as fast as they

feared. but of course we'll wait and see. all right. thank you so much. we're staying on top of all the developments coming out of the wildfire in los angeles county. get updates as they happen on abc seven news.com and the abc seven bay area app. those wildfires are producing hazardous smoke. we want to learn more about the health impacts ahead, the risks

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bay area that smoke presents negative health consequences. but in the current los angeles fires, given the mix of so much wildland and urban structures being burned, there are unique and severe risks. joining us live now to share some insight. david j. gonzalez, assistant professor of environmental health sciences at uc berkeley. professor gonzalez, thank you so much for joining us. >> thank you. christine, it's great to be here. >> i want to start with what your health concerns are with regard to these fires. outside of the immediate physical danger of the flames. of course, of

course. >> so there's the immediate physical dangers for workers and for people that are in the line of the fire. there's also impacts from smoke and other types of air pollution that can be associated with these, you know, burning structures. so we know that wildfire smoke is bad. we don't need you don't need an epidemiologist to tell you that. but we're as we have more wildfire disasters occurring, we're learning more and more about the ways in which fire is harmful. so in the immediate short term, there's acute impacts. we see higher rates of people going to the hospitals for respiratory diseases, asthma, chronic diseases. we're also seeing longer term impacts as well, particularly for pregnant people, people that you know, later in their pregnancy. breathing wildfire smoke may increase risks of delivering a baby earlier, too early or too small. so preterm birth or low birth weight infants that can lead to consequences, right. >> but to experience those longer term impact, does it

require days or weeks or perhaps months of that kind of particulate matter, or even a short time? >> that is a fantastic question and something that is being actively researched by scientists. and what we're starting to see is that even short term episodes, if the exposures are very high, as they are in the case of los angeles right now and earlier in the campfire that happened a few years ago, we can see detectable increases in risks for a range of longer term impacts. so it's not just having this kind of exposure for long periods of time. even short term, very high concentrations can be harmful for folks. >> as we look at some of the destruction in the aftermath, i'm wondering, in this case, in la, you have both vegetation and buildings, cars and many more things that you find in an urban environment that are burning. what unique health risk does this kind of mix pose? >> there's a couple items that i think are really important when thinking about these kinds of urban fires. so one would be,

you know what's burning? we know that households and other sorts of structures that are burning are full of hazardous chemicals that can make the smoke even more harmful. we know that wildfire smoke is more harmful by itself than other types of particulate pollution. very small particles floating in the air when structures burn. there's new evidence showing that the smoke can be even more harmful. different types of metals and other sorts of chemicals that are in there that can cause all kinds of health outcomes that we're worried about. the other thing that oh, sorry. go ahead. >> no, no, no, please. go on. >> the other thing that we've learned recently from the marshall fire, which is a fire that happened four years, four years ago in colorado, is the way that buildings can absorb some of the particularly volatile organic compounds. so this gases, vapors that come out of burning, you know, wildfires, houses that are near these destroyed structures, but that survived the fires could accumulate these sorts of indoor air pollutants, and they can

persist for a long amount, you know, for a long time. >> so that's something that like, after the flames are out, you know, long after the immediate emergency is over, everything looks fine, but it actually still isn't from that toxic gas being given off potentially for days or weeks. >> again, the evidence is emerging. but what researchers that have looked into this have said is that, you know, returning to your home, you should be careful. and if you have the means, you should get your home checked out to see if there's indoor air pollution that you should be worried about. >> so i guess, what are the different ways folks can protect themselves as they go back in? as they reenter that environment? >> right. so entering these sorts of environments. you know, these are sites that have lots of pollution that's going to the pollution is going to be really concentrated as all this material burns. you're going to have higher concentrations of harmful pollutants in the in the ashes. so folks ideally should be wearing protective equipment

when you are out and just living your life in the time that there's a wildfire happening, there's smoke. it's important to take precautions as well. we know that the n95 masks can be really effective for helping prevent exposures. it's good to stay indoors and have an air filter running or an air conditioner running so you can purify your indoor air. it's particularly important for folks that have chronic conditions and children and infants, because children and infants are smaller, more susceptible physically to the impacts of smoke. >> right, right. >> and of course, we all still have our n95 masks from the covid days. you mentioned ash, which made me think about water sources and potential contamination, but given that we only have 45 seconds left, i'm going to ask you, do you have any thoughts on what you hope will be done from a policy standpoint, really government standpoint, to mitigate long term harm to people and ecosystems as these wildfires become more plausible and more probable with climate change?

>> one third recent study found that over one third of the land that has burned in wildfires in the western u.s. is attributable to carbon emissions from major oil and gas producers. so we need to cut carbon emissions to solve this in the long term. in the short term, we need to be really mindful of making sure that people have the information so they can take the actions they need to protect themselves in real time, and make sure that we're attending to people for the long run. there can be long term impacts from these fires, so we need to make sure we're taking care of people in the months and years to come. >> all right. professor david gonzalez, uc berkeley environmental health sciences, thank you so much. >> thank you very much. >> a crucial day on capitol hill for pete hegseth. a look at just a small sample of the hours of questioning he faced today from lawmakers as he tries a team can help you plan for your dreams. so your dream car, and vacation home, may be closer than you think. ready to meet the dream team?

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underway on capitol hill. hegseth is president elect donald trump's nominee for secretary of defense. he's facing questions from the senate armed services committee about his qualifications and sexual misconduct allegations. abc news reporter perry russom has a look from washington. state, usa. >> the cheers for pete hegseth as he walked before the senate armed services committee. >> force will remove members by protesters as the veteran and former tv host works to become the next secretary of defense. >> people that really know me know where my heart's at. it's with the guys in this audience who've had my back and i've had theirs. >> president elect. trump's nominee has been shattered by allegations of sexual misconduct, alcohol abuse and

financial mismanagement, allegations he denies. >> there was a coordinated smear campaign orchestrated in the media against us. >> according to a police report obtained by abc news, a woman accused hegseth of sexual assault in 2017. no charges were filed. his attorney says he settled with the woman in order to keep his job. hegseth calls the encounter consensual. >> but you acknowledge that you cheated on your wife and that you cheated on the woman who by whom you had just fathered a child. you have admitted that. >> i will allow your words to speak for them. >> you're not retracting that today. >> that's good. there are also questions about if hegseth is qualified for the role. he has never led a large organization. >> i know i've never run an organization of 3 million people with a budget of 850 billion. but what i do know is that i've led led men and women. i've led people. >> hegseth has said women should not serve in combat roles. he has recently changed his stance. his confirmation could come down to republican senator joni ernst, a combat veteran and

survivor of sexual assault. >> will you support women continuing to have the opportunity to serve in combat roles? >> yes. women will have access to ground combat roles. combat roles, given the standards remain high. >> hegseth says he wants to restore the warrior ethos to the pentagon and reestablish trust in our military. he says he has dedicated his life to the warfighters. perry russom, abc news, washington. >> princess catherine revealed today that she is in remission from cancer. she posted the news following a visit to the london hospital where the princess was treated last year. she says she's relieved and remains focused on her recovery. the 43 year old princess of wales also made an unannounced visit to the cancer center, where she underwent treatment. she personally thanked the staff and met patients who are receiving cancer treatment. first lady jill biden is in san francisco to highlight women's health initiatives. she's the keynote speaker today at a conference by

fiercebiotech at the hyatt regency. that coincides with the conference coincides with the larger j.p. morgan healthcare conference at the westin saint francis hotel in union square. it's bringing thousands of industry leaders, investors and tech creators to san francisco. it's expected to generate more than $90 million for the local economy. remember, abc7 news is streaming 24 over seven. get the abc7 bay area app and join us whenever you want, wherever you are. that's going to do it for now. thanks for joining us. world news tonight with david muir starts right now. and i'll see you back here at four. tonight, breaking news. authorities in los angeles at this hour warning of life-threatening winds starting in the overnight hours tonight. 12 million people now under extreme fire risk