pace. >> wait a minute. so you had a baby a couple months ago. >> i did. >> i got engaged. we've got a lot going on. this is a good new year. >> that's right. i celebrated a new year in the bay area, starting here. it was a good year. we are tracking some pretty good conditions across the bay area for today. here is a quick look at today's highs, increasing cloud cover is expected as you head into the overnight hours as well. we will be in the 50s and 60s. san jose topping out at about 63 degrees. half moon bay also 60. tomorrow's early morning highs waking up once again in the 30s. san jose 39, los gatos 38, santa rosa 37. if you think this is cold, stay tuned for next week. we're tracking a cold snap expected to bring record lows into the bay area with the coldest temperatures more than likely being next wednesday. now let's get a quick check right now at your south bay drive times.

northbound 101 to highway 85, 20 minutes. northbound 85 to 101, also 20 minutes. more people making their ways on the road. southbound 101 to sfo, 11 minutes. if you're heading to the airport, it looks like a pretty smooth commute. we go to a developing story this morning, russian president vladimir putin is condemning a new round of u.s. sanctions against russia. within the last hour he announced moscow is not going to retaliate by expelling american diplomats. >> meantime, president obama is spending more than two dozen russian diplomats packing, including two here in san francisco. "today in the bay's" edward lawrence is live in washington watching all this unfold. edward, what are you hearing on capitol hill this morning. >> reporter: sam and kira, exactly, we heard from vladimir putin saying he does reserve the right to retaliate. at this point he's not going to

stoop, these are his words, to irresponsible diplomacy. he goes on to say he will not expel the u.s. diplomats. he also will not prevent their families from enjoying holiday spots for the new year's eve celebration. president obama used an executive order to take sweeping action against russia for repeated hacks during the presidential campaign. security experts believe this sends a message. >> it will have ramifications not only for president putin but any other nation that tries in the future to interfere in our election. >> the obama administration expelled 35 russian intelligence operatives, closed russian-owned buildings in maryland and new york and sanctioned russian intelligence agencies as well as businesses that provided support for russian hacking. the move has bipartisan support in congress. >> i think the sanctions need to go beyond, they need to name putin as an individual and his

inner circle. nothing happens in russia without his knowledge or approval. >> reporter: others question the timing, saying this should have happened before the election. president-elect donald trump issued a statement saying it's time for our country to move on to bigger and better things. it goes on to say he will meet with the intelligence community next week to get the facts. >> it is simply stunning to me that president-elect trump can publicly say we ought to move on with our lives and in this age of cyber security nobody really knows what's going on. >> reporter: the russians dismiss the accusations and sanctions as a sign of aggressive u.s. foreign policy. live in washington, edward lawrence, back to you, sam and kira. >> edward, thank you very much. we are following breaking news this morning on the peninsula. firefighters on the scene of a two-alarm house fire in palo alto. >> just moments ago the fire was extinguished. "today in the bay's" thom jensen just arrived on the scene. what's the latest? >> reporter: good morning. there were worries a little bit

ago, as you reported, that there may have been somebody trapped inside the building, inside the home. they thought the owner might still be in there. i talked to neighbors, talked to firefighters out here. they said the owner did get out. they are okay right now. the fire was large enough, though, that palo alto fire dispatched two different fooir stations to the scene at about 5:00 this morning. the home was engulfed in fire just minutes later. this is video one of our photographers got just a short time ago, before they got all the flames knocked down. this house is located in the 2100 block of lewis road off highway 101 near embarcadero and the oregon expressway. firefighters have done a lot to knock down the flames as you will see. firefighters will remain on the scene for quite a while doing mop-up. you can see there's still plenty of water dumping out of this fire hydrant and lots of water being pumped through this hose right now. they'll do mop-up and investigators will be able to

get in and see what exactly caused this fire. we're live in palo alto, thom jensen, "today in the bay." >> thom, thanks for that report. new this morning, we want to show you broken glass and boarded up doors and windows. take a look at the wall of this cvs store after a car crashed through it yesterday afternoon. it happened around 2:00 at the cvs on the 6900 block of almaden expressway and san jose. investigators say the driver was the only person in the car. somehow no one was injured. alcohol does not appear to have been a factor. there is a full slate of new laws set to take effect as we go into the new year. let's take a quick look at some of them right now. california's minimum wage is going up, rising from $10.25 to $10.50 for companies with more than 25 employees. there are also new rules for assault weapons. specifically high capacity magazines that hold more than ten rounds are about to be banned. buyers are also going to have to undergo a background check before being able to purchase

ammunition. there's a new law aimed specifically at law enforcement if officers are leaving their gun in their car when they're not inside of it. they have to store the weapon in the trunk or a hidden lock box just like civilians do. also changes to sexual assault sentencing. probation is no longer an option on the table for people convicted of sexually assaulting someone who is unconscious or severely intoxicated. this is a direct response to the brock turner sexual assault case. in an attempt to keep drunk drivers off the roads this new year's eve, some bay area transit agencies are offering free rides to anyone who needs it. >> all of them pitching in. "today in the bay's" pete suratos joining us in san francisco with details on that and the other preparations under way this morning. pete? >> reporter: good morning to you guys. back in the newsroom. tomorrow night for new year's eve, it will be a busy one in san francisco. here is important information you need to know if you're coming into the city, specifically if you're using public transportation.

if you use muni, all rides will be free from 8:00 p.m. tomorrow night, that's when it's starting, through 5:00 a.m. it's all part of the ride muni free new year's eve special, in place for 17 years. here is important information for folks using b.a.r.t. service will be extended until 3:00 a.m. however, after 8:00 p.m., service to and from the east bay will be split between embarcadero and montgomery stations in san francisco. if you're coming from richmond or pittsburg bay point and want to get to the fireworks show here on the embarcaderembarcade 8:00 p.m., you have to exit at the montgomery instead of embarcadero. caltrans will have four post midnight trains through 5:00 a.m. samtrans offering free riesds from 8:00 p.m. new year's eve through 5:00 a.m. as for the fireworks show at the embarcader embarcadero, it's going to be a busy one.

last week sfpd expected more than 100,000 visitors. it is 6:07. now to a story you will only see on nbc bay area. a brazen robbery in san francisco leaves a jeweler beaten and shaken up. it happened last night around 6:30 on utah street. that's right off the 101 freeway. if you know it, it's the design district. the man you see being treated by paramedics was hit in the chest by at least three men as he was leaving the jewelry center. about $400,000 worth of diamonds and gold were stolen. >> they probably waited for him to go in, watched him and when he came out, they got ready, they ran out and jumped him. >> fortunately the robbery was caught on surveillance tape. unfortunately we are told the video was poor quality. if you're just now waking up getting ready for work or getting the kiddos ready for school, let's plan your last friday of 2016. right now in san jose, 43

degrees. mostly clear skies. for the next couple hours we're expecting to increase in terms of the cloud cover as well as a rise in those temperatures for some pretty plant 60s in the south bay. around 10:00 a.m., talking 53 degrees, heading over to the 1:00 hour, topping out at 61, we should be climbing the a high of 63. in san francisco right now, 47 degrees. by 10:00 a.m., we should be seeing the 50s. 51 degrees. as we head into the lunch hour, 56 degrees. a quick check of the roads. we were seeing some slowing out near the westbound 80 heading from emeryville into san francisco. it looks like it may just be early morning backup. so if this is your commute, take some extra time. up next, uber is getting ready for a busy weekend. the massive amount of rides the bay area company is expecting on new year's eve. and the steps you can take to avoid surge pricing. a happy ending. this is a great story you don't want to miss, for a brazilian family who was robbed while visiting the bay area.

we'll tell you how an nbc bay area viewer is taking action to help them. a live look outside right now from our emeryville camera. of course, the bay bridge is all lit up in its standard lights, as are many of the buildings still behind there in soma. you're watching "today in the bay." we'll be back in just two minutes. (vianey ad libs)

good morning. we are waking up to 40s across

the south bay peninsula as well as san francisco, the tri-valley and the north bay seeing the chilliest of the temps, still in the 30s. we have an important update in terms of the traffic. we are tracking right now a road closure between embarcadero road and north carolina avenue. this is due to a house fire. we will keep you updated on any backup. it appears we do have a crew headed over to the scene. security is tight in sydney, australia, ahead of the new year's eve celebration. police say he's not a threat to the public and he acted alone. this comes just a week after australian police arrested five people suspected of planning a series of christmas day attacks in melbourne. an additional 2,000 police officers will be patrolling sydney to make sure the new year's eve celebrations go smoothly. in other news now, a new

report sheds light on the disciplinary process at stanford and why some say it's not enough. a new report from "the new york times" says the university did not punish one of their football players even though two majority votes agreed a woman was sexually assaulted by him. this happened when the trials were happening last year. at that time the school required at least a 4-1 decision to find a person responsible, but since then the policy has changed. the structure now needs a three-person panel and the decision must be unanimous in order for someone to be found guilty. stanford says that their standard is to avoid wrongful termination, wrongful judgment, but critics are saying it's stacked against any sexual assault victims. the number of people living without a home in santa clara county has been going down. that's the good news. inex-pliktbly, the amount of deaths have sky rocked. double the amount this year from last year.

the highest such number in at least six years. the "san jose mercury" news says a doctor from the county coroner's office has started analyzing those deaths, trying to find patterns or trends in the last six years. a new city ordinance is trying to keep the huge represent spikes in richmond at bay. the richmond fair rent just cause for eviction and homeowner protection ordinance goes into effect today. a city councilwoman has said rent in richmond is rising sky high. if it keeps going at this rate, people will be forced out of the city. a similar measure was supposed to go into effect last year. some people living in richmond say it was blocked by the california apartment association. the new law was voted through on the november ballot. only on nbc bay area, a pet grooming mystery. a 2-year-old dog is paralyzed days after getting a haircut and then suddenly dies. the owners are now looking for answers. pete cruz tells us he and his wife still don't know why their healthy 2-year-old dog honey suddenly died. they say they took her to get a

haircut last week at showtime pet grooming in san jose, but peter says when he picked up his dog, her back legs weren't moving. the next day he says her body suddenly became paralyzed and days later she died from what the doctor calls a fractured spine. >> she was traumatized, mishandled and there was some inattentiveness. something happened. >> we, of course, spoke with the owners of the grooming store. they dispute any wrongdoing. they say cruz is trying to ruin their business. they say honey had injuries when she arrived and that they have surveillance footage that proves she arrived in pain. the shop owner says she's 100% sure no one on the staff injured the dog. the dog owners san jose they won't stop pushing until they have answers. now to a heartbreaking situation for a brazilian family visiting the bay area. it took an incredible turn

thanks to the generosity of our viewers. the brazilian family landed in san jose on tuesday night for their first trip to the u.s. they stopped at an applebee's to eat. that's where thieves broke into their rental car, stole their passports, a laptop and $6,000 in cash, money they had been saving for years for this trip. a viewer saw their story on our air and offered to help. >> i'd like to offer you $10,000 -- >> this is great. this is something great to hear. i'm really, really thankful. i'm really grateful for you, okay. >> it's my pleasure, victor. >> take message for only good news. don't lose faith. >> faith in humanity indeed. the donor asked to remain anonymous. it's the family's first trip to america. they won't soon forget it. more great news, it gets better. the family's passports were discovered by a homeless man in oakland and returned to them.

>> love, love, love that story. in business and tech news, wall street could start the final day of the trading year in the green. futures are higher. the dow will need a nice rally to get to the 20,000 mark before we close 2016 as stocks did fall again yesterday. still been a very positive year for the markets overall with the dow up 13% to date, the nasdaq is up 10% and the s&p 500 up 8%. the top sector of 2016 is energy. on pace for its best year since '07, thanks to a 45% surge in oil prices. unlike other holidays, americans may not spend as much money on new year's eve. wallet hub says 83% of people are spending less than $200 this year. 100 million americans are traveling, the majority are driving to their celebration destination. uber drivers will be quite

busy, expecting to provide more than 15 million rides across 450 cities. this is actually a 300% increase compared to last year. uber is reminding you to plan around the most expensive times which are going to be from midnight to 3:00 a.m. unlike past years, uber now shows you the cost of rides up front so you know about the surge pricing. >> i like that new feature. i always toggle between my lyft and uber apps to see where a driver is closer. >> comparison shopping. vianey in ooh here with weather and traffic on this last friday of 2016. >> shaping out to be a very lovely friday. we are tracking some traffic trouble. i'll get to that in just a bit. today's highs will be in the 50s and 60s. and the last friday of this year, 2016, before we welcome the new year, is expected to end with mostly clear conditions. a little cloud cover as we are tracking a storm system that will be making its way into

southern california. actually we'll be starting to see some rain out there. east bay right now at 43 degrees. san francisco 46 degrees. mostly clear conditions out in the north bay. right now still in the 30s. the north bay is very slow to warm up, especially around this time of the year. here is a quick check right now at your highs for today. san francisco will be in the 50s. 57 degrees. santa rosa at 61. bringing it down to the south bay, palo alto 53. 63 degrees for san jose as well and in the santa cruz mountains expect a high of about 58 degrees. let's talk about these storms because we're not just tracking one, we're tracking two with the arrival of a third heading into next week. it's going to be a busy map. it looks like the first initial storm is already making its way into southern california is expected to bring pretty good rain totals to parts like l.a., not just tonight but also into saturday. the christmas eve could be a soggy one. if we zoom in on the map, as far as where the bay area falls on the map, since it is pushing in

in the south, far south areas could be seeing the chance of a few scattered showers tonight. into the early morning on saturday, right now our maps are showing conflicting rain totals as we head into the weekend. we are tracking a second storm system as we head into sunday. for now l.a. looks like it will be hit tonight. where we see orange and yellow is where we see the intensity of that storm. let's get a seven-day rain estimate. as of now l.a. expecting about .25 inch by to niechlt as we make our way into saturday and the storm system continues to make its way through the so cal area we're expecting to see even more rain near that area as well. over the next couple days, a lot of you traveling to lake tahoe, here we are in the 30s into the monterey area, we have chances of the rain. if you're heading to the grand finale of the hanukkah event, into your new year's eve plans,

we are seeing this graphic that is expect to make sweet conditions as we head into 2017. let's go ahead and get to your traffic right now. as i mentioned earlier, we're tracking this road closure near palo alto because of a house fire. all occupants are safe. we have a crew on scene. road closure near lewis road. as the next half hour continues and we see more traffic, this could quickly become an issue. >> thank you vianey. up next, a mannequin challenge harder to pull off than most. we will show you how astronauts on the international space station manage to make it work. >> it's hard to stay still when you're floating. plus nbc bay area responds. >> miles of confusion over an airline account and a credit card. i'm consumer investigator chris chmura. "nbc bay area responds" next. to a san francisco man whose

frequent flier account was wiped clean, and he couldn't understand why. ==kira/2shot== our consumer team figured it out. welcome back on this last friday of 2016. "nbc bay area responds" to a san francisco man whose frequent flier account was wiped clean and he had no idea why. >> our consumer team figured it out thankfully. here is investigator chris chmura with a lesson for all of us. >> david james has been using a-a hawaiian airlines master card

that rewards miles. recently he noticed his miles balance was wiped clean. we learned from hawaiian airlines that david's wife was the primary credit card account holder. so the miles have been accumulating in her mileage account. since david hadn't had any activity on his account for 18 months, his miles expired. this is a good lesson for all of us, miles earned through credit card purchases are only awarded to one person even if there are two people or more on the account, and you need to keep your miles reward account active or you will going to lose your miles. that inactivity period varies by airline by the way. back to david. he and his wife were always frequent hawaiian airlines travellers. but they stopped traveling when his wife became seriously ill a few years back and she recently died. when hawaiian airlines heard his story, it reinstated his miles. the company said it considers extraordinary sishlg stances and

evaluates each case individually. if you have a consumerer complaint, call us, 1-888-996-tips or visit us online at nbcbayarea.com/responds. have a great day. >> chris, thank you very much. new video uft just into our newsroom this morning. look at this. astronauts on the international space station taking the mannequin challenge that's probably a little more challenging than most of them. five of the six crew members performed that challenge while they were floating in space. >> wow. this happened on sunday, but the video was just posted by the french astronaut. some were clinging to footholds and hand holds. others were rigid. >> the one guy is not holding on to anything. >> must have good core muscles. >> a foul stench continues in san francisco. investigators trying to figure out what's causing the bad smell across the city. >> reporter: heavy sanctions being handed down on russia by

the obama administration. i'll have all the new details on the local impact. taking a live look outside...

downtown san jose. we're keeping a close eye on bay area weather as we head into the new year's holiday weekend. taking a live look outside at 6:30 on the dot right now on your friday morning. the final friday of 2016. we are keeping a very close eye on bay area weather as we see temps tick up just a little bit more here heading into your weekend. we'll have more on that with vianey. >> first, we're following breaking news on the peninsula

this morning. firefighters at the scene of a two alarm house fire in palo alto. >> "today in the bay's" thom jensen has to be at the scene. we spoke with neighbors. there was concern originally he could be trapped inside. >> for the longest time, they thought he might still be in here. they found out he did get out. he's been walking around talking to neighbors. a lot of firefighters here and the scene this morning. the fire was quite large. the home was engulfed in flames. two homes, the one on the left of the house was damaged. two vehicles in the driveway destroyed. a firefighter told me the engine and a truck that was in the driveway was on fire. like you said, the main concern when they got here was that the homeowner was still inside. the homeowner is out.

there were no pets. as far as we know, no one else inside that home. we did talk to a neighbor who lives right across the street. he has family here for the holidays, he told us what they saw when they woke up after 5:00 this morning. >> it was pretty high. roaring maybe 10, 15 feet above the roofline. i don't know if it hit the tree or not. i saw it and i came out. >> reporter: one of the neighbors who had to get out of their house is actually inside mr. phan's house along with his relatives who are here pour the holidays. he says they are quite alarmed by everything going on. he's very happy that he got out of the house amend live. we're live in palo alto. thom jensen, "today in the bay." >> very fortunate indeed, thom. thank you very much. there are traffic implications we're going to get to in five

minutes. in the meantime pete suratos is covering a developing story this morning with president vladimir putin of russia condemning a new round of sanctions. within the last couple hours he announced something he's not going to move forward with. good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, sam. a federal source tells us two russian officials had been ordered to leave the russian consulate you see behind me in san francisco. this is of course a part of the heavy sanctions that have been handed down by the obama administration. officials saying this is the response of a cyber attack. as part of these sanctions by president obama, he wants 35 russian diplomats including those in cities like right here in san francisco and washington, d.c. out of the country by this weekend. employees at the consulate aren't commenting much, but russians with business at the consulate are worried. >> it's a small planet.

it takes very little time to fly around the planet. we have to find ways of being in peace. >> reporter: as you mentioned, sam, new developments from russian president vladimir putin who responded saying he won't expel american diplomats claiming the latest sanctions by the obama administration are aimed at undermining russian-american relations. putin and prerkt donald trump have had a much different relationship. many people at the consulate hope when president-elect donald trump takes office, that he can deescalate the situation. we're live in san francisco, pete suratos for "today in the bay." now to the christmas eve stabbing in an east bay target store. yesterday cameras were allowed in the courtroom, but the defendants never appeared. attorneys for those co-defendants, jesse archuleta and his brother frankie waived their right to appear in court yesterday. the two brothers are accuse ofd stabbing tyrone griffin while he was shopping with his 4-year-old

son. witnesses at target say it happened after griffin asked the archuletas to turn down what he considered inappropriate music to be playing in the toy section of the store. one defense attorney says he thinks it would have been inappropriate to have his client appear in front of the media yesterday. >> when this case does end up going forward, i expect he'll be fully exonerated and he was acting in self-defense. >> according to the police report, the vilk tim, griffin, grabbed a wine bottle off a shelf and hit frankie with it. griffin's widow doesn't believe that saying she'll wait to see any surveillance video of the fight and says she hopes the investigation will be thorough. >> for the first time we're hearing from the family of a 14-year-old san jose boy who was killed by a suspected drunk driving. andrew nguyen died christmas morning when the car he was riding in with his parents was hit on capital expressway. now the family has released a

statement. they say they're devastated but will celebrate his life. they want to thank first responders at the scene of the deadly crash and ask for their privacy. there are still many questions this morning about what's causing a foul odor in san francisco and other parts of the east bay. there have been dozens of reports of a rotten elg or sulfuric sort of smell stretching from san francisco to richmond. some complaints have come from the fairmont hotel. firefighters checked out that area and determined it was safe. they still couldn't locate the source of the stench. air quality managers are checking air monitors. they have inspectors out working to try and find the cause. >> we are looking at two incidents that happened in richmond. we're looking at local wastewater facilities. we're looking at landfills in the area as well as ships. there are a number of potential sources. >> as they probe for possible causes, chevron says it did have

flaring wednesday night at its richmond refinery but say it's premature to speculate whether or not that's the cause. new california laws about to take ef fokt for the new year. >> public schools will no longer be allowed to use the name redskins for their sports teams or mascots. child car seat rules are changing. if a child is younger than two, they need to be in a rear-facing restraint system. the only exemption is if the child weighs 40 or more pounds or measures 40 inchs or taller. businesses can now stock epipens. terminally ill california patients are going to be allowed to use experimental drugs without regulatory approval, and young people under the age of 18 can no longer be charged with prostitution. this is just one of the new human trafficking related bills. now to crab season, as we told you yesterday, already facing delays from the toxin in

shell fish. now some fishermen are on strike. when crab season began, fishermen negotiated a price of $3.00 per pound in california and oregon. earlier this week a wholesale buyer dropped their prices by 25 cents. the fishermen of humboldt bay went on strike. they add the price cut could cost each boat anywhere from $7,000 to $10,000 over the next few months. water that is straight out of the tap could be tasting a little musty again for some people who live in palo alto. it happened earlier this month from a blending of water supplies. it caught folks off guard. now that blending is happening again, and city officials are warning neighbors ahead of time like they say they would. city officials assure everyone that the water is still safe to drink. they sat it's going to be back to normal sometime in the next few days. >> good morning, bay area.

another nice day, but we are tracking new year's eve plans and new year's day. why not a quick rundown of how you can enjoy your saturday and sunday. by 10:00 a.m., we're tracking the possibility of seeing light rain thanks to a storm system pushing through southern california. by 1:00, 4:00, we should be drying out, but mostly cloudy, cool day overall by midnight right before the ball drops, we're talking 40s. if you're going to be outside, it's still going to be a chilly new year's eve. as we head to new year's day, the first day of 2017 is going to be off to a pretty cold morning across the bay area. we're expecting overnight lows to be in the 30s and 40s yet again. by 10:00 a.m., we will be at 43 degrees, dropping down to 1:00, talking 51 droes. by 4:00 p.m., not warming by much. talking 49 degrees with partly cloudy skies. by sunday night heading into monday, we are tracking an additional system that is going to move in from the north, pushing down from the south.

that is going to bring the rain chances in the bay area. light rain overnight expected. heavier rainfall as you head into monday as well as tuesday with a chilly night. a cold snap will come in. now let's go ahead and get to your traffic. earlier we were mentioning we have a crew on scene of the house fire in palo alto. there are some road closures out near that area. it appears lewis road near embarcadero and california road is closed. we aren't seeing any backup on the map. if this is going to be the area, you may want to take an alternate route, maybe oregon expressway. i know there aren't that many cars on the road. hopefully this will clear in time and thankfully everyone is safe in that fire. it is 6:40. >> up next, a southern california driver runs a red light and hits a group of people in a crosswalk. all this caught on camera. the dramatic video into our newsroom. an uber driver saves a girl from a suspected sex trafficking

ring. this happening here in northern california. the reason he decided to call police after giving the girl a ride. a check right now on the big board and the dow jones industrial average actually down this morning about nine points or so. for the year the dow is up more than 13%. we've seen a couple of losses here the last couple days. we'll see what happens the next few hours. we'll be right back. a live look outside at the golden gate bridge. a few more cars on the road today than we've seen earlier this week. temperatures in the high 40s and low 50s for the bay area today. we hope you enjoy your final friday of 2016. you're watching "today in the you're watching "today in the bay."

right now at the volkswagen sign then drive event. cough doesn't sound so good. take mucinex dm. i'll text you in 4 hours when your cough returns. one pill lasts 12 hours, so... looks like i'm good all night! some cough medicines only last 4 hours. but just one mucinex lasts 12 hours. let's end this.

good morning. 40s and 30s are trending across the bay area if you're just now waking up, south bay 43, peninsula 48. san francisco and the east bay in the 40s. the north bay, as always, chilly, in the 30s. a quick traffic alert. we are seeing a road closure, but this isn't a residential area, so we should presidency any backup on the highways near embarcadero and north california avenue near lewis road. it's closed near a house california house fire. we have a crew on scene giving you the latest updates. >> vianey, thank you very much. you'll want to prepare yourself

to see this. dramatic new video into the newsroom this morning. you see the spotlight. it will push in. that's a hit and run driver in southern california knocking those people off their feet. three of them were hit in the crosswalk. all are expected to be okay. it was a group of spacex employees crossing the street in hawthorne on december 17th when that driver goes right through a red light and hits three of them, knocking them to the sidewalk. police just released that video in the 40e7s of finding the driver. investigators say it was a gray or silver toyota and it likely has damage to the front end on the passenger side of the car. now to a mid air meltdown caught on camera. two passengers are facing charges. >> hey -- >> hey cla! >> you hear the cheers from the passengers on the flight as they start to escort those folks off. that picture there, that video was taken by a man who took the

cell phone video. he says it started when the woman tried to use the restroom during takeoff on a delta air lines flight. she said when the flight at ten dapt told her to sit down, she and her partner started shouting. the plane was on its way from minneapolis to los angeles, but less than an hour into the flight, the pilot turned it around. in the east bay, a search is under way for a family heirloom stolen from a cemetery. after sean longvin was killed in afghanistan in 2007, last year sean's father passed away and joined his son. the two men were linked by a gold ring with the family crest on it given from factor to son. but just this week on a christmas day visit, sean's mother was devastated to see the ring gone. >> i just couldn't believe that someone could do something like this to someone who served our

country, fought for our country. he sacrificed his life for our country. >> indeed. long efrmtsvin says she just wants the ring returned. there will be no questions asked. a followup now. prosecutors are reportedly dropping a dui charge against a man who only tested positive for caffeine one year after he was cited with the ticket back in august of 2015. joseph schwab was driving home from work when he was pulled over. officers say he was darting in and out of sk tra and they believed he was under the influence. after running self tests, the only thing that showed up in his system was caffeine. authorities initially believed he might have been under the influence of a drug that didn't show up in their system. prosecutors have not dropped his second charge of reckless driving. it is illegal to drive while high on marijuana, with thc in your system. a new proposed bill wants to make sure one more thing is

illegal. according to the "san jose mercury" news right now nothing technically forbids smoking while driving. state senator jerry hill says a new bill he introduced yesterday would make laws consistent with drinking while driving. a quick thinking uber driver helped to save a teenage girl from a suspected sex trafficking ring. keith avila on monday picked up a 16-year-old girl and two women near sacramento. avila noticed the young girl was wearing skimpy clothes. as the drive continued, it sounded like the other women in the car were coaching the girl on how to ask for money from the men she was about to meet. as soon as he dropped off the trio, he called police. >> i got just enough distance where they're not going to see me and i make the phone call. i don't want to be in part of it. i'm not going to assist, not going to stay silent. >> he was a part of potentially

changing that girl's life forever. two women and a man were arrested shortly after he made the call. of course, 2017 is almost here. people are rushing to ring in the new year, but we found out there's a rush of a different kind. people are making last-minute plans to get married. appointments to stand before the justice of the peace are filling up fast, at least in condition tra costa county. the county clerk in martinez is gearing um for a lot of marriages today. >> for these particular high volume days, december 30th, february 14th, we have a process in place that streamlines getting couples in and out so they can get those nuptials taken care of. >> apparently a lot of people like to schedule their weddings on new year's eve because it's already a holiday and everyone is in the party mood. >> saying i do, that's supposed to be forever. your tweets might not have to

be. twitter is considering adding an edit button so you can reconsider your post after you've hit send. ceo jack dorsey took to his own twitter account yesterday asking users what the company can do to improve or create new functions in 2017. the responses flooded in. the top request was for an edit button. others included a bookmark button and better safety and reporting options for online bullies. those would be good additions in 2017. another new addition to our team, vianey is here this morning covering for kari and mike. you have weather and traffic. >> i'm trying my best to fill two very large shoes. i'm e trying to keep up with all of it. on this early friday morning, we have seen a nice chilly, but warmer start. 47 degrees right now. if we make our way over to san jose, if you're waking up, expect a nice 43 degrees as you make your ways outdoors.

if you're hitting the road in oak lapd, seeing the nice 40s with a nice 43 degrees over the next couple hours. you will start seeing an increase in the temperatures, making way for a pleasant and calm friday before the storm we are tracking heading into the weekend and next week as well. highs of 60s and 50s across the bay area, topping out at about 63. let's get right to the storm. we're tracking this weekend storm, it's weak as of now, making its way into the bay area. l.a. already seeing some rain. they are expecting to see rain not just tonight but into saturday that may carry into sunday morning as well. i think it should clear out just in time for the rose parade. if yu have plans to head out to watch the parade, you should be okay. but i would take an umbrella just in case. as far as the bay area, monterey could be seeing a few scattered showers early tonight. your seven-day rain estimate totals, we coupled see about a quarter inch down in southern california near the l.a. area, about .10 inch is expected

possibly in areas like monterey. san jose will once again fall in the rain shadow as we head into sunday. we're expecting a second storm to sweep in on sunday. that's going to bring a better chance for widespread showers, increasing the rain totals as we make our way into monday and tuesday as well. we should be clearing out just in time for all of those new year's eve plans. we'll be expecting a welcoming of the 2017 with pretty dry conditions in the bay area. by 10:00 a.m., the light rain clears out. by 1:00 seeing 51 degrees. new year's day, expecting a nice welcome. expect the cool snap in san francisco to start as early as monday night into early tuesday morning with lows in the 20s and 30s. quick check of traffic, we're keeping a close eye on the road clez your near lewis road, a house fire. this is a residential area. we shouldn't see any backup on major highways or freeways,

areas along the southbound 101 and northbound seem to be smooth flowing as of now. thank you, vianey. we'll take a quick look at the top stories nbc bay area including the heightened tensions between the u.s. and russia. the reasonment obama is calling for ejecting russian diplomats from the u.s. and we'll tell you russia's surprising response that happened just this morning. >> happening right now, a 6-year-old girl kidnapped in a stolen car has been reunited with her mom after a scare in southern california. you can see the emotional reunion right now on nbcbayarea.com. hatch watch. we are not talking about hatchimals. this morning the nation is transfixed by two bald eagle eggs on live camera, just waiting for the eaglets to come out. one has just started to hatch. we've posted a live link on our facebook page. we're back in two minutes. before you head out the door -

here are the top stories on nbc bay area... . ==sam//live== a live look right now at the palo alto home that broke out in flames. firefighters got the blaze under control about an hour ago and we've been bringing you live reports. ==kira//vo== heres video of the flames. the house is on the 21 hundred block of louis road. that's off 101 in between embarcadero and oregon expressway. firefighters thought someone g welcome back. before you head out the door, here are the top stories on nbc bay area. >> let's start with a live look in palo alto. a home broke out in flames about 5:00 this morning. firefighters were able to get the blaze under control about an hour ago. >> we have video of the scene. the house is on the 2100 block

of lewis road. here is the scene about an hour ago when it was still on fire. the house is off 101 between embarcadero and oregon expressway. firefighters at the time thought someone might have been trapped inside the home. fortunately the homeowner was able to escape safely. other news happening this morning, russian president vladimir putin is condemning a new round of u.s. sanctions against russia, but within the last couple hours, he announced moscow will not be retaliating by expelling american diplomats. his foreign minister promised to do just that. president obama is striking back against russia for its role in hacking u.s. computers during the presidential election. the president launched more economic sanctions and a possible cyber attack against the kremlin. 35 russian diplomats including two in san francisco will be expelled. of course, the u.s. spounds in the u.s. will be shut down. at least two people from san francisco are among those russian officials who must be

out of the country by this weekend as we take a live look at the russian consulate in san francisco. only on nbc bay area, a pet grooming mystery. a 2-year-old dog paralyzed days after getting a haircut and then dies. the dog's owner peter cruz still doesn't know why the healthy dog named honey suddenly died. he says they took her to get a haircut last week at showtime pet grooming in san jose. peter says when he picked up his dog, she couldn't move her back legs. the next day her body was paralyzed and days later she passed away. the veterinarian called it a fractured spine. the owners of the pet grooming video says the dog arrived in pain. if you are saving up for the holiday tomorrow night, here is a way to save some money. bay area public transit agencies are offering free rides for new year's eve this weekend.

free rides starting at 8:00 saturday night. caltrain offering four extra trains after midnight for people leaving the fireworks show and going elsewhere. b.a.r.t. operating until 3:00 a.m. to accommodate people leaving the city. volunteers are putting their finishing touches on the floats for the tournament of roses parade. hundreds of folks gathered inside pavilions near the rose bowl to perfect every detail on the dozens of floats that will be on display. by the way, the 128th tournament of roses parade will be held monday here on nbc bay area, not january 1st. we'll have coverage starting at 4:30 a.m. >> a great tradition there. here we are dealing with a cold snap. should i say oh, snap. changes in the weather the next couple days. >> tracking a cold snap in your zaft. you can see the drop in the temperatures on monday heading into tuesday. 40s in the forecast. a quick check of traffic, nothing too concerning right now. still seeing the road close your

due to the house fire near embarcadero. >> people preparing for the new year's eve celebrations. >> we hope everyone stays safe and warm. we might have some rain on the way. but we'll enjoy new year's eve. >> sunshine for now. >> and sunshine while we have it. we appreciate you spending the end of your 2016 with us. >> we'll be back with more news at 7:25 with a live local news update. country. all of this over russia's alleged interference in the presidential election. why president-elect trump is saying move on. two feet and counting. a powerful nor'easter hammers new england burying towns across the region. another foot of snow possible today as millions prepare to travel over the holiday weekend. we've got your forecast. everlasting bond. a joint service being considered for debbie reynolds and carrie fisher as family m