♪ alameda police are investigating a bizarre and heartbreaking theft. >> someone stole a man's cremating ashes off the church altar to the devastation of the grieving widow. >> alameda police tell me this is where it happened saturday afternoon. but they say the man who walked into this church and grabbed that green backpack off the altar was hoping to get maybe laptop, maybe a camera, instead he got the ashes of 74-year-old

marvin hawkabout. it was inside this altar inside a green backpack. the mourers left the church to prepare for the memorial service. when they returned, the remains in the backpack were gone. >> the motive like someone would take an item like that are anybody's guess. perhaps the thief didn't know what the contents of the backpack were. that's all speculation at this time. >> my first reaction was horror as you might expect. >> wrecker cathy clairely has been here three months. >> the comment of the widow is telling. she said he was not the man in the can, the man in our hearts and in the lives of those who had gathered. i thought that was about as wonderful a statement as a widow could make in the situation. >> police point out this church at the height of the activity during the week. today the alameda food bank is outreach, a head start school here. many people are familiar with

the layout. virginia was a member of the christ episcopal church congregation. >> the whole story that startled everyone in the congregation could think somebody would come in and take anything from a church is abhorrent to me. >> and the hawkabout family truly does live their faith. saturday afternoon the memorial service went on for marvin hawkabout even though the ashes of the guest of honor were nowhere to be found. terry mcsweeney, abc 7 news. >> terry, thank you. a new federal report says the pg&e repair project in the south bay may have contributed to last september's pipeline explosion in san bruno. the san francisco chronicle reports the repairs at a control station in milpitas caused pressure levels to rise on all natural gas lines serving the peninsula. this happened just 50 minutes before san bruno pipeline

exploded killing 8 people and destroying 38 homes. they were powerless to stop it. one operator is quoted as saying just minutes before the blast "we're screwed, we're screwed." >> a statewide amber alert has been issued for an eight-month-old boy. he and his mother were kidnapped from the home. they were abducted this morning by the boy's father. the chp says he grabbed them after climbing through a window in porterville. he was seen driving a red 1991 honda civic with plate 5 z 01539. >> in tracy an event is happening now in memory of sandra cantu, the eight-year-old kidnapped and killed two years ago. today watch been her tenth

birthday. a full day of free activities are for children 14 and under. it's aimed at educating children to be careful and safe in their community. a sunday school teacher is being held. >> authorities found millions of dead fish this morning in king harbor. it's believed the anchovy-size the fish swam into the harbor overnight to escape a red tide and then suffocated. it's a natural-occurring bloom of toxic algae that can kill fish. officials say there are so many fish clogging the harbor that the boats with not get out. we have good news on the job front. one of the world's largest providers of temporary workers says more u.s. employers plan to add jobs and fewer expect to lay off people.

the labor department reports the national unemployment rate fell to almost a two-year low of 8.29%. there are jobs available right now though at the san francisco hire event. carolyn tyler is there. >> we're outside the hotel witcome at 8th and market streets. very busy out here and very busy inside the hotel as they get prepared by this job fair co-spored by abc 7. it kicks off at noon and one of the fliers say the jobs are here. cathy is joining us now. she's with the job journal. good morning to you -- come on in here so i can get a little closer to you. you are the job fair coordinator. >> yes. >> when you say the jobs are here, what kind of jobs are we talking about and. >> we have everything from a lot of information technology positions. we have over 100 of those. we have high-level

administrative, customer service, government jobs, education jobs, public safety. a lot of engineering jobs, including civil engineers, industrial engineers. and sales, a lot of variety. >> in fact, you have more than 500 jobs? >> we have over 500 jobs available, yes. >> now, are these immediate openings or do people have to put in a resume and wait? >> well, they will have to apply for the jobs. and, you know, they should bring resumes and some of the companies will tell them how they want them to apply. but, yes, a lot of them are immediate jobs. especially in the i.t. field. >> when you talk about resumes, you actually have workshops to help people polish up those resumes. that's very important. >> yes. they're volunteering their time and they will help you with your

resumes. >> this beats going to searching on the internet or in the want ads because so many recruiters are in one spot. >> yes. it's a very good way to get your name out there, and they also may have jobs coming up down the road a month later that they know about. so, i mean, besides the ones they have now, they will probably have others coming up, too. so anyone who needs a job or wants to change jobs or look at a different career, i would advise them to come on down. >> all right. and it's free. it is from 12:00 until 4:00 -- noon until 4:00 today here at the hotel whitcome on market and 8th street. carolyn tyler, abc 7 news. >> carolyn, thank you. >> the richmond city council will hold an emergency session for additional taxes. they're declaring a fiscal emergency and putting a tax increase on the june ballot. the council is proposing half the money raised go to restoring

services to the poor and half on school district programs. all had to be reduced due to state funding cuts. the meeting begins at 5:30 tonight. in oakland voters will likely see an $80 parcel tax measure on the june ballot. city leaders voted to ask homeowners to help them with the budget deficit. they say the parcel tax will raise an estimated $11 million. oakland is looking at a $46 million deficit. the council did reject a telephone tax proposal. the mount diablo school board meets tonight in concord in sending layoff notices to 180 full-time teachers. it will also consider eliminating positions for most librarians and music teachers. the district faces a $21 million budget shortfall. >> special elections are being held today in brisbane and santa clara. voters are being asked to increase taxes to help their school district. voters will decide if they want to renew the parcel tax with a

special added tax of $1900 a year. measure a would levy an annual tax of $19 on each existing residential unit. alameda voters will determine if they should replace two existing parcel taxes for one that will last the next seven years. funding for local school districts as you know have been cut because of the state budget. >> today is the 100th anniversary of international women's day. the events around the globe and here in the bay area, they're connecting thousands of women in 175 countries. sky 7 hd live over this event happening in san francisco. marchers set to cross the golden gate bridge. >> awards. first lady michelle and

>> today marks the 100th anniversary of international women's day. there are events around the world to mark the occasion. sky 7 hd shows hundreds of employees marking international women's day by walking across the golden gate bridge. they're being joined by mayor jean quan of oakland and the lieutenant governor's wife in california, jennifer newsom.

a unique conference is connecting women openly. >> that looks like fun, the walk. san francisco is one of ten u.s. cities recognizing this day and aren't letting the miles keep them apart. they're going to connect with each other and they feel this keeps the momentum going. the woman in this conference room are participating in a global celebration. many have been supporting local women and their dreams for years as part of the women's information network. but today they were thrilled to be part of something bigger. >> when they say they were joining women around the world, i'm in. i don't know what it entails, but reaching women around the world, i'm in. >> with abc 7's jenelle wang leading the crowd as the m. c., this group represented san francisco in a live video

stream. participants always helped women in l.a. also in eastern europe. >> this is huge. i've been an american for 15 years. never have i heard of this day being openly celebrated and now 10 cities all over this country. >> the 100th anniversary has motivated celebrations all over the world. there was even a pro-women demonstration in cairo. >> i lecture conwomen and love them living their dreams. when women are okay, the world works. >> valerie has gone through their own challenges. she lost everything she had in hurricanes "katrina." she decided to move to san francisco and start over and now spreads her message to other women. >> and that's to have women not be stopped by circumstances. just do whatever they wanna do. >> they're gonna be here until 6:00 tonight listening to speakers here and also in l.a.

with the mission of strengthening women and families worldwide. live in south san francisco, amy hollyfield, abc 7 news. >> amy, thanks a lot. to commemorate this women's day, secretary of state hillary clinton honored ten individuals this morning with the women of courage award. first lady michelle obama was a guest at today's ceremony in washington d.c. the award recognizes women around the world who have shown courage and leadership in advocating for women's rights often at great personal risks. today includes a president, journalist, blogger and lawyer. >> these women have accepted these risks. they have worked for change. and time and again these women have discovered a very simple truth; that courage can actually be contagious. >> the state department has honored 38 women 27 different countries since 2007. >> that courage can be contagious. something to think about.

meteorologist mike nicco ahead with the forecast. >> yeah. looks like we're dry as expected, seeing a little sunshine. more in the forecast and warming trend. i have a couple more chances of rain but looks like the weekend is still on the drying trenend. >> mike, thanks a lot. right now on capitol hill, the international problem that's brought ben aflac and cindy mccane together. >> why britain's royal couple was flipping pancakes today? [ female announcer ] here are some great reasons to switch to at&t.

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♪ all right. such a good time in new orleans kicking up its heels today on mardi gras. partyers were up earlier this morning on bourbon street with colorful beads and parades. more than a million people go to the city every year for this event. they say this year is the grandest since hurricane "katrina." fat tuesday, the catholic season of sacrifice, the 40 days leading up to easter. >> doesn't look like the weather was that great for the earning of the day! >> exactly. not all the parades are what

you're thinking. >> people keep their clothes on. >> exactly. they're more family friendly. their weather down there, slight risk of severe weather. could get kind of interesting. let the good times roll, absolutely, kristen. here's a live look from sky 7 hd. you see some of the low clouds hanging over the bridge this morning. a sprinkle or two but considerably drier than it was this morning. beautiful picture of the marin headlands. notice some of the breaks, the brighter spots. that's what i think we will trend to as we head into the afternoon hours. let's take a look back, the overnight and morning rainfall. very light. one-one hundredth, napa, 300ths in mountain view. 400ths in san francisco and petaluma. and hayward the most at about 600. now you're looking at the past

three hours. radar returns. let's talk temperatures. we are in the 50s already and on our way to a dry afternoon with pockets of sunshine. sunshine will dominate tomorrow's forecast even more so and make it the warmest afternoon in the next seven days. chance of rain possible thursday. the weekend trending drier. today 24 hour temperature change. everybody on the positive side, santa rosa 3 degrees warmer. here's a look at the satellite. you see the high pressure developing and strengthening over us and that's why we'll have an afternoon of dryness and also of brightness as the clouds do open up slowly. as far as what it does to our temperatures, pretty close to average. we're in the mid-60s here. as you head from the peninsula, you'll drop from the mid-60s. upper 50s along the coast and downtown san francisco. south san francisco around 60. sausalito all the way around the

bodega bay with low to mid-60s in the valley. low to mid-60s not only on the east bay shore but as you travel through the east bay valley and more sunshine around the monterey bay and we'll have low to mid-60s here. dry up in tahoe, 45. the warm spot palm springs at 75. here's a look at your accu-weather 7-day forecast. we could be near 70 in a lot of areas away from the beaches tomorrow where you have a chance of light showers thursday. dry friday and saturday now. the best chance of rain on sunday will be in the afternoon and into the evening hours. don't get set your clocks forward an hour, change those batteries in your smoke detectors. >> you can say whatever you want as long as you say it in french. >> what i say is pretty cool? >> sounds lovely. >> a new study reveals how troubling eating disorders are now among teens. 30 had anorexia, 91 ball lehm

lehman -- bulimia. patients say their social and family lives have been hurt and some have suicidal thoughts. >> actor ben affleck is set to testify before congress at any time now about a place in the world he says is a humanitarian catastrophe, the congo in africa. he teamed up with john mccain, an unlikely pair considering he's a democratic. they worked on the eastern congo initiative. they traveled there together to see firsthand the plight of people. aflac says more than 3 million have died in the congo over the past 15 years because of unrest, disease and poverty. he talked on "good morning america" today. >> not really here asking for a big piece of money. that's not the idea. the idea is we've got this giant tragedy. a lot of this can be addressed by simply focusing on the issue.

>> he's calling on president obama to appoint a special representative to help the country coordinate its strategy for recovery. >> prince william and fiancée kate middleton made their official trip to ireland today before their wedding. hundreds gathered outside to get a glimpse of the royal couple. william and kate spent time greeting the crowds and check this out they were cheered as they took turns flipping pa

>> today on oprah at 4:00, former president george w. bush on his most difficult decisions in the white house. at 5:00, the threat facing the recycling program in one of the bay area's greenest cities and how online websites put their sites on going upscale. we'll have those stories and more later today at 5:00. >> that's it for now. maybe we should get a little french from mike. >> i know everything. watch out for the space shuttle toni

(speaking in international language) and he said unto them go ye into all of the world and preach the gospel preach the gospel  ♪very creature in the world. (applause)