weather alert." our radar showing heavy activito approach the area, right in tim a messy morning in store. our radar showing heavy activity just starting to approach the area right in time for your commute. but we have you covered from every angle. >> that includes keeping tabs on the mudslide closure on highway 17 where all northbound lanes are still blocked by scotts valley. what another round of rain could do to this beleague erred road. a mudslide moves a house off its foundation and a frantic cry for help on facebook live. very good morning to you. i feel like it is the calm before the storm. >> the calm in between storm.

it doesn't stop. there are more than 50 schools closed. most are marin. some school districts in santa cruz and santa clara county have also canceled their classes. >> we are prepared for another storm headed our way. you have been tracking it all week. >> it gets heavier as we go through the late morning hours. as of now, if you can get out there, get to work a little bit earlier, it's the best time to get on the roadways before the heavy rain moves in. we are starting out with light showers across northern sonoma county. once again that will be spreading to the south. we are seeing around santa rosa now, some of the showers farther north and moving as you go down 101 you see the light rain falling. also in petaluma, as well as novato. and a couple spotty showers near san rafael. we will continue to see this radar filling in, becoming quite heavy as we go through the 8:00 to 9:00 hour. moving from north to south.

so i'll have a closer look at the timeline and what you can expect as he go through the day coming up in a few minutes. now over to mike starting with an update for the tri-valley. >> yesterday you remember we had the pothole work going on. we had a chance to look at the speed sensors here. we're going to move over. thumbs up. all lanes are open westbound for this morning's commute. it happened late last night after the repair work. that will be a better drive out of the altamonte. up here we still have closure for highway 37. i lied a little bit. there is one eastbound lane for highway 37. it is he open right now. it will likely flood over the next half hour. those are the two changes. but another issue affecting the roads. >> good point. it is going to be very touch and go again for the morning

commute. >> today in the bay bob redell is at a trouble spot we have been closely watching the last several days. the northbound direction still shut down because of the mudslide that came down onto the road. you can see it behind me. it happens tuesday afternoon. even though caltrans has been working overnight to remove the mudslide, they are saying they do not expect it to reopen until possibly as late as monday. it's not clear how much the storm coming in today will have to do with that delay. it knocked a tree over onto a passing vehicle. a spider excavator was able to start moving the mud and debris from the top of the pile. they have converted southbound 17 into a two-lane highway

between sugarloaf and pine hill roads to allow traffic in both directions. tuesday night, the driver of this blue van was returning from the store to buy candles when they nose dived into a 15 foot deep sinkhole on skyland road. remarkably, the driver was unhurt, able to get out okay. we spoke with another person who had driven over the same section of road an hour before. >> this was a flat, no stream, going under here. i don't believe there's a culvert or anything. >> no estimated time when it will be repaired. there is another road for people to use to get in and out. along highway 17, bob redell, today in the bay. >> thank you.

the difference between life and death. as we talk about frantic circumstances, quick thinking from a woman with whose home was hit by a mudslide. she had no service. the 32-year-old mom used facebook live to call for help. her father-in-law lives on the same property and describes the moment the flood started flowing down. >> it sounded like a jet plane landing on the property. and i jumped out. then i heard somebody yell. >> the family was shaken up. they are okay. they are staying with friends this morning. no word yet if they can salvage their home. >> near livermore, a driver swerved off the road, landed upside-down in a creek as he was trapped in his car. a couple of quick thinking men jumped into action. a man got his pick axe out of his pickup and shattered the window. >> you could hear the window

implode. and i just started grabbing everything i could. one of the things i grabbed was him. he ended up on the bank before we knew it. >> translator: driver was a 20-year-old man who suffered only minor skwrurinjuries. 4:36. coming up, high tides, pounding rain. makes for pretty dangerous combinations this morning. kari, will all of this be building during our morning commute. >> yes. . in time for the main morning commute from 7:00 to 9:00. that's when we will see the storm moving in. it's coming up in just a few minutes. >> and we have this live look at the san mateo bridge. more rain happening in the north bay right now. a look ahead to see where you can and can't drive already. >> and a state decision that many folks are calling

confusing. why california remains in a drought emergency.

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it is 4:39 on this thursday morning. we are in a microclimate weather alert. a flash flood watch has been issued for the coast and the hills especially across the north bay where the heaviest rain will fall. we will take a look at the

timeline and a look ahead to the clear weekend forecast coming up at 4:40. 580, much better than we saw yesterday. as we expect over the dublin interchange. all lanes are open out of the altamonte pass. we'll track that commute and more coming up. >> thank you, kari and mike. the state water board has decided to keep drought emergency restrictions in effect. many water agencies have been pushing for the cutbacks to end. they say the restrictions are hurting their bottom line because they are selling less water. they also argue californians shouldn't be tricked. >> frankly, in this political era of fake news, i'm concerned that the state of california is going to be looked upon as getting fake news to many people thinking there is still a drought when it has evaporated away. >> some lawmakers encourage

people to conserve and develop good water habits. >> san francisco and san jose officials trying to figure out how to put an end to traffic deaths in the area. the crucial part of their plan is using speed cameras. i told you about this yesterday morning. he said speed is the biggest factor in predicting whether someone will or will not survive a crash. that proposal includes setting up cameras that ticket drivers going more than 10 miles per hour over the speed limit with a fine of 100 bucks. the policy is being used in other places across the country. >> a sign of the times or breach of tradition? you be the judge. we tell you about one of the mo wedding registries now available. very calm conditions at the moment. that is going to change, especially as we get into the heart of the commute.

kari and mike will explain after this.

well, we are in a microclimate weather alert right now. >> again. >> again. that was fun while it lasted, right? >> you are thinking we're going to have the bulk of the rain coming down 8:00, 9:00. that's when a lot of people get out there, get moving. if you're up early with us, you are at an advantage.

as we take a live look outside at san jose, it is all good as you head out the door. richmond, roads still dry there. it is starting to get wet across parts of the north bay where we are starting to already see some of the lighter showers moving in ahead of the heavier rain that will be moving in during this morning's commute. santa rosa and parts of northern marin county seeing the rain already. but the bulk of the heavier sections in fort bragg, guerneville, bow degas bay. the rain starts to roll in. out ahead of the heavier showers that are extending well offshore. so a look at the timeline. at 7:30 this morning, we see really heavy rain across the north bay. moving into san francisco as well as oakland. that will continue to advance farther south. spreading over the peninsula with the yellows and the reds on

the map at 9:30 this morning. at lunchtime, we will all see heavy rain moving in including the south bay and the santa cruz mountains which will need to be watched for the potential of more flooding there. at 2:30 this afternoon, some of the heavier rain shifting out of the north bay, san francisco, oakland, fairfield. and the tri-valley. still wet roads, pouring rain. a lot of it will be farther south. we see a tapering off later on tonight. rainfall totals look to be at about an inch for many spots. could be as high as close to two inches for the santa cruz mountains. and a little bit more than an inch for the north bay. as we watch the russian river at guerneville, it is expected to crest tomorrow morning, 37.3 feet, which is just above flood

stage. and san lorenzo just below flood stage based on the totes we're expecting. with all of this rain moving in, we will have the potential of seeing more creeks and rivers flooding. i'll continue to post the river levels at facebook and twitter. make sure you are following me. we'll keep you up to date on what's happening as far as this forecast. heading into the next several days, it will be drying out before the weekend into the start of next week. we have to get through the stormy day. tomorrow, inland areas cooler with highs reaching the upper 50s with breezy winds. >> keeping an eye on bob out at highway 17. you never know what he's going to do. just kidding. a smooth drive for most of the

speed sensors. again, confirming for folks both directions do have traffic flowing on one side of the freeway. there's a lane shift right now between granite creek and vine hill. with more rain coming in, it could get worse. they could have to close the freeway again. a smoother drive as 580 reopened yesterday late night. a nice drive from the altamonte pass to the dublin interchange. as we get back to the system, the east shore freeway. under 15 minutes from highway 4 to the bay bridge toll plaza. mass transit not reporting any delays. bart is running on time. yesterday they had to slow system wide because of the rain.

we will track updates as well. back to you. thank you very much, mike. talk about cheesely happily ever after. there is a pizza registry. >> landon dowdy joins us from cnbc world headquarters with how she likes her pizza. good morning, landon. >> reporter: hey, guys, good morning to you both. it is also national pizza day, funny enough. a quick check of your markets. a mixed session on wednesday. the dow slipped but the nasdaq eeked out another record close. oil prices rebounded. look for unemployment and earnings from coca-cola and twitter to 20054. nasdaq rising 8 to 5682.

the judge says 48 -- the deal would likely lead to higher costs and less competition in the already concentrated market. last month a separate judge rejected aetna and humana. >> dominoes is launching a wedding registry. it is offering e gift cards under various dominations you can treat the happy couple from food for a bachelorette party. they want to make it easier for people to ask for and receive something they can really use. >> right. it is going to be a big night if you eat a lot of pizza. more to love. >> watching the waistline. you're already married at that point. >> you always have to work at it.

>> to winter olympics in south korea are less than a year away. the company unveils the olympic torch as part of its countdown to the 2018 winter games. the games are expected to be well organized and ready to go despite recent political turmoil in that country. they will be held in pyeongchang. they had a run-in with the law. the veterans deported with a country they fought to protect. but first happening right now, several districts canceled classes already due to weather. you can find more on nbcbayarea.com. plus, your eyes and ears when it comes to weather in your neighborhood. we want to be able to help you through the severe weather. send us the videos and the photos from ground level where you are and tag us on instagram and facebook. we'll try to get it on tv as

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=sam/cu= today presidennald trumpwill haa welcome back. welcome to thursday as well. a live look at emeryville where we are tracking the storm about to hit the bay area. it feels a little warm out there. almost a calm before the storm. another one packing a punch. the full forecast at 4:54. let's talk supreme court nominations and politics. president donald trump will have lunch with democratic senators who he is trying to persuade. there is speculation the lunch

might be about judge neil gorsuch. also today, the new homeland security secretary will be visiting jon kelley, traveling to the southwest portion of our southern border to meet with homeland security employees, along with state and local officials in arizona. he will tour security operations and discussing the administration's efforts to improve border security. tomorrow secretary kelly will visit the port of entry there in california. during the current debate over immigration, one group of people were promised citizenship but later deported. they are u.s. military veterans who served honorably but got in trouble with the law and were kicked out. >> steven stock traveled to tijuana to track down some of the veterans. he joins us now with what he found out. steven.

>> our team discovered hundred of veterans deported by the very nation they were willing to die for. we found 60 of them living in the tijuana, mexico area alone. nearly all received honorable discharges after years of military service, some dating back to the vietnam war. many of them came here as young children, brought here by their parents. they grew up in the u.s. and consider themselves americans. they volunteered to serve in our military. all of them were later deported for committing a crime classified as an aggravated felony. things like drug possession, failure to show up in court, or entering the country illegally. federal immigration officials say they are merely enforcing an expanded law passed during the bill clinton administration. advocates are fighting to change that very law you can see the second in our two-part series about a family split apart by this very policy tonight on nbc

bay area. to see our entire coverage, including behind the scenes video, go to our website, nbcbayarea.com. guys, back to you. steven, thank you so much. if you have a tip for your investigative unit, give us a call 888-996-tips. or send us an e-mail to theun theunit @nbcbayarea.com. the rain moving in. and the rest of the bay area will see it during the main morning commute time. we will talk about that timeline and what to expect as we go into the weekend coming up in about two minutes. we're looking at the golden gate bridge where they just moved that center divide. rain in the north bay. that could complicate some recovery efforts for the roadway. >> mike, kari, we have people living near creeks and rivers all over the bay area. they are nervous this morning. obviously the water level is swollen and expected to rise with the latest storm. parts of the bay area still rem.

the next storm is ving inright . =laura/live/vo= androm floodto mudsdes. this morning's commutcoulde hectic. =sam/vo= parts of the bay area remain under water. the next storm is moving in right now. this morning's commute could be hectic. >> it is a race against time to clean up the storm's damage as powerful systems continue to build strength. we have team coverage to help get you out safely this morning. today in the bay starts right now.

very good thursday. thank you for joining us. i'm sack brock. >> more than 50 schools are closed, most in marin county. some schools in santa clara county have also closed classes. check ahead this morning. >> this is coming in through the heart of the morning commute. >> yeah. this will be definitely something that intensifies as we go through the morning and the early afternoon. looking at the timeline we start out with light rain now. but the radar will fill in with heavier downpours within the next two to three hours. we are seeing light rain moving into the north bay now. around santa rosa as well. even farther north in fort bragg, point arena, and cloverdale seeing the rain. guerneville, we will be closely watching for the potential of flooding by tomorrow morning. and spotty lighter