we're keeping an eye on south africa where there are new details overnight on the health of ailing leader nelson mandela. the latest on his condition next. farm workers ready to strike in just a matter of days. we'll let you know what other bay area transit agencies are doing right now to try to keep the bay area moving in case they go through with the threat. we hear a lot about san jose's fight to bring the a's south, but new developments today could help keep the team right where it is. details next. right now nothing can stop us from giving you this beautiful shot, kind of blocked in there. maybe the light is not on there. we'll figure it all out today. the traffic flows smoothly early on this thursday, june 27. this is "today in the bay."

just about 4:31 on a thursday morning. good morning everybody. i'm jon kelley. i want to say the time twice here. i don't want to do that. we know it's early. >> it is, very. i'm laura garcia-cannon. a lot to get to this morning. let's check the forecast with christina. >> good morning to you, laura and jon. thanks for waking up with us on a friday eve as we like to call it. temperatures, look at these numbers, feeling like summertime all of a sudden, hard to imagine just a day ago we picked up over two inches of rain in the north bay. for today we'll head in the extreme opposite direction. that means heat and almost dangerous heat headed our way. we're going to really climb as we head through the weekend and next week. i'll show you that seven-day forecast and we'll tell you heat relief takes all morning long. let's check with mike inouye, a cool down with the cool guy. >> thought you were talking about the low clouds.

that's cooling things down as well. jon showed you this picture. the bay bridge disappears into the darkness, low clouds drifting across our shot, showing us half the shot. lower deck we did see flashing lights because of a crash. no lanes reported blocked just yet. we'll track this. meanwhile in oakland, a crash cleared north of the coliseum that has cleared from the roadway. construction crews are southbound at the coliseum, also as well as northbound approaching 23rd. we tracked it but nothing unusual for that stretch. back to you. new this morning, there are conflicting reports surrounding the health of nelson mandela. this morning south africa officials not conforming early reports that mandela is on life support. just about an hour ago one of mandela's daughters says he remains in critical condition. she made the comment when she and other family members stepped outside the pretoria hospital to collect flowers and messages of

support. she described her grandfather's condition as stable saying it has not changed since sunday. we're keeping an eye on a south bay courtroom today as the man accused of kidnapping and murdering cierra lamar is once again expected to face a judge. torres still has not entered a plea in the disappearance of 15-year-old cierra lamar more than a year after his arrest. his plea has been postponed several times, most recently because his defense team had technical problems reviewing surveillance video and other evidence. lamar disappeared back in march of 2012. even though her body has not yet been found, garcia torres is facing murder charges. also in court today, the man accused of stealing a luxury yacht, then running it aground in pacifica scheduled for another hearing. a judge has determined lesley garner is, in fact, mentally competent to stand trial for the theft of the $2.7 million yacht from the sausalito harbor t.

yacht ran aground in linda mar beach in pacifica hours later. garner's defense team says he's delusional and believed the yacht was his. 4:34. this morning b.a.r.t. workers will beality stations across the bay area warning of a strike. union leaders and b.a.r.t. management have until 11:59 sunday night to come to an agreement, but we're told wages and benefits are a major sticking point. if there is a strike, hundreds of thousands of people who crowd on to b.a.r.t. trains every day will end up crowding onto freeways and other transits like caltrans. >> we have the ferry. that's pretty much the only option and i don't want the ferry to be packed. >> the metropolitan transportation commission says it will spend nearly $20 million to beef up alternatives for commuters like buses an ferries. this morning and later this

evening pride week perfectly timed kicking off in san francisco's castro district. tonight at the w that bik kickoff party will take place there and pride organizers planning for a bigger attendance than usual after yesterday's supreme court ruling on prop 8 and the defense of marriage act. celebrations in the castro after the historic ruling went well into this morning. >> the deejay had the muse ifk flowing and thousands of people spent the night getting their groove thing on. that party started at 6:00 p.m. and, of course, included lots of good vibrations, hugging, kissing celebrations. a lot of people said they've been waiting a very long time for this day. >> we worked so long for this, i can't help just laugh. >> did you ever think you were going to not win this thing? >> yeah. when i went to bed last night i was scared. >> my girlfriend is brazilian,

and i would love to marry her but that would be a really bad idea until today. >> smiles all around. police say the other good news here, the crowd was well behaved and very positive. >> across the bay, jon, the bid to keep the a's could get a boost today. they may end a legal dispute over howard terminal that would likely free up 50 acres of waterfront land for a ball park. but the oern says he doesn't think it works out financially. he added that the organization is closing in on a five-year extension with the city that would keep the team at the coliseum through the 2018 season. >> two teams gearing up for this year's america's cup say they plan to file a formal protest of last-minute rule changes by the race's director. they want the america's cup jury to review the rule changes put in place after the fatal capsize

of the emeritus team boats back in may. that team also was upset about the change to the rutter elevator which help lift the boats out of the water. the jury won't be able to review this rule change until it arrives on wednesday, just four days before the start of the louis vuitton cup. 4:37 right now. today pg&e work crew also be in san carlos updating equipment on natural gas pipelines. crews will install new automated valves for pipes at commercial street and old country road. that's near the san carlos airport. pg&e says the natural gas will be vented during that operation which is normal and safe. people living near the area might smell a gas odor in the air. work is expected to be done throughout the day. let's check you back outside and check in with christina loren. a three-letter word, hot. >> get ready for the weekend and

outdoor f-u-n. it will be really nice for your outdoor plans. if you've been trying to get to the beach, your conditions will be stellar starting the day. this morning i want to start with your temperatures. it's still balmy out there. we're running between one to five degrees cooler than 24 hours ago. look at all these numbers. we're in the 60s in concord, oakland, sunnyvale at 65 degrees to start the day. so it is going to be a hot one. i'm not going to sugarcoat it by any means. yesterday was warm and it will be even warmer as we head through the afternoon. at noon today, 81 degrees inland, up to 93 degrees at 4:00 p.m. that means if you haven't had to use it for a while, you'll probably turn your ac back on today. 82 bay side at the coast. 70 is where you'll get if natural ac. let's check our drive with mike. >> good morning, christina.

i've looked at the other side of the bay bridge. as the clouds drift in, looking from the emeryville side at the incline. you can see it disappears into the fog there as well. treasure island, still reports of activity at the upper deck. no lanes seem blocked by the chp. someone did report there was a vehicle around the treasure island off-ramp with someone sleeping inside. that's not a good place to take a nap by any means. the latest update is they found nothing. that's good news. another look outside shows how things are shaping up a little farther south as we take a look at the maps and we show you the interchange for castro valley y, an easy flow of traffic across the san mateo and dumbarton bridges. thank you very much. today marking a major milestone for the electric car industry. guess what? it's happening right here in the bay area. the president and ceo of mitsubishi motors north america

will meet with san jose mayor chuck reed at san jose city hall today. they're expected to announce 50 new electric cars that will soon be hitting the streets for the cities of san jose, los gatos, camel and mill valley. those are tiny little rides, all electric. the deployment, the largest kind in the entire nation. >> i'm sorry. i just pictured your knees kind of up to your chest. >> but i get green mileage. >> there you go. beep beep. 4:40. bay area companies looking into space currency next. >> worldwide, international. new trouble for the embattled chef paula deen this morning. we'll tell you about the latest company or companies to drop her products. and a landmark vote. the senate getting ready to vote this morning on a bill that could change the lives of millions of americans.

vrnlths welcome back everyone. it's 4:43 right now. we're monitoring the president waking up in senegal. the family taking a trip over

there. we will monitor what he is saying here this morning. if there's anything breaking we'll of course bring it to you. paypal wants to make it possible to pay your friends in space. paypal galactic is a project that seeks to lay the groundwork for interplanetary currency. it has support from apollo 11 astronaut buzz aldrin. he says as human exploration expands, tourists traveling outside the earth will still need access to money. they'll hold a press conference to introduce the project this morning. new fallout this morning for paula deen. products from the celebrity shelf pulled off shelves from another major retailer and more could soon follow suit. bertha coombs right now at cnbc world headquarters with the latest details along with a look at how the markets are doing this morning. so far, bertha, it's safe to say

good morning for the futures. >> it is a good morning for the futures. i'm still thinking about the toll on the milky way whether you have ez pass where you wouldn't have to bring out change because it would probably float away. way too much overthinking. even though we had the not-so-great report on gdp showing the economy grew less than expected, it could be a case that bad news is good news for some investors in the market. we get bad data, that means the fed won't be so quick to end the stimulus programs. you'll recall last week the markets fell out of bed at the thought the fed was ending qe 3 as some people call it. today we'll get weekly unemployment claims, personal income and spending and pending home sales. the dow, we'll see whether it gets back above the 15k mark,

starting at 14,910 after rising 149 points. the nasdaq sparts at 3376 after adding 28. a deal by congress to help student loans from doubling could be on the verge of collapse. the government-backed stafford loans will jump from 3.4% to 6.8% on the interest rate if they do nothing. the bill on the table now would link rates to the financial markets which could overt a costly rate hike now. the measure is not going to support and it wopt be supported without stronger protections for students and parents. home depot, the latest retail saying it will no longer list paula deen branded products on its website. this comes after walmart says it's cutting ties with the former food celebrity shaef. they sold cookware and health and fitness products in 4,000 u.s. stores for several years. target, kmart and seers say they

are evaluating the situation. tough time for paula deen. back to you. >> very, very tough. bertha, always appreciate you keeping your eye on it for us. we'll check back with you later on. right now i'll check in with meteorologist christina loren who has a look at our warming forecast. >> it's going to be quite a contrast from yesterday. >> a smoker. >> a smoker. we'll cut off the humidity by about half. that's the good news. good morning to you. temperatures this morning, upper 50s, mid 60s, not too bad out there. don't need a jacket. this is the time of year our days are so long. we're starting out so mild. you don't need the jacket to start the day. we'll let you know if that changes. this is the time of year we're get together the transitional period just before it starts to get really hot. we'll see a really hot stretch of weather starting today. this morning that mild start is part of the reason why. also we have really no wind to cool us off. it's kind of stagnant out here today. you can open up the windows in your home. we have good air quality thanks

to the showers that roll through early this week. a beautiful day to hit the beach, 75 degrees at 2:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m. about 78 degrees. santa cruz will be the warmest beach city. temperatures in san francisco right at room temperature, 72 degrees for you today. hot in santa rosa at 88 degrees. men while low 90s on the way to livermore and fairfield. let's take you through the hottest part of your seven-day forecast. it will get very hot as we head throughout this weekend. if you thought it was hot yesterday, we only ended up in the upper 80s. today we'll tack on maybe five to six degrees on warmth. tomorrow we crank the heat even more. sunday, blistering heat in the bay area. sunday and monday, 103 degrees. in perspective, guys, down in southern california where they have an excessive heat warning today, they'll see temperatures close to 120 degrees in the desert down there. it could be much worse. we're not getting the worst part of this heat wave, not just yet. back to you guys.

>> that is like walking into an oven down there. 4:48. new this morning, the american executive held captive by his own employees for almost a week is finally free. we're told chip starnes was released early this morning from a factory on the outskirts of beijing and is now at a local hotel. workers took starnes captive after rumors starting swirling that the plant was closing and the workers were going to be laid off. starnes told nbc news his company plans to keep the factory in china open. a war of words is going on this morning over the nsa leaker. the u.s. now pressuring russia to hand over edward snowden. we have brand new video from outside the moscow airport where snowden is believed to be hiding out. russia says snowden is, quote, in transit and has not officially entered their country. yesterday defense secretary chuck hagel asking russia to do the right thing and hand snowden over. hagel says snowden has broken

the law and damaged the country. the hours' long filibuster by texas state lawmakers who stopped the vote on controversial abortion restrictions may have been for nothing. texas governor rick perry say it is legislature will return to work on monday for a 30-day session. this will be the second special session to try to pass abortion restrictions. perry made the call yesterday saying too much important work is remaining for the people of texas. earlier this week the ft. worth representative wendy davis spent hours on the floor trying to filibuster long enough to avoid a voed on the restrictions. the senate poised to pass historic immigration reforms as early as today. the bill includes a path to citizenship for millions of immigrants here illegally as well as billions in spending to secure the border. the bill has bipartisan support in the senate. if it passes, it moves to the house where its future is less certain. house republicans want border security first before talking

about a path to citizenship. it is 4:50. as we showed you moments ago, president obama already up this morning on the first leg of his visit to africa. actually just a few hours ago the president and first lady arrived at the presidential palace in the republican of senegal. he wrapped up his meeting with senegal's president and he spoke as well. president obama will soon be meeting with regional judicial leaders. later this morning the first couple will visit guiana, the location of the house of slaves. >> people of senegal are huge fans of the first family. for this visit two of the country's most popular singers paying tribute to the obamas. ♪ mr. obama, welcome back to africa ♪ ♪ we love america >> they are talking about the president's visit to senegal. this is a short tv segment that presents the news in a musical format. this time it was, of course, all

about the president. very creative. the duo spends about 50 hours a week producing their musical weekly segments. >> going to give us a run for their money. >> kind of rapping the music there, bringing back the 0s vibe. i like it. the creme de la creme of women's golf comes to the south bay. we'll have details next. >> looking forward to that. the 49ers play that used twitter as his own personal animal shelter. we'll explain this one, how it breaks down next. >> showing no break downs in palo alto. look at the top of your screen. a lot of low clouds farther north.

to watch. for the first time ever, the bay area playing host to the best female golfers on the entire planet. the u.s. women's open will be played at san martin's core deval golf club in the summer of 2016. lit mark only the third time that event has been held in california and the very first time in more than 30 years. former secretary of state, current stanford professor and new augusta member condoleezza rice will be serving as the honorary chair of that tournament. >> very cool. 4:55.

49ers playing making headlines after he used twitter to find his dog a new home. this picture was posted on his twitter page yesterday. he thanks davis for the newest member of his family, a 4-month-old english bulldog. he's not explained why he needed to give away the dog, but he seems to be happy that he has a new home. >> that english bulldog had a big smile, very happy. >> exactly. >> maybe he couldn't keep it because he travels. >> nice that he was able to get it a good place to live. >> free. >> can't beat that price. >> what else is free is our traffic report with mike inouye. >> i am cheap. the golden gate bridge, the most expensive bridge in the bay area. right now you're also paying as far as the time. lowering your speeds, taking longer across the bridge just like yesterday. pretty dense fog. that's an issue for visibility.

clear across the san mateo and dumbarton bridges. we saw slowing last time. over here, a nice drive through the tri-valley, but slowing right around isabelle. no incidents reported. but there might be cones there still. >> 4:57. we'll continue to keep an eye on the health of nelson mandela. marla tellez watching all the news coming out of south africa this morning. she will have a live update on his condition coming up next. plus new details we're learning about one of the suspects cleared in the death of a millionaire. the strange way his dna ended up at the crime scene.

new this morning, people starting to arrive at a cathedral in new york city where the funeral for james gandolfini will soon start. we will take you to new york coming up.

and the warnings are going tout b.a.r.t. riders. get ready with a plan b in case of a b.a.r.t. strike as early as next week. i'm christie smith. i'll tell you what b.a.r.t. workers are doing in san francisco this morning. so far no delays for the b.a.r.t. system right now. we are looking at slowdowns because of the fog as well as the east bay spot where we had a lot of issues for the tri-valley. you know when you're starting out, 5:00 a.m., temperatures in the mid 60s, it's going to be a scorcher across the bay area. i'll tell you how long we'll be in this heat, when lit break and when we might see a return of showers. a lot to talk about in your full forecast. maybe enjoy the cool start to the morning, taking a live look outside the san francisco bay bridge glistening in the distance there. yeah, you made it to thursday. it's june 27th. this is "today in the bay."