pretty special. just like covered california helps you find >> their neighbors even joined health insurance you can afford. they're the only place you can get financial assistance in on the nuptials. to help pay for health coverage. plus, this year, the state is providing more help one even played bag pipes for the blessed occasion. than ever before. congratulations to them. and because a new law requires californians to have at 7:26, we have much more ahead on today in the bay. health coverage or pay a penalty, coming up, facial coverings are covered california has made it easier to get financial help, now required in public. we will break down which but time's limited. counties are now adding the new rule. visit coveredca.com or call to enroll today. plus, the big county that isn't. and what will you do with your stoma stimulus check? one local couple has an idea. they tell you about the challenge to do good in the community. we're all doing our part by staying at home. good morning. it is saturday, april 18th. we are taking a live look outside. cloudy skies over the golden gate bridge as we look from our future tower camera. a cloudy start to the weekend. and we really appreciate you starting our weekend with us. thanks so much for joining us. i'm kira klapper. vianey arana is continuing to work from home like so many of

you and brings us the microclimate forecast. good morning. >> hi. good morning. that view of the golden gate bridge is one of my favorite shots because it showcases the fog and clear skies. that could mean an increase in energy bills. i also want to show you how the you can save by setting your heat to 68 or lower... blanket of cloud looks. let's get right to those unplugging and turning off devices when not in use... or just letting the sun light your home. graphics. sure, it's cloudy, but the sun stay well and keep it golden. will prevail at some point. we'll get peeks of sunshine. san jose's temperature trend really showcases how we will go from 50s into the 60s by 2:00. so a normal high around this time of year is about 69 degrees for san jose. a mostly dry saturday. but we do have a system churning just off of the coast. that's going to bring us our next chance of seeing showers. now the question is how much rain is this system going to bring and also i'll have the

latest look at the draught conditions in california coming up in a few minutes. >> thanks. it was an eerily similar scene, but it looked like panic buying was back, except it's not. this new grocery shortage is being blamed on a coronavirus outbreak at a distribution center. you may have been one of those shoppers yesterday. this is at safeway where people saw store shelves barren. it is linked to an outbreak in a good morning. distribution center where one it is saturday, april 18 of 7:2. employee died from coronavirus complications and nearly 50 more as we look at the golden gate tested positive. while safeway works to address bridge, cloudy skies as we begin our weekend. and we really want to thank you safety, some people in for starting your weekend with us. alternative grocers lik i'm kira klapper. vianey arana joins us from home this morning with a look at our community market. >> medicine and things like that microclimate weather forecast. hey, girl. were gone. good morning. but they have it here. >> hey, girl. good morning. >> our team also found crews

unloading produce at the super today's coffee mug of the day is this one from mexico. market at 26th and mission. the store told us last night >> much better than mine. they were serving an uptick in i love your mugs every weekend. customers who left the nearby >> i think that's cute, too. safeway empty handed. >> it's okay. now to coronavirus cases in the bay area. they have surpassed 6,000. >> all right. let's get right to those santa clara county still is the temperatures because you are probably inside and you probably don't know the current outdoor hot bed with more than 1,800. temperature. so let me show it to you because san francisco saw a rise now we're in the 50s. reporting more than 1,000 cases. many of us have been staying at homeworking to flatten the 55 degrees in san joe sa right now. curve. 56 in san francisco. here is a look at how it's at least san jose, anyway. working in this graph. we have a couple areas of cloud red and yellow there, our team cover. for the most part, it is a has been tracking these numbers little gray, but eventually the for the last few weeks. sun will be poking on through the red bars show the new daily those clouds. look at by 12:00. cases. the biggest jump was all the way we'll be at 62 degrees. now it will be cooler. no 70s or 80s in the forecast back on march 30th withe yellows for today. this is continuing in with our cooling trend. now, you are wondering about any cases on a seven-day average. rain, we have seen a little bit that's the curve, so to speak. of drizzle around the coastline, you can see it's beginning to and we're tracking our next drop or plateau or flatten. chance of seeing some shower activity heading into monday. the models show this coming week

we scaled it back a bit. we are on track to continue that i'll go more into detail on that trend, and that's good news. and what we're, pekting heading that progress is due in large into sunday as welcoming up in part to social distancing and 15 minutes. covering our faces. if you aren't already >> all right, girl. incorporating wearing a mask, we'll see you around 7:45. now is the time to start. thanks so much. if you don't already have a it was an eerie scene at mask, finding one might be difficult, so you might want to some grocery stores where it try making one yourself with a looked like panic buying was back. bandanna. except it's not. we found some local folks this new grocery shortage is working to keep up with the demand by making masks for being blamed on a coronavirus themselves and for others. outbreak at one distribution it was a quarantine activity center. you may have been one of those turned full-time job. shoppers just yesterday at safeway who saw store shell ves they have spent more than or fi like this, barren. it is linked to a coronavirus outbreak at the distribution center in tracy. responders and every day folks. that's where unemployone employ people contacting me on every platform, facebook, instagram, and 50 more tested positive. while they work to address safety and restock their stores, sc, e-mail, e-mail, text we found some people in san message, word-of-mouth. francisco finding alternative >> her and i are a team. between us, we have decided we grocers like gus' community market. have given away almost 1,000 >> medicine and things like that

masks just given away for free. were gone. but they have it here. >> bless them. as of last night, san francisco >> our team also found crews is joining other counties in unloading produce. requiring all people to wear a this is at the super market at face mask in public. 26th and mission just last in fact, this is a look at all the bay area counties now night. the store told us they were requiring face coverings, except serving enough customers who left the nearby safeway empty for one notable exception, santa handed. if you are heading out for clara county where the number of groceries and you aren't already covid-19 cases and deaths incorporating wearing a face surpassed every other county in mask, now is the time to start. the bay area. the county's health officer is if you don't already have a mask, finding one might be not ordering but urging people difficult. you might want to try making one to wear masks. if you need to make a mask yourself. we found local people working up for yourself, we have made it to keep up with the demand by very easy for you. making masks for themselves and our consumer investigator put others. it was a quarantine activity together a video on how to make turned full-time job. one in less than five minutes. no sewing required. they spent more than $2,000 you can see that tutorial at making face coverings for first nbcbayarea.com. now to s i shows that theree responders and for other every day folks. >> i never had this amount of people contacting me on every 50 times more coronavus cases than we have on record. platform, facebook, instagram, those results come from the antibody tests we have been

reporting on. etsy, e-mail, text message. stanford researchers recruited >> her and i are a team. volunteers via facebook. 3,000 people were tested for between us, we figured away antibodies back on april 3rd and april 4th. 1,000 masks just for free. based on those results, they >> as of midnight last night, estimated that 2.5 to 4.2% of the city and county of san francisco is now requiring all people living in santa clara county carry the antibodies. people to wear a face mask in it is estimated the virus may public. this is looking at all the bay have infected between 48,000 and area counties now requiring face coverings. you might notice it's every 81,000 by the beginning of county except for one notable april. that is 50 to 85 times more than exception. santa clara county where the the number of official cases number of covid-19 cases and during that period of time. we want to mention this study deaths surpassed everyone else has not been peer reviewed, in the bay area. which is the process of being thsks. scrutinized for accuracy by other researchers and doctors if you want to outside the study. but nonetheless startling. do-it-yourse, video on how to m a mask in five minutes or less. a new testing site no sewing is required. in san francisco. see his tutorial. it is at 600 seventh street in it's a good one. now to some surprising new the soma district. information out of stanford testing began just yesterday. where there are more coronavirus the site expects to test about cases than we have on record.

200 people daily by appointment these results have come from the only. antibody tests we have been you must have symptoms in order to get the test, and the test reporting on. stanford researchers recruited will be made available for anyone with symptoms regardless volunteers. of whether they can pay. 3,000 people were tested for well, the lack of testing antibodies on april 3rd and 4th. continues to be a major problem based on those results, they in the battle against the virus. estimated that 2.5 to 4.2% of just yesterday another heated people living in just santa battle involving the white house and many lawmakers. clara county carry the antibodies, meaning they already had and recovered from the in a teleconference, democrats virus. they estimate that the virus may argue that opening the economy without nationwide testing. have infected between 48,000 and president trump insisted testing has gone well. 81,000 by the beginning of however, dr. anthony fauci april. so that means that it's 50 to 85 acknowledged the problems with testing in weeks past, saying times more than the number of to communication and supply chains, fushl cases during that period though, have improved. of time. we want to mention the study >> if these things are done hasn't been peer reviewed, which is the process of being correctly, i believe they can, scrutinized for accuracy by we will have and there will be enough tests to allow us to take other researchers and doctors this country safely to phase outside of the study. now to a new covid-19 one. >> dr. deborah burk says there testing site in san francisco. won't ever be enough tests to determine if people have the located at 607th street.

virus, so antigen tests will now testing began just yesterday. they anticipate testing 200 be the key focus. people per day. you may have seen them. it is by appointment only. a lot of big names, but will it you have to have symptoms in order to get the test. help. it will be made available for a team of business and political anyone with symptoms regardless heavy weights to help with the of whether you can pay. recovery in our state. it is made up of silicon valley the federal stimulus payments are starting to arrive leaders and former governors. in people's bank accounts. among them, former governor for many, the $1,200 are a arnold schwarzenegger, tom lifeline, but for others they are chance to do something good in these extraordinarily steyer and disney ceo. difficult times. here is today in the bay's they will help him with the damien trujiho. biggest problem so far, >> reporter: the community unemployment. services agency helps roughly >> just since march 12th, 3.1 million have filed for 55,000 needy families in silicon unemployment insurance. valley. but this year has been far from a few weeks back i was giving a average. >> the needs have escalated at a state of the state talking about the fact t had just level that we have never ever entered into the 119th month of seen before. consecutive job growth. >> the team also will advise on it's really cataclysmic for so guidelines for going back to many families. >> reporter: for many families a work and going back to school. little help is arriving in the form of stimulus checks, but for

it is just shy of 7:09. the gonzalez family, the money much more ahead. created a new dilemma. coming up, if you haven't had your hair done in a while, the >> i felt bad getting it. push to reopen salons and >> reporter: embarrassed because it was money they would like to barbershops, making them have but certainly don't need. essential businesses. plus, hear his side of the especially when sacred heart story. we are hearing from an east bay finds itself with a 25 foot jump pastor cited for holding an in pleas for help and a drop in easter service against rules in donations and volunteers. the family decided to give most his church. why he says he will do it again. of their stimulus money to say (soft music) credit heart. >> they are using it for a really good cause. they're feeding children. they're feeding families and i wanted to on facebook asking friends who could afford it to also donate part of their stimulus. >> some have, and that's great. every little bit helps. >> reporter: they will use the money to provide food for families and in some cases financial assistance. >> it's really the greatest thing ever, to actually see people that are coming and volunteering or making donations - [female vo] restaurants are facing a crisis. during this time of great and they're counting on your takeout uncertainty right now. >> reporter: standing up for and delivery orders to make it through. their neighbors during a crisis of pandemic proportions.

>> i feel like i did something grubhub. together we can help save the restaurants we love. that not only benefits them, but it benefits us because we did something with that money that is going towards a good cause. >> reporter: nbc bay area news. >> incredit there. turning to other news now, we have new details about a deadly stabbing in pleasanton involving a 19-year-old. jackson butler was killed on wednesday night. police believe he was staying at the hotel and met up with some people in the parking lot. that's where they say a fight started. butler was stabbed several times. he was taken to a hospital where he died. police are now looking for two people between the ages of 16 and 20. anyone with information needs to contact pleasanton police. and we now know more about what led to a police chase in richmond that proved deadly for a valet homan.

the man they were trying to arrest rammed cruisers and pointed a gun at police, causing them to open fire. this man was suspected of shooting a woman and dumping her in the hills between oakland. that woman is in critical condition in the hospital. she is 29 years old, who police say knew him. well, still ahead on today in the bay. at 7:37, one of the bay area's welcome back. if you are one of the many best college basketball players people eager to get a cut and of all time just got drafted to color, get your nails done, the pros as the number one whatever it may be, bay area overall pick. salons are eager to get you back we'll show you the huge moment in for your appointment. now a petition is circulating from her walnut creek living online asking the governor to room. include hair salons and barbershops as part of the first wave of openings. we are talking to the woman who launched that petition, calling on the governor to let her colleagues back to work. >> reporter: plenty of businesses remain shutters.

the governor mentioned restaurants as an example of how businesses will slowly come back online. >> i want to give another example of a different service that should also be opening. >> reporter: the petition to governor newsome was launched thursday morning. it already has more than 34,0 0 signatures. we proposes salonnd shops that do open should take several precautions. >> i am suggesting masks on operators and clients, temperature checks at the door. no one coming in, operator or clients who have been sick in the last two weeks. >> reporter: a san francisco-based stylist who signed her petition is eager to get back to work and he agrees with all the suggested precautions, but there are some services he probably will not provide. >> so anything that involves working around, you know, close to the face or anywhere to the eyes or the nose or anybody that, you know, the -- anybody

kind of breathing on you. >> reporter: the governor's office and local authorities have not made any final determinations on what types of businesses to be included in a soft reopening. stay-at-home orders in the bay area remain in effect until may 3rd. sergio quintana. >> it's 7:13. we have much more ahead on today in the bay. coming up, a big update on bart. the move that will slow down the plans to bring trains to the south bay. hi there. thanks for waking up with us. yeah. waking us up on a saturday morning. it is a little cloudy. cooler weather. i'll have a look at your seven day forecast and the latest to it has been a life changing your snow pack coming up. week for two bay area basketball stay with us. starsment on thursday the top high school recruit in the country signed with the nbc g league. last night the first pick in the wnba draft is east bay native.

to university of oregon and now to the big apple. the point guard is coming off one of the most decorated careers in ncaa history and was drafted just last night by the new york liberty. >> i'm going to enjoy this for a couple of days, but i'm just excited to get out there and start working and get to know my team, get to know the coaching staff and really just get to work. >> she was a two-time player of the year. she and her family sheltering at home in walnut creek. i saw kevin durant congratulated her and welcomed her to new york on twitter. much more ahead. some encouraging news about a new drug to battle covid-19 created by a bay area company. and coming up i'm t bay area using our live cam so you can see what we're tracking for today's forecast. a look at your daytime highs and what you can expect over the next seven days coming up. stay with us.

welcome back. it's 7:15 on your saturday morning. cloudy skies, a gloomy start to your saturday. the cooldown continues this

weekend. vianey arana will be along in just about two minutes with your microclimate forecast. another change for the plan to bring bart down to downtown san jose and santa clara. the agency dropped the proposal to bore the world's largest subway tunnel. now it is reopening the design process. the tunnel's plan was risky and expensive. going back to the drawing board pushes the project further into the future. as we work to get through these times together, vta is already two years late in you may not be thinking about blood donation, delivering stations. but blood is needed to save the lives of people is it devine intervention or is it breaking the rules? who are sick with a range of illnesses. a richman pastor cited by the it's easy and safe to give. sheriffs department for holding an easter sunday service tells if you are in good health, please donate. we need heroes now. this pastor of all nations visit red cross blood dot org church of god in richmonday to schedule an appointment. tells us he taking precautions to keep his church members safe but that he says he's determined

to keep holding services. williams tells us he's providing good morning. masks and hand sanitizer to his i have a closer look at some views throughout the bay area. i did have a viewer tweet me c parishioners. >> please, pastor, we need to be there. what this toy car is behind me. and, so, i'm a servant of the people. so i want to serve them. it is a replica storm ranger. we trust that we would not put we will be heading into monday, anybody in the public in any so let's get to that. let's live look outside at don' danger because we're taking the precaution. >> the sheriffs department cited too much sunshine, but we will the church on easter sunday. they tell us the deputy eventually. we'll get there. san jose with gray skies responded and observed 40 people overlooking walnut creek. inside, none of them wearing this does a need job of throwing masks. that blanket of cloud cover. the pastor refused to talk to the deputy or cooperate. our current temperatures are in the 50s and we have a couple of as we continue to do our 40s. part at nbc bay area, we are but satellite radar shows that essential workers, but we are turning system just off the coast. here is what we're expecting for social distancing. many of our staff is working today. cooler temperatures in the 60s. from home. vianey arana is doing that, just san jose at 65 degrees. like many of you, has access to all of our computer models and but around the peninsula and doppler radar with her own coastline, it will dip down into weather station at home. boy, it is a gloomy start to the the coastline. look at napa, concord 68. weekend out there.

it is a little gloomy, even here is a look at the latest a little drizzly, but at least drought conditions. in case you missed it, good news, southern california is it's not hot outside. officially draught free when it you can crank open that window comes to, you know, lessening and get a little fresh air, the dry conditions up to the which is the most i can do because i don't have a yard. north bay. but that's okay. we still need a little more rain, but this is a good sign. we got us the sky. >> it's nice to open the window. that means it benefitted from the rain that wed the rain we'le you're right. >> see? >> yeah. >> we're all going to be okay. more of in april. yeah. you know, it is one of those your hour by hour outlook, here mornings where if you look it is. outside, you're thinking, gosh, by 5:30, we get rid of some of it's gray. is it going to rain? that cloud cover on the radar. it is a little drizzly over san i will advance it. if you look at the time bar francisco right now. right up there, sunday fast you can kind of see the little spots on the cam there. forward to get the return of the very, very light drizzle. cloud cover. it will be a cool afternoon. then monday right around 8:00 a.m. for those of you who do have to let me show you satellite radar commute to work and you're an because it does a fantastic job essential worker, you might of showing you what's goinginco catch a little of that rain out on the roadways, but it will not systems that we're tracking. be a big storm. it is a little disorganized. we will be seeing a let's get models right now scaling back how much rain we're getting from this. by 5:00, if you look up in the ay your microclimate high for sierra mountains, we're

expecting showers up through lake tahoe as well. temperatures will be cooler in the 60s. by tuesday heading into some upper 60s in the interior wednesday, things return back to dry, and we get an increase in valleys. morgan hill 65. san francisco dipping down into the temperatures back up into the 70s. when it comes to rain fall the 50s. a little chillier around the totals for this system we're coastline. tracking on monday, less than a slower to clear when it comes to tenth of an inch in most areas. that cloud cover. now let's bring you an update a lot of you might not get any about the california draught rain. by the time it sweeps on t rai. conditions because this is the latest monitor that was released. this is earlier this week. on tuesday, that will be one of here we go. our sun anyier days. if you look at southern look at how warm we get for inland areas. california where you don't see 80s expected for next thursday any yellow or orange hues, that and friday. as far as your san means southern california has francisco temperatures go, we'll been cleared of any lingering city in the 50s for the next three days, so enjoy that. dryness, thanks to march and you can kind of do a little bit april rain. overall, we're still seeing some of an outside walk maybe. normally dry conditions and a take your dog out. little bit of a moderate drop up and then you will need to kind of scale it back a bit once it through portions of northern california, but any sort of rain starts getting hotter outside. but it will be a fantastic is really going to help us out. weekend. i hope you guys enjoy it. in terms of that snow pack, we back to you. >> yeah, good chance to get have been seeing a rapid melt of outside for a little bit of that snow. e at about 61% of fresh air. thanks so much. average. that's definitely on the side of it is 7:46. still ahead on today in the bay, low compared to where we are

typically around this time of where has all that money gone? we investigate the federal funds yore. so when is our next chance of used to fight off the virus. rain, and is it going to help put a dent in that drought (soft music) monitor for northern california? well, we do have some instability just off the coast, but if you look, i fast forward this time line to about 5:30. notice how we get some clearing from the clouds and then just looking way out ahead at the time bar, sunday. you see that time bar going by into monday around 8:00 a.m. is when that next storm system moves in. now, we scaled it back in terms of rain fall totals because it is not a huge system, which means not a big rainmaker. it will be just enough to bring light drizzle to the nevada as well. by monday, we're talking anywhere from less than a tenth of an inch of rain. so, yeah, it's not going to be a big rainmaker, but by tuesday, wednesday and thursday, things will dry out. that high pressure will roll back around and then we'll get

the sunshine and the warming of those temperatures in san francisco back up by as much as 10 degrees. i'm going to send it back to you, kira klapper. >> all over the place. but we'll take it. it sounds good, vianey arana. thank you so much. it is 7:21 on the dot. still ahead, recording the pandemic. the bay area group now making sure we are capturing the real story of the crisis for future generations.

- [female vo] restaurants are facing a crisis. and they're counting on your takeout and delivery orders to make it through. grubhub. together we can help save the restaurants we love. welcome back. it is the most expensive spending package in our nation's history. more than $2 trillion to inject life into our ailing economy. as we reported all week, the money for small businesses already has run out. so we wondered where other federal money is going. steven began digging to find

out. >> so far there has been three different federal coronavirus stimulus bills, including the $2.3 trillion cares act. right now there is little transparency around the carest, more than $3 billion of your tax dollars already spent on services and goods meant to address covid-19. $2.5 million spent to air lift patients off the grand princess we can look back at the cruise ship. $29 million spent by the va treated infected veterans in earthquakes, world war ii and the september 11 attacks. california. all of it part of congressionally mandated at some point we'll look back on emergency spending to fight the this covid-19 pandemic as well. coronavirus. but tracking where the bulk of one group is launching an effort your $2.3 trillion cares act to create a historical record because history doesn't wait. >> reporter: we are fond of goes is all but impossible at this point because there is no looking back at significant plan to make that information public on a searchable database. moments of our past. it's why we surround ourselves with monuments, photographs and >> we spend money. there is going to be waste. there is going to be poor stories. but just as we remember events

targeted. >> reporter: mark is senior vice president of policy at the like the 1906 earthquake and committee for a responsible fire or the 1918 spanish flu, we federal budget or cfrb based in will one day look back on the washington, d.c. >> what's not okay is that we days of the can't after the fact even go back to see how well we did. and, so, it is really important it's happening. thrack this money. >> reporter: the california >> reporter: using data found on historical society in san francisco is filled with history. and now it's launching a project usaspending.gov, we tracked to collect stories and to billions of dollars already sent document the impact of the out in the form of government contracts. covid-19 shutdown on california. the majority of the $3.1 billion >> but we can see by other spent so far has gone towards historical events and the way vital services, including people have reacted to them that people do want to know about biotech research and emergency this in the future, that it is relief services. >> the goal should be get the important to document this for the historical record. money out as fast as possible. >> reporter: like most >> reporter: but we also found businesses, the group's museum is closed and boarded up. covid-19 that seems less obviously related to the the research librarian says the pandemic. group is collecting stories and for example, $34 million in photos from people on its computer services to the u.s. website, california historical census bureau. society. $2.4 million on food and >> we wanted to collect every kandmentes for the u.s. prison day individual stories that system. $2.3 million spent on the irs on

might not make some on social media. >> reporter: decades from now researchers will be interested 24 inch monitors. in what life was look during we asked those agencies how this time. people wearing masks, buildings these expenses are connected to the crisis. boarded up, life at a but we have yet to hear back. standstill. >> i think you're asking the >> there is a huge impact. right questions when you see we know that there is a something that doesn't seem to short-term impact and a make sense. long-term. but 20 years from now, we might -- this country, the state sometimes, though, the might look completely different explanation is simpler than you as a result of this. >> reporter: some day the lends of history might point back to >> reporter: senior policy inde this time of crowded hospitals and empty streets, but for now watchdog based in washington. that history still is getting written one painful day at a they are launching their own stimulus tracker for anyone to time. use. >> this is an unprecedented nbc bay area news. level of relief money going out well, now we want to show the door. you something good. so we really need an as they say in the business, the show must go on. unprecedented level of oversight this is about a different kind and accountability for that of a show. san jose teacher and her fiancée money. >> reporter: they both point out that the language of the law were scheduled to get married itself passed by congress back on march 28th. requires similar tracking and obviously those plans had to be transparency as the obama and resked where do you lived. bush era stimulus packages. but they made lemons into but they caution the white

house's recently removal of the lemonade and held a smaller inspector general is not a good celebration. >> to me it was so old timy and sign. >> we're spending taxpayers pure and a real celebration of money and it is important to do our love. that wisely and responsibly to make sure we get good value for that money. >> reporter: observers expect congress to step in and require more public accountability and transparency. but that could take some time. both the obama and the bush era stimulus packages took years ca effect two weeks. i'm steven stock, nbc bay area news. encouraging news about a new drug to fight covid-19 created right here in the bay area. originally used to treat ebola. the staff obtained video of doctors at the university of chicago discussing drugs for the coronavirus. they said most patients were discharged and just two died. >> it looks encouraging compared to a lot of other medications based on whatever is published

so far. but we still need information from the trial and i'm optimist ek we will have that information soon. >> drawing conclusions from partial data would, quote, premature and scientifically unsound. it's 7:53. still ahead, we talk to an expert about the toilet paper shortage and several alternatives you can use. everyone is working a little differently now. so we can still answer your calls. and we are monitoring our system 24/7 to ensure that we have a fast reliable network,

keep the customers connected, and making sure people are staying safe. and we're still on the road. solving critical issues as they arise. ♪ go to xfinity.com/prepare. thank you.

welcome back. demand for toilet paper still remains unexplicably high. so consumer investigator chris asked a gastroenterologist about alternatives. >> what do you do when your last roll runs out. the farmer's almanac points out corn cobs were one of the most popular choices. >> the majority of the world does not use toilet paper.

>> we ran several alternative products by the doctor. we'll get back to the corn cobs. first, what about tissues, paper towels, wipes, cougher filters? he says says. >> those are okay to use as long as they're clean. >> he cautioned that flushing anything other than toilet paper down the drain might cause other issues. you might quickly clog your pipes. >> if you are going to use other paper products, you need to put that in a trash bag and throw that out in your trash. >> how about fabric cut into small squares? he said yes with restrictions. >> today with modern washing machines, you take off that, put it in the garbage but wash it with detergent and you can yreue it. >> so fabric squares ideally

natural fibers like cotton are an option at home, too. you can always use water. take a shower or keep a cup of water near the toilet. >> in the philippines, india and so forth, that's a common way of cleaning one self. >> despite corn cob's prevalence in the past, dr. jan says no in the present. he cautions using anything abrasive down there will cause irritation. one final bit of advice. he says at a time when there is barely a square to spare, the key to conserving is making goo >> if we ry the patient will likely defecate with little need to wipe too much excess after that. >> we're taking virus questions each day. you can submit yours at nbcbayarea.com. or call us at 888-996-tips.

now to something good before we go. this morning teachers at a bay area elementary school wanted to raise the spirit of their students so they organized a social distancing parade. they were asked to stand outside and waive. students held up signs and cheered. the teachers said they just wanted to give your students a little encouragement and stay focussed on school when they're all learning from afar. wow. that's a wonderful ending and a look at things before we go this morning. >> he just wanted to say have a good saturday. right, buddy? >> thanks, jinx. and thanks to you for making us a part of your morning. .

narrator: when you see this symbol you know you're watching television that is educational and informational. the more you know on nbc. dylan: hi, everybody, i'm dylan dreyer, and this is "earth odyssey".

on today's episode, we explore what and who lives in the world's biggest rainforest, the amazon. who was living in the amazon when european explorers first made landfall? plus, we'll hit the amazon river with local traders and try to [music]