the partially automated driving system slammed into a florida highway patrol cruiser over the weekend near downtown orlando. the tesla narrowly missed the trooper who had pulled over to assist a disabled car. the man in the tesla and the map in the other car were injured. the ntsb opened a formal investigation into tesla's autopilot driving system after a series of similar collisions with parked emergency vehicles. right now at 6:00, the caldor fire advancing into the tahoe basin with evacuation warnings now in place for south lake tahoe. but california not alone this morning in facing threats of a national disaster. >> tropical storm ida slamming the gulf coast as those in louisiana wake up to a new reality after a powerful category 4 storm moved in over the weekend. we have complete coverage. this is "today in the bay." we hope you're coming off a great weekend.

6:00. thanks for starting your day with us. i'm laura garcia. >> i'm marcus washington. the breaking news, people in south lake tahoe now under an evacuation warning with the caldor fire threatening more homes as the flames push into the tahoe basin. "today in the bay's" kris sanchez jones us with more keeping track of what is going on with all the evacuations under way. >> an evacuation warning is you better be ready the minute those turn into orders. evacuation order you have to get out now. cal fire saying the fire is more aggressive than they anticipated and memorial hospital in south lake tahoe is being evacuated, though not the city of south lake tahoe itself. let's take a look at this new video we got into the newsroom in the last hour or so, this is what the area east of summit in el dorado looked like conditions and winds that were setting spot fires as far as a mile ahead.

this is the evacuation map. the areas in red are under mandatory evacuation orders that include echo summit and myers, kirkwood ski resort. the areas in yellow are now under that evacuation warning. see south lake tahoe in that. i-80 is now the only way out to the west. highway 50 is closed because the fire jumped the highway and a large portion of highway 88 is also shut down. as of sunday evening, cal fire said nearly 500 homes were destroyed along with 11 businesses and more than 21,000 structures are under threat. in the last two weeks since it started the caldor fire has burned 168,000 acres and just 13% contained which is a step back for firefighters who had that containment number up to 19% eday. there are some thermal cameras up there that firefighters are using to see through all of the smoke. on the left that is the camera at heavenly, and on the right

the camera above mount danner. about 20,000 people are still under that evacuation order. the order. that's not including the warning. if you had plans to head to tahoe for labor day or any time in the foreseeable future forget about it because the routes should be reserved for people trying to get out, not get in. >> good advice. a lot to track when it comes to the weather today. ida going on down in the gulf coast in louisiana and also those conditions surrounding the fires burning here in our area. kari. >> we're seeing conditions change rapidly here as we take a look at the caldor fire and the perimeter, the area that's burned in yellow and the active fires that are still ongoing this morning in red. let's get a closer look at how close this is to south lake tahoe. it's just seven miles, and it's now descending into the tahoe basin. it's approaching those areas where there are a lot more cabins, places we've all visited frequently and now looking at it moving closer to the south lake

tahoe area as we're getting a stronger wind picking up. we've also had some of that smoke coming into the bay area over the weekend with those spare the air alerts that were issued and now we are seeing still some moderate air quality. these little dots here indicate current air quality sensors showing some moderate air quality for the inland areas. it has been improving for san francisco and along the coast. we're dealing with the fires as well as watching what tropical storm ida is doing over the gulf coast. this made landfall yesterday as a category 4 hurricane. pushing up a big storm surge, that's that big wall of water out ahead of the hurricane. now it's dumping lots of heavy rain as it continues to move those heavy rain bands over new orleans into mississippi and alabama, so this is going to be a big story over the next few days. it's a lot of people impacted. back to you. >> as kari mentioned, ida weakening to the tropical storm as it takes aim at the tennessee valley. a live look this morning at new orleans where we're told within the city limits all the power is

out right now as the storm went through. more than a million residents there without power this hour. 911 system in or leans parish is also experiencing some technical difficulties. new video just coming into our newsroom showing the damage outside of new orleans. they've had downed power lines. look at how they were bent like tooth picks out there, destroyed buildings as well. sad to report at least one person has actually died in this storm. several hospitals in the state are being evacuated as well. homes and buildings, look at that, crumbled, damaged so many of them. president biden declared a major disaster in louisiana and ordered federal aid to supplement some of the recovery efforts. they'll have so much to clean up. >> a lot to cheap up. ron allen with nbc is in jackson, mississippi, where the strong winds and rain starting to pick up. >> reporter: this started a few hours ago and has been picking up as the hours have been going on through the morning. sheets of rain. the wind is picking up but gusts

reported as much as 50, 60 miles but again it comes in bands. we are still north of where the storm center is. it's moving very slowly as we heard reported throughout the morning. the peak and worst is supposed to happen later this afternoon. but it's already getting pretty bad. we're hunkered down outside of a hotel because we have a refuge, all the cars in this parking lo the are people from louisiana who have come here to seek shelter. it's about a three-hour drive or so from new orleans to jackson on a good day, and people are here with all their possessions and families and pets and they're just huddled by the tv and on their phones trying to get word of what's going on back home. here the concern is about a lot of rain. this year, like so much of the rest of the country, is saturated and four to six more inches of rain as the day goes on.

everything is shut down, of course,p and schools are closed, businesses are closed. there's very little traffic ond. there's a lot of areas around this city that flood historically and that's probably going to happen again. the word as we hear in so many places is for people to stay home, hunker down, let this thing blow through. it's moving slowly we know. the hope is that it picks up speed and gets out of here. for now, this is where we are at this moment. in a few hours, it's expected to be even worse than this. >> such a tough go they're having there. ron allen reporting. also developing this morning, less than 24 hours until the deadline passes for american forces to leave afghanistan. the scene described as chaotic for those still trying just to make it out in time. amidst new reports of explosions and gunfire outside kabul airport, u.s. military still flying people out. it is believed some 300 american citizens are among those still on the ground.

we've now learned the identities of the soldiers killed in last week's isis terror attack. here are their photos. four service members from califo roseville outside of sacramento. her father this morning is talking to the "today" show about what's become an iconic photo of her in afghanistan holding an infant. >> and when people see that photo, they cecum passion, they see love, they see a hero. as her father, what do you see? >> just my baby. yeah. that's my baby. >> his heart must be so heavy. watch that interview later this morning on the "today" show. again the full u.s. withdrawal from afghanistan set to happen by midnight tomorrow. lot of young lives lost. continuing coverage on our

digital platforms as well. hear more of the address president biden gave yesterday on nbcbayarea.com. just click on afghanistan attacks. it is in the trending. mayor london breed posting this treat announcing 80% of eligible san franciscans 12 and older are fully vaccinated. that's more than 680,000 people. so far 86% of people have received at least one dose. in her tweet she wrote that this is a major milestone, but we still have work to do to make sure that we are all protected. another bay area city may soon be asking people to mask up. lasts -- last week we told you how benicia was with moving forward with its own mask mandate because solano county doesn't have one. now vallejo the largest city in solano is considering doing the same thing. vallejo will have a special meeting to discuss the potential mandate. moving you forward with a short-term plan for vta light rail service. it finally started again, more

than three months after the rail yard shooting tragedy. limited services resumed yesterday. transporting football fans to the niners/raiders preseason game at levi. for the first two weeks until september 13th, light rail fares will not be collected and only orange and green lines are operating for now with green service limiteds are on the ora line, they will run midnight. let's take a peek outside this morning. nice to get a breath of fresh air if you can get it with the smoky skies we've been seeing. the sun emerging on this monday morning. so is meteorologist kari hall coming off a pretty nice weekend. we had a spare the air alert yesterday, but it's an advisory. >> if you're sensitive to the smoke you need to limit your time outside. it's going to look a little hazy today but not as smoky as it was on saturday. we're starting out this morning live look at the golden gate bridge and you can see that there is some low clouds draped

over the bridge heading across the bay to oakland. as you're stepping out the door the temperatures in the upper 50s. we are still going to have some warm air today. headed towards the low 70s by early in the afternoon. and for some of our inland spots we're reaching back into the mid 90s, 95 in antioch today. san francisco in the upper 60s. we'll talk about all of the changes ahead. mike, seeing more lights on the bay bridge. >> changes in the present. we're starting to see this stack up. it's not as bad as it could be. for time to time we see about half the parking lot level filled in and then eases up. may be adjusting the speed on the metering lights. at the toll plaza we have seen the backup forming and saw relief on the span and now relief in both places again, that's just an indication of the start for the morning commute. highway 37 with more slowing. highway 4 with more slowing. pittsburgh through baypointe and concord, and see the richmond bridge westbound build. standard flow through contra costa county and across the bay there. the rest of the bay shows a smooth, easy drive. no problems out of the altamont

pass, a little build for dublin and livermore. pain at the pump coming for a lot of drivers. next on "today in the bay," the impact tropical storm ida may have on national gas prices. more travel restrictions to talk about as covid cases continue to rise across the u.s. europe rethinking the less restrictive status for u.s. travelers. what it will mean for americans heading overseas. plus -- >> if we say his name five times while looking in the mirror we could summon him. >> box office hit, a sweet taste of a reboot. stay with us on "today in the bay" as we have much more ahead for you on this monday morning.

. good monday morning. the north bay with a look at how the morning will shape up. in santa rosa, nice and cool, 53 degrees. clouds clearing out. our temperatures heat up, at 81 degrees. going to be warm today and smoky. we'll talk about improvements in our forecast coming up. if you're getting out the door in the south bays this may be an issue. san jose northbound 101 north of our camera oakland road reports of a crash and may be a distraction, maybe in the lanes. we'll get the latest update and give it to you from chp. oil prices hitting more than a three-week high early today before pulling back. >> that's right.

but it will be interesting to see if they will have any effect as we're watching the markets. stock futures a little changed to start the week with the reco. >> now when we talk about those gas prices there, the oil, analysts say that they are anticipating that refineries, pipelines and oil platforms will be able to resume operation quickly following hurricane ida. >> zoom's moment of truth. the company will report earnings after wall street's opening bell after huge surges we saw during 2020. zoom's stock has fallen out of favor this year. analysts say the earnings report will be a key indicator of so-called stay-at-home stocks or stocks of companies that saw a boom because of the shift to working from home. dow futures are up a couple hundred points. nasdaq futures as i mentioned have been pretty flat. amazon teaming up with affirm to offer shoppers a buy now, pay later option that doesn't involve a credit card. affirm's flexible payment system will be available soon on amazon's website.

the customers will be able to split the cost of purchases of $50 or more into monthly payments and actually told that the total cost of the transaction up front. affirm says there are no late fees involved with this. >> there's a few man at the top of the box office "candy man." >> if we say his name five times while looking in the mirror. >> i don't know what kid in the '90s didn't try this at least once in the mirror in the bathroom. >> the reboot of the 1990's franchise slashing its way to $22 million in its debut, despite the covid concerns. "free guy" another solid weekend, $13 million there. it took the number two spot followed by "paw patrol" with $6 million. want to take a moment so you can check this out. up on twitter this morning, we've been watching kent porter, a photo journalist specializing in climate conditions with the

santa rosa press democrat. fascinating some of the pictures he's posting up by the fire lines of the caldor fire and you see the flames rapidly taking off by highway 50 near camp sacramento. so many roads up there, 88, 50, partially closed up there. the fire, in fact, still burning near echo summit off of highway 50 and we know there's been warnings for people in south lake tahoe to be on alert because they could be evacuated rather quickly. it is devastating to see. >> absolutely. and then when we see those conditions and kari as you're monitoring all this, we know weather conditions can play a factor in the spread of the fires. king like today? >> usually during the morning the fire spreading usually slows down a little bit. temperatures are cooler, humidity higher but that is not what we're seeing this morning. take a look at the plume of smoke from armstrong lookout off of highway 88 as the sun rises we can see the smoke going higher in the atmosphere showing

that this fire is spreading quickly and we are most likely going to see that continue as the winds shift direction. we have new red flag warnings up. the caldor fire and the dixie fire may see some spreading as well as the wind comes out of the west/southwest. think about that. that's going to push it off towards the northeast with northeast of the caldor fire, south lake tahoe. this is starting to enter into the tahoe basin and moving closer to more populated areas. we're really concerned watching that this morning. we are seeing some of that smoke coming in. we've had a lot of that smoke over the weekend but as a westerly wind picks up we're going to see the smoke clearing out for later today into tomorrow. our air quality is improving but unfortunately once again the fire is going continue to spread and just look at how it's off the charts there with how much smoke is expected as this fire explodes over the next couple days. looking at over temperatures still hot today in our inland valleys reaching into the upper 80s and low 90s, up to 95 in antioch today, 85 in san jose

and 83 today for a high in palo alto. the heat that we're experiencing now, will start to subside as we go through the rest of the week. we'll see a couple storm systems moving toward the pacific northwest and it's going to push cooler air our way. one of our typical hot spots brentwood reaching 101 degrees, but then a ten degree drop in temperatures tomorrow. some of the coolest weather will be for the middle of the week before it starts to climb back up later this weekend. our inland areas cooler weather as well. after today we have to keep the air conditioner on full blast this afternoon. looking much better for the rest of the week. san francisco more clouds, fog, mist and drizzle and highs reaching into the mid 60s. mike, now you have a crash in san jose. >> i do. it was reported that it was a hit and run. the activity may no longer be there, but north of here jamming up. i think everything is out of the lanes because the sensors approaching oakland where the crash was reported are still green and that's been about ten

minutes now since the original report. we'll track that. overall look at silicon valley looks great right now. no typical slowing for san jose. a lighter build right now there as well as much of the rest of the bay out of the altamont pass. a little slowing for 84. traditional, again, hitting a little bit later this morning. now highway 4 on schedule for the slowing. pittsburgh all the way into highway 242 and concord over there highway 37 and the bay bridge. there's no problem for that richmond toll plaza. you're still okay there. the bay bridge toll plaza is clear. it's the incline where there's that slowing. back to you. dealing with an increase in demand. next on "today in the bay," the longer wait times you can expect if you need to get a video covid test. >> a long awaited fraud trial set to get under way in the south bay. what we've been waiting for. the new documents that are about to be revealed about the ceo accused of misleading investors. we'll be right back.

every time nacho fries came back, that bold seasoning was drawing something closer. and once they taste that warm nacho cheese sauce... they won't stop till there's nothing left. taco bell's fry force. now serving at a taco bell near you. it is 6:24 right now. look at this image. can you even make it out. this is a live look up by the caldor fire this morning, but it shows how thick the smoke is up there. it has been spreading rapidly overnight, leading to new evacuation warnings for south lake tahoe. firefighters have had a tough go at this one. the fire burned more than 168,000 acres and grew so quickly catching fire crews off guard that containment dropped

at 19%, but now it's at 13%. more than 650 structures are gone. five people have been hurt. >> if you're heading to any eu nation any time soon you may want to brace for more travel restrictions because the european union today expected to take the u.s. off of its so-called safe list. this is due to higher number of covid cases. the eu's safe travel countries must have fewer than 75 daily new cases per 100,000. right now the u.s. rate here is more than 300. as a result u.s. travelers may see restrictive measures including quarantine or increased testing and up to individual nations to enforce those rules. with more californians having the need for covid testing result wait times have been higher. the latest week of numbers from the state's covid testing dash board show wait times for results are above the one-day threshold with an average turnaround time now at 1.2 days. it was nearly 50% of that below

7 in june. it is a contributing factor with daily tests nearly as high as they were in january. tomorrow the long-awaited criminal fraud trial of theranos ceo elizabeth holmes begins in the south bay. this comes after newly unsealed court documents shows holmes plans to defend herself arguing her business partner and ex-boyfriend sunny balwaini psychologically and sexually abused her. balwaini is facing his own criminal trial. his attorney calls the allegations inflammatory, offensive and false. the documents also reveal holmes plans to testify in her own defense. the entertainment world is mourning after the death of tv star ed asner. the seven-time emmy award-winning actor best known for playing the gruff but soft hearted newsroom boss lou grant on "the mary tyler moore" show. his same character carried the series into the 1980s. ed asner was 91 years old.

>> gave us a lot of laughs. all right. 6:26 this morning. next the top stories that we are following including that breaking news. south evacuate overnight as those flames from the caldor fire quickly spread. we're following the latest overnight developments. vaccinations required for all eligible students. the mandate that could be coming for a large school district here in the east bay. you're watching "today in the bay."

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breaking at 6:30, evacuation warnings in south lake tahoe as flames expand into the basin. conditions are changing by the minute. we're following the latest developments this morning. plus, ida making landfall on the gulf coast leaving new orleans in the dark. we're live with complete coverage. this is "today in the bay." 6:30. thanks so much for joining us. i'm laura garcia. >> i'm marcus washington. first we begin with that breaking news, south lake tahoe under a new evacuation warning with the caldor fire advancing into the tahoe basin. >> "today in the bay's" kris sanchez joins us monitoring the evacuation orders and firefighters and the big effort they're going through. >> it's a really tough fire fight right now. cal fire says that fire is more aggressive than they anticipated and right now barten memorial

hospital is being evacuated though the city of south lake tahoe is under a warning right now. let's take a look at the video together. echo summit in el dorado county looked like in the last hour and a half or so. cal fire says there was rapid spread because of critical fuel conditions and winds that were setting spot fires as far as a mile ahead of that fire line. this is the evacuation map. the areas in red are under mandatory evacuation orders. you can see now the areas in yellow are under evacuation warnings at this point. that includes most of the tahoe basin though not the city of south lake tahoe itself. now i-80 is the only way out to the west. highway 50 is closed after the fire jumped the highway near cliber. a portion is shut down as of sunday. cal fire said nearly 500 homes

are destroyed along with 11 businesses, more than 21,000 structures are under threat. in the two weeks since the fire started, the caldor fire has burned 168,000 acres and is just 13% contained which is actually a step back for firefighters. they had containment up to 19% earlier in the day and then just lost that ground because of the weather. these are thermal cameras that firefighters are using to see through the thick smoke. on the left the camera heavenly, on the right the camera above mount danner. about 20,000 people are under evacuation orders as we speak, so if you had plans to head to tahoe for labor day, don't bother. there's nothing to see there and all the roads should be reserved for people who need to get out when that order comes. >> it's tough, even financially for that reason, because they haven't seen the tourists. the smoke up there, last year because of covid and not to mention all the devastation. >> so much going on right now. a lot to track going on right

now. we want to bring in meteorologist kari hall. you've been monitoring the conditions out there. weather wise, how are -- what can we expect today? >>ing things changing quickly here. unfortunately this is not what we wanted to see coming out of the weekend. the yellow dots where the fire has burned, the red dots the active fires and there's a lot of area where the fires are spreading quickly. now looking at this measuring tool shows us how far it is from the leading edge of the fires to south lake tahoe. now it's coming over the ridge and down into the tahoe basin. this is highway 50 right there so you only have i-80 out of that area. usually during the early morning hours we start to see the fire spread slow down. this is not happening this morning. take a look at this camera from highway 88 from armstrong lookout looking toward the fire and the smoke is just billowing really high into the atmosphere

indicating we are seeing the fire spreading quickly. we've seen the smoke moving into the bay area. we take a look at these current air quality sensors. right now looking good for san francisco and parts of marin county. moderate meaning you need to limit your time for the rest of the bay area, but we're also tracking that as well as what was hurricane ida, now tropical storm, continuing to move inland after making landfall near new orleans yesterday as a category 4 hurricane. this is still pushing a big wall of water into the city as well as dumping some heavy rain now across mississippi and alabama. so for more on ida back to you, marcus and laura. >> causing a lot of damage out there right now. already being blamed for at least one death. >> it's hard to see. let's bring in "today in the bay's" jay gray live in new orleans this morning with a look at the damage. millions there in the dark this morning as well. >> reporter: yeah. you're absolutely right, laura and marcus, kari, good to talk to you this morning. not a good scene here in new

orleans. more than a million people without power. the entire new orleans metro area, no electricity at this point and may be a while before they have it as well. the transfer lines that bring the electricity, eight of them in the mississippi river that have to be extracted and repaired. also going to take some time to clean up the mess here. you can see a roof that was pulled away, thrown into the french quarter here, pulled down with it a traffic light and sign. you can see that arm that's twisted and pulled down to the ground here. if you follow that up you get to the area above the balcony and the wind ripping off shutters and pushed open doors throughout the french quarter. shattered windows, completely blown out in this area. as we get the daylight here, we're getting people out and taking look around and seeing the devastation like this. a lot of people who rode this thing out overwhelmed by what they are seeing at this point. again, this is extensive damage

and it's damage that is widespread, not only here in the french quarter, but across the entire city. >> it is amazing to see all the damage there, the cleanup under way. >> now this -- >> yeah. and remember, with katrina 16 years ago to the day it was the water that caused the problems here. with ida no question it's going to be the wind, the wind that ravaged this city. and without the electricity getting the cleanup, the build back under way is going to be difficult. to do that in earnest you have to have power and getting the power back is going to be tough. it's tough for so many who kwaitsd and moved to higher ground. the mayor telling them stay away for now. you don't have electricity, you're not going to be in a pleasant situation in new orleans for some time. let the crews get in and do their work and let them clean up

what they can and then come back. but that's a big ask, guys, if you've been watching the coverage of this for the last 24 hours. don't know the status of your home, it's tough to stay away in that circumstance. >> yeah. that's tough for a lot of people who left with what they could and so much still left at home. jay gray this morning in new orleans, thank you. >> if they were lucky enough to get away as well. jay mentioned katrina, want to check in with meteorologist kari hall. it's amazing to the date that katrina hit so many years ago. you actually lived close to that area? >> i was in lafayette, louisiana, taking a lot of people evacuating from hurricane katrina into the lafayette area. it's basically heartbreaking to see this as i have a lot of friends and people who i know very dearly that still live there in the new orleans area. you think about still all of the water that's moving in with some

of those rain bands. with katrina it was the levees that broke and flooded the city after dealing with all of the rain and wind, just 16 years ago, and now we have this new hurricane moving in yesterday that made landfall as a category 4. just last year they had hurricane laura. it's just year after year that's really causing some devastation there in a city below sea level and now it's slowly pulling off towards the north and east. it's dumping a lot of that heavy rain across mississippi and alabama and so this is going to be making big headlines as a lot of people are affected waking up by this and dealing with covid at the same time. >> all right. kari, at this minute, bay area crews are on their way to the gulf coast. this is oakland's fire urban search and rescue team. they were loading up the gear with supplies last night. they are be one of many teams heading to the louisiana area to help where they're needed.

oakland's fire department is one of only 28 fema sponsor teams in the country that responds to calls like this. to the pandemic, a new spike in u.s. hospitalizations over the delta variant surging. according to the new york times, the national average is now topping 100,000, higher than all previous covid surges except last winter. florida has the most with 16,000, texas over 14,000. california right now has more than 8,000 people in the hospital. one of the east bay's largest school districts looking into a new vaccine mandate for students. >> "today in the bay" bob redell live outside of hercules high school and middle school. the district could follow the lead of another district in southern california. >> reporter: correct, laura and marcus. the superintendent for the west contra costa unified school district here where i'm at, they want to reach out to the culver city school district, down in southern california. that district has already put in place a mandate for all students eligible to get vaccinated.

the superintendent here wants to hear them out and see what lessons they can learn from them. at last week's board meeting members expressed interest in mandating vaccinations for all eligible students. this has not happened yet and something they're looking into. this would be for any student 12 and up. 93% of teachers are already vaccinated here. they have almost 30,000 students enrolled in k through 12. 14 students and 4 staff have been infected with covid. down south in the fremont unified school district 33 students, teachers and staff there have contracted covid-19. the district believes most of those people became infected off campus. this is out of a population of 33 students and just over 4700 teachers and staff. the superintendent points out the case rate is 0.1%. 95% of teachers are vaccinated. in a marin county elementary school the cdc says an unvaccinated teacher infected

with covid is linked to 26 infections that took place back in may. there are 22 children and four parents. what's remarkable about the cdc finding the kids were masked in the classroom but the teacher sometimes took off their mask when reading allowed to the students. a seating chart of the classroom shows all the children at socially distanced desks in the front row tested positive for covid but even kids in the back row came down with the delta variant. the rapid spread in the class makes the case for getting vaccinated when you can and for wearing masks inside especially around kids who are too young to be eligible to get vaccinated. reporting live here in hercules, bob redell, "today in the bay." we are tracking all of the covid cases in the bay area there you're going to find the district's covid-19 information and find out how many cases were reported in your child's school.

we have a covid-19 dashboard link on our trending bar right now. happening today, a cdc advisory panel is set to meet to discuss the timeline for covid booster shots. the cdc previously advised eight months after receiving your second vaccination and dr. anthony fauci also endorsing this plan. he also says that the timeline may change based on new data. gunfire and explosions continue to shake the area around kabul. the airport in afghanistan. evacuation flights still under way with just over 24 hours for the united states and the citizens there to get out. next on "today in the bay," a live report on what happens to the thousands of americans left on the ground there. the key deadline you face if you want to vote in the recall election of governor gavin newsom. >> first nbc bay area and telemundo 48 are honoring local animal heros for the clear the shelters positively good awards. head to nbcbayarea.com/positively good to learn more. submit your nominee today.

we'll be right back.

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good morning. we're waking up to a hazy sky over the south bay and expecting some improvements in our air quality but as the wind picks up it may cause more problems in the area near the caldor fire. we'll talk more about that and the forecast coming up in a few minutes. >> improvement for our view of the slowdown, san jose north 101. i have an option for folks who

might be able to avoid this, a couple options for your commute this morning. the caldor fire is breaking news we're following. a look at the region there. south lake tahoe under an evacuation order. barton memorial hospital is being evacuated. more people in el dorado and alpine counties are under new orders this morning. firefighters say the caldor fire eshg personsed a rapid spread and burned more than 263 miles or an area larger than san jose and oakland combined. containment dropped at 19%, now only 13%. to the u.s. withdrawal from afghanistan where the taliban has taken control. earlier this morning, rockets struck a neighborhood near kabul's international airport and new video showing that smoke billowing in the air. take a look at it. this is where there were reports

of gunfire in the neighborhood shortly after. with just 24 hours to go, hundreds of american citizens and thousands of others who want to leave are still on the the there nonstop. well a >> good point. the trauma of people trying to get to the airport and on a plane, americans are the focus and an update from the white house that just over 1200 people were evacuated in the last 24 hours, but getting this done before tomorrow's deadline is becoming increasingly dangerous. >> reporter: this morning reports of a rocket strike and gunfire near kabul's international airport after an explosion sunday. signs of danger as the u.s.

continues evacuations ahead of tomorrow's deadline. >> all we can do is mitigate risk. we cannot eliminate it. >> reporter: the full u.s. withdrawal from afghanistan is set to happen by midnight tomorrow. today, the urgent push to get americans to safety. >> we have about 300 american citizens left who have indicated to us they want it leave. we are very to help them get to the airport, get on a plane and out of afghanistan. >> reporter: the biden administration is pushing back on reports that the u.s. put americans at risk by giving the taliban names of those still on the ground. >> the idea that we put anyone in jeopardy is report. >> reporter: on sunday a u.s. drone destroyed a vehicle believed to be carrying suicide bombers planning another attack on the airport. after tomorrow it will be hard to go after isis terrorists without sources on the ground. >> we have very little leverage

to extract additional americans or afghan allies from this landlocked country. >> reporter: on sunday the bodies of 13 service members killed in last week's attack arrived home. >> just my baby. yeah. my baby. >> reporter: casualties in a war ending at great cost. thousands trying to get out. the taliban says they can still leave after tomorrow. but will they stick to that? will they make it difficult? will people not be able to get out if they don't have papers? all of these questions, marcus and laura, still up in the air as the u.s. scrambles to get as many out before tomorrow's deadline as they can. >> a lot of movement within 24 hours. we will be watching it and you will be as well. thank you. we have a reminder for

anyone who intends to vote in the recall election but is not registered. midnight is the deadline. forms must be dropped off at a registrar's office or postmarked august 30th. on-line until 11:59 to get that registration in. a look at some of the key contenders seeking to replace governor newsom out of nearly 50 choices and here are some things a new governor would be up against. starting with what is still a heavily democratic legislature that means barring executive orders, a super majority would still be able to override most policy changes or budget plans. any replacement will be up against the clock. this is because next november california will elect a new governor. >> nonstop. all right. it is 6:50 this morning. as we take a live look across the bay area. today expected to see more of that smoke from the wildfires burning. an air quality advisory has been issued. meteorologist kari hall, of course, keeping her eyes across all of that. kari, how are we looking this morning when it comes to the smoke that we're seeing from the

fires. >> yeah. we'retill seeing the caldor fire spreading. as long as we have fires burning, we are going to have smoke. taking a look at what's going on, how far the leading edge of these active fires are from where south lake tahoe is about seven miles at this point. we're going to get another updates in the next 20 minutes. this is a live look at the fire from armstrong lookout from around the highway 88 area looking toward the caldor fire where the billows of smoke are basically being forced high into the atmosphere. it's showing that that fire is spreading quickly and that's what we're concerned about over the next couple days as new red flag warning warnings go up around the dixie fire that is still burning at this point. a shift in the wind direction could push this closer to south lake tahoe area. moderate air quality to begin, going into the afternoon still going to be hazy and smoky at times. that air quality advisory is a step below the spare the air

alert like over the weekend, but we are expecting a stronger westerly wind to kick out some of that smoke from the bay area, but then once again cause some of the fires that are just to the east of us as well as the caldor fire to spread off towards the east as well. so a lot of concerns here. today still hot with our inland areas reaching into the upper 80s and low 90s, but then as we go through the rest of the week, it will be cooling off as our temperatures go from the low 90s to the low 80s by the middle of the week and then slowly going back up by sunday. mike, you have a lot of commuters through contra costa county. >> yeah. they're going across, for example, the richmond bridge here richmond to san raphael, showing the slowing on our sensors. we see it on the live camera here and what we expect for 580 westbound, kicking in over the last ten minutes. highway 37 still showing that slower drive out of vallejo and the bay bridge where the metering lights are on, the backup building. it will take you a couple minutes.

highway 4 starting to build out of livermore and pleasanton the tri-valley. 880 slows through fremont out of hayward and north 101 a couple notes quickly also, we talked about vta with limited service, check their website, vta.org and caltrains expanded their service, caltrains.com for the new service there. it's 6:53 right now. happening now, mount etna in sicily erupting yesterday spewing lava flows and sending plumes of ash into the sky. according to officials the latest activity of europe's largest active volcano caused ash to fall in some villages along the slopes o etna is the largest of italy's three active into the tahoe basin with evacuation wa

tahoe. california not alone this morning in facing threats from a natural disaster. tropical storm ida slamming the gulf coast as those in louisiana wake up to a new reality. this is after that powerful category 4 storm. we have complete coverage in just two minutes. you're watching "today in the bay."

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welcome back.fore you head out are moving you forward with a look at the top stories here on "today in the bay." >> we begin with the breaking news, people in south lake tahoe now under an evacuation warning. meaning they need to be ready to leave if or when the caldor fire spreads further into the tahoe basin. kris sanchez is here with the latest on this fire fight. >> the fire fight lost ground yesterday in terms of containment and the winds are a big reason why the fire setting spot fires as far as a mile ahead of that fire line. let's take a look at this new video together. this was what the area east of echo summit in el dorado looked like in the last two hours. cal fire says there was rapid spread because of that critical fuel condition and then also those winds that we mentioned. this is the evacuation map here on your screen which now includes barton memorial hospital ihough the city of south lake tahoe is not. it is in the yellow.

that is an evacuation warning which means that people need to be ready to leave with a moment's notice. i-80 the only way out to the west. highway 50 is closed after the fire jumped the highway near kiber and 88 is also shut down. as of sunday evening cal fire said nearly 500 homes gone and 11 businesses and more than 21,000 other structures under threat. the caldor fire has burned 168,000 acres and 13% contained a setback for firefighters who had containment up to 19% on sunday. these are thermal cameras that firefighters are using to see through that smoke on the left the camera heavenly, on the right the camera above mount danner. 20,000 people are under the evacuation warning. if you had plans to head to tahoe for the labor day holiday forget about it. there's nothing to see up there and, in fact, those roadways need to be kept open for folks

who are looking to get out, not in. >> good advice, kris. thank you. breaking right now, ida weakening to a tropical storm as it takes aim at the tennessee valley. here's a live look at new orleans this morning. this is where the storm has already hit. more than a million residents without power right now. >> the new video shows the damage outside new orleans downed power lines destroyed buildings. at least one person has died in the storm. so many homes and buildings damaged. so much going on weather wise. meteorologist kari hall has been monitoring all of that. how are we looking right now? >> it's still going to be hot today for the inland areas and smoky but we are going to see cooler temperatures and improving air quality as we go through the week. >> the bay bridge toll plaza we have a crash, a new crash, just in around the metering lights and so that will be in the middle of the roadway, a semi is involved. we'll track that and tweet out major issues. the backup starting to build out of oakland. >> we're back with local news updates every half hour. >> thanks for joining us.

as we take a live look at new orleans as they are recovering from the category 4 storm that came through overnight. of course we'll keep monitoring that story and bring you more updates during the midday newscast and nbcbayarea.com. thanks for joining us on this monday morning. hope you have a great day. the "today" show coming up next. good morning breaking news, devastation millions along the gulf coast waking up to destruction, flooding, and darkness after hurricane ida strikes as a category 4 16 years to the day after entire city of new orleans without power. buildings torn apart, people trapped after flash flooding sweeps through the region. >> actually in the attic right now. >> the storm so powerful, it reversed the flow of the mighty mississippi river.