amy hollyfield joins us now live from san francisco. amy? >> police tell me this is uncommon. it is not your typical street holdup, and they want people to be aware. >> i felt so bad. >> she was leaving a friend's house when she saw a distraught woman on the sidewalk. >> she kept wiping her eyes. she had five or six police officers. >> the woman had just been be roughed. her attacker sprayed pepper spray in the face and hit her in the head and grabbed her purse. >> we don't think of things happening like that in the neighborhood very often. >> 10 minutes earlier they hit in another unlikely neighborhood, lower pacific heights. >> it makes me feel like i need to carry my own pepper spray. i always felt safe on the street. so that is concerning. >> there have been five attacks in san francisco neighborhoods since wednesday. a 6th one happened tuesday in the turner watch store. the man sprayed the face of an employee and got away with some watches. it is the only one involving a story, so police don't know if it is related. >> seems like a great way to do if it you wanted to do i

. >> amy hollyfield is live for us. amy? >> the refinery does president know what happened. -- doesn't know what happened. but this power outage caused a lot of problems. >> it was an alarming sight. a huge plume of black smoke billowing out of the refinery just in time for rush hour for thousands to see. >> we were kind of worried that something really bad was going on, but we don't know. when we got home there was no power. we were asking the neighbors if they know why there was no power. >> the power plant would also like to know why there wasn't any power. >> we were affected by the power loss. >> pg&e says the power went out at a sub station and they are trying to figure out why. when they lo power, workers had to shut down the plant and start burning the product they were in the process of making. >> they did what they were supposed to do. they released pressure from our system due to a sudden power outage which we are trying to understand where and how that occurred. >> they issued a shelter in place while the flares

here is amy hollyfield on a flaw that makes it easy to use the clipper card. >> there is a flaw on the clipper card and it is costing thousands of dollars a month. >>> at a time when we need to see transit systems -- >> at a time when we need to see transit systems getting every dollar they can. >> matthew roth uncovered the problem. you can travel farther than the distance you paid for it. >> the problem is there is no incentive not to cheat the system unless you have good ethics. >> we bought a clipper car to test it out. and we covered more ground than we should have. we asked transit authorities why the problem hasn't been fixed. john goodwin at the metropolitan transportation system says we are done with this and we wish you well and hung up the phone. >> i don't think they are happy they are getting as much attention as it is. >> mtc off sees -- over seize the clipper card. like cal train and bart. officials say the flaw is actually there on purpose as a built in convenience for confused or inexperienced travelers. they rely on the goodwill of people to pay their debt by adding m

amy hollyfield is live from san bruno. amy, they are understandably concerned. >> we met several residents who are hesitant to heat their homes. instead of bringing them comfort, it scares them. he is keeping the temperature in his house lower than he normally would. >> i don't want it turned up. if i have to put on an extra blanket, so be it. >> his house is 15 feet from the pipeline. that's parallel to the one that exploded. his neighbor across the street is also nervous. >> if we have to be a little colder in our homes, at least we have homes to be a little colder in. >> when she turned on the heat for the first time, she thought of the eight people who died and the 37 homes that were destroyed in september when the pipeline ruptured and exploded. pg&e reduced the pressure on the line and two others by 20%. jerry hill has been lobbying to keep it that way. >>> it is important. we can't be reckless or irresponsible. >> we have heard loud and clear that the residents in san bruno as well as our regulators and the state ele

in san francisco, amy hollyfield, abc7 news. >> did you feel it? a 3.2 quake shook the south bay tonight. it happened before 10:30 this evening centered about 12 miles from downtown san jose. it was a minor quake, so that's why there has been no reported damage. if you noticed shaking around 10:30, that's what it was. >>> the opt out campaign at the nation's airports fizzled out today. organizers asked volunteers and travelers to refuse those revealing full body scans and ask for a pat-down. the cause was to -- the point was to cause delays. few people participated and there were no major problems. >>> a los angeles woman who dent want a body scan or a pat-down wore a bikini at a security checkpoint at l.a.x. there she is. she said she hoped agents would see everything they needed to. it worked. she breezed through a metal detector only line. >>> a south bay company is working on the next generation of airport security that could weed out terrorists by a look in their eyes. they are checking travelers' irises. the process takes two or three seconds

amy hollyfield gives us a tour. >> it was crazy.as born and raised here and i'm not used to this. >> kind of enjoying it. it's different. >> the heavy rainfall created minor flooding throughout the bay area. in orinda the streets had a significant amount of water. cars were able to spas through it. in san francisco, flooding caused some street closures. at mandel and sunnyvale even muni buzz were prohibited from passing through. another trouble spot was the highway 101 on-ramp at almeny boulevard. they called the water department to pump out some of the water. >> everybody is slowing down. we are trying to make sure there is no traffic accidents over here. >> a sudden gush of water flooded a few garages on the boulevard. residents say it appears to be shooting out of the ground. >> the water, i mean it was squirting out of the manholes. it went boom and the thing, it flew. >> it didn't believe behind any notable damage. >> the wind was another factor causing problems. at bay street shopping center in emeryville a temporary water cam

let's go live to amy hollyfield who can walk you through exactly what happened. >> big question is why did the power go out. it caused a number of problems. aside from the obvious that you saw, the fire and the smoke, a lot of residents lost power in their homes and notification process was off. they weren't able to receive the e-mail notification. they couldn't watch the news and they didn't know there was a shelter in place. they issued it because of the plume of smoke and concerns what was burning that was being released in the air. the fire is the result of power outage that happened this afternoon, it had to burn off the product they were making at the refinery. >> the flares did what they were supposed to do, they released pressure from the system that we're trying to understand how the power outage happened. but the flares did what they were intended to do bringing the refinery down in reliable as possible manner. >> reporter: shelter in place was in effect for three hours, for 4:00 to 7:00 for north concord and east martinez. no reports of health complaints. most of the people

amy hollyfield reports. >> reporter: she was leaving a friend's house when she sue a distraught woman on the sidewalk. >> she was crying and wiping her eyes. she had five or six police officers around her. >> the woman had been robbed, they sprayed pepper spray in her face and hit her in the head and stole her purse. ten minutes earlier they hit in unlikely neighborhood, lower pacific heights. >> it makes me feel like i need to carry my own pepper spray. i don't know what else to say. i felt safe on the streets so it's concerning. >> there has been five attacks since wednesday. a sixth one happened tuesday inside a store on market street. a man sprayed the face of an employee and got away with some watches. the only one involving a store and police don't know if it's related. >> great way to do it if you want to do it but it sucks because considered one of the safest cities. i don't know how you would take care of that. >> reporter: investigators don't flow if the same men are committing all the crimes. it's possible a couple of robbers pulled it off, bragged to their friends and frie

and abc 7's amy hollyfield is live at the karly fiorina camp. amy? >> wuchbt songs they're going to play tonight for the crowd is "the heat is on". there is no sign giving and campaigners don't believe the poll that boxer is ahead of karly fiorina. they just don't buy. they believe here that republicans are excited and going to turn out to vote in that democrats won't. and is he she's she's encouraged by the enthusiasm for the campaign. pointing out they had to turn volunteer as way in sacramento today. some have said fiorina did not do a good job of defining herself. she says she believes she did. >> there is a 34 year career politician. i have lived in the real world started as a tech secretary, became a ceo, understand what we need to do now is focus on creating jobs. >> she's given boxer the fight of her political live. national groups have gotten behind fiorina and donated a lot of money. there is when i told one democrat i'd be covering fiorina he said oh. you're going to a wake? live in irvine, abc 7 news. >> the big question is there will be

amy hollyfield reports they are understandably concerned. >> robert is keeping the temperature in his house lower he usually would in the hopes of keeping pg&e from turning up the pressure on pipeline 1201. >> i don't want it turned up -- 101. >> it's 15 feet from the pipeline that is parallel to the one that exploded. his neighbor across the street is also nervous. >> if we have to be a little colder in our homes at least we have homes to be a little colder in. >> she says when she turned on the heat for the first time, she thought of the eight people that died and 37 homes that were destroyed in september. in response to the tragedy, pg&e reduced the pressure on that line and two others by 20%. jerry hill has been lobbying pg&e to keep it that way. >> we can't be irresponsible in this. >> we heard loud and clear that the residents as well as our regulators and state elected leaders. >> a person told us this will be the coldest week of the season, the utility will not increase the pressure on the pipelines running through san bruno until it's determined safe. >> i think the citizens

amy hollyfield joins us now with at the tapes and the reaction. >> reporter: the brothers have never spoken becomely about publicly about the incident. there's been speculation whether they taunted the tiger. in the interview the police asked them several times if they did anything to provoke the animal. >> had you done anything to the tiger to harass it or scare the tiger? >> no. >> can you think of any reason the tiger would want to attack you or your brother or your friend? >> no. >> reporter: self -- several times one of the boys denied doing anything to provoke the tiger. they say tatiana appeared out of know where, first attacking paul, and then attacking the other boy who was mauled to death. paul got frustrated with the line of questioning from police. >> when you saw the tigers, were you yelling at them? -- >> i was scared. i was wrestling a tiger. have you ever had that happen to you? >> no. no. i can't say i have. >> never been that scared. >> reporter: the attorney for the family says the tapes prove the group dieding did nothing w. >> they hadn't lawyered up and spoke th

live in san francisco, amy hollyfield, abc7 news. >> always a deal to be had. thank you, amy. >>> it wasn't all smooth sailing this black friday. at 5:00 this morning shoppers at a south sacramento wal-mart sheriff deputies had to evacuate the store. customers were allowed back in a dozen at a time after that. authorities blame the store for not providing enough security guards. >>> at least one shopper was injured this morning when crowds stormed the doors of a target in buffalo, new york. the melee started in the line outside with people waiting in the cold and they were frustrated with one another. >>> a shooting in east oakland set off a chain of events that ended with a power outage. a bullet grazed one person in the head. the shooting lead to a traffic accident trapping people in their cars. it brought down a utility pole. two vehicles were involved. one was overturned and injuring three people. the shooter ran away. >>> the murder of a hospital worker may not have been a random attack. abc7 news has learned donna gross may have been targeted by her accuse

at amy hollyfield reports, volunteers begin to prepare thousands of meals 24 hours ago. >> at st. anthony's, they called the leader of six different faiths in the community and asked if their members will would come and help prepare the meals. >> we are very happy that we can share our beltdz for the needy. >> couple jobs like filling 4,000 pie crusts but the moment was so unique they did take a break to capture. >> it so often in the news we hear, faiths struggling with each other -- you know what, we all work together for the better. >> there is always an impressive turnout of volunteers at thanksgiving but many of them realize the importance of showing up after the big holiday >> its special thanksgiving. >> they both agree the need is up this year and the type of people has changed. >> i would say middle-class, some middle-class, some who thought they were going to be able to get through this year and years to come have discovered they don't have the resources. >> the hope, of course, is into the people they feed will turn into success stories, like shirley smith and her husba

amy hollyfield. >> he is hoping the video will continue to spread and reach his target audience. >> michael smith sat down in front of a camera and spoke from his heart to his two children who he hasn't seen for 13 years. video was posted on youtube on monday. heegs he's been an emotional wreck all week. >> a million emotions, ranging from anger to despair to the what ifs and every time the phone rings i just don't know. >> he hasn't seen them since they were six and nine years old. he says the mother abducted them during a custody battle. he first accused him of sexual and verbal and physical abuse but after the allegations were cleared, he started to seek full custody, she took off. >> i want you to know this entire time since 1997, i have loved you. i think about you daily on a daily basis. >> he made this video he heard from the f.b.i. that they have been located and they told investigators they don't want to see their father. >> i don't know anything beyond that. they are over the age of 18. privacy laws kick in. >> he decided to turn to youtube in the hopes his video will go viral and

. >> amy hollyfield is there with the latest tonight it looks alarming. you can see flames from highway 24 and black smoke right before the sun went down. you can see it. and there is a spokesman saying the refinery was subjected to a power outage today. they're looking into what happened. so there it looks like a major fire but this is a safety mechanism. they had to doing with smg with the product. it has to go somewhere. they have to relief the pressure. these flares do have officials monitoring the air right now. and they've decided to issue a shelter in place for the north concord and clyde area. >> it's ash. it's soot. chemicals, you know, compounds and things you can see that you associate with thick smoke. flares are in place as a response system. material is burned off, high in the air column. and this is getting into the upper atmosphere. >> is it a fire warning to stay in the house? he said it's not dire but it's part of the process. so the order is to stay inside, and shut your doors and shut your windows. official told me he doesn't know how

amy hollyfield has more on the spending experience. >> walking through union square, it was so crowded with people. many came to see the tree lighting ceremony. >> it's good. it's happy. >> but the real draw was black friday. >> we started in sacramento and we came out here, we started shopping. >> getting an early start paid off. most of the toys that were on sale at toys 'r' us were gone. >> we weren't able to get everything we wanted but we were abe to find some of things. >> despite the hassles we didn't hear a lot of complaints. it was a good day. >> there was a lot of women but a lot of money that were here weren't here by choice. >> my wife dragged me out yesterday. oh, man, crowded. >> added to the mix, critical mass, group bicycle ride that takes over the streets once a month in san francisco. they made it through union square once but just as the thousands were leaving the bicyclists tried to come through again. police blocked them and many of crowds supported that decision. >> if you missed the deals on black friday. don't worry some stores are promising new mark downs throu

amy hollyfield reports. >> have you done anything to the tiger to harass it or scare the tiger? >> no. >> did you think it was going to attack you or your brother? >> no. >> several times in the interview, he and his 19-year-old brother say they didn't do anything to provoke the tiger. the tiger appeared out of nowhere, first pounced on paul and then attacked the person that was mauled to debt. paul got frustrated with the line of questioning from police. >> when you saw the tigers were you yelling at them to get their attention. >> i was scared. have you ever have that happen to you? >> no, i can't say i have. >> it was like the scariest moment in my life. >> they say the tapes prove they did nothing wrong. >> these tapes were taken when they hand luard up but they soak the truth. >> they don't shed any light on this case. people lie to the police all the time. i think this is another example of it. there were incidents of taunting the tigers that left one man dead. >> in the interview they are critical in how difficult it was to get help and how long it took police and medical

amy hollyfield reports on a fugitive police consider armed and dangerous. >> they say ricardo martinezas waiting for them as they walked through the parking lot. >> i heard her screaming. that is what i told my husband, he just killed whoever. he killed her and her new boyfriend. >> residents of the complex had seen martinez before and they new the victim had a restraining order against him. some had even heard him threaten her. >> he said he would kill her. >> and it came as a shock that it actually happened. >> yeah, i've seen him before, but i didn't know he was going to do that. good grief. >> police believe martinez is on the run and he could be driving a white dodge van with a blue stripes on the side, 8803092 license plate number. or he might be in white ford pickup truck with oregon plates, 100 bwe for a license plate number. >> we're still actively looking for him. >> the s.w.a.t. team searched his fairfield home and acted if martinez was inside. they threw grenades in the home. they went inside with the weapons drawn but the house was empty. >> there was no way to confirm tha

amy hollyfield reports. >> the sit-lie law isn't in effect yet.esidents on haight street are already noticing fewer homeless people on the sidewalks. >> the mail men is not going over people to get the doors and moving away from the businesses and stores and kind of going for the side streets. making it better for people but opponents say this fight isn't over. >> we are definitely going to bring a legal challenge against this. >> the supporters of measure "l" says they are tired of aggressive panhandlers but opponents believe they have a constitutional right to be there. >> when people's rights get trampled on, you don't just give up and walk away. you keep on fighting. >> the district attorney's office believes the law will hold up, pointing out seattle's ordinance was taken to court. >> it's most similar to the law that was just approved by the voters here in san francisco. that challenge as well was overcome by the city and the law was implemented. >> employees at snowboarding aren't worried about the court case. >> if they want to challenge i

let's start with amy hollyfield. >> karly fiorina's team says she's relaxed and confident and thinks voter turnout is going to put her over the top. polls show she's trailing barbara boxer. the republican candidate voted this morning in her los altos neighborhood. her stance on social issues such as abortion made it tough for her to win over moderate california yinz. she's tried to keep the focus on jobs and labeling barbara boxer as a career politician. >> we have 2.3 million people out of work in california and have to focus on getting government spending under control. barbara boxer had 28 years to do it and hadn't done it. it's time to make a change. >> fiorina has been a for midable opponent. the race considered too los to call until recently. now democrats feeling like they've got this one, no problem. joining with us that part of the story as abc 7 is live for us tonight in hollywood. >> i won't say they feel they've got knit the bag just yet there. is a fair amount of nervous energy here in this room. they're optimistic boxer will claim her fourth term. but not overly so. as

in walnut creek, amy hollyfield, abc 7 news. >> smith's ex-wife is a fugitive. she is wanted for child abduction. a violence car crash brings a very devastating result. and this all happened in san francisco yesterday leaving several families in the east bay shattered. five teenagers were in this car. two died. one is barely hanging on and two others did survive. abc 7's lisa amin gulezian has more on this horrible crash. >> he was a nice outgoing guy. and it's a really big shock. >> students at castro valley high school still can't believe what happened when the car jonathan johnson was in crashed into a light pole on ocean avenue in san francisco. johnson and another 18-year-old benjamin powell were thrown from the car and died. a 16-year-old sitting in between them has life-threatening injuries. the two people in the front seat are uninjured. an 18-year-old passenger and the driver who's just 14 years old. >> it's horrible. and we just -- as a school district try to do everything we can to support the students and their families. >> johnson graduated from cas