today is a big push to fill up the toy bins and make sure every child in san francisco gets a toy. we'll take you to the party going on right now at owe cool's in san francisco. >> the stores open early this morning for those holiday procrastinators! >> and the massive fire that left 60 people looking for a new home this holiday weekend. and good morning.

welcome to mornings on 2. it's saturday, december 24th. merry christmas eve! very cold start to this christmas eve morning. let's get to rosemary and your forecast. good morning, rosemary. >> good morning to you! last minute shoppers this morning will be braving the big chill. a freeze warning, once again, in place until 9:00 this morning. inland valleys, north bay, east bay, santa clara valley, dipping back into the 20s. many of us this morning areas along the strait and the delta hard freeze. we'll look at some of the numbers outside your door and talk about your afternoon highs and the rest ofier weekend, coming up. it's an incredible sight every year as the public makes sure no child will be without a toy on christmas morning. but this year the need is bigger than ever. allie rasmus joins us from union square with how many toys organizers are hoping to get. >> reporter: they've already created a very festive environment here. as you can hear, they've got a

choir here, non-profit group stars, volunteering to sing carols here and there's also santa waiting in the back here for the people expecting to come in today. it's to create a very festive environment here at lefty's and a lot of last-minute shoppers come in, they'll see these toy bins here, and they will be inspired to make a donation. this is the 11th year of the toy drive. and peggy is one of the organizers. tell me, how many toys have you collected so far and how many more do you still need? >> we've already collected about 1500 toys but needed about 10,000 toys. the need is so much greater this year, as you well know. and the groups that we usually really need help with are the tweens, the kids from about 10 years old, 11, to about 15, because those kids lot of those kids are raising their siblings and everybody always forgets

about them. so for the girls it would be makeup, nail polish, clothes, and for the boys it would be sports equipment, sports clothes, and video games and stuff like that. but we really do need it. and san francisco always live on this occasion. so. >> you're optimistic you'll reach the 10,000 mark by the end of day? >> we know we will. with the help of the san francisco spirit, we can do that! >> thank you very much. as you heard, they'll continue to [audio not understandable] accept toy donations since 6:00 this morning. [audio not understandable] future all those holiday shopping procrastinators you only have a few hours left. many stores and malls opened just a few minutes ago for this last chance to shop before christmas. bay area retail stores expect a

big finish to their holiday season. for example, yesterday was one of the biggest days in memory for sun valley mall in concord. >> right now you're having your car? >> yes, just actually too much for me right now and i get some for my older cousin and get maybe some girlfriends. >> yeah, you know. people unbalanced, so to speak. >> shoppers may find it difficult driving into and out of packed mall parking lots during this final push. one shopper said she spent more than two hours trying to exit one such parking lot. here's a check of some store hours today. if you do need still to shop on christmas day, several places will be open, including some safeways and all walgreens and cvs pharmacies.

thieves are also at work this holiday. shoplifting is up 6% from last year according to the global theft barometer. some say that's up because of the economy. others say people do it for the thrill or to relieve depression. research suggests almost three- quarters of shoplifters say they stole on the spur of the moment. police in hawaii are looking for a group of holiday thieves who walk through the front door of toys-r-us, only to walk out the back with over $1,000 in merchandise. it was all caught on camera. there you see it. honolulu police say a group five women and one man walked into the store on december 1, and casually walked out. there they go. they're going out the back employees service entrance, and they took several trips. that's going to stay. the group had a car waiting for them so they went in and out before making a getaway. >> these people or this group i

should tell them is just taking back to the car, meantime looking at the merchandise. so they stocked up pretty well for christmas and it's not small items. if you look, the pictures show barbie, huge items that they're carrying. >> police say store security never noticed the group stealing the toys. this morning president obama and the first lady released a special online video address. >> as you gather with family and iends this weekend, we want to wish you all merry christmas and happy holidays. >> this is such a wonderful time of year. it's a time to honor the story of love and redemption that began two thousand years ago, a time to see world through a child's eyes and rediscover the magic all around us. >> mr. obama and the first lady are also calling on americans to find a way to give back to the military and their families and an iraq war veteran is back people this morning, just in

time for christmas. nicholas arrived at the oakland airport yesterday after nearly a yearlong tour of duty in iraq. the 25-year-old army sergeant says he is proud of the work his unit accomplished. >> coming back knowing that we actually made a big differential, change in security, making sure everybody was on top of their jobs, provided, whatever they needed for assistance to make sure -- >> they would do anything they had to do to make sure his country was safe. >> his father and grandmother both say they're extremely plowed of them and thrilled that he is indeed home for christmas. a man line the lafayette cross memorial hopes the end of u.s. military involvement in iraq means the beginning of the end for his memorial. that memorial includes more than 4,000 white crosses, all in honor of the u.s. soldiers who died fighting in iraq and in afghanistan. jeff eaton says he hopes the

war in afghanistan draws down to the point where he can take the crosses down. san francisco fire investigators say it could be one month before they know the cause of a massive fire that left 38 adults and three children homeless. that fire break out in the western edition on thursday. flames tore through two buildings, initially investigators believed the fire started in a three-story 1950 edwardian. but they now say the fire began next door at 1015 pierce. >> we do know the origin is at the bottom of a trash chute in the area of garbage collection. everything was lined up. where the fire started, the wind conditions, the buildings being built close together. , really kinds of line thing up for a fire that was well advanced upon arrival. >> damage is estimated to be at $8 million. the alameda firefighters association is looking for donations for families displaced in the house fires this weekend. investigators believe december

17th fire onshore ponte court was started by an electrical space heater. people in 18 apartments were displaced. the firefighters association is collecting household items. gift cards and new and unwrapped toys. if you would like to help, you can drop off your donation today at fire station one. donations will be accepted from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. whether it's chestnuts roasting or a yuletide fair, taking part in holiday traditions could you get you in trouble with the law today. give you a live look now outside. a spare the air alert is in effect today. this is the second time in the last four years wood burning ban has been imposed for christmas eve. air quality officials say the cold air is trapping particulate matter in the air quality management district says inspectors will be out this weekend looking for smoke coming from your chimney. >> 40% of the wintertime particulate matter in the bay area comes directly from wood smoke. so it's a very problematic

pollutant for us, and really the only way to reduce it is to not burn wood in our fireplaces. >> air quality officials say the wood burning ban could be extended through tomorrow. and another burn ban is in place for parts of the bay area. this time from cal-fire. the fire agency is prohibiting open fires until further notice and unincorporated alameda, contra costa and santa clara counties. cal-fire says it is imposing the ban because of the dry weather so far this winter season. the ban is angering some naturallers who say they need to dispose of diseased wood quickly, a special permit required for agricultural fires. good morning to you. a dry and cold out there this morning. mostly clear skies, a bit of a haze, talked about that spare the air day, going to be in effect all day long. sunrise about 7:23. the official sunrise. but you can see the sun is up and so it's going to take about an hour before we start to at

least thaw out. 27 degrees in napa. 26 in santa rosa. 23 for fairfield. again, the strait and the delta air looking anthony a hard freeze, meaning low 20s in your forecast for the next hour or so. 29 degrees livermore. 34 in hayward. you don't have to be in the valley to see very chilly numbers. once again, areas right around redwood city, sunnyvale in the upper 20s, low 30s. on the coastline we're sitting in the 40s. and temperatures will again rebound, comes between now and noontime. your satellite radar here, clear skies, this is a 24-hour loop. so clouds you see in the beginning, that was yesterday morning. that actually helped to keep our temperatures up just a little bit in the final hours right before sunrise. but we're dealing with a mostly clear skies for today. ridge of high pressure in place, easy to see. you can see it right there. this will begin to transition. our ridge will be flattening in the coming days. and it looks like by mid-week wednesday, maybe tuesday night,

the possibility of a few scattered showers. your holiday weekend is going to be dry. so hazy sunshine in the forecast for today. 50s and 60s once again. seasonal temperatures, light offshore winds. and again, spare the air. that freeze warning in effect if you're just joining us, mention a freeze warning at the top of the hour for inland areas. north bay, east bay and the santa clara valley. and take a look at your afternoon highs. and repeat of what we saw yesterday, upper 50s, low 60s for the north bay. looking at santa rosa for the afternoon, 58. our east bay spots more of the same, 59 for oakland, 59 castro valley. 59 danville. and 59 for our neighbors in livermore. we're looking at 61 for san jose. 62 morgan hill. nice day in santa cruz, mostly sunny skies, 64 in the afternoon there. and in the city for the afternoon, 57 degrees. if you're going to attempt a union square ice skating with the kids, extended forecast here, temperatures just as cold

tomorrow although not as cold in most spots. partly cloudy skies, a system that rides over the north of us. that's going to increase our onshore flow and increase our cloud cover. that means sunday night into monday morning, not as cold although our afternoon highs will begin to slip. and then it looks like tuesday night into wednesday our first opportunity at a little bit of rain. i'll show you the latest on the rain models coming up in just a bit. >> looks like the cold temperatures are on everybody's minds. everyone bundling up this morning! you never know what you may find when you start cleaning out your closet. the letter from the white house that was dated just two days before the assassination of jfk. and new hope for a bay area homeless family, thanks to this kindness of strangers. the early christmas present they are enjoying this morning. but first, let's take you outside. if you're headed out to do shopping, it looks like the roads are still looking good. this is a live look at 880 in

oakland. and right now no big incidents to tell you about. you're watching mornings on 2. that day, he bought life insurance. now, there's no way i could send our boy to college without it. if there was one thing i could say to hank, it'd be "thank you." you're welcome. hey, hank. [ male announcer ] life insurance you can use while you're still living. you are one lucky lady. mm-hmm. [ male announcer ] learn more from your state farm agent today.

yo. good morning, san jose! leaving the house early? bundle up! 31 degrees outside your doors! a cleaning solution is being blamed nor a chemical scare that partially cleared out a busy south bay shopping mall in the middle of the holiday rush that was reported yesterday afternoon at the oak ridge mall. firefighters say a worker used too much cleaning solution insides a bathroom and the fumes were not ventilated fast enough. the theater's lobby was evacuated and one man was treated for throat and eye irritation. but things were back to normal in just been an hour and a half. this morning authorities are looking for the men who opened fire in a shopping mall with a high-powered assault rifle, leaving one man dead. this happened last night in

fort myers when the gunman opened fire on two men in the parking lot. one man died, the second man was not hit. investigators found more than 100 shell casings at the scene and at this hour the motive for the shoot something not known. new this morning, the g.o.p. race for president a christmas eve surprise for newt gingrich and rick perry. neither qualifiers for the march 6th primary in virginia. the republican party made the announcement on twitter around midnight. the party says both candidates fell short of the 10,000 signatures of registered voters needed to qualify for the ballot. mitt romney and ron paul gathered the necessary signatures so they will appear on the ballot. reality tv host and mogul donald trump has left the republican party. he changed his registration in new york state on thursday from republican to unaffiliated. a spokesman for trump says the change will let the businessman run a possible campaign for

president. the spokesman adds trump will only ender the race if they feels republicans fail to nominate a candidate who can defeat president obama. the federal government is objecting to a new south carolina voter identification, law. the justice department claims it discriminates against minorities in violation of the voting rights act. the law requires voters to present a state or federal i.d. south carolina says it reduces voter fraud. but the doj says laws on the books already provide enough of a deterrent. the transportation security administration prohibits several items amount the airports. guns, knives, even some liquids are not allowed. and for a woman from massachusetts, neither is a cupcake. rebecca haines says a tsa agent in las vegas confiscated her cupcake in a car on wednesday, because the frosting was too similar to gel. gel is prohibited because it could be used as part of an explosive deis device. chessels the tsa agent overreacted. >> it's not really about

safety. it's about making people follow rules that really i think to the average traveler seem arbitrary and are encroaching on our civil liberties. >> you bake this. is there a liquid or gel in the jar? no no, it's just -- cake filling and frosting. >> tsa says cakes and pies are generally allowed in carry-on luggage. they're now promising to investigate the incident. you never know what you will find tucked away in the closets at home. a portland, oregon man was cleaning his mother's house when he says he found an old letter from the white house. it was dated on november 20, 1963. two days before the assassination of president kennedy. the mother of the oregon man was a second grade teacher then and assigned her class to write to jfk. she believes the president and not some aide wrote back to thank her. >> i just thought to myself, now, this is a testimony that this was a genuinely good guy.

>> like the rest of the nation, she mourned kentucky's death, she took the letter and filed away. the son now hopes to display it in a school or museum juppe a homeless mother and her four children get to enjoy an early christmas this year thanks to the kindness of others. rob roth shows us their story and how it touched the hearts of many channel 2 viewers. >> reporter: for this 10-year- old and her family, life is getting better, finally. >> people been helping me out. >> she is homeless, we met her two weeks ago. >> i would say every day, and they would tell me to change it and go home. >> you could -- what would you do? >> cry. >> my heart just sunk when i seen that. >> so chante young got a room for her and her family for two weeks. >> me putting them up in a motel room was a christmas

present to myself because now i feel good. i feel i was able to help someone. >> other channel 2 viewers also been offering donations, clothes, toys, support. her mother is overwhelmed. >> it's not expected. i did not expect it. >> but the owner of the gifts even better news, and we'll let them tell what it is. >> we just found out we're going to be getting stable housing. >> the housing authority in san francisco where they live found them in a two-bedroom apartment that will open up next month. but they are just one more than 200 homeness families in san francisco where the waiting list just to get in is seven months long. but thanks to a recent $1.5 million donation, the city is providing more places, some temporary, some permanent for homeless families. they say after years of staying with relatives and sleeping in shelters, they can't wait to have a place of their own. >> it's going to be great. i'm looking forward to working. i'm looking forward to going to school. >> what are you noticing now

about people? no they care about other people. >> in oakland, rob roth, ktvu channel 2 news. trapped by a freak blizzard. >> we didn't realize it at the time but we were actually running out of air. >> how a texas family made it out alive after being buried in 10 feet of snow for almost two days. >> a live look there at san francisco. it's a spare the air day and bone-chilling cold. we'll like a little your area, coming up. [ male announcer ] it's a rule of nature.

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look at. that those icy roads making it difficult for drivers to get around in el paso, texas. cars are slipping and sliding all over the roadways. one driver couldn't even make it up a hill. that area is being hit with heavy snow and some cold temperatures. crews are working around the clock to salt the roads. meantime, they are encouraging

people not to drive. if they do not have tom. a family from texas is lucky to be alive after being buried alive under a mountain of snow for two days. >> that snow is coming at all directions, 30 plus miles an hour. >> david higgins and his wife and daughter were inside one of 32 cars that became trapped by a blizzard in new mexico. they say the snow came down so fast, that their suv got buried under 10 feet of snow. fortunately, the higgins family was packed for a ski trip to they did have food and water inside their vehicle. >> when it really got scary was probably the last five or six hours, and we didn't realize it at the time but we were actually running outs of air. >> higgins was able to call his brother in texas on his cell phone, who then notified new mexico state police. the family was the last to be found out of the other trapped drivers. the parents required some medical attention and mrs. him

since currently recovering from pneumonia. the cold temperatures very cold, we just got a note from a spokesperson from the fire department warning people, put water in the trees because they're trying out. >> the trees is dry. you just shake it a little bit and here come the needles pouring down. and no rain really expected. at least this weekend. want to check in with rosemary. >> we're going to be dry and we're really dry. the winds continue. we are going to begin to see a transition but not nor the weekend. it is a beautiful start out there. but it's going to dry. it's even hard to find the frost these days. patchy frost, little fog. humidity up a little bit from a couple days ago. but it is still a very cold one, freeze warning for the valleys through 9:00. 27 degrees now in santa rosa. 30 for napa. 42 san francisco. 39 in oakland. upper entwistle in concord. san jose, you're freezing at 32

degrees. let me show that you transition. so we roll through today, mostly sunny skies. spare the air day, right? we're talking about that this morning as well. we wake up with just a few high clouds. partly cloudy, mostly sunny for your christmas day. here's that storm track. still to the north. ridge of high pressure beginning to flatten now. we go through monday, partly cloudy, here we are monday morning, still dry tuesday morning, finally, going to see perhaps this system begin to drop south. so our flow is going to turn what we call more zonal for next week. looks like by tuesday night, wednesday morning, the possibility will be just light rain. we're going to catch just the tail end of that system. we'll take what we can get. in a nutshell today, freeze warning through the valleys, through 9:00 this morning. hazy sun, spare the air. weekend going to be dry. and your temperatures seasonal for the afternoon. upper 50s, low 60s through the weekend. and then with the clouds in the afternoon, we'll be cooler monday, tuesday. have a ring around the upper 50 mark for most of us.

overnight lows will improve with the clouds like a blanket in the overnight hours. sitting in the low 30s as we get become to work on monday. and finally, hopefully some much-needed rain by mid-week wednesday. back to you. the chaos over the release of those nike air jordans is prompting reaction from the company. how the race to get a pair of those shoes actually costs one man the shoe off his foot. ok, you guys wanted a space for entertaining your friends,

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all right. you're taking a live look in san francisco, where an effort is underway to help forgotten children, kids who may not goat a toy under their tree unless the community steps for. good morning. and welcome back to mornings on 2. lefty o'doul's is a classic establishment and now it's the epicenter of a huge toy drive on this christmas eve. last year organizers collected 10,000 toys on this day. this year, they say they need even more allie rasmus is live and hopefully the bins are filling up? >> reporter: yes, they are. they've been open since 6:00 in morning. and already we've seen about a dozen or so people come in with bags of stuff to drop off toys.

this is the 11th year for the lefty o'doul's toy drive. before was to have 11,000 toys for their 11th year. but now they'll be happy with more than 10,000. there's a great need this year. here's the owner. so you have a pretty ambitious goal, 10,000 toys. 1500 so far. how optimistic are you that san francisco people will turn out? >> san francisco people have a history of being really generous on this day. and with the help of santa here too, come on down, bring your toys, and help us get our goal this year. we heard there's 2500 kids living on couches now, and we don't want them to wake up without a toy. and we want to provide these toys to the kids, so if you can bring them down to 333 geary street, santa will help unload it. >> you created a festive environment. you have non-profit group, stars of the feature, donating their time to sing carols entice people to come in and be part of the spirit and make de

nations. >> yes. they're singing the christmas carols to bring the spirit of christmas out and people feel that this is a last chance you can come out and give some and help -- and with the help of -- the news broadcasts here, everybody comes down, last year we were successful and this year we're expecting the same. >> all right. thank you. they will be accepting toys here in case you don't know where they are at geary and powell, next to the holiday shoppers in union square. and they'll be accepting toys until 2 a.m. this morning. last call! and you can drop off your toy until then. allie rasmus, channel 2 news. for all those holiday shopping procrastinators, you only have a few hours left. many stores and malls just opened a few minutes ago for the last day before christmas. local stores are expecting a big finish to the holiday season. yesterday was one of biggest days in recent memory. here's a check of some store

hours today. some safeways and all walgreens will be open on christmas day. free drinks. it's offering complimentary coffee and tea all day necks change for a holiday donation. all contributions will go to a local non-profit organization of the store's choice. they will match up to $1,000 of customer donations at each store. developing news out of the east bay. one person has life-threatening injuries after a triple shooting in oakland. police say three people were shot after midnight near 14th and broadway. a witness tells ktvu an event nearby had just let out and someone opened fire into a crowd of people. police have not released the victim's ages but they do say that one victim has life- threatening injuries. nike says it is troubled by the violence over the sale of

the latest air jordans schools. the company announced it was extremely concerned to hear reports of problems nationwide. as we first reported on mornings on 2 yesterday, a man was arrested for firing a gun into the air while waiting in line for the $180 sneakers. crowds shattered windows to get inside the mall in fairfield and in san leandro, 200 people forced their way into the bayfair mall. >> it's really a set-up for competition when people know that there aren't enough products to go around. that's why they get sold for ways to as much on ebay. >> elsewhere in indianapolis, shoppers ripped the door off its hinges at one store while in seattle, police pepper- sprayed about 20 people who started fighting over the jordans. and a georgia woman a arrested after she left two toddlers unattended inside the car while she went inside the mall to wait in line for the shoes in.

kansas city it's as if shoppers needed running shoe shoes to get the shoes. once that mall opened, there was a mad dash to the sneakers store inside. but look carefully. one of the shoppers desperate for a new pair of jordans lost within of his old shoes during the sprint. despite running with only one sneaker, it did not stop him or the others. the shoes sold out at that store in 45 minutes. president obama is in hawaii this morning to finally begin his christmas vacation with the first family. air force one arrived in honolulu last night and mr. obama immediately departed the plane. the president delayed his trip because of the congressional battle over extending payroll tax cuts. first lady michelle and her daughters arrived in hawaii a week ago ahead of the president. the white house says there will be no public events while the first family very occasions in hawaii. before departing, the

family signed legislation before extend is the tax cuts after a week long standoff with house republicans. house republicans finally relented after pressure from the president and even some people within their own party. along requests extension, president obama signed a federal spending bill. democrats and republicans after days of negotiation and fears there could be a government shutdown. bay area nurses locked out of their jobs after going on strike will return to work today. thousands of nurses working at sutter health hospitals walked off the job on thursday for a one-day demonstration. but the nurses were not allowed to return to work yesterday because sutter health hired replacement nurses for two days. the nurses union and suggestedder health have been involved in contentious contract negotiations. those negotiations are expected to continue in january. arraignment postponed until next week future a man accused

of posing as a doctor. carlos guzman garza is suspected of running a dermatology clinic in the mission district. he faces felony charges for allegedly stealing the identity of a physician's assistant and performing invasive procedures on people without a medical license. the district attorney accuses him of botching up a procedure causing an infection in the patient that forced her to have reconstructive surgery to repair the damage. >> he administered and while -- waiting for the anesthesia to take -- start working, he let her to get coffee next door. he was smoking a i gun, offered her a cigarette. >> the patient says she even had to hold her own iv bag. prosecutors believe there could be other victims. he faces 12 years in prison if convicted a preliminary report estimates the occupy l.a. movement has cost that city millions of dollars.

the two month encampment at city hall cost the city about $2.3 million, and that includes 1.6 million in overtime for police and other agencies. restoring the park at city hall is expected to cost about $400,000. the suspected gun man in the shooting near the oakland occupy camp has been arraigned on eye murder charge. 21-year-old norris is accused in the shooting death of foster on november 10th. terrell was arrested in november and was extradited to alameda county this week. four others have been arrested in connection with the shooting. terrell is scheduled to return to court on tuesday and may enter a plea. a stabbing victim found after he crashed his car into a house has died. police were called to a home near monterey and carolina streets around 6:30 last night. officers found 22-year-old caesar lobos inside a throbbing had sideswiped a home. they say he had been stabbed several times. he was later pronounced dead at the hospital. this is the 18th homicide of the year in vallejo. a motorcyclist was killed

in a crash on the upper deck of the bay bridge. highway patrol says the motorcyclist was speeding yesterday morning and slammed into the back of a car and then thrown against a wall in the north side of the bridge. no one else was hurt. the crash slowed traffic for several hours. the holiday crackdown on drunk drivers is well underway. law enforcement agencies holding du, checkpoints throughout the bay area in. union city last night, motorists had an in your face reminder not to drink and drive. one person whose blood alcohol level registered just under .08, the legal limit, was not allowed to drive home. >> we also have saturation patrols, in other words, that's when we have additional officers come in and work the streets looking specifically for signs of d, and also educating people. >> the extra patrols will go through new year's day. the number of alcohol-related deaths on highways dropped to a record low last year. but starting january 1, a new law will give judges the

ability to suspend a repeat offender's license future up to 10 years instead of three. that would happen after a third dui. good morning to you! a cold snap felt around the bay area. once again this morning we're bottoming out in the 20s. cup see it mostly sunny skies there from by point. our east bay valley location, san ramon, danville, dublin all reporting mid and upper 20s this morning. so definitely going to be a chilly one if you have to be outside any time soon. temperatures will eventually turn around. sunup for about 20 minutes or so. takes another hour, by 10:00 we should feel better. not going to say good. i'm going to say better. overinto the lows into the 20s and we're seeing that in our north bay valley location. seeing that in the east bay. even seeing that along stretches of the peninsula this morning. but especially the valleys where that cold air just kind of sinks and sticks until the sun comes around to warm us up. it is a spare the air day.

illegal to burn in your fireplace unless it is your only source of heat. but we're expected to be unhealthy in our sensitive groups for the north county, eastern district and santa clara valley and the south bay as well. that means if you suffer from respiratory issues, nick like that, you know who you are. just be careful. could be a little hazy this afternoon. 28 degrees right now. concord. 23 in fairfield. fairfield takes the cake this morning for the cold weather. through parts of the delta, strait, sacramento national weather service offices issuing a hard freeze warning through the morning hours. 27 napa. 26 santa rosa. 37 in oakland. low 40s in the city. and if you're catching a flight this morning, the airports tend for chillier than the city. we continue our dry spell through the weekend. but by the last week of december, we're looking at the possibility of some changes, maybe a few sprinkles by midweek wednesday. between now and then, fair skies, seasonal temperatures, upper 50s, low 60s for your

afternoon. 57 degrees today. san rafael 57. san francisco upper 50s. oakland and the east bay 60 degrees. fremont 61. san jose low 60s and mostly sunny skies and santa cruz. your extended forecast, upper 50s, low 60s. just a little bit sunday, monday and tuesday notice increase the clouds there. looks like tomorrow afternoon a system riding through the pacific northwest will bring us a few clouds. that's going to help us in the evening hours because the overnight lows for monday morning won't be as cold. we're going to see a return of the onshore flow, meaning more of a push from the pacific. monday, tuesday, wednesday we're looking to remain dry tuesday into wednesday we see the best chance of maybe the possibility of moisture air and even a few scattered showers come wednesday. if you are traveling to the sierra for your weekend, i'm fine-tuning that forecast coming up. all right. after getting torn apart by a tsunami, seven years ago, a young girl is reunited with her

long lost family. and a look at your roads. sun is shining on this very cold christmas eve morning. but traffic moving great along the golden gate bridge. no major problems reported around the bay area but those malls will be busy today. it's 7:43 and you're watching mornings on 2. like champagne, and tastes great! martinelli's: since 1868. o'doul's

good morning to you! a live look there at union square. it's a cold one out there in. going to be doing ice skating, bundle up! ably along the gloves. we talk about families in need this time of year. but on christmas tradition is helping people you may they're in have thought of. pam cook has the story of a

thoughtful motorcycle ride. >> reporter: it started 12 years ago with about 50 bikers. it's grown to about 200 riders who won't miss this event. delivering toys to children of inmates at san quinten. >> it's a joy and pleasure for the kids and us to walk in and see the smiling faces. they don't get it that often. >> brett owns a motorcycle shop so this was a perfect fit. he and his friend started the gift run to san quinten bus they know what it's like to be behind bars and not able to do something for their family. >> you know, all my friends really try do a good job to help the kids have a better christmas. because their dads can't do anything for them. >> the kids look forward to this every year. they even get a chance to visit with santa and it doesn't stop there. the organization friends outside and center force raise money to help the kids year round. >> our money goes back into the prison and then helps programs

for the fathers and it also goes in to help programs for the kids. last year we helped the kids go on camping trip. >> best gift of all is just the treasure of people who really care. >> pam cook, ktvu channel 2 news. volunteers will gather at glide memorial church in san francisco today to prepare thousands of christmas meals. breakfast will be served at 7 a.m. tomorrow morning and dinner begins at 9:00. and this morning, there's a luncheon with two thousand pounds of prime rib, donated by joe and his house of prime rib. every year ktvu works to bring you the sights and sounds of the holiday season in the bay area. our special holiday in focus is tonight at 6:30. the special will also air again tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. we have a new picture this morning of the 15-year-old girl who says she has been reunited with her family after seven

years apart. the 2004 tsunami swept the then 8-year-old girl away. the woman that adopted her and forced her to beg for money. the 15-year-old finally escaped and tracked down her family but officials warn other children have also tracked down people they believe are their family members, only to have dna tests later prove that untrue. christmas eve celebrations are well under way in bethlehem. new video shows the scene earlier today in manger square where a 50-foot tree is in place. more than 90,000 people are expected to gather in bethlehem this weekend. the city is believed to be the traditional birthplace of jesus. this weekend celebration will be highlighted with a midnight mass at the church of nativity. the celebration is continuing despite the ongoing turmoil in the arab world. >> the people are very nervous and the security service and also the police, and they are always with us as completely overshadowed. >> also just in time for christmas, stealing has

reopened the access to the banks river believed to be the location of the baptism for jesus. the british prime minister this morning wished prince philip a speedy recovery. he remains in the hospital after surgery to clear a blocked coronary artery. the 90-year-old prince will gradually wind down his workload but doctors stay she will have to 17 the christmas holiday under their care. the cuban government is softening its stance with the upcoming visit of pope benedict xvi. yesterday the president castro the brother of fidel castro announced the papal trip played a factor in pardoning 2900 political prisoners. however, an american convicted of illegally bringing satellite equipment into cuba two years ago will remain behind bars. alan gross says he was working as a subcontractor for an international development company trying to connect the jewish community to the

internet. an olive branch to pakistan. the u.s. suspended the use of surveillance drones over the afghan border. c.i.a. stopped flying the plane last month in the area after nato airstrike mistakenly hit a pakistani military base killing 24 soldiers. pakistan planes have also killed civilians. opponents of pie speed rail think they're gaining steam. bakersfield congressman mccarthy is the house majority whip. he used to support the plan when he was a state lawmaker but now joining other fiscal conservatives in hopes of derailing the bullet train project. >> which fire stations, what police officers, what schools are we going to close, continue to build a train that will probably they're in be finished? >> we need to move forward on this project bus of costs of doing nothing are far greater. train supporters say the project will create tens of

thousands of good paying jobs. some commercial real estate agents say 2011 has been the best year in nearly 80 years. one real estate company tells ktvu demand for class a high level office space has quadrupled in the last year alone. it all helped by the success of companies like facebook, apple and google. >> as the companies do well center a sales stand point, from a growth standpoint, they need more space, and we're lucky enough to have that in our part of the country. >> people are getting back to work and we know we're seeing other indicators of those trends, especially here in the south bay. we expect that to be a cascading effect through the region. >> real estate agents say san jose could be the next real estate hot spot because of the availability there in that city. paying the price for a big hit on the field. the nfl players who say they're still suffering from concussions they got while playing football and the

lawsuit they've now filed against the league. and a holiday tradition disappearing. the reason you may not find the mistletoes in many doorways this year. >> a live look at jack london square and the christmas tree there. your holiday weekend going to be cool and dry at this hour, near record cold temperatures is what we are experiencing. we'll look outside your air coming up.

falls outside the reach of federal law. u.s. has long considered internet gaming imlegal when it crosses state lines and most gambling websites operateovers. however, the u.s. shut down numerous sites over louisiana few years. 21 former football players are suing the nfl over the

issue of concussions. this is the latest federal lawsuit accusing the league of deliberately omitting or concealing years of evidence linking concussions to long- term neurological problems and permanent brain damage. other teams have also filed lawsuits. the nfl says player safety remains a priority. the league as instituted new measures, including an independent observer games to remind team physicians to check future player concussions. for many people hanging mistletoe from a door at home is a holiday tradition but it seems the grown plant its in short supply because of the drought in texas where the plant grows with abandon. and for those who do manage to locate some mistletoe it can run from 25 bucks a pop. for those on pacific standard time, there's still 16 hours left before christmas. of course, today is the busiest

day of the year for jolly old st. nick and thanks to the north american aerospace command or norad, we're following santa's 24 hour globe- trotting trek! there he is, currently making his way down under through australia. stay found to ktvu and ktvu.com for the latest movements on santa and his reindeer! i don't know who is more excited, myself or my son, about rolling in. >> i don't know. going to your house, you sure? >> i'm pretty positive. >> all right. rosemary has a look the cold forecast today. >> freeze warning for the valley through about another hour. spare the air day. you can see sun is now up and our temperatures will begin to warm from 20 to 25 degrees by about noontime so we see a big warm-up between now and your lunch hour. if you are going to the sierra, it's going to be a dry one. sitting in the 40s in the afternoon. but in the overnight it's a cold one, in the single digits.

forecasted highs today here at home, more of the same. a near repeat of yesterday. upper 50s, low 60s, and light offshore breeze and the extended forecast shows us the possibility of maybe some rain arriving to our area looks like tuesday night into wednesday. back to you. new information on a massive fire that left dozens of people in san francisco without a home this holiday weekend. where firefighters now believe that fire started. and you can help victims of another fire this season. the donations alameda firefighters are collecting today.

and we have another freeze warning in the valley locations, but most of us awfully cold once again! we'll look at your temperatures coming up. and new developments overnight in the race for the g.o.p. nomination for president. why two of the candidates won't be on a state primary ballot. and good morning. welcome to mornings on 2. it's

saturday, december 24ing the. we have another freeze warning for you in effect this morning. rosemary has more on that and the rest of your christmas eve forecast. good morning, rosemary. >> good morning to you! it's the kine of cold that gets in your bones. if you're going outdoors and early, maybe last minute shopping, bundle up. thinking back into the 20s again. our north bay valley spots, east bay valley locations into the santa clara valley, even parts of the peninsula this morning, sitting in the 30s. we're going to look to at your neighborhood numbers, spare the air day again, plus what you can expect in the afternoon, coming up. at least one person has life-threatening injuries after a triple shooting overnight. police say three people were shot shortly after midnight near 14th and broadway. a witness tells ktvu an event nearby had just let out and someone opened fire into a crowd of people. police have not released the victim's ages but again they do say that one victim has life- threatening injuries. a san francisco bar and restaurant is open early this

morning for a good cause. allie rasmus is live at lefty o'doul's where they're hoping to collect thousands of toys, and it's been a party all morning. >> reporter: yes, that's right. a very festive environment here. they opened at 6:00 in morning to start accepting toys for their annual toy drive. they do this every year, with san francisco firefighters. this is the 11th year they've been doing it. so far they've collected about 1500 toys, and don't let this discourage you. they have more toys than this out in the back of the store. but they're accepting more toys, and people are responding. already this morning we've seen about a dozen or so people come in with their bags, getting ready to drop off some of their donations this morning. but their goal is to collect 10,000 toys this year for san francisco kids by the end of today. already we've seen a dozen or so people come in to drop stuff off. the need is greater this year. we talked to one of the organizers who takes

applications from families for toys for kids and the chief told us about this application. applications are definitely up. >> it's almost double from what it was last year and a lot of folks just showing up without an appointment because they don't know the process. they haven't had to go through it before. to first time. lot of working families. >> now, adding to that festive atmosphere we were telling but, inside they've got the carolers, students donating their time. we just took a step outside, santa is here, and they've added to the festive atmosphere by selling this machine on the roof. you can see it there's a little bit of snow here. little -- but hopefully it's cold enough. so by later hopefully they can get this atmosphere going out here. allie rasmus, ktvu channel 2 news. today is the last day to participate in st. anthony's christmas donations in san francisco. the 24 years they have been collecting food, clothing and cash for the less fortunate.

all you have to do is drive to golden gate and jones streets and valets will be there to collect your donations right at the curb. donations will be accepted from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. and there are several charities in need this holiday season. if you'd like to help, just go to the charities in need link at the top of ktvu.com. for all holiday shopping procrastinators, you only have a few hours left of but some people could still be procrastinating and may be still asleep. this is union square this morning. the streets are empty, but don't let that fool you. bay area shops are predicting a big finish to their holiday season. for example, yesterday was one of the biggest days in recent memory for sun valley mall and concord. they expect the same today. >> right now you're -- >> i'm going to the forum because this is too much for me right now. get more if i girlfriend. you know, people are kind of

unbalanced. >> and some shoppers may find it difficult driving into packed mall parking lots. one shopper toll us she spent more than two hours trying to exit one of those parking lots. and here's a check of store hours today. if you still need to shop on christmas day, several places will be open, including some safeways and all walgreens and cvs pharmacies. shoplifters also busy this season. experts estimate about $1.8 billion in merchandise is going to be shoplifted in the u.s. during the four weeks reading up to tomorrow. that's up about 6% from last year. some analysts believe thefts are up because of economy but others say people do it for the thrill or to relieve depression. research suggests almost three- quarters of shoplifters say

they stole on the spur of the moment. with last minute shoppers there are last minute travelers. yesterday but one of busiest days of the year at sfo. oakland and san francisco airports also busy. there were no significant delays for any bay area fliers, and it's the same story so far this morning. here is a live look at the roadways for this morning. this is bay bridge. according to triple-a, more than 11 million californians will be traveling 50 miles or more over the next week. and if are you heading anywhere for the holidays, you can get live drive time traffic updates by going to ktvu.com and clicking on that traffic tab. new this morning, in the g.o.p. race for president, a christmas eve surprise for newt gingrich and rick perry. neither candidate qualifies for the march 6th republican primary in virginia. the republican party of virginia made that announcement on twitter around midnight. the party says both candidates fell short of the 10,000

signatures of registered voters need to qualify for the ballot. mitt romney and ron paul will appear on that ballot. president obama is wake up in hawaii this morning. he and the rest of the first family are spending the holiday there. coming up in our next half hour, the business that had to be taken care of before the president went on vacation. san francisco fire investigators say it could be one month before they know the exact cause of a massive fire that left 38 adults and three children displaced. the fire broke out in the western edition on thursday. flames tore right through two residential buildings and initially investigators believe the fire started in a three- story 1915 edwardian but they now say the fire actually began next door at 10:pierce. >> we do know that the origin is at the bottom of a trash chute? the area. everything was lined up where the foyer started, the wind conditions, the buildings being built close together, really

kind of lined things up for a fire well advanced upon arrival. >> damage is estimated at $8 million. the alameda firefighters association is looking for donations for families displaced in a house fire last weekend. investigators believe the december 17th fire at an apartment complex onshore point court was started by an electrical space heater. people in 18 apartments were displaced. firefighters association is collecting household items, gift cards and new and unwrapped toys. if you would like to help, you can drop off your donations today at fire station one. donations accepted from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. whether it is chestnuts roasting or a yuletide fire taking part in the holiday traditions could get you in trouble with the law today. give you another live look outside now. a spare the air alert is in effect today. this is the second time in the last four years a wood burning ban has been imposed for christmas eve. air quality officials say the cold air is trapping particulate matter in the bay

area management district says inspectors will be out this weekend looking for smoke coming out of your chimney. >> 40% of the wintertime particulate matter we have in the bay area comes from wood smoke. so it's a very problematic pollutant for us, and really the only way to reduce it is to not burn wood in our fireplaces. >> air quality officials say the wood burning ban could be extended through tomorrow. and another burn ban is in place for parts of the bay area. this time from cal-fire. the fire agency is prohibiting open fires until further notice in alameda, contra costa, san mateo and santa clara counties. cal-fire says it's imposing the ban because of the dry weather so far this season. the ban is angering those some farmers who say they need to dispose of diseased wood quickly, a special permit is required for agricultural and industrial fires.

good morning to you. outside our doors we are mostly clear, very calm. we we're very cold once again. bottoming out in the 20s for our valley locations and if you are just joining us, we've got that freeze warning for the next 15 minutes or so. from north to south, you can see our read, calm in morning. and our temperatures falling back into areas right around napa. 28 degrees. 26 reported in santa rosa. yesterday napa hit 20 degrees, and broke a record. concord also sitting in the upper 20s this morning. danville, dublin, even along the peninsula, redwood city upper 20s. cupertino, campbell all in the upper 20s, low 30s. palo alto, satellite radar here this is a 24-hour loop. you may have noticed high clouds yesterday morning. by the afternoon we cleared on the overnight hours, setting the stage for very cold air once again. we got about a clear skies this morning. ridge of high pressure in place, easy to see on this visual here. right over the pacific. storm track staying well north.

this is going to again to change. it will take a few days. christmas day morning, looks like a few high clouds in the forecast, storm track still to the north. it will be dry for the weekend. clouds coming and going. that's about it. monday, clouds. looks like by monday night into tuesday, we do see some changes, and by tuesday morning we could be partly for mostly cloudy. we've got this storm that finally begins to sink south. it looks like tuesday night, wednesday morning a possibility of a few scattered showers. espeallyfor the north bay. the weekend. , today, tomorrow dry and our temperatures upper 50s, low 60s. it is a spare the air day. upper 50s, low 60s right around santa rosa. 58 for san rafael. 57 san francisco this afternoon. 59 in oakland. 58 degrees expected for concord. san jose 61 for today. 61 los gatos. 60 degrees redwood city.

mostly sunny skies, 64 in santa cruz. extended forecast here, sunday night into monday, we see increase in the cloud cover in increase in our onshore flow as opposed to the offshore flow. our temperatures will be up as we start monday morning. but then the afternoon highs can be can be cooler as well. tuesday night and wednesday a first possibility of rain. we'll see rapid climate in our temperatures between now and noontime. i've got your lunchtime numbers coming up. violence erupts across the country. over a pair of shoes. how nike is responding this morning to the frenzy for air jordanst. and baked goods raise a red flag to one tsa agent. why he confiscated a woman's cupcakes. you're watching mornings on 2. get the technology they love,

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good mornings to you! the offshore breeze continues. a live look there. san francisco sitting about 43 degrees in the city. this morning florida authorities are looking for the men who opened fire in a shopping mall with a high- powered assault rifle when the gunman opened fire on two men in the parking lot. one man died. investigators say they found more than 100 shell case ising at the scene and the motive is not known. nike says it's troubled over the violence over the sale of the latest air jordan shoes. in a statement the company announced it was extremely

concerned to hear reports of problems nationwide. as we first reported on mornings on 2 yesterday, at the hilltop mall a man was arrested for firing a gun into the air. crowds shattered wendy's to get inside the mall in fairfield. and in san leandro, 200 people forced their way into the bayfair mall. >> it's really a set-up for competition when people know that there aren't enough products to go around. that's why they get sold for ways to as much on ebay. >> elsewhere, shoe shoppers ripped the doors off its hinges at one store, while in seattle police pepper-sprayed about 20 people who started fighting over the jordanst. and a georgia woman was arrested after she left two toddlers unattended in the mall while she went inside to wait for shoes. and in kansas city, shoppers need a running shoes to get new kicks. there was a mad dash to the sneakers store. but there it is, one person

actually lost his shoe while running. but despite running with only one sneaker, it didn't stop him or the other shoppers. the shoes sold out at that store in 45 minutes. police in hawaii are looking for the group of holiday thieves who walked through the front door of a toys-r-us only to walk out the backdoor with more than a thousand dollars in merchandise and in honolulu police say it's all caught on camera. officers say a group of five women and one man walked into the store in december 1s and walked out the back entrance, all while snatching out toys in the store. investigators say the group had a car waiting future them and made several trips before finally making a getaway. >> these people or this group i should call them is just grabbing, taking back to the car, looking at the merchandise. so they stocked up pretty well for christmas. and it's not small items. if you looking at the pictures show barbie, it shows huge items that they're carrying.

>> police say store security never noticed the group stealing the toys. iraq war veteran is back home in the bay area, just in time for christmas. nicholas buffy arrived at the oakland airport yesterday after nearly yearlong tour of duty in iraq. the 25-year-old army sergeant says he is proud of the work his unit accomplished. >> coming back knowing that we actually made a big difference, change in security, made sure everybody was on top of their jobs, provided whatever they needed for assistance, mack sure they could take the country. >> you would do anything he had to do to make sure his country was safe. >> he is from petaluma. his father and grandmother say they're extremely proud of him. and of course thrilled he is home for christmas. the man behind the lafayette crosses memorial says he hopes the end of the u.s. military involved in iraq means the beginning of the end for his memorial. that memorial now includes more than 4,000 white crosses in honor of the u.s. soldiers who

died fighting in iraq and afghanistan. jeff heaton tells the times he hopes the war in afghanistan draws down to the point where he can take the crosses down. the federal government is objecting to a new south carolina voter identification law. the justice department claims it discriminates against minorities in violation of the voting laws act. the law requires voters to present an i.d. south carolina says it reduces voter fraud. reality tv host and real estate mogul donald trump has left the republican party. he change his voter registration in new york state on thursday from republican to unaffiliated. a spokesman for trump says the change will let the business man run a possible campaign for president. but the spokesman adds trump will only enter the race for president if he feels republicans fail to nominate a candidate who can defeat

president obama. a transportation security administration prohibits several items at the nation's airport. as you may know, guns, knives, even some liquids are not allowed. and for a woman from massachusetts, neither is a cupcake. rebecca haines says a tsa agent confiscated her cupcake on wednesday, because the frosting was too similar to gel. gel is prohibited because it could be used as part of an explosive device. haines says the tsa agent overreacted. >> not really about safety. it's about making people follow rules that really i think to the average traveler seem arbitrary and are encroaching on civil liberties. >> you bake this. is there a liquid or gel in that jar? >> no. it's just -- cake filling and frosting. >> tsa says cakes and pies are generally allowed in carry-on luggage. they're now promising to investigate the incident. you never know what you'll find tucked away in the closets

at home. a oregon man was cleaning his mother's house when he says he found an old letter from the white house. it was dated on november 20, 1963. two days before the assassination of president john f. kennedy. the mother of the oregon man was a second grade teacher and she assigned her class to write through president kennedy. she believes the president and not the aide wrote back. >> i this is a testimony this this was a genuinely good guy. >> like the rest of the nation, his mouth month kentucky's death. she filed the letter away. her son hopes to display it. for some it is a holiday tradition or romantic one at that. but it's been harder to track down this year. what is lined the shortage of mistletoe? plenty of sun over the east bay. we're still waiting to thaw out. coming up, what is happening outside your door this morning. what you can expect for your holiday weekend. state farm. this is jessica.

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there's about 15-hours left before christmas. so we want to give you're a live look at where santa is because this is the busiest day of the year for jolly old st. nick, and the north american aerospace defendant command or norad gives u.s. a look at his progress, following santa's globe-trotting trek, and this tracker currently shows santa

in malaysia. he wrapped up australia and moved on to malaysia. people who live along the mississippi river are helping santa find his way. it is a christmas eve tradition to light bonfires along the levee between baton rouge and new orleans. this year the fire department is building bonfires to match the theme of monster trucks. for many people hanging mistletoe from a doorway at home is a holiday tradition. but this year, it seems the wild green plant is in short supply. it's all because of the drought in texas. when the plant usually grows with the bend and for those who do manage to locate mistletoe it could run for as much as $25 but that could be worth it. >> all right. time is 8:25. santa is headed our way, clear skies, won't have any trouble finding us. rosemary, maybe dressed in layers? >> yes. dry and you cannot escape the cold this morning no matter where you're at! the valley of course seeing the coldest conditions, but all of us sitting near freezing.

take a look at the shades of white, meaning sitting in the 20s and you can see it's our north bay east bay as well as santa clara valleys, santa rosa areas around petaluma in the 20s this morning. martinez through the delta, strait, fairfield in the low 20s. concord, san ramon, in the mid to upper 20s. and we're looking at pinks, 30s for most of the rest of the bay area. we will continue with the cold weather through about noontime. look at what happens here. 9:00 we're in the shades of pinks and purples, meaning 30s and 40s. for your lunch hour, most of us in the 50s. widespread 50s, low to upper 50s. and for the afternoon just a few patches of green meaning a few low 60s out there. take a look here. 60 degrees expected santa rosa. 58 for novato. upper 50s around the east bay. 59 for danville. 59 san leandro. 60 degrees santa clara. 61 san jose. 57 expected in the city. 57 san bruno. 61 degrees woodside. extended forecast, dry today,

dry christmas day. slightly warmer tomorrow morning but not a lot. monday more clouds in the forecast onshore breeze. we'll bring our temperatures up in the overnight hours. upper 50s, low 60s in the forecast for the afternoon. and a slight possibility of some rain from tuesday night into wednesday morning. back to you. a family from texas is lucky to be alive after being buried alive under a mountain of snow for two days. >> that snow is coming in at all directions, 30 plus miles an hour. >> david higgins and his wife and his five-year-old daughter were inside one of 32 cars that became trapped by a blizzard in new mexico. they say the snow came down to fast, their suv got buried under the 10 feet of snow and they were trapped for a ski trip so did have food and water. he called his brother on his cell phone and he notified new mexico state police. they did require medical attention and the woman is

recovering from pneumonia. a south bay man life-saving is nearly wiped out just days before christmas. how police say someone he trusted with his money took hundreds of thousands of dollars. and president obama is now on his delayed christmas vacation. the business he had to take care of before flying to hawaii. hey guys, what can i get for you? i would like a decaf 360 calories please.

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clear skies, but crisp, cold air across the bay area. it's christmas eve morning, and right now a freeze warning is in effect. and good morning, everyone. welcome back to mornings on 2. meteorologist rosemary is going to have your complete holiday weekend forecast coming up in

just about nine minutes. first, lefty o'doul's is very busy over there this morning. they're hoping to collect thousands of toys to make sure it some of the less fortunate children have a very merry christmas. allie rasmus has been there all morning long as people have been coming by. you've get the bins out there, music, you're going to snow outside! busy day out there! >> yeah, we've got did all. and the toy bins are filling up pretty fast. we've got here, there was just two bins full. now you can see it in the last hour, hour and a half, lot of people have been dropping off stuff. santa here is unloading some of the bags that people have brought in as they make some of these toy donations. this is for the lefty o'doul's's toy drive, they're doing it every year with the san francisco firefighters, and this year they're also working with the san francisco police department. the agencies are the ones who will be dropping off and delivering these toys to needy kids in san francisco on christmas day. they've already collected about 1500 toys, but their goal is to collect 10,000 toys by the end

of the day. and the need is greater this year. we talked to one of the organizers who takes applications from families who need toys for their kids and she told us about the applications in year. >> and a lot of folks just showing up at the door without an appointment because they don't know the process. they haven't had to go through it before. so lot of working families. >> now they've added to the festive atmosphere here. they brought in volunteers. spending the morning singing christmas carols. hoping that people who come in will be inspired to make a donation to the holiday spirit. we turn the camera around and you can see it there's a gentleman here who brought three bags full of toys. they're going to be accepting toys here at lefty o'doul's until 2 a.m. this morning. that is last call. the toys they really need more of are for teenage girls, ages 11 to 15. again, open until 2:00 this morning for more donations.

volunteers will also be gathering at glad memorial chump in san francisco today to prepare thousands of christmas meals. breakfast will be served at 7 a.m. tomorrow. and dinner service begins at 9. and this morning there's a luncheon with two thousand pounds of prime rib. all donated by joe petroleum and the san francisco establishment the house of prime rib. there are several charities in need. if you want to help, take a look at who is asking for help by going to the charities link at the top of the ktvu.com page. less than 14 hours until christmas and that mean procrastinators are running out of time. bay area shops are predicting a big finish to their holiday season. for example, yesterday was one of biggest days in memory for sun valley mall in concord, and they expect the same today. holiday shoppers had to leave the second floor of the

oakridge mall in san jose yesterday afternoon after a man reported a hazardous vapor in the bathroom at a movie theater. he was treated for minor respiratory injuries. fire department spokesman said a mall worker accidentally combined over-the-counter cleaning products. the busiest travel days passed but a lot of people are still expected to be flying or driving somewhere today. you're taking a life look at san jose airport. yesterday was the busiest travel day and many airports, and we've been looking but haven't seen any major delays this morning in the bay area. so that is good news. let's look at your roads with your live drive time. sun is shining, you can see people are out there. there's the east shore freeway heading up to berkeley and things moving along but we do expect it to be pretty busy today as people go out and try to get the last minute shopping done. 92million americans are expected to travel this holiday season. if you are heading anywhere, remember you can get live drive time traffic by going to ktvu.com.

click on the traffic tab. president obama is in hawaii to finally begin hiss christmas vacation with the first family. mr. obama departed the plane when arriving in honolulu. first lady michelle and daughters arrived in hawaii one week ago ahead of the president. the white house says there will be no public events while the first family vacations in hawaii. before departing for hawaii the president signed legislation extending the payroll tax cuts. it comes after a week long standoff with house republicans who de newschanneled a yearlong extension in instead of a two- month extension. republicans relented after pressure from the president, the senate and even some people within their own party. on payroll tax cuts president obama also signed a federal spending bill for 2012. democrats and republicans in congress agreed to that spending bill last week after days of negotiations and fears

there could be a government shutdown. and this morning president obama and the first lady released a special holiday theme weekly online video address. >> as you gather with family and friends this weekend, michelle and i want to wish you all merry christmas and happy holidays. this is such a wonderful time of year. it's a time to honor the story of love and redemption that began two thousand years ago. a time to see the world through a child's eyes and rediscover the magic all around us. >> mr. obama and the first lady are also calling on americans to find a way to give back to the military and their families. in hawaii, more than 200 hospital employees did not receive a christmas bonus, instead found out just yesterday they're going to lose their jobs effective today. the layoffs at the hawaii medical center came after the owners failed to sell the hospital and therefore decided to close it. 800 other employees are expected to lose their jobs

after the holidays. bay area nurses walked out of their jobs are going to return to work today. thousands of nurses working at sutter health hospitals walked off the job thursday future a one day strike. but the nurses were not allowed to go back to work yesterday because sutter health hired replacement nurses for two days. the nurses union and sutter health involved in contract negotiations and those negotiations are expected to continue in january. a san jose bank manager and her husband are both facing felony charges after police say they scammed a 96-year-old man out of nearly $1 million. police say christina brig and her husband jimmy met the man at the bank where christina worked. police say the pair convictioned the man they were distant relatives and then withdrew money from his account. he purchased jewelry a mercedes and cosmetic surgery with the money. authorities say they have frozen the man's accounts saving more than half a million dollars and also seized some of the items that were purchased.

arraignment postponed until next week future a man accused of posing as a doctor. carlos guzman garza is suspected of running a dermatology clinic in the city's mission district. he faces felony charges for allegedly stealing the identity of a physician's assistant and at the forming invasive procedures on people without a medical license. the district attorney accuses him of botching a procedure causing an infection in a patient that forced her to have reconstructive surgery to repair the damage. >> while waiting for the anesthesia to take, he walked out to get coffee next door, and he was smoking a cigar, offered her a cigarette. >> the patient says she even had to hold her own iv bag. prosecutors believe there could be other victims. the man faces 12 years in prison if convicted. a stabbing victim found after he crashed his car no a house has died. police were called to a home

near monterey and carolina streets around 6:30 last night. officers found 22-year-old caesar lobos inside a truck that sideswiped a home. they say he had been stabbed several times. he was later pronounced dead at the hospital. this is the 18th homicide this year in vallejo. the holiday crackdown on drunk drivers is well understand way this weekend. law enforcement agencies are holding dui check points throughout the bay area and union city last night motorists had reminders they should not be drinking and driving. one person whose blood alcohol level registered just under the .08 legal limit was not allowed to drive himself home. >> we also have saturation patrols, in other words, we have additional officers come in and work the streets looking specifically for signs of di and also educating people. >> the extra patrols are in place through new year's day. the number of alcohol-related deaths dropped to a record low

last year but starting january 1, a new law is going to give judges the ability to suspend a repeat offender's license for up to 10 years instead of three after a third ducks i. good morning to you. a live look san francisco, bring along the shades and the thick jacket. it's a chilly one on there. san francisco sitting in the low 40s. mostly calm although a breeze in some areas right along the coast this morning. freeze warnings still in place in the valleys, in the 20s once again and it's a cold one out there! trust me when i say. you will need the hat, scarf and the gloves out there early on! 26 right now at santa rosa. 28 in napa. 24 in fairfield. the delta strait a freeze warning that is actually a hard freeze meaning low 20s and widespread low 20s a possibility and that area.

27 at concord. 28 in livermore. allow me to show you where we're painfulfully cold in redwood city. and areas right around palo alto it is illegal okay, and we've got a little bit of unhealthy air expected for today, especially our sensitive groups. if you have a lung disease, asthma, respiratory issues this, could impact you. your sad light radar view showing you clear skies overhead, a very clear and calm conditions. and that ridge of high pressure just remains, keeping that storm track well to the north, and it's going to stay that way at least for the next couple days. but quo have changes in time for the last week of december. so the street through the holiday weekend which may appreciate if you've got last men shopping to do. but by mid-week wednesday we could see some changes. today fair skies, upper 50s,

low 60s. take a look at what we can expect and for your neighborhood. 59 oakland. 60 degrees fremont. 62 expected mountainview. 57 in the city. upper 50s, low 60s for the north way. extended forecast, clouds will begin to increase but our first chance for rain comes tuesday night into wednesday. those clouds and return to our onshore flow by monday morning, will hold our temperatures up just a little bit in the overnight hours and will start awfully cold but perhaps a little above freezing in most cases. i'm going to show you the rain models when we do expect the rain to arrive coming up in just a bit. the nfl is facing another lawsuit from former players. what they accuse the league of doing that they say some players so suffer permanent brain damage. and a special delivery for children who have parents in prison. get the technology they love,

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good morning to you! a clear, calm, cold start to the day and take a look at this. we spotted a floater oakland estuary. shortsleeves at that! oh, my goodness! in news of the world, a u.s. is offering an olive branch to pakistan. the u.s. is suspended the use of surveillance drones over the afghan border. the c.i.a.

stopped flying the spy plane in the area last month after a nato airstrike mistakenly hit a pakistan military base killing 24 soldiers. the drones have been used to track al-qaeda but pakistan claims he have also been used to kill civilians. the cuban government is softening its stance with the visit of pope benedict xvi. yesterday cuba's president the brother of fidel castro announced the papal trip played a factor in pardoning 2900 political prisoners. however, an american convicted of ill locally bringing satellite equipment into cuba two years ago will remain behind bars. alan gross was working as a subcontractor for an international development company trying to connect the jewish community to the internet. the british prime minister this morning wished prince philip a speedy recovery. he is the husband of queen elizabeth and he remains in the hospital today after surgery to clear a blocked coronary artery. buckingham palace says the prince will gradually wind down his workload but doctors say he

will have to spend the christmas holiday under their care. we have a new picture this morning of the 15-year-old girl who says she has been reunited with her family after seven years apart. the 2000 tsunami swept the then eight-year-old girl away. a woman adopted her and forced her to beg for money. the 15-year-old says she finally escaped it tracked down her family. but officials warn that other children have also tracked down people they believe are their family members only to have dna tests later prove that untrue. christmas eve celebrations are underway in bethlehem. new video shows the scene earlier today in manger square, where a 50-foot tree is in place. more than 90,000 people are expected to gather in bethlehem this weekend. the city is believed to be the traditional birthplace of jesus. this within's celebration will be highlighted with a midnight mass at the urch of the nativity. the celebration is continuing despite the ongoing turmoil in

the arab world. >> you feel it in the air. the people are very nervous and also the security service and also the police, and they are always with -- completely overshadowed. >> also just in time for christmas, israel has reopened access to the banks of the jordan river. that is believed to be the location of the baptism for jesus. 21 former football players are suing the nfl over the issue of concussions. this is the latest federal lawsuit accusing the league of deliberately omitting or concealing years of evidence linking concussions to long- term neurological problems and permanent brain damage. the claim was filed on behalf of some former miami dolphins recently retired players on other teams including the atlanta falcons and detroit lions have also filed lawsuits. >> numbness in my fingers and arms, i have headaches that just happen out of nowhere. >> the nfl says players safety

remains a top priority. the league has instituted new measures including an independent observer at games to remind team physicians to check for player concussions. the obama administration appears to have softened its stance on internet gambling. they issued an opinion yesterday stating online betting unrelated to sporting events falls outside the reach of federal law. the u.s. long considered internet gaming illegal. when it crossed state lines and most websites operate overseas. however, the u.s. shut down numerous sites in the past few years. several states are now studying plans for web betting within states. there are a number of stories about families in need this time of year. but one christmas tradition helps some people you splay never thought of. pam cook has the story of a unique motorcycle ride. >> it started 12 years ago with about 50 bikers. it's grown to about 200 riders who won't miss this event. delivering toys to children of

inmates at san quinten. >> it's a joy and pleasure for the kids and us to walk in and see the smiling happy faces. they don't get it that often. >> brett owns a motorcycle shop so this was a perfect fit. he and his friends started the gift run to san quinten because they know what it's like to be behind bars and not able to do something for their families. >> all my friends little try to do a good job so help the kids have a better christmas. because their dads can't do anything for them. >> the kids look forward to this every year. they even get a chance to visit with santa. and it doesn't stop there. the organization friends outside and center course raise money to help the kids year round. >> our money goes back into the prison and then helps programs for the fathers, and also goes in to help programs for the kids. last year we helped the kids go on a camping trip. >> biggest gift of all is just the treasure of people who really care.

>> pam cook, ktvu channel 2 news. ktvu viewers are sharing the holiday spirit with the homeless family. about two weeks ago we reported the story of jennifer and her four young, children who spent years bouncing around with relatives and in homeless shelters. more heartbreaking 10-year-old girl told us classmates teased her situation. >> i -- every day and they tell me to change it and go home. >> what would do you? >> cry. >> it's going to be great. i'm looking forward to working and going to school. >> people care about other people. >> she is happier now. a viewer did pay for her family to live in a motel for two weeks. plus, the san francisco housing authority has just found them a two bedroom apartment that is going to open up next month. and their recent donation will

help the city provide temporary and permanent shelter for some needy families. every year ktvu works to bring you the sights and sounds of the holiday season. related near in the bay area. our special program, holiday in focus, airs tonight at 6:30. the special will also air again tomorrow at 5:30. we're counting down to christmas this morning. we have been keeping an eye on santa as he makes his way around the world. we'll let you know where he is coming up in a few minutes. >> it's freezing! temperatures are slowly making a comeback. we'll look at what you can expect outside your door, coming up.

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there's just a little over 15 hours before christmas. of course, today is the busiest day of the year for jolly old st. nick, and i know you're wondering where he is. requirement now santa is visiting and dropping off gifts to children in china. we're getting this live look at santa's trip around the world thanks to the north american aerospace defense command. a dog nicknamed rudolph is recovering after being rescued from a southern california freeway. the pit bull mix has been darting through traffic on the 10 freeway for the past week. he has been living in a section of road under construction. there he is. and he is shelter.

police tracked him down after receiving numerous calls from concerned motorists. >> chp closed the freeway in case the dog leaped into the highway. at that point, our trained officers went ahead and roped the animal and were able to impound him safely and only stopping traffic for no more than a couple minutes. animal control officers are preparing rudolph for adoption this christmas weekend. if his owner doesn't claim him. the nba returns tomorrow and the golden state warriors are opening on christmas day. they will host the clippers tomorrow night. the clippers may headlines last week when they traded for chris paul. tomorrow mark the first time the game will be nationally televised. here's an early christmas [for football fans. a full slate of nfl gyms today. that includes the raiders and the 49ers. the raiders are in kansas city kicking off at 10:00 this morning. the niners are up north in

seattle, at 1:00 here on ktvu. but first, catch the fox nfl pre-game show in just a few minutes. and watch the new york giants take on the jets. our post-game show followings the 49ers game. raiders trying forget into the playoffs. two important games for the two clubs. and let's check in with rosemary for a look at your holiday forecast. >> yes. good morning to you. in seattle where the 49ers play, there will be some rain. we'll be dry but a slow transition taking place. next few days are tomorrow morning christmas morning we wake up with mostly clear, partly cloudy skies. notice the storm track now getting a little bit closer, singing into northern california. monday still dry, partly cloudy skies. tuesday morning, this is a system that will sink far enough south that by tuesday night into wednesday morning, we could see a few scattered showers. a holiday weekend is a dry one. a freeze warning expiring in the next few minutes for our valley locations.

and we are still sitting in the 20s and 30s for the valley. 30s, low 40s around the bay and the coast this morning. tomorrow morning not as bad. temperatures hovering in the upper 50s, low 60s. but we'll notice the increase in the clouds especially by monday and tuesday. and with the clouds the onshore flow overnight lows won't be as cold. so monday morning, getting back to work. if you have to go to work, monday is a holiday for many folks. it won't be as cold. >> so it's good tomorrow to stay inside. hang out with family. open presents. but don't light the fireplace. >> spare the air day today. >> thank you. that's our report for this morning. thank you for trusting ktvu channel 2 news. we'll center more news and weather for you at 6:00. we're always here for you at ktvu.com and mobile ktvu. have a great saturday, everyone!