thanks to better weather, and folks here in good spirits. this is macy's 23rd annual great tree lighting. 23,000 l.e.d. lights. the ceremony kicking off. singer chrisman will be here, as well as the make a wish foundation. and of course it's macy's tree lighting, part of the holiday tradition for so many. >> their first time here in town, and i wanted to show them the city and san francisco, and why not come over here and see the tree get lit up. >> i'm excited that i'm going to the tree, and i'm going to see the lights, and i'm so excited! >> reporter: we're talking to a lot of people out here who say they have been waiting their whole lives to see this. this tree lighting set to go up at 6:40 this evening, and we will be here and bring it to you later this evening.

and a holiday hiatus for work on the central subway, so getting around union square could get a little easier on big holidays. no construction yesterday, today, or again on christmas day or new year's day. construction is also stopped on stockton and ellis until january, and the streets will be reopened to traffic to allow crowds to get in a little easier. >> hundreds of protesters are supposed to be ending their demonstration at a san lie an dough wal-mart today. they quiet confronted wal-mart managers at the store front today. this is the largest protest in the area at wal-marts. earlier today, wal-mart said this action was not affecting sales. shoppers hoping for a great deal on a great big television camped out overnight in

emeryville. best buy opened its doors at midnight to hundreds of eager shoppers. they went after deals, such as a 40-inch screen television for $180, or a laptop for just $200. one man told us it worked out well for him, because he went with a plan. at liver mother's new paragon outlet stores. it is the first outlet mall to open here in california in more than 10 years. it's expected to create 2,000 permanent jobs, on top of hundreds more seasonal positions. store sales indicate a 2.3% increase so far for black friday compared to last year, and on-line sales have jumped about 20%. overall, holiday spending is expected to grow by 4.1%.

all of that shopping enthusiasm spread to the stock market today. the dow shot up more than 170 points, and the nasdaq was up more than 40 points. there is a dark side, though, to this black friday. coming up, how thieves use this big shopping down to rip people off. >> rescue crews pulled five people from a yacht taking on water on san francisco bay. also on board, a dog, cat, and snake. the yacht was about 300 yards north of the berkeley peer. the largest vessel in this video is the one in trouble. three people stayed on board as it was towed. no one was injured, and everyone was wearing a life jacket. a possible early morning shopping trip ended with a horrible crash that killed a 24- year-old woman when her family's suv hit a chp cruiser parked on the side of the road on 101 in palo alto. eric is live at the scene with

new information he has saved bout the other victims in just the past hour. >> reporter: in the last hour, officers are tell me the victim's 20-year-old sister and her mother are both in critical condition at stanford hospital. it took six hours for officers to reopen all of these lanes here on 101 today. even longer to completely clear this scene tonight. a family of six in this gold suv never made it home to san bruno. just before 7:00 a.m., the chp says one of its officers was pulled over on the shoulder of northbound 101 in palo alto to help a truck with a flat tire, when the suv hit the cruiser from behind. >> as the vehicle overturned. two of the six parties that were there in the vehicle were ejected. >> the old e. of four officers, who was 24, did not suv 55. her 20-year-old sister is still in critical condition at stanford hospital. >> we were shocked, yeah, and saddened, because clearly

something terrible happened. >> reporter: word of the crash brought neighbors to this pedestrian overpass to see what happens. investigators say the father was driving. they don't know what caused him to suddenly swerve into the chp cruiser, but will be reviewing video of the crash recorded from the patrol car's dash camera. they have ruled out drugs or alcohol. in the debris, officers did find several shopping bags, a clue that the family may have been on its way home from an early black friday shopping trip. one man was shocked to hear about it. >> very light traffic. seemed like nothing going on that could happen like this, but it did. >> reporter: the officer in that patrol car was not seriously hurt. tonight we do have another crew over at stanford hospital talking to family and family friends. we'll have the full reporting tonight at 10:00. eric rasmussen, ktvu channel 2 news. check this out. another accident tied up traffic this morning.

the crash involved a jackknifed big rig and several other vehicles on eastbound 80 in berkeley. happened about 10:15. traffic quickly backed up, but crews were able to clear the mess about an hour later. >> a small plane crashed today in northern california killing the pilot. the lane going down just about two hours ago near the airport in the town of san andreas. these pictures of the wreckage, there is not much left of this plane. authorities are on then scene there looking into the cause. police in clear lake in lake county are asking for the public's help tonight to find these two missing teenage aers. lacy elwood and sarah beck were last seen at a taco bell on saturday. elwood is described as 145 pounds, blond hair and blue eyes. becca is described as 5'7", 135 pounds, also with blond hair and hazel eyes. they may be headed to the ukia

area. police arrested two people suspect odd of a shooting a at nightclub. it happened at club 101 around 12:30 last night. two men were shot after a fight spilled out into the parking lot. the two suspects, both in their 20s, were arrested. >> a firefighter is in the hospital tonight after fighting a fast-moving fire. one resident said the flames sounded like an explosion. >> i just panicked. i grabed my dog and came outside, and literally like the whole -- like everything was just covered in smoke, and, like, the house was just up in flames. >> a ceiling collapsed on the captain who suffered a broken vertebra in his neck. another injured firefighter was treated and released. in all, 18 residents are displaced. this fire is being called accidental. the california highway patrol will be on maximum ebbs forment through the entire

holiday weekend. locally, 71 people have been arrested for driving under the influence. that's the total number for wednesday and yesterday. statewide, the chp has arrested 455 drivers, and that number is down compared to last year's 481 arrests over that same time span. so do you have what it takes to join the highway patrol? they're accepting applications for three days starting january 3rd. the chp says the rigorous screening process generally weeds out about 97% of the applicants, and then half of the remaining three percent of the cadets don't complete the gruels six months training. candidates must be between 20 and 35 years old. the dark side of black friday. while you're out there shopping, gangs of grinches really are out there to steal christmas. tom has the story of crime on the rise. >> while you look for bargains,

the bad guys are actively looking for your unattended property everywhere. the season of good tieings provides a bonanza of opportunities for thieves, amateur and professional. >> i'm probably a little more careful because my car got broken into a couple of years ago. >> that cannot happen to me. so i think the best think is to put all of this stuff in the trunk. >> i've had friends who left purses in their front seat, and they come back, and it's gone. >> reporter: county sheriff dave hartman said car thieves are just part of the uptick in crime. >> folks are going to find a way to get things, and they'll get them by any means necessary. >> reporter: but many people choose to avoid all of the hustle and wonderful by having packages shipped directly to their home. bad idea if you don't have someone there to receive it. >> example, a neighborhood watch camera showed a package being stolen in broad daylight,

an increasingly common crime. >> people drive through neighbors and see those boxes. they're just going to go up and grab them. >> we work all day, so you never know when you're going to get home and miss something. >> i have my neighbors sign it over and let them pick it up, or just anything other than leaving it there. >> finally, the fbi says that there were 400,000 home break- ins last november and december, many because people left tell tale signs they were gone, including newspapers piling up, and posts left on facebook and twitter that they would be out of town. a group protested a store today because it's built over their an six trail burial grounds. the city of emeryville consider aid allowing the mall street

mall to be built in 1990, and they have protested every year since then. >> we come out to remind the public every year why it's important that we don't violate these grounds. we kicked off the one warm coat holiday campaign today. rita is live at the south bay at santana row where she is making her own donation on what is her last one warm coat drive. >> reporter: well, heather, it is my last time here. as most people know, i'll be retiring next february, but i've been doing this now for a decade, on my day off, not getting paid, just because i believe in the cause here. you can see a lot of other people believe in the case, too. it's been my privilege to go out on the streets and tell

people stories, and what i've seen is there is great need out there, and you can see that other people believe that, too. if we look on our tooth board here, we have 1,482 coats. that's more than double what we had out here last year. and rosie, our public affairs director, tells me we're on target right now to collect more than 5,000 coats from our four locations. that's pre-recession levels that we've collected, a produce record. in that spirit, i just want to say this was my mother's favorite coat. she died last year at 94, and i know that she would be happy that i add this to the total. girls, we now have 1,423 coats. report live from san jose, rita williams, ktvu channel 2 news. one warm coat in walnut creek. it's friendly competition to help those in need. which community will give the most. >> why more than 6,000 people

will spend the next 10 days here in downtown san francisco speaking a secret language. >> a great day to be outside right now even san francisco. you can see some ice skaters here. coming up, when rain chances have been added for the bay area forecast. our

it's our 10th annual one warm coat event. it's an easy way to help someone this holiday season. one coat could really make a huge difference in someone's life. this is a live look at what's going on at walnut creek. we'll find out how much many coats have been collected there in a moment, but first let's go over to bay street in emmyville. fred, how are the donations

going? >> reporter: well, great. i'm very impressed here. we're at 883. -- 983. our goal was to reach a thousand. this young lady here has been so excited. karen, what do you want to do? >> i'm going to donate my coat. >> she's going to donate her own coat right here because she understands, she's, watching what's going on, that even young folks can help participate in the generous program here. also with me is a man from the oakland area, martin. i was impressed with you just kind of quietly walking in, and here you are. you're on tv. >> wow. yes. no, i was actually at home having dinner, and watching the news. this came on, and i thought, well, i have plenty of coats that i am not using, so what a great way to donate them and help a great cause. >> it's so simple. martin just found. you come down here, and if you want to go shopping, there's a

lot of great stores here at emeryville, but mortgage importantly, a lot of opportunities to help someone. as we said, it is warming communities one coat at a time. we are looking for a thousand. we're 17 short. i hope we can do that. and don't forget, there will always be barrels available for one warm coat around the community, and just like in wall put creek where jade hernandez is right now. >> we're looking for 1500 coats, and we're just a little under 100. you can see the girl scouts helping out. they are sorting these coats right now, because we have received a little more than 1400 coats. the generosity today has been truly unbelievable. it makes everyone just glad to be a part of today's one warm coat. we're at broadway plaza in wall nut creek. feel free to come by, clean out your closet. pick up that coat that is gently used, or some coat that you don't wear, but you know

that someone could use this holiday season. bring it down here to broadway plaza. when you do that, we will count it on the board and hopefully reach 1500 coats. these coats will go to those less fortunate. it's an amazing time, because we have had all sizes. men, women, baby coats, new coats. people have dropped off new coats. it's just a wonderful, wonderful way to give this holiday season. we're going to be out here until 7:00. so if you have that coat, or you're shopping around and you realize the coat that you have, you bought a new one, don't need that, you can bring your coat right here to walnut creek, broadway plaza. back to you in the studio. >> thousands are flocking to downtown san francisco with one thing on their mind. here is hint. it's not shopping. we look at a thanksgiving tradition that spans the next 10 days. >> 16-year-old adam kaplan drove in from florida to match wits against the world's best bridge players. >> it offers a lot of unique

challenges. >> reporter: many from around the globe will compete in the tournament. >> this is the top tournament that is offered on the globe. so everybody wants to come here, because they want to play the best of the best. >> reporter: for the nonplayers, bridge doesn't look much like a spectator sport. players don't speak out loud, and rely on a secret language that involves cards to communicate. >> keeping quiet and keeping still is required by bridge laws. that's because even a tap of a tow can signal the strength of a hand. >> look around the room, and you can is see a new generation of players is embracing the game. organizers hope the 10-day bridge blitz will help change the image of the game from stuffy to sexy. >> bridge game of true skill. it's poker on steroids.

>> reporter: santa clara bridge teacher judy clark describes bridge as exhilarating exercise for the brain. not to mention a boost for the local economy. she is staying in a downtown hotel for the next two weeks, so she can stay as close as she can to the action. >> i intend to have a ball for 10 days. >> reporter: in san francisco, patty lee, ktvu channel 2 news. well, just fantastic weather for this holiday weekend. today most areas on little bit with temperatures. in fact, a beautiful day to be outside today in san francisco. nothing but blue skies out there. thanksgiving weekend, we could be tracking moderate to heavy rain, but institute the case for today. san francisco maxed out at 66 degrees this afternoon. five degrees above the average. you can see some lower 70s. 71 in oakland earlier today,

and 70 if santa rosa. forecast headlines for tonight, we do have this. fair skies, temperatures on the cool side. the weekend, some patchy morning fog, a dry weather forecast. extended, more cloud cover. the rain clouds will be making a comeback. outside right now, we still have fair skies out there, but definitely want to bundle up. that will set the stage for a very cold saturday morning. look at all of the upper 30s out there and the 40s, and once again, watch out for some patchy valley fog. san jose 45, and concord right around 41 degrees. here is set up in the pacific. main storm headed to the north of the bay area. we'll have patchy fog out there. this is not wide spread here, but still a few patches really targeting parts of the north bay. the real extensive fog out toward the central valley. so just watch out for a drop off of visibility in a few spots first thing tomorrow morning, but in the afternoon, as high pressure strength weres, that will guarantee us

some more sunshine, and temperatures do come down a little bit. sunday will be the keelest day of the weekend. rain chances, in fact, increasing next week, at least the possibilities. here is our long range forecast model. you'll notice this, don't look at the details too much, but it does signal a change as we head into wednesday, and then into thursday, as well. possibly moderate to heavy. so we'll be on the lookout for that next week. tomorrow, though, more sunshine out there. enjoy. great weather to be outside. san mateo 67. half moon by a 64. here is a look ahead. your five-day forecast with your weekend always in view. a little bit cooler on a sunday. we'll gradually increase the cloud cover, and by next tuesday, could be tracking a series of storms for wednesday, thursday, and friday, but great news this weekend, looking great with just those mild temperatures out there. possibly 70 again tomorrow. >> doesn't get better than that. tonight it look like we

now know who in the starting quarterback will be for the 49ers this weekend. [ crickets chirping ]

[ traffic passing ] ♪ [ music box: lullaby ] [ man on tv, indistinct ] ♪ [ lullaby continues ] [ baby coos ] [ man announcing ] millions are still exposed to the dangers... of secondhand smoke... and some of them can't do anything about it.

♪ [ continues ] [ gasping ] okay. mark joins us now. and the mystery is solved. >> i was just talking about steps when you have 6, 7 days

you have to fill between a game, that's the thing. way too much time if between for discussion when it comes to selecting a quarterback. when you have a so-called controversy like we've had this week. despite 49er denials, it is as we reported a couple of nights ago, colin kaepernick is going to start sunday. the team denied it yesterday, but safety whittener confirmed today that kaepernick will start. jim access never really straight with the media, but he is the -- jim harbaugh never really straight with the media, but he is the starter for sunday. >> today pacific versus st. mary's. it's the tigers of pacific with a 16-0 run in the second half. mcleod leading the way with 18. gales lose by 10.

they're now 4-1. stanford men, pretty good deal for their holiday tournament. they're in the bahamas. stanford cruising in the consolation game. wsu versus the huskies today. wsu came back from a big deficit. 67-yard return in overtime, and it set up the game-win be field goal. cougars of wsu coming back from a 28-10 deficit to wind up winning in overtime. the warriors tipped off up in did denver just a couple of minutes ago. full highlights at 10. >> see you thin. thank you, mark. and -- see you then. thank you mark. and thank you for trusting ktvu news.

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