died overnight unexpectedly. our coverage starts right now. i )m laura garcia. and i )m marcus washington. less than 20 minutes ago -- the new acting mayor london breed spoke out. toss to pete. today in the bay )s pete suratos joins us now live. the last 30 minutes or so, she

was joined by her fellow board of supervisors. i saw the public defender here, as well. they were here in place to give us a statement from the passing of mayor ed lee. here's what she has to say. >> it is with profound sadness that i confirm mayor edwin m. lee passed away early this morning, tuesday, december 12th, at 1:11 a.m. at zuckerberg san francisco general hospital. family, friends and colleagues were by his side. the 43rd mayor of san francisco, ed was 65 years old. our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, anita, his daughters, tonya and brianna, and his entire family. in accordance with the city charter, i assume the role as mayor of the city and county of san francisco effective

immediately. i want to thank the incredible staff at zuckerberg general for their care and professionalism. >> that was acting mayor of san francisco london breed, speaking from zuckerberg sf general. many of the public officials you saw -- i don't know if you saw in the video -- they were behind her, they're still at the hospital. they're not talking at this time. i did speak to a spokesperson right after that news conference to ask him if they know the cause of death at this time. of course, this caught many of us offgua guard. when we got the news, 1:11 a.m. that mayor lee had passed at zuckerberg san francisco general, they didn't disclose the cause of death at this time. as you mentioned, i know we broke into news not long ago, mayor lee's impact here, the

43rd mayor of san francisco, the first asian-american mayor in the city of san francisco. a very sad day for the city. of course, they're not saying much as far as the cause of death at this time. we're going to continue to cover this story. hopefully get more information on this. mayor ed lee, of course, is survived by his wife, anita, his daughters brianna and tonya. very tough time, obviously, for the city. we're going to get some more information and cover this throughout the morning. >> thank you very much, pete. we know you're doing your best to gather information there. they really didn't say much about how he died. why he even went to the hospital earlier this evening. he was very active on social media. he was tweeting just less than 10 to 15 hours ago, as well. of course, he served as san francisco mayor since january of 2011 when he was appointed to take over. he won the mayoral election for the full four-year term. he won re-election in 2015.

san francisco's 43rd mayor and the first asian-american mayor in san francisco history. prior to serving as mayor, ed lee served as city administrator. he was first appointed to the position in 2005 and then re-appointed him five years later in 2010. he was born in 1952. we mentioned he was 65 years old. in seattle, washington. he attended u.c. berkeley's school of law. >> which is unexpected. a lot of people shocked to hear this news. talking about mayor ed lee's last tweet, we talked about that. he did one looking over his twitter right now. you can see, it said ten hours ago. he posted yesterday he was busy doing a lot of things. he announced a new launch of a pilot program for the city, making it easier for residents and businesses to recycle. now, mayor lee even took a photograph with state senator scott wiener and small business

owners. he later tweeted about his recent visit to chicago where he attended a climate summit. he was a proponent of phasing out fossil fuels. he tweeted about new legislation to build safe housing and ending the practice of illegal and unsafe dwelling in san francisco. this is something, talking to people again, he leaves behind a wife and two children. we talked about that, the acting mayor right now, london breed, who was the board of supervisors, taking over this morning. she thanked the staff at zuckerberg san francisco general hospital this morning. you can see her right there. she is from san francisco. >> she's the fifth district supervisor and president of the board of supervisors, which is why she is the successor. to give history and background of this, this hasn't happened in the city of san francisco since 1979, over 30 years ago. then-mayor, george misconi, and the supervisor were

assassinated. at that time, supervisor diane feinstein actually was sworn into office during that time. a lot of history in san francisco. it shows you, i mean, the succession there. it hasn't happened in so long. but now, london breed is already saying online that she is now the new, you know, interim mayor of -- acting mayor of san francisco this morning. hoping to get more information. another news conference will be tomorrow morning. hopefully we can gain some information as to how mayor ed lee died, in fact. he was only 65 years old. we didn't know of any known illnesses. he did go into the hospital last night. died at 1:11 this morning. we'll continue to follow this developing and breaking news story this morning. we're coming on live early this morning for "today in the bay," just for this special remembering. san francisco mayor ed lee. >> 4:06. we want to look at what's going on with your weather before you head out the door.

meteorologist carrie hall has what you can expect. >> 4:07. it is another chilly morning as you get ready to head out the door. as we take a live look outside in san francisco, all clear skies. another cold one. also as we get a live look outside in downtown san jose, christmas in the park, all lit up. into this afternoon, we will have another day with unhealthy air quality, especially in the north bay and the peninsula. moderate air quality for the east bay and the south bay. you should limit your time outdoors, especially if you do have breathing sensitivitsensit. now, we do see these temperatures in parts of the bay area dipping below freezing, especially in the north bay valleys. down to 31 degrees right now in santa rosa. liv livermore at 34. mostly lower 40s for parts of the inner bay and the coast. as we look at the high temperatures today, reaching into the upper 60s to low 70s, another day where we may be close to setting new records.

we are not supposed to be this warm with our highs up to 68 degrees in walnut creek. 66 in hayward. 65 in san mateo. san francisco up to 66 degrees in the mission district. north bay, expect a high also of 66 degrees in santa rosa. light winds coming in from the southeast. that is once again bringing in some of the poorer air quality for today. we'll continue to monitor that. i'll have a look at the extended forecast and when we may see some rain. that's coming up later. >> a lot of people looking forward to that. thank you very much. 4:08. we continue to remember san francisco mayor ed lee, who has died at the age of 65, unexpectedly, in san francisco overnight. we'll have more after this quick break. saan

welcome back to this special edition of "today in the bay." we started early this morning because san francisco mayor ed lee died unexpectedly overnight. he was just 65 years old. he was admitted to san francisco general hospital. we do not know why. he died at 1:11 this morning. >> you know, this is something that's been shocking to a lot of people. the acting mayor now, london breed, actually spoke outside of the hospital this morning, giving us just -- giving the official w0ord that mayor ed le passed away. she did not say why. >> no. >> she did not say what caused him to go to the hospital or anything.

we do know he passed away at zuckerberg san francisco general hospital at 1:11 this morning. again, still wondering what happened. he leaves behind his wife and two daughters. >> we understand his family was at his side. it is very unexpected. london breed will officially take over as the acting mayor right now. we hope to learn more in a news conference that will happen later this morning at 10:00 a.m. of course, we'll continue to follow this breaking news story. surprising to many overnight. also, another big story we're following overnight, a fire in the open hills that damaged five homes and forced evacuations. the fire started a little before midnight on snake road, about a mile from montclair elementary school. some of the video you show here shows the burning embers and how quickly they were flying in the a air. neighbors say it started at a home under construction. the fire spread to neighboring homes before it was contained. the sides are here.

of course, the concern in the oakland hills. residents were briefly sent to an evacuation center down, we understand, at a local grocery store, as well as montclair elementary school. we're told most of the residents have been allowed to return home. snake road kind of runs around the mountain, getting you up to the montclair area. there was word they were going to close it. mike joins us now. it is a thoroughfare. it loops around. >> we don't have confirmation of the status now, but yes, the road was closed. avoid it if you don't have to go through the area because it is dark and a lot of activity is continuing. we'll show you where it is in relation to the rest of the commute. piedmont, oakland hills, all the same area over here. highway 13. highway 24. right here, this is snake road. it loops around. it is also called shepard canyon and skyline. it is this big loop just off highway 13. haven't heard of any on or off

ramps closed. right here is where the oakland hills fire is being fought. i just got word from chp, there is another brush fire on highway 24, a good distance away. i wouldn't think they're related but you never know. embers can burn and move. we'll track all of this carefully. so far, no major road closures. we're tracking this here in the oakland hills area. that's where we're tracking the fire laura was talking about. i'll watch this closely and hope to have more information on snake road soon. back to you. >> sounds good. thank you very much, mike. if you are just joining us, we want to let you know san francisco mayor ed lee has died at the age of 65. he died at zuckerberg san francisco general hospital at 1:11 this morning. we will continue with his story as we continue with our morning. we'll be right back after the break.

we continue to follow breaking news as we bring you this early edition of "today in the bay." san francisco mayor ed lee has died unexpectedly overnight. just 65 years old, he was admitted to san francisco general hospital last night and died at 1:11 this morning. very surprising news to many. good morning to you. i'm laura garcia. >> i'm marcus washington. this was after a busy day yesterday. he tweeted about it. >> he was active on social media, tweeting regularly. everything looked normal yet at

least. we continue to follow this. they had a news conference outside of san francisco general hospital just moments ago. london breed, who is the fifth district supervisor of san francisco, made the official announcement that the mayor had, in fact, died. we got an early warning in our newsroom this morning but took the news conference for you live this morning. she immediately will be the acting mayor of san francisco. we hope to learn more in a news conference, again, at 10:00 this morning. not a lot to know. very young, at the age of 65 this morning. other news we're covering this morning, good news for parents in oakland. head start programs actually are opening their doors again. the massive strike that started last tuesday by city workers has been suspended. it comes after two sides met with a mediator yesterday. it doesn't mean the problems are over. there's still no contract agreement. city workers are looking for higher raises, but the mayor says there is no money for that.

workers say the strike could continue at a later date. conditions bleak for firefighters in southern california where the massive thomas fire is threatening thousands of homes. as of this morning, the fire is 20% contained. the frontal end of the fire is pushing into santa barbara county, where residents remain evacua evacuated. we're talking about the state's largest fire on record. burned more than 230,000 acres or 362 square miles. firefighters count 683 homes destroyed. the suspect in yesterday's attempted terror attack in new york city is still in the hospital this morning. investigators try to piece together the moments that led up to the attack. got a live look at times square now this morning, just about a block from where authorities say 27-year-old akayed ullah detonated an explosive device. looks like things have returned back to normal in the big apple.

this happened though underground yesterday in a passageway near the port authority bus terminal, three blocks from times square. investigators say ullah is an immigrant from bangladesh. he committed the attack, he says, in the name of isis. he suffered some serious burns. several others suffered minor injuries. authorities say his pipe bomb did not have the desired effect. it could have been much worse. right now, we want to take a look at what's going on with your weather before you step out the door. keri hall has been tracking the weather. cooler start to the morning. >> it was. 4:20, here's a look at some of the temperatures now. 34 degrees in the tri-valley. really cold temperatures. peninsula, 40 degrees. these are the mornings we've had recently. 47 degrees right now in san francisco. 42 in the east bay. 31 degrees in the north bay with some freezing temperatures there. looking at temperatures at hall moon bay, now 22 degrees colder

than yesterday morning when you stepped out the door. be ready for that around half moon bay. other areas, we are just where we have been. the high temperatures today, up to 66 degrees in oakland. 67 in napa. 66 degrees in santa rosa. all of these high temperatures well above normal. we are going to have a very quick warmup. as we go through the morning commute in the south bay, temperatures in the upper 40s through at least 8:00. then it does start to feel a little bit milder as we head closer to that lunchtime hour. we will be at 57 degrees at 11:00. we've also been talking about the unhealthy air quality. it is all because of the compression of that high pressure, keeping everything close to the surface. then we have these wildfires across southern california. as we look at the wind direction, it does look like by tomorrow morning, it does move it a little more offshore. i think the winds will turn southerly, come in from the south, as we go through the day

tomorrow. high pressure still with us. here we are going through the middle of next week. that is finally when we'll see a change in the pattern that will bring us some improved air quality. also more clouds and the possibility of some rain. that doesn't happen until next wednesday and thursday. so all dry throughout this week. san francisco seeing the high temperatures today up to 65 degrees. a little bit cooler as we go through the weekend. for the inland areas, we're going to still see those temperatures in the upper 60s/low 70s and chilly mornings. mike, what's happening out there early on the roadways? >> light traffic around the bay. we're worried not about the bay bridge, though we're worried but nothing of concern over there. we're worried about the oakland hills. montclair, where the fire has been going on overnight, as well. tragedy in san francisco, we follow there with the mayor. over here, we follow this fire, as well, over in the hills, off of snake road. in fact, snake road itself was at one point closed, or

restricted. fire crews were right there. skyline turns into snake road, loops around and turns into shepard canyon road and loops around. we'll continue to follow this. avoid the area. highway 13, not expressing closures from chp. highway 24, we see a little slowing but we typically see it this time of morning as crews move around. it is typical, as well. the other fire we saw, a brush fire off highway 24, that cleared so it is good. no other problems. no reports of changes for transit or any of the other agencies. again, we're tracking it carefully, all the way from the city down toward the south bay. the north bay, a quick look at the san rafael camera. light build. no problems. you're at speed coming all the way out. back to you. >> early start. thank you very much, mike. if you're just joining us, we want to let you know san francisco mayor ed lee has died at the age of 65. he passed away at zuckerberg san

francisco general hospital at 1:11 this morning, with london breed taking over as acting mayor. mayor ed lee, dead at the age of 65. we'll be back after this break. ♪ this little home of mine, ♪ i'm gonna let it shine. ♪ it's energy saving time, ♪ i'm gonna reduce mine. ♪ californians all align ♪ to let our great state shine. ♪ let it shine, ♪ the power's ours to let it shine! ♪ unplug chargers - go, ♪ devices go off-line. turn thermostats down low, ♪ led's shine mighty fine. ♪ small actions quickly grow, ♪ to let our great state shine. ♪ energy upgrade california, will let us shine. ♪

san francisco mayor ed lee has died overnight unexpectedly. breaking news. extended coverage this morning. early coverage from "today in the bay," as we remember san francisco mayor ed lee, who died unexpectedly overnight at just 65 years old. the news just coming in in the last couple of hours, into our newsroom. we rushed to the set to bring you this developing story. a news conference was held outside of zuckerberg san

francisco general hospital, where supervisor london breed came out to make the official announcement. we don't know how the mayor died. it was unexpected. his family was by his side though. >> right. she's going there, thanking the staff for all their hard work, what they've done in the situation. again, mayor ed lee died at the hospital, zuckerberg san francisco general hospital at 1:11. there will be a news conference at 10:00 this morning. hopefully giving us a little more background on what happened. we don't know exactly why he was taken to the hospital or what the cause of the death is. we'll hope to get a little more insight at the news conference at 10:00. >> london breed will be immediately acting mayor. this hasn't happened over 30 years in san francisco. then mayor mascone and supervisor milk were assassinated. diane feinstein was immediately

sworn in as acting mayor. a lot of history in san francisco this morning. surprising news to many, as san francisco mayor ed lee has died at the age of 65. we have crews at san francisco general hospital, hoping to get more information. we'll take a quick break but we'll be right back. breaking news at 4 am.

san francisco mayor ed lee has died overnight unexpectedly. that news coming within the last hour. ad-lib.

4 am.oom a few hours ago. news tell you mayor ed lee a.ed at zuckerberg general hospital surrounded by his family around 1:11 this morning. right now, london breed, takes over as acting mayor of the city. good morning, i'm marcus washington. >> i'm laura garcia. of course we'll continue. we have the crews at san francisco general, pete suratos is there trying to gather more information. not a lot was said as london breed came out to make the announcement, but there was a large crowd there. >> reporter: yes, laura, a very large crowd there. behind her, she was joined by her fellow or members of the board of supervisors. i believe i saw aaron next to her. a number of people here dealing with this tragedy with the passing of mayor