a warning that many bay area neighborhoods could be at risk for an increasing trend of marijuana growhouse operations. why they say battling fighting fires endangers crews and those living nearby. and a pole slams into the east bay. ktvu newschopper2 was above the scene to show you this tangled mess.

good afternoon. i'm tori campbell. governor jerry brown plans to announce new emergency drought legislation about two hours from now. brown accompanied president obama on his tour of drought- stricken farms into necessary fro last friday. at 2:00, the governor is scheduled to join the assembly speaker and senate president pro tem to announce $650 million in aid for california. the money would come from unspent bond money and pay for water conservation and recycling projects. the governor declared a drought emergency and asked all californians to reduce their water usage by 20%. we have developing news in pinole where it was a close call for a homeowner there. newschopper2 was just over the scene at a state's avenue near ramona street. the dump truck apparently lost its brakes on the hill.

this was about 90 minutes ago. pinole fire said the truck hit another vehicle, then ran into a light pole. as you can see, it nearly smashed into that house. fortunately we don't have any word of anyone getting hurt. marijuana growhouse operations are an increasing problems being seen across the bay area. and they are posing an even bigger threat when they catch on fire. tara moriarty joins us live to explain the danger. good afternoon, tear you are. >> reporter: well, good afternoon -- tara. >> reporter: well, good afternoon. how you can tell if a -- how can you tell if a grow house is next door to you? if nobody is living there or if there's bars on the windows. >> someone goes out there and hits the breaker, you think you are good to go. you are not. you still have this amount of electricity growing in the house. >> reporter: they say these types of fires are on the rise.

last year they battled 30 of them. the houses are covers for industrial grade growth for hundreds, sometimes thousands of plants. in some operation, the marijuana is distilled into hash oil, creating a highly flammable environment. firefighters say that they've been forced to change their tactics since grow houses bypass the electrical meter creating a hazard. >> they want to stay off the radar so they try to lower their use of electricity usage. so when they do that, they bypass the meter which means that if we go up and we turn off the breakers, we do all of the things that we normally do, the power is still onto the house. >> reporter: and the problem is not just in contra costa county. in san francisco, two years ago, a woman and her 12-year- old son were severely burned during an explosion from a hash oil operation on capital and ocean avenues. the son was taken away by protective child services.

>> growers are using operations to front. if you note any of the signs we talked about, you should immediately report it to authorities. if not, the house next door could look like this which could affect property values. live from baypoint, i'm tara moriarty, ktvu channel 2 news. >> thank you. a man is set to be arraigned about 90 minutes from now in san francisco for an alleged attack on a 93-year-old woman in the emergency room at san francisco general. the hospital says it happened last friday night when 29-year- old oren zebeth on a psychiatric hold in the e.r. leangtdly assaulted the woman -- allegedly assaulted the woman who was a patient there. the woman is still in the hospital. the hospital said she's in good condition. san mateo police are asking for the public's help to find a man they say tried to solicit sex from a 15-year-old girl. take a look at this picture. the girl identified the man as the one who came up behind her

on the streets and asked her for sex. she refused. both she and the storeowner said the man appeared to be intoxicated. oakland authorities are investigating a series of suspicious truck fires that all happened last night in one east oakland neighborhood. they say the trucks were set on fire between 9:00 and 11:00 p.m. near bancroft and seminary avenues. they were older model trucks filled with cardboard. moment of what burned was the debris in the back of the trucks. these fires were small in nature. that's our concern, that if there is someone else setting cars on fire. >> the arsonist did not use an accelerant to set the fires, just an open flame, they say. the discovery of a body in some bushes prompted the closure of a freeway offramp in san pablo this morning. the body was found about 7:30 near the san pablo dam road

exit from westbound 80. the offramp was shut down for about a half-hour. it's unclear how the man died investigators do not suspect foul play. the chp says that it appears the man was a transient and he was found dead by a fellow transient. >> that transient waved down a passing melt at vehicle who contacted san pablo police. police responded and rendered aid to the victim. >> investigators say the man was in his 50s. the coroner is working to determine the cause of death. it was a contentious city council meeting last night as dozens spoke out about a plan to build a surveillance center for the port of oakland. >> what i believe the dac to be about is deception, accountability and corruption. >> last night's meeting went past midnight. supporters say the center would integrate cameras at the port with oakland traffic cameras and help police and

firefighters better respond to emergencies. but critics say the surveillance center raises privacy issues. >> we need other tools to monitor some of the activity that's currently happening because the reality is oakland is challenged when it comes to crime. >> a privacy group has threatened a lawsuit if a contract for the surveillance center is approved. president obama and other u.s. leaders are urging ukraine's military to show restraint after violent clashes left dozens dead and hundreds more injured. kyla campbell is live in washington with now comments from president obama on this conflict. kyla? >> reporter: tori, president obama says he holds the ukrainian government primarily responsible for making sure it is dealing with peaceful protesters in an appropriate way. >> along with our european partners, there will be

consequences if people step over the line. >> reporter: 25 william people were killed and more than -- 25 people were killed and more than 400 injured. demonstrators have called for the president to step down since november. that's when the ukrainian president turned down a landmark trade deal with the european union in exchange for a bailout from russia. vice president joe biden told the ukrainian president last night to pull back government forces and exercise maximum restraint. ukraine's president said today he's replaced the chief of the army and the military is going to try to restore order. but the u.s. wants more. >> find the measure of compromise and put the broad interests of the people of ukraine out front. >> reporter: the european union is holding an emergency meeting tomorrow to discuss possible sanctions guns those responsible for the violence. that includes cutting off funding to ukraine's government.

live in washington, kyla campbell, ktvu channel 2 news. for the second time in as many days, air passengers sent to the hospital after brutal turbulence mid-flight. this time it was a flight from san francisco. find out what it was like on board. saw a little rain and drizzle this morning. bit already -- it's already long gone. temperatures are expected to warm up. mark tamayo will be here to tell you which day will be the warmest. >> reporter: we're in san jose where several people saw the olympic debut of 15-year-old polina edmunds. we'll tell you how she did and how her dance background

a flight from san francisco to hong kong hit severe turbulence yesterday sending six passengers and two crew members to the hospital. this came as the cathay pacific 747 was passing over japan. some of the passengers posted these pictures on twitter and facebook. the plane continued the final six hours of its flight and landed safely in hong kong. we spoke this morning to a man from india on the plane after a business trip in the bay area. >> it looked like a few passengers who had not been belted up and they flew off their chairs. i could see people in front of me coming off their chairs in

the air. a few of them even hit the ceiling of the roof and a few bins opened up and there were suitcases that started tumbling out. >> this is the second incident of violent turbulence this week. monday five people were hurt on a flight from denver to mon tan now -- montana. a suspicious fire that started this morning at a condemned building in fremont has fire investigators searching for answers. this is exclusive video ktvu obtained of the fire when it first broke out at 4:30 a.m. at a fourplex on mission boulevard near niles. you can see flames shooting from the first and second floors. firefighters suspect homeless people were living inside and may have intentionally set the fire. >> we've gotten calls off and

on every month or so from either pd or the niles railroad people telling me there's been homeless people telling me here. we contacted the homeowner. he usually comes out and boards it up but it doesn't stay that way for very long. >> the home was condemned in 2012 because it was illegally converted into a fourplex. today they determined the structure needs to be demolished. the u.s. park police now say that a burned body discovered in the oakland hills over the weekend was the result of a suicide. the body of a 48-year-old san lorenzo woman was discovered on fire near the entrance to redwood regional park along sky line boulevard. investigators say it appears the woman took her own life. the woman's name has not been released. but her family members tell police she was concerned about issues in her personal and professional life. police are investigating a shooting at fifth and broadway

one block from police headquarters and not far from london square. investigators say a 28-year-old man was shot several times as he was about to drive onto interstate 880 when another car pulled alongside him and fired. the victim was taken to the hospital and is expected to survive. two bay area boys are among a larger group accusing an award-winning teacher of molesting students on campus. >> they started to get way too friendly. i thought it was creepy and weird. >> tonight at 10:00, something rarely seen on television. young boys speaking out in the candid conversation. 2 investigates uncovers what school officials knew about the teacher years ago and did not tell police. the document, hand writ p notes and the -- handwritten notes and the teacher's side of the story tonight on the 10:00 news. a rise in the number of pedestrians getting hit by cars in san francisco is renewing a debate over a downtown toll for

drivers during peak hours. several city supervisors are pushing for a plan to prevent all pedestrian deaths. some feel so-called congestion pricing should be part of the discussion. the idea is that a $3 charge to drive into the downtown area would reduce traffic and make streets safer. a few people told ktvu news this morning that is the wrong approach. >> i think it's the wrong way to approach the problem. i think there's a better solution. you need to sit down and bring the people to the table and discuss the matter. >> i think people need to watch what they are doing and watch lights go across the street the way they are supposed to. >> city supervisors have discussed this before but the original proposal was designed as a way to raise money for transit improvements. san francisco police say 21 pedestrians were killed by vehicles last year. happening now -- people who support raising the federal minimum wage are calling for a

national day of action across the country. right now, in mountain view, supporters are holding a rally at city hall plaza and in san francisco, barbara boxer has just begun speaking about the issue at the common wealth club. at 4:00 in marin county, there will be a rally at the foot of the pedestrian overpass near the lark purr ferry termy -- larkspur ferry terminal. the report is from the nonpartisan congressional budget office. president obama and senate democrats are pushing for the minimum wage to be increased from $7.25 an hour to $10.10 by 2016. but the report also finds that such a pay raise could end up eliminating 500,000 jobs. san jose's very own polina edmunds made her olympic debut this morning. while she's thousands of miles away, a high school sophomore had quite a loud cheering

section. we won't reveal how she did until after the report from brian flores who shows us the excisement from friends and family -- excitement from friends and family. >> reporter: just moments before polina edmunds hit the ice, you could feel the tension and nervousness at san jose's dance theater international. [ cheers ] >> reporter: two and a half minutes later, after a strong perm aps those nerve -- performance, those nerves turned into this, a standing ovation from her friends and classmates. >> we're just proud. we're just proud to cheer on a local hero. it's not every day that you have something that goes to the olympics. >> reporter: she fell in love with tap and jazz and ballet. she's been doing that since she was 8 years old. today they set up a watch party to see her not just ice skate

but dance her -- her dance coach -- >> have a great time. believe in yourself. that's the best she can do. she's very very gifted. >> reporter: it's the support that contributed to a pretty strong performance today. her long-time friend says it's her humbleness dedication and focus that will make her a strong skater during the games. >> i asked her if she wanted to go into the licks. she never said it. she said she would love the opportunity if she had the chance. she's so humble and sweet. we just love her. >> reporter: when we spoke to her a few weeks ago she said she wanted to skate two clean programs. many of her fans say she showed the world she had nerves of steel. in san jose, brian flores, ktvu

channel 2 news. >> if you don't want to find out how she did, this is a good time to turn down the volume for just a second. the 15-year-old was the 12th skater out of 30 in the short program today and she currently stands in 7th place. the top 24 skaters go on to the next round tomorrow and to wish her good luck, head to our facebook page or go to ktvu.com where we've posted a slide show of her under the images tab. that's all very exciting and in weather we had a lot of clear skies. a lot of clear skies for right now. early this anotherring, a few light rain showers hard to believe with all of the clear skies looking out to the oakland estuary. a bit of a breeze kicking in. the rain clouds are long gone. not a lot to show you. we'll take a look at the rainfall tallies coming up for you and ben lomond. you can see picking up nearly .10. livermore a few/100ths.

the same could be said for castro valley. on live stoem tracker 2 -- stormtracker2, we have clear skies. we're looking for more rainfall for today. it's not in the forecast. as you can see, it's drying to detect the -- trying to detect the rainfall but nothing to show you with the system fizzling out. wind speeds have been picking up. as far as current temperatures, they are in the upper 50s to the lower 60s. fair field right now, 63 san jose. 60 san francisco. as far as the wind speeds there is a wind kicking up especially near the coast and right around the bay. half moon bay bay winds at 16 miles an hour. sfo sustained out of the west at 16. same could be said out towards hayward across the bay checking in at 17 miles an hour. for today, we'll have this, more sunshine a bit of a breeze looking out towards san francisco and the transamerica pyramid. throughout the day at 3:00, and then in the upper 50s.

by 9:00, 52 degrees. tomorrow a few more high clouds and the weekend a dry weather pattern with still fair skies. as you can see, the radar, the satellite, the storm moving across basically northern california yesterday at this time. these clouds will be approaching the region for tomorrow. in fact, here's our forecast model. we'll put it into motion with at least partly cloudy skies. maybe a few mostly cloudy observations for thursday. friday more sunshine out there and temperatures over the next couple of days will be trending up back up to the upper 60s to near 70 degrees. we're looking for the next storm. that could be showing up late in the month, 27th and 28th. watching out for at least potential changes. as you can see, i will step out of the way here. looks like the timing could be sometime late thursday and into friday. still aways out. that's our next hope of more significant rain on the weather maps. temperatures this afternoon, upper 50s, low to mid-60s out there. san jose, 63. morgan hill, 65 and here is a look ahead to your five-day forecast. few extra clouds for your

thursday, you can see temperatures trending back up into the upper 60s to lower 70s. it looks like thursday and friday. the two warmest days of the week, the weekend looks good with partly sunny skies. tori kind of strange. a lot of sunshine. you would never know we had a few drops this morning. that was the case across the bay area. >> used my windshield wipers driving in. a free music festival from apple. we'll tell you the band slated to perform and what you need to to know to attend -- to know to attend. anncr: at jennie-o we heard of a place where every thursday people ride 10 miles for tacos. we thought we'd show up and surprise them with a better kind of taco made with jennie-o ground turkey cooked thoroughly to 165. i feed my kids turkey tacos over regular tacos any day. i think they are light and they are just fresh tasting. yeah. when i eat well, i feel well. anncr: it's time for a better taco. the tacos tonight were pretty much perfect. make the switch. look for jennie-o ground turkey in a store near you.

u.s. stocks moving lower in afternoon trading after the minutes from the feds last policy meeting revealed little consen shis about when short- term rates would begin to rise. taking a look, the dow is down 58. the nasdaq dune 34. s&p down -- down 34. s&p down 9. apple is bringing the popular free itune festival to the u.s. this march with bands like cold play and pit bull. the festival in london is so popular it's now 30 days long. the u.s. debut will be from march 11th through the 15th at the south. it will stream live and on demand. the powerball lottery jackpot is how more than $400 ahead of the drawing. that means one winning ticket would be worth $230 million. after taxes that translates to a little over $100 million. the drawing is tonight at 7:59. as we reported, we're

waiting for announcement from governor brown about new emergency actions to help california's severe drought. those developments tonight at 5:00. thank you for making ktvu your choice for news. we'll see you the next time news breaks. you can follow us on twitter and facebook. have a great day. .=(=pcpcpcpcpcpcpcpcpc2h

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>> the following program contains actual video of real animal emergencies and is suitable for family viewing. coming next: can a doctor save a porcupine's life? [dog barking] plus, helping stray dogs after a tsunami. an american vet lends a hand. this is "animal rescue." [captioning made possible by telco productions, inc.]