overnight japan continues to work to pe vent a major meltdown at a nuclear plant despite threats to workers' health. we'll have the latest. how vulnerable is the east bay to a tsunami? the cities that would face the brunt of the damage were one to hit. >> reporter: for loyal pete's coffee drinkers this news may be hard to swallow. starbucks may be taking over. i'll explain coming up in a live report. >> and a live look outside. it's wednesday, march 16. this is "today in the east bay."

>> good morning. a rainy drive in to work this morning. let's check your forecast with christina loren. >> good morning to you, scott. yeah, the rain really hasn't had an opportunity to dry out and there's more pushing in, consistent rain over the bay area this morning. that will make for ponding on our local roadways. we'll tell you when these showers are expected to clear. right now we want to get you to work on time. >> good morning. from the look of the wide shot of the maze no major issues but talking about the rain and also windy conditions. so we're watching areas crossing over the water like the bay bridge or the san mateo bridge. a live look, the camera shows you. shaky conditions. i'll let you know where there is flooding and also other issues. scott, back to you. >> thank you, mike. this morning workers headed back to the crippled reactors. japan ordered the 50 or so

workers to withdraw from the nuclear plant earlier after a surge of radiation putting a temporary halt to efforts to cool those overheating reactors. meantime, in an area south of the plant radiation levels are about 300 times the normal level. not deadly but unhealthy. a small amount of radiation was detected in tokyo about 140 miles away from the plant. fugi tv reports tiny amounts in the fukushima water supply. they are levels within the healthy range but slightly above daily average. japanese leaders say more than 11,000 people are officially listed as dead or missing from the magnitude 9 quake and tsunami. our george kiriyama is covering the story in japan and filed this report. >> reporter: at unit 4 the second fire in two days has been extinguished and radiation is likely released from spent fuel

rods like these. >> the spent fuel accident would be worthy of massive worldwide concern and we had that on top of three actually reactors that are having core damage going on. it's a very, very bad situation. >> reporter: japan's prime minister urged calm and said there was no evidence the amount of radiation released so far threatened anyone outside the evacuation zone. the bit of encouraging news is the radiation levels have been dropping in recent hours. ground level winds at the site have been going to the east out to sea but in the past hours they shifted south in the direction of tokyo where officials say radiation levels have been elevated but not dangerous. the company that runs the reactors ordered all but the most essential personnel to leave the site and offered public apologies. one big challenge is because there are only 70 workers at the site reactor problems occur one after another. those workers who volunteered to

stay are facing radiation danger. many could have gotten very high levels. >> they are already being exposed to levels of radiation that are life threatening and will in some cases be fatal. >> reporter: many see those workers as great heroes, some lost their homes and families in the earthquake and tsunami, yet they continue a great risk to themselves to try to prevent a catastrophe. george kiriyama, nbc bay area news. >> small traces of radiation from japan will soon blow into the bay area so it's a valid question, what is the real risk to california? are people overreacting stocking up on pills? the u.s. surgeon general has an opinion on that. cheryl hurd has the latest on what's being done to keep you safe. >> some radio nuclear will arrive here.

the concern is how much actually would come here. >> this professor is a nuclear engineer at uc-berkeley. he says the amount of radiation that makes it here will be small. >> there is about 5,000 mile distance between japan and here. and during that transportation radioactivity goes down. >> reporter: scientists are now monitoring radioactivity in the atmosphere. this is video from the lab's war room where scientists monitor for radiation following nuclear disasters. >> there are several ways to measure radio materials. for example, you have rainfall, you measure the radioactivity. >> he says he believes the trace amounts of radiation that might make it here from the fukushima plant would pose no danger. he believes people stocking up on iodine is an overreaction.

we talked to the surgeon general in san jose today who disagrees with that. >> i do think that we cannot be overprepared. we learned that with 9/11, we learned that with katrina, we learned that this week with the tsunami. >> reporter: 12 hours after fleeing from the disaster in japan -- >> it's so dangerous. they can't protect them because they don't have water and they don't have jacket any more. >> reporter: this woman is dedicating herself to raising money to help the people she left behind. she arrived here on monday with her two daughters to escape radiation exposure. >> that was cheryl hurd. there is a strong support system including these young people who raised $500 in two days. students at stanford put together a website, stand with japan, all the money goes directly to the relief efforts in japan. the u.s. also delivering relief

supplies to japan, a u.s. cargo plane, air force plane, left pearl harbor in honolulu headed to japan with four generators and 25 u.s. air force support personnel. the plane will land to help with disaster relief and building efforts. i do want to make a clarification. we said iodine a short time ago. iodine is poisonous. iodide is something you can take, not that we're necessarily recommending it, that you can take to fight radiation sickness. >> the shape of the san francisco bay area could protect most of the surrounding area from a tsunami. scientists say the narrow opening of a channel creates the bottle neck that would reduce the amount of inland flooding the south bay and much of the peninsula would be spared from the type of surge that devastated japan. but alameda and the port of oakland would face the brunt of damage, they lie in the direct path of a tsunami.

you can learn more about the disasters in japan at a forum at uc-berkeley. experts will hold a panel discussion to talk about the impact of the earthquake and the tsunami in japan. the nuclear disaster as well. the talk from 6:00 to 7:30 tonight at the institute of east asian studies. if you would like to help the people in japan, you can donate to the american red cross negotiation to redcross.org or find american red cross on facebook or text redcross to 90999 which will donate $10 to the efforts. >> brewing your morning cup of joe is it pete's or starbucks. you may no longer have an option. the two could merge. christie smith is live with this. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, scott. you know, if you're a loyal pete's coffee drinker, chances are you hold that coffee near and dear to your heart, no other cup of coffee will do. now there is talk of a potential

sale of pete to starbucks, that according to online business reports. peet's and starbucks are not saying much but there has been chatter about a tie going on for months. starbucks, it's valued at about $26 billion or more. one analyst says this isn't about coffee shops in general, more about growing the grocery business of coffee. and estimates are that starbucks could double or even triple peet's business. the emeryville based company, peet's sells packaged coffee in stores like safeway. how likely this deal is is unclear and remains to be seen how loyalists called peetniks would take it. >> christie, thank you. >> let's turn to someone who likes her coffee this early in

the morning, not decaf, good morning. >> good morning to you, yeah, don't give me no decaf. we're looking pretty good. we have rain showers streaming in into the bay area, this has been consistent overnight we had pretty good rain and as a result your highways are slick this morning, you'll find areas of ponding, so you want to take it easy. don't try to take off rapidly or you'll not be able to gain traction with your tires. we're looking pretty good. a lot of the shower activity is going to clear out before we hit 9:00 a.m. again we're seeing the bulk of the moisture come through in time for the morning drive. you want to take it easy on the east bay especially waking up in hayward, headed to livermore overall looking to a nice second half of the day with our temperatures in the upper 60s and low 70s in some east bay

cities. we'll talk about what's to come after this. but let's get you to work on time. you're going to drive through puddles this morning. >> that's right. i'm showing the same area you showed with all of that active rain along 580 and through 680 as well through the san ramon area. heading out of the area or coming from the sierra chains required for 80 and 50 so keep it in mind. out of the altamont pass, the rain is around there so might be winds over the east bay hills as well as the san mateo bridge and the dumbarton. i showed you the camera shaking. in oakland we have our high rise camera. it's not shaking but you see the glow and the water kicking up. welt roadways continue throughout this area and the bay bridge toll plaza. you approach the toll plaza and metering lights. puddles and water kicking up so that's a factor for the morning commute. slippery conditions. we'll watch for those reports. >> inside diablo canyon 200 miles south of the bay area to

make sure things are being done that what happens in japan doesn't happen here. our body scanners putting you at risk. experts weigh in. and st. mary's run in the, nit, i think you can hear in my voice what happened. live picture of the golden gate bridge.

you're looking at a live picture of 880. more puddles again today. we'll check in with mike and christina. it's 4:45. californians have had a long and uneasy relationship with their nuclear power plants and the nuclear crisis in japan deepening that distrust. as well as renewed calls for close supervision. there are two power plants in the state that contribute to the energy supply. they are along the coast line in southern california. you got one, diablo canyon in san luis obispo county. we take you there tor an in-depth look at the controversy. are we safe? or like japan, is it a disaster waiting to happen? scott budman talks to activists working to get diablo canyon

shut down. >> reporter: to drive in san luis obispo county is to drive into a place of beauty. from the lush green valleys to the acquaint downtown. but it's also home to pg&e's nuclear power plant which sits on the edge of the pacific ocean, and just like the fukushima plant it's in an active earthquake zone. >> they are built where they should not have been. >> reporter: that's what some residents say puts this picturesque town in serious danger. liz appleberg is part of the group mothers for peace. >> since 1973 we have been fighting the diablo canyon. >> reporter: they kept track of their efforts for 38 years to get diablo canyon shut down. even though she and most of the members are now grandmothers, they are working as hard as ever, now trying to put a stop to pg&e's relicensing request which would allow the plant to

operate until at least 2045. >> it's foolhardy to keep it running. even more foolhardy to try and relicense it for 20 years past what it's supposed to run until. >> reporter: in 2008, the u.s. geological survey detected a previously unknown fault called the shoreline fault which runs under diablo canyon. pg&e says the plant can withstand a 7.5 magnitude earthquake. >> all of our systems, component structures, they have been tested to a level of ground shake and it's designed above that level. >> reporter: but appleberg doesn't trust pg&e and wants more studies done. >> we're looking for and want an expert who can help us to determine how to discover if there are more faults out there. >> reporter: while appleberg knows pg&e wants to continue operating diablo canyon she's going to continue her mission as

long as she can. >> i'm not giving up. which means that it's harder as you get older to fight harder. but yes, going to keep fighting as hard as we can. >> reporter: it's a fight she says is worth it for her granddaughters and their future families. scott budman, "today in the bay." >> there is a third working nuclear reactor in alameda county, it is extremely small. i talked to engineers on the phone yesterday. the reactor is used for research and to create isotopes in medical supplies. tonight will bay area hospitals be able to withstand the next big quake? the answer is no, not at all. we'll tell you more. tonight we'll show you which four bay area hospitals are at the greatest risk. we'll also show you which ones are rebuilding to withstand the shaking tonight at 11:00. stability appears to be returning to the markets in japan. for more on that and news before the bell, it's nicole at cnbc. good morning.

>> hey, good morning, scott. yeah, you're right. if you were looking at futures a couple hours ago but these markets are so volatile. we are flat if not slightly lower on futures ahead of the opening bell after the wild swing on wall street yesterday. the markets fell sharply in early trading with the dow down 300 points on japan-related selling. stocks made a slow and steady push higher and aided some by the fed which did leave interest rates on hold. the housing market and unemployment are still huge problems. japan, though, rebounded today, the nikkei jumping more than 5%. european markets were trading higher, they flatlined and then turned around. we got some data that could dictate the way we trade. producer price inflation and housing starts come out this morning. to recap, the dow closed down 137 points yesterday to 11,855. that is below that key psychological 12,000 mark.

the nasdaq composite lost 33 to 2667. we're watching all of the headlines making news out of japan including toyota reportedly restarting production on thursday at seven of its factories in central japan. these make replacement parts for both the domestic and overseas markets. toyota is suspending regular production until tuesday. and grew upon is going hollywood. the website is teaming up to promote the studio's film the lincoln lawyer which opens on friday. groupon is offering tickets. as i'm sure you know, you are a groupon fan. offered discounts to magazines, newspapers, all sorts of stuff even movie rentals. but this is the first substantial national movie deal, scott, for a specific movie. >> that's kind of cool though i

can remember when movie tiblths were $6 even without the gropon. back in the day. thank you. >> when we walked in the snow. >> very much. let's turn to a look at your forecast. >> good morning to you, scott. we're looking pretty good right now. we've got slick conditions out there, the rain isn't that heavy, though, so you're not going to have to drive through heavy downpours. you want to give yourself plenty of time to get to work. we have slick condition, it's raining overnight. the rain is relentless in the east bay. light showers pushing from west to east moving over hayward, livermore getting light rain. this is the case for the next few hours, we are expecting a good deal of clearing by about 9:00 a.m. the only rainfall we are anticipating at that time will be in the north bay, by 11:00, just a little residual moisture expected to pass through the east bay. we'll see a really nice second half of the day. enough sun to warm us up toward 70 degrees. looking for the sunshine, we're

not going to see a lot but breaks of sun for 65 degrees in fremont. 67 in concord and 68 degrees in fairfield. now, tomorrow is a holiday, st. patrick's day. i think we'll skate by with a few showers, mostly cloudy conditions. and then the rain returns on friday. we're talking about maybe an inch of rain in the south bay along the peninsula. this next one is a really strong weathermaker. so that's where our eyes are for kugsed now. for today not bad. showers early, clearing for the second half. kind of a bad hair day. i have the frizzies and i noticed you had a curl going. >> do i? you're right. normally theresa takes care of that. there we go. the season is over for st. mary's. they missed out on the ncaa tournament. we're trying to make amends. they let kansas state stick around too much. the gales knocked out. should you be worried about radiation when you go through an airport body scanner? a live picture of oakland.

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>> 4:55. a picture of the bay bridge. we're going to check in with mike in about 30 seconds. a danville teen is this year's winner of the high school level of nobel prize. evan won the intell award, the most prestigious science award for kids. he beat out 39 finalists.

he won $100,000 award, got to meet the president. he is a former national spelling bee champ. he will attend -- wait for it -- harvard in the fall. harvard grad mike joins us now. >> you know, had to pass on harvard. wasn't enough of a challenge. i don't get that music when i walk through a room. highway 4, antioch, 66 holding up off of the bridge. a lot of rain came through this area heading over to highway interstate 680 off of highway 4. a lot of windy conditions for the diablo range so keep that in mind. wet windy wednesday over through the maze. approaching the bay bridge toll plaza. we're looking at the san mateo bridge, and the camera is shaking on the hayward side. gusty conditions, no wind advisories but we're warning you because that's what we see out there. back to you. >> thank you. today, a house committee in washington will take up the body scanners at use at airports

around the country. they will look at issues over privacy and health concerns. some scanners deliver a low dose of radiation. most experts agree the risk is minimal. two published reports say the risks that come from the machines are very small even for frequent travelers. in fact, it's less than you get when you fly on the plane itself. coming up, how u.s. military aircraft used in the middle east and other places are now helping japan. when a carpet is clean and fresh, it's irresistible. experience this in your home with resolve deep clean powder. its moist powder penetrates deep, removing three times more dirt than vacuuming alone while also neutralizing odors at their source.

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new this morning the situation with japan's nuclear reactor is getting worse. the latest efforts to try to contain the radiation and keep the country safe coming up. >> reporter: i'm bob redell live in the south bay with how one local professional sports organization is kicking up efforts to help the victims of