a flash of light, a massive fire ball. everybody is talking about the meteor that flew over the bay area last night. we'll let you know what we're learning about it this morning. fighting back. how a bay area boy scout is trying to get his eagle award after he was denied for being gay. and a nice comfortable start to your morning. a live look over san jose. christina loren has a look at your forecast on this thursday, october 18th. this is "today in the bay." good morning, everybody, on a thursday. it is 4:30 on the nose. i'm jon kelley. >> and i'm laura garcia-cannon.

let's say good morning to meteorologist christina loren. >> good thursday morning or as we like to call it around here, friday eve. we've got a good-looking day as the brief return to summer concludes today. temperatures will be in the mid-90s. after that, though, we tumble back to the 70s. clouds move back in and rain in the forecast. we'll sort it all out for you coming up. 4:31. let's first check your drive. we're looking at some flashing lights at the top of your screen. that's southbound 101 just south of university. you might have that zone and the map shows you a similar area where we do see some slowing for the sensors. that sticks around for a little while but the light volume keeps things moving smoothly. the dumbarton bridge, no major slowing there and north 101 heading up toward 92 just past hillsdale another zone with road work and no problems as far as those speeds go, guys.

did you happen to see it? a very cool, very rare sign. a meteor streaks right across the sky. >> some say it looked like a trail of fire that could be seen from sacramento to santa cruz. nbc bay area is the only station with this surveillance video from lick observatory. you can see it at the top of your screen. people we talked to said it looked like a giant fire ball. one man who was driving on highway 17 said he's never seen anything like it before. >> well, it was just really remarkable. everybody has seen a shooting star but not one that was in your backyard. i actually expected to see an impact. it broke up before it hit the ground, but i was anticipating a fire ball on the ground, it was that low. it was definitely something i won't forget any time soon. >> he said he saw it breaking apart in the sky. this morning scientists are trying to figure out where the pieces have actually landed. there have been no reports of

fire or damage on the ground and no one was hurt. a chp officer said only one person called to report the event. we'll have much more coming up at 5:00, including why scientists are telling people to check their security cameras and what they hope to learn. >> that's so cool that we do have that video. one thing we do know this morning is the meteor was likely not part of a larger meteor shower. the orionid meteor shower is usually late october. professional astronomers say this one was different. >> the direction this meteor was traveling pretty much tells us that it was not an orionid. it didn't look like it was coming from the constellation orion. it's what we call a sporadic meteor, just one that happens randomly. >> well, some people were lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time last night.

we have more amazing pictures here we found of this unexpected show. it is expected to be at its peak sometime this weekend, so keep your head up. it is 4:34. new this morning, the bay area boy scout being denied his eagle discount rank because he's gay plans to file a petition with the boy scout council. 18-year-old ryan andresen is asking them to reverse their decision to withhold his award. the scouts say he is no longer eligible because of his sexual orientation. his mother started a petition hoping the scouts would change their policy. so far 123,000 have pledged their support. andresen's story went national after an appearance on the "ellen" show. a prominent doctor in the south bay will be in court this morning facing serious drug charges. a pediatrician turned

administrator at valley health plan of santa clara is accused of writing prescriptions in exchange for cash and other drugs. investigators say he was even providing drugs to minors. now, police say the doctor's los gatos home was filled with marijuana, drug paraphernalia and several guns. his former colleagues are calling this situation tragic. >> i was shocked, i was astonished and very saddened. he was at one time a highly respected and very caring, compassionate pediatrician and for some time an able administrator. >> we can tell you bonham and his roommate were arrested yesterday. the doctor's desk job involved no patients yet he was writing a lot of prescriptions. bonham is free this morning on a million dollars bail. new this morning, a rally is planned in alameda county over the sheriff's plan to use drones for city surveillance. the sheriff's office says it

wants to use remote control devices only in emergency situations, but the aclu wants them only deployed if a warrant is issued. the sheriff's office hasn't specified what it would do with any information it actually gathers. today's rally is in front of city hall at 11:00 a.m. an oakland family is hoping new surveillance video will help them catch a killer. the driver of a blue car is said to be charles butler. he bumps a man police believe killed him. it happened at 45th and market street. investigators say after a confrontation, butler leaves for home, only to be followed by the suspect and another accomplice. butler was later found shot to death. his family is asking witnesses to come forward to help solve the case. an elderly livermore man is the first person in alameda county to be treated for the west nile virus. the 70-year-old first reported feeling flu-like symptoms in late september. doctors now say he will be

making a full recovery. the virus, as you may know, is carried by mosquitos. investigators from the fda examining evidence after authorities raid a massachusetts pharmacy linked to a deadly meningitis outbreak. contaminated steroids from the new england compound center have been connected to that outbreak an so far 19 people have died, 247 others are reported with cases of fungal meningitis across 15 states. a spokeswoman for the fda says the outbreak is one of the worst she has ever seen. 4:37. to our continuing coverage a lot of people don't want to hear of the national league championship series. the giants looking for a comeback today. the g-membership lost in st. louis yesterday 3-1. rain interrupted the game in the seventh inning. after nearly three and a half hours, they eventually resumed the game and that's when the giants lost it. cardinals taking the 2-1 series

lead. game four is tonight at 5:00 p.m. we'll just shake it off. stay with nbc bay area all morning long for continuing coverage of the giants. we'll have live reports from st. louis coming up at 5:00 this morning. >> just like they're planning it. the g-men like to play from behind. let them get a lead, get comfortable and we'll knock them out. christina loren, is still feeling the g-men. >> still happy about the forecast but three and a half hours almost of a rain delay yesterday. it was rough. and then, yeah, they couldn't pull it out. hopefully today they'll be back at it. 55 in san jose, 55 in livermore and 60 in san francisco. we're going to see another warm day. we actually have a red flag warning in place because of elevated fire danger. that's going to stand until 8:00 a.m. this morning. just keep that in mind, very dry. we still have breezy conditions out there. but the good news is our air quality has not suffered that much under this big dome of high pressure. we're in the moderate to good range across the bay area and highs are going to be comfortable in places like san francisco. 84 degrees, a rare treat for you

in the city touching on the mid-80s. another beautiful day shaping up in santa cruz. 84 there, 94 in livermore and right smack in the middle, san jose will be at 86 degrees. i'll have your seven-day outlook ready to go in my next report. that issues a need for an umbrella. let's see how the roads are with mike. >> so far they're dry. 101 just underneath 680, northbound with the headlights. let me show you on the map. we're looking at a smooth drive. the yellow in the area just a little dip in speeds down towards 60 instead of 65, not a big deal. construction not closing any ramps, that's good news for your south bay commute. live look outside shows you as you cross over the bay, highway 92, the san mateo bridge west with these headlights off of the high rise. remember this weekend starting tomorrow night at 10:00 p.m., both directions closed for the weekend and also during the next weekend as well. and a look at oakland, 880 past

the coliseum. those headlights southbound, taillights north past high street. some construction between 23rd and 980. you do lose a couple of lanes. a smooth drive past the coliseum, though. we'll send it back to you. it's 4:40 right now. we now know the fate of the historic radar tower which overlooks the santa clara valley. the government agency that owns the tower voted last night to let it stand five more years so they can raise money to save it. supporters say they need $3 million to pay for initial repairs as well as ongoing maintenance and security. a lot of people right here in the bay area taking part in the great shakeout. that is the annual earthquake drill taking place all around the world. it's designed to teach families how to be ready when the big one hits. right now it looks kind of rough. more than 14 million people are signed up to take part in this.

nine million of those people taking part are from california. other western states will hold similar drills along with parts of canada, italy and asia. you might want to put some glue and stick those things down. experts say there is a 99% chance another big quake will hit in california within the next 30 years. that drill starts at 10:18 sharp. >> 99% chance. that's the big one. >> sounds solid. be ready. still ahead, mitt romney's campaign doing some course correction after tuesday's debate. up next, a new campaign aimed at female voters. coming up. also the holidays are all about giving, we know that. more people plan to give to themselves. >> got to take care of mama. >> always. >> mama not happy, no one is happy. check us out on facebook. just search nbc bay area.

happening now, tens of thousands greek workers hitting the streets of downtown athens today to protest against government austerity cuts. take a look at these live pictures from the scene. now, the protests are part of a 24-hour general strike in that country. greece's massive austerity program is needed in order to secure additional funding from an international bailout in

order to keep that country from going bankrupt. we've seen it before. now, if greece does not meet these obligations, it would have to leave the european union. decision 2012 now. fresh off tuesday's debate, the focus now turning to women this morning. governor romney trying to win their votes after a comment in tuesday night's debate that's taken on a life of its own. >> i went to a number of women's groups and said can you help us find books. they brought us binders full of women. >> that binders reference has gone viral big-time online and on the campaign trail. president obama using it as an opportunity during campaign speeches all day yesterday. >> we don't have to order up some binders to find qualified, talented women, young women. >> and trying to counterpunch, romney's campaign releasing a new ad aimed directly at women, highlighting the women who worked with him during his time as governor of massachusetts. the ad points out almost half

his appointees were women. it's 4:45. home construction hitting a four-year high. both apple and google have a big announcement to make. let's head over to jackie at cnbc headquarters for more on that and the rest of our news before the bell. good morning, jackie. >> reporter: good morning to you, laura. well, the futures slightly lower this morning after we saw stocks rising on wednesday on the back of better than expected housing data. reports showing that home construction is at a four-year high. that offsets some disappointing earnings from the likes of ibm, intel and bank of america. verizon reported higher profits this morning but didn't break out specifics on sales of the iphone 5. and today we get some data on new filings for unemployment and a closely watched report on manufacturing in the philadelphia area. the dow rising 5 points to 13,557 yesterday. the nasdaq edging higher nearly 3 points to 3,104. and apple isn't the only company to take the wraps off of a new device. of course the mini ipad is expected to be unveiled next

week but google has scheduled an android event for october 29th in new york city. the press invite says the playground is open. reports saying that google will show off its new nexus phone which is rumored to be made by lg. the company has also reportedly been prepping a number of phones and tablets which may be manufactured in conjunction with sony an samsung. just what we need, more devices ahead of the holiday season. >> thank you very much, jackie. speaking of shopping, a new survey finds holiday shoppers plan to splurge on themselves this holiday season. according to the national retail federation, the average shopper will spend about $750 on gifts, holiday decor, greeting cards and more. that's almost $9 more than they spent last year. at the same time, six in ten shoppers plan to spend about $140 on gifts for themselves. a little something for you, a little something for me. >> that's right, the greatest love of all. you've got to we and dine

yourself once in a while, make you feel good. how's the weather going to feel today? >> we've been good to ourselves this year. you know, it's going to be nice. if you want to hold off on black friday before you buy that umbrella, it might be too late. temperatures are going to be nice. it makes sense, all the best deals of the year come around on black friday. 55 degrees in livermore and we're getting closer and closer to november. now already getting into the end of october. temperatures are going to feel more like the end of august as we head throughout the day today. 55 in san jose, 53 in sunnyvale and 60 in san francisco. so high pressure fully in control of our weather pattern driving those winds offshore. we've got some really dry conditions this morning. that's why we have elevated fire danger. red flag warning is in place only until 8:00 a.m. we'll see dry, northerly downsloping winds that warm as they pump from land to sea. for us it looks like it's not going to be quite as breezy today as it was yesterday but still you look and see the 10 to 20-mile-per-hour wind speeds

sustained all across the bay area today. dry winds moving offshore. that means 94 degrees later on in livermore. 90 concord and 84 in san francisco. if you're not a fan of these numbers we have a much cooler scenario shaping up very quickly. we'll get to that forecast coming up. right now i'll send it back to you guys. american airlines says it's planning to hire more than 1500 new flight attendants over the next decade. the airline offered more than 2200 flight attendants $40,000 to leave the company. the new flight attendants will have smaller salaries. american airlines currently operating under bankruptcy protection. this morning "forbes" released its list of highest paid actors on television. ashton kutcher made $24 million from may of 2011 to may of this year. runners-up include hugh laurie and ray romano with $18 million each. alec baldwin and mark harmon

tied for third with $15 million. for the complete list head to n nbcbayarea.com. >> ashton may want to send a thank you note to charlie sheen. 4:50. up next, san francisco kicking off its bid to host super bowl l. we'll let you know what's next in the process. plus a death-defying skydive over new mexico doing more than just setting world records. how fearless felix's suit is now helping scientists. >> looks fun. not that far north we're looking at san rafael, a smooth drive southbound at the limit. a good flow here. we'll show you what else is going on coming up.

welcome back, everybody. right now you are watching live over san jose. it kind of looks like a big city feel there. sleepily, early in the morning. >> biggest city in the bay area. >> it is 4:53. christina tells us it's going to get hot. the bay area, are you ready to host a super bowl? later on this morning san francisco mayor ed lee will say bring it on. the nfl choosing 49ers as one of two finalists to host super bowl l in that new $1.2 billion santa clara stadium set to open up in 2014. that would be 2016 for the super bowl. this morning mayor ed lee and

other city leaders will launch the committee to run that campaign. that committee will make an official presentation to nfl owners coming the spring before the final vote. i've got to believe they have got a great shot. brand new stadium, lots of money. let's see how traffic is holding up. it's still early out there, 4:54. >> look at this beautiful view of the bay bridge. you see the camera trembling just a little bit. a little breeze going on but the breeze moves smoothly. smooth drive off of the toll plaza. the maps will show you the east bay and the approach. the only concern is this construction at 880 typical but as they move those crews we tend to see a little slowing there. also eastbound 24 a little slow all the way to the caldecott. the construction in the area, that's westbound but only one eastbound bore so we'll watch as this starts to smooth out hopefully in the next few minutes. meanwhile fremont, 880 moves smoothly as well. southbound as you're looking at

these headlights, a nice easy drive into the south bay. the nimitz not showing any problems aside from that construction zone i showed you a couple of seconds ago. it's 4:55. the new world record holder for skydiving taking science to new heights. researchers say felix baumgardner's 24-mile jump from the strat fosphere has given th a lot of information on the effects on the human body. baumgardner wore sensors that measured his heart rate, blood pressure and forces of gravity on his body. scientists will use that information to develop improved space suits and new technology for emergency escapes for astronauts and high altitude pilots. i don't know if you want to be the guinea pig for that. >> maybe i'll try it in a couple years. some daredevils in china wearing a different kind of specialized suit today. >> take a look at this. the first winged suit flying

world championships taking place this morning and we have video to prove it. >> it's like a flying squirrel. >> exactly what they are. the flaps of material let base jumpers and skydivers soar through the air with the greatest of ease. competitors leaping from the top of a mountain almost 4600 feet above sea level and then they zoom across the valley. six of the top 15 flyers are from right here in the u.s. they let the parachute right at the end go and smooth, safe landing. they'll have a champion crowned today. look at that, he's going to grab a seat and relax. >> wow, that's pretty cool. >> again, we'll let someone else try that. 4:56. how about this one, a fire ball over the bay. what scientists are saying this morning about that massive meteor that flew right over the bay area. >> amazing. and raining on the parade. the giants, they're looking for a comeback today after a loss to the cardinals. we're live from st. louis coming up.

and for all your news, weather, traffic, fire balls and all sorts of good things, check it out on facebook. just search nbc bay area news. we're pack in minutes. >> take a live look outside, embarcadero san francisco, always beautiful. great day on tap as well weatherwise. we'll check the forecast with christina. 4:57. have you heard of the new dialing procedure

for the 408 and 669 area codes? no, what is it? starting october 20, 2012, if you have a 408 or 669 number, you'll need to dial 1 plus the area code plus the phone number for all calls. o.k., but what if i have an 408 number and i'm calling a 408 number? you'll still need to dial 1 plus the area code plus the phone number. so when in doubt, dial it out!

the new moves by bay area air quality monitors after that big-time fire that burned at the richmond refinery. and a meteor streaks across the bay area skiechy. scientists working throughout the night to find out what it was. we'll have the latest details in a live report. and if we have that fog overhead you may not have seen anything at all. today, completely clear conditions yet again. great visibility out there this morning. we're talking about 80s bayside and at the coast, meanwhile 90s inland. your full forecast in moments. and we're looking at a