a wildfire is threatening homes in calaveras county. the fire is burning near the town of mountain ranch, not far from san andreas, burning about 50 acres since it started 90 minutes ago. this is called the facero fire, there are structures threatened in the area, and some evacuations have been ordered. we have seen the fire burning close to homes and out- buildings, as well as air drops, where they are helping to put out the fire. chief meteorologist bill meyer it's -- is tracking the weather conditions. >> i grew up a few miles away from there, but the terrain, i spent time there north of coraopolis, you have oaks and pines in that area, in the transition zone as you move up into the forest area, the pine

area. the area here, there is not a lot of roads, what we can see from the helicopter, the maps, there is a lot of dirt roads. so what we're looking at is a fire that is being driven by terrain. there is not a lot of wind, you're looking at the smoke right now, seeing it go straight up. there is an indication, of course you know that, when you look at the smoke you see there is no wind. light and variable winds, this is the general location, the big lake south there, what you can't see from this map is to the northeast, and the -- west of mountain ranch, which is nearest the fire, there is a lot of reservoir and water in this area. so there is not a lot of wind, but look at that temperature, 93 degrees, 12% humidity. that is what is driving this fire as well as the difficult -- difficulty in getting to the fire. you see this home on top of this ridge, you can see the clearance there, that person knew what they were doing. without the winds this fire is being driven by the hills, fire wants to burn uphill.

the firefighters on the ground have a lot of trouble getting there, we're watching the fire right now, it has now grown to 50 acres. and again look at the defensible space around the home. looks like a fire truck, but the good defensible space, i believe we're looking at tape now, i don't think this is live news chopper. yeah, we're looking at tape, don't anticipate a crown fire with this, the fire gets to the top of the trees, and it blows from tree top to free top. this fire based on what i can tell with the light winds is burning along the ground, a slower moving fire. since we watched it. it has in fact grown slowly. you have a lot of heat, wind, it is a very hilly location, but firefighters have access to the water around this area. all right, thank you, bill, we'll watch this. as we get new information we'll let you know. until today, investigators would only say that michelle

le's former friend was a person of interest in their death. now that woman is accused of michelle le's murder. patty hayward has more on the small hope that the family is holding onto. >> reporter: well, michelle's family spoke out here at the police department late this afternoon. they were insisting that the arrest today didn't bring closure, and that they would continue to organize searches to find michelle's body. >> we feel bad. >> reporter: michelle le's brother choked back tears, saying that today's arrest may be progress in the case but it won't bring back his sister. >> tomorrow is actually my 24th birthday, and she would always call me and tell me happy birthday. and to tell me that she loved me. and that -- i just want to hear her voice. >> esteban was arrested this morning, about 10:00 as she was leaving her residence. >> reporter: hayward police say that giselle esteban has been a person of interest since the beginning. and evidence taken from

esteban's union city apartment one day after her disappearance helped to link her to the death. >> dna, recovered during a search warrant at esteban's home. >> reporter: investigators collected evidence for months, including cell phone records and surveillance video, placing her at the garage before and after le's disappearance. there was also physical evidence, placing esteban inside le's car, where investigators found le's blood. but without her body, they still don't know how she was killed. >> no words can adequately explain the emotions that we feel right at this moment. but know that we are still determined to bring her home. >> reporter: we are also learning that giselle esteban, who is being held in a jail cell here in hayward, is seven month's pregnant. now esteban and le have known each other since high school. and we talked to le's family in the past, if they knew her and if she ever threatened michelle. she said no, but back in june, esteban did speak openly about

blaming michelle for a break-up with an ex-boyfriend, all the while saying she had nothing to do with michelle's disappearance, reporting live, hayward, ktvu. >> and the suspect is being held in hayward. an arraignment is set for 2:00 tomorrow. the hayward police department said today she is not yet talking to investigators, but they hope she will later lead them to michelle le's body. our coverage continues, you can watch more on the press conference and hear from investigators and the family of michelle le, just look under that tab. and family and friends are remembering the four victims in carson city, three national guard members killed, along with a civilian caught in the cross fire. ktvu's jana katsuyama has more from what she learned today about the national guard member killed there. >> reporter: and julia, i also

spoke with the sheriff who says that three of the injured victims hit here at the ihop have been released from the hospital. four others are still in the hospital. but look over here to where people have been coming and paying tribute and remembering the victims who died. people brought colorful flowers and sympathy today to the ihop parking lot where the gunman opened fire, now four victims and the gunman dead, and a community grieving with the families. >> jesus is with you, loving arms all around all of you right now. and the whole town is praying for you. >> reporter: today, the carson city sheriff said that gunderson was one of the victims. the soldiers grieved for the others, including heath kelly of reno. >> major heath kelly was a decorated officer. husband, and father. he was also the commander of the joint force headquarters here in carson city. >> reporter: today we talked

with a family member of 38-year- old christian riege of carson city, who said he returned two years ago from afghanistan. >> an excellent father, loved his children and loved his family. >> reporter: and then there was 31-year-old miranda mcelhiney of reno. >> she served for more than 13 years, always with a smile on her face. >> reporter: questions remain as to how the gunman, eduardo sencion, obtained the firearm. they are looking for motives and answers, carson city is trying to move on. >> families, businesses, entire communities and an entire nation have been affected by what happened here. and i hope that we never forget our victims. >> reporter: nevada's governor has ordered that flags be flown at half staff until noon friday, in tribute to the victims killed here.

reporting live, jana katsuyama, ktvu. and a carson city sheriff's office releasing the 911 tapes today, the moment after shots rang out at the ihop. in one tape, the man is on the phone with the operator when he sees the gunman come back outside. >> he is coming back out with a gun, people are in the parking lot. get out of there, ryan. >> well -- >> hurry, hurry -- [loud noises] >> he is shooting at us now. >> reporter: the 911 calls gave the first indication of just how many people were injured. and two callers tell 911 operators the gunman shot and killed himself. ktvu posted more of the newly released tapes under the ihop shooting tab. and bay area investigators looking at the press for improved pipeline safety. >> as we look back we wonder could it happen again? i tell you today and with my wonderful colleagues behind me, it is not going to happen on

our watch. >> lawmakers say they want automatic shut-off valves on gas pipelines and mandated emergency response plans. the governor is expected to sign four bills by the end of the week. and the signs of destruction still showing in the neighborhood in san bruno where the pipeline happened in a deadly fire ball. ktvu has more in san bruno with the surprising numbers on the recovery, a year later. tom? >> reporter: well at best, san bruno's glennview neighborhood is a work in progress. almost a year after the blast, more than sirens dominate this neighborhood. the family hopes to be in the home for the holidays. >> i think a lot of people want to come back, but they know it is not cheap to build a house. >> reporter: on that awful night, 38 homes were destroyed, and 17 more homes were so badly

damaged people couldn't live in them. today, after the event, only six are under construction, and 12 unders are in the hands of experts. 13 lots, one in three, remain undecided. >> there are a few that decided not to come back, because it is so emotionally overwhelming for them. >> reporter: pg&e purchased six of the empty lots, but for now they are empty. the deadly gas main, gone forever. >> the only reason why we chose to come back is because they took the pipe out of commission. had they decided to put it back in commission, we wouldn't be back. >> they will break ground and take 12-18 months to finish. >> reporter: they just got funding to build the house, but the foundation has to go in before the rainy season begins. >> because the dirt turns to mud, you can't build a foundation on that. >> reporter: that could force a six-month delay. >> i am crossing my fingers, it will be tight, we'll move toward with every effort. >> reporter: most folks we met

expect another year before it is normal. >> you know i'm thinking it is impossible to say. >> reporter: and that blast area will likely become a memorial park. ktvu news. and a report out today says that facebook saw revenue go up in the first six months of the year. a source says that facebook made 1.6 million in revenue. the company wouldn't comment on the report. the analysts say they will go public and expand into music and other services. and the governor vetoing a bill regarding calling and texting while driving. the bill was submitted have increased the initial fund from 20-$50, repeat violations would have cost 100, and added a point to the offender's driving record. brown said the current fines and penalties are sufficient. and the demolition is done,

officials say it is now time to start the next phase of the transit center. the phase is officially under way at the site at first and mission street. officers from the city of san francisco, as well as state and federal officials gather to mark the mile stone today. the project managers say the 1.6 billion transit center is on schedule to open in the year 2017. we are continuing to monitor this wildfire that is burning out of control in calaveras county now, burning for about 90 minutes. it is already coming very close to homes in the mountain ranch area. and it was hot around here again, so the high fire danger in the bay area is there as well. we'll talk about how hot it will be for tomorrow's forecast

. a teenager was shot today in broad daylight in san francisco's mission district, the fourth shooting in just over a week, happening just before noon near a mcdonald's and a bart station. the 17-year-old was taken to a hospital with a gunshot wound to his hip. he is expected to survive. police say besides today's shooting, three people have been killed in the mission in just the last eight days, neighbors say they have had enough. >> you know i am worried about it. i don't feel very safe. >> it is not new, it has been like this ever since the '50s. >> police believe these shootings are gang-related. the violence has prompted authorities to increase patrols in that area. and a man accused in the 2009 fatal home invasion robbery in saratoga appeared in court today.

martinez was charged with murder, charged with breaking into the home. the two victims were beaten. maradon died of his injuries, his daughter survived. a second suspect in the case died last year in an unrelated gun fight with police. and richmond police issue an alert tonight, not because of a spike in crime. new at 6:00, ktvu's carl champion busiers is live in richmond with the pro active steps police are taking to protect people in their community. >> reporter: julia, you remember we first told you last month the city of oakland issued a warning about snatch and grab, gold necklace thefts. it is not currently an issue here, but now there is an issued warning on their facebook page. with the price of gold quickly on the incline, police believe so is the temptation for those thinking about turning to a life of crime. >> and there are people out of work, times are hard, money is hard. a lot of people tend to go get cash, gold is a good thing to

get cash for. >> reporter: and with so many places offering to pay cash for your gold, richmond police worry that snatch and grab could become an issue. >> i worry about the jewelry, it is valuable, i don't want anybody to lose it. >> the economy is bad, the gold prices keep going up. >> there is no way of tracing where it comes from, obviously it is not serialized. >> reporter: once again, richmond police say there has not been an increase in these types of crimes. but they want to get the word out and warn residents that it could happen. so they want the residents to be more mindful of what they wear and how they wear it. >> be a little more careful on their own, and that means not wearing a lot of flashy gold where people can have more access to it, running up, grabbing it off somebody's neck. >> if somebody took me, i would probably try to shoot them or kill them. >> i know they said don't put up a fight, i worked hard for

it. >> get what they want, don't fight, it is not worth getting hurt. >> now the police say if you keep jewelry in your house, make sure you have it in a safe place. live, paul chambers, ktvu channel 2 action news. and this sunday is the 10th anniversary of the september 11th attacks, and security will be increased on the golden gate bridge. since the attacks, security is tighter with the help of 15 million in grants. there are now cameras above and below the bridge. more officers are hired to patrol the surrounding areas as well. >> and we have bikes on patrol here as well as motorcycles, cars on patrol. we have support from air assets. and since 9/11, 2001, the resources have been increased. >> the highway patrol says it will have all hands on deck from this friday until next monday. they told ktvu today there are no credible threats, though, against the bridge. ktvu will look back at how our

world has changed, since the terror attacks with 9/11, a decade of change. we'll be live in new york, washington, d.c. and shanksville, pennsylvania, our special report starts at 6:00 on september 11th. and going back out to calaveras county, we are following a wildfire, the firefighters fighting it since 4:20 this afternoon. we have learned 50 acres have burned, this is near the community of mountain ranch, which is approximately about 2000 people. it is near the bigger town of san andreas, about 40-miles southeast of sacramento. structures are threatened, there are scattered homes and ranches in the area. some evacuation orders are called. we learned that where the fire started is now closed. no containment so far, light wind, high temperatures in the area. let's talk to bill martin who can tell us more on the fire

and conditions there. >> well, right when i look at this picture, i mentiod earlier, there is a combination of oaks and pine in the area. if you look closer, you can see the pine, in the lower, there are the oaks, this is a transition zone in the plant world. and it is tough to fight fires in a place like this, because the low brush, you have sage in the area, oak, and pine trees. so you really have all sorts of different fuel going. this is a shot, i believe we're looking at the tape now, you didn't lose the chopper, you can see how close it came to the home. it has very defensible space, plenty of water, reservoirs surrounding this area. you're probably at about -- you're in the 4000-5000-foot range. let's look closely at this thing. there is san andreas, here is the lake, the reservoirs in the area. you're just coming out of the foothills into the mountains, into the pine region. but you're right in that transition zone, 93 there right

now, no wind, very little wind, it is light, that is good news. the problem firefighters are having with this one is likely getting access to it. as you saw there is not a lot of roads in this area, a few dirt roads, even a paved road. right now, fog, shallow along the coast, there was a spare the air day, that is how thick the atmosphere is. over the top of your house in san jose, that is about 5000 feet thick. the particle get stuck in that, air quality will be better tomorrow. temperatures will come down tomorrow by a few degrees. your forecast then for tomorrow morning, very dense fog along the coast because it is compressed. and it will push inland but not as far inland as livermore valley or walnut creek, fog in albany, four to eight degrees cooler, still 90 near inland. tracking this, this is down the road weather story. towards friday and saturday in the weekend, some tropical moisture could trigger thundershowers. that is bad news if that

occurs. that would be bad news, because dry lightning this time of year, we're seeing what is happening in the calaveras county area right now. so you don't need anything as far as lightning. the heat in the valley, less than what we saw today. still very warm, some clearing coastside, forecast highs, cooler as i said about four- eight degrees, 92 out in livermore valley. and as you come up on the five- day forecast, with the weekend in view we do stay pretty hot inland. looking at temperatures tomorrow, cooler, popping up on friday, cooler for the bay area weekend. fire season, we sat here last night, hot, we'll probably talk about fires. >> a good thing it is not windy where the fire is burning in calaveras county, that could be a big problem. >> thank you bill. coming up on bay area news at 7:00, we're staying on top of the wildfire now threatening homes in calaveras county. also we're learning more about the arrest of the woman today who was connected to the disappearance of michelle le,

and the surprise twist in just the last hour, coming up in 30 minutes on tv 36

. mark joins us now with sports, an early day for both the giants and a's.

>> yes, a little business there, great pitching for both the giants and a's, and a little history for the pitching, we're talking about moscoso, on the mound, throwing a beautiful ballgame for the a's, and a little help from centerfield from cocoa crisp. moscoso, with a no-hitter through 7 innings, at one point, retired 30 straight hitters. that is an oakland record, and he gets another one, there is the end of the no-hitters, moscoso, just gave up two hits, meanwhile, the giants, well, back to normal for them, and normal means short end of a 2-1 ballgame, and matt cain, another wasted effort. and look at the kid, you remember what he did last

night? well, he backs that up this afternoon, a shot to deep left, homers in his first two big league games, tying things up. one apiece until the 6th. the padres untie it with two out of former giant, jesus guzman, 2-1, san diego, giants look like they tie it in 7th. pat burrell, less than two outs, look at will venable, couldn't throw like his son, though, this is a perfect throw to the plate to get brett phelps, and the giants wind up on the short end, 3-1, more sports tonight at 10, but that is the sporting life right now. >> mark thank you. our coverage continues on line, you can follow on twitter for breaking news updates on the wildfire in calaveras county