nbc bay area news begins with breaking news. >> good morning to you. it's 4:30, i'mterry mcsweeney. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. fire crews are on the scene of a scrap metal fire burning at sims metal management in redwood city. it's on seaport boulevard. >> today in the bay's chase cain arrived on the scene. what's it looking like to you? >> reporter: we have a lot of smoke but redwood city fire said they were able to contain this to a one-alarm fire. you may remember this is the exact same facility that caught on fire about a month ago. the fire broke out around 1:00 a.m., but unlike last time, which was a pile of junk cars

that caught on fire while being crushed, this is a pile of appliances that caught on fire. redwood city fire says they started getting 911 calls about an explosion and flames, and it was appliances that exploded. so far, redwood city says the sims metal facility, their industrial sprinkler system they have on site has been working to put the fire out, along with their trucks. and they have called in some crews from a couple neighboring areas to help make sure this fire does not spread and does not get any larger. but there is a lot of smoke being put off. right now there is no order for anyone to shelter in place to have any concern about what's going on here. but that is something that they are looking at, at this hour, as, of course, people are starting wake up and out for their day. trying to tell nearby residents to stay inside. that is not the case yet. redwood city fire seems comfortable they have that under control and they should be able to get the fire out in a matter of time. but, of course, we will be out

here this morning and keep you updated all morning long. for now, live, in redwood city, chase cain, "today in the bay." >> chase was allude to go this. sims metal facility last month caught fire sending smoke into the air for nearly 17 hours. the burning paint, plastics, car parts and appliances prompted a sheter in place for san mateo, santa clara and alameda counties. no one injured. another fire, same location, six years ago. as you know, terry, this fire burning, definitely not good news for air quality as yet today is another spare the air day. let's bring in meteorologist christina lorenz. >> good tuesday morning to you. temperatures in the 40s. we're going to see another round of unseasonably warm temps later this afternoon. another day approaching the 70s. in the south bay right now, 42 degrees. a nice clear start. you'll see the haze once the sun comes up. we do have good news when it it

comes to air quality. better conditions as we get into the mid section this week. we'll tell you why. right now, let's check your drive and say good morning to mike inouye. >> good morning, christina. i've turned our palo alto camera and tilted it up a bit. you'll notice at the top of the screen, a lot of low clouds. i was looking for the effects of that fire we have we have been talking about in redwood city and we don't see that evident right here from our shot. the good news, the visibility of the fire and the activity on the freeway probably limited toward the immediate vicinity. let's look at the maps in palo alto, the fire just off seaport boulevard, circled on the map. so that is a relatively good distance away from the freeway as far as traffic is concerned. and as far as visibility, low clouds probably keeping you from seeing any of that smoke at this point. things calm down, but we'll watch for that. also come over the bridge, san mateo or dunn barton, a note, maybe some distracted drivers for the time being. we'll continue to track that and

back to you. we're also following a developing story in monterey county, a rare winter fire burning out of control in the historic big sur. the fire has scorched 500 acres in the ridge area of the los pad res national forest. at least 15 homes destroyed, including the home for the fire chief for the big sur volunteer fire brigade. 100 people evacuated since the fire broke out sunday night. containment is just at 5%. investigators are looking into the cause of that fire. new details this morning on the house that tumbled down a hill in the twin peaks neighborhood of san francisco. take a look at this new video from overnight. the home slid down the hill about 10:30. at least one house in the area had to be evacuated. again, this happened on crown terrace. the house came to a stop near gray stone terrace. the house broke apart on the way down, and other material spilled to the sidewalk below. witnesses say the home had been

undergoing major renovations for about a month. >> it looks like it just fell down the hill. there was some shoring up that must have fallen and it just slipped is what we heard. >> no one inside the house at the time. power and gas had been shut off. investigators say the house did not hit any other buildings. 4:35. doctors at children's hospital in oakland say they will do one more series of tests to see if a 13-year-old girl is showing any signs of life. gentlem jahi mcmath was in the hospital for having her tonsils removed. her family says she started bleeding from her nose and mouth and went into cardiac arrest. the family wants to keep her on life support, but they say they were told it's now a coroner's case, and that life support will end. her family is praying for a miracle. >> if that eeg test shows any type of brain activity, they can't take her off. they can't take her off. we still got time. and we'll still have a little bit more time.

>> the family will be seeking legal counsel as the hospital continues to review the case. in san francisco, a park worker accused of running over and killing a young mother with his work truck is back in court today. 57-year-old thomas bernosski ran over christine, lying in the grass with her baby and dog. they were not hurt. he has been suspended without pay from the parks department. also in san francisco court, a sheriff's deputy accused of robbing a bank of america branch at 38th avenue and balboa in the city's richmond district. 36-year-old phillip chun tong is charged with felony robbery and burglary. he walked into the branch last november and presented the bank teller with a note, demanding $1700. the teller gave him the cash and he left. tong had recently declared bankruptcy. he is in court for a preliminary hearing. several sunnyvale residents

plan to file a lawsuit in court today in response to the city's new gun control law. the lawsuit will be filed by attorneys from the law firm michelle & associates, and is supported by the nra. among other things, the city has recently passed measures banning magazines more than ten rounds. it applies to off duty officers and hunters passing through. backers of the lawsuit say the second amendment protects those magazines for self defense and sporting purposes. a $1.1 billion penalty. that's how much a california judge is requiring three paint companies to pay to remove lead paint. attorney joe catchits office won a landmark case. a california judge ruled sherwin williams paint, and conagra grocery products new lead paint was dangerous back in the early 1900s but continued to sell until 1998, making thousands of california homes dangerous for

children. >> potentially subject to lead poisoning and brain problems. kidney problems. >> in his decision, judge claims kline berg ordered companies to pay 1.1 billion to the state of california. nine counties could access millions of dollars to pay for the testing and removal of lead paint. in a statement, a spokesperson for the defendant says today's decision is at odds with california law and judicial decisions across the country that have uniformly rejected similar public nuisance claims. the defendants are expected to appeal that ruling. a followup now. a controversial new law making it illegal for people to sleep in their cars in palo alto is on hold. city council voted unanimously to delay the enforcement of the so-called vehicle habitation ordinance for up to a year. or until the ninth circuit court of appeals rules on the constitutionality of a similar law in los angeles. the law was supposed to go into effect in february.

critics say the ordinance criminalized homelessness with possible jail time, and hefty fines. yesterday christina lorenz said it was going to be 74 on the beach at santa cruz. >> did you go? >> so i went. and guess what? >> you got a tan. >> it was 74 on the beach in santa cruz. >> she knows her stuff. >> pretty amazing. right on the mark. >> hey, i like to go to santa cruz. i'm glad you went out and enjoyed it. we have one more day of temperatures that will be unseasonably warm and then things change. good morning to you, terry and laura. good morning at home. 47 degrees to start the day in san francisco. that was our high for a couple days last week. so we're starting out in the upper 40s, comfortable conditions there. upper 30s in santa rosa and napa, looking good for a nice, comfortable afternoon in los gatos, 75 degrees there. san francisco, mid 60s there. and then we're going to see a pretty nice day today. temperatures crash as we head through tomorrow. but here is the good news that comes along with that bad news. we will see some improving air quality.

especially if we head through wednesday, thursday and friday. we'll be back in the moderate range. shouldn't be sparing the air. it is possible we will be tomorrow. today is our tenth consecutive day. likely tomorrow we'll be able to lift that restriction. so looking pretty good in that department. pretty rough and hazy, almost want to take a cloth to your windshield, mike, because it's pretty bad. >> i always think about eye drops or something. murky in the air. over here toward the bay bridge toll plaza and no need to clear your eyes. this is as clear as it gets. you can see the sparkling lights on the east shore freeway move smoothly on our maps. no problems. slowing on ashby toward cal berkeley. that's a surface street and we always see slowing here or there because it's busy through the area. i the flow off the bridge. in fact, look at these bridges here, crockett moving smoothly. carquinez bridge and venetian smooth, as well. we have a report of a wrong-way

driver in solano county. one report. chp hasn't had follow-up information, but could be an issue. continuing to follow this. the fire in redwood city, but no problems reported by chp, no visibility from our cameras. but again, this is over on seaport boulevard at the sims metal management company there. and a live look at fremont. travels nicely. traffic stop into the south bay, headlights, guys. back to you. still ahead on "today in the bay," the president under pressure from silicon valley tech giants. the meeting happening at the white house today and what it means for your privacy. and the lake observatory in danger of having to shut its doors. we're going to tell you why, coming up.

you're watching "today in the bay." >> welcome back, everyone. oakland police plan to roll out a new fleet of patrol vehicles today. the department will display the vehicle at a news conference. some of the cars include the ford police utility. new vehicles come with several extra safety features and get better gas mileage than the crown vices. the city council approved a

purchase program for the unmarked cars, and parking enforcement cars. >> astronomers at the lick observatory at mt. hamilton will have to find outside funding if they want to keep the doors open. an astronomer confirmed the university of california plans to cut funding to the observatory and turn it into a museum over the course of five years. the plan would keep funding levels as they are for about two years, and slowly cut back over a three-year period. the observatory has been in operation on mt. hamilton since 1888 and is credited with discovering asteroids, moons offupter and planets. a critical test vote by the senate on a budget deal to avoid another government shutdown for at least two years comes after the u.s. house passed the compromised budget bill last week. the senate will now have to pass the bill for it to go on the president's desk. the measure would restore $63 billion in cuts scheduled to take effect in the coming year.

it would be offset by $85 billion in budget savings over the next decade. top executives from the bay area tech giants will be sitting down with president obama at the white house today, and they're going to be talking about several issues, including the nsa spying program. for that and the rest of your news before the bell, we turn to seem mody live at cnbc world headquarters in new jersey. good morning. >> good morning. let's look at those markets right now. futures are mixed after stocks rallied on monday, ahead of the fed meeting. the central bank begins a two-day meeting today with the announcement expected tomorrow afternoon. many economists think the fed will signal it may start to cut back on its massive bond-buying program which has helped keep interest rates low and possibly make a move next month. we do get data out today on consumer prices and housing, the dow jumping 129 points, the nasdaq adding 28. president obama will meet with top tech executives at the white house today to discuss concerns of the nsa's spying

programs progress made to help fix healthcare.gov. the group includes tim cook, eric schmidt and marissa mayer. plans to keep all stores open 24/7 from 6:00 a.m. saturday morning until 9:00 p.m. christmas eve. shoppers can buy items online and pick up in stores within an hour. terry, back over to you. >> so if you get the motivation at 3:00 in the morning, you can go right down and get that toy. >> there you go. >> you never know. a lot of people like to shop til they drop. >> uncle terry, the triplets are waiting. here's your chance. >> i'm buying for the triplets? >> of course. >> i better get shopping. >> all right. want to check the forecast now. meteorologist christina lorenz. >> what about today in the day divas. don't you forget about us. >> that's right. >> and we don't like no coal in our stocking, either. temperatures looking good. we like cubic zirconia. 74 degrees in santa cruz yesterday. these were new records. it was a really warm day for

december. just nine days away from christmas yesterday. and to come in with numbers like this, very unusual. today not quite as nice. temperature wise. nonetheless, en seasonally mild. temperatures starting out even milder this morning than 24 hours ago. no 30s on the map. we'll likely fall into the 30s over the course of the next couple hours. overall, looking good. tip the upper 60s, 69 in the degrees in the south bay, along the peninsula, 67 for you. san francisco, 65 degrees. and out in the north bay, 68 degrees later on this afternoon. so here's what we're expecting. as we head throughout the day today, these temperatures are going to be nice and comfortable. and getting into tomorrow, the numbers crash. this is what you can expect as we head throughout the next three days. that hazy sunshine will persist for today. should be the last at a, though. area of low pressure. and start to mix up our atmosphere as we head through late wednesday into thursday. this could actually bring us showers. best chance looks like the south bay coast. we'll keep an eye on that for

you. thursday, cool temperatures and fierce wind. we're talking about some really strong wind developing right here in the bay area. getting into thursday, keep that in mind, a lot of people will be traveling for christmas as we get to the weekend. we'll keep you updated. back to you, terry and laura. still some cleanup yet to be done at the airport this morning after one of the terminals was flooded. kris brought this story to you yesterday morning. water everywhere, forcing the airport to shut down and evacuate terminal a. that led to some flight delays and cancellations. travelers had to use terminal b to go through security and get their luggage. but everything is back to normal this morning. >> some good news for you. christmas presents caught up in red tape. we'll get to a local nonprofit in time for christmas. the shipment of scooters and skate boards meant for the giving tree at menlo park got

stuck because of a security issue. customs decided they need to do another check. this morning the port says it's working to expedite the process and deliver the toys to the family giving tree, making it a happy christmas for a whole lot of children. the shipment includes 900 scooters and skate boards. >> that's a lot. the rock n roll hall of fame has announce its latest inductees, including a legend with local ties. >> linda ronstadt once served as a musical director of the san jose mariachi and musical festival. best songs," you're no good" and "blue buy u" also, kiss, nirvana, peter gabriel, hall & oates and cat steve stevens. a big blow to the 49ers, an injury that will keep a key must be of the offense side lined the rest of the season. >> plus, do you feel lucky? real lucky?

the possible record-setting jackpot for tonight's mega millions drawing. >> i'll get my clothes ready for tomorrow, just in case. south bay looks very smooth, folks. we'll talk about what's going on over in the east bay coming up.

welcome back, everybody. the time is 4:53 as we look out at a gorgeous -- every time, a gorgeous shot of the bay bridge with the lights twinkling out

there. and spare the air day number ten in a row. and warm but not as warm. temperatures on the way. we'll fill you in on that shortly. 49ers gearing up for the last regular season at candlestick park and have to tackle the atlanta falcons without one of their stars. bruce miller hit his shoulder on this play right there. the 49ers are not saying much about what exactly the injury is. but head coach jim harbaugh says, quote, it doesn't look good. miller will likely be side lined the rest of the season, including the playoffs. san jose state spartans won't be playing in a bowl game but quarterback david fails is, the first san jose state university quarterback chosen to play in college football's all-star game. the senior bowl. fails will be one of the six quarterbacks to play in the game january 25th in mobile, alabama. he phenomenonfinished the seaso 4,200 passing yards and 33 touchdowns.

the senior bowl gives players a chance to show scouts what they can do before the nfl draft. called the senior bowl but real estate they're not senior. >> they advanced in college. let's check in with mike inouye. >> upper classman? >> that's better. >> looking toward the lower bay, this is the south bay, san jose. look at the bottom of the screen, easy drive. and that's what we see, green around the bay. we'll look at some of your east bay slow spots that will develop early. this is the trivalley, having just a little bit of slowing out of the altamont pass, livermore, dublin, no problems here. and we see a lighter volume for highway 4. you did yesterday. mild slowing through this entire area. right now just lone tree toward contra homa. it's tuesday, so we should see heavier volume of traffic. smoother flow with the green. and look at the north bay, as well, a smooth drive southbound, 101, as you approach these curves. no delays and no problems for that north bay. again, traffic changes so we're seeing the bulk of the traffic

hit later in the morning. but we'll track this, guys. back to you. >> mike, thanks. the big question, a lot of people talking about it, do you feel lucky? excitement building. so is the jackpot for tonight's truly mega millions drawing. >> it's just huge. right now the jackpot sits at $586 million. it's the second-largest in mega millions history and the number likely to soar if people make the dash to buy tickets today. the drawing at 8:00 p.m. the odds of winning not so great. 1 in 259 million. >> nothing is easy. >> the biggest mega millions jackpot ever, in case you were wondering, $656 million, just back in march of last year. >> and they are saying, if this one rolls over, the next one could be $1 billion. >> exactly. isn't that crazy? crazy money. let's take a look at something you don't see too often. a litter of white lion cubs. >> the three cubs born at a zoo in the european country of georgia. zoo keepers using baby bottles

to feed the two males and female cubs. the other died shortly after birth, sadly. the litter will stay at the zoo for a year before decision is made on a permanent home. their parents are from south africa. the only animals of their breed at the zoo. >> still ahead, following breaking news on the peninsula. a fire burning at a metal recycling yard in redwood city. how this is impacting air around the area. and what caused this house to go tumbling down a hill in san francisco.

new details just in about a large fire burning at a peninsula scrap metal yard. what they have just told us in a live report. plus, good enough for the super bowl, but not good enough for college football. why a levi stadium why won'ti b the home of the 2017 national title game. >> sparing the air since the 8th of this movement now it's the 17th. >> and we're looking over here

toward oakland. and moving past the coliseum, talking about the change, the shift in the traffic flow as we approach the end of the year. more details coming up. >> let's take a live look outside. beautiful bay bridge in the distance. tuesday morning, december 17th. this is "today in the bay." from nbc bay area, this is "today in the bay." good morning to you. and thanks so much for joining us. i'm laura garcia-cannon. >> i'm terry mcsweeney. breaking news on the peninsula where a scrap metal fire is sending large plumes of smoke into the air at redwood city on seaport boulevard along the bay today. "today in the bay's" chase cain on the scene. what can you tell us? >> reporter: terry, this is now a two-alarm fire and fire officials are asking people if they're anywhere in the vicinity of redwood city to stay inside with their doors and windows closed. this is not a shelter in place order. they're just asking you to take ec