lighting up. no ifs, ands or buts. a policy that is now clearing the air in the south bay. we'll have that for you, wednesday, october 20th, on "today in the bay." from nbc bay area reporting what matters to you, this is "the today in the bay." good morning and thanks for joining us. i'm laura garcia-cannon. >> and i'm brent cannon. straight up 5:00. we want to start with a quick check of your forecast. rob, we noticed a little fog on our way to work today. >> we're seeing fog and in some cases some mist. from breakfast time 40s and 50s. notice as we pass lunchtime, not many 70s out there by around noon or 1:00. we'll see mid-70s inland around 4:00 around livermore but kind of cooler today. rain does come back tomorrow and mike will be watching that for maybe friday morning's commute. we'll take you now to the city streets of los gatos where we did get confirmation from the sheriff's department that overnight there was a deadly accident at the corner of

blossom hill and union avenue. at that intersection. a major intersection. no word on whether or not blossom hill road is closed. we only know about this accident and someone has died as a result. we'll monitor this carefully and let you know about blossom hill as well because that is a major roadway, but so far the freeways through the south bay showing a light volume of traffic. fog might be the issue. keep that in mind, lower the speeds and of course use the low beams, not the high beams through fog because high beams just reflect. new this morning, three uc berkeley grads are going to stand trial for espionage in iran. their attorney told the bbc the trial will start november 6th. iran's spell jens minister did confirm other details as well to nbc news a few hours ago. iran says that sarah shourd, shane bauer and josh fattal crossed the border illegally and espionage can be punished by execution. sarah shourd was released on bail last month and of course she's not going to go back to

stand trial. we have calls into the state department as well as to the hikers' parents. we're trying to get more information. as we get it, we will bring it to you. also new this morning, bart will break ground on its controversial extension project in just a few hours. the disagree over the oakland airport connector may not be over. the extension, just over three miles, will curb the bart bus and provide train actress to the terminal. the project will cost $434 million. bart hasn't named the price riders will pay. the transit agency says if more people don't ride the train to the airport compared to the current bus service, it may have to charge as much as $6 to hop aboard. that's a steep increase from the $3 bus ride. >> for more than one person that would be pretty bad, i mean if you were traveling two or three people at a time. >> whatever they charge i'm going to pay it, so it's better than parking your car. >> bart says the project will provide much-needed jobs. it's expected to be complete in 2014. that's when bart plans to name

the price to ride. installation of a second tower on the new eastern span of the bay bridge was supposed to begin this week but the project has been shelved at least until next week. this is a follow-up on a story we first brought you on tuesday. transportation leaders say they have to work on a maintenance issue with an essential piece of equipment before work can start. the when the four pieces of the tower are in place you'll know it. today is 19 years since the devastating oakland hills fire, but that fire also sparked a lot of change in the way we fight wildfires and how we protect homes. "today in the bay's" christie smith is live in the oakland hills with what we have learned over the past few years. >> reporter: good morning to you, brent. we're standing at one of the tributes to the oakland hills fire called the gateway exhibit right by the caldecott tunnel. it's got information about defensible space, also on first responders and disasters. but those who lived it tell their own stories of what they

learned 19 years ago, things like getting to know your neighbors, having an evacuation plan. now, when the fire hit, thousands of homes were lost here in the oakland hills. we talked with one woman who lost everything about her concerns. she talked about how worried she was when she saw people running literally down the hills when they caught fire. she reflects on what happened 19 years later. >> the problem is that people move away, new people move in and the memory gets dim. there isn't -- with fire. there isn't much you can do about the weather and there isn't much you can do about the topography but the one thing you can do something about is your vegetation or fuel load. it's not only your vegetation, it's how your house is built. and so it is really, really important that people recognize they have to be vigilant. >> reporter: now, she shared

with us some photos of what she saw when she was finally allowed to return to her neighborhood, her home totally destroyed. it took about two years to rebuild. now, she says with the wildfire assessment district here in oakland that has made her feel more comfortable with inspections. people generally keeping their properties pretty well cut back. reporting live in the oakland hills, christie smith, "today in the bay." >> thanks, christie. oscar grant supporters plan to shut down the port of oakland this weekend. instead of working, thousands of port workingers are expected to rally at noon at oakland city hall on saturday. they want johans mezerly to receive the maximum prison time after the jury convicted him in grant's death. just ahead kris sanchez will have a report on why the port says it will not affect cargo. bay area's largest county is passing tough new outdoor

smoking restrictions. the santa clara county board of supervisors unanimously approved new laws against smoking last night. you cannot light up at the county fairgrounds in, outdoor shopping malls, all county parks or in hotels or motels. smoking is also banned within 30 feet of any outdoor service area, such as an atm or ticket line. the new law still needs final approval next month before it goes into effect. this morning two masked men accused of a takeover robbery are still on the loose but now we have a better idea of what they look like. take a good look at these photos. concord police say these two were armed with a shotgun and pistol when they burst into two restaurants ordering employeeses to the ground. the men took money from the safes and then left on foot. both men wore masks, gloves and hoodies. the robberies happened monday night first at the round table pizza on treat boulevard. then 40 minutes later they robbed a subway sandwich shop on

concord boulevard. 5-year-old josani campbell was reported missing more than a year ago and now the nonprofit group that's trying to find the boy is working to start a camp in his honor. they say it's one of five finalists for a $10,000 volunteer award. if it's selected they want to start a summer camp that would teach survival skills and swimming to low risk students and at risk students. he was reported miss buying his foster father and never seen again. the foster parents were jailed on suspicion of murder but the ad.a. decided not to press charges. bay area children will wear purple shirts today. they want gay teens to know there is a community of support willing to help them through hard times. it comes spirit day and it comes after several teenagers have

committed suicide after being bullied because they were perceived as gay. the high school says the event will help struggling gay teens shed light on the darker moments of their life. this morning the pentagon is telling the military to accept applications from gay and lesbian applicants, but recruiters must tell potential recruits that a moratorium on don't ask, don't tell could be lifted at any moment. the defense department is attempting to abide by a federal judge's ruling that the ban on gays serving openly in the military is unconstitutional. that ruling will be appealed to the u.s. court of appeals in the ninth circuit in san francisco. discharged gay soldiers now reep listing to join the army but this time as an openly gay citizen. this is a new video of dan choi going to reenlist in new york city. he says today he will go through some medical screenings and other necessary processes.

now "today in the bay" traffic with mike inouye. >> good morning. it is 5:08. a nice look at the nimitz freeway past the coliseum. northbound side with the taillights and the southbound side there's a disabled dump truck at the high street off-ramp. that has cleared. you have now access to all of those southbound off ramps. no major slowing but a glow to the lights indicates some moisture, maybe some fog along 880. the bay bridge will also get touched with fog. at the top of the under right under where it says bay bridge, you see the lights at the top got cut off. the fog is moving around so keep that in mind. but so far your crossover from oakland into san francisco and vice versa moving very smoothly. we'll see the slowing start on the approach in about an hour from now. back to you. >> kind of a cool start to the morning. foggy in some parts, in fact. >> as mike pointed out maybe some mist in spots this morning. san jose one of the spots starting with low clouds. 54 degrees right now. 55 in oakland with low clouds

around 880. as we head over to san francisco, it's going to be cool around game time for the giants. we'll see temperatures probably close to 60 around 5:00. 54 right now. we do have the sea breeze going. but for today dry through the bay area. it's a system that is offshore that will be on approach tomorrow that brings a big u-turn in our forecast the next few days. today pretty nice once the low clouds break up. 75 san jose. low 60s for san francisco. upper 60s today in oakland, 71 in petaluma, 76 around vacaville. so the seven-day forecast beginning late tomorrow brings in a chance of showers that will carry over into friday morning. saturday rain in the north bay spreads southward as we move into sunday. back to you. president obama is not running for re-election but he's campaigning like he is. he's going to be in the bay area tomorrow. he's set to arrive at sfo tomorrow afternoon to promote the attorney general candidate, harris. harris is running against los angeles republican steve cooley.

the visit will mark the president's first bay area visit since promoting green technology and fund-raising for senator barbara boxer in may. new this morning, a former high court employee says she will not back down from allegations that one of the country's supreme court justices sexually harassed her 19 years ago. in a statement released late last night, you may remember her name, anita hill. she said she stands by her 1991 testimony that justice clarence thomas made inappropriate sexual remarks towards her at yale law school. over the weekend thomas's wife left hill a voice mail demanding an apology and asking for, quote, an explanation of why you did what you did with my husband, unquote. hill says she feels the voice mail is inappropriate. the time now is 5:11. will your car catch the eye of police? before you pull out of your driveway this morning, we take a look at which cars attract the most police attention. full-time giant, full-time

dad. the unique way this baseball superstar keeps his life on field from getting in the way off field. >> reporter: and i'm bob redell live outside the field here at at&t park where it seems like for the time being that torture for fans is starting to ease as the giants head into game four against the phillies today. we'll have that coming up in a live report. and a live look outside. san jose this morning one of the places where in the outlying areas you might see some of that fog. we'll check in with rob and get your forecast all morning long. reporting what matters to you, you're watching "today in the bay" with laura garcia-cannon, brent cannon, business and technology with scott mcgrew, and traffic with mike inouye. [ mom ] my son ryan didn't know his voulez-vous

from his frere jacques... [ speaking french ] [ mom ] ...so he decided to study in paris. ♪ to see french masterpieces with his very own eyes. we even linked our citibank account to his so when his account ran low we just transferred funds. i just hope the language isn't a barrier. bonjour. [ mom ] my ryan can be very shy. [ male announcer ] from linked accounts to citi mobile we make it simple to manage your finances. what's your story? citibank can help you write it. she's against banning assault weapons... and that's reckless and dangerous. she's for risky new oil drilling

that could threaten our jobs. fiorina's plan would mean slashing social security and medicare, which would devastate seniors. and she'd make abortion a crime. no wonder fiorina is endorsed by sarah palin. carly fiorina. just too extreme for california. [ boxer ] i'm barbara boxer and i approve this message. good morning and welcome back, everybody. 5:15 right now. a live look across the bay bridge this morning. folks making their way in pretty smoothly it looks like. another cool day on tap throughout most of the bay area. we'll check your traffic and weather in a minute. yes, we cain with a little help from the bearded one. the giants are a leg up on the phillies in the nlcs and fans are still celebrating this morning. the giants just two wins away

from punching their ticket to the world series. we wanted to get the pulse of the fans this morning so we sent "today in the bay's" bob redell to happy doughnuts right across from the ballpark. tough gig, bob. i'll take an old fashioned. >> reporter: good morning, laura. we talked to a couple of fans today. it has been torture for them for the past few years. they're hoping that this will be ecstacy but i don't think anyone after yesterday's game wants to so much as admit it for fear they might jinx the giants who at 4:57 today, first pitch right over here at at&t park just across the street will be going into game four of the national league championship series. of note is who's starting on the mound, madison bumgarner. he's only 21 years old and here he is up at the mound at game four. buster posey, the catcher,

expressing his confidence. closer brian wilson calling him, quote, the secret weapon. fans this morning expressing and seconding those emotions. >> i wanted him to pitch a week ago in this game today, and bochy is doing -- he's coaching really, really smart here. really smart. i think he's matching up wits with charlie manuel here, a battle of these two managers who have been in this game for a long time. so, yeah, i'm happy that he's pitching today. >> reporter: we were on stub hub this morning. if you're thinking about coming to the game, the prices are in the $50 and $60. there's fan snap which does comparison shopping. yesterday's game averaged $246. today the prices are averaging about $60 more at $362 so you can see it should be no surprise, supply and demand as the excitement grows, so do those ticket prices.

reporting live outside at&t park, bob redell, "today in the bay." >> thanks, bob. of course the playoffs are big business but giants baseball is also big family business. sports director raj mathai has those bases covered in your morning sports. >> good wednesday morning to you. one week ago it seemed improbable but as it stands right now it seems almost likely the giants can beat the philadelphia phillies and advance to the world series, how about that. first things first. tonight at the ballpark is game four, the giants going with their rookie, 21-year-old rookie madison bumgarner against joe blanton. joe blanton used to pitch for the oakland a's and do quite well to the athletics. all this stress for giants fans not yet torture but everyone is on pins and needles. behind the scenes inside that giants clubhouse, it's kind of relaxed. the players like it. in fact take a look at this shot. my dad had a pretty good day at the ballpark yesterday. this is jake huff.

he is 2 years old, hanging out with huff daddy. that would be his dad, aubrey huff. this is a pretty common occurrence in the giants clubhouse. a lot of the guys bring in their kids, whether it's regular season or playoffs. so jace huff, when he goes big time, he secures a deal we get an exclusive interview. we'll see him and his father at the ballpark tonight. "today in the bay's" scott mcgrew is here with what some are calling the return of the mac. >> mac is back, mac daddy, at least that's what apple wants you to believe. apple is going to drum up some consumer enthusiasm for the mac at an event at the company's cupertino headquarters. recently apple has put emphasis on iphones and it pad leaving mac to fall by the wayside. sales are strong on mac, it just that apple dropped the word "computer" from its name.

today it wants to refocus back on the mac. some analysts are skeptical saying three-quarters of the company's profit come from iphones and it pads. starbucks is adding a dollop of free books, news and entertainment to its offerings. the coffee chain's digital network is promising customers free e-books, movies, including access to some paid websites like the wall street journal. this comes as starbucks faces a lot of competition from mcdonald's and fast food chains. they saw 30 million log-ins last month alone. so the idea is you bring your ipad or maybe your mac to starbucks and you can access not just their free wi-fi but while you're at starbucks this special -- now, whether you can start reading the book at starbucks and take it away, i don't think you can. >> keeps you there longer. >> finish your wine and read the rest of your book. >> so just live at starbucks.

>> all right, thanks. >> watch us do a story on that one day too. have you ever wondered when all the drivers on the highway are traveling about the same speed, one driver gets singled out by the cops? maybe it's the car, not the driver. out this morning the list of the five least particularsed cars on the road. fifth is the buick lacrosse sedan, number four the kia spectra sedan. the bronze goes to the chevrolet ck pickup. silver medal prize, the mazda tribute suv. the winner of the most inconspicuous car on the road is the buick rainier suv. the time now is 5:21. we want to check out the rest of the commute no matter what kind of car you drive. >> everyone is moving nicely. those cars, 18 minutes a nice drive off the carquinez bridge. volume will increase here in about 40 minutes. you'll get a little break for

the time being. in about 20 minutes you will have no break coming through antioch starting at a over to l. 65 will turn to a 45 in about the next 20 to 30 minutes. we'll see that show up and i'll follow that as well as sunol where we're seeing some slow on the maps but really the live shot doesn't show any big issue. this is right in the area of the express lane. let me show you how sparsely populated it is right now. it is the one month since the approach to the express lane was implemented. as we show you video, you can see the express lane there. now, a lot of folks have complained about it. the emotional response is, oh, that express lane. but actually the numbers and the latest flow through the last ten days has reflected things are moving nicely after the first couple of weeks of adjustment. 1300 to 1600 people are using that lane. those are paid users and that number continues to grow. we'll expecting to see that change in the next 12 to 15 months. i talked to dave himes over at the al leada transportation commission and he told me the

numbers are right in the range that they expected to see so we'll follow further developments. >> interesting. >> thanks a lot. in the meantime, if you plan to have a beer while you're cheering on the giants today, keep something in mind. a little dash of lime, a pint of beer could be a recipe for .hethalor youalthr we'll explain coming up just ahead. th

breaking news that we're following this morning. live pictures from san

francisco. hard to make out in this shot because it's kind of hazy foggy out there, but there is reports of a two-alarm fire going on right now at a four-story apartment building on the 800 block of high. that's near sutter street. not sure of any injuries, but we do know that evacuations are going on right now. sf fire crews are out there on the scene. right now they were too busy to talk to us about the details because they have got the crews heading out to fight the fire. we'll of course keep tabs and as day breaks get a better look at what's going on. let's check in with rob mayeda. >> we'll take you into the forecast in a moment. first this video new this morning. dramatic rescue off the coast of taiwan. there's a super typhoon megi and you're seeing rescue under way and hurricane-force winds. incredible video off the coast of taiwan this morning. unfortunately four other folks on this boat that sank but you're seeing the dramatic

rescue off the coast of taiwan. as we go back to our own radar, i want to point out what's happening in the western pacific right now may impact our weather come late in the weekend. some of the moisture may race across the eastern pacific and supercharge our rainfall maybe by the end of the weekend. for now no worries about rain around the bay area, but you can see a line of systems starting to stack up offshore. this one is going to impact us it looks like by the time we get into late tomorrow. today morning clouds, pretty nice temperatures for the afternoon. mostly 70s inland. that fog is thick in spots. you may find some mist with afternoon sunshine. probably the warmest day we'll see for a while. tomorrow we'll see showers showing up as early as tomorrow morning. in your friday morning commute plan on seeing a little rain. around the bay area today we'll see temperatures in the 70s around san jose. some of the warmer spots mid-70s. 63 for san francisco. toward the east bay hills we'll see highs in the 70s. only 60s for oakland and richmond and into the north bay

highs mainly in the low 70s. so the seven-day forecast brings in the clouds tomorrow, rain thursday night and early friday and sunday looks to be the wettest day in that seven-day forecast to wrap up the weekend. back to you. the time now 5:28. an east bay mega store's ns plans are derailed. we'll tell you why ikea is on the wrong side of the tracks. quote and compare in about 8 minutes. now, that's progressive. call or click today. just ask jerry brown. he gave california state employees collective bargaining powers. since then the unions have grown stronger and stronger. now state employees can retire at 55 with much of their salary for life. and taxpayers are on the hook for one hundred billion dollars in unfunded pension liabilities. no wonder those unions are 100% behind jerry brown. he'll just spend, and spend, and spend.

it's a belief in everything we do. it's a 5 year, 50,000 mile promise. with complimentary scheduled maintenance. no-cost replacement of wear and tear items. and 24/7 roadside assistance. because when you create the most beautiful, fast cars on earth, you create an ownership experience to match. special lease and finance offers available for a limited time. see your local bay area jaguar dealer for details. it's been a dream of mine to restore it. and it's my dream for him to finish it. frank has something great to save up for. this is my dad. isn't that cool? and a very understanding girlfriend. i showed him a wells fargo savings account with my savings plan. [ frank ] and what it does is it takes a little bit of my money and puts it towards my goal. i want to get all the original parts and do it right. for my dad.

there's a couple months in between parts. so, one at a time. [ male announcer ] wells fargo. with you when it's time to save. ♪ new this morning, breaking details on a trial for all three berkeley grads charged with spying in iran. we have new information from their lawyer. >> reporter: and i'm kris sanchez in oakland where the

memory of a high profile man will stop work at the port of oakland. what one has to do with the other coming up on "today in the bay." from nbc bay area reporting what matters the to you, this is "today in the bay." and good morning, everybody. thanks for joining us. time now is 5:31. i'm brent cannon. >> and i'm laura garcia-cannon. this is "today in the bay." we want to get started with a quick look at the forecast, see what's in store with rob. >> the word this morning fog. that's what you're finding in a few spots. some misty skies as well. notice the temperatures inland having a tough time getting into the 70s today. in fact you can see a lot of green on this temperature map on the coast and around san francisco showing us the fog will stick around there. cool afternoon, high 60s around the inner bay. low to mid-70s in san jose. oakland police are using a mathematical process called comp stat to try to fight crime. it started in new york city. it is not a computer program but it's kind of a new way of

thinking. oakland police are going to talk to citizens about how it works this morning at 10:00. officers have been using comp stat for the last year and say it really works. they came that the city has seen a 14% reduction in violent crime since they started. this morning's meeting will be at the james moore theater at the oakland museum. closed for business. ports all over the bay area are going to shut down. today in the bay's kris sanchez is live with what's going on and why. >> reporter: good morning, laura. the family and supporters of oscar grant are calling on the long relationship between the longshoremen here and port of oakland and the oakland community as they rally for the maximum sentence for the man who killed oscar grant. in about two and a half weeks former bart police officer johannes mehserle will be sentenced for involuntary manslaughter. today oscar grant's family and attorney will gather to talk about saturday's planned work

stop at bay area ports, including the port of oakland. m mehserle claims he accidentally shot grant when he meant to pull his taser. this fight also took center stage during the singing of "america the beautiful" during the seventh inning stretch of the giants game last night. in mccovey cove some boats flew signs that said "justice for oscar grant." a boat owned by johannes mehserle's father had a sign that said "free johannes mehserle." the planned work stop should not have a great impact because they do have a planned work stop once a month and the port authority has had time to adjust the schedule. in oakland, kris sanchez, "today in the bay." >> thank you very much, kris. new developments this morning in the case of cal grads still trapped in iran.

scott mcgrew has been monitoring the very latest in the case. >> yeah, good morning. iran has set a trial date this morning. they along with sarah shourd have been charged with spying and this is kind of what everybody has been waiting for or dreading. shourd is free on bail back here in america. now, legally or at least according to i rain januaranian expected to return for the trial. the three young people of course arrested after allegedly crossing into iran while on a hike in iraq. we understand the trial will get under way november 6th. this is obviously a very important story to us in the bay area. we are monitoring the bbc and trying to get ahold of the state department to find out what this means and where people go from here. >> technically they see it as though she was released on bail. >> on bail, yeah. >> she's on bail, she's not freed in their eyes, she's out on bail. >> right. and the debate comes does she go

back and potentially have to serve some sort of prison sentence or worse or does she stay away and what does that mean for the boys that are still there. >> thanks a lot, scott. also new this morning oakland mayoral candidates will attend a forum at an unusual location tonight. they'll be at the alameda county community food bank talking about how to handle the growing problem of hunger in oakland. it is estimated that one in six people in oakland are at risk of going hungry. there are ten candidates running for mayor and all but one will be there. the one expected not to attend is don perata. a packed house tonight. it starts at 7:00 and runs until 9:00. the emeryville city council is dumping ikea's proposal to expand into a nearby neighborhood. the council voted down the plan. the home furnishings giant had won approving from the planning commission to expand into a warehouse on hollis and 53rd street so customers would have a separate location to pick up the largest items.

people in the area complained that the proposal would draw unwanted traffic. now "today in the bay" traffic with mike inouye. >> good morning. it is 5:35. a live look at the bay bridge. if you're heading there, keep in mind i just heard about an accident happening right there between the toll plaza and the metering lights. it says lane one in the chp report. that may be the car pool lane. that would be an issue if you are in a car pool because you're not stopping at the toll plaza. if it is lane one as far as the cash payers, keep that in mind as well. about another 45 minutes until we see the metering lights turned on. we will take you to the maps and show you the maze. the east shore freeway not showing any major delays. carquinez bridge down to the berkeley curve very light and the rest of the maze coming out of the caldecott tunnel and 580 through oakland a very nice flow. antioch right on schedule. you'll see slowing on highway 4. 47 will soon dip to about 37

over the next 10 or 13 minutes but you're getting a break at pittsburg and bay point so get onto highway 4 west and you're moving nicely. now speaking of 680, one month ago september 20th, the 680 express lane opened for east bay commuters heading in the southbound direction. after just the first couple of weeks of confusion and some pretty major delays, we've seen things sort out. i talked to the alameda county transportation commission and he said we're right in the range for single car drivers paying to drive on the other side of the double white lines. you pay to play over there. we're looking at 12 to 15 months of growth. we're still looking at a backup further north from the toll lane looking at that along with mtc to sort things out. so continued improvements expected there. pricing is another issue. congestion pricing. i'll give you a note from our

cfo coming up in our next report about 680. rob, we also know that sunol can see low clouds and fog and we might be seeing that today. >> i actually saw that driving down 680 this morning on the way to work. right there at the summit of the sunol grade you run into this some clouds. 54 in san jose, oakland 55. we've had some fog around 880 this morning and over into san francisco, 54 degrees. a lot of low clouds and fog and plan on a cool game time forecast. temperatures probably only in the upper 50s around game time. if you've been sniffling and sneezing, it's probably pine and elm. once i talk about a chance for rain, maybe good news for your allergies. right now the rain is in southern california. the system here that is offshore will spill clouds our way tomorrow and be the first in a big change in our weather as we approach the weekend. today a bit cooler around the bay area. 75 san jose, 60 san francisco and oakland. into the north bay we'll see lots of thick fog and low 70s

around healdsburg and petaluma. showers late tomorrow into your friday morning commute and for the weekend off and on rain. i think the heavy rain will hold off until about sunday. big ships coming into the san francisco bay can be dangerous for whales. at least eight have been killed in and around the coast and bay since 2007. bay area environmental group pacific environment is urging the coast guard to protect whales in bay area shipping routes, and those routes do include under the golden gate bridge, over to the ports of oakland and san francisco. the group will meet with the coast guard tonight at 6:30 at the executive inn and suites on the embarcadero in oakland and you are welcome to attend and voice your opinion. an east pay lawmaker is teaming up with a livermore ranch to kick off a rehabilitation program for veterans. they will celebrate the ground breaking of hoof prints on the heart. it's a new program at hagman ranch. the city purchased the ranch to

offer its therapeutic riding program. veterans who suffer from brain and other physical injuries will work with horses as therapy. the service for veterans will begin next month. the wild west is coming to the bay area. the cow palace grand national rodeo begins at 7:30 tonight. several exciting events are in the lineup including wild horse performances, steer wrestling, bull riding and the miss grand national rodeo contest. they have been gearing up and it's ready to start tonight. it's 5:40 right now. the president will be in office the next two years so why is he hitting the campaign trail in california? we'll explain coming up in a live report. plus the keeper of the cut. an exclusive look at who is protecting the giants secret weapon. >> reporter: and i'm bob redell live outside at&t park where fan torture is cautiously turning towards ecstacy. we'll have that coming up in a live report. taking a live look outside,

a cool start to the day. we'll have the full forecast with rob. reporting what matters to you, you're watching "today in the bay" with laura garcia-cannon, brent cannon, business and technology with scott mcgrew, and traffic with mike inouye. @@ @hj@@b@

insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and hoping for different results. i've built businesses. i've built a business. met the payroll. met a payroll. i enter this office beholden to no one except you. i will owe my office to no one but you. i don't owe anyone anything. i don't owe anyone anything. what's the worst that can happen? what's the worst thingat c

good morning, everybody. the time is 5:43. a live look outside. oracle arena in oakland, and a look at some of the temperatures you're going to see around the bay area today. fairly mild, but it is a little drizzly, maybe foggy to start your day. we'll check the forecast and your commute coming up. a new poll shows americans are not happy with the way the government is running things. the nbc news poll says six in ten voters think the country is on the wrong track. that could be bad news for

democrats, who see their hold on congress slowly slipping away. "today in the bay's" brian mooar is live in washington with what the president is doing to try to turn some things around. good morning, brian. >> reporter: well, the president has to turn his approval ratings around as well, he's down in the dumps and he's heading out west to oregon and to washington state, hoping to help candidates in races where he might well be able to make a difference. but a lot of these races are starting to tighten up. while democrats are seeing a bit of a last-minute boost in their support numbers, the republicans are still holding the ground fairly well. the election season is winding down, but the candidates are all still wound up. one example of that, last night in the illinois senate debate, the candidates there, mark kirk and alexi giannoulias traded some sharp elbows. >> i think you should have some apologizing to do too.

>> i've got no answer to the question. >> reporter: well, right now 50% of those in the nbc poll say they'd like to see republicans take control of the congress, only 43% want democrats to stay in charge. that's an example, laura and brent, of the so-called enthusiasm gap. >> thanks a lot, brian. of course this all links to our next story. as we have reported today, president obama is going to be in the bay area campaigning for democrats. several key races are close and getting pretty nasty. today in the bay's political analyst larry gersten joins us now. there you are. how are you today? >> good morning. >> let's start with the governor's race. you know, i was just noticing in this battle between whitman and brown a brand new ad that just aired, i just saw it in the last commercial break. things are getting pretty pointed in this race. >> you get to this point in the campaign, brent, every year, every season the same thing happens. the candidates turn disproportionately negative.

why is that so? people no matter how much they say they don't like it, they gravitate to it, they love it. so the campaigns know where their bread is butter and that's where they're going. >> now to the senate race. this is another big one. we mentioned that the president is even coming to the bay area and throughout the state. barbara boxer going against carly fiorina. they're taking more spots at each other. with 13 days left, what do you think? does it look like fiorina will move into that seat or does barbara boxer hold on and stay in capitol hill? >> as with the governor's race, this race is also close. two, three points separating candidates in both races. here's the deal with the president coming out as well as president clinton. these guys are looking to get turnout. they want to raise the consciousness of the base. their belief is they can get more democrats to come out and vote, they can hold on to the senate and win the governorship. it's all about turnout right now. republicans we know are more motivated to vote than democrats, so what obama and

clinton are trying to do is get the democrats to think twice. i'll tell you something, of all the people around, those two, obama and clinton, are the most popular democrats in california and those are the two as they're trying to pull out. >> they're certainly going to be coming out and making their presence known. meantime, i want to talk to you about something else. in the east bay a lot of voters will get their first crack at the so-called ranked choice voting in november. we talked a little about it but describe it for us because i know there is some concern that there would be voter confusion once they get to the ballot box. >> they have been doing this in san francisco several years. the idea is when you go ahead and vote for someone, you vote for your first, second and third choice. if nobody gets enough first choices to win 50% plus one, then they go ahead and look at the second and third votes. there is the possibility that the second -- person who gets more seconds than anybody else could actually win the thing. why did they do that? because they're trying to avoid a primary. this way they do it all in one.

all in one election. the critics of course say in avoiding that primary, what you're really doing is short circuiting the democrat process because the number one choice may not win. >> so are these votes weighted? in other words, you get certain weight for a number one vote and then a lesser weight for, say, a number three vote or is everything looked at equally and you just tally up and see if there's a clear winner. >> no, ranked choice voting is weighted voting. the person with the first vote gets the highest weight, the second and third lower weights. but in the end it's entirely that the person with more second votes could actually win if the support is broad enough. >> right. and then, of course, in the oakland situation it might eliminate the runoff as you mentioned. thanks, larry, for shedding a little light on it. always good to see you this morning. you can get larry's political insight anymore by going to our website.

go to mnbcbayarea.com, type in prop zero and you can get it there. good morning, everybody. i'm brent cannon. >> and i'm laura garcia-cannon. we'll look at traffic and weather in just a few minutes, but the hopes of giants fans rest on the arms of a pitcher who wasn't even able to buy a beer in the ballpark this time last year. bob redell has more on madison bumgarner. >> reporter: good morning. madison bumgarner being a rookie for the giants taking to the mound starting the game today. he's only 21 years old. but he does not cause any concern for the fans we've spoken with this morning. and you think about it, here they are, the giants 2-1 against the phillies on the cusp of perhaps going to the world series. but with the torture the fans say they have been going through lately, if you ask them what kid of confidence they have about going into this game, this is how they answer in hopes of not

putting any jinx on the team. >> i don't want to put the horse -- i mean the cart before the horse here, you understand. it's just i have faith in them. they're playing one game at a time the best way they know how is their pitching. and i mean i'm excited inside, but i don't want to get too excited because it's been torture. >> reporter: you sound pretty confident. what gives you concern, if there's any? >> the hitting. he probably messed up the lineup with a couple of good hits and if wasn't for cody ross then we'd probably be -- we'd probably won tuesday 2-1. >> reporter: the lights are already on here at at&t park. they have been on i assume all night. the first pitch today in game four against the phillies at 4:57 this evening. reporting live outside at&t park, bob redell, "today in the bay." there are a lot of characters in the giants

clubhouse these days but perhaps none more unique than monster 99. he's the giants personal stylist and beard trimmer. monster 99 cuts hair just about any place any time, including the back seat of a car. players say it doesn't matter where it happens. >> he does leave you feeling pretty good about yourself. he makes guys like me look better. >> i tell you what, when you look good, you play good. and we're going to take this to the world series. >> there you see some of the styles. the giants are not the only team that enlist the help of monster 99 to take care of their locks. players like david ortiz and manny ramirez also use him. now, "today in the bay" traffic with mike inouye. >> all right, folks. big heads up for you folks, 5:51, not even 6:00, but look at this backup at the bay bridge toll plaza. i told you about an accident right around the metering lights. it's just past the metering lights but it caused those to be turned on very early. the metering lights in full

effect and the backup past the grand avenue overcrossing and the 880 overcrossing so big, big delays now. we're still okay out of the caldecott tunnel and also the maze but this is the backup that's building quickly past grand avenue before 6:00 a.m. we're looking at the map to show you this is the incident. we to have the giant game this afternoon as bob has been telling you, that will affect perhaps folks leaving work a little early. right now folks on hyde street, it is closed between bush and sutter. we showed you earlier pictures of the apartment fire. hyde is closed there. your alternate is jones or polk. those are both one-way streets traveling parallel to hyde. rob, that fire, big winds or anything going on in the city? >> the wind not too strong this morning but the fog and actually humidity up this morning may help at least on site there in san francisco. right now we have fog in san

jose. across the golden gate bridge you can see some of the fog, 56. game time temperature, later start to the game, we'll see temperatures actually close to 60. so take the sweatshirt and jacket, mainly 50s as we go through the rest of the game in san francisco later on. lots of fog for the morning. today's temperatures cooler than yesterday. the low clouds will stick around a little longer at that. mid-70s san jose. 60 for san francisco and oakland. dry if you discount the mist we're seeing in a few spots this morning. tomorrow by the evening into friday morning a little rain coming in and more rain due in on sunday. back to you. >> thanks a lot, rob. the head of the company that runs the "los angeles times" may step down today. scott mcgrew says it's the latest in a flabbergasting string of events at a once-great newspaper. >> reporter: at one time, brent, one of the best. one of the most conservative newspaper chains in the united states. but an ownership change turned the tribune company into what "the new york times" calls a frat house. in a scathing article that

documented sexual harassment, poker parties, illicit sex in stairwells at the company's chicago headquarters, then incredibly days after that article came out, one of the company's top executives sent out a memo with a video attached that uses words we can't even use on television about women's sexuality. the day after his company was in the spotlight for the very same kind of behavior, he goes and does that. that fellow was fired or possibly stepped down last week. this morning the ceo may be on his way out. the "chicago tribune" says that randy michaels will be out at the end of the day. laura, it is a sad and just truly bizarre end to the executives who were in charge of the "chicago tribune" and the "l.a. times." it's 5:54. today marks the 19th anniversary of the deadly oakland hills fire. thousands of people lost their homes, but some overcame the disaster and found the strength to rebuild.

"today in the bay's" christie smith is live in oakland and talks to one woman about how he put her life back together. >> reporter: good morning. first of all, i wanted to say we are standing here because there are a number of tributes in the oakland hills about surviving the oakland hills fire and this is one of them, the gateway exhibit. it's about vegetation management and preparedness. now, 19 years later, a woman who lost everything says she still talks about it because it's a lesson that people still need to know. the wind-driven firestorm destroyed more than 3,000 homes and killed 25 people. for firefighters from outside agencies, there were problems with hoses not fitting, narrow roads, overgrown hillsides, plenty of lessons learned. sue piper lost her home. she shared photos of it with us. she said she fled with her daughter and literally saw people on foot running past her car as trees went up in flames. it took her two long years to

rebuild. she said it's hard to believe sometimes it's been 19 years. >> a lot has changed. i mean we learn from our mistakes. the hoses now fit. they communicate with each other. those things were fixed. we have a wildfire assessment district in oakland which is one of the first of its kind. my husband and i, we're very active in getting that started and my husband served on it and it has made a real difference. >> reporter: now, sue's husband also helps maintain the firestorm memorial garden that's dedicated to victims and survivors. less than two weeks ago a bronze sculpture there was vandalized and this week volunteers have been working to install better lighting and are working, they tell me, on getting some sort of security there. reporting live in the oakland hills, christie smith, "today in the bay." now "today in the bay" weather. and good morning to you at 5:56 this morning. we've got a lot of fog, some of it is thick in spots. some mist along the coast as

well. for the afternoon a pretty decent day, just not as warm as yesterday. mid-70s inland out toward the tri-valley. santa clara low to mid-70s. 60s around san francisco and mid-60s around oakland. tomorrow increasing clouds of the mid and high level variety as we see a chance of rain thursday night and early friday. for the weekend once again it looks like another soggy sunday on the way. back to you. >> thank you very much. the iran hikers will stand trial. find out what secretary of state hillary clinton is saying about it. a bart project that a lot of people thought breaks ground today. we'll see why several are upset about that. and the teenagers accused of setting this school on fire will be in urtot y. find out what they're facing next. save $523! 16 minutes could save you 16%!

come on... isn't it time an auto insurer gave it to you straight? that's why you should talk to state farm. but not yet. first, talk to any one of the 40 million drivers who already have state farm. 40 million. yeah, that's more than geico and progressive combined. by a lot. 40 million drivers. more savings. and discounts up to 40%. where else you gonna get discounts like that? call an agent at 1-800-state-farm or go online. new this morning, the uc berkeley hikers are set to go on