nuclear crisis in japan. helicopters raced to dump sea water on the crippleett fukushima plant. they are trying to cool the overheated uranium to prevent a catastrophic released of radiation. they hope to have a power cable connected to the main grid hooked up by tomorrow. the united nations nuclear agency says the situation at the quake-ravaged plant is very serious, but does not appear to be worsening. president obama is holding a news conference at 12:30 this afternoon our time to address the crisis. this morning white house officials say there is no indication of radiation danger in the u.s. right now. still they are now taking action at the nation's airports.

abc7's janelle wang joins us with what is happening. >> u.s. customs and border protection is now testing some passengers and cargo at some airports around the country. they won't say which airport specifically, but we are hearing reports of los angeles, seattle, dallas and new york. the department of homeland security says so far all tests for radiation are negative. >> in an exercise of caution and just to make sure that everyone remains safe, we are doing screening of passengers and/or cargo if there happens to be even a blip in terms of radiation. we have seen no radiation by the way, even on coming cargo or passengers that comes close to reaching a harmful level. >> reporter: right now a forecast by the comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty organization shows how the

radiation plume from the failing nuclear reactor in japan is drifting across the pacific, over the islands today and then arriving in southern california tomorrow. but experts believe it will also be detected in sacramento. folks arriving from japan and into sfo this morning say they were not screened for radiation. as for fears, we didn't find anyone who had any. there were some concerns, but nothing major. >> people are on holiday in japan. they are cutting short their holiday and going back. >> there is obviously concern. no one knows it is going to happen. there is a lot of spreading panic unnecessarily. >> they did offer us iodide tablets at the airport which is a good sign. >> reporter: california currently has 12 monitoring station usa cross the state that tests for radiation levels including one in san francisco, san jose and

richmond. the environmental protection agency has 40 so-called deployable monitors. any traces of radiation that are being picked up are so miniscule it poses no harmful affect at all. the government says it is just being overly cautious. reporting live, abc7 news. >> thank you. the director of california's department of health also talked with us today about the radiation making its way to california. he says what is headed our way is likely trace amounts of radiation, but he has some advice for everyone. >> i would like people to keep it in perspective and know that we are monitoring and watching, but there is not an anticipated health risk to people over in california, and we should take our concern around this disaster and translate it into earthquake preparedness because that's where our risk is. >> meantime, the state department just announced the first evacuation flight of

u.s. citizens have left japan. they have already told americans to stay out of the 50-mile radius around the damaged nuclear plant. that is a much larger zone than what the japanese government is recommending. the state department is advising to put off all nonessential travel to any part of jaw -- japan. the airports are packed with travelers trying to get out. the death toll stands at 5,000. more than 8,000 people are still unaccounted for. survivors are struggling to find basic necessities and are leaning on each other for help. >> after the tsunami hit everybody just went into survival mode, and we decided getting everybody taken care of. ever since the tsunami hit we have been taking care of people, so we haven't had time to think about coping. just getting everybody taken care of is most important right now. >> secretary of state hillary clinton says they are doing a minute by minute analysis of the changing situation. in japan, nearly 200 self-less emergency workers

have become the front line of defense in the growing nuclear crisis. they are risking their health to prevent a meltdown. this morning we are learning more about who they are and what their families are going through. abc has more. >> those still anonymous workers, many volunteers, now loved ones are pulling back the shroud of secrecy on their heroism. "my dad went to the nuclear plant. i never heard my mom cry so hard. people at the plant are struggling and sacrificing to protect you. please, dad, come back alive." "my husband is working knowing he could be radiated" she says. in one precious e-mail he says please continue to live well. i cannot be home for awhile. on national television, an e-mail is shared. "my father is working at the plant. they are running out of food. conditions are tough. we accepted his fate much like a death sentence." the 180 workers are rotated in and out of the danger zone. they take turns eating and sleeping in a decontaminated area about the size of an average living room.

he worked in crisis management at similar nuclear plants. >> tell me what the day-to-day lives are like. how are they eating and sleeping. >> they are drinking cold water and eating military-style ready to eat packages. it is cold and dark and they are making sure you are not contaminating while eating. >> it is called feed and bleed. put sea water on to it while the steam bleeds away the heat. they are well aware their lives are are on the line, but thisy are equally aware of what is at stake. >> i can tell you with 100% certainty they are committed to combating this casualty and doing whatever is humanly necessary to make the -- put these plants in safe commission. >> even at the risk of their own lives? >> even at the risk of their own lives, yes. as we mentioned, president obama is set to speak today on japan's nuclear crisis. abc will carry the president's

statement live in a special report with diane saw sawyer. it is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. a former lab technician pleaded guilty to murder and attempted sexual assault charges in the death of a yale graduate student from california in 2009. police arrested raymond clark, the third after 24-year-old annie lay of placerville was found dead, stuffed behind a wall in a research building. she vanish inked five days earlier. authorities under to lay's body on what would have been her wedding day. clark entered his plea as part of a deal with prosecutors to receive a 44-year sentence. today potential jury members for the barry bonds trial are filling out de tailed questionnaires -- detailed questionnaires. it could last several weeks. the former giant star is accused of lying to a federal grand jury and obstruction of justice. 63y questions for potential jurors, which websites do you visit regularly? have you attended a san francisco giants game in the

past five years? are you familiar with recent charges concerning balco's involvement with steroids? our legal analyst says finding potential jurors will be difficult. >> yeah, one thing everybody understands is that this trial really is a home game for barry bonds. a lot of potential jurors will be big giants fans. and by inference, big barry bonds fans. >> once it starts, they will be forbidden from using media, internet and the television to prevent them from being influenced by outside sources. investigators are looking into what caused an accident at maverick's that killed a well-known big wave surfer. emergency crews found his body along the san mateo county coastline before 7:00 last night. this youtube video shows him surfing waves at maverick's. the waves reached 60-feet high. he apparently drowned after

two big waves held him underwater too long. he is survived by a wife and two daughters on kuai. crews are repairing a highway near big sur. a section close to highway 1 is closed to traffic after inexplicably giving way. a section of the two-lane highway gave way south of caramel. the cause of the slide is unclear. there are no signs of seeping water. southbound traffic has shut down at palo colorado while northbound traffic to bes at bigsby bridge. the closure will last several days if not longer. still ahead, celebrating st. patrick's day safely. the group offering a free and safe ride home for you and your car. and a royal visit for a region hit by two natural disasters. and tiger talks about golf, family and balancing his life. how he says he is getting his life back on [ mom ] yes.nte.

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britain's prince william is visiting new zealand and australia following a large earthquake and mass flood. first off was a section in downtown christchurch. he visited the cathedral and met with emergency crews working to stabilize and repair the buildings. the 6.3 earthquake toppled thousands of buildings and killed at least 166 people back on february 22nd. prince william will fly to australia on saturday to tour

areas that were hit by that country's worst flooding in deck tads. -- decades. tiger woods is opening up about his career, finding balance in his life and his relationship with his children. the golf star sat down with good morning america. it has been a challenging year and a half for woods. he crashed his suv in florida in november of 2009, and that lead to the revelations about several extramarital affairs and eventually a divorce from his wiewf, elin. woods says being a single father is tough, but he enjoys it. >> i just love being with them and seeing what they are doing and what they are capable of doing. the shifts of interest. that's what is fun. we have a great time together, and that's what is the most important. family is first. that's the way it was when i was growing up. my family, my mom and dad, were always there and always present for me. that's what i am with my kids now. >> as for golf, woods is working on getting his game back on track.

he hasn't won a major event in nearly three years. woods says his goal is to reclaim his spot as the number one golfer in the world. if you are a golfer it has been tough for you this week finding time when it is not wet. >> and it is not getting any better. today could be a good day to go outside. another storm is coming, but for today, most of the rain, if we have any, will be in the north end. we'll talk about how strong the storm will be tomorrow with thunder, hail, gusty winds and maybe even flooding. >> thanks a lot. president obama welcomes ireland's new prime minister to the white house this st. patrick's day as we learn of a surprise in mr. o-bama's ancestry. which businesses are most searched for by drivers using gms? 

police throughout the bay area are planning sobriety checkpoint tonight aimed at drivers who take their st. patrick's day celebrations too far. and to avoid trouble, triple-a is offering free tows for drivers who have had too much to drink. they are available to anyone throughout the bay area from 6:00 tonight until 6:00 tomorrow morning for a tow of up to five miles. you can reach triple-a at the number on your screen there, 800-222-4357. that's 800-aaa-help and ask

for a tipsy tow. you can find the information on our website, abc7news.com. president obama will advice at this time ireland during a european trip in may. he made the announcement as he welcomed the new irish prime minister to the white house for an annual ceremony of irish-american solidarity. >> the person to person contacts between our two countries extend far beyond any dry policy issues. there is an incredible bond between our two countries. >> the president found out a few years ago he had an irish ancestor who fled the potato famine in 1850. mr. o-bama can claim 28 living relatives who also descended from the irish man including a vietnam veteran, a school nurse and an arizona republican. the president's newly identified residence is unveiled by the website

ancestry .com. i think that word was supposed to be relative. it has been dyed green. it is a tradition and first lady michelle obama was inspired by her hometown of chicago where they dye the river bright green in honor of the irish holiday. most of the weather has been gray. >> we will see a lot of green on the radar tomorrow and through the weekend as we have a couple storms coming in. let's look at the sierra where it is quiet, but nearly three feet of snow will fall friday into saturday. we are going to add to the surplus of snow we already have in the sierra. we'll show you what is going on. we have seen an increase in clouds and nothing is falling right now around san francisco. up in the north where we talked about scattered showers live doppler 7hd is picking

one near calistoga and stretching down to santa rosa. these are moving off to the east rather slowly at about 20, 25 miles per hour. brief, light shower, and that is pretty much it. so let's talk temperatures. it is 43 in santa rosa and 46 in san rafael. low to mid50s for the rest of us. around the monterey bay and inland we have temperatures in the low to mid50s. scattered showers are possible in the north bay. stormy for all of us tomorrow. thunder and small hail, gusty winds and brief, heavy downpours and high surf at our beaches. cold showers for saturday and chilly rain just about all day on sunday. for today we will be short of average. upper 50s to low 60s around the monterey bay. a little more sunshine. low 60s for you and mid60s as we head inland. look at the cloud cover. it keeps our temperatures up from this morning. mid to upper 40s. you can see drizzle from the

morning commute with the heaviest of rain still up to the north waiting to move in toward the back half. we will get a timetable in a second. first let's look at the disturbance coming through today bringing us a chance of showers. and then out to the west of that you can see the brighter, whiter clouds. that's the deeper moisture. and this system is really wound up. it is going to have some winds with it and the potential for flooding rain. some streets may be parking lots. 1:00 on thursday and heading into thursday night and friday morning you can see the rain. at noon it would show the heaviest rain right over the bay area. by 4:00 it would show the rain moving out, and then scattered showers for friday night and into saturday afternoon. so saturday afternoon you may be able to get out from time to time and dodge the showers. three quarters of an inch in the south bay. one to two inches in the north bay and high surf advisories from 11:00 tomorrow morning to 11:00 in the evening. the west, northwest swells could cause a lot of rip currents. and your winter storm warning,

5:00 a.m. friday to 5:00 a.m. saturday, may be best to head up to the sierra saturday afternoon and ski on sunday. here is a look at your accu-weather forecast, highs in the low to mid50s all the way through sunday. slightly warmer monday with more rain and still a chance lingers tuesday and wednesday. >> mike, thanks a lot. think about it, when you are driving around, which businesses are you most likely to seek out using gps? they released an interesting snap shot of what american drivers search for. the number one business, wal-mart followed by starbucks. have to have your caffeine when driving, and then target, best buy and bank of america round out the top five. as for the top cities for gps usage, not surprisingly, los angeles is number one followed by dallas, chicago, houston and atlanta. various -- bay other cities are not in the top

today on "oprah" at 4:00 tom brokaw and the first lady introduce us to the bravest families in america living with the wounds of war. and then at 5:00, what a girl is doing to inspire. and she is lifting the spirits of troops overseas. that and more on abc7 news at 5:00. from jimmy hendrix reimagined to a classic musical. dawn sanchez has what is hot.

>> the jimmy hendrix version of "hey joe" played by this quartet. the 27th floral extravaganza has designers em blazed in color through saturday. it is tradition. "fiddler on the roof" is a time less music classic. they offer up a guarantee of laughs. they bring their comedy show to the art gallery on saturday evening. they present a vision of the future in a match up of athletic dance. drama between a middle eastern

high school student and his vice president, theater works presents "the north pool" a psychological thriller. and enjoy the family fitness fair at fisherman's wharf, part of the embarkadero will be closed to traffic and your chance for a leisurely walk. and the award-winning "the fighter" one of the most acclaimed films of the year. don sanchez, abc news. >> you said a chance of showers in the north bay? >> yes, one heading in right now. >> check in tomorrow morning

siberia 1949. "my grandfather was labelled an enemy of the state."stalin's political enemies... are sent to harsh labor camps... to disappear... "people call this the railroad of death." "we have eyewitness accounts of secret prayer gatherings." how the prayers of christians hidden away in the gulags... "they prayed for this harsh religion."are being answered today. on the "700