. bart and ac transit make deals with their unions. what's in and what's out of the newly negotiated contracts? >> a key deadline looms for the uninsured. what they need to know before signing up for the state's healthcare exchange. >> and the mother of a girl declared brain dead at oakland children's hospital writes an emotional open letter, as she fights to keep her daughter on life support. . good evening. i'm ken wayne.

heather holmes is off tonight. the long and testy negotiations between bart management and its unions has finally come to an end. that should make just about everyone happy, especially bart riders. ktvu's john sasaki is live in oakland to tell us another major transit agency also announced a big deal. john? >> reporter: ken, bart and ac transit have had riders on edge with their unresolved contract issues. now it appears that riders can rejoice, because both agencies have reached agreements with their unions. ac transit bus drivers who weren't on their routes this morning met at their oakland union headquarters to hear the details of their new agreement. >> i just know that i don't like it. >> i think the fight is over, you know what i mean? >> reporter: the union president says the deal includes a raise of 9.5% over three years and a $120 per month healthcare contribution.

>> and it's a good deal because we definitely want to make sure if we can, to keep the service on the streets and make sure that our riding public is not inconvenienced in any way. >> reporter: bart and its unions reached a deal around 2:00 a.m. and union leaders are hopeful it will close the doors on talk of a third strike. >> we ended up being able to resolve some of these issues. >> reporter: seiu's president says it resolves the issues and allows workers to take up to 12 weeks of family leave per year, using vacation or sick leave, which they couldn't previously do. >> it will be a benefit. it will be a benefit for the district and for the members. >> we hopefully finally have a resolution to something that should have been resolved many months ago. >> reporter: riders are relieved. >> nice to know that in the morning, i can take my regular route to work. >> just ease the pain a little bit. we're already going through so many other things, with the government and whatnot. i think it's a good thing. >> reporter: now it's up to the agencies and the unions to each approve the deals, which could happen for ac transit late next week and for bart, a week after

that. live in oakland, i'm john sasaki, ktvu channel 2news. a heart-wrenching letter from the mother of a 13-year- old bay area girl who was declared brain dead after tonsil surgery at oakland's children's hospital has been released. in an open letter, the mother of the girl asked for prayers on behalf of her daughter. she says she's fighting for her daughter's life. the family went to court to keep her on life support. yesterday, a judge ruled in favor of the family and scheduled a hearing for monday to appoint a neurologist to further examine the girl and determine her condition. in her letter today, winkfield wrote in part, quote, pray for me, mother, that we can bring her life once more. read the full letter at our website. san jose firefighters are on the scene of an apartment fire that forced residents from their homes late this afternoon. the two-alarm fire was routerred around 4:30 at the six-unit building near hall avenue in the willow glenn neighborhood. fire crews managed to get

control of the fire about 20 minutes after they arrived. so far, no injuries have been reported. the cause of the fire is still under investigation. the 17-year-old girl shot by a fellow student at a suburban denver high school has died, with her family by her side. claire davis had been in critical condition since she was shot at arapahoe high school eight days ago. the arapahoe county sheriff said it appeared 18-year-old karl pierson shot her at random before taking his own life. nobody else was hurt in the shooting in centennial, colorado. authorities believe pierson was targeting a librarian who had disciplined him weeks before. a fire in a pg & e vault knocked out power at one of the busiest intersections in san francisco's mission district today. the san francisco fire department says the fire in an underground vault started around 11:00 a.m. in an alley off 16th street between mission and valencia. the block was shut down while fire crews and pg&e got the situation under control. power has been restored to

about 125 customers. a redwood city metal recycler that's been the site of two smoky fires in two months is being told to take steps to try to prevent further problems. the city manager of redwood city has asked simms metal management to keep three qualified staff members on site 24 hours a day for 60 days starting on monday. one security guard was at the yard when a fire broke out early tuesday. a shelter-in-place advisory was issued for three bay area counties due to heavy smoke from that fire. volunteers around the bay area today made a last-minute push to get people signed up for healthcare coverage under the affordable care act. alex savidge has more. >> reporter: well, anyone who wants health coverage starting on the first of the year needs to enroll by this monday. time is running out and that's why today volunteers here in berkeley went door to door, passing out these cover california pamphlets and urging the uninsured to sign up.

>> first door was switched. >> reporter: a team of cal students walked the streets of this west berkeley neighborhood this afternoon. >> we're trying to help people sign up for healthcare. >> reporter: going door to door and spreading word about the affordable care act, with a key deadline coming monday. >> if you need coverage by next year, you do need to sign up by then. >> reporter: about a dozen student volunteers took part in what they call the cover berkeley brigade. andrew wong is in charge of the grassroots campaign. their goal is to knock on several hundred doors today and make it easy for the uninsured to get covered. >> we know that people are busy, people have a lot of obligations, so we're bringing it to them. we know healthcare is really important for everyone. we want to bring them the opportunity to enroll at their door. >> everybody needs to be covered. >> reporter: today inside the vallejo community center, dozens of people sat down with volunteers and enrolled in cover california. this event was put on by healthcare workers from sciu.

>> this is the best way to have them come in and find out what options we have and what they can afford. >> reporter: rachel jackson came down today because her part-time job doesn't provide benefits. >> i haven't been able to go to the doctor. >> reporter: and for this mother of two, healthcare is critical, because she's been living with hodgkin's lymphoma and the cancer has been in remission for the past few years. >> i need my preventive check- ups to make sure if it does come back, that we catch it early. come january, i'll be able to make an appointment. i'm excited about that. >> reporter: jackson told me she was supposed to get an important cat scan two years ago, but hasn't been able to afford it. now she says that's about to change. cover california is seeing a surge of applicants as well ahead of the monday deadline. folks are trying to beat the deadline. the latest figures show well over 50,000 people have enrolled in health plans in just the past week. live tonight in berkeley, alex savidge, ktvu channel 2news. palo alto police say a

woman believed to be homeless was found dead this morning in a city park. police officers found the woman inherit teenage park on homer avenue just before 7:30 this morning. there were no signs of foul play. the death comes three weeks after four homeless people in santa clara county died during that unseasonable cold snap. police have arrested a former massage therapist from menlo park on accusations he sexually assaulted some clients. the 35-year-old man turned himself in wednesday after prosecuters charged him with misdemeanor sexual battery. in 2012, a woman reported that he assaulted her during a massage appointment at the la belle day spa in palo alto. police say detectives found three other women who also accused him of sexual attacks. he is out on bail. prosecuters objecting to the possible sale of the postal building rallied at a nearby staples store. ♪

>> demonstrators sang and carried signs in front of the store on shattuck avenue. the u.s. postal service is partnering with staples to offer stamps, package mailing and other services. protesters say the trend puts workers at risk, moving them to low-paying jobs from good- paying jobs with benefits. >> lot of these jobs are held by minority african american and latino people. working people from across the country. >> staples did not respond to our calls for comments. recently the berkeley city council restricted the use of the berkeley post office building to public uses, if it is sold. volunteers in san francisco are collecting donations for the less fortunate at curbside. starting today and continuing through christmas eve, people can drop off food, clothing and cash at the st. anthony foundation. organizers say the goal is to collect 500 hams and 2500 pairs of socks before christmas. anyone who wants to help can

drive up to the st. anthony's dining room on golden gate avenue in san francisco. holiday shoppers are taking advantage of the last weekend before christmas. people were out in force today in emeryville, picking up the last few remaining items on their christmas lists. this year, the christmas shopping season was six days shorter because of the late thanksgiving holiday, so shoppers are trying to make up for that lost time. many stores are also staying open late to try to attract shoppers. jpmorgan chase told customers today they would be limited to $100 in cash withdrawals and $300 in total purchases per day if they used chase debit cards at target. that's quite a bit lower than the usual debit allowance. the limit applies to about 2 million customer accounts. the announcement comes just a few days after target announced a security breach on as many as 40 million debit and credit card holders from november 27th through december 15th.

an appreciation ceremony was held at lake merritt today, as dozens came out to say thank you to a tree that was felled by high winds. ♪ >> the large eucalyptus fell on november 20th, as winds hit 60 miles an hour. the tree is thought to have been around for about 150 years, outliving most eucalyptus trees growing in urban environments. the public works department decided to hold the ceremony because many people expressed their sadness at the loss of the tree. next week, crews are scheduled to remove it. >> we are going to save a round of the tree and do a historical time line, to communicate some of oakland's history, along with the tree. >> the city has not yet decided where the tree round will be displayed, but they would like it to be near where the tree once stood. . a somber memorial to mark the 25th anniversary of the

lockerbie bombing. the message from u.s. and british leaders about finding justice for the victims. >> a thousand east bay families will have a brighter christmas because of a big toy giveaway today. we'll tell i couldn't it almost didn't happen. >> temperatures today were a good 5 and 10 degrees where they should be. heading into the rest of your holiday week, how warm is it going to get sand there any rain on the horizon? details, coming up.

. president obama and his family have started their annual christmas vacation in hawaii. the obamas arrived in honolulu just before midnight last night, aboard air force one. the president has no public events scheduled during his two- week visit to his home state. last year, the president was forced to cut his holiday short to address a fiscal crisis in washington the day after

christmas. four american troops have been wounded in growing violence in south sudan. the pentagon says four u.s. service members were injured when three u.s. helicopters were hit by gunfire. the four were taken to kenya, where they are in stable condition. they were on a mission to evacuate about three dozen american united nations workers from a rebel-held city. united nations says hundreds of south sudanese have been killed this week between supporters of the current president and those who back his former vice president. the u.s. and britain are vowing to find justice for the victims of the pan am bombing over lockerbie, scotland 25 years ago today. ♪ >> jane schultz was among those who attended the wreath-laying ceremony in remembrance of her 20-year-old son thomas. the syracuse university student was on his way home for christmas when he was killed, along with 269 other people aboard the 747 and on the

ground. >> i wanted to come here not only to honor thomas, but the other 269 victims, and i wanted to stand in the place where my son took his last breath and say a small prayer. >> pan am flight 103 was bound for new york when it exploded less than an hour after it took off from london. only one man, a former libyan intelligence official was ever convicted. today, the u.s., great britain and libya issued a joint statement, pledging to bring those responsible to justice. pope francis today delivered his first christmas message to vatican officials since he was elected to the papacy nine months ago. [ foreign language ] >> in his speech, he urged priests, cardinals and vatican staffers to adopt the ideals of professionalism, service and wholeness. the pontiff said holiness encompasses an openness to god, prayer, and deep humility. he also said he wants a vatican

that is focused on service rather than power. a thousand people lined up outside a richmond ymca this morning for a holiday toy giveaway. ktvu's allie rasmus explains how the event was saved, thanks to some big last-minute donations. >> reporter: the line stretched down the block outside the ymca in richmond this morning. bundled up against the cold, parents and their kids waited anxiously, in line for christmas to come a few days early. >> the toys, to give my kids some toys. >> and they give out food, too. it helps out a lot. >> 529! >> reporter: inside the gym, volunteers formed an assembly line of sorts, hauling up, handing over bags full of gifts. the richmond el cerrito fire and police departments have hosted the holiday giveaway for 26 years. in previous years, the organization had given away toys to as many as 2000 families. this year, they had to cut the number in half because up until just a few days ago, they had a shortage of donations.

>> five daysing a, we put out a request to the public to help us make our goal because we were running short. $7500 was raised by online donations, just people giving $20, $30 here and there. >> reporter: another $10,000 donation came through, with chevron offering to match it. >> people care a lot about what's happening this season and they want to see miracles happen for these everyday families. >> reporter: this bike raffle provided an extra miracle for some families in line. >> we've got a winner! >> reporter: organizers only had about 400 bikes for the 1000 families who came through. kimmie curry drew one of the winning tickets. >> this is wonderful. my daughter, this is -- only thing she wanted is this and i'm so happy. i was able to get it. i appreciate it. >> reporter: curry says it's been a tough year financially. she prepared her daughter with a christmas with no presents. >> she was, like, mommy, if i don't get anything for christmas, i'm happy i have my family. that made me very, very happy for her. now she gets a bike! everything works out. >> reporter: thanks to donations, volunteers, and the

hard work of the people who organized this event, all of these parents and kids went home with smiles on their faces. in richmond, allie rasmus, ktvu channel 2news. it's the first day of winter, and bill, it does not feel like it. >> temperatures today, a good 5, 10, some places 12 degrees above the average for this time of year. doesn't feel at all like winter. take a look at the numbers. 63 in santa rosa. it was 67 in livermore. well, that's 12 degrees above the average. 64 in oakland, 63 in redwood city. we've had good air quality because the winds really blew out the atmosphere. we had spare the air nights in a row, 11 in a row. winds kicked up a couple days ago. now we have great air quality, a dry pattern. see the ridge of high pressure going straight up over the top? there is dry as dry a pattern can be in late december this. five-day forecast, tell you right now, there's no rain in

it. the forecast for tomorrow will be about the same for temperatures. overnight low forecast, currents, overnight low forecasts are going to be mid- 30s, something like that. 36 in santa rosa, you'll still find frost tomorrow morning. heyward, 39. fremont, 39 degrees for an overnight low. tomorrow or tonight, got patchy coastal fog. you saw it out there today. for the most part, cool and clear. there's the great air quality i was telling you. embarcadero, really nice out there. the extended forecast, more of the same. remember that ridge i just showed you. the computer models go up and stays there. if you're thinking snow for tahoe, rain for here, at least in the next five to seven days, forget it. actually through the first of the year into 2014, very dry pattern. this high pressure center is dominant. it sets up with a slight offshore flow. and we see a mild east breeze, which makes for nice weather out of san mateo, marin county

at the coastline. point ray right now, this kind of weather is beautiful. this pattern is great if you want to go out hiking and what have you. not good if you're thinking about worry worries towards the summer months. got to say, we're hurting right now. we can get a lot in january. but we'll need a lot in january. we don't always get a lot. we'll see how it goes. as it stands, we're about 20% of rainfall average for this year, for this time of year. the five-day forecast for the bay area weekend in view, there it is. no rain, a little patchy coastal fog. then we get towards the christmas period here on wednesday and you've got a few clouds lingering. look at the top tier of numbers, mid-60s across. those are all above the average. bottom tier, coldest inland spots. 33, 34, just above freezing. ken, you know the story. you're a local guy. it would be nice to get some rain. this five-day doesn't have rain in it. if i had another five-day tacked onto this, it wouldn't have rain either. >> still a lot of winter left. today is the first day. >> exactly.

and enjoy this weather. you got relatives in town, this is really nice weather to show off the city. >> good idea. thank you, bill. >> yeah. two astronauts aboard the international space station today completed the first of three planned space walks. the astronauts began repairing a malfunctioning pump module that is part of a key cooling system for the space station. the space walk was supposed to last six and a half hours, but the two astronauts finished well before that. a second space walk is set for monday and the third, if necessary, will happen on christmas day. coming up, the state high school football championships are under way, and stanford faces off against another women's basketball power house. we'll take you down to the farm for highlights. aaçó@

. the san leandro police department today held its annual bike giveaway. this year, the department raised more than $20,000 to purchase bikes for its bikes for tykes program. the giveaway helps provide new bicycles to low income families and underprivileged children. >> we want to provide as many bicycles as we can for the low income families. we want to give back to our community. it's a great way to show that we care about our kids here in town. >> a total of 420 bikes were given away this afternoon and the kiwanis club of san leandro

pitched in $3500 worth of helmets to the cause. joe fonzi is here to tell us how the cardinal did. >> yeah, sanford women, with a good basketball team, no news there. stanford's maple's pavillion, the rose bowl bound stanford football team creating the atmosphere against tennessee. stanford took a 37-29 lead to the locker room at the half. as usual, the dazzling numbers, this miss goes back in. she had 32 points, season-high 20 rebounds. late in the game, volunteers closed to within two. the 6th ranked cardinal handed the 3rd ranked volunteers their first loss of the season. both teams now 10-1 after stanford's win. state high school

championship football continuing today and tonight in carson. sacred heart prep of atherton, division 3 title game against the corona delmar sea kings. gators trailing 14-0 in the final minute of the first quarter when it got worse. mission randall picked off by corona delmar bar bay doe. he won't stop till he gets to the end zone. this one of four turnovers by the gators. but the gators came alive in the fourth quarter. 21-7, then haven found running room in the middle of the field, making his way 40 yards to the end zone. two-point conversion made it 21- 15 at half time. only scoring in the second half was a pair of field goolsby corona delmar. sea kings win the division 3 title, 27-15. they become the first school in california high school history to win 16 games in a season. st. john bosco has a chance to equal the record in the open division game later tonight against de la salle. four bowl games today, as the college football bowl

season began today. we'll have it all for you at 10:00 on sports wrap. see you then. >> thank you, joe. coming up tonight on the 10:00 news, you've heard about package thieves hitting your front porch. now we're learning about one going straight to the source. how authorities say she's getting into post offices around the bay area, and the efforts right now to try to track her down. thank you for making ktvu your source for news. we'll see you the next time news breaks, and we're always here for you at ktvu.com and facebook and twitter and all the ktvu apps. see you at 10:00. have a great night.

(snoring) jay. (snoring continues) jay? what? what's wrong? you're snoring. me? oh, i'm sorry. i... (snoring) (laughs) look at her! come on. we said no stella in the bed. oh, but she's just a little puppy. she probably got scared and snuck in. oh, really? how come when manny has nightmares you don't let him snuck in the bed? gloria, it's 6:00 in the morning. can we talk about this later? (sighs) answer the question, jay. (birds chirp) you know, i'm gonna check the lease, but i'm pretty sure we're not allowed to have a meth lab. you are a delight. so what are you doing? i think you're gonna like this. i'm going on a juice fast. mmm. love it. hate it. let's face it,