>> reporter: new this morning, less than a year since santa cruz was hit by waves. the white house is looking at cutting the early tsunami warning system. i'll explain. >> dozens of people in mountain view wondering what to do after a fire destroyed their apartment. how they are dealing with the loss. >> a big battle shaping up in michigan as voters head to the y.primarr the republican why analysts say this is a crucial test for mitt romney. >> this tuesday morning, beautiful san francisco, change in the weather department. we'll have more on this tuesday,

february 28. this is "today in the bay." >> a good tuesday to everyone. it's 4:30. i'm jon kelley. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. let's check the forecast as promised with meteorologist christina loren. good morning. >> good morning. it's a cold, cold morning out there. likely you had to throw on an extra blanket. temperatures are running in the 30s, close to the freezing mark. just about everywhere inland, as we head throughout the morning we're going to continue to drop off. keep that snuggy handy. i'll let you know when the rain arrives, as of tonight we're talking showers in parts of the bay area. first let's talk to mike about your drive. >> no rain so the crews can get out there. right here we have 680, northbound from al costa where i marked, north of the dublin interchange, extending up toward

rudgear road. no slowing right now on our sensors. the southbound side extends down but no big deal there as well. the crews should be on the move right around the 6:00 hour. we may see slowing. back to you. >> thank you, mike. >> 4:32. bay area residents along the coast may not get much of a warning as they are used to the a tsunami hits. >> the obama administration -- christie smith joins us live from ocean beach with the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. how much is enough when it comes to being prepared for an emergency. the big waves that hit santa cruz and crescent city tied to the earthquake in japan cost about $58 million in damage in california. as you said with the white house is doing is looking at cutting funding for tsunami warning and

preparedness programs, talking about $4.6 million including about $1 million for dozens of high tech buoys. what they do is let scientists know when big waves will hit and how tall they might be when they do hit. it could also cut programs used to educate the public. some of the administration say the proposed cuts wouldn't necessarily sacrifice safety. safety outreach programs are in place. and those buoys off the coast would remain. it's just they might take longer to repair if damaged. and the cuts are in the proposed 2013 budget. reporting live at ocean beach, christie smith, "today in the bay." >> firefighters in mountain view keeping an eye on an apartment complex still smoldering from a four-alarm fire. flames devouring five units with

five more separate smoke and water damaged. it started after 3:00 yesterday. this is home video showing the fire at its peak. one family says they fear they lost everything. >> if it's gone, you know. >> the american red cross helping put some of the families at nearby hotels. investigators trying ta figure out what caused the fire. >> jury selection could begin today in the trial of san francisco sheriff ross mirkarimi. the judge dealt a seat back to the defense, jurors will be allowed to see a video of mirkarimi's wife showing bruises on her arm. the video was shot by a neighbor, 18 hours after an alleged fight between the couple last new year's eve. the judge also plans to interview an ex-girlfriend of mirkarimi who claims she was abused by him as well. the trial of six men accused of

shooting and killing a german tourist will be set today. the two were caught in the middle of what police call a gang shoot-out. >> it is 4:35. police at uc-berkeley deciding whether to pursue a criminal investigation after what is a stunt fueled by alcohol. andrew was climbing down a drain pipe at the fraternity house saturday night when it broke. he fell three stories and suffered severe head trauma. he is in a medically induced coma. police believe he was drunk and they are calling the case an accident. investigators could open up a criminal investigation if he is disabled or dies. police looking for a man who rammed a woman's car and took off with her purse.

police releasing this sketch of the attacker. the woman says he rear-ended her and beat her up and stole her purse. the incident happened wednesday at a stop light on watsonville and monterey roads. >> a hunt for an arsonist who hit a library. the fan set fire to pamphlets on sunday. he ran off before authorities arrived. the surveillance video has been turned over to police. >> a peninsula teenager is in trouble after crashing her car into a school. it happened in palo alto yesterday, or saturday rather. police say it appears the driver hit the gas instead of brake and slammed into the building, causing substantial damage. no one was injured. >> turning to decision 2012. today could be a game changer in the republican race for president. michigan and arizona hold a primary today. republican insiders say mitt romney must win michigan if he

wants to avoid a long fight with rick santorum. santorum tied with him there in the polls. even in the state there are divisions. >> it's one story in western michigan you have a lot of conservative christian voters, it's another in detroit you have a lot that mitt romney is targeting. >> romney is expected to win arizona. now the candidates are starting to shift focus to super tuesday, romney outspending santorum three to one. >> a case could decide for good whether corporations are considered people too. the justices will hear an appeal in a case about whether royal dutch petroleum and its shell oil subsidiary in the u.s. are immune from prosecution for aiding a former regime in nigeria that tortured, raped and executed minorities. the court ruled two years ago corporations share the same

human rights to free speech as people. it could send a precedence. >> a cool start to the day. let's check with christina loren to tell us what's happening. >> hi, guys. we've got rain on the way. at this time tomorrow morning we'll be tracking heavy periods of rain in parts of the bay area. so, enjoy the relatively quiet start this morning. it is cold out there. you might find some frost and fog as we head throughout the morning hours. right now visibility is looking good, and temperatures are dropping off. you may find a little frost in napa and santa rosa. 37, colder, right here in san jose. throughout day an area of low pressure approaches the coast. we'll see clouds increase and cold air which is in place will settle in. we're talking about cold temperatures only reaching the mid-50s.

by tomorrow intermittent showers, so if you want to make plans it works like this. 53 inland at noon, only 54 degrees with cloud cover by 4:00 p.m. and then our first showers in the north bay at about 9:00 p.m. i'll continue to track the showers. that's coming up. first, let's check your drive with mike. >> not a lot of incidents as far as accidents but i'm pointing out construction crews. it will affect a few off ramps through mountain view. a wider view shows you moffitt air field, the northbound field has the construction. again as you pass embarcadero t off ramp is chosed, not a surprise. it's visible from 101. use caution as you head through the area. a smooth dive and you'll cross the golden gate bridge.

construction slows you into novato. back to you. >> mike, thank you. san jose state now backing down from a controversial change to its admission policy. it was considering doing away with the practice of giving preferred status to residents as a way to cut expenses. after backlash from the community administrators announcing the policy will stay in place. >> it's 4:40. more devastation at a high school in ohio as the second student died from yesterday's rampage. >> keeping your information safe during tax season. how thieves could cash in on your tax return. >> gas prices mitting all time highs. the shocking part is how quickly they have gotten there. >> for all of your news weather

and updates throughout day, check us outim on fabook.fa search nbc bay area news. we're back in minutes.

>> welcome back on this tuesday morning. that is a look at the shark tank, also known as hp pavilion. the san jose sharks play ice hockey tonight. a rough road trip, nine games

didn't look so great. tonight looking to turn it around. it is 4:43. >> a second student has died as a result of yesterday's shooting spree at an ohio high school. authorities say 17-year-old t.j. lane walked into the cafeteria yesterday and started shooting. at least one student was killed instantly. a second died at the hospital. three others were hurt. we're learning more about the alleged gun man. an attorney says that lane was a good student who usually kept to himself. >> by all accounts, t.j. was very quiet and good kid. his grades are pretty impressive. he's been doubling up on his classes, he's a sophomore. >> last night students at the high school held a vigil for their classmate. at least one of the victims is still in critical condition. >> not exactly music to your

ears but gas prices have jumped 25 cents in one week and climbing. some stations in southern california hit the $5 a gallon mark. here in the bay area we've seen a jump of more than 50 cents over the past month, almost half of it this past week. oakland up 25% from last week. san jose at 4.27, also up a quarter and san francisco right now, $4.33 a gallon, a 26-cent rise over last week. even as gas prices rise some airlines seem to be, well, giving up an fare increases. on saturday united which initiated the recent hike rolled back its prices on some routes and u.s. airways did the same on sunday. by monday people calling in line. american, delta, frontier and virgin america dropped prices. airlines raised prices by 4 to $10 for a round trip after

raising prices twice. >> wall street is looking to hold onto to that 13,000 mark. for a check of the markets we turn to kayla tausche. good morning. >> good morning. yeah, if it's any indication we are heading back to the mark. futures are higher after an up and down session. the dow tried to close above 13,000, it recovered from an early 100-point drop to trade as high as 13,037 before falling back at the final bell. a rise in pending home sale desire help concerns about the g-20 support for europe and the latest greek bail-out package. asian and european markets are higher and we get data this morning on demand for durable goods, home prices and consumer confidence. the dow slipping to 12,981 t nasdaq ending up 2966. you mentioned airlines before, they are figuring out ways to

generate revenue beyond the bag and change fees. some turned to banking. "the new york times" says airline new zealand holds cash, airline miles and foreign currency and the airline collects a small percentage each time the card is used and charge as fee if activated. intercontinental hotels wants to encourage you to work out even on the road. "the wall street journal" says it has a brand of hotels called even. they have a bigger gym and features like a coat rack that doubles as a pull-up bar. the first hotels could open next year. it may help consumers work out on the road. don't know if that's going to work out for me. >> a pull-up bar. interesting. what about the open bar. thank you very much. >> this is something you don't see often. southern california getting a small dose of the white stuff.

we're talking winter and talking snow. this is the scene monday night on interstate 8. more than four inches of snow throughout. what a shocker. it fell in the mountains causing traffic problems for people across the sun rise highway. it may have been an inconvenience, others took advantage. let's have fun. snowballs, snow angels, maybe a snowman. living it up. >> what's headed our way? >> we've got a little taste of winter a. quick blast starting tonight we'll get our showers in the north bay. we'll time those out for you. right now headed out the front door grab your heavy coat, temperatures are around the freezing mark. san jose at 37 degrees this morning. 39 in livermore and you're at 31, below freezing up in napa. throughout the day temperatures aren't going to climb that much. we have all of that cold air in place. we'll see clouds increase and then we stop the clock on future cast at 11:00 p.m., starting to

get our first showers in the north bay. the front slides to the south. tomorrow morning, we're talking about slick conditions for the greater bay area. so that means mike and i will be working hard to get you to work on time through the showers. showers will continue all day long tomorrow. you can see steady rainfall all the way from santa rosa to san jose. through the second half of the day into the night we'll see clearing but staying wet for the second half of your thursday. more rain on the way. so we need this rain. how much are we talking about? potentially an inch in the north bay, maybe 3/4 inch in san francisco and a half inch or quarter in the south bay. but overall we'll take whatever we can get. then on thursday maybe picking up .1 inch or so in areas north of the golden gate bridge. grab your jacket. you'll need it. clouds will increase. 57 in gilroy, the three-day forecast shows you rainy conditions wednesday into thursday.

clearing and starts to warm up friday, saturday, back to the 70s on monday. back to you. >> 4:49. you are filing your taxes might be a good idea to file for a free credit report. id thety thieves are targeting people during tax season especially those who file online. a thief can submit a phony tax return and get a refund using the social security numbers of someone else's children. shred documents with personal information before throwing them away and check your credit reports. >> there are no accounts that you haven't opened that are suddenly on your report which indicates that you've been the victim of i.d. threat. >> the irs never initiates contact with taxpayers by e-mail or social media to request personal on financial information. >> still ahead, a good reason to

eat out for breakfast. >> a step forward for the new stadium in santa clara. what's expected to happen today. >> what does it take to set a world record for paper airlines? uc-berkeley alum seems to have it figured out. we'll show you how next. >> that was awesome. long distance driving, right now we'll point out where road crews are and other issues as far as if water on the ood.

ahhh. so soft. time out. sweet. [ female announcer ] with charmin ultra soft, you can get that cushiony feeling you love while still using less. charmin ultra soft is designed with extra cushions that are soft and more absorbent and you can use four times less versus the leading value brand. ♪ ah.

[ female announcer ] we all go. why not enjoy the go with charmin ultra soft.

>> good tuesday morning to you. taking a live look outside, beautiful palace of fine arts. always so picturesque out there. 4:54 right now. >> one of the last steps before the 49ers can start up construction on the new stadium will take place tonight. santa clara leaders expected to approve a ground lease between the city and the 49ers. the 40-year lease is expected to pour more than $40 million into the city's general budget. santa clara will get half of all profits from non-football events such as concerts. the 49ers have 120 days after it passes to start construction on the new stadium. >> santa clara county looking at

ways to regulate payday loan businesses. the board of supervisors meeting to discuss new rules for payday lenders and check cashing businesses in the county. one idea is to declare a temporary moratorium on any new or relocating businesses within the county. the county leaders say these businesses tend to have a negative impact on low income families by charging exorbitant fees for check cashing and loans. >> if you are looking for a good reason to go out to breakfast or lunch, you're in luck. national pancake day at ihop. we have a live look in santa clara. we're waiting for it to open. not too many there yet but no doubt it will be crowded later. it's the seventh year in a row that ihop restaurants nationwide will offer up a free short stack of buttermilk pancakes. free. free. 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

all free and all ihop is asking that in return you consider leaving a donation for the children's miracle network and other designated charities. >> killing me. this year the goal is to raise $2.7 million. >> i love it. they let you put whipped cream on the pancakes. i hear mike over there sounds like homer simpson. >> hmm, can cakes. i like the syrup bar. we have water on the road. that's clearing but there is a water main break reported stewart at regent in berkeley. i hear the scene is clearing up. whatever road closure they had, the lane that was there is clearing up as well. surface street, not affecting 24 or 580 through oakland or the east shore freeway. a smooth drive approaching the bay bridge. a look at the toll plaza, an

easy drive as you head down off the berkeley curve. light volume of traffic. not a bad deal getting over to the city. the deal is you have to pay your toll. back to you with that shot. >> we can tell you this. a former cal quarterback can add world record holder to his resume. pretty sweet. >> he made it into the guiness book for paper airplane throwing. former quarterback threw a paper airplane 226 feet and 10 inches. isn't it amazing. >> look at that go. >> it sails along. he beat the old mark by 19 1/2 feet. >> good times. designer gets credit. john collins of marin is going crazy there. fun. >> congratulations on the world record. still ahead, people in mountain view recovering after losing their homes in a huge fire. lta

scene coming up.