that breaking news right now in the south bay, fire crews on the scene battling this two alarm house fire. good morning. i'm terry mcsweeney. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. this is at a home on south 17th and east san antonio street not far from san jose university. bob redell got to the scene. we understand two people were able to escape? >> reporter: they were. this fire does speak to the value of having a smoke detector. it was a man and woman in this home. the man there, 42 on the right, he is the man who lived there. he said it was the smoke alarm that woke them up around 2:00 and enabling them to get out

safely. him and his wife, you can see the fire is out right now. but it was not without a fight. the fire department actually had to call for a third alarm which is unusual given that this is a single structure home. fire chief, the reason they had the to, this is an older home, it has a balloon structure, in other words t fire has an easier way of chaneling up the walls inside the walls, something it's not easy to do in newer construction. in older construction the flames are able to channel up the walls, there are two attic spaces so it leapt from one to the other. when you come back out live you'll notice there are a couple of holes they had to cut in the roof so they could ventilate the flames. when they did get here you could see the fire was pretty involved, especially on the front portion of the home. the fire department doesn't believe there is anything suspicious. they don't know what caused it.

it's their understanding that the origin was in the front area which is the dining room and perhaps maybe on the outside of the driveway. another challenge for the firefighters was on to the left you can see the radiant heat on that white blueish house next door started bubbling some of the paint and started catching some of the shingles on fire. that shake shingle, they are highly flammable. so that was one of their main tactics when they got here was to keep that exposure from catching which they succeeded in that. three-alarm fires. all of the firefighters are okay and the two people who live here are fine. obviously the home is severely damaged. no word on the cause. reporting live in san jose, bob redell, "today in the bay." >> thanks, bob. we'll continue to check with you throughout the morning. >> we also have breaking news in milpitas where police are investigating reports of a home invasion robbery. it happened about midnight on tahoe drive near yellowstone

drive. the police department says homeowners told them three men entered the home, took stuff and ran away. the police department would not say if the men broke in or were let in or say whether the men were armed. peggy bunker is at the police department. we'll have a live report from her coming up in about a half hour. >> in the meantime, we check in with meteorologist christina loren. this thursday morning, good morning. >> good morning. you know, it's not too cold out there. we told you we would have soupy conditions and they are defin e definitely taking place. give yourself extra time. you are going to encounter slick conditions and maybe drizzle. let me show you the radar this morning because we're just starting to get more active. you can see some cells developing. right over the bay bridge. we expect more throughout the next couple hours, all of this moisture is pressing toward tahoe, and we need that snow up there. i'll let you know how much we expect and we have a better chance of rain into the weekend. we're going to keep this going.

let's check your drive and say good morning to mike inouye. >> we're looking at the south bay. 101 northbound. yesterday we did see wet roads because of the mist and drizzle. right now san jose shows drier roads for the time being, looking at the maps we don't see a lot of slowing. overnight road crews are doing their work. the issue bob's talking about the house fire and on the freeway northbound 17 at lark, reports the off ramp may have a lane blocked. debris in the roadway. we hope that chp will clear that as they clear the car no. injuries and a light volume of traffic. we'll track los gatos and the rest of the bay. >> we have a developing story, two homes destroyed, two damaged after a massive fire near santa cruz. it happened on highway 9. investigators are still trying to figure out how and where that fire started.

all the people who live in the four homes made it out okay. highway 9, however, was shut down for several hours while firefighters battled the flames. >> growing concern this morning over foster farms chicken after cockroaches were found in a california plant. this is not the first time. the usda is shutting down the plant in the town of livingston between merced and this plant employs 3500 people. this is the fifth time they spotted the pests. the plant along with two others in california were alreadying investigated for a nationwide salmonella outbreak that caused more than 400 people to get sick. some say they will buy other brands until foster farms is given the all clear. >> it's disheartening to see a brand like foster chicken is not controlling the sanitary requirements of the processing.

it's unacceptable. >> as of right now there is no recall for the chicken from that plant. foster farms released this statement saying, quote, a single incident is not acceptable and we are committed to a zero tolerance policy. new this morning a santa clara university student is recovering in the hospital in oregon after officials say someone ran over him on purpose. we want to warn you the following pictures might be graphic for some. 20-year-old connor was visiting his family in portland for the holidays after a new year's eve party he and his friends were walking down a street in north portland when a man in a minivan or small suv pulled up and offered a ride. the son and the friends declined and the man drove away but made a u-turn, hit him from behind the driver hasn't been found. mcmahon suffered a broken pelvis but doctors expect him to

survive. >> the man accused of kidnapping and killing sierra lamar may enter a plea. garcia torres was arrested in may of murder charge those lamar's body has never been found. lamar disappeared on the way to school. garcia torres has been delayed several times because lawyers are sifting through evidence in the case. he's also charged with carjacking and attempted kidnapping related to attacks on three women in 2009. >> new details about the deadly shooting of an 8-year-old girl in oak last last year. two women say he admitted to killing the girl to avenge a friend's murder. darnell williams of oakland is accused of knocking on the door where 8-year-old alisha was having a sleep over and then opening fire. she was killed. two other children and a woman were hurt. yesterday in court williams' ex-girlfriend took the stand saying williams told her he went to the house to hurt the family of antoine york who he thought

was responsible for killing his close friend. >> happening today, governor brown will introduce his budget proposal for the 2014-15 fiscal year. it calls for the state to spend almost $155 billion, that's about a 5% increase over the current year. it includes spending about $70 billion on k-12 schools and putting $1.6 billion in a rainy day fund. the budget calls for funding increase of more than $142 million for the uc and csu systems. >> the flu is spreading quickly across the bay area and one local hospital has run out of rooms to treat sick patients. regional medical center is setting up a large tent to treat patients with flu symptoms. this is video of a smaller tent set up yesterday. doctors say this helps keep patients with the symptoms away from others. they say the flu is hitting adults unusually hard this season and the h1n1 or so called

swine flu strain is more prevalent this season. this is the first time the hospital had to set up a flu tent. turning to the weather, where the worst is over for nearly half of the country suffered in the coldest temperatures in decades. water falls on lakes frozen. beginning to start to thaw. the severe weather blamed for at least 17 deaths in the midwest. it's estimated to cost the u.s. economy about $5 billion. temperatures expected to warm up throughout the weekend. >> what about our weather here? let's check in with christina. >> good morning to you. everybody at home. well, we need the rain desperately. we have a little bit to show enthusiasm morning, a better chance as we head throughout this weekend. i want to start with your radar. the front is starting to dip to the south and we're getting a little bit of measurable drizzle now a little precipitation right at the immediate coastline especially san francisco. not a lot to show you this morning. here's what we're working with. you may not be very impressed

yet. we're going to see more of this throughout the morning hours. do give yourself plenty of extra time especially if you take the little ones to school. temperatures are going to end up comfortable. we're going to hit the upper 50s and low 60s, jumping out of the 40s and 50s where we are now. and we'll see plenty of clouds. then we have another chance for rain a good looking chance as we get into the weekend. i think you'll be able to get out, stick around, we'll let you know where and when the showers arrive. let's check your drive. >> good morning. we had to get up early. fremont, we're looking at the truck scales, these folks working and then moving along northbound 880 through the area and southbound at the limit. the map shows you 880 and 680 heading toward mission and from mission moving close to the limit. the yellow only 58 and 59 miles per hour at the worst. i checked those sensors, not a major problem. no major surprises. the tri-valley moves nicely at speed for 580 westbound

including the altamont pass in to the livermore area. we'll watch as that builds t the volume heading over to the east bay. looking at san rafael, the north bay as well where traffic is very light right now. no problems though we are watching as the conditions continue to change. christina talked about the coast and the weather there. changes for the bay this morning. >> thanks, mike. >> still ahead on "today in the bay," the major company looking to hire hundreds of people in the south bay. >> possible trouble for new jersey governor chris christie. he's in a jam over traffic. we'll explain coming up. >> plus, she nearly died after being shot in the head three years ago, but now gabby giffords is jumping out of a plane. why she says she did it.

welcome back everyone. a very good -- thursday already morning to you. >> you had to think about that? >> i did. it's early. it's 4:44. a new jersey legislative committee will try to find out today who is responsible for intentionally shutting down part of a busy bridge part of an alleged political payback by chris christie's staff.

in e-mails subpoenaed a top christie aide tells one of the governor's bud es at the port authority time for some traffic problems in fort lee. it appears the four-day traffic jam that followed was orchestrated to punish the mayor of fort lee, new jersey who did not support christie's re-election campaign. the governor strongly denied he had knowledge about the shutdown. >> none of this surprises me. i'm embarrassed for the people involved. i'm completely disheartened. >> either he doesn't know what's going on in his front office or there is lying going on. >> david willstine has been called to testify about the e-mails but is trying to fight the subpoena. governor christie's camp announced he will hold a press conference later this morning. >> president obama will announce major moves on the war on poverty today. at an event the president is expected to announce that los angeles, san antonio,

philadelphia, southeast kentucky and the nation of oklahoma will be the first five of so called promise zones. the promise zones will get tax incentives and grants from the federal government to help communities tackle poverty. in l.a. the city could receive up to a half billion dollars to improve education, housing and public safety. >> looking for a job, we've got news you can use. a new target opening up in the south bay is looking to hire some 300 employees. starting today target is hosting a job fair for its new store in south san jose, located in the village oaks shopping center. it's scheduled to open in march. that job fair will continue through saturday at the work to future office on foxworthy avenue. if interested target says it's best to apply on its website ahead of time. it appears to be a growing trend, a new report shows more lenders are using social media sites to help determine a

person's credit worthiness. for that and the rest of the news before the bell we turn to bertha coombs in new jersey. good morning. >> good morning, terry. before we get to that story i wanted to tell you about how we're looking, futures are pointing to a higher start after mixed close for the markets on wednesday. investors reacting to better than expected jobs data, private sector growth from payroll profits, more than 230,000 jobs created and also the minutes from last month's federal reserve meeting, officials decided to cut back on the stimulus program because they didn't think they were working as effectively. today we watch for new unemployment filings ahead of tomorrow's jobs report. that data due out at 8:30 eastern. the dow will start at 16,462 after falling 68 points, the nasdaq rose 12 points and starts at 4165. meantime, one more reason to be careful about what you post. more lenders are using social

media sites to determine the credit worthiness of consumers, raising concerns among regulators and watchdog groups. "the wall street journal" reports that the lenders are looking at things whether people shared that they lost their job. the practice is largely used by smaller start-ups but fair isaac, a giant in the industry, provides credit scores to 90% of lenders says it may start incorporating social media as well. the the wireless wars are heating up. t-mobile firing the latest shot is now going to cover early termination fees for individuals as well as up to five lines per family for anyone who switches from their current carrier. customers can receive up to $650 in credit after trading in their phone. this after at&t said it would give credit specifically to t-mobile customers who switch. this spat is even happening in real life. the t-mobile ceo tried to crash

a paerty in las vegas at the consumer electronics show. he got thrown out after he tried to crash it. they say it came from the ceo but apparently the security person didn't know who the ceo was. >> right. >> he was looking for publicity. he's getting more than he bargained for. >> but he didn't get to listen to mcelmore. >> you can turn on the radio. >> let's check it out with christina loren. i was there at the guadeloupe reservoir yesterday and it's getting so low. >> yeah, it's not looking great. that's why the showers that we're seeing as we head throughout the morning and over the weekend are so welcome. good morning to you. thursday, you are so close to the weekend now. a lot of people back to work after the holidays this week. so it might be a long one. we're looking pretty good. we have showers on the way, temperatures mostly in the 40s

and 50s. a little bit of activity on the radar, we're seeing more now just off the coast of marin county and light cells developing near san francisco. give yourself extra time with weather coming in you never know, that could slow you down. it's better to be on the safe side when we have conditions like this. temperatures today are pretty comfortable. not too bad, right on track, averages feeling like winter here. 60 in the south bay, 63 in the east bay and 61 degrees in the north bay. and remember, you want to take a peek at the weekend the seven-day forecast is right here. but i want to take you through the changes that are headed our way. we're going to go on a roller coaster ride as we head through today light showers, cloudy finish so the clouds thicken up throughout the afternoon. our next weathermaker arrives late saturday, and we are expecting showers for the greater bay area. nothing heavy but any drop in the bucket as we've been reporting is going to help our situation and help the hills that are brown right now. this morning also going to get a little bit of snowfall right along the spine of the sierra

nevada. we need that snowfall as well. we're going to have a live update from tahoe in a few minutes so stick around for that. actually more in the 6:00 hour. you here with us, it's going to be a good one. throughout 8:00 a.m., we'll see a little spotty activity. not expecting much. throughout the rest of the morning we'll keep track of these showers. this is the wind mill farm that gets picked up because our radar is that good. so i'm watching the showers. right now back to you, terry and laura. >> former arizona congresswoman gabby giffords will appear on the "today" show to talk about freefalling, three years after being shot in the head. giffords marked the anniversary by jumping out of a plane. she wrote on her facebook page, quote, today i grieve, i remember and i take another step. i'm stronger now so i have the opportunity to do something i love. giffords was one of 13 wounded in a shooting at a campaign event in tucson in 2011.

six people died. she spent several months in the hospital where she had to learn how to walk and talk all over again. still ahead on "today in the bay," the latest and greatest in the auto industry now on display in the south bay. >> a mission to mars t project under way hoping to get people living on the red planet in the next ten years. are you available? >> we'll look toward nasa, i cut off the roadway but there it is, thank you, 101 moves smoothly on the peninsula. we'll talk about your east bay and tri-valley commute coming up.

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welcome back everyone. one of the largest auto shows in the bay area shifts into high gear. the four-day international auto show kicks off this morning at the mchenry convention center in san jose. there you can check out the hundreds of the latest and greatest models from muscle cars to plug-ins. coming up in the next hour we'll introduce you to a very new mercedes that takes luxury to a new level. we're talking front seats with a massager and four fragrant options for your travel needs. >> that's absurd. well, wonderful. from travel on land to travel in space, a group of 1,000 finalists is a major step closer to heading to mars. seriously. >> ultimately, four people will be chosen -- >> four. >> to settle on mars.

i hope they get along. >> no kidding. what are you going to do if they don't. >> a reality show. four more will be sent out every two years. it's part of the mars 1 project, a mission to colonize the red planet. people worldwide will be able to vote and help choose the final astronauts sent on a one-way mission to mars. >> my wife made sure i got a couple million dollars of life insurance before i signed up. i'm not sure why. no, i mean, and my wife and i discussed this. it's very difficult, the process of leaving and never coming back. >> i don't know if your wife wants to send you. >> she doesn't mind apparently. >> the project is privately funded and its creators hope for donations from the public through its website. would you go? >> never. never 18 million years. >> you, mike? >> it might alleviate traffic. >> less cars.

i wouldn't go but my wife might send me. we'll have to ask her. looking here, the bay bridge toll plaza, an easy drive. smooth flow of traffic. the map shows you oakland, heading north to the coliseum. one lane blocked north of davis. tri-valley not a big concern a. crash reported. altamont pass, reports that a cow was hit on a roadway, so that will be an issue as far as crews on the local roadway and we have livestock in the area so we'll watch those approaching 580, so far no problems on that freeway. back after this break.

we're following a pair of breaking news stories. a homeowner injured during a home invasion robbery in the south bay. police are telling us coming up in a live report. >> and firefighters on the scene after a house fire in san jose flared back up.

bob redell just talked to the homeowner. he'll have a live update next. >> good thursday morning to you. here's something we haven't seen for a while -- showers on the northern california radar. i'll let you know when some of these cells will move into the bay area and when we have a better chance of rain. we're so close now. >> we're still following the flashing lights moving through oakland as well as the crash at the altamont. sounds like a truck versus bull. >> i thought you said it was a cow last time. >> a live look outside. it's thursday, january 9th, that's a picture of san jose and as we heard, it's going to be changing real soon. this is "today in the bay." good morning everyone. happy thursday. thanks for joining us. i'm terry mcsweeney. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. we have an update to breaking news we're following in san jose this morning where crewsre