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and even triggering landslides. with that, we say, good afternoon. hopefully you're having a safe afternoon. i'm kristen sze. we're expecting to see the worst conditions over the next couple of hours, but nearly the entire bay area is under a flood watch until 4 a.m. tomorrow. abc seven news weather anchor spencer christian joins us right now. spencer which areas will be hit hardest and when? >> well, virtually all of the area, all the bay area will be hit by it over the next couple of hours. kristen. earlier in the day, this was mainly a north bay event because that stationary front you see up there had sort of stalled and most of the activity was up north. but now the system is beginning to move and expand. and so over the next few hours, virtually all parts of the bay area will feel the effects of this storm. this is a strong level three storm on the exclusive abc seven storm impact scale until about 7 p.m. we expect these conditions areas of heavy rainfall, some flooding, of course. thunderstorm chance that's expected to expire right now at about 3:00. but as far as i can tell, the national weather service still has that

thunderstorm chance in its alerts. and of course, strong, powerful winds, the possibility of downed trees and power outages. let's take a look at the forecast animation notice over the next couple of hours. see these darker colors? the reds and oranges filling in there with the yellow. these areas indicate the most intense storm activity. the heaviest downpours, the strongest wind gusts. this will be swinging through the bay area over the next few hours, which means that during the evening commute, we will be receiving some of the most widespread storm activity we've had all day and some of the most intense. but the encouraging news is that later in the evening, by 8:00 or 9:00 or so, we expect most of this to have moved well to the east of the bay area, and we should be experiencing calmer conditions. but of course, the damage will already have been done in terms of saturated soil receiving so much rainfall. we're expecting additional rainfall amounts between now and about 11 p.m. of anywhere from a quarter of an inch to nearly three quarters of an inch on, again, already saturated soil. so we have a flood watch in effect for the

entire bay area through midnight tonight. some locations, especially in the north bay, which, as i mentioned, was receiving most of the rainfall this morning. some locations there may are under a flood warning as opposed to just a flood watch. on we go to our wind alerts. a wind advisory is in effect until 11:00 tonight for all of the bay area except the three north bay counties of napa, sonoma and marin. winds will be generally the sustained winds out of the south at 25 to 35mph, but check out the gusts 45 to 70mph, increasing the possibility of downed trees and power outages. right now, we're looking at gusts at the surface well over 40mph in places like san francisco and sfo. over at oakland, 41 mile per hour gusts right now, 47 mile per hour gusts at half moon bay. and in the higher elevations, those gusts are even stronger nearly 90mph. right now at pine mountain up in marin county. and of course, i mentioned that thunderstorm risk, which is with us until about 7 p.m, but there was a warning in effect earlier. apparently that has now expired. over in the sierra, a winter

storm warning in effect until 10:00 tomorrow morning. we're expecting another 1 to 3ft of snow there through the end of the week overnight, once that cold front sweeps through that i described earlier, cold air will settle in. we're expecting low temperatures in the early morning hours in the mid to upper 30s, in the coldest locations inland. and here's the accuweather seven day forecast. a dry day tomorrow, except for maybe an isolated shower or two, but more rain will be coming in thursday and friday. kristen. >> all right, we are ready. spencer, thank you so much. of course, major flooding is shutting down 101 in the north bay because of what we have. take a look at this. this is northbound 101 at arana lane in santa rosa. you can see caltrans crews in water up to their waists. only carve here, but still the southbound lanes are partially open but only passable on the shoulder. and farther north in sonoma county, a home actually slid into the russian river. abc seven news reporter suzanne phan is live right now and has the latest on the landslide in forestville, near

guerneville. suzanne. >> so we are in forestville, and this in sonoma county is an area where it's been raining all afternoon long. and that's part of the problem. in the distance there, you can see the debris from a house that had slid down the hill. now it was around 1230 this afternoon when authorities say they got a 9-1-1 call about a massive landslide. and when they arrived, they saw that a house that was on the steep hillside there had slid down the hill into the russian river. now we're told that that street is west hill drive, and that house was empty at the time, according to authorities. apparently it is a vacation rental. needless to say, though, they evacuated several homes in the area, 8 or 9 homes in the area, and then they launched a crew member on a jet ski, who then searched the water for the house and the debris. and again this afternoon, there was nobody in the house. no one was hurt, no one was missing. but we do know that that area is very unsteady because of all the rain that has

been coming down in that area seems to be shifting. so that's why they have evacuated the area. so back here now, we can tell you again that that is just a remarkable sight to see because of all the heavy rainfall. this is the latest damage in this area. we're in sonoma county this afternoon. we'll send it right back to you. >> suzanne, thank you so much. appreciate that. our storm systems are just pounding the north bay. this is the soaked scene in point reyes this morning. you can see highway one is flooded out, but it's not stopping some people from driving through it. the point reyes visitor center is accessible, but you'll probably be better off not going today to stay safe. fema says just six inches of water can cause you to lose control of your car, and a foot of water can actually float a 1,500 pound vehicle. on the peninsula, rain is making roads slick and causing some isolated flooding, so be careful out there. this was the scene in san carlos right after the morning commute. the wet weather slowed down the morning drive and is expected to be even worse during

the evening commute. because you just heard from spencer. drivers are urged to give themselves more time and take it slow. all the rain is taking a toll on roads across the bay area, you see a small sinkhole opened up in san francisco. this is at lombard and golf streets. the fire department says this sinkhole is estimated to be five feet by four feet. they're urging drivers to avoid the area and expect some traffic delays while crews make repairs. we also some some street flooding at 18th and folsom. a neighbor unclogged a storm drain with his rain boots before any public works officials showed up. >> today. you know, people say if you see a drain cloud, you don't want to help out. just just clear it out. >> the san francisco public utilities commission put a flood barriers just down the street at 18th and folsom to help protect the area from flooding. they say this low lying inner mission neighborhood around 17th, 18th and folsom is very prone to flooding, and water has seeped into some buildings. all the

wind and rain has p-g-and-e's on high alert for outages. a spokesperson for the electric company spoke today about their ai prediction models. he said the models help them anticipate where in the bay area outages will be most likely, and how many crew members will be needed to repair the outages. >> the way that the restoration process works is that we first, we have to gain safe access to our assets. then we have to go out and assess if there's damage, and then we'll repair that damage. so we'll be dispatching assessment folks and then repair crews as we identify those outages. >> this morning, p-g-and-e's said most of the outages were in san francisco as the peak outage period ramps up into the evening. the company expects san mateo county and the santa cruz mountains to be hit hardest. let's take a real time look, shall we, at the p-g-and-e's outage map right now? actually, not terrible given the situation. i mean, lots of greens. those are in fact service issues, but smaller outages, right, with under 50

people. orange and yellow are bigger problems. but you know, orange is kind of between 500 to 5000 pacifica parts of daly city and parts of mill valley are most affected. you can track the rain throughout the week with the abc seven bay area app. it gives you access to the latest forecast and the same live doppler seven that spencer uses. just search abc seven bay area in your device's app store to download it now. happening right now. president trump is meeting with israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu at the white house, where mr. trump just said palestinians have no alternative but to leave gaza due to the devastation of war. the statement implies he wants to find a new homeland for palestinians rather than reconstruct gaza. meantime, domestically, there are shockwaves, as sources tell abc news, the new administration is trying to shut down the entire department of education for california. that could mean a loss of billions annually in federal education funding, which

of course, supports programs for disadvantaged students, special education and nutrition initiatives. abc news reporter perry russom has the latest. >> today, the trump administration taking steps to dismantle the department of education. sources tell abc news president trump is expected to call for the education secretary to submit a proposal for dismantling the department, and for congress to pass legislation to shut it down. trump has promised to send education policy back to the states. >> if you look at the department of education, it puts washington in charge of what's taught to our kids. i think education ought to be a state matter and even better, a local matter. >> it comes as democratic lawmakers push back on the power of elon musk, now a special government employee. >> there's going to be a contest here about who's really in charge. >> musk's department of government efficiency appears poised to call for the elimination of the u.s. agency for international development. the agency is responsible for allocating tens of billions of dollars in foreign aid. musk has called the agency criminal.

today, musk asking users on x if doe should audit the irs. >> he's throwing out big ideas. and if anybody thinks that all of these big ideas are going to be implemented to conclusion, they don't understand the process of disruption. >> meanwhile, some of trump's most controversial cabinet nominees are one step closer to confirmation. tulsi gabbard, trump's pick for director of national intelligence, approved today by the senate intelligence committee. robert f kennedy jr. trump's nominee for secretary of health and human services. approved by the senate finance committee. >> there's tens of millions of americans who are hopeful that rfk jr will be the next hhs secretary, and we expect all senate republicans to stand tough and strong and vote for him. >> gabbard and kennedy will now face a final vote by the entire senate. that could happen in the coming days. in an effort to keep communication ongoing with senate republicans, president trump has invited the senators and their spouses to mar-a-lago for dinner on friday. their support is critical to advancing his cabinet nominees and agenda. perry russom, abc news,

washington. >> can $50 million help trump proof? california state democratic lawmakers passed two measures to try to lessen the administration's impact on issues such as the environment and immigration. will it make a difference? we'll get insights

the national weather service has issued a severe thunderstorm outlook for parts of the bay area. in fact, i have one graphic up here if we can get to that from the control room right now. as you know, we've had the severe stormy weather all day long. this is a possibility of thunderstorms between now and 7 p.m. because the atmosphere has

become become become unstable as a cold front is sweeping through. and we're going to see the storm that we have right now becoming a bit more energetic and more intense over the next few hours. so what we can look for is heavier downpours of rain, strong gusty winds over 50mph at times, and again the possibility of lightning and thunder. we don't have confirmation yet of an actual storm developing, but there is that possibility between now and about 7 p.m. and i'll update you further as more information comes in. >> wow. all right, spencer, thank you. right now, california governor gavin newsom is in washington, d.c, to meet with officials with the trump administration tomorrow. that meeting comes as california lawmakers work to trump proof the state. what exactly does that mean, and can it be accomplished? we're getting some answers. and joining us right now is abc seven news insider phil matier. phil, nice to see you. >> okay. it's an interesting time, right? >> i mean, because you have newsom, who of course, had called for that special legislative session where they

just yesterday passed the bill saying, okay, we're going to give you the money to trump proof california. so now he's headed out there to meet with trump and make nice with gop lawmakers to say, where is our wildfire relief money? >> that's right. now, actually, gavin newsom actually got more than what he asked for. and whether he's happy with that remains to be seen, because it's going to put him in a little bit of a tense situation. what he'd asked for was $25 million to help attorney general rob bonta. if the attorney general finds a reason to sue the trump administration, let's say, to keep them from freezing the money that's entitled to california, or for the idea of ending birthright citizenship. rob bonta as ag is going to be armed with $25 million to defend california in that, or to oppose trump on that legal grounds. we've seen it before. during trump's first administration, gavin newsom made a big deal out of it in california. the second part was another $25 million that was to go into is to go

into funding non-profits who will defend immigrants, who face deportation and give them legal advice. that's a stickier one, because there was a real question about whether or not it would possibly include people being deported who have been convicted of crimes. and while the legislature says it would not include people who have serious or violent crimes on their record or been convicted of it, there's a real question in california, as you know, as to what the definition of a serious crime is. so that's a little loose for the governor on a personal level and on a national level. but amidst all this, he winged it off to washington to ask for aid for california wildfires. it's interesting to note that unlike in the past, when you and i would have seen press releases from the governor's office hailing this passage of this money and fighting against trump, it's very quiet. he hasn't said a word and instead is aiming his guns at washington

for help. >> right. so that makes me wonder if their relationship, the nature of it is evolving. maybe because obviously they've often used each other as the foil right in the past. and, you know, trump kind of points to california to say everything that's wrong with this country, whether it's immigration, lgbt issues, energy, everything. and of course, newsom has kind of positioned as the opposition, the fiery, you know, back in your face kind of role maybe for 2028. is that still the case? >> well, you know, we've got to take a look also at the new polling that's come out since the election and also at the state of the democratic party. that may not be the case, because there's a good chance that the american public might not like donald trump that much, but they actually might be more aligned with his policies than with those of newsom and the democratic left. for example, on immigration, people overwhelmingly support immigration, but not necessarily illegal immigration. and they definitely don't appear to want to have criminals stay in the

country. on other issues, it's back and forth. it's a question of priorities. do they feel that this is the most important thing? even governor newsom now is resetting his priorities because of the fires in los angeles. that's changed the whole landscape of california, not only today but for years to come. and he you see him not in sacramento touting this trump proofing, but down in los angeles. first of all, he's been down there since the fires trying to get it back on its feet and now going to washington. so that is his top priority. not fighting trump but fixing los angeles. >> right. because there are certainly a lot of things the federal government can do that could hurt california, right? right. now, today, trump is talking about dismantling the department of education, which of course does send billions of dollars a year to california for a variety of programs. and then there's the whole, you know, defunding sanctuary cities of california remains a sanctuary state. all that. is there a sense that republicans who control congress right now, both houses, any sign that they may

not go along with some of these plans and maybe, perhaps newsom will buddy up to some of them to sort of, like form an alliance. >> well, it depends on on the issue. let's take, for example, the department of education. yes, california gets billions from them, and they probably will continue to, because the republicans say they want the states to have a greater say in how that money is spent and the policies. and we have our own department of education. we have our own superintendent statewide of education. so that i don't see is as an effect as big on california. i think it comes down to water. it comes down to trade and tariffs, how that could affect the state. and as far as the republicans go, i think that they're going to back the president and we're going to see how that works or doesn't. >> all right, phil, sounds good. always interesting picking your brain. we'll take a

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how do you cashback? chase, make more of what's yours. (♪) pause on proposed tariffs against canada and mexico, but

china is hitting back. today, beijing announced a broad package of economic measures targeting the u.s. so how could that affect our budgets? reporter karen caifa has the outlook. >> there is a lot to sort through here and a lot to keep track of, because the true impact of these tariffs won't truly be felt until retailers and businesses need to fill their warehouses again. the day after mexico and canada negotiated respective 30 day pauses on president donald trump's proposed 25% tariffs on their goods coming into the u.s. >> we've seen we've found a good, i think, accommodation here, and we're going to be showing progress over the next 30 days. >> trump's 10% tariff on all goods coming to the u.s. from china took effect after midnight on tuesday, and beijing pushed back with tariffs on some u.s. energy and metals imports. the moves elevating trade tensions between the world's two largest economies and eventually the american consumer could get caught in the middle. >> i think it's a lose lose. it's just a question of how big

the loss, you know, raises prices, it raises inflation. and of course, we've been through a very wrenching period globally with high inflation. and it's been a real problem. >> among items that could see higher prices, consumer electronics like phones, tvs and computers. toys, jewelry, silverware and sporting equipment. and shoes and sneakers imported in large numbers from china. the real impact will be felt once businesses deplete their current warehouse stock and need to bring in more. unless the u.s. and china strike a deal soon, democrats note that tariffs don't align with the economic relief trump promised in his 2024 campaign. >> tariffs will undoubtedly drive up costs. you shared some of those numbers earlier and people are living paycheck to paycheck. this is the opposite of what trump ran on and what the american people want. >> beijing has signaled it wants to try to avoid the kind of trade war that took place during trump's first term, when the white house slapped tariffs on lots of u.s. imports from china, and beijing retaliated. the white house has said that president trump does plan to speak with chinese president xi

jinping in washington. i'm karin caifa. >> look at live doppler seven radar. a wet winter storm is really slamming us right now. we'll get the latest on a severe thunderstorm warning

is hitting the bay area right now. really wet. this is a live look at 101 in san jose. you can see folks headed south going home are just in bumper to bumper traffic, moving slowly due to the rain, and we are just getting word of a severe thunderstorm warning that spencer is tracking. so let's go to spencer right now for the details. spencer. >> okay, christine, let me show you what's going on here. so

this stationary front has been producing most of our stormy weather for most of the day, but as this low pressure system slides eastward, it's going to swing this cold front. and as that colder air interacts with the atmosphere, it's going to destabilize the atmosphere. and that's producing a chance of a thunderstorm. now, the thunderstorm possibility covers a wide area of the bay area. but that thunderstorm warning we just got is for this area, southern marin county, the city of san francisco, and parts of san mateo county. as the thunderstorm cell was sited about 14 miles west of pacifica, moving generally towards san francisco at about 50mph, so that possibility of thunderstorms for the wider area is in effect until 7 p.m. that thunderstorm warning is expected to expire at 3.30, so right now we still have this strong level three storm that's producing heavy rainfall, strong downpours, as you can see in the area indicated here by the darker colors swinging right through the central part of the bay area right now, along with the heavy downpours, we have strong gusty winds gusting over 50mph in some locations by about

8:00 tonight, though, we expect the bulk of this storm to be east of the bay area and out of here. but until then, we have more stormy weather right on through the evening commute, and we have a flood watch in effect for the entire bay area until midnight tonight. a flood warning for parts of the north bay there where the rain has been falling throughout the day. and of course the rivers and creeks and streams are rising. we have a wind advisory in effect also for all of the bay area except the three north bay counties of marin, napa and sonoma. that's until 11:00 tonight. winds sustained winds generally out of the south at 25 to 35mph. gusts may be as high as 70mph, which of course increases the risk of downed trees and power outages. right now, we're looking at gusts almost up to 50mph around san francisco, down to sfo, across the bay at oakland, 41 mile per hour gusts right now and overnight as that cold front sweeps through colder air filters in behind it, we'll see overnight lows dropping into the mid to upper 30s in our inland areas. highs tomorrow barely getting into the mid to upper 50s, so a sunny and dry. mainly

sunny and dry, but cool day tomorrow. and then on thursday after a dry day tomorrow we have more storms coming in. level two, thursday a level one on friday kristen sze. >> all right. >> thank you so much. can't wait to dry off. but in the meantime do be careful. try not to drive if you don't have to. certainly. watch out with that thunderstorm warning. the severe thunderstorm warning right now. thank you for joining us. world news tonight with david muir starts right now. and of course i'll see you back here at 4:00 for the latest on our winter storm. bye bye. tonight, the breaking news as we come on the air. moechts ago, president trump saying palestinians should leave gaza, saying they have no alternative but leave. they should get a fresh, beautiful piece of land some place else. here in the u.s. tonight, bracing for a dangerous ice storm. the midwest, right into the east. washington, philadelphia, new york to boston.ng