now at noon, bay area commuters cannot seem to catch a break. an average morning commute snarled by a big rig fire. hours after it happened lanes are finally reopening. the transit agency announces its plans to strike. this as bart commuters get a day of assurance as a governor steps in to avert a strike. but still no deal in sight.

good afternoon. i'm tori campbell. traffic is slowly recovering after a big rig caught fire just on the other side of the bay bridge. here's a live look at the toll plaza right now. you can see even at this hour there's still an unusually long back up. this was the reason. flames shooting out of this truck at 5:45 this morning, shutting down a couple lanes as crews try to put out the fire. it caused a nightmare for drivers trying to get into the city. right now crews are finally reopening lanes. bryan flores has been monitoring this all morning and joins us live from treasure island. >> reporter: good afternoon i wish i had better news but traffic on the bay bridge continues to be a mess. cal tran was expected to open all the lanes by noon but they just extended it to 3:00 p.m. we understand the far left lane near 5th street is the only one that remains open at this hour. it has no question become a

headache for commuters today. >> we know of the monday morning traffic on the bay bridge. nothing quite like this. >> the damage is done and there's not much we can do about it now. >> around 5:45 huge flames came shooting out of this big rig. this is video shot by a commuter as they passed the scene. you can see the huge flames coming from the truck. this is another view from another viewer. >> he pulled to the right shoulder, exited his vehicle and saw smoke coming from within the compartment. >> the driver was on his way from castro valley to south san francisco to make a delivery when his front tire blew out. just before the 5th street exit he moved to the right shoulder. before he stopped flames engulfed the cabin and spread quickly. >> had a fire extinguisher. the flames were coming from the wind shield wipers. then i saw the flames were big.

what could i do, you know. >> san francisco fire crews spent hours spraying water on the truck as it continued to have hot spots and smoke. the chp closed the right two lanes for hours to bring in emergency vehicles. despite the fire being contained an hour later the damage for the morning commute continued. >> reporter: even with the bart trains running traffic was a mess on 80. >> the hubs are fast. i don't have time to wait . i walked away and called 911. >> reporter: now, the driver says that he did a normal inspection this morning before heading out. he said nothing seemed out of the ordinary. the tires were only a few months ago. the reason it's taking so long for the clean up is because they had to clean up the

left-over diesel fuel. they inspected the bridge. at first inspection there's no damage to the bridge but they will take another inspection once the rig is removed sometime this afternoon of live near the bay bridge this morning, bryan flores. >> all right. thank you, bryan. break ing news now. a possible strike by transit workers. we learned they will deliver a strike notice to the board of directors at a meeting this afternoon. that union represents more than 1,600 mechanics and bus drivers. if a deal is not reached ac transit workers say they will go on strike at 12:01 wednesday morning. now to our continuing coverage of the situation on bart. the contract deadline has come and gone with no agreement. bart trains are still running. that's because late last night just hours before the midnight deadline governor jerry brown

stepped in. alex savage just spoke to both sides and joins us now to explain what happens next. good afternoon, alex. >> reporter: good afternoon. contract negotiations have stopped as both sides prepare to make their respective cases to a state board of inquiry that's been authorized and ordered by the governor. in the meantime where we are this afternoon here in oakland at the bart station, bart's employee unions are preparing for a rally set to get under way momentarily. they call for what they hope will be a fair deal in this bitter labor dispute. >> bart trains were rolling this morning. a welcome site for riders. commuters caught a break after the governor stepped in late last night putting a strike on hold and ordering a state investigation into the ongoing negotiations between bart and its employee unions. both sides welcomed the review. >> i think they're going to

find out and say everything we've been saying, they haven't been bargaining in fair places. >> bart sent a letter to the governor asking for help, what they saw as an only option to keep the system running. >> the only help it provides is to keep the train running. it was the only course to take. if not, there was going to be a strike. they were gearing up for a strike. everyone has been fearing this because the last thing we want is it to cool off. the unions seem pretty strong in their messages. >> union representatives say the two sides are very far apart on the key issues. bart says its increased pay and benefits but the union says the offers have gone backwards. the three member panel will take a closer look at the negotiations process so far and then forward its

findings to the governor. the governor will decide whether to authorize a 60-day cooling off period. >> reporter: that state board will be holding a hearing this upcoming week. union representatives and bart representatives are planning to offer testimony about their suspected proposals. bart's union is holding a rally. they're hoping it will lead to a settlement. alex savage. >> thank you. the governor order that kept bart running was good news for riders. >> the most people including myself had been spending all week making preparations for this week. like i said, i'm happy that i didn't have to use that. >> i'm very glad. i don't understand why they wait ed so long try negotiate it and

then the last week try to surge through it. >> for all the latest information go to ktvu.com. there you will find responses from bart management and the union on the governor's intervention. plus you can sign up for bart strike alerts on ktvu.com. several families were forced through their homes after a fire ripped through an apartment complex in the south bay. how a cooking accident caused devastating damage. >> windows and doors throughout this apartment complex are boarded up. a families belonging soiled and smelling of smoke. the fire that started at 12:20 traveled past. >> she heard the people scream. if she wouldn't have, they would the glass would have fell on them. >> the flames came closely close to the bedroom where her two daughters and grandson were sleeping. >> she was crying s

could hear the lady screaming. the house is on fire >> those who live near by ran outside before firefighters arrived. the fire grew to two alarms, destroying two apartments and damaging three others. >> firefighters are causing the fire accidental after someone left food cooking. >> it's a coincidence that a couple and granddaughter died last december at this apartment next door. people are grateful they got out alive. >> i will figure something out. everything happens for a reason. me and my children are still alive so i thank god for that. >> the red cross is helping all the families by putting them in

hotels and giving money for food and clothing. in oakland the cause of a house fire is under investigation. it started about 4:00 this morning on 79 avenue. six people were in the house at the time. two of them suffered smoke inhalation. firefighters put it out kwi quickly. investigators have identifim of san jose's 35th homicide this year. kimberly joyce estrada was shot when riding in a car. police say the shooter was someone outside the vehicle. the driver, a 21-year-old man was not hurt. so far no suspects have been identified. this comes as the san jose police department rolls out their gang unit. it's the third phase of the department's violence reduction plan. the suppression unit will patrol

areas where there's known gang activity during peak times. all 12 officers are former metro unit officers and have experience with gangs. salinas police are investigating a deadly gang related shooting at a mexican restaurant. it happened around 1:30 this morning after a brawl spill from the restaurant into the parking lot. so far no arrests have been made. tomorrow block parties are planned across the bay area for this year's national night out. it started 30 years ago with the goal of reducing crime. there are more than 650 registered parties this year. about a dozen professional

baseball players learning about the punishment they will face. a little cooler today. a look at what we can expect for this work week. we're getting a look at the surveillance video that shows the deadly rampage on the venice beach board walk.

a dozen major league baseball players are receiving their penalties today as part of a fall out from the drug investigation into the company biogenesis. the suspensions and who is receiving them. fred. >> reporter: first of all , no current a's or giant player is part of this suspension. according to fox sports, three of the 12 players who have accepted today's 50 game suspension were all stars this season. the biggest player not named alex rodriguez. the bigger was one nelson cruz. rangers are playoff contenders but won't have their homerun and rbi leader for the rest of the regular season. everett caberra is the other all star suspended today. the man who was the center of this biogenesis

investigation is yankees player alex rodriguez. he's been suspended for this season and the entire 2014 season. it's 211 games. it won't be official until august 8th, thursday. a-rod has been on the disabled list all year. he's in chicago expecting to play his first game tonight. he's suspension is supposed to start thursday. he's the only player expected to appeal this penalty. a-rod admitted taking a banned substance years ago but never failed a drug test. mlb extended his suspension because the league feels he obstructed their investigation. so he joins ryan braun as the biggest names and faces in this drug suspension. i'm surprised more players didn't appeal the suspension. it tells me the players union is on the same side of this issue as the league and the union is cooperating rather than blocking this drug

clean up. >> interesting. thank you, fred. witness es say a man under arrest in connection with a deadly rampage on a venice beach board walk was out looking for blood. surveillance video shows the man scanning the crowd, getting into his car and swerving and ramming into people on saturday. police say the driver, 38-year-old nathan campbell, from colorado, turned himself into police two hours later. >> there was no horn honking, nothing. he was just driving, doing like 35, 40 just running people over. >> right now they booked him on a murder charge. the further charges will come when they consult with the district attorney's office. >> an italian woman on her honeymoon was killed in the rampage. 15 others were injured. campbell is being held on $1 million bail. the united states has extended the closure of its out posts in middle east and africa. last week the state department said it would close 22 embassies

and consulates on sunday. yesterday it extended the closure until saturday at 15 of the original 22 and then added four more. they pointed to an intercept call as one of the factors. the state department's warning has san francisco police on high alert. officials say there's no direct threat to san francisco. they are increasing patrols throughout the city as a precaution. they're focusing on government buildings, tourist attractions and places of worship. they're asking everyone to watch out for any unusual activity. >> it's reassuring that they're there but you're asking yourself why. >> they don't have any choice but to act. you just never know. >> police say they are proactive because it makes it easier for them to respond quickly to possible threats. prisoners on aunger strike

staged a noisy protest outside an oakland court building this morning. six people chained themselves in front of the entrance. the prisoners want a change in how the prison system uses long term solitary confinement. the prisoners and their backers call that torture. >> we want the cdcr as well as governor jerry brown to step in and produce meaningful negotiations and support the prisoners and their demand. >> friday the department of corrections secretary met with representatives of the prisoners but has no plans to negotiate with them. the city council in palo alto is considering a ban against people living in their vehicles. if the ban passes people would no longer be allowed to park over night on public streets. some church parking lots are open to them. opponents are planning to protest outside city hall before

the hearing. discoveries of west nile virus. three dead birds found between santa rosa and catati have tested positive for the disease. there's no human cases of west nile in the county. so far five human cases have been reported across the state. one person has died. the virus is spread from birds to people by mosquitos. well, very slowly a fog bank is finally heading back to the coast. i'll tell you, it's a slow process. there's still some gray over the bay. temperatures are very, very cool for this noon hour, especially inland. some in the low 70s, well below average. the little low responsible for it is right off the coast. it's not going anywhere until thursday morning. one forecast model puts it on us. it's going to continue this theme, a very cool pattern. night, morning fog probably. it's stuff to get support with that. a cool pattern, the morning fog is heading back to

the coast. it will be back tonight. i think the coolest day will be wednesday and thursday. inland temperatures could be 15, 20 below average. we get a pretty shallow fog bank. this one has no problem clearing the coastal hills. fairfield is only 71, livermore 71, 68 concord, 64 santa rosa, san jose around 74. 60s on the coast. there's really not much of a spread in the temperatures. things are calmed down in fairfield, they had gusts of 37 this morning. still the component of an on shore breeze. not as breezy for some as yesterday. all that fog, you can see right there, heading back. there's plenty of shore. by the coast it stays very cool until this low ejects out of here. it may not go very far. looking at about the 6, 7 day out look, there's

times. not as bad as we've seen. 60s, 70s coast and bay. those are mainly low 8 #0 0s inland. that will continue even for some of the most inland areas. about 5, 10, 15 degrees below average. santa rosa should be the same. it could be 68 in san francisco. a cool month. i mean, 30 days since july 4th the last time san francisco was above 70. not much change. maybe a little warmer towards the end to have week but things look quiet. >> for the end of august. >> wednesday and thursday could be unseasonably cool. it's been touted as a way to keep up with meat eating demands. the review on the first ever test tube burger created in europe.

when you smoke, addictive ingredients like nicotine pull you in. every day, over 1200 people die fromkis.

don't sink deeper into addiction. pull yourself out! stocks are slipping slightly today. quiet trading on wall street. a report from the institute for supply management that the u.s. service sector expanded in july. the dow down 42, the nasdaq down 1, the s and p down 3.

en serving up the first ever test tube burger. it was made in a laboratory using stem cells from a cow. it took 4 years and cost tens of thousands of dollars to develop. it's creators hope cultured beef could cut the millions of tons of gases released by livestock. >> it's made of the cow cells. it's beef as we know it . it's a sustainable alternative to a problem. you know, that's why i'm so excited and honored to be part of this. >> two volunteers tasted the burger. one said it tasted close. the other said it had similar mouth feel but was missing the fat. they hope it have been on the shelves within the next 10 to 20 years. training are running but a deal is far from done. our coverage continues as bart and

its workers avoid a threat for now. plus, terror threats over seas effecting us at home. why police are advising people in the bay area to be on alert. thank you for making ktvu your choice for news. we'll see you next time the news breaks. we'll be here again at 5:00 and always here at ktvu.com. q

alex paen: the program you are about to view contains real life mysteries of several missing people. just watching may save their lives. kidnappings... family abductions... runaways... right now, we need your help to locate the many children and adults who are missing. [captioning made possible by telco productions, inc.]