from cane velasquez returns to a south bay courtroom this morning. >> and all new this morning, uc berkeley finding a workaround that may allow more incoming freshmen to enroll next fall. how technology will factor into that and the incoming students that may still have to wait to attend. this is "today in the bay." good monday morning. thanks so much for allowing us to be a part of your morning. i'm marcus washington. >> i'm kris sanchez. laura garcia has the day off. if you are on the go, you can watch us live on roku, amazon fire, apple tv and online. >> meteorologist kari hall has a look at the forecast and what we can expect. >> it is a cold start this morning. as you're heading out for work, grab the heavier coat and the sunglasses, as we take a live look in san rafael, temperatures

are near freezing in a lot of these spots. we're freezing in santa rosa. the sky is all clear. we haven't had any issues with fog. just a couple degrees below freezing in the tri-valley, as well as south county. it's going to be a nice one, even a little warmer compared to yesterday with temperatures in the upper 60s and low 70s. mike, you've been tracking a couple of alerts. >> the first one has the biggest backup. it's southbound 680, just past the exit we have a crash. your alternate right now, livermore side you go to highway 84 because it joins in south of the crash. on the castro valley side, you may have to go to 238 and the y. that will take you down to 880. the normal commute is building and that's going to be there for a couple of hours. we have video from earlier. our friend sent us this video. at that time just one lane was blocked.

now two lanes are blocked, only one is getting southbound. over on the right side you see a number of chp vehicles, a number of larger rigs. then you see the nose of this tractor-trailer that is off of the roadway and that is what they have to clear over the next two hours. >> thanks, mike. well, can a new round of talks provide new hope in ukraine? both sides will gather later today. we want to give you a live look at ukraine's capital of kyiv. russian troops are said to be moving closer to kyiv and the united nations now confirms at least 406 civilian deaths, including 27 children. but the actual numbers, well, they're believed to be much higher. >> civilians, too. that's the key word. this morning secretary of state blinken says that the u.s. is actively trying to stop russian oil imports. "today in the bay's" brie jackson is live in washington. this comes with a new setback for ukrainians who are trying to get to safety and leave the war-torn city.

>> reporter: good morning, kris, marcus. yeah, there were talks about a possible cease-fire, but that has been rejected. there was hope that that cease-fire would create a path for citizens to flee, but that's not the case anymore. ukrainian officials have also rejected a proposal to evacuate its citizens to russia. the ukrainian government says russian forces violated a cease-fire agreement over the weekend, as attacks by russian forces escalated. >> they, again, for the second time, refused to allow women and children to get out. >> reporter: world leaders are considering new ways to fight back against russia, including possible investigations into the country's actions. >> any attack on civilians is a war crime. >> reporter: the u.s. is also in talks with poland about a deal to send russian-made fighter jets to ukraine. >> we're talking very actively about this, looking at what we could do to back-fill poland if

it chooses to send the migs and the planes that it has to ukraine. >> reporter: political pressure is growing for president biden to impose a no-fly zone. >> i would take nothing off the table, but i would be very clear that we're going to support the ukrainian people, the ukrainian president. >> reporter: there are bipartisan calls for a ban on russian oil. >> i think we have enough that we should produce more american oil and buy less russian oil or none at all. >> reporter: the national average for gas has soared past the $4 mark. the biden administration cautions prices could rise even more. some americans support tougher sanctions again russia. >> send the message, send all the messages. but i think we have oil here, we don't need to be buying their oil. >> reporter: u.s. companies continue to pull goods and services from russia, with netflix and tiktok added to the growing list. in ukraine, more than 1.5 million people have fled to safety. residents not yet impacted by the violence remain wary.

>> i fear for my kids. >> reporter: u.s. officials warn the war could go on for a while. and house speaker nancy pelosi says lawmakers are considering a bill that would include a ban on russian oil and provide billions of dollars to help refugees from ukraine. marcus, kris? >> thank you very much, brie. 6:05 right now, and south bay ukrainians and russians uniting through music at a special benefit concert. ♪ >> music just like that filled the air last night at the starbright theatre in campbell. there were about 150 people attending that concert. it was held by the russian and ukrainian performers, and fans and artists alike sang together, one voice, one goal. >> what connects us right now, we are all against the war and we all want to help the ukrainian people. >> proceeds from the sold-out show will help a nonprofit nova

ukraine, assisting ukrainian refugees and providing medical supplies. working to keep you updated around the clock when it comes to this issue on air and online. our web is constantly being updated and you can find interviews and in-depth analysis right there on nbcbayarea.com. businesses in oakland's chinatown were rattled following late-night weekend gunfire. this happened about 24 hours ago on franklin street. the security video captured bullets hitting the storefront, after two cars drove by and the video shows a man running. the source of the gunfire is not clear, but two storefronts were hit and one chinatown leader is asking for more police patrols. >> fortunately, you know, it is not during business hours, otherwise there will be many people hurt or killed. >> police say officers did respond to multiple reports of fighting and gunfire in that

same area, however everyone scattered by the time officers arrived. in contra costa county, two children are in the hospital this morning, after an accident involving fireworks. brentwood police say a group of children were playing with fireworks yesterday afternoon when things went horribly wrong. a 10-year-old boy was taken to the hospital by helicopter. he is in critical condition. and a young teenage girl was also injured, but not seriously. police are still investigating. happening today, former mma star cane velasquez is scheduled to appear in a santa clara county courtroom. velasquez is accused of trying to shoot a man who allegedly molested a close res denlt. the gunfire ended up hitting his intended target's father. video shows what appears to be velasquez in his truck chasing after the car he just rammed. velasquez is expected to be formally charged with attempted

murder and the judge will likely determine bail. new students heading to uc berkeley and the court order to freeze enrollment. the school plans to shift some of the attendance online only this fall and it also plans to delay enrollment for transfer students until january of 2023. thanks to those measures, cal leaders believe that the school can keep its administration level similar to those in the fall of 2020, which that's what the court ordered. the new move will impact more than 2,500 incoming freshmen. this morning some families and businesses are deciding that making it in the bay is no longer the best option for them. that includes the owners of a former family business in the heart of san francisco's north beach. the cafe never reopened after closing last year because of the pandemic and the family that owns it now has moved to frisco, texas. they say many reasons factored into the decision to move. >> more dangerous, dirtier, of

course, very expensive to deal with everybody, in any aspect, private life and business life. >> the family is now getting ready to open a new italian restaurant in frisco, frisco, texas, not san francisco. moving you forward this morning on new covid tests free, free kits available from the federal government. the white house first announcing the rapid antigen test kits. this was mid-january, with each household limited to four. starting this week another four tests will be offered per household. you can sign up at covidtests.org. those test -- dot gov, i'm sorry. in san jose, the sun is starting to peek out on the right-hand side and it's not going to warm things up right away, but it will get warmer by this afternoon, right, kari?

>> we're starting out so cold. you want it to warm up now, right? we're heading out the door in oakland and it's in the low 40s at 7:00. we will continue to see the sunshine today. we're in the mid-50s at 10:00 lunchtime. it will reach into the mid-70s. take a look at our trend or all of our microclimates. at 3:00 we're seeing upper 60s in martinez and 66 for a high in san jose. 67 in antioch. santa rosa reaching 71. we're back down to cold temperatures tonight. and it does warm up a little bit more tomorrow. so we'll talk more about that in just a few minutes. mike, you've been tracking a couple of alerts. >> and i have one more now. this is for b.a.r.t. riders. between richmond and downtown berkeley there's some sort of a power outage. they're investigating why. the b.a.r.t. trains are not running. bus 79 is our alternate. we will continue to follow that assen issue for east bay commuters.

tri-valley, 680 i showed you the crash and the alert off the dublin interchange through castro valley, your alternates. the rest of the big map, moving as you would expect, including the backup at the bay bridge metering lights. but this backup blocks highway 17 southbound. that postal truck with cargo strewn across the roadway, affecting both north and southbound. southbound you can't get by. you have to take 101 or highway 9. back to you. >> thanks, mike. near record gas prices hitting home for drivers everywhere. >> wow, i'm paying this much for gas? >> we're all saying that. next on "today in the bay," a closer look at some of the impacts that is having in the bay area and elsewhere. and those who might be feeling the pain at the pump the most. >> and a baby boom like no other. just look at all of those newborns. they're as cute as can be. we're going to explain the mini firestorm of attention this is generating right after the break. >> i want to hold all of them.

just look at all of those

good monday morning. right now at 6:14, let's get the kids ready for school in the east bay. drop-off time, it is only 37 degrees. but at pickup time it's going to be so much nicer and comfortable. we'll talk about all the changes in our weather in the forecast coming up. >> and we have changes for the slower highway 17 northbound. the good news is tow trucks are arriving and both directions

toward laurel road, they're going to join forces to try to right that postal carrier truck that would clear 17. right now southbound is blocked. i've got an alternate, but san martin, a series of crashes in our northbound commute will confuse things trying to get around that backup as well. >> thanks, mike. 6:15 right now. wall street set to open in about 15 minutes and stock futures with losses after oil pulls back from a $130 high. the dow futures down 100 points this morning. >> and a live look at this gas station in fremont. look closely there and you won't be surprised to see the numbers. the russia/ukraine conflict driving up prices. a gallon of regular unleaded is now $5.69 per gallon just at that station. we know there are more expensive stations. we know if you need premium gas that is now nearly $6 a gallon. and we're seeing this all across

the bay area. according to aaa, these are the prices in our bay area counties. the average price in the bay area right now, the highest. in marin and napa counties, close to $5.50. san francisco not too far behind. the cheapest gas, santa clara and contra costa counties, both running about $5.38 a gallon. we have more on the historic prices we are seeing at the pump. >> reporter: good morning. the prices everywhere across california are so high. take a look right here, $6.99 for a gallon of regular. you almost have to see it to believe it. gas prices driven so high by the russian invasion of ukraine. a lot of people out there driving are hoping for some relief. we asked experts, when might this end? >> we don't know how much higher these prices are going to go. it's all going to depend on the upward pressure on the crude oil prices, which is being fueled by

the geopolitical tension that we're seeing between russia and ukraine. this is coming at a very frustrating time for drivers. we have had two years of pandemic lockdowns and restrictions, which are now starting to loosen up. people are ready to get out there and take road trips for spring break, take road trips for the summer travel season, and they're seeing sticker shock prices at the gas pumps. >> the other factor is the summer blend of oil as gas stations make that gas transition, and with the higher demand coming up for peak driving season, we're not there yet. we still have spring break, as well as the summer driving season. we're going to talk about it coming up on the "today" show. >> thank you. you know the tradition, you pass out cigars when a baby is born. it's becoming common in one southern california firehouse. >> trending this morning, the chino valley fire district posted this photo on instagram. take a look at this. 15 of those firefighters there

recently welcoming new babies. those babies range from 3 weeks to 1 year old, while many experts believe there would have been a baby boom during the first year of the pandemic. well, there was a decline in national birth rates. >> not in chino valley. >> not at all. those firefighters are a clear exception with all of those babies. welcome, welcome, welcome. >> that's what happens when you give firefighters the same day off. you've got to spread it out. that's so cute. >> that is cute. it's a great way to start out our week, also talking about some great weather across the bay area. it's cold out there now, and i know it's hard to get up and get moving. but we are going to see that sunshine warm things up today. and we are right above freezing in the tri-valley, and there may be some spots dipping right to freezing as we are seeing that in the north bay. some of our valley temperatures continuing to go down. sunrises when we get to the lowest point for our temperatures for the day.

scots valley we're freezing, seeing low 40s elsewhere. when you compare that to where we're headed for this afternoon, it is going to be a really nice and comfortable day. novato reaching 68 degrees. 66 in dublin and hayward. morgan hill today we'll see a high of 66. going into tomorrow just slightly warmer. take a look at our temperatures, with some low 70s, a few more of them on the map here. concord tomorrow afternoon reaching 72 and 71 in san martin. but then take a look at wednesday, and this is going to be our high, as a cold front dips in, the winds pick up, and unfortunately those colder temperatures don't come with any rain. we're still looking dry across the region. all of the rain and the clouds still well to the north of us, being blocked by high pressure. meanwhile, you've got lows dipping just to the east of us and moving away from us that's creating a pressure gradient and all of those strong winds. even going out into the weekend it still looks like dry weather continues with the rain over the pacific northwest.

take a look at morgan hill. our temperature trend for the next ten days is going up and down, which is what we typically see during the month of march. it's been extremely dry, even for this time of year, and that sunshine continues as we are going to see more comfortable weather during the afternoons. so, mike, you have three alerts going on? >> i do. one is for b.a.r.t. between richmond and berkeley. there's a disruption to the service there. you can take bus 79. that may affect folks heading to the bay bridge. there's a backup at the toll plaza. that is standard. that is not the alert. the surrounding area through contra costa county, those are standard. the big problem is here and in the santa cruz mountains. it's jammed up basically from the dublin interchange all the way down to just past sungl boulevard. we've got to get this cleared. we have a big rig and it's supposed to be after 7:00 until they can clear that.

84 joins in just south of that scene. or if you're coming from the castro valley side, take the y. the other alert continues on 17. both directions are jammed as tow crews arrive to help clear southbound 17, which is still blocked. back to you. >> thanks, mike. next on "today in the bay," nbc bay area responds. >> her oven won't withstand high heat, then the manufacturer gives her the cold shoulder. i'm consumer investigator chris chmura. nbc bay area responds next. >> i'm bigad shaban and here's what we have for you in episode 2 of our new streaming series "saving san francisco". we catch up with ann ray who says a homeless man has been stalking her for years, while shuffling in and out of jail. she says the city is failing her. so who exactly is that man in the woods? to find out, just download the nbc bay area app on roku, apple tv, amazon fire, or you can watch online at nbcbayarea.com

nbcbayarea.com/saving san francisco. oh, wow, barbara corcoran! good morning. sorry, we don't need any business help now. we're gigillionaires. what? we're gigillionaires now. i don't get it we have at&t business fiber with hyper-gig speeds. but i just... so thanks, but, we're doing great. i'm so happy for you! but i'm just here for my order.

oh. entre-pin-eurs? yeah, my bowling team. i like it there's money in puns. do business like a gigillionaire at&t business fiber, now with speeds up to 5-gigs. limited availability - [announcer] the more we learn about covid-19,

the more questions we have. the biggest question now, what's next? what will covid bring in six months, a year? if you're feeling anxious about the future, you're not alone. calhope offers free covid-19 emotional support. call 833-317-4673, or live chat at calhope.org today. nbc bay area responds to a north bay woman who says oven issues left her feeling burned. >> she asked consumer investigator chris chmura and his team to turn up the heat. >> good morning. anna in mill valley sent us this picture from the inside of her $1,800 oven. she says that right there is paint that's peeling after she used the self-cleaning function.

anna was convinced the oven's heat resistant coating was not properly cured. so she asked whirlpool to fix it. she says a tech told her the damage was cosmetic and sent her some paint to fix the peeling herself. she disagreed and called us. whirlpool told us anna's oven was non repairable, but she could use her extended warranty to get a 75% refund, and that got anna $1,465 back. in a statement, whirlpool said, we regret that this consumer had a difficult experience in resolving an issue with her appliance. we are pleased to have come to a resolution. anna said this has been a learning experience for her. warranties can be tricky. we have two pieces of advice. first, with a manufacturer's warranty, always register your product. some warranties don't apply unless you register. as for extended warranties, before you buy one, make sure you know what you are getting

before you give them your money. read the terms. like anna's contract, which capped her coverage at 75% of what she paid. if a warranty issue has you stumped, maybe we can help. go to nbcbayarea.com and click the responds option from the main menu. or call us, 888-966-tips. >> thanks, chris. our next stop stories that we are following today include the growing humanitarian crisis in ukraine. ahead, a live report from poland and the new setbacks for refugees as they attempt to escape the russian invasion. >> reporter: today is another milestone in our march through the pandemic. folks in the city of san francisco returning to work and some city buildings and other communities are reopening. we'll have that story coming up. >> and getting paid for jury duty, wee break down who qualifies for the first of its kind program starting right here in the bay area. break down who

qualifies for the first of its kind program starting right here in the bay area.

right now at 6:30, the battle for ukraine rages on with civilians caught in the cross fire. we will take you live to the border in poland for a look at the overwhelming flood of refugees looking to escape. >> we absolutely need to be and are moving into this next phase of our response. >> moving you forward out of the pandemic. one of the state's top doctors explains what the endemic phase will mean and what you need to know as covid cases continue

falling. this is "today in the bay." good monday morning. it's good to be with you. i'm kris sanchez in for laura garcia. >> i'm marcus washington. if you're on the go, you can take us with you. we are streaming live on roku, amazon fire, apple tv and online. >> we want to start with a look at the forecast. meteorologist kari hall is tracking what we can expect. i am forecasting that kids are going to lose their sweaters and jackets today. >> as we always say, write the name on the tag. that doesn't guarantee it's still coming back home. but when they hang it on the fence, you can find it. let's take a look at the temperatures we're starting out with. it's going to be in the low to mid-30s in some spots. take a look at our freezing temperatures near mill valley, as well as santa rosa. we're just above freezing in the tri-valley. foster city, we're starting out with mid-40s and headed for the mid-60s. you start out with a warm coat

but won't need it later today. we're going to talk about more changes ahead. mike, you have a big problem for the tri-valley commute. >> this is one of three alerts. this is early this morning, before 4:00, about 3:00 something this morning, we had one lane blocked. it's still blocked but now two of those three lanes are blocked. chp vehicles, larger tow trucks, and we have the nose of a truck there just off the ditch on the side. the backup has grown from early morning. it now extends back to the dublin interchange. you can see the speed sensors along foothill road. it is jammed. so 84 joins in just south of that crash, so if you're coming from the livermore side that is your advantage and it is still moving very slowly, but moving. now the build is on toward the castro valley y, the dublin gri

and toward 880. so a shift for this portion of the tri-valley. we'll talk about highway 17 and b.a.r.t. issues coming up. >> thank you. around the world deaths from the pandemic now surpass 6 million people and the u.s. accounts for about one-sixth of that number. today a national memorial will be held to remember the lives lost during the pandemic, as covid cases continue to drop, finally. this morning we are also moving you forward on the return to the workplace across the bay area. "today in the bay's" cierra johnson live in san francisco. another sign that things are inching toward normal there, starting today. >> reporter: good morning, kris. yeah, it's hard to believe that it was nearly two years ago that covid really brought the world to a halt. that includes the bay area. a lot of folks working from home, but starting today those city and county employees of san francisco will make their way back to the office. it's been a long time coming, so you're going to see a lot more folks there in some of the

areas, specifically downtown san francisco. this is all part of the welcome back to sf pledge. this is part of the mayor's program, according to a statement from the mayor's office, the welcome back fledge signifies a critical milestone in the resumption of economic activity. several of the city's largest companies have also pledged to bring workers back to the office this month. and some other communities are welcoming folks back to their offices. starting today vallejo city hall will reopen to the thursday, 9:00 to 3:00. masks are required and capacity will be limited to ten folks in the lobby at a time. changes coming for those in hayward, those who are fully vaccinated will no longer need to wear a mask inside a city of hayward facility. with all of this progress, many weren't so lucky and unable to beat covid.

the nonprofit marked by covid has selected today as covid memorial day. the organization is working to create a federally recognized memorial day for the americans who died from coronavirus. the co-founder of this organization lives in san francisco and lost her father to the virus. take a listen as to why she explains this day is so important as she works to heal. >> we weren't able to hold a proper funeral, our good-byes were stolen from us. and while this doesn't bring back our loved ones, it is an opportunity to, you know, start to process. >> reporter: and that organization will hold a remembrance ceremony today at 5:00. that ceremony will be virtual. we're live in san francisco. cierra johnson for "today in the bay." >> nice to be moving forward, finally. thank you very much. new setbacks this morning for ukrainians seeking to escape the russian invasion. here's a live look at ukraine's

capital. overnight ukraine rejected a russian cease-fire plan allowing civilians to plea, citing the specifics of the plan. since the start of the invasion, more than 1.5 million people have left ukraine. the united nations now confirming at least 406 civilian deaths, including 27 children. but the actual numbers are believed to be much higher. "today in the bay's" jay gray is following this, joining us live this morning from the polish/ukrainian border with more on the rush for so many people to reporter: yeah, and, i want to give you a real time look on the ground at exactly what's going on. you can see the families that are scattered here on the street that's because there's no room inside, so the crowd is flowing out and into the streets here. look, the mad rush to continue -- to leave does continue this morning. ukraine rejecting a russian plan overnight to let civilians

escape russian assault and flee to russia or belarus. they said, no, our people aren't going there. residents are trying to scramble to escape the shelling in this village outside of kyiv. ukraine soldiers are frantically trying to guide families to buses and other vehicles so they can make their escape. more than 1.5 million who have already made the journey to safety, those looking to flee still packing into train stations, bus terminals, makeshift hospitals and shelters. you can see the crowd inside this terminal. it has been growing all day and continues to grow. unfortunately, marcus, this most believe is only the beginning of what is going to be huge crowds, growing crowds over the next several weeks. >> and each time we've gone to you, jay, there, we see a new group of people just bringing to light, a new group of people trying to get to safety right

now. thanks, jay. and if you're interested in helping war victims in credible outlets that are providing aid to those fleeing ukraine on our website. just go to nbcbayarea.com. new overnight, photos taken from space show new buildin sig at north korea's nuclear testing facility. the analysts say that it is a worrying sign that the country could be planning to resume testing atomic bombs, after having claimed to have destroyed them in 2018. that agreement was part of a diplomatic initiative between north korean leader kim jong-un and the trump administration. however, the extent of that destruction and construction is not clear to experts. for friends and family, a very sad conclusion to the case of a missing university of san francisco student. this is 21-year-old chris ferre

liang who was reported missing last week after he failed to return from a road trip to southern california. on saturday, the chp said they discovered his body inside an overturned rental car. they found the car in a ditch on i-5 in fresno county. the cause of that crash is yet unknown. >> sad to hear. 6:38 this morning. let's take a live look at this. oh, the sun is rising in san francisco. just peeking there. >> looks warm. >> temperatures tell a different story. meteorologist kari hall, we'll get to that in a minute. also going on in san francisco, a first of its kind program to pay low income jurors will begin today. it will compensate low to moderate income jurors for their office. so the jurors will get $100 per day if they qualify. to qualify, that means you must earn less than $74,000 a year for a single person or $106,000 for a family of four, and you

cannot be compensated by your employer for jury duty. the city says the goal is to create more diverse groups of jurors. currently california's courts pay jurors $15 a day, but that doesn't begin until the second day of service. >> people want to do their civic duty. but if you serve on a jury at $15 a day, it's really hard. >> taking a live look -- >> i got distracted by the live picture. >> another beautiful shot this morning. sunrise coming up. meteorologist kari hall is monitoring those cold temps to start out the day. beautiful scenery. >> it doesn't yet feel nice. it will later today as temperatures will be very chilly to start, near freezing. especially in the north bay, where we've seen santa rosa down to 32 degrees right now. sunrise, the coldest time of the day, and we're feeling that right now. just 1 degree above freezing in dublin and livermore.

enjoy later today. let's get a look at san ramon and how the day will shape up. for the late morning hours we're in the low 50s, middle of the day mid-60s. and some of our temperatures will reach into the upper 60s. we'll see that in fairfield and concord, as well as novato. and heading out, mike, you have several spots to watch out for. >> some warnings about today and tonight, also. let's sprinkle them in here. the first one is an alert right now, the update from b.a.r.t., there is still no service between richmond and downtown berkeley. there was an electrical fire of some sort. no b.a.r.t. service between those two stations. and ac transit is providing mutual aid. meanwhile, the roadway between those two stations is picking up volume, but a standard build through this map. the alert here on this map is for tonight. you'll see signs talking about a westbound closure. there will be one bore open.

electrical maintenance. it will be able to handle the volume all right. volume is building for our second alert, south 680, still two lanes blocked, one open. and now traffic is rippling through the tri-valley. the rest of the map looks just fine, but the third for this morning, south 17 still blocked by the crashed big rig northbound. tow trucks are arriving and they're also slowing down traffic. >> thank you, mike. still ahead, we are moving you forward from the pandemic to look at when covid finally becomes an endemic. plus, the man at the center of many fire storms surrounding the trump presidency. this is after the break, we're going to tell you about the exclusive one-on-one interview with former attorney general william barr and his first interview since resigning. >> and we were talking about endemic, but the impacts of the pandemic is lasting on families. we're talking about the cost of child care. we'll show you why silicon

valley women are being hit especially hard. stay with us. you're watching "today in the bay." in new york city, ♪ ♪ there's always something new to discover. ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ come be a part of it. plan your next vacation at iloveny.com

good monday morning. right now at 6:44, let's get you out the door and ready for the day with a live look outside in san rafael. a lot of people already on the way to work, and as you step out it's going to be chilly. only in the low 40s at 8:00 we're at 43. we're headed for the upper 60s today.

enjoy. we're going to talk about more changes in our weather coming up in a few minutes. >> enjoy the weather, because the drive is a nightmare. we have three active alerts. this is southbound 17 still closed. look at the northbound side. they've had to run traffic breaks to clear what looks like material from a postal truck. i've marked your alternate for south 17 but it's a longer drive for 101, 152 and highway 1. well, this morning we are moving you forward as the state transitions out of the pandemic from medical experts to politicians, even small business owners. all this week we are focusing on the next steps. recently i went one-on-one with the state' top epidemiologist, dr. erica pan and we talked about her thoughts on the term endemic. >> the word can mean a lot of different things to different people and often means it's something that we're more used

to and has less impact as far as deaths and hospitalizations. but we absolutely need to be and are moving into the next phase of our response and really learning how to live with this virus and using all the tools we've learned over the last two years on how to respond to this very smart virus that has really impacted our lives dramatically over the last two years. >> the kids right now, a lot of people taking the masks off when it comes to them going to school. do you think that's a good idea right now? >> so, again, i think there's a lot of variability, depending on the local community, and i think local communities are going to be obviously thinking about that now, after the march 11th timeline, to think about what are their local transmission rates, their local vaccination rates. i know even talking to my children's own school here in the bay area, i think people are very comfortable with the masks, a lot of our kids -- you know, my teenage daughter, when i told her you don't need to wear it

outdoors anymore, she said i feel more comfortable wearing it. i think it's going to be an interesting transition for people. kids have gotten so used to it in certain communities that i think it will be a transitional time when it's not necessarily required, but still recommended. i think many will still keep wearing them. >> there was a big push for everyone to get their vaccination and then the booster shot. how likely is it that we will continue to need protection moving forward? >> yeah, so it's such an important question that, you know, researchers and vaccinologists and manufacturers are all looking at very closely, whether getting that third dose is enough. what we are seeing is it's really still protecting us from the most important things, which are keeping people out of the hospital and deaths and serious outcomes. we're seeing that the vaccination is more and more evident to help prevent what we call long covid. i think the data from israel, the fourth dose, it's unclear

how useful it is and some immunologists talk about sometimes the third dose is the charm to rev your immune system to be the most prepared for the next variant that comes. i think there's still a lot to learn. >> what is the likelihood that we'll see another variant that will affect us in the way we saw with omicron and delta? >> i think that is a really important thing. we want to make sure people realize, we think there will be more variants. this virus mutates so quickly, and as long as there are large populations of unvaccinated people where the virus can thrive, it can mutate. and there will be new variants. i think the big question is, how serious will those next variants be. we saw differences in severity between the original virus we saw in 2020, then there was the alpha variant and delta, and omicron, and, you know, alpha and delta were more serious, but omicron was milder. we don't know what the next one will be. we know a lot of our tools that

will help, regardless of how serious the next variant is, we know if we need to resume masks, we can do that. we know ventilation is important and vaccines are protecting us from hospitalizations and death. and we have tests that can help us detect cases early and have people stay home if they are infected. and really importantly, more and more treatments are evolving and that is going to help keep people out of the hospital and save lives as we get more treatments that work and more availability of treatments. >> i appreciate your time and thank you for that information. we're going the let you keep following the science and we're going to do what we can to keep ourselves safe as well. thank you so much. a pandemic ripple effect, especially for women trying to make it in the bay. there are now fewer child care options available. the bay area economic council says more women than men dropped out of the u.s. workforce during the pandemic, and some of that has to do with daycare disruptions and family care

needs. the santa clara county office of education said in that county alone, more than 300 daycare centers closed because of the pandemic. the high cost of childcare, which can average $20,000 a year, is adding new strain on families impacted by unemployment. new this morning, former u.s. attorney general william barr breaking his silence about the time working with the trump administration. in an exclusive one-on-one with lester holt, the former attorney general says that he believes former president trump is morally responsible for the january 6th political siege, but is not legally at fault. in his first sit-down interview since resigning from his post. barr goes on to say that mr. trump losing the election was a turning point for the administration. >> he was always hard to work with and resistant to advice, but you could usually keep things on track. but after the election, he went off the rails. he wouldn't listen to anybody except the fans who were telling

him what he wanted to hear. and i think he did a lot of damage after the election. >> and you can watch the full interview coming up this morning on the "today" show. that is right after us here on "today in the bay." let's take a live look out over walnut creek. you know it's cold in the shade, but this morning it's even cold in the sunny parts. what's the opposite of shade? kari, you are tracking those temperatures. >> we are going to see some warmer temperatures for this afternoon. take a look at the sunrise this morning. it is a beautiful start to our monday morning. just don't go out there until it warms up. our temperatures at lunchtime in the low 60s and we'll reach into the upper 60s for today. we're making plans to enjoy the warmest time of the day, which is about 3:00 to 4:00 this afternoon, as our temperatures reach up to 66 in hayward. we'll see a high of 68 in napa and novato. santa rosa reaching 71 degrees.

take a look at tomorrow's high temperatures. a little bit warmer in some spots like concord and fairfield, reaching into the low 70s. we're seeing a few more 70s sprinkled on the map. but then wednesday is when it gets colder and we're going to see those gusty winds picking up. and, unfortunately, when this cold front comes through and brings in these colder temperatures, there's still not going to be any rain. we're taking a look at extremely dry conditions across the region, kind of chopping down our chance of getting our miracle march that we were hoping for. high pressure still hasn't moved. we get these lows sliding to the east, creating a pressure gradient and stronger winds. going into the weekend is rain is well north of us and even running the models out about ten days, i'm trying to see if there's any sierra snow that could help out and we're only looking at about 1 to 2 inches of snow. that's for the middle of march. meanwhile, we see our sierra snowpack going down and it's the worst in the northern sierra,

where it's only at 55% of normal and here we are in the middle of march and we're not seeing much snow in the forecast. we, unfortunately, are going to see dry weather at the same time we're thinking about that and enjoying all the comfortable temperatures we have. we're going to reach into the upper 60s and low 70s. it will be cool for the mornings. mike, you have three alerts going on. >> three different parts of our commute. we start with the santa cruz mountains, southbound 17 still blocked by an overturned rig. they're trying to pick up the debris, which sounds like postal material. the northbound side also jammed with tow trucks arriving on scene. that's jamming up both directions south of the summit. this map may look fine but over here in the tri-valley, southbound 680 is really jammed up because of the crash which will continue past the 7:00 hour. only one lane of southbound 680 open. the dublin grade is really jamming up. in the east bay the roads are fine, but the rails between

richmond and downtown berkeley, still an interruption for b.a.r.t. service. back to you. >> that is a rough start to this monday morning. caltrans plans to do more work on highway 50 to prevent rock slides. crews were forced to blow up a boulder after it crashed near lake tahoe last thursday. we showed you that. a series of smaller rock slides then happened on friday, with one even hitting a car. so if you're headed in that direction this morning, you have to be alert. one-way traffic is expected near echo summit because of that ongoing construction. and next a quick look at the top stories, including the mounting toll the russian invasion of ukraine is having on so many. the new setback for ukrainians seeking to escape the chaos and the growing impact on grass prices shattering records at home. and uc berkeley finding a workaround that may allow more incoming freshmen to enroll next fall. we'll tell you how technology will factor in and how incoming

students may still have to wait to attend on campus. we'll break all of this down when we come back in just two minutes. you're watching "today in the bay."

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welcome back. here's a look at the top stories we have on "today in the bay." >> first, a new round of talks expected later today between russia and ukraine. in the meantime, the war rages on. here's a live look at the

ukraine capital. russian troops are said to be moving closer to kyiv, as united nations now confirms at least 406 civilian deaths, including 27 children. the actual numbers are believed to be much higher. ukraine is now pleading with the united nations top court to order russia to halt the invasion, saying that russia is already committing widespread war crimes. u.s. secretary of state blinken meanwhile now says the u.s. is actively trying to stop russian oil imports. here's the latest signs of massive impact of the war on soaring u.s. gas prices. according to aaa, the average per gallon right now in the bay area, the highest we're seeing in the north bay, you see $5.51 right here. that is per gallon. now, the cheapest gas is in santa clara county and contra costa county, hovering around $5.38. new developments now for

incoming freshmen students headed to uc berkeley, at least the ones they thought were headed there. amidst new court orders to freeze enrollment. the school now plans to shift some attendance to online only for the fall. it also plans to delay enrollment for transfer students until january 2023. because of those measures, cal leaders believe the school can keep admission levels similar to those in the fall of 2020. moving you forward, on the new free covid test kits available from the federal government. the white house first announcing the rapid antigen testing kits in mid january. starting this week, another four tests will be offered per household. you can sign up at covid tests.gov. let's taurn to mike and kari. >> we're headed for the upper 60s and low 70s. it will be windy for the middle of the week. >> big jam southbound 680

continues with the alert. that will not clear until at least after 7:30. the traffic shifts toward castro valley. i'm tracking two more alerts and tweeting about them right now. >> that does it for us for "today in the bay." we'll be back at 7:25 with more local news updates. good morning. breaking overnight. closing in. russians forces edging nearer to kyiv and growing more brutal by the day. escalating deadly attacks on civilians across ukraine. just ahead, where the invasion stands and the number of refugees desperate to flee now in the millions. this mning, lester holt on the ground in ukraine and growing pressure on world leaders including president biden to do more. pain at the pumps. that volatility of coast to coast surge in gas prices now topping $4 a gallon for the first time in nearly 15 years. and all time record in the u.s. expected to be shattered this week.