fire crews called to three separate bay fires overnight. >> and get ready for this wind, it's going to crank. >> but don't let the wind make you cranky because i'm warning you, you're going to have to hold on to keep things moving smoothly across that bay bring. >> few people are cranky this morning because we just had christmas. or hanukkah, whatever you celebrate. you probably have some new presents in hand. a live look at the bay bridge this morning. it is december 30th and you are watching "today in the bay." >> announcer: from nbc bay area, this is "today in the bay." >> a good tuesday this morning.

thank you very much for joining us. >> and i'm kris sanchez in for laura garcia-cannon. christina loren has our weather. >> the coast is where we're really seeing the strongest gusts right now. as i drove in this morning, parked my car, saw a couple of frosty vehicles out there. your windshield gets much colder than the surrounding air. as we head throughout the day today, your specifics or going to be chilly. as we head throughout tomorrow, we'll lose the wind and the coldest temperatures of the season so far. >> breaking news in the south

bay this morning where investigators are looking into a rash of new car fires. they all broke out overnight near the san jose cab bell border. bob there were a string of car fires in the same area so are they connected? >> we don't know yet. three car fires tuesday night, 23 bam you're looking at the remains of this one fire. you can see that the car has already been removed. there has been a strong smell of gasoline in this parking lot, right up against the river walk apartment come plkts. and this was around 2:30 po now,

at this map it shows all that was at around 12:20 this morning and the first one at 21:05 south basskum in campbell. >> as can is minute oo fan has not said yet they flp. but as of our last check with the fire department, no one has yet been arrested. bob redell, today today.

crews are look to recover at least 40 bodies in the wroj after dan and kris, this is the confirm's of the worst fears of the families with 162 people on board. right now the focus is recovering the bodies. reports are that large waves have made it difficult to retrieve them. 15 passengers, 7 crew members in indonesian waters. family members, and we've soap the images of them, they've been waiting for updates where flight 81 f

81 and because you have a good safety record doesn't mean you're immunity to events like this. hospitals in surabaya are preparing for images. >> thank you very much, stephanie. stay with us all later long. stephanie is very closely tracking peace in meantime, in

south ships are quietly combing another area. the flight flying from kuala lumpur to beijing, despite a single oshan, not a single trace that plane has been found. >> i got to tell you, it feels much colder and it's because of the wind. it's a straight due north wind, which is against our prevailing detail.

it. >> will we're actually going to get to 60s before the storm track returns. from tuesday and wednesday next week, we're talking with the weather. first let's hear about your drive with mike inouye. >> yesterday the metering lights were turned on at 7:08 a.m. these last couple weeks of the year, we tend to see a very light commute. the wind shaking our camera in emeryville. the rooftop cam what shakes. i did look at your ma'am and now

that the web center sooup rehoped. this morning it looking pretty good. christina is talking about the potential for black ice. that's the thin sheet of ice that blends in with the asphalt over the roadways. the rest of the drive is a nice, easy drive, including over the altamont pass. >> california's new hidden gas tax goes into effect january 1st. that could bring the price of

gas from 15 -- up 15 to 75 cents a gallon. the goal of the tax is to cut down on the state's greenhouse gas emissionscurrent average place for a gallon of gas is 2.27. in california the average is $2.65 but you see. >> so you thought it to be the truth? >> i don't know. i have to look to find out. how one man is paying it forward. come tell you about that ood. nks. the most exciting vants of the season, going on now.

over a million californians have gotten something that's been out of reach for far too long. health insurance.

how? they enrolled through covered california. it's the health insurance marketplace where you'll find a range of plans from leading health insurance companies that offer you the best combination of quality, rates and benefits. you can compare plans side by side, choose the one that best fits your needs and enroll online. coveredca.com is also the place to find certified experts in your area who can answer your questions for free, and help you enroll. and, through covered california, you may get financial help to pay for coverage. it's based on income, and 4 out of 5 people who have enrolled qualified. if you don't have a health plan, or you do, but you want to make sure it's the best plan for you, now's the time to visit coveredca.com. but to get covered, you've got to get going. open enrollment ends february 15th. visit coveredca.com today.

>> announcer: you're watching "today in the bay." >> the president, george h.w. bush could be released from the hospital today. officials say he is breathing normally and could get final approval to go from his doctor. a few years ago he was treated for two months after coming down with some bronchitis. >> new york's mayor will have a sitdown with the city's police union today. mayor bill de blasio will meet with the leaders of the five

many think the mayor is too sympathetic a protester. >> for a quick check of the futures, we turn now to handon do. >>the nasdaq closing unchanged at 4806. sam, back to you. >> open for some consistent growth in the market.

the saying goes what happened inning in sfrchg. and organizes are of the annual fireworks show say that white new year or not, the show will go on. hassing is fallso friend frm

factor. want to bring your coat with you. you want to bring your scarf, it can be flowing behind you and you want gloves as well. if you're taking a bike or walking today, teak care base it going to a very chilly day. taking a bike, i would not advise it. ocean beach, pacific beach as we head throughout the day today, fierce wind on the way. and a wind advisory in place starting at 7:00 a.m., continuing through noon till tomorrow. temperatures in the 50s today so chilly conditions. jofr all not too bad. we'll see a lot of sunshine. a lot of people still trying to head to the shop willing

centers. maybe you don't have to wake up early tomorrow morning, maybe you have the day off. mike, a lot of traffic today but not so much tomorrow, huh? >> maybe today, a big maybe. i'm cushioning it because i have tomorrow off. don't call me, please. remember january 10th, they're going to close that bridge for that weekend, put that movable center divide. right now it's movable because it's cones. it lab different barrier in the second week of january. we'll talk about that later on. southbound directions with these headlights move slowly. we're hoping it stays as light as yesterday but it is tuesday, we may see more cape cod the

yellow will basically add 16 miles per hour. we're looking over toward the tri-valley, the earlier construction over here has cleared. no more problems there. over in the tri-valley, we do have a crash reported there as you are getting on to eastbound 580. as we look at our camera in dublin and livermore here, we see the track continues without interruption and without problems either, i guess interruption. back to you guys. >> opponents of california's plastic bag ban have submitted over 1 million signatures hoping to reverse it. if there are enough signatures that be valid, the secretary of

state can suspend the law and order a new measure be put on the ballot in 2016. >> when somebody does something nice in anticipation someone will follow suit, we call it paying forward. >> when someone pays it forward, they don't know who is going to pay it forward. somewhere in the neighborhood of 30,000 cars drive past the livermore waste water treatment plant on isabelle heave every single day. most of the people in them probably thinking the city paid

a professional artist to create the murals they say spanning one quarter of the property. very few would guess it was really the guy in the corner office. >> yeah, i do get that a lot when people come out to the and this say they're buffalo. ? had been himself hobby even longer. >> you it's a nice outlet to relax, i commute, have a stressful job. it's not to come home and paint a little bit. that's where it came from. >> along the way, darren's done a few other high-profile jobs but none has been as rewarding, he says, as those murals at his workplace. that is, until his latest work. >> i mean, when else do you get a chance to make a difference

for somebody who's sick? >> at age 17, darren's son, joe, was diagnosed with leukemia. kaiser permanente would become the family's next three homes for three years. it's certainly, hough, they were given their very first night that stuck with darren, a care package of snacks for new patients and their families thanks to an anonymous donor. >> it's the coolest thing that somebody you don't know is thinking about you. sorry. so i got to thinking at that point what could i do? and i paint so i figured that's what i could do. >> and that is just what darren did. he took three weeks off from his job at the water treatment plant and working day and night

covered an entire wall and the ceiling of the pediatric family waiting area. >> because you see the people there with little kid and people getting worse diagnoses than we got. and if there was some way to take somebody's mind off of that and just get them out of the moment for ament, that's worth a lot. >> darren says the mural is also a way to say thank you to the nurses and doctors who eventually safd his son-- saveds son's life. >> a story with a happy ending, too. if you know of somebody doing something nice, garvin would love to harr from you. go to our web site and search bay area proud. >> and helping out

. following up here a couple days after christmas, we'll take a live look at the las vegas strip. why is that relevant you ask in let's get to that part of the story. the new year's eve icon with a rich tradition, the ball for times square will be tested today in possibly snowy las vegas. the glow will come from more than 32,000 led lights in four different colors. more than a million people are expected to jam up midtown manhattan for the celebration. >> ever been down for that? >> that's one of those things

i'm okay to watch on television. >> i agree. >> seven puppies left tore dead in a dumpster in southern california now have good homes. >> the 2 day-old puppies were discovered in susanville. local rescue groups were unable to help the puppies so a nevada group stepped in. so far that group raised more than $9,000, more than enough to get those puppies nursed to health, feed them and get them adopted. >> a lot of stories this morning that have good endings. 5:25. now to some things that -- i guess it depends on your taste. do you like a cold winter, christina? >> whether you like it or not, it has arrived. it's going to be one of those days, brisk and chilly. 54 in the south bay, 55 on the

peninsula. that wind is really going to start to crank as we head throughout the second half of the day. want to talk about that storm track returning. looks like as of next week it's back and we're looking towards three out of five of your work days next week dealing with rain. stick around if you're interested in that forecast. a know a lot of people are because of our drought situation. also, we are going to get a measurement of the snow pack. >> thank. >> i like that tie, mike. >> thank you, christina. it looks like a tie that you might have picked out as a gift. and you did. >> here's the high rise for the san mateo bridge. not too much of a factor but i

do see the camera trembling as well. across 80, 84 and for the rest of the bay, light, easy day so far, a slight build for the tri-valley. >> that is a nice tie. >> don't leave us out of the celebration. >> a new and scary incident overnight involving airasia flight. >> and we talk with a young bay area boy just 5 years old who was attacked by a coyote and his father, who rushed to his aid.

and a very cold start to what will be a cold snap. this is tuesday, december 30, "today in the bay." >> good morning to you. thanks for joining us. i'm kris sanchez. laura garcia-cannon is off today. >> and i'm sam brock. we need a quick check now of the forecast with christina, who said we're getting a weathermaker, but not necessarily of the same variety we've seen in recent days.

>> that's exactly right. usually when we're talking about weather maker this time of year we're talking rain. but not this one we're talking cold wind and a cold blast of arctic air. it's going to feel very winter like, though we're not going to see any rain until next week. the air is very drive. if you're prone to chapped lips you may want to get that ch chapstick out. >> now an update to breaking news.

searchers trying to retrieve the bodies of the 162 people aboard the airasia flight that disappeared over the weekend. so far they say they have found 40 bodies. stephanie chuang has been tracking the story. >> it's 8:30 at night in indonesia. and just in on the report, family members of some of the victims are leaving singapore to indonesia today. other families are already in indonesia and have been waiting for updates from surabaya. when the first images of items from the plane were seen, one man had to be taken away on a stretcher.

>> they had radar on this airplane until the air plan went into probably a very dense part of that thunderstorm. >> today on day three is when searchers and dozens of helicopters, planes and ships first spotted debris. we have images of suitcases and debris that have been we covered. hospitals in surabaya are preparing for bodies to come in and identifying them. it appears to be an extensive recovery effort that will go on for some time. >> also breaking this morning, another incidents involving a

airasia to tell you about. an airasia flight overshot the runway because of high winds. passengers reportedly had to jump down emergency chutes just to get out of the plane. it was carrying 145 people and all folks we hear are safe. we'll have coverage of this story all morning long. the "today" show will continue our coverage starting at 7:00. >> and fire crews and police in the south bay are investigating a series of late-night car fires that happened just within blocks of each other. bob redell joins us live from san jose. bob, you can see the remnants of one of those fires. does it appear there was any risk to people? >> if you look up against the

river walk apartment here, you can see that the fire did start to melt the faux shingles, the faux panels next to the windows there but fortunately did not actually cause any more damage so to tans your question, no one was hurt but you've had three car fires within a several hour period. you can see all of them are within roughly a mile of each other. as you can see in this photos tweeted out by the san jose fire department, that first vehicle was a minivan fully ungulfed by flames. the fire department has not yet said whether they believe the three fires last night are

related to the three fires last week. and fire investigators do believe that they are arson. but as of our last check with the fire department, no one has been arrested. but those fire last week happened monday night going into tuesday morning and given here we are seven days later we had a fire last night at 10:20 and then two this morning around 12:20 and the third within around 2:30. the fire department has not yet said whether they believe are arson or related to what happened last week. >> that is really close to where folks were probably sleeping. thanks, bob. >> the cold weather is having an impact. the south bay weather station could be staying open all day today to help the homeless stay warm. santa clara county has launched

its facilities -- >> we're go to see search what it will take to go over capacity. >> hundreds showed up last night to see christmas in the park, they will not be kept away by the cold chill. >> hope flip the cold snap will break, we'll find out when from christina loren. how long is cold in store? >> three days. overnight into morning is the real concern. the good news is it's not going to be a prolonged event and we're not talking about a hard freeze. livermore, you're at 45 degrees and 41 in san martin and san

jose. we definitely have frost ewins in the parking lot. any type of shelter does help. weep are getting the wind that frost can't form. 6/and the wend now right now you can see the wind is pretty strong to the tune of about 10 to 16 miles per hour right at the immediate coast. those are your sustained speeds. here we looking for gusts. at about noon today, that wind is going to be cranky. and then the hot pink comes into play, even fiercer wind as we head throughout this evening 3rks:00 to 7 clack is the time frame i'm looking at right now. your temperatures are going to be cold. your true specific is going to be 54 in the north bay. the wind just makes it feel colder out there. 54 for the east shore and 55 degrees on the peninsula. if you've ever been at the beach, you get out of the water

and that wind picks up and it feels really, really cold. that's the effect we'll see for tomorrow. and as a result and san francisco, you will even get a taste of the 30s for the first time this season. you can see just how far away from average our numbers will tumble. but tomorrow looks like the coldest. we'll start to see the temperatures moderate as we head to the end of your weekend. finally getting some rain next week. >> with those temperatures like you showed just now, we might want to cover the plants and also wrap the pipes in preparation. we'll be careful out there. over here we're looking at the bay bridge. we have this back up. it's kind of calmed down. i swung the emeryville camera toward the toll plaza. you do see all these green

lights are up. you can't make it out. the everybody's open, nothing unusual about the pattern there. we'll get back to the other map. we'll note that the left approach is a little busier. no problems like fog like yesterday but we do have the winds and very cold conditions in the north bay. watch the smaller bridges, there may be a little it of a build and through livermore. thank you very much, mike. how a father managed to fend off a coyotes. >> and and right now downtown san jose, a community just getting past the news cold. we're back with 15 minutes of

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afghan soldiers and police officers targeted and killed by the taliban there. senator john mccain saying even though combat operations will

end, others must stay behind in the supporting role of training and advising the afghan military so this is far from over, kris. >> i don't think anybody expected it would actually be over with that date. thank you very much, richard. >> a rare coyote attack in fremont. two people were bit i don't know in the mission san jose area. a 5-year-old boy was bitten and a father fended off the animal. >> reporter: it was christmas day around 5:30. his son went to meet with his friends. >> i thought it might be a dog

but then i got suspicious because there was no owner. >> that's when the coyote bit him. >> i took my son's scooter and throw towards him. >> i ran and stand behind papa. >> his mom then grabbed him as he kept himself past his son and the house. >> he was so aggressive. he was looking into my eyes and i was shaken. >> after a two-minute stare down with the animal, the family made it inside. >> yes, i was scared. >> this is what the wound looked like today. the coyote was tested and did not have rabies. >> still, it's really scary for us. >> reporter: and while the parents were still on the lookout, their son is back to

himself! >> the kids recover faster than the parents. i'll bet dad's not feeling perfectly normal. >> lots of folks getting ready for this post christmas holiday period. in las vegas, you could be expecting some snow. that's a rarity, christina. >> it is. 5:46 now, i can tell you a a lot of people will be finding indoor shelter but yesterday it was looking a lot better for that snow. we were predicting maybe 3 inches. today i'm checking the futurecast, every time they come out, all the models. maybe more to the tune of a half an an inch to an 41 in beautiful

san jose. it's not that cold right now. part of the reason why is the wind is cranking and the wind helps to mix up our atmosphere. when we meet back here tomorrow morning, the temperatures will drop off. as you know, winter has arrived and we're going to sart to feel it around here. tuesday winds starting to pick up as we head throughout the second half of your day specifically. already we're getting some strong wind. take it easy, if you drive. >> they're going to drop that balloon early and all of them will fall off. i'll have more of those events coming up for you all morning

long. wednesday, thursday, friday of nks week looking good for rain, at least here in northern california. they're not going to get much in so-cal but we'll get potentially another two inch. >> through dublin, look at that, we have a good volume. on the maps, you can see there's not a lot of slowing. by the time you get hopyard, a tiny bit of speed. that's a great pattern. we should be seeing those metering lights turned on pi bach right about now. no delays across 84 or 92. that's the dumbarton and as we

look at the toll plaza, we see the lights are not on as far as metering lights. we have less cars here now than we did yesterday. watch the gusty winds across the span getting in towards san francisco. >> police in berkeley are looking for a gunman involved in a deadly shooting last night. it happened just before 10:00 near san pablo avenue near the university intersection. officers say they arrived a man who was dead and a woman injured when they arrived on the scene. the woman was taken to a local hospital. here condition has not been released. berkeley police have not made any arrests in the shooting. >> police in richmond have arrested a man connected with four separate robberies.

they all happened. >> a female victim was taken to the hospital for an injury to her eye. she is expected to be okay. >> a northern california high school girl's basketball team banned from a holiday tournament for wearing tichlt shrts with the slogan "i can't breathe" will now be allowed to play. tournament organizers in fort bragg reversed their decision. that means the mendocino team that were kicked out initially will be able to play. the girls say the protest was a bigger issue. i put on this, even though the.

>> someone put their own ideas. it's not just our parents lineup what to do. >> a forthbragg high school said it was initially concerned about safety but after yesterday's uneventful practice, the school changed its mind. french keller tweeted out several bottles of wine were stolen on christmas day. the least expensive of those bottles would have run $1,500. but the higher end vintages cles

the deal six years and $48 million. they are expected to name harbaugh head coach for the university of michigan. foster farms bowl kicks off at 7:00 tonight. >> in the tech world, apple had a very merry christmas. the company accounted for more than half of all smartphone and tablet activations last week. december is one of apple's biggest sales period as it traditionally releases new phones just before the holidays. i guess we know christmas people were out before the season.

>> i think so. >> this season they will measure the snow pack to see if the snow before christmas put a dent in the drought. december did not have greater than normal snowfall in those areas. >> let's check in with christina, who is tracking various systems coming our way. >> i'm always looking as far out as i possibly can for you and for all of us invested in this drought situation and wanting it to recover. looking good for next week and then even the week after that, we take that storm track to the south. we'll just have to wait and see as that information comes closer

and closer. i'm really good about four days out. seven days out you got about a 30% to 40% bet. if you are interested in helping out the local families here this holiday season, you can actually bowl for free. all you got to do, head on down to santa cruz boardwalk bowl and bring a canned item and you can bowl for free on new year's eve. that's always a good way can you help out. $3.52, you still have to play the price of the rental, unless you have your own bowling shoes like mike inouye. >> that's right, i do have my own. i haven't worn them in a while but do i have them. i'll dust them off. >> just seconds ago, no metering lights. they may have turned them on. the approach slower across the

incline and that's why they may have turned on the metering lights despite the lighter commute. a tiny bit of slowing through livermore and a live look at san jose shows you a light volume for 101. back to you. >> thank you very much. a military couple got the wedding present of a lifetime, a personal phone call from president obama. >> but why did that phone call come? this couple was about to get married on the 16th green at the same golf course in hawaii where the president was scheduled to play and they were told they had to leave. when the president found out the couple's wedding had to be moved, he tracked down their phone number, someone in the government did, and gave them a call about 20 minutes into the ceremony. >> i hope the wedding went okay anyway. >> thank you very much. it was a blessing in disguise. >> we just went right above the 16th hole so we were watching you go. >> that must have been kind of

painful. >> what did he shoot? the president told the couple he shot an 84 but he would have shot a 79 closer to par if he had skipped the 16th hole. i don't know if you're allowed to do that, though. >> that's why he said it must have been painful to watch him play. whether or not you are a fan of the president, it must be cool to get a often call from him, right? >> indeed. "saturday night live" celebrating 40 years on the air asking for your favorite episode. >> this one must make the list. >> i want to give you one more chance to explain your claim that you have foreign policy experience based on alaska's proximity to russia. what did you mean by that? >> well, alaska and russia are on separated by a narrow maritime border. you've got alaska here and this right here is water and then that up there is russia. so we keep an eye on them.

[ laughter ] >> how do you do that? >> every morning when alaskans wake up, you look out and see there are russians hanging around. if you do, you go out there and ask them what they're doing there and if they don't give you a good answer, you say, shoo, get back over there. >> i vote roseanna-dana-dana.

breaking news at 6:00, bodies and debris found floating in the waters of the java sea. a grim discovery for those searching for the missing airasia flight. >> and more car fires, three of them, all within blocks of one one another in the south bay. >> get ready for a cold blast and a lot of wind today. brisk wind, really bitter cold settling in overnight and we are going to stay nice and cold yet clear for new year's eve. >> an unusual traffic pattern for the bay bridge to say the least. i'll show you this line of cars. we'll show you this line of cars coming up. >> don't give it all away right