right now at 5:00, a late-night hit-and-run investigation closes streets in the east bay. the key details police revealed to our crew at the scene that

may help the investigation. a suspected pot grow up in flames. new details on the moment neighbors could sense trouble. also, shutdown showdown, as president biden wakes up here in the bay area. the race to pass a funding bill and where things stand in washington at this hour. this is "today in the bay." good morning to you on this wednesday. i'm marcus washington. >> i'm laura garcia. 5:00 right now. we'll check in with mike in just a bit. first, let's look at the forecast. meteorologist kari hall is tracking what we can expect. >> it's going to be really nice out there as our temperatures warm up just slightly for the inland areas. as we take a live look outside in dublin, it's a clear start to our morning in martinez. now at 58 degrees. it's a little cool as you're heading out the door. as we go through skrout the day, temperatures will slowly warm up and we'll see much more sunshine as our temperatures head for the mid to upper 70s for parts of

the peninsula, san mateo reaching 75 degrees, 77 in oakland, and 83 today in concord. we'll see a lot of low 80s for much of the north bay as we get a sunny sky and breezy wind. it's going to be really nice. as we take a look at our forecast for tomorrow, expect it to reach into the low 80s for santa rosa, and morgan hill headed for 82 degrees. we'll get a look at what's ahead in our forecast coming up in a few minutes. >> thank you. we'll check back with you. oakland police are investigating an apparent deadly hit-and-run. officers in east oakland scoured international boulevard near 54th avenue, closing traffic through the night in both directions. off camera they told our photographer at the scene the victim died. police so far are not confirming that. officers also told us the driver ran from the scene and the suspected car was left there. again, we're still awaiting confirmation. east bay firefighters -- a

kawhiiest east bay neighborhood suddenly turned upside down after an apparent explosion and firefighters are asking a lot of questions. >> "today in the bay"'s kris sanchez is in our newsroom. the whole thing rattles neighbors. >> reporter: that was a nerve-racking night for firefighters because they had a hard time getting into the home, which the chief told us had all the tell-tale signs of being a marijuana grow house. in the video you see firefighters trying to access that home through the roof, which had plywood over the windows. now, when they finally were able to get in, it was just too dangerous and the chief pulled them back out. it was just in the nick of time, because moments later the roof caved in. the fire was first reported just before 10:00 last night in antioch on the 5300 block of

navajo way. neighbors told us they've witnessed similar fires in the neighborhood recently, which made them fear for their safety. >> i felt scared and i thought that everyone in the house was going to lose their life, and our dogs were going to be harmed. >> reporter: though firefighters were on scene for four hours, they spent most of that time outside that home taking a defensive position, because as we mentioned, it was just too unsafe to go in. that investigation into that suspected grow house now continues. >> thank you. happening today, a south bay man accused in a decades-old sexual assault is due in court for a plea hearing. in june, sunnyvale authorities arrested richard jeffrey martinez of san jose, after what they say was a positive dna hit. they also credited the public genealogy database for finding the match. since that time, they say at least two more victims have come

forward. the case revolves around a 1996 sexual assault of a 7-year-old girl. it is still possible more charges may be filed. president biden is waking up this morning in the bay area to conclude a two-day visit. we have a live look at san francisco's fairmont hotel where the president is staying and where he plans to attend a meeting later today involving white house science and technology advisers. yesterday the president attended fundraising events in san francisco and atherton. our ginger conejero saab will have more details coming up in our next half hour. when we're not on the air, you can always stay up to date with the president's visit online. head to our website, nbcbayarea.com, or download our free nbc bay area news app. developing this morning, questions are growing about san francisco's fleet week being severely dialed back in the event of a government shutdown. a deal is needed by saturday, and fleet week really ramps up next thursday. this is when the blue angels are

supposed to practice. for now, organizers are still planning for all systems go. now, as for the funding deadline, lawmakers in the house and senate still appear to be on two different paths. "today in the bay"'s drew petrimoulx has more from washington. >> reporter: with the house making little progress, the senate is moving forward with its own short-term funding plan to keep the government running through mid-november. >> this bipartisan cr is a temporary solution, a bridge towards cooperation and a way from extremism, and it will allow us to keep working to fully fund the federal government and spare american families the pain of a shutdown. >> reporter: the plan maintains current levels of government spending, plus additional funding for ukraine and disaster relief, but faces dim prospects in the republican-controlled house. speaker mccarthy late tuesday said the house will put forward its own temporary funding plan

before the end of the week. that also focuses on border security. but it's unclear if mccarthy has the votes to pass it, facing a rebellion from hard-line members of his party pressing for deeper spending cuts. >> this place is broken and we need to stop spending the way we are. we need to get spending under control and it should be the top priority. >> reporter: with a shutdown looming, federal agencies getting contingency plans in place ahead of the september 30th deadline. >> this is so unnecessary. this doesn't need to happen. >> reporter: a shutdown would impact a broad array of federal programs from pre-k to agriculture, 4 million federal workers will be affected, with some being furloughed and others being forced to work without pay. drew petrimoulx, nbc news, washington. developing this morning in las vegas, growing threats of a strike by tens of thousands of hospitality workers. yesterday union leaders announced workers voted to authorize a strike. so far, a date has not been set. if a strike does happen, just

about every major destination hotel and casino would be affected, including chains like mgm resorts and wynn. more contract talks are scheduled next week. new details on the staffing crunch for gilroy firefighters. the union is raising concerns about unstaffed firehouses and inadequate response times. firefighters tell nbc bay area the shortfall is starting to impact emergency responses and their ability to control fires. a recent letter to residents claims the santa therese sa station goes unstaffed and the union believed it should be staffed 24/7. >> emergencies, cardiac arrests, if we don't get there in time, the patient outcome is not good. so that's why we need a paramedic to show up within that adopted seven minutes and 30 seconds to have good patient outcomes. >> council members tell us staffing issues only recently came to light and they do plan to take up that next week.

they also expect to have a fully staffed station within one year. taking a live look at the bay bridge toll plaza this morning, waiting for traffic to pick up. mike has got his eye on that and the morning commute across the bay area. what are we looking like weather-wise? >> that's such a different picture from what we had yesterday morning, where it was damp, misting and light showers coming down. now it is all clear and we're taking a look at a dry golden gate bridge for your drive this morning. let's head up to santa rosa, where our temperatures start out at 49 degrees, very chilly start. it's also mostly clear and we're going to stay clear throughout today, as we go from upper 40s to low 70s at lunchtime. maybe make plans to have lunch outdoors. we're going to have great outdoor weather throughout the day as our temperatures reach slightly below what's normal for this time of year. late september we're usually seeing low 80s, and we'll see that in livermore with a high of

80 for this afternoon. not too many changes temperature-wise, but eventually we may see some more rain. so i'll talk more about that in a few minutes. mike has a look at where we can find lower gas prices. >> i'm sure i'm not alone when i say the prices i pass on the way to work, i think they jumped overnight. in the south bay, sunnyvale's costco on lawrence station road, $4.97 as the very lowest we could find. contra costa county it's $5.19 at concord superstop on willow pass road. statement price, $4.19, marin gas, larkspur on magnolia avenue. thank you all for reporting through gasbuddy.com. we are looking three trouble shots, one is northbound 238 coming off of the 580 interchange. it will affect the transition from 238 to 880 itself. crews should be arriving. quite a backup forming toward

castro valley. another slowdown on highway 4 coming through a construction zone, early slowing into concord, as well as persistent slowing in richmond as we're traveling westbound on 80. we'll check those both out. back to you. >> thank you. celebrating a silver anniversary. 25 years ago a tiny little company called google launched in silicon valley. google the rest of the story. if not, stick around, because we're going to talk about that and more about the new technology leaders say will shape the next 25 years. meantime, a big legal move against amazon, and a record set in space. ♪♪ >> what are you doing in my swamp? >> any monster lover would surely be over the moon to experience one halloween week deal. how about experiencing the swamp-like life of shrek?

swamp-like life of shrek? we'llell you about i tt. oh ms. flores, what would we do without you? leader of many, and pet wrangler too. you report to your boss, every afternoon. so beautiful. so becoming a student again might seem impossible. hello, mi amor. but what if a school could be there for all of you? career, family, finances and mental health. well, it can. national university. supporting the whole you.

♪ ♪ national university. every day, businesses everywhere are asking: is it possible? with comcast business... it is. is it possible to help keep our online platform safe from cyberthreats? absolutely. can we provide health care virtually anywhere? we can help with that. is it possible to use predictive monitoring to address operations issues? we can help with that, too. with the advanced connectivity and intelligence of global secure networking from comcast business. it's not just possible. it's happening.

good wednesday morning. right now at 5:13, we take a look at our forecast for gilroy. starting out clear this morning, nice and cool, and we have lots of sunshine in our forecast today. we'll make it into the mid-70s at noon and headed for the upper 70s later today. we'll get a look at all of our microclimates and talk about when we may see rain again coming up in a few minutes.

a live look, oakland moves very smoothly on the nimitz. that's 880 traveling past the coliseum with headlights north. the over-crossing moves smoothly, the under-crossing reopened on time from the repair work. we'll talk about another couple of spots coming up. good morning. very happy wednesday to you. it was another down day on the markets tuesday. the dow industrial is down more than 380 points, which 20 years ago would have freaked us out. these days with the dow way over 30,000, it works out to be a little more than 1%. we mentioned that target was closing nine stores because of theft and violence, including three in the bay area. on tuesday, the ftc did what we assumed it would do and accused amazon in a massive antitrust lawsuit. the federal government joins 19 states in accusing amazon of punishing sellers if they try to

sell somewhere else for less, and that it all but forces sellers to use amazon warehouses and delivery systems to get their prime designation. >> just because amazon is great and in many ways wonderful and convenient, doesn't mean amazon can break the law. >> the lawsuit was brought by the new head of the federal trade commission. we long suspected this was coming because she wrote a paper in college called amazon's antitrust paradox and it put her on the map. what's not clear is what the government wants to do about all of this, how it would solve the problem at amazon that it's describing. this is the second major antitrust lawsuit against big tech. the other is in court right now. the trial against google, accused of anticompetitive behavior by the justice department. speaking of google, this year has been the 25th anniversary of google's creation. later this morning on the "today" show, harry smith takes

a look at google's new artificial intelligence. >> i said, summarize all the emails from my kids' school. as a busy parent, you understand the start of the school year is very stressful. inundation of emails, buy this, prepare that. bart was able to summarize that and it saved me hours of time. >> that's ahead on the "today" show. also, about 45 minutes ago, american astronaut frank rubio returned to earth after a year and a half, the longest stay in space in all of human history. we're still waiting for video of him. he landed in a remote area of kazakhstan, along with other astronauts. getting the video back to america, that's tough. >> takes a while. >> it does. a year and a half. >> isn't that incredible? he can't walk and probably will not be able to for quite some time. >> thanks, scott. >> fascinating.

5:17 right now. new this morning, the golden globes announcing changes to its awards ceremony next year. it includes two new categories, one for cinematic and box office achievement. it's explained to be the highest earning or most seen films delivering creative excellence. the other award will be for best performance in the stand-up comedy on television. the show airs january 7th right here on nbc bay area. also trending this morning, how about living like an animated star? >> we're talking about a monster of a short-term rental that will have all of your friends green with envy. this is a stay in the shrek swamp. this is a photo of that property. it really looks just like the shrek home from the 2001 dream works film. to stay there, you're going to have to fly to scotland. it is located in the highlands and airfare is not included. airbnb says bookings will open october 13th for a two-night

stay from october 27th through the 29th. they didn't have a price on there just yet, but they say it's not a contest, so it's not free. >> my kids would love it. >> that would be cool. you would just have to fly to scotland, at least. >> i was thinking outhouse, but then at least there's an outhouse. it could be worse. >> it could, and we've seen it. >> all right, maybe you're just staying right here in the bay area. we're going to have some great weather, at least in the next several days. we are tracking the potential of more rain in the forecast, but i just want to get you ready for work this morning. looking at pleasant hill, our temperatures are in the upper 50s. it is a clear start, we have sunshine in the forecast throughout today, as our temperatures go from low 60s to mid-70s at noon, and we do continue to see those temperatures warming up a few more degrees from there. and it's going to be very much like yesterday afternoon where we were seeing low 80s in parts of the south bay, upper 70s downtown in san jose, and then

up to 77 for oakland, hayward, fremont, and low 80s moving over toward the tri-valley and toward antioch as well. and then upper 70s for palo alto, while half moon bay will see a high of 69. and upper 60s as well in the outer sunset. in the mission district, we'll see a high of 73 and 76 in mill valley, mostly low 80s from santa rosa toward napa. then going ahead, we're seeing an active storm pattern for this time of year. another storm moving into the pacific northwest bringing some rain just to our north as we get a closer look. we can see moving past crescent city, approaching mount shasta, we have a round of rain. that's going to fall apart before making it into the bay area, but we are looking ahead to our next round of showers and it looks to come in friday afternoon, starting in the north bay with spotty rain. we could see off and on spotty showers friday night into saturday.

so this weekend we're going to be watching out for this because it could bring in at least a light amount of rain. some of our estimates show that for saturday we could see most of us getting in the blue, the quarter inch of rain or less. but for the north bay, it may be a little higher, with half of an inch to three-quarters of an inch of rain. so that's pretty significant for this time of year. and we go into the weekend forecast with cooler temperatures, after seeing those highs in the low 80s. we'll only reach into the low to mid-70s for saturday and sunday, and san francisco also going to see some spotty showers on saturday, putting that in our plans as we look ahead to the weekend. mike, you saw some early slowing in key spots. >> that's right, and it's getting a little less slow. it's improving a bit here in richmond. a lot less slowing. there is a crew that's registering one entry on the chp. no major traffic reports for caltrans. over here, highway 4 had a combination of things. early the slowdown was because

of construction between bailey and san marcos. as that started to lift, we saw a crash reported just past willow pass, so that is probably what added to more slowing. i think both have cleared because the speeds are just starting to improve. but a slower drive out of pittsburg, clearing by the time you exit bay point. slow here, but recovery as well for north 238, right where it merges with 880. that's where a crash was reported. looks like it might have cleared. we'll track that. very important, both of those spots, highway 4 and also the castro valley y. an easy drive outside of there. did see some early slowing at the dublin interchange, but i think it's because the crew is clearing. back to you. 5:22 right now. student loan payments are set to restart after a nearly three-year pause. what you can do to prepare and budget correctly. and i am excited to emcee

the 2023 on broadway gala happening in walnut creek in support to bring more arts to the community. they do so many great things. i can't wait to be a part of that again this year. you can get those tickets now and the event is next month. you can find that on my instagram page and my facebook page as well. keep watching. it is

welcome back.

it's 5:25 right now. with student loan repayments set to resume next week, many are already feeling that strain. >> the pause started due to covid and ends october 1st when more than 40 million americans will be expected to resume payments. and a recent study finds more than half of those in debt say the mere thought of resuming payments is affecting their mental health. now, the experts recommend that having a plan is important. first, understand what your payment will be. your first bill should arrive in the mail soon. then decide on a budget plan or change your budget to make space for payments. people should consider seeing if they qualify for loan forgiveness. >> it can really stress you out not knowing, what can i do, how behind am i, how close am i to getting back on track? so just knowing this is exactly what i owe, this is the space i need to find in my budget can go a long way to making you feel more confident and secure and

making payments. >> credit karma recommends think about enrolling in auto pay so you can avoid potential late fees. back before a judge. still ahead on "today in the bay," an update on the state case surrounding the violent attack at nancy pelosi's san francisco home. the new access defense attorneys are now requesting. i'm ginger conejero saab in san francisco, where we are saying good morning, mr. president, on day two of his bay area visit. up ahead, we'll tell you what's up ahead, we'll tell you what's in store

oh ms. flores, what would we do without you? leader of many, and pet wrangler too. you report to your boss, every afternoon. so beautiful. so becoming a student again might seem impossible. but what if a school could be there for all of you? career, family, finances and mental health. well, it can. national university, supporting the whole you.

right now at 5:30, day two of president biden's bay area visit. we're live this morning in san francisco with details on his day ahead and the round table involving some of his key advisers. increasing pedestrian safety. the new resolution san francisco leaders believe will help improve safety in crosswalks and what it may eventually mean for drivers. also, a slam dunk. new report of a wnba franchise for the bay area and the major players now on the verge of a major announcement. this is "today in the bay." 5:30 on your now wednesday morning. halfway through our workweek. thanks for joining us. i'm laura garcia. >> i'm marcus washington. it's time to get a look at that forecast. meteorologist kari hall, of course, always working hard so we can figure out how we're

going to set this day up clothes-wise. >> it is so different today compared to yesterday, where parts of the bay area are having to deal with some light rain. this morning it is all clear. let's get you a live look outside in oakland as you get ready to head out. it's going to be sunny today and we start out cool, so you do need layers for the start of the day. layers are perfect because it's going to be so nice and mild this afternoon, headed for the upper 70s. so you don't want to wear a thick sweater. we're going to see temperatures reaching 86 in fairfield and santa rosa up to 81. mike, we still have delays out of castro valley? >> dublin grade and castro valley, recovering as you head closer toward 238 and 880, the transition. reports of a crash right near the transition, but the slowing is farther back at the y. i think they might have cleared the lanes, although there's been no update to the crash report in the chp log. we have a smooth drive outside of that for the south bay, the

peninsula. there is slowing on highway 4, continuing with a crash right around san marcos. over at the bay bridge, things are still very light. we'll talk about contra costa county coming up. back to you. new overnight, police make arrests in connection with multiple armed robberies in the east bay, and it all follows a dramatic high-speed chase that played out while you were sleeping. >> "today in the bay"'s bob redell joins us live. what are police saying, bob? >> reporter: good morning to you. off camera, berkeley police confirm that they have arrested three people in connection with these multiple armed robberies. officers arresting the suspects after a pursuit that started in berkeley last night and ended just after midnight when their vehicle crashed in oakland. this was on high street near carrington street. police detained one woman at the scene and caught the other two suspects about a block away, who we believe both of whom are men. we heard from one man robbed of his phone, backpack, gold chain and hat while waiting at a bus

stop in berkeley. >> translator: i had just come out of work. a black pulled up and two people got out and pointed a gun at me. they took my necklace, my wallet, my backpack and my phone. i couldn't do anything but give it up, or else it would have ended bad. >> reporter: that man tells us that police have returned his phone and backpack, but he's still waiting on the gold chain and hat. police have not said any details about the armed robberies in terms of location or any other information. reporting live, bob redell, "today in the bay." >> thanks for the very latest, bob. still no word from firefighters about what may have sparked this fire near oakland's lake merritt. it happened at the rotary nature center. citizen app video shows how it looked when the fire was at its peak about 7:00 last night. firefighters did have it under control in less than a half hour and no one was injured. a live look in san francisco this morning.

this is where there's a new push under way to boost pedestrian safety. it all follows the death last month of a 4-year-old girl who was struck by a car while being pushed in a stroller near oracle park. yesterday supervisor dean preston introduced a new resolution to ban right turns on all red lights city-wide. a similar ban took effect in 2021 in the tenderloin, a transit study that same year showed more than nine in ten drivers observed the change, leading to an 80% cut in close-call incidents. transit leaders will now have 120 days to develop the resolution's language. and we continue to cover this morning president biden right here in the bay area for that visit. and today he will be centered pretty much exclusively in san francisco. >> "today in the bay"'s ginger conejero saab is live outside the fairmont hotel, where the president is waking up this morning. ginger, tell us what you know about the president's schedule.

>> reporter: good morning, marcus and laura. another day of fundraising, mixed in with some official business in san francisco is what is expected for the president today. it's still quiet here, and as kari mentioned, it's a clear morning around the bay area, like in san francisco. but it is still quiet. that will all change outside the fairmont hotel once the president starts his day. another day of fundraising. he is expected to begin his day and receive his daily brief around 9:00 this morning, which will then be followed by that official business, a meeting with the president's council of advisers on science and technology. they develop recommendations on science, technology, and innovation policy. that's happening here in san francisco. there will then be two campaign receptions in the afternoon, also in san francisco. more fundraising opportunities for the president. now, this following a huge fundraiser on the peninsula for his re-election campaign yesterday. people paying up to $100,000 to

see the president. now, this is what it looked like as the president was ending his day last night with that impressive motorcade pulling up to the fairmont. the reporter at the fundraiser saying the president shared highlights of his administration, like putin, appointing an african american to the supreme court and his infrastructure bill. he concluded by saying he is looking forward to the race and getting things under way. the president will do so with the support of these bay area fundraisers. he is expected to leave san francisco for phoenix later this evening, and we'll be right here to monitor how the day unfolds for the president. for now, back to you in the studio. >> thank you so much, ginger. meantime, happening tonight in southern california, gop presidential contenders take the stage for the second republican presidential debate. it will take place at the ronald reagan presidential library in

simi valley. seven candidates are invited to this debate. one fewer than last month. this time, former arkansas governor asa hutchinson did not make the cut due to low polling numbers. former president trump is barred from qualifying because he's refusing to support the party's eventual nomination. there's a status suspect for the suspect in the violent attack in nancy pelosi's home. he's accused of seriously injuring paul pelosi last october. today's hearing centers around access to evidence in the federal trial which may begin as soon as next month. depape is facing state charges, which will tried separately. hollywood writers turning the page. the strike is officially over. it ended at midnight after writers guild leaders voted unanimously to approve the new contract with studios and streamers. the strike lasted 148 days. one of the longest strikes in

hollywood history. this will not get most productions back on track because striking hollywood actors must still resolve their dispute. actors walked off the job in mid-july and right now negotiations are still at an impasse. developing this morning, could the bay area soon be home to a new wnba franchise? the athletic reporting warriors ownership is close to bringing a franchise to the bay area with an announcement coming perhaps as soon as next month. the team would play at chase center and be headquartered at the practice facility in oakland. earlier this year the commissioner talked about adding two more franchises by the year 2025, which would amount to a total of 14 teams. and taking a live look this morning in palo alto. beautiful start to our morning there. meteorologist kari hall is talking about that forecast for us today. i mean, it will be a nice day to get out and do a morning walk. >> absolutely. especially without having to worry about any drizzle or light rain coming down.

it is a dry start to our day. and as you're heading to work in berkeley, it's going to be in the upper 50s, a clear morning and sunshine throughout the day, as our temperatures gradually warm up. it does say comfortable. we'll just notice in some of the east bay valleys it's going to be a touch warmer than yesterday, with concord headed for 83. we'll be in the low 80s for santa rosa and san francisco headed for 73 degrees. not much of a change in temperatures, but we have more rain chances in our forecast. i'll have more in a few minutes. mike, you were looking at delays on the drive. >> some are expected like in the south bay we have this typical 101 slowing, tuesdays, wednesdays, and even thursdays now. it's a much tougher drive than monday and friday. in the east bay, castro valley y, an early slowing easing up. it may be blending in now. the earlier crash right here at north 238 at 880 caused a big backup. i think that's under control but there's slowing because of the build coming off the dublin

grade heading toward hayward out of san leandro, so that's south 880 passing 92. everything is fine after that. this evening, this is the last of the three nights of maintenance, the closure for the posy tube from alameda toward oakland, getting under the water is not possible overnight, so you use the bridges over just a bit to the south. and then this weekend, this is an early warning, southbound 101, the bridge will be closed between britain and whipple. the reroute may take you to 280. in the east bay, a note that you should not take the san mateo bridge if you're heading south. you would use the dumbarton bridge. we'll give you a better look at that. we still have slowing, typical build out of antioch and pittsburg, that crash may still be at san marcos adding a little more distraction and slowing. back to you. you've got to figure if you were president of the united states, the fairmont slipping around channels, you would land on us. good morning, mr. president.

coming up, we'll have the latest on the gop debate ahead this evening. plus, strike by lightning. one group of hikers with a harrowing tale from the top

good wednesday morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. as we take a look at cupertino and what to expect for today, our planner starts out at 9:00 at 63 degrees. but notice all of those sunshine

icons there. it's going to be clear, and also nice and mild. beautiful day ahead. we'll talk about any changes as we could be tracking some rain for the weekend. that's coming up in a few minutes. these are actual cars, headlights packing in at the toll plaza. the metering lights have been activated earlier. more traffic building here. we'll talk about how things are shaping up at the castro valley y and watch the crash on highway 4 and see how things build around the rest of the bay. >> we'll check back with you. 5:43 right now. as we mentioned, president biden wrapping up a two-day visit to the bay area today. >> meanwhile, back in washington, the senate has a plan to save the government. >> a bipartisan plan, even, republicans, democrats, working together to fund the government and keep it open past saturday. but it has little chance of passing the house, so i would still plan on the government shutting down over the weekend. as for president biden, he will

meet with science advisers today in san francisco and attend two more campaign fundraisers before heading to sfo 9:45 this evening on his way to phoenix. our ginger conejero saab is with the president in the city. this is her live camera at the fairmont. she will have a full report coming up at the top of the hour. we should point out we've gotten another report the president's dog commander has bitten a secret service agent, again. it is not the biggest news of the day, but this happens constantly. many of the republicans running for president will debate tomorrow night -- or tonight, rather, in their second debate. this is video of the first debate last month. tonight the seven candidates who qualified will debate at the ronald reagan presidential library in simi valley. reagan considered an icon of the republican party, but the old republican party. reagan's politics would not fit in well with many of today's

gop. reagan antisoviet, would never have accepted russia's invasion of ukraine. markedly pro immigration. here is political scientist noah higdon. >> the republican party and the country have changed greatly since the time of ronald reagan, and i would argue that the country has gone further and further to the right. there's a case we made that ronald reagan would struggle in today's republican primary. let's not forget he gave a couple million undocumented migrants a legal path to immigration. he also had supported some abortion rights legislation at the state level. so there's a lot of things that have changed in the party where reagan simply wouldn't fit in in today's republican party. >> donald trump will not be at

tonight's debate. yesterday a judge found trump, his sons, repeatedly defrauded banks for years, the trump and trump company overstated the value of property and wealth by billions in order to secure loans. they'll still go to trial, but only to decide the civil punishment. their culpability has already been decided. and late-breaking word from state media in north korea, that former u.s. soldier who fled to north korea will be expelled from north korea. travis king crossed the dmz in july. the north koreans say he did so illegally and they'll deport him. that's all we know at this point. we're waiting for the when and the where. >> scott, thank you. new this morning, former 49ers quarterback colin kaepernick sending an unusual letter to the new york jets. apparently he still believes that he can play in the nfl. his better posted to social media by rap artist, and later

verified, requests consideration for a spot on the team's practice squad. the jets do have a huge hole in their lineup with aaron rodgers' season ending with that injury. kaepernick has not played at any level in seven years and has previously been unable to latch onto an nfl team. for many years supporters have claimed that the league shut him out, but critics call his letter nothing more than a publicity stunt with no real chance of materializing. a life-and-death struggle in yosemite after a group of friends were forced to take shelt nr a cave during a storm at the top of the park's most notorious hike. >> two were struck by lightning, but all of them surviving and they're back home. the ordeal documented in this viral tiktok video that started this past thursday when six friends made their way up half dome. once they reached the summit around 12:30, they noticed a storm was rolling in. two members of the group started to make their way back down the cables while the other four took

shelter in a rock cave they found at the top. then lightning starting hitting rocks around them. two of them in the group were actually struck by lightning, one in the leg, the other in the back of the head. >> he just kind of falls forward and we were like, buddy, wake up, wake up, and he was just unconscious. we started punching him in the chest. >> wow, both of those men eventually came to, but neither knew where they were or who they were at that time. they ultimately got their memory back and the group was able to climb back down to a very slippery half dome and they made it out of there alive. >> wow, that's like a hollywood movie script. you wouldn't even believe it. >> you have to add super powers, they flew down after they got struck by lightning. >> that is amazing. they ought to go buy a lottery ticket.

the chances are crazy. wow, okay. what an adventure. we're still watching out for more showers and thunderstorms over the sierra going into the weekend, so just a heads up, things could change very quickly. let's get a look at our forecast for gilroy today. we're going to see some mid-50s to start out, nice, cool morning at noon, 74 degrees. we're headed for the low 80s for an afternoon high for today. and as we zoom into the south bay, cupertino will see a temperature up to about 80 degrees for today, with east san jose reaching 82. and we'll see a high of 82 as well in walnut creek and martinez, oakland reaching 77 degrees, and as you take a look at the seven-day forecast at the bottom of the screen, cooler temperatures ahead. so we're enjoying a nice, mild day today, with san mateo reaching 75 and upper 60s in san francisco, in the north bay reaching 80 in napa, as well as novato. there's a very active storm pattern that's been setting up across the region, especially for the pacific northwest.

there's more rain moving into crescent city and eureka. this is lighter and will continue to fall apart as it moves closer to the bay area. so we're not expecting any rain today. but there will be some ahead going into late friday and possibly saturday as well. so this is more recently developing on the computer model, showing that we could see some rounds of rain moving through late friday evening and then again on saturday, with the north bay the focus of where we could see the higher rainfall totals as we go throughout the weekend. some of the models showing anywhere from in the areas in blue showing about a quarter inch of rain or less, and then where we see the greens and the yellows, that could be anywhere from a half to three-quarters of an inch of rain between friday night and saturday. we're going to be watching out for that. as temperatures drop, we're going from low 80s to low 70s for saturday. the system moves out by sunday, so that's the better day of the weekend to make plans to get

outside. mike, now you have an alert for the north bay? >> we do. it's a crash i've been following but it went from not a big deal to big deal. reports are that all lanes of west 37 are blocked at the interchange with 121. it looks like cars may be getting by at least on the shoulder bus westbound is still lighter than i would expect if there was a full closure. we will continue to track this very critical spot as. as the build happens toward vallejo, you know novato is one of the early slow-downs and it continues all morning. the rest of the bay shows a normal flow. highway 4, web 80, the bay bridge and the backup fills in the toll plaza, and north 238 still slow. i believe the crash has cleared at the transition to 880. back to you. >> thank you so much. happening now, shoppers, not to mention workers, are trying to process a stunning new announcement from target. the retailer announcing the closure of three bay area stores in a matter of weeks. those stores in oakland,

pittsburg and san francisco will shut down. now, this is an announcement target cited retail theft and safety concerns. the mayor of pittsburg said the city helped provide additional police resources at that location after the company raised concerns. she says that the announcement comes as retail theft there is trending downward. still ahead, we take a look at what is trending, including a rare underwater creature spotted off the coast of hawaii. we're going to show you the new video. then all new at 6:00, new funding for public transit in the north bay and where smart rail may expand to next. keep it here. you're watching "today in the bay."

welcome back. it is 5:55 this morning. you're watching "today in the bay." we have more details for you on the staffing crunch for gilroy firefighters. as we first reported yesterday on "today in the bay," the union raising concerns about the unstaffed firehouse and inadequate response times. firefighters telling nbc bay area that the shortfall is starting to impact emergency

response, as well as control of those fires. a recent letter to residents claims that the santa teresa station frequently goes unstaffed and the union believes it should be manned 24/7. >> ems related emergencies, cardiac arrests, if we don't get there in time, the patient outcome is not good. so that's why we need a paramedic to show up within that adopted 7 minutes and 30 seconds to have good patient outcomes. >> council members telling us that staffing issues only recently came to light and they do plan to take it up next week. they also expect to have a fully staffed santa teresa station within one year. trending this morning, a rare look at a creature of the deep. check out this video. that is called a dumbo octopus that swam in front of an exploration boat 55 feet flow the ocean's surface. researchers are mapping the sea floor off of the hawaiian

islands and this octopus species is thought to dive in the deeper parts of the ocean. it's named for the flaps on the head resembling dumbo ears. >> beautiful. >> yes, from a distance. if you guys are looking for a monster of a deal, i might have one. it's a short-term rental that will have all of your friends green with envy. it's a swamp, shrek's swamp. from the photos, the property looks just like shrek's home, but this is real life. it even includes his outhouse, because there are real life needs. to stay there, you'll have to fly to scotland and the airfare is not included. it's located in the highlands, and airbnb says the bookings will open on october 13th for a two-night stay from october 27th to the 29th. so a short window. i think there's going to be high demand for that. >> i can imagine so. this is something else

that's trending and you may see this on the "today" show. al roker is showing us the jaw-dropping land scape at shenandoah national park in virginia and he linked up with the park rangers there, who are stewards of the iconic lands, stretching nearly 200,000 acres along the blue ridge mountains. an average 1.5 million people visit every year, and like many of the other 424 national parks, they've recently seen an attendance skyrocket, and al takes a walk in their shoes to find out what it's like to commune with nature, and what it takes to be a park ranger. >> that really is a beautiful area. >> i thought it would be cool to be a park ranger. you could be outside all the time. >> i don't know if you follow the california national park service. they are amazing on 'x' and all of the really clever tweets they send out. >> very cool. i remember working near yosemite and interviewing, thinking this

is a really cool job. >> you'll be miss betty there. there you go. miss laura coming in. you can watch that story ahead on the "today" show coming up at 7:00. a quick reminder, you can now watch nbc bay area news whenever you want. we are on 24/7. you can find it on roku and other streaming platforms. you'll be able to watch live breaking news, news conferences, as well as repeats of our newscasts. right now at 6:00, a late-night deadly hit-and-run investigation closes streets in the east bay. the key details police revealed to our crew at the scene that may help investigators. a suspected pot grow up in flames. new details this morning on the moment neighbors could sense trouble. plus, shutdown showdown, as president biden wakes up in the bay area. the race to pass a funding bill and where things stand in washington this morning. this is "today in the bay."