you know what may be in the lanes. >> we have a live look outside at the bay bridge. it's wet out there. it's thursday, february 27 it is. this is "today in the bay." good morning everyone. thank you for joining us. i'm scott mcgrew. >> and i'm laura garcia-cannon. the storm has moved on but some of the damage evident. check this out. our director almost slammed into this branch on her way to work. this is just the start of it all. new storm moving into the bay area. we have our microclimate weather team in place. let's start out, there is our girl, meteorologist christina loren. >> and our ground is already saturated so with more heavy rainfall in the forecast, that concern for flooding is heightened as we head throughout the next 24 hours. we're getting light activity. i would say go ahead and put something, a hoody on to protect your hair or clothing but you don't need the umbrella all day. as we head through this

afternoon i think we'll see a fair amount of sunshine later on today. i want to show you what we expect here in the south bay. this is where we're going to get hit the hardest by the next system. we accumulated over three inches of rainfall in los gatos yesterday, why we bring in anthony slaughter live for us this morning. anthony, tell me about what it look likes out there. have you seen a lot of people having problems getting through the slick conditions? and tell me about that lightning as well. how you doing? >> reporter: well, first of all i've got my hoody as you mentioned. and as you mentioned the rain let up a lit le. but it's very quiet. seems as though los gatos is one of those sleepy towns. nonetheless, as you mentioned we had heavy rain overnight and we're out here now because we had gusty winds and we're on storm watch because as you know, with all of that rain, any little wind could bring trees

down. we're keeping an eye on things, so far so good. winds are calm where we're at now and downtown los gatos, but we'll continue to track that, the real big thing to make note of as you're telling folk, is that another storm is coming. with the rain we've seen, gusty winds expected tonight and tomorrow, it will be a different story when we wake up tomorrow. that is for sure. we'll be tracking it. got my hoody so i think i'm good to go. >> thank you, anthony. you know, you look good out there. one thing everybody will notice is that sheen on the roads. it's slick. you want to give yourself extra time. and yeah, count on a rough ride to work tomorrow morning. so for today this is what you can expect. lingering showers, slow clearing, clouds over the mountains, then into tonight our next round begins. i'm going to time that out coming up in my next report. we want to see how the roads are faring. we bring in mike inouye. you are coming in clutch last night. what are you watching now?

>> thank you. a lot of red. this morning a short section but tied to what we're talking about. san jose a live look shows you the sheen on the road. this is the video farther south. the overturned big rig off of the freeway. it's cleared from lanes but lanes are closed southbound 101 right at dunn is where you are forced off because of all of this activity. an investigation is to what caused that crash and also the fact they have a cleanup necessary fish and game arrived. this is a fuel tanker and now it's in the dirt, this could be an environmental issue. we'll show you the effect south as you travel south from san jose through morgan hill. dunn is where the closure is. you'll use the monterey road to monterey highway. that's counter commute for most of the traffic. northbound out of the area still we're watching that, this will last well past 6:00. >> so far we received about an

inch of rain with more to come tomorrow. but the big question is will it impact the drought at all. peggy bunker joins us with more details. one could hope, peggy. >> isn't that right, laura. you hope when you look outside i was watching the rain yesterday at my house thinking is this going to make a dents. it was a welcome sight. however, about an inch or so in places, you might have guessed is not enough. for instance, even in san francisco if they get their two inchings of rain they expect it will be much less than the normal amount. eye openers to highlight where we are. 100% of the state facing drought conditions. the entire state is in a drought. san francisco as i mentioned they only received about 65% only 35% of the usual amount they received in the city. think about the agricultural impact. $44.7 billion industry.

this will abnational dent. you consider the wild fires, drought condition, of course they create ideal conditions for wild fires. last year's drought contributed to the rim fire which destroyed about 250,000 acres, california's third largest blaze in history. also this really tells the picture here. look at these images. this from groogle earth in 2012. you can see a lot of blue, a lot of water. now let's look at it 2014. baron. you see the water levels. full sum lake dam, look that the photo when it was at 97% capacity. now look at 2014, just dry. those pictures highlight the severity of this drought it's going to impact so many elements of life in california. yesterday california commit es approve $687 million drought

relief plan, most would accelerate water recycling projects while targeting certain communities in dire circumstances with low water supplies. the plan is headed to a legislature for a vote approval today. >> thanks, peggy. the nbc bay area weather team keeping an eye on the storms as they roll in. we'll have team coverage during our newscast tonight. and tomorrow morning on "today in the bay" we will keep you up to date where the storm is and what's happening on the roads. >> an update on breaking news out of the south bay. a portion of 101 still closed in morgan hill as crews clean up a tanker crash, spilled thousands of gallons of gas. the truck was headed southbound. christie smith live at the scene. any word on when we get open? >> well, we're told possibly one lane by 6:00.

we have a lot of other lanes. when you come this way you are forced off at tenant, that's as far as you can go. this is where a tanker truck slid off of the road on its side a. crew is here working on the cleanup because again, that tanker was carrying about with 8,000 gallons of gasoline. we're told that four,000 spilled. hit the center divide, then the guardrail, went across the southbound lanes and then hit that tanker truck. the tanker rolled on its side into a ditch. had just picked up its load so it's full. the driver went to the hospital complaining of pain. also the department of fish and game is checking on the water ways. it's unclear how much of that fuel may have spilled or dripped into a train.

that's 50 to 70 feet from the crash site so they are looking into that. at this point no charges filed. the cause is under investigation. still something to keep in mind. you want to look for alternate routes. even if one lane opens it will be quite the logjam where they try to clear this seem. >> thank you. >> before you go, though, if we can get a clarification, you are at tenant and where they are offroading? the chp they were taking people off at dunn. >> we had to get off at tenant. are what happened is there is an arrow, telling you to get off. it's a little bit confusing to see what is on the other side because there are so many flashing lights. it looks like they are on the northbound lanes as well so. we did see a come of cars get back on but they seemed to be getting bushed off where they

are. you can't get much farther. they have this area blocked off. there are phones and chp officer here. for us coming down we were in south san jose, this was about as far as we could get. >> probably if you could make your way to monterey highway could be the key. let's check in with mike. he's got a look. >> that is the key whether you are forced off at country or down to pennant you president can't get passed there. we'll look at our live shot here and then our map. the south bay, we have slicker roadways but not a major issue. we're looking at a smooth flow southbound 101 is the concern. the northbound commute is not a factor right now. lower the speeds. right here out of morgan hill down to san martinez. the full closure of southbound 101 because of the over turned big pig. get over to monterey road.

takes you south, it sounds like what christie said you cannot get back on at tenant because of the actheist. continue through city streets. manage the speeds on city treats. this is not a highway. it's called monterey highway. it's a surface street. we track the closure in the south bay, moves alock the peninsula. the green zone through livermore there is an issue. slippery roads. out of dublin a crash is blocking the slow lane involving a sedan and a big rig. it's out of lanes there. heading to the dublin interchange, heading to cub lin but the bigger issue is an early morning crash. 205, about 1:00 in the morning, this is providing a little break of traffic out of the altamont pass. so folks are getting a break there. over the san mateo bridge. we'll look and we see a smooth

drive. mind advisory issued by chp. that's because of gusty winds. you got the weather meters. >> the anemometer as it were. good morning to you. live radar shows you we're dealing with scattered shower activity. and yeah, it's dangerous out there because of the rain is not coming down which means you're not going to have your wipers on. ponding on the highway so you want to take it easy. you don't want to lose control and hydr hydroplane. your live radar, mostly shower activity owe strr santa cruz mountains where it will stay for the most part. the next come hours. our next system is really moving in quickly. i stopped the clock at midnight. and the difference between this system and the one yes is this swell going to come through further to the south. all of our metro areas likely to accumulate additional inch and a

half at least of rainfall. we're going to have that steady rain all the way from midnight to 10:00 a.m. on friday. we're talking about a lot of rainfall in the south bay. we're always shadowed by the mountains. yeah, we're talking about three inches highest totals expected here in the south bay. so let's look at what we are expecting as far as the accumulations go. we stop the car for you a. break by saturday but 3 insures in san jo jose. our roads are not equipped to receive those. that could be dangerous so we're going to be here. also working the evening shift tomorrow because this is going to pack heavy wind as well. we're hear for you. back to you right now, scott and laura. >> the interim government accords. we know where the ousted president may be hiding out. >> the storm that dumped heavy

rain moved east. you're looking at live pictures. bob is out there in the mountains. he vale a live report.

welcome back. we're of course keeping our eye on the weather today. this is a look at our radar. you can see as the storms move in we have experts and reporters positioned all over the bay area this morning. the most recent storm dump add good amount of rain on the south bay, didn't stop shoppers from showing up at santana row. use the umbrellas they haven't used in some time. most of them didn't mind a little rain. meteorologist christina loren will be along in a few minutes to tell us when the next storm

is going to arrive. >> developing news out of you crane. dozens of pro russia gun men stormed a building and raised a russian flag. ukraine's acting president warned russian forces movement of troops will be considered military aggression. the region is on the opposite sit side of you crane. a respected russian news organization is reporting that ukraine's fugitive president viktor yanukovych was seen in a moscow hotel. he report lid asked for russia's protection from quote extremists, an official is quoted saying they will protect him. russia apparently considers him to be the legitimate ukrainian president. he is wanted for the murder in the deaths of dozens of protesters who lidied in independence square. in kiev protesters continue to

occupy independent square. we moved on to another script now. >> let's do. let's talk about tesla stock. it's soaring after the company announced it was building a massive battery factory. hampton pearson is live with all of that. good morning. >> how you doing, scott. it's not enough to help the futures now in negative territory. this after stocks yesterday eeked out a small gain and the nasdaq touched a 14-year high. maybe that can give a lift to the market as we move to the opening in a little over an hour from now. back to you guys. >> all right, hampton. thank you. let's check in with christina this morning. you have got all kinds of things on the radar. >> good morning to you. you know what, these are the kinds of things that we need to see. more heavy rainfall in the forecast for tonight. i want to show you the live radar, and yeah, we're going to start in tahoe. yes, yes, yes.

a lot of snowfall coming in today and tonight. we are going to get a winter wallop in south lake. i want to bring in our own bob redell live with us this morning out in king veil. bob, how is it coming down out there and what does this mean for the snowpack survey later on today? >> reporter: well, good morning to you, christina. we've been out here a few hours, we are in king veil, not far from where the chain control starts here on eastbound 80 as you're heading toward north shore of tahoe. we've seen it coming in fits and spurts. we got a couple of inches that have come down in the past few hours that we've been out here. we've had it in the past 15 minutes where we had nothing, now you can see this here and you are correct, the department of water resources, that's a state agency, will be conducting its third snow survey for the winter season a little later this morning around 11:00. now that will be taking place at

echo summit along highway 50 into the south lake tahoe area. that's the third snow survey this year when they go out and measure the snowpack. you can see them doing it there t one we were at about a month ago. according to that survey california snowpack was at 29% of normal. they expect that number to improve today but not much. not even with this storm, not even with the dumping of snow a few weeks back. the levels are still expected to be anemic. i bring that up because that illustrates how bad this drought has been. we're coming off the driest year on record which was 2013. the state's water managers are concerned because the snowpack provides about a third of california's water supply into rivers and streams. here's something we haven't seen much of this winter. take a look at this snow. plows. they have been back out on highway 80 and other roads for the last several hours to make the roads as safe as possible

for drivers on the way to tahoe, reno, so they can enjoy the snow and possibly hit the slopes, i say possibly because some skiers have given up on this winter altogether. >> yeah. because there's no snow. i didn't want to go up. it's not really worth going up. >> reporter: so, if you do have plans, it is thursday, tomorrow's friday f. you have plans heading up to the snow tomorrow and we still have this storm as meteorologist christina loren and others have been repredicting, you will need a four-wheel drive or tire chains and the chains right now in effect at my yak, which is west of us back toward sacramento. again, they were predicting snow at the 7,000, 7200 elevation. at that would drop and here we are in king vail around 6300, 6400, and we're getting a nice dumping here.

reporting live, bob redell. >> bob redell, you look fantastic in the snow. i can tell by the way that snow is coming down it's not that really fluffy powder you want. you really want the fluffy stuff. you see colder for that case. throughout the day temperatures are going to be comfortable. let's get to your radar. this is what it works out like. first round of rain comes through tonight. and we're expecting the heaviest between 4:00 a.m. and 11 a.m. so keep that in mind. throughout tomorrow thunderstorms also come back in the picture. the rain is going to subside as we head throughout. friday night into early start. you'll be able to get out for the weekend. we have a lot of rain, 0 tension for urban flooding. i'm going to show you how much rain we expect, where you live coming up. right now i'm going to send it over to mike inouye. >> we did have scattered reports

of urban flooding through san jose, those cleared. slick roads around the bay. lower the speeds. the green blocks, that's the weather data tied in. that's where you get especially slick. all over a sheen on the roadway. we're talking about wind. chp issued a wind advisory for the dumbarton, both high rises where they are susceptible and also the bay bridge and the antioch bridge across the bay, to the north bay. northbound 880 slowing but the southbound size we have a disabled vehicle. so that's an issue as you head south into the area. overall the rest of the commute looks pretty good. through the tri-valley not a problem out of the altamont pass. into the area out of tracy a big crash, 205 that doesn't affect

and provide a break in through almost. here the east shore drive in the green as you approach, we'll end with the bay bridge camera. back to you. >> all right, mike. thank you much. >> new this morning three people are dead, three others seriously injured after a small plane crashed on the hawaiian island of lanai. we do not believe it was connected to the crash. the plane crashed minutes after taking offal 40 the island airport. the maui news remember website they are planning on the island earlier in the day and may have been aboard the plane. >> the fight over hot sauce in a southern california city. >> plus the oscars red carpet rolled out in preparation for sunday night f. you missed the nomination, jimmy fallon has a

recap with a little emhelp from the micro machine guys. >> this is the time of year that bring me cheer. sit down and crack open the beer and lend me your ear. then there is captain phillips, a captain on a ship. take a dip. dallas fire puts up a fight. gravity in space. next up is her, if you're in the zone watch a man fall in love with a bone. i'm not even going to ask if you've seen nebraska. then there is fill a me that if you know what i meana. it's "the wolf of wall street." will he get the oscar. i'm feeling groovy. back to you, jimmy.

well, the debate gt fiery last night over a southern california hot sauce factory some residents say emits eye

stinging fumes. the irvin dale council held a public meeting about the fate of the sir ra cha factory. they have claimed about the fumes. in november the factory was partly shut down, now the council could decide if the plant is a public nuisance and order a complete shutcounsel. the owner says it's proposing -- >> making you choke up. >> it is. with new deals and the problems they hope to work out some kind of com promyself mice. >> my perfume. >> it's lovely but i'm going to have a cup of coffee. >> a plane filled with smoke lands. what passengers are telling us. >> we'll continue to follow breaking news. part of the highway shutdown because of a tanker crash. christie smith on scene getting an update. we'll have a live report.

good morning. thank you for joining us. i'm scott mcgrew. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. as one storm leaves another approaches. this morning we have our microclimate weather team in place. let's start without meteorologist christina loren. >> hey, good morning to you, laura and scott. everybody at home. i want to make sure you're ready for what could be a slow drive to work. i'm still trying to tell you -- tally up the rainfall totals. pet a who that two, we picked up over an inch and a quarter in parkside, san francisco and an inch in walnut creek. in san jose we accumulated an inch of rainfall. and we have an even more potent system on the way. tahoe is getting the snowfall, of course our bob redell is live. we'll show you what the snow looks like coming up in a few minutes. i want to show you where the showers are. it's mostly in the south bay along the santa cruz mountains. there is a lot more heavy rain on the way.

throughout tonight we bring in anthony slaughter live in los gatos where it has been raining. and yeah, definitely looks slick where you are. not just talking about you sir. how are people dealing with this weather this morning, have you noticed anybody spinning out? anything unusual out there? >> reporter: you know, i think the most unusual thing was my photographer allen and i were driving up there was a flash of lightning across the sky. it hasn't happened since about 3:00 this morning when we did drive up here, but the thing to note here is this is the calm for the next storm system. you notice as you look at this graphic we have seen winds in los gatos up to 66 miles per hour overnight and more is to come through the overnight hours so this is the calm before the storm. the thing to make note of, today is the day to prepare. clean the storm gutters, make sure that you have flashlights ready in case power goes out and we'll be here tracking it as the next storm system does move in

this evening, and tomorrow this time is going to be a different story. we're going to talk about heavy rain, power outages likely. the good news, we don't have a lot of wind this morning. where we are in los gatos. but again, that will change as we head through the evening hours. make sure you're prepared. we'll track it all day long. >> thank you, meteorologist anthony slaughter. we want to make sure we're here for you to keep you two steps ahead of that storm system. as we pog tonight that next batch of heavy rainfall moves into the bay area. stop that clock at midnight you can see the moisture is going to be very rich all across the board. so i'll tell you how long we're going to deal with this rain, how much we expect and what it all means coming up. let's check your drive. >> first of all we'll start with the weather related issue, the wind shaking our camera as we look at the bay bridge. the bay bridge is not a problem as far as the flow but we have the wind advisory for the bay bridge, san mateo, dumb brten,

the east-west connectors might get caught with a gust or two. we show you the approach. not a problem. i'll talk about some other issues, slowing through the area, around the bay, but the big concern goodness, jumping around, the big concern is south of the south bay, 101 is closed right now. you are forced off you'll find slowing at dunn. our christie smith is out there. at tenant is there an overturned tanker. you have the details. what do we have going on? >> reporter: good morning. the latest information we have is one lane southbound could possibly reopen by 6:00 this morning but there is a lot going on. we're at tenant where if you come in the southbound direction where you basically are forced off the road here this morning. everyone getting off. this is because just down the road from here there is a tanker on its side that spilled gasoline. we're told that 14 homes in the area, about 1,000 square foot area are being evacuated as a

precaution. i'm told the smell of gasoline in the area is very strong there. about a quarter mile up the road from where we are there are flashing signs telling you have to get off after a car on southbound 101 lost control in the rain on slick roads, in fact, it's still sprinkling, that car veered across the center divide, across southbound lanes, slammed into a big rig tanker truck, this according to the chp. the car went back in the center divide and the tanker ended up on its side in a ditch. it has just picked up its load of regular alf of that, about 4,000 gallons spilled. the department of fish and wildlife is here because there is a drain near this spill about 50 to 70 feet away. there are hazmat teams trying to clean it up. it appear nos one was seriously hurt. >> the vehicle that lost control initially, that subject was not injured. he was released from the scene.

the driver of the big rig was transported to a local hospital for complaint of pain. >> reporter: again, as for those evacuations, 14 homes i'm told, 13 of those families are staying with friends but the red cross was called our here to help one family. again, we're going to try to move closer to the scene to see what's going on there. everyone getting off here at tenant and we're told that the cleanup as you can imagine, 4,000 gallon goesing to take time. reporting live, christie smith, "today in the bay." >> thank you, christie. we have an update on breaking news in the south bay. a fire forced 18 people including eight children out of their homes. flames broke out before 12:30 this morning at a town house complex on chenoweth avenue. by the time crews arrived three of the four units were on fire.

the flames so large firefighters had to call for backup twice. one is said to be destroyed two others badly damaged. everyone made it out safely no. word on a cause. >> new details as well, we just learned a problem with the air conditioner caused the cabin after delta plane to fill with smoke as it landed at the oakland airport. >> leave all of your belongings and get off this aircraft. go. we cannot breathe back here. go. >> this dark youtube video was taken by a passenger. you can hear a frustrated flight attendant trying to get people to get off the plane. leave your luggage. the plane was flying from l.a. to oakland. firefighters said they did meet it on the runway. everyone made it off the plane just fine. fire investigators have not revealed an exact cause but the airline says they believe the smoke was from the air conditioning. >> people talking about the

rain. we received about an inch but more to come. the big question is will it impact the drought? peggy bunker joins us live with more details. we can hope, peggy. >> we can. at my house yesterday i was watching it come down thinking is this going to have much impact but it looks like no, not yet. hoping tomorrow will be more positive. it was a welcome sight to see the rain. as you mentioned one inch of rain so far and it's not enough. yesterday's storm apparently just the warm-up for tomorrow but we'll come up shofrmt let's let the picture tell the story and take to you aerial pictures. lake shasta you can see in 2012, you see the pretty healthy looking boat docks, a nice water level. the water up to the green. then look at this. right now, 2014 where you can see just parched. the boat docks are sunken down t water level way below the trees there. right now if we go to lake

oroville. this is from google earth. lots of room there. now 2014 all of those boats folded into the center of the lake. the surface area reduced with the reduction of water. so let's talk with rain troubles. san francisco, 35% of normal rainfall accumulation. san jose only 26% of normal. and oakland 31% of normal. so essentially across the board if you round it up we're missioning two-thirds of our rain. committees approve add $687 million drought relief plan. most of that would accelerate water conservation efforts and recycling efforts. also targeting certain communities that are in dire circumstances because of the lack of rain. the plan now headed to the legislature, they will vote on that later this afternoon. hoping tomorrow we'll get more rain but boy, sure looks like it's not going to make up. >> we need the super soakers to

continue. >> let's take a live look at the sierra. this is where that big storm dropped rain on us. it's snow there. bob redell is there getting a first-hand look. he's going to have a live report coming up in less than 10 minutes. i know mime mom would say bob, wear a hat. >> put a hat on. you lose the heat from your head. we'll check in with him. it's coming down and we've seen it accumulate. we want to check in with christina. >> we need that snowpack. that is the key ingredient to curing this drought. what i can tell you we have another one to two feet of powder on the way to tahoe. showers are winding down in the bay area, all of that moisture is racing towards the sierra nevada. as we head through tonight that heavy rainfall returns. let me give you an idea of what we're in for starting at about 11:00 p.m. tonight, our next system moves in. this is going to track further

to the south. then the one that came through yesterday. it's going to bring in the atmospheric river. talking about heavy rainfall totals as of tonight. we stop the clock for you right at 11:00 p.m. you can see still getting that deep green at that point. but yes, right offshore we have moderate and heavy pockets of rain at that point getting ready to move over the bay area. we stop the clock. 11:00 p.m. to 11:00 a.m. steady rainfall, potential to accumulate maybe additional two to three inches of rain here in the south bay. that could really leave a mark. we're talking about dangerous conditions tomorrow morning when you wake up and make your way to work. stop that clock, we're going to pick up three inches in san jose, two inches in livermore, two in santa rosa. and over an inch in san francisco. so we're going to let you know the areas we're watching for flooding and downed trees. good morning to mike inouye. >> and good morning to your rush. the first verse here before 6:00, that is north 101 under

680. you see it's starting to form on our maps. there are the headlights. the sheen on the roadway again reminding you about slicker conditions. let's look at the maps, overall things moving but the top of the screen, 101 slow at the scene and also turning from yellow to original. 55 miles per hour range. and north 87 just got word that there is a solo car spinout. so be careful. it's at the sky port off ramp. the closure for morgan hill around tenant we're following that as well. we have the disabled vehicle, the stalled out car getting onto the freeway. not a problem for the freeway burt getting to the freeway you'll have an issue after you get your coffee. a drive into and out of sunol, the castro valley wye over to -- the crash has the slow lane blocked. we're seeing slow downs in both directions by the distraction by

the lights. slower through the dublin interchange. we have the westbound 4 slowing for antioch. that's on schedule. >> 5:41. change is coming to your local supermarket. joining the fda to tell you what's new. >> and tats take a look at the sierra where that storm hit the bay area. gave us rain, gave them snow. we'll have a live report.

welcome back. we are watching the weather, taking a live look outside at the san mateo bridge. you can tell it's slick roadways throughout once again. and a look at the radar, more heavy rain headed our way for late tonight. we'll get the details in moments. >> those nutrition fact labels on nearly every food package could get a new look. michelle obama and the head of the fda will announce proposed

changes. these include bolder bigger type to make the labels easier to read and make serving sizes more realistic and use measurements easier to understand. the changes will take several years. >> state water officials plan to look at the snowpack today. >> let's hope it's big. the most recent storm, will it be enough? bob redell joins us live from kingvail with the answer. the snow has been coming down on you. sir. >> reporter: yes, it is. good morning to you, laura and scott. we're a third time up here in the sierra this season. another time we're seeing snow come down and when you look at the picture you think that's a lot of snow, probably seen a couple, two to three inches in the past few hours. we're in king vail on eastbound 80. that's got to be enough. when you talk to the state they are likely the department of water resources are going to say

no, it's no. they are going to do their third snow survey, snowpack survey at 11:00. this is the third one for this winter season. taking place at echo summit heading into south lake tahoe. basically doing a measurement to see how deep that snowpack was. to give you perspective when they did this about a month adue we're out there, they only had about 12 to 18 inches there. that's about 29% of normal. yes, we had a lot of snow since, but they are not optimistic. the snow since is going to be enough to make a huge change as far as what is needed to provide for the reservoirs and the runoff and that sort of thing. if you don't realize this snowpack out here in the sierra, normally provides about a third of california's water supply in terms of runoff in the creeks and streams. water management not optimistic this is enough.

we spoke to someone who lives here, does not share that pessimism. >> you're optimistic? >> of course. i mean, you know, couple weeks ago we were talking about hardly any. all of a sudden the last three or four weeks we're up 50%. can't beat that. >> 50% from where we were which wasn't much. >> good lord we deserve it. doing a lot of praying. >> for the rain, the snow? >> any kind of moisture. >> reporter: that last man there is on his way from the bay area to novato, not only praying for the snow but probably for four-wheel drive. he made a pit stop here at a gas station to get some snow chains on his wheels. he's going to need them. there are snow chain rules in effect starting at nyak west of

where we're at as you head toward sacramento. you can see if you look at the roads, they have the plows out. they came through here in the past five minutes. i can hear the semis, the chains, especially as you head up toward the donner summit and into the higher elevation where there is more snow. remember, we were hearing snow being at the levels of the 7,000 foot elevation and here we are at 6300 and we're getting a nice dumping. reporting live in kingvale. >> people are going to think you are the guys that help you put on the chains. >> make a couple of bucks. >> more than that. >> you need to be careful as you drive to work here in the bay area. >> you know what, we're wanting to keep you as far as in advance in terms of how to prepare. tomorrow morning looks to be a really rough commute. we have heavy rainfall on the way starting tonight. i want to start by showing you the storm system that is coming

in. and then let's take a look at our rainfall totals so far. so, right now we're at three inches in los gatos, petaluma, 2 for cupertino. you add additional maybe 1 to 3 inches to these numbers, our ground is saturated. the chance for flooding is heightened throughout the day today. in combination with heavy rainfall moving in and that round of rain last night. we're going to see some gusty winds, so that chance for downed trees increases throughout tonight into tomorrow. right now temperatures are mostly in the 50s. it's going to be nice. the reason we're getting so much moisture, the system is coming in from the south. when these are cold they don't pack a lot of moisture. it's a blessing for our farmers. that looks good. snow levels at 6,000 feet. then when this next system comes through we're not expecting a lot of snowfall at the lower

levels, this is a warm system. we stop the clock at 11:00 p.m., that's when the main front starts to push into the bay area. after that we've got about 12 hours of steady rainfall between 11:00 p.m. and 11:00 a.m. and i'm talking about maybe three inches in san jose where our roads are not equipped to receive those. so the chance for flooding enhanced but mike and i will be here as we are every day. let's see what else he's working on. >> we're looking forward the bay bridge where we did have a lot of rain, now that little bit of a break. you see the sheen on the road. you can see a couple of rain going on there. the puddling and ponding in the parking lot could be an issue on the ramps around the bay. excuse me. i shouldn't have had a granola bar for breakfast. a smooth drive as we look at the maps, show you what things are like. a smooth flow around golden gate field. coming out of the maze. you saw the cash lanes starting

the backup. ease into your morning commute. we're going to look at the maps moving now across the bay. we'll look toward the san mateo bridge and the dumbarton bridge. travel through this area, there we go. watch the high rises because you are likely to get caught with a gust or two a. minor fender-bender around sky line. it sounds like the lanes are clearing but it's only two lanes in each direction. the earlier crash west 580 has cleared from the roadway. still activity around the shoulder but all lanes are clear. the tri-valley drive close to the speed limit for southbound 680. looking at westbound 580 out of the altamont pass mild slowing. as we follow the rest of the commute into the south bay, the northbound route for 101 and 87 into downtown. of course we have the closure south of here. back to you.

>> mike, thank you. the nbc weather team is going to keep an eye on these storms. team coverage during our evening newscast as well as the next large storm arrives. tomorrow morning in "today in the bay" we'll keep you updated what's going on on the roads, that starts at 4:30 in the morning. if you have been thinking about installing surveillance cameras, they can help teaming up with the scott creek neighborhood to provide information about using and installing surveillance cameras. people can find out what other neighbors are doing. this is tonight at the fremont fire administration large classroom in city hall. 3300 capitol avenue. >> pg&e will demonstrate a tool to find the condition of pipe lines. this is video of the smart pig. unlike standard tools they can make tight bends around corners and turns.

the pig can send back sophisticated data. they stepped up the efforts since the explosion in san bruno in 2010. >> this morning we could be one step closer to seeing a $2 toll increase. the committee will consider hiking the fee this morning if approved it goes on to the board. the toll for nonfast track cars would increase by a dollar to 7 and then 8 in 2018. the bridge district says the money is needed to cover a $142 million projected shortfall. >> that's why you're driving. 5:53. one member of the oakland a's with a catch of the year.

wack back. gold glove winner josh reddick used to great grabs but in spring training against the giants he made what has been called his greatest catch. >> look at this. in the second inning, reddick, look at him, like spider man climbs the fence, leans over the top of the wall to rob morsee of that shot. reddick does it again. takes away another home run. he's got another one. after the game reddick told morse he owes him dinner. the a's beat the giants 10-5. >> let's check in with christina. >> they are in the 70s and 80s and remember, you know, you

can't watch those preseason games. the first one on nbc by area. you can listen to them on kndr the sports leader our media partner. showers are scattered, light. we've got a heavy round of rain on the way as we head to tonight. temperatures aren't going to be too bad. in the 50s headed to the low 60s. mid-60s in some cities. 61 in san francisco and 63 in the south bay. we are expecting the heavy raes rainfall, we are back to you, scott and laura. >> thanks so much. it's 5:57. an early morning fire forces a number of families from their home. what we're learning. >> we continue to follow breaking news part of highway 101 closed after a tanker overturned. some homes are evacuated. christie smith getting an update on when things will be reopened.

breaking news.

a stretch of southbound 101 shut down in the south bay. new details about the fuel spill from an overturned tanker. >> people wake up to smoke and flames at a townhouse. why firefighters couldn't save one unit. >> an nbc bay area microclimate weather alert. we're live in the sierra with a look at how much fresh powder is falling. >> we have a lot on the way. more rain moving into the bay area as we speak. we're talking about the potential for flooding in your neighborhood. even though you may not be one of the parts of the bay area that usually sees the heavy rainfall, it's coming in heavy tonight. i'm going to time it out to your doorstep. >> in the aftermath of yesterday's rain, before tomorrow comes in we still haveto deal with slick roads. some incidents are related. >> we have a live look outside downtown san jose with ominous beautiful clouds or a little of both.