working with some sort of flames and the bins caught fire. it is amazing when you look at this situation. it is truly amazing that expect for the occasional flair up it is all but over. a couple of hours ago, this was a giant mushroom cloud. just before 2:00 p.m. in the macro plastic plant here in fairfield right across the street from travis air force base, it caught fire and soon erupted into a column tower of smoke. the mushroom cloud expanded literally obliterating sunlight from under it. the fuel, a field full of plastic bins. local officials called for a shelter-in-place since the bins contained particulate matter

that is harmful for those with medical problems. >> although we don't see the black plume we're still recommending to folks. the wind conditions change and we did have the smoke level lower. we do recommend people with breathing issues to stay inside. >> reporter: fire units from all over the area including the big foam trucks from travis air force base responded. their efforts could only contain the base from surrounding buildings. the company has not discussed the fire's cause but would only say that noneover its 45 employees were hurt. for which most of us and certainly the company is grateful. back here below an awful toxic mess that will require a lot of clean up and a lot of toxic clean up to happen very soon.

again as soon as all of the flair ups are over which could go on for hours and hours and hours. reporting live, tom vacar, ktvu channel 2 news. news chopper 2 caught the amazing size of the pitch black cloud that the fire set off into the sky. a shelter-in-place is still in effect right now. but now that things are dying down, near by residents fears are dying down as well. sal castaneda live in fairfield when he spoke to residents. >> reporter: i want to show you how close we are to the fire. you can see still thick black smoke rising from the plastic plant. now we're just about a mile, maybe a little bit less than a mile away from it. so i want jacob our photographer to just show us here this neighborhood which is you know rather close. people earlier this afternoon were standing at their porches just looking at this fire. and people are gathered in many spots and watched the thick black smoke. less than a mile away, this neighborhood was right

underneath the cloud but that didn't daunt leslie williams. she and her family stood outside and watched any way. >> tons of smoke overhead and just trying to watch it with binoculars to make sure it didn't hit the grass. as soon as it hit the grass we were going to try to go some where else. >> reporter: closer to the fire, some just could not help themselves and went right up to the police line. this man lives near by. >> are you worried about breathing this stuff? >> a little bit, i mean i came over here since i've been seeing black stuff on my shirt, i'm kind of feeling a little bit like maybe my throat a little itchy. >> reporter: throughout the day people were stopping to look and take pictures. >> it looked like a tornado was starting with black ring clouds or something. >> reporter: many thought the plume made the city a dark day. >> i'm guessing the chemicals are going to block our sun for a while and it's going to be bad breathing for all of us. >> reporter: the plume is nothing like it was earlier but

it still looks pretty bad. that cloud is still rising in the air. we still have some people who have come up and they've been concerned about where the smoke is going to come down. ktvu chief meteorologist bill martin with more on how the wind will affect the smoke coming down, bill. >> reporter: sal as i look at the plume behind you, you can see the plume tilting more aggressively. when this thing started the smoke was going straight up, there was very little wind. as you look at this picture, the smoke is beginning to pull out toward the valley, toward the west slope of the sierra nevada. you can see the plume, see how it's tilted off. that's good news for the local residents. because as the wind kicks up it will push the plume off into the distance. it'll defuse much more rapidly and be a better health situation for those around and even out in the valleys as it blows out with those winds. winds right now are blowing about 10 to 15 miles per hour in the area. they have just come up out in fairfield, i have a wind west

at nine and i have some winds in the area up to 15. those winds are west-southwest. that's good news for the smoke plume. i'll be back here, we'll look at this again and we'll also look at your five day. and ken sasaki sent us pictures, he was close enough to capture the flames. if you have pictures of the fire or other breaking news send it to us. just go to photos @ ktvu.com. tesoro has agreed to pay fines for air pollution. the settlement covers 76 incidents. they include exceeding

standards for smog and pollutants. and failure to repair leaking equipment. and 237 is over after a deadly crash. traffic there has been a mess for the past four hours. about 2:15 a big rig truck smashed into the center divider then burst into flames. the driver who has not been identified was killed. >> a big rig tire blew out the truck lost control, then overturned trapping the driver and then subsequently caught fire. >> reporter: we just talked to a highway patrol spokesperson who says no one else was hurt in the crash. but he says all of the eastbound lanes are still closed and just one lane in the westbound direction is open. we are covering the traffic and your commute on 24 hours a day on ktvu.com. just click the traffic tab for live maps and road alerts. a man who says he was the victim of a hate crime in san francisco spoke with ktvu today describing a brutal attack during this year's pride

parade. in a story you will see only on 2. david stevenson is at the scene of the attack with new evidence police released late this afternoon. >> reporter: the assault took place here at san francisco's un plaza exactly a month ago. today police released to us cell phone video of the man they say was involved in that assault along with a still picture of that suspect. >> reporter: video is short but brutal. it shows the confrontation at last month's gay festival. as a naked man is pushed by one man and sucker punched by another. >> being looked as a hate crime because of the sexual or orientation of the victim. >> after he grabbed me he was telling me stuff like, step off [ bleep ] >> police asked us to retain his name. >> you don't remember being hit in the face. >> i don't remember being hit

at all. >> reporter: he told us he attended the over the top outdoor party wearing a towel and had even earlier posed for pictures with the young women who were with his alleged attackers. >> i stopped to use the port-a- john restroom. when i was inside someone was pushing it over. so i jumped out and asked what are you doing or what's going on. >> reporter: that confrontation led to the punch captured on camera. >> it makes me sick. you can see him clench his fist well before he strikes. you see him watching. >> reporter: he told us he suffered a concussion and underwent surgery for a broken eye socket. he believes he was attacked because of his sexuality. and not because he was nude at the festival. >> if you don't like to see gays don't come to the pride. >> reporter: police are releasing the picture of the man in the white sweatshirt who they say threw the punch. police are asking if you know the suspect, call san francisco

police. east bay park police and sheriff's deputies in full camouflage and with guns drawn searched a park in moraga today for whoever slot at an officer there. police think an international cartel may be involved here. rob-- >> reporter: frank, the search team took this fire road up into a remote area near the san leandro reservoir. they went looking for a pot farm and for anyone who may be involved with it. the special response unit of the east bay regional park district and alameda sheriff's department cautiously and methodically searched this remote area for about four hours today. >> the officers are seeing if they can locate anybody. anybody that may be injured and determine if they locate a grow. >> reporter: last night a renallal park district officer had to be rescued after he exchanged gunfire with multiple people while out on patrol in the park. the officer was uninjured and it remains unclear if he shot anyone.

the shooters may have been protecting a marijuana grow. >> it's been our experience that we're dealing with probably the mexican cartel. >> reporter: people who regularly hike along the mini trails here near rancho laguna park say they are surprised that marijuana grows may be up there. >> i had no idea. the biggest danger we thought might be a mountain lion or something like that but no, not bad guys. >> reporter: officials say pot farming is not only dangerous it's often toxic. >> a lot of these grow operations bring in fertilizers and other poisons to grow their operation. >> reporter: searchers say also took pictures from the air and plan to analyze them. the search will continue perhaps the day after tomorrow. reporting live in moraga, rob roth, ktvu channel 2 news. an 18-year-old man who allegedly fired at union city police as they searched for a robbery suspect has been charged with seven felonies. it's a story we brought you live on channel 2 news at 6:00

last thursday during the hours long man hunt. lomite faces attempted murder of a police officer along with other charges. christopher gains is due in court on thursday. prosecutors revealed joseph naso saved news clippings about his alleged victims in a safe deposit box. the 77-year-old is charged with the murders of four women from northern california back in the 70s and 90s. the judge delayed a decision on whether naso can use taxpayer money to pay for a attorney in his case. new at 6:00, ktvu christien kafton is live in south san francisco with why red light violators have to pay up. >> reporter: this afternoon i talked with the chief of police here in san francisco, he told

us these red light cameras operated by american solutions are paying for themselvesless. with a flash and a click of the camera, south san francisco stands to collect $446. south san francisco police chief mahoney says the red light cameras work here. >> they've done a lot to improve the safety at the intersections. >> reporter: the cameras are operated by american traffic solutions, los angeles uses the same company and officials are now telling red light runners to ignore the ticket if they receive one. that's because judges in l.a. won't enforce the fines. but south san francisco police review evidence from the camera and turn it over to the courts. >> the fines go directly to the courts. the courts handle all the fines and we get a portion of every citation written through the court. >> reporter: the cameras keep a steady eye on the intersections. drivers have strong opinions about the camera. >> the last issue was they were giving people their money back, who had already paid them

because there was a glitch in the system so i don't know. they need to get rid of them. >> reporter: other drivers admit they make people slow down and make the intersections safer. >> no, i think the lights should stay. they should stay. i think it's doing its job. i think you just have to be more alert. >> reporter: south san francisco's contract runs for a little more than two years. the chief of police told me this afternoon that he will recommend renewing it when the time comes. christien kafton, ktvu channel 2 news. state leaders are working on ways to implement a new online sales tax. the board of equalization is moving forward with the law known as the amazon tax which requires online retailers like amazon to collect sales tax from purchasers made across the state. opponents are voting to have the law repealed, but opponents say it is their job to have the law implemented. >> we have the responsibility to uphold the law.

>> traditional brick and mortal business are behind the law. they say without it retailers have been enjoying an unfair reality. this is the second straight month the index rose but year to year, it is down about 5.5%. wall street is growing weary of the debt show down in washington. stocks ended the day lower on where the house speaker lacked support for his plan to solve the financialcrisis. the dow dropped 91.5 points the nasdaq closed down close to three points. an annual conference on the issue was held this morning at san francisco's marriott marquee hotel. district attorney george gascon tells us his focus is on reintegration. >> this is not about being soft

on crime, on the contrary, this is about being very effective on crime. if we get people employed and people into housing they are less likely to commit criminal offenses. >> today's event was hosted by the council of state government's justice center. >> reporter: scientists warned today a water crisis threatens the bay area with a mix of ocean flooding and lack of drinking water. health and science editor john fouling joins us now with the ironic timing of this report, john. >> reporter: that's right the sierra nevada is still dusted with snow. but this report today rings the alarm about extreme drought. it also warns of extreme flooding. >> the natural resources defense council says the bay area is at risk. highways, sewer plants, airports and more. vulnerable to rising seas. a new report calls it a slow moving tsunami. it's climate change. seen in a dramatic increase of extreme weather that began

about 20 years ago. >> rainfall patterns are going to change, our snow and ice are disappearing, sea levels are going up. these changes are inevitable. we need to do what we can to slow the climate change but we need to deal with the impacts that are going to be unavoidable. >> reporter: a big problem for the bay area is as sea levels rise, salt levels will move farther and farther up the delta making it more difficult to get clean fresh drinking water. for those relying on snow melt, spring melts will be earlier, late summer and fall run off may drop close to 40%. while heat and droughts worsens and erosion damages the coast. officials have been working with cities to cope with this rapidly changing climate. >> improve water efficiency. we know there are programs at the local level but those programs are under funded. >> reporter: just in the bay

area, half a million people and $100 billion of property are threatened. in the coming years there could be huge losses unless protection begins now. health and science editor john fowler ktvu channel 2 news. we just spoke to the fire marshal in fairfield because we are seeing some flair ups now at that plastic plant. it's caused by a number of plastic bins inside the burned out area. firefighters haven't been able to reach them so the fire has new fuel. people could be seeing these kind of flair ups throughout the evening. the shelter in place has been lifted on a voluntary basis. but if you are seeing smoke in your area, you might want to stay inside. parents who have not vaccinated their children for whooping cough now have a

little extra time. governor brown allowed 30 extra days. people who don't want to vaccination their children must issue a statement. zinga city will run on the chinese internet provider ten cent. and welcome back to weather, we have fog showing up along the coast. temperatures tomorrow will be a little warmer than today. the changes they are subtle. a little warmer today. out toward noe valley, just the other side of twin peaks that fog is going to be there in the next, here's twin peaks. probably the next 20 minutes that fog will start spilling over. we're getting breezy conditions out there. the fog spills through the gap. fog in your forecast tomorrow morning. a little bit more than this morning. but not a massive amount.

this pattern is subtle. it's just a subtle weather pattern. it's not going to get real hot, it's not going to get real cold. the general trend is for a warm up. as we get into the bay area weekend, we'll get back into the lower 90s, everyone low 90s in the hot spots. pretty good fog coverage, pretty good fog coverage in the morning hours. here we go midnight, i feel like that's a little aggressive. i have to tell you, this is the model. i think there might not be as much on the north bay. but this central patch will be here by midnight. tomorrow morning when you wake up there's your footprint -f , that's not a lot. very similar to today. but a little bit warmer. a little high pressure intensifying a little bit. air is pressing down from the upper atmosphere. the inversion will delighten a little bit and it'll warm up. there's the high doing it's work on the south bay. today we got temperatures in the 70s and 80s. tomorrow about the same but just a little bit warmer and a little bit nicer. that's the forecast, a little

bit warmer and a little bit nicer through the bay area weekend but no heat wave. 52 in napa, there's your 90 out toward fairfield. 90 out toward antioch, 89 in pittsburg. these forecast highs come with a couple of things they come with a still of reduced fire danger and really, really good air quality. right, this is i mean you don't want to keep records in the weather center but i don't think i can remember a summer where we had so many days without you know the fire we had today wasn't really weather induced but without fires being a big issue or without spare the air days being a big issue. or we had red flags and so far -- those highs low 90s in the hot spots. not upper 90s which we often see this time of year. >> still nice though. coming up more on the developing situation in fairfield where that fire at the plastics plant has flaired back up again an update right after the break.

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back now to our top story, that major fire at a plastics plant in fairfield. these were pictures that were taken at the height of a fire. a shelter in place has been

lifted. video from news chopper 2 shows the fire pretty much out. though we are seeing some flair ups as the fire spreads to some unburned plastic bins. produce bins caught fire in the store yard of macro plastics after 1:00 p.m. sending up a massive plume of smoke. air quality teams took sampleless samples to see what kind of chemicals were being released. crews will stay on scene through the evening to make sure no flair ups occur. players led by reliever leslo brought smiles to children. the group made a contribution to the children's cancer association. >> it is very nice and it helps a lot. >> reporter: leslo says he

started the organization to help families like his. he was 15-year-old when his sister was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. she survived. the in fact, that's all you have to say. >> all the fans are happy because we don't have to talk about labor stuff. in fact, the raiders will be going through their first sanctioned practice tomorrow up in napa. the 49ers on thursday at santa clara. but casual affairs today with the players showing up, getting weighed in. doing various things to get ready for the real deal. when it starts and that includes a rookie quarterback. collin kempernick that can't get ready to get started with the veterans. he said he's very excited about the first practice. >> it's been having independent, just your teammates and that's it. finally able to meet with the coaches is very exciting. >> reporter: after their exciting day after the white

house, bummer for the giants today at philadelphia. tim lincecum was supposed to start the ball game. he had the flu, so barry zito was moved up on the rotation a day and things did not go so well for mr. zito. in the first-inning he retired the first two guys. raul ibanez gets philadelphia off to a start. here's the most exciting play in all of baseball, the inside the park home run. chase utley deep off the wall. it ricochets away from andre torrez and watch utley he is never in doubt as he turns third and heads toward the plate. the replay shows, he cleanly beat it inside the park home run. zito only gave up six hits but three of them left the yard. and the giants have just lost a few moments ago 7-2 in the first of a three game series against the phils. that's the sporting life at this hour. >> that's a tough one. all right, mark thank you.

coming up on bay area news at 7:00 on tv 36. more coverage of the big fire at the plastic plant in fairfield. firefighters are making a lot of progress but it's been beening now for more than five hours. we'll have that and much more in a few minutes on tv 36. >> our coverage continues online. our viewers have been posting pictures of the smoke and flames. log on to see them, you can also share your own pictures on ktvu.com. it's really delicious, mom.

it's not too well done? nope. but it is a job well done. what are you reading, sweetie? her diary. when you're done, i'd love some feedback. sure. your mom and i read that thing cover-to-cover. loved it. thanks. would you mind if i cut the lawn this weekend? only if you let me talk to your mother on the phone for hours on end. done. [ male announcer ] u-verse brings peace to the family. at&t u-verse lets you record four shows at once from any room and play them back on any tv. get u-verse tv for only $29 a month for 6 months. in the network, everyone can get along.