cal fire worried about a repeat and horrific night of fires if people aren't careful tonight. >> in an instant, everything that you have can be jeopardized and threatened, and making sure that you are doing your job as a citizen. >> that means no outdoor cooking or burning, and please don't carelessly fling a cigarette butt out of your car window or on the ground. flags flying at half-staff at fire stations across the state, honoring a firefighter killed in the southern california fires. a reminder of the dangers they face in these unpredictable conditions. >> it's always very sad when we lose one of our own and we have an inherently dangerous job, and the weather conditions intensify that job. >> cal fire is doing its part with all of the resources from the bay area, down in the southern california fires right now. they have moved resources around the region into this area, have them ready on standby just in case a fire does start. live in napa, tom jensen, nbc bay area news. >> the wind also causing chaos in the sausalito harbor. one boat causing a pier to take on water. you see the

the strong winds are also putting cal fire crews to the test. ie ward is in the east bay for us tonight. >> reporter: continued dry and windy conditions mean a prolonged fire season and cal fire firefighters are grinding through the fatigue. it's just over a week until christmas day, and we're still in fire season. cal fire chief says this season is unprecedented. >> all of our fire stations are open and staffed right now. something you never see in the middle of december in the bay area. this is my 20th fire season, and i can't remember a december like this. >> reporter: cal fire normally staffs 15 trucks during the peak season and only 4 in the winter, but they've ramped back up to 15 units. at one point 11 of them were in southern california battling the thomas fire. >> our forces are getting tired, but that's our job. fire season started in march, 9 months later still going strong. >>> now to southern california. check out the wind fueling the thomas fire tonight. it's now 40 percent contained, but at 267,000 acres it's now the third largest

. >> with so much of the bay across the region, ready to ward >> fla flying at high staff as cal fire mourns the loss of one the agency aski nobody wants to be responsible so once again, cal fire tell in pete's sake, don't throw a ground live in napa, thom genson. >> thank you very much. rightnow, the wind really a viewer sent it to us from fremon and this photo taken near the there. servic interrupted if r for at nbc bay area.com. >>> new at 5:00, a uc berkeley night. the victim and another student weapon the victim complied. is suspect, a hispanic man about 5'8", 145 pounds. last seen wearing a gray hoodie >>> a college in the knot b happen afternoon at she wa walking on the east side hug. bottom the stupts broke free, got away. police asking anyone with goes o bribery using extort adding going forward, the extort >>> earlier, we show ed you the increased fire dan histor now bi size of new more t8,000 firefighter they'r expected to get worse. >> strong wind down north push gusty, and you know, >> far, one fireman has died 800 homes have been destroyed. >>> after a very public tribut

deadly and destructive wildfires swept through wine country, the sweater southern california and cal fire made the decision to keep dozens of stations open for business year round. >> we have not seen any rainfall of significance and we've seen some significant fires later part of the fall outside of what a normal budgeted fire season would be. >> typically fire stations tucked away at the southern end of the valley and close during the winter months when the threat of wildfires is at the lowest but it will remain open this year, to the relief of people living nearby. >> we are so appreciative of being opened because of what you said, all the fires that are happening. >> in years past cal fire has scaled back the number of stations that remain open and ready to battle wildfires during the winter months but that number will more than quadruple this year until fit-- 252. >> we have stations even in the bay area that are very remote and far away from other fire protection entities and now we have places where we would have had an extended response but now we have one that is closer instead.

cal fire says the fire has cost the state $96 million to fight.ourth largest wildfire in state history. >>> and we are learning more about a firefighter who died thursday while fighting the thomas fire. 3 it 2-year-old corey iverson was part of the san diego unit, he worked with cal fire at years and leaves behind a pregnant wife and 2-year-old daughter. a gofundme page raised $240,000 in two days. exact cause has not been released. >> he was somebody that really loved this job. he took great pride in wearing the cal fire patch. he was an extraordinary firefighter. >> governor jerry brownish cried a statement after his death, saying iverson's bravery and years of committed service to the people of california will never be forgotten. the governor also ordered all capital flags to be flown at half staff in his honor. >>> this afternoon in san francisco it's firefighters versus the firefighters of tomorrow. it's basketball game to help the less fortunate over the holiday season. volunteers with the san francisco firefighters toy program will challeng

.>> reporter: cal fire normally staffs 15 trucks and for through the winter. now, they are back up to 15 units. at one point, 11 are in southern california battling the thomas fire. >> our forces are tired. this is what we sign up for. fire season started in march. we are still going strong.>> reporter: we went to antioch and the wind was so powerful, it brought down this giant cedar. james was watching football when he saw the tree move. it was enough to shift and left the cement around the base. james did not hear or feel a thing.>> no noise and no movement. i just saw the tree move. a came up off the foundation of the ground forefeet.>> reporter: the tree was so big, took down power lines. he estimated it would take hours to safely remove. it was a smaller situation in berkeley. a tree was knockdowns as well. -- a tree was knocked down as well. >> our car was behind this car. it covered our car. my husband could barely back out. we had to lift the tree. i am relieved that i was not standing there two seconds earlier.>> reporter: cal fire says mount diablo re

. >> 2017, cal fire battled more than 7,000 fires. that's correct fire. about 50% more than last year, pretty average year. burned more than twice as many acres. >> biggest fire in modern state history, thomas fire, still burning. 91% contained and not expected to grow any more. destroyed more than 1,000 buildings in little over three weeks. >> and we can never forget north bay wildfires. late sunday night in october, merged into six massive fires, killing 43 people in napa, sonoma, lake and mendocino counties. >> took 23 days to fully contain and fire season isn't over. >> reporter david louis shows you what the cal fire is doing now and what it's doing to budget. >> reporter: consumed over 1 million acres in california. caused billions of dollars of damage and put pressure on $1.8 billion budget. approaching half the agency as entire budget halfway through the fiscal year. $275 million more than cal fire set aside as emergency fund. >> we always watch budget closely. be fiscally responsible. but it's clear in the climate we're living in, we have to have

cal fire says it spent nearly $495 million between july 1st and yesterday. that's about $70 million over its emergency fund budget. cal fire is authorized to go over budget and can dip into the state's reserves. officials say they anticipate doing that this season after both the north bay wildfires and these new ones. >> this is the worst season i have had. the longest, the most devastating, most loss of life, most loss of structures. the rate of spread of these fires is extreme. >> emergency service officials say the recovery effort could take years. >> new this morning, san jose city leaders will ask more of you if you call to report illegal fireworks. the process will require people to provide evidence neighbors are using fireworks. there was public outcry after people said they were wrongly cited for setting off fireworks. the paper says the fire department tossed out 45 citation that is were issued without video or photographic evidence. back in july, the consumer unit helped people who said they were wrongly issued fines. they say nobody visited them t

cal fire said the thomas fire is 10% contained. cal fire says more than 400 structures have burned. 15,000 homes remain threatened. officials are blaming the death of a 70-year-old woman on the fire. she was killed in a car crash along the evacuation route. the lilac fire in san diego county is 15% contained. it has burned 4100 acres and destroyed dozens of homes. that is 50 miles north of san diego. officials say strong santa ana winds whipped the fire from half an acre to 500 acres in less than 30 minutes. >>> a funeral was held for the woman killed when a truck plowed into a bay bridge toll booth. the service for cc hines was held this morning. the 46-year-old toll taker died last weekend when a box truck slammed into several cars plowed right through her tollbooth. police that the driver was under the influence and is facing serious charges. she was married and had a 10- year-old daughter.>>> an airplane with the hospital on board made a stop today. it travels around the world treating people who are blind or with impaired visi

. >> 2017, cal fire battled more than 7,000 fires. that's correct fire. about 50% more than last year, pretty average year. burned more than twice as many acres. >> biggest fire in modern state history, thomas fire, still burning. 91% contained and not expected to grow any more. destroyed more than 1,000 buildings in little over three weeks. >> and we can never forget north bay wildfires. late sunday night in october, merged into six massive fires, killing 43 people in napa, sonoma, lake and mendocino counties. >> took 23 days to fully contain and fire season isn't over. >> reporter david louis shows you what the cal fire is doing now and what it's doing to budget. >> reporter: consumed over 1 million acres in california. caused billions of dollars of damage and put pressure on $1.8 billion budget. approaching half the agency as entire budget halfway through the fiscal year. $275 million more than cal fire set aside as emergency fund. >> we always watch budget closely. be fiscally responsible. but it's clear in the climate we're living in, we have to have

orders as they get processed through the northern operation center in north ops. >> with some of cal fire's northern california tanker and helicopter fire attack bases closed for the winter, their planes were sent to mcclellan field in sacramento for their usual tear downs and rebuilds. planes or helicopters finished or those awaiting work are available for the firefight. in fact, two s-10 retardant tankers are already in the fight and four more will be on- site today. cal fire says it's already contracted for large retardant tankers such as the 747 super tanker and this dc-10 already in the area plus additional large tanker planes and helicopters available. >> the same burning conditions are present throughout all southern california so we are ready to divert to another fire. >> this is becoming a regular thing for all california firefighters now. >> we've been going out every year six, seven, eight times and it seems like it's more and more and this is unusual for this late in the season. >> here is the beauty of mutual aid. as you can see, there's still plenty of fire trucks here. the ov

if you are cal fire, you are looking at the weather maps, the weather chart is going, ok, when does this blowing into the fire end. it doesn't want to end until friday to any great degree. it may slack a little bit at times, but look at these pictures. you are seeing -- i can't tell how tall those trees are, but these flames are leaping into the air many tens of feet and i'm sure you could almost maybe say hundreds. i can't tell on this scale. you've got the idea, right? we just got a lot of wind. that wind is not going away. that's the story. this is what the result is. >> we'll continue to cover that fire throughout this newscast. >>> a number of bay area fire crews headed south today to help with the firefight in ventura and l.a. counties. >> tom tells us they are providing backup just as many crews from southern california did during the north bay disaster. >> cal fire says knowing this large wind event was coming, it prestaged air and ground forces in southern california on monday to have them closer to any event that might occur. that now includes two cal fire incident management t

cal fire says it has spent nearly $495 million between july 1st and yesterday. that's about $70 million over its emergency fund budget. cal fire is authorized to go over budget and can dip into the state's reserve. officials say they anticipate doing that after both the north bay wildfires and the new ones. >>>. >> this is the worst season i've had. the longest. the most devastating. most loss of life. most loss of structures. the rate of spread of these fires is extreme. >> emergency service officials say the recovery effort could take years. >>> happening tomorrow, the charles m. schultz museum in santa rosa is raising money for the victims of the north bay wildfires. the museum was close for about a month after the wildfires and ash had gotten inside. this is video of the grand reopening. tomorrow night there will be a live conversation with several authors and a beer and wine hour. proceeds benefit north bay fire relief. tickets cost $30 for the entire evening or $15 for the book signing and art event. that starts at 6:00. >> a disturbing investigation this

cal fire, they control that. there is a control tower in the sky with a spotter plane and they're directing air traffic not only over one fire but all of the fires. >> do you think that is someone looking for volunteers to do this? if they're ordered to fly, they find a pilot to fly at night? have they trained at night. >> great question. what is good about it is when fema gets involved, they provide what is known as a fire management assistance grant. and the sooner they can do that, that provides a tremendous amount of resources. one of the resources is federal funding. a lot of the air opps that you see on the fire are cal fire. they're controlling what is going on. but a lot of it is done by contract. so when they get the money right away, they can get the people up and flying. they're used to doing this. this is what they do. >> all of those green fire engines you see coming from all of the fire houses in the state, how are those funded? i know you work closely with that. >> yeah. >> my station has one. it is

so people were displayed to hear cal fire responded to a flare-up in the burned area around ron's roadto start a fire and for it to spread. especially up here. >> reporter: firefighters say the flare-up was probably caused by burning embers deep within a log or stump, protected by the storms. >> usually after 6 inches of rain this is not what happens. >> what was fuelling it? >> it was the new material blowing out of the trees. >> reporter: in an area that remote if someone hadn't called in, how long could it burn? >> it has the potential to burn for quite a while because of the remoteness on it. it was on an isolated section of the burn. it puts us in a bad position until we get more solid rain. >> we'll call each other, there's a lot of smoke up there, is that you, just to make sure. >> reporter: cal fire said the fast response kept the damage to a minimum, but a fire engine will be stationed in the area for the next few days and the residents have been warned to stay on high alert. >>> also new tonight more than just people rescued from a burning home in newark. they tweeted the pho

cal fire says cory iversen died while battling the thomas fire. he was an engineer with a state fire engine strike team out of san diego. he leaves behind his pregnant wife and a two-year-old daughter. >> what i can say is a heartfelt and deep thank you for the outpouring of support for corey's family and the cal fire family. >> the cause of his death is still being investigated. this is the second death connected to the thomas fire. last week a 70-year-old woman was killed in a car crash while she was evacuating. >>> the environmental protection agency will conduct an internal review of its response to hurricane harvey, irma and maria. the office of inspector general said the review will focus on whether or not the epa was prepared. the goal is to help the agency better plan and respond to future hurricanes. >>> a coalition of young people gathered last night in oakland protesting a lawsuit that could allow a major shipping terminal for coal at the oakland port. the protesters gathered outside the oakland rotunda building which is owned by develo

. >>> a costly end of the year for cal fire. the agency said the past fire season was the most expensive on record. they said they spent nearly $700 million fighting the north bay fires in october and the southern california wildfires this month. california has its own emergency fund, exclusively for fighting fires. cal fire says that fund isn't set at one particular amount and can be adjusted based on the fire season. >>> we're in december and some of the largest fires -- the largest fire in california history in december. we need that rain to come. >> december 28th and we're seeing overnight wildfires in california. now for the month of december, again we keep issuing this, the airs from san francisco into the north bay that have missed out on almost a half a foot of rainfall. this is the wettest time of the year, instead we see rain this month at .08. that's typical of july, not december. but good news, seven day forecast at the bottom of the screen hinting at changes coming up as we head to the middle of the next week. let's

. >>> a cal fire engineer sadly was killed today battling the destructive thomas wildfire burning in ventura and santa barbara counties. tonight his team be that removed from the firelines. 32 yirld cory iverson from san diego county had been with cal fire since 2009. sources tell abc news he was overcome by a so-called burn over of fire along highway 126 in ventura county. this afternoon firefighters celebrated him as i was moved into an awaiting hears. he is survived by his 2-year-old daughter and his wife, who is expecting another baby soon. >> a concert was held to support victims of the north bay fires. ♪ lucas nelson and the promise of the real and the red hot chili peppers headlined tonight's ban. two concert. the last was held at at&t park last month. the headliner was metallica. organizers say more than $20 million has been raised from both events. >>> santa clara county will file a lawsuit after the vote to repeal net neutrality. it allows internet providers to charge users more. it will be hard on start ups, they say. air bnb and netflix also criticized the fcc's decision.

(catherine) many cal fire firefighters are seasonal... some are being rehired for the off season because of the wildfires in southern california. fire crews from sacramento will be joining other strike teams from the area already in southern california. the sacramento department says its crews will fight to save any homes they can. they'll go into the neighborhoods that are in the most danger...and try to take a stand where they can safely stop the fires from spreading. (steve) turning now to our four zone forecast... with chief meteorologist britteny shipp.(catherine) before we get to our local weather ...brittney are the winds in california going to let up? a strong ridge of high pressure is forecast to persist over the west coast through the next two weeks. as a result, a slight warming trend is forecast through late this week with dry weather conditions and above average temperatures. clear sky conditions will result in cool overnights and mostly sunny afternoons through the forecast period. (catherine) new tonight at 8. for the first

. >>> a cal fire engineer sadly was killed today battling the destructive thomas wildfire burning in ventura and santa barbara counties. tonight his team be that removed from the firelines. 32 yirld cory iverson from san diego county had been with cal fire since 2009. sources tell abc news he was overcome by a so-called burn over of fire along highway 126 in ventura county. this afternoon firefighters celebrated him as i was moved into an awaiting he is survived by his 2-year-old daughter and his wife, who is expecting another baby soon. >> a concert was held to support victims of the north bay fires. ♪ lucas nelson and the promise of the real and the red hot chili peppers headlined tonight's ban. two concert. the last was held at at&t park last month. the headliner was metallica. organizers say more than $20 million has been raised from both events. >>> santa clara county will file a lawsuit after the vote to to o repeal net neutrality. it allows internet providers to charge users more. it will be hard on start ups, they say. air bnb and netflix also criticized the fcc's decision. i

.>> reporter: cal fire says that there is potential for explosive fire growth tomorrow with winds reaching 80 miles per hour. the concern is that it could whip the flames in the fire so big moving so fast firefighters would not be able to control them. the sunset barely visible wednesday night is smoke shrouded parts of interest in los angeles county >> flames of the county is mac thomas fire are burning through the los padres for a spec>> there is a lot of potential for some large fire growth. on the north and west side of this fire in the next 24-48 and was.>> reporter: smoke and ash were reminders that flames are still close by.>> it was pretty bad last night. this is kind of like nuclear winter.>> we are just trying to water everyone's house next to us. everyone evacuated.>> reporter: a terrifying morning commute in los angeles. for drivers passing by burning hills along 405. the fire erupted in the santa monica mountains and spread.>> the flames spread to more than 400 acres threatening multimillion dollar mansions in the bel air neighborhood in the nearby getty center in the art coll

for adults and children whose addresses are listed as destroyed from cal fire. if you'd like to donate a bike drop it off at the marin county, mill county or southern marin fire departments. last month fire agencies delivered nearly 900 bikes to children and adults in santa rosa. >> the shift to driverless cars continues to advance at a rapid pace. one car company is making a bold prediction. >> more fallout surrounding matt lauer. >> much more coverage surrounding the not guilty verdict in the shooting death of kate steinle >>> thanks for being there. we made it to friday, december 1st. i'm natasha zouves. >> and i'm matt keller in for reggie. drew, another warm morning. i'm just happy to be with you. no, i'm just happy to be warm. >> you need the winter jacket early on especially in our inland valley. 30s on the board already. in the north bay issues with fog. santa rosa visibility down to one mile. ten miles is the best you can get and that's what we have in petaluma. so patchy but dense in spots. great visibility from this vantage point. easy on the bay brid

as of last night cal fire said this fire is the largest, burned at least 50,000 acres and 150 structures. it is still zero percent contained. fire officials evacuated 27,000 people from their homes. >> it's incredible. it started behind my house. my parents house is burning down 15 miles away. >> you see the flames, your heart sinks down and you keep praying. you keep hoping. >> this morning firefighters are struggling to contain another wildfire, this one in the san fernando valley. the creek fire has forced people and their animals to evacuate. you see volunteers leading horses, alpacas and dogs to safety that fire has burned more than 11,000 acres so far and destroyed about 30 buildings. >>> helping to fight the fires in socal, hearing from a captain from the fire department who is fighting flames. matt keller is live at fire station one in the city of santa clara. good morning, matt. >> reporter: dozens and dozens of firefighters are now in southern california. many were sent to the front lines including some firefighters from station ten here in the city of santa clara. check out th

. >> 2017, cal fire battled more than 7,000 fires. that's correct fire. more than twice as many acres. >> biggest fire in modern state history, thomas fire, still burning. 91% contained and not expected to grow any more. destroyed more than 1,000 buildings in little over three weeks. >> and we can never forget north bay wildfires. late sunday night in october, merged into six massive fires, killing 43 people in napa, sonoma, lake and mendocino counties. >> took 23 days to fully contain and fire season isn't over. >> reporter david louis shows you what the cal fire is doing now

he worked with cal fire eight years. he leaves behind a pregnant wife and two-year-old daughter.>> what i can say is a heartfelt and deep thank you for the outpouring of support for cory's family and the cal fire family.>> iversen was a firefighter with cal fire san diego unit. details about what happened were not available. officials are looking into -- >>> wildfires as parking regulations for utility companies. public utilities commission voted today to implement new rules to help prevent wildfires. the regulations call on utilities to increase the space between power lines and tree branches. and require more inspections of utility poles and the power lines. companies will have to make repairs quicker. utilities have six months to make the changes in certain high risk areas.>>> a benefit concert for fire victims is held tonight in san francisco.>> the red hot chili peppers and lucas nelson performed for band together bay area tonight. the concert is donating 100% of ticket sales to the tipping point emergency relief fu

cal fire says that thomas fire has burned 65,000 acres. overnight, it jumped over highway 101 and coming closer to the pacific ocean. 12,000 structures have already been talented by this and at least 150 have been destroyed. we do know that over 1,700 firefighters are actually out there activity working to fight those flames. >> marcus, you mentioned the creek fire in sylmar, it is also still burning. cal fire says over 11,000 acres have burned. 2,500 structures were threatened, about 30 homes destroyed. more than 100,000 people have evacuated that area alone. the rye fire burning near santa clarita, it is the only one with containment at 5%. 7,000 acres burned there. 1,300 evacuated. president trump says his thoughts and prayers are with the people affected by the fires. he's encouraging everyone to listen to local and state officials. he goes on to write, quote, thank you to all the first responders for your incredible work. >> our jodi hernandez has been posting pictures and videos and information since she arrived yesterday. if you wan

this is my 28th season.>> reporter: cal fire normally staffs 15 trucks and for through the winter. nits. at one point, 11 are in southern california battling the thomas fire. >> our forces are tired. this is what we sign up for. fire season started in march. we are still going strong.>> reporter: we went to antioch and the wind was so powerful, it brought down this giant cedar. james was watching football when he saw the tree move. it was enough to shift and left the cement around the base. james did not hear or feel a thing.>> no noise and no movement. i just saw the tree move. a came up off the foundation of the

cal fire has to reimburse cities and counties to supplement and relieve the agency's 5,300 permanent and 1,700 seasonal firefighters. budgeting has never been an exact science. never has the magnitude of this year's fires. >> dog owners are celebrating. they have withdrawn the plans to have new leash laws for golden gate area. the park service says permanently end of the sxlang rule making process to establish new regulations when i get to dog management. this follows when they said they would stop plans to expand in marin, san francisco, and san mateo counties. >>> a north bay fire victim who lost her home discovers a new way to cope. >>> up next, how one woman's therapeutic ways will be seen by millions in a few days. >>> and a blast of frigid weather sends temperatures . >>> it's time to start recycling your christmas trees. city officials showed how the trees turned into mulch. residents can put their trees on the curb during the first two weeks of january. be sure to remove the decorations. if your tree is taller than six feet, you will have to cut in it half before it goes to th

cal fire concluded, "pg&e or its contractors failed to identify," the risk, and it sparked the butte fire. mike: their staff does not have the training and the qualifications that are required to do the work. liz: in this deposition, attorneys asked the contractor who did the inspection if she was trained to identify trees that become unstable, or if she knew the grey pine could pose a threat. she says, "no." just one tree led to a catastrophe. according to pg&e, 55 million trees are at risk of hitting power lines. but in court documents, we learned about a pg&e program that pushes contractors to work on fewer trees every year. the company sets targets and pays bonuses to contractors who meet those goals. pg&e says in court papers the program encourages contractors to, "work the right trees more aggressively." instead of continuously trimming trees, the company incentivizes contractors to remove them and reduce the work load in the future. frank pitre: this is like playing russian roulette. liz: frank pitre is one of the attorneys working the case. he argues the bonus program might c

. >>> a cal fire engineer was killed today while on the front lines of the devastating wildfire in venturand santa barbara counties. the thomas fire is one of four active fires, and currently the fourth largest fire in state history. it's burned at least 379,000 square miles. earlier today cal fire crews saluted their fallen colleague as his body was taken to the medical examiner's office. 32-year-old cory iverson was assigned to the cal fire san diego unit. sources tell abc 7 news he was killed south of highway 126 in ventura county by a so-called burnover. he leaves behind a 2-year-old daughter and a wife who is expectin the couple's second child. >>> today the california public utilities commission agreed on new fire safety regulations. we told you about this idea last month when it was first proposed. the new rules split the state into three levels of fire danger. and the highest level, there will be stricter rules about the placement and maintenance of power and telephone poles and how closely they can be to trees and shrubs. several lawsuits blame pg&e for poorly maintained power lin

let's go to cal fire for an update.n, thanks for being here. >> thanks for having me. >> shepard: have you ever seen a december like this? >> we have. back in 2003, we were sending folks out over thanksgiving and into december for the same situation. >> shepard: where is the worst of it today, lynn? >> we're still dealing with the larger fire in ventura county, the thomas fire. they're keeping a close eye on that as the winds are picking back up as rick mentioned. that's a huge concern today. the other fires are very important, but we have to be very careful and hope there's no new fires that start. >> shepard: i'm realing about belaire. >> yes, that's one that broke out this morning. we don't have a lot on that. it's a dynamic situation. once again, threatening a beautiful area and beautiful homes and historic places. >> shepard: how many different locations is it, lynn? it's hard to keep up with. >> it is. the way the winds move, they start to the north in ventura, santa barbara counties. that's where the first fire p

. >>> a cal fire engineer was killed today while on the front lines of the devastating wildfire in venturand santa barbara counties. the thomas fire is one of four active fires, and currently the fourth largest fire in state history. it's burned at least 379,000 square miles. earlier today cal fire crews saluted their fallen colleague as his body was taken to the medical examiner's office. 32-year-old cory iverson was assigned to the cal fire san diego unit. sources tell abc 7 news he was killed south of highway 126 in ventura county by a so-called burnover. he leaves behind a 2-year-old daughter and a wife who is expectin the couple's second child. >>> today the california public utilities commission agreed on new fire safety regulations. we told you about this idea last month when it was first proposed. the new rules split the state into three levels of fire danger. and the highest level, there will be stricter rules about the placement and maintenance of power and telephone poles and how closely they can be to trees and shrubs. several lawsuits blame pg&e for poorly maintained power lin

christina is getting an update from cal fire. osed to give us an update just moments ago. let's check in with christina. you are at the county fairgrounds in ventura. we understand the fire moved towards the city of ventura, but now there is an evacuation center there? >> reporter: yes. there is an evacuation center here. there is also a command post area with a bunch of firefighters were getting ready for the day. they will get their orders around 7:00 this morning. in just about half an hour they will get out to fight the thomas fire. phil murphy is with cal -- is with cal fire. talk about the crews that have, and what is the latest on this fire in terms of your fight against it? >> crews are coming in from all over california. through the mutual aid system. a couple of months ago, in october, it was the northbay and now the same crews that were fighting those fires are down here in southern california. it is the master mutual aid system that makes that happen. >> reporter: how were the conditions overnight? has a fire grown? >>

by at least 750 firefighters from northern california and more than 350 engines, a combination of cal fire did send resources in advance of the wind, and, um, so we're prepared before because of the predictions. >> reporter: the cost of wildland fires since july 1st across the state nearly $4,945,000,000 about $70 million over budget. the money comes from the state's emergency fund and is separate of cal fire's budget. cal fire tells us it has the authority to go over budget and has access to state budget reserves if needed. ♪[ music ] >>> in oakland talks continue between the city and union leaders but so far, no deal to end the strike by nearly 3,000 city workers. >> the unions have notified us that they intend to continue the strike tomorrow. >> reporter: tonight there are some reports of progress but at this hour still no agreement in the ongoing labor dispute. good evening, i'm frank somerville. >> i'm julie haener. that means after-school programs, libraries and other city services will likely remain closed for a fourth day. we get more now on this developing story from tom vacar out

sot tim chavez/cal fire official"there's a lot of potential for some large fire growth on the north andof this fire in the next 24 to 48 hours." more than 100- thousand acres already scorched, and officials say containment is minimal. sot chief ralph terrazas/lafd"this predicted wind event should last through saturday so we have several days before we are out of the woods."emotions running high as fires wreaking havoc in los angeles and ventura counties. sot/ventura resident"i don't know what i'm going to do right now. i can't think right because everything is burned down to the ground."here a heroic moment as one man risking his life to save a wild rabbit from the flames on highway 1... more than 260 public and charter schools in the los angeles area are closed throughout the rest of the week.and health officials advise residents to limit their outdoor time because of the smoke. sot/los angeles resident"there was a deep, deep thicket of brush that didn't burn in our 2015 fire, two years ago. and when the flames hit that, it went off like a gas bomb." (robin) ( darya ) good morning i'm

a cal fire engineer from the san diego unit losing his life during the fight. the national weather service says the fire will continue to spread due to dry conditions and as increasing santa ana winds fan the flames. currently thousands of structures in the coastal areas remain threatened and over 40,000 residents in santa barbara county were forced to evacuate. firefighters say they are now concentrating on protecting homes and minimizing the flames from moving northwest. worried homeowners are unsure of what they will return to. >> my wife and i are living moment by moment. >> reporter: while others were more fortunate and spared. >> i built that house 35 years ago in this solid adobe. we built it nobody that someday a fire would come. and i think that's why it's standing now. >> reporter: the thomas fire has already destroyed more than 900 structures, most of those were people's homes. the thomas fire ranks as the 8th most destructive wildfire in the state's history. as of now, the cost of fighting the wildfire is estimated to be about $75 million. knee the c

. >>> cal fire says a wildfire burning in ventura and santa barbara counties is now 88% contained. the thomas fire has become the largest fire in state history and has burned more than 281,000 acres and destroyed more than a thousand homes and other buildings. the fire started back on december 4th and authorities still don't know what caused it. 18,000 structures are still considered to be threatened by the thomas fire, but fire crews are hoping to have it contained by january 7th. this year's fire season has been devastating for so many and has meant a lot of long days and long nights for firefighters. >> ktvu manslaughter is live -- is live with one of the strike teams just in time to make it home for the holidays. >> today, i spoke with the san jose fire department and cal fire crews based in the bay area by what they say seems like nonstop deployment since july. we met some firefighters grateful to spend the holidays with their loved ones because they weren't sure that would be able to happen. his office is behind the wheel of a bulldozer. he's based at this morgan hill cal fire

that is something cal fire and the fire crews from across the state do not want to see happen. they are urging people in southern california to be ready to evacuate. >> thank you. >>> let's turn to mark with a closer look at the weather conditions for those firefighters battling all the fires in la county and surrounding areas. >> all the fires and such a long duration all week. the national weather service calling this the longest and strongest santa and a -- santa anna win event of the season. the wind will be ramping up again late tonight and into early tomorrow morning. all the smoke showing up on satellite. this is just from one of the biggest fires in ventura county and drifting to the pacific with a strong northeast flow in place. it won't back off anytime soon. check out some of the current conditions around the fire zones . you can generally see wind on these panels stronger for the higher terrain. around 10 miles an hour with relative humidity dry at seven percent in a few spots. moving the maps stronger winds toward the malibu hills, that is a gust to 47 miles an hou

. >>> cal fire is $60 million overbudget with six months left in the current fiscal year.of course, they used a lot of resources in the north bay and they are hard at work in southern california right now. fortunately the state has set aside $1.4 billion for emergency services in its rainy day fund. cal fire is confident it will have all the resources to continue operating through the fiscal year. >>> it's 4:47. you still have time to sign up for a san francisco program to train women to negotiate for better pay. american women on average make 80% of what men make, it's worse for women of color. we spoke with katie tang on the abc 7 news at 4:00 yesterday. >> whether you are 2020 trained, 20,000 women in san francisco and empower them with the tools that they need to appropriately negotiate for themselves in a workplace, whether they are a new graduate from college seeking their first job or they have already been in the workplace and want to transition to a new job. >> the training is free for women who live or work in san francisco. we have a link to today's training at

four acres have burned. >>> cal fire is doing something out of the norm.pix 5's devin fehely tells us that it is opting to keep more stations open during the winter months. >>> reporter: after a year in which wildfires swept through wine country, santa cruz and parts of southern california, they decided to keep dozens of fire stations open for business year round. >> we haven't seen rainfall in significance of the last month and obviously, we have had some very significant fires this later part of the fall. and that's outside of what our normal budget of fire season would be. >> reporter: typically, fire stations like this one tucked way in the southern end of the almaden valley in san jose close during the winter months when the threat of wildfires is at its lowest. but it will remain open this year to the relief of people living nearby. >> we are so appreciative of them being open just because of what you said, all the fires that are happening. >> reporter: in years past, cal fire has dramatically scaled back the number of stations that stay open and rea

cal fire estimates 65,000 acres have burned along with an untold number of homes. this is a live picture of the plane that's coming in -- probably going to drop some fire retardant, we would think, over the flames. this picture is being brought to us by a helicopter down there, covering the fire. people who live on sky view terrace in the city of ventura say dozens of homes have burned on the street alone. ventura residents say the fire that started monday evening exploded with strong santa ana winds. >> this is where the fire came from. right there. we were walking over this ridge. the fire came over the ridge, and it stopped for a while. we thought we were okay. and then two hours later, boom, it was right here. >> the homeowners say his son stayed behind and saved the house in part using a budget and water from the jacuzzi after the water pressure from the garden hose gave out. >>> tonight there is no containment on that wildfire. and the red flag conditions are make the firefight extremely tough. ktvu's cristina rendon is in one of the neighborhoods where homes

cal fire is authorized to go over budget and can dip into the state's reserve. cials say they anticipate doing that this season after the north bay wildfires and the new fires. >> this is the worst season i have had, the longest, most devastating, most loss of life, most loss of structures. the rate of spread of these fires is extreme. >> emergency service officials say the recovery effort could take years. >>> happening tomorrow, the charles m. schultz museum raising money for the wildfires. it was closed a month after the fires after ash got inside. this is video of the grand re-opening. tomorrow night, a life conversation with authors followed by a beer and wine reception. a pixar animator will be there selling and creating personalized artwork. benefits go to north bay fire relief. tects are $15 for book signing and the art event. it starts at 6:00. >>> to washington, d.c., a government shutdown. this came ahead of a midnight deadline. both houses of congress voted only to fund the government two more weeks. another shutdown could loom ahead of the holidays.

cal fire announced 32-year-old cory iverson's death this afternoon. they say he was working on the thomas fire in southern california. the procession carried his body through ventura county today. he leaves behind his pregnant wife and 2-year-old daughter. >> our thoughts and prayers are with cory's family and all of his friends and coworkers throughout the department and fire service. >> fire officials say he was a firefighter from cal fire's san diego unit. there is a team currently investigating the circumstances of his death. for now, there does not appear to be an end to the thomas fire. it is hot, dry and the dreaded santa ana winds are in the forecast. kristin goodwin has the latest. >>> reporter: the fire continues to burn parts of ventura and santa barbara counties in southern california. it's the fourth largest wildfire in california history burning more than 242,000 acres. more than 8,000 firefighters are attacking the blaze but so far, only achieving about 30% containment. thursday afternoon, fire officials report the first firefighter fata

sot tim chavez/cal fire official"there's a lot of potential for some large fire growth on the north and west side of this fire in the next 24 to 48 hours." more than 100- thousand acres already scorched, and officials say containment is minimal. sot chief ralph terrazas/lafd"this predicted wind event should last through saturday so we have several days before we are out of the woods."emotions running high as fires wreaking havoc in los angeles and ventura counties. sot/ventura resident"i don't know what i'm going to do right now. i can't think right because everything is burned down to the ground."here a heroic moment as one man risking his life to save a wild rabbit from the flames on highway 1... more than 260 public and charter schools in the los angeles area are closed throughout the rest of the week.and health officials advise residents to limit their outdoor time because of the smoke. sot/los angeles resident"there was a deep, deep thicket of brush that didn't burn in our 2015 fire, two years ago. and when the flames hit that, it went off like a gas bomb." (darya) gas bomb."went o

. >>> cal fire says the massive blaze has burned more than 273,000 acres in ventura and santa barbara county. more than 1000 structures have been damaged or destroyed and with about 2500 firefighters on the fire line, they have it about 65% contained. >>> today mourners honored the firefighter who died battling the fire. [ music ] friends, family, fellow firefighters and governor jerry brown all attended a memorial service for 32-year-old corey iversen. he died of burns and smoke inhalation on december 14. iversen was a member of cal fire's san diego unit since 2009. he leaves behind a two-year-old daughter and his pregnant wife who calls him a superhero at today's service. >> let there be no doubt to anybody in this room, that corey iversen died a hero. corey iversen lost his life for a very simple reason. he put others first. >> fire officials are still investigating the circumstances that led to his death. >>> today governor jerry brown commuted the sentence of a 57- year-old woman who is serving life in prison without parole. candace lee fox has spent 33 years behind bars for a 19

cal fire says the cause was faulty wiring in a hot tub. burned more than 76,000 acres and killed four people and destroyed 13,000 homes. >>> google has filed a proposal for a new development in moffitt park. 4,500 employees could one day work in the more than 1 million square feet of offices. a closer look. the project calls for two complexes near moffitt field. long inclines that allowed google employees to walk or bicycle to any level of the building. it would not be built until 2021. the official engagement ps atoho american actress meghan markle. >> take a look at the first photo released by kensington palace. a close-up of the royal couple smiling. the hand over prince harry's face. and here is the next one stunning. looking more formal. the photographer who took the pictures said it was a great privilege to witness their love and, quote, i cannot help but smile when i look at the photos. such was their happiness together. >>> it's so nice to have good news. unfortunately, we don't have that good news on the roadway. let's zoom in wit

cal fire said the lilac fire has burned 4100 acres and destroyed dozens of homes near fallbrook. that is 50 miles north of san diego. three people were burned trying to escape. two firefighters have been hurt. they are expected to be okay. strong winds ripped the fire in half an acre to 500 acres in less than half an hour yesterday.>> it was incredible. it is like being in a wind tunnel. embers from -- you could just see them. it was really nerve-racking.>> several bonds burned at the san luis rey downs facility for thoroughbred horses. you can see the video. more than 450 horses were set free so they would not be trapped. authorities say at least 25 racehorses were killed and others are unaccounted for.>>> a fire at riverside county yesterday now 60% contained. evacuations were lifted this afternoon. the liberty fire destroyed one home at 600 -- six other buildings. cal fire said the cause is under investigation.>>> firefighters gain some control over the largest and most destructive fires. these are some of the live pictures of the thomas fire which has burned 132,000 acres. th

. >> reporter: this cal fire crew is staged near the head of the fire. protecting a beautiful spanish-style estate called ojai vista farms. it's known for its tranquil environment, but not today. >> this was called for an immediate air drop location and that's why you see the response from the air right now. >> reporter: from the road below residents are nervously watching. >> just the uncertainty of it and i feel like, you know, it's not predictable. the fire, the wind as much as you -- they're forecasting it, just not really knowing. >> reporter: but emergency alerts are keeping residents on their toes. last night people in seven counties got the wireless warning. the state's largest use of the disaster warning system. people in the danger zone are grateful. >> kind of scares me a little bit when i get it, but at least i know that, you know, what's going on. >> reporter: and we are back here live where you can see the fire fight is on. now, we are told 15,000 structures remain threatened in this area. 50,000 people have been evacuated. and today the na

cory iverson, 32-year-old cal fire engineer from san diego. as brought home to san diego yesterday. a procession along the freeways, firefighters stopping to salute him. the second fatality in this fire. the first was a civilian, a 70-year-old woman who died early on in the evacuation. they hope now that the worst of this is over. cal fire officials are saying this fire is not likely to be contained until january 7, more than a month after it broke out. >> wow. those heart breaking stories, those two fatalities. talk about the courage and resilience of the firefighters on the ground for weeks now. just unbelievable. thanks so much. >>> more flight cancellations are expected this morning in atlanta following a major power outage at hearts field jackson international airport yesterday. electricity went out shortly after 1:00 p.m. yesterday afternoon and not fully restored until late last night. more than 1,000 flights had to be canceled. atlanta's mayor said a fire at the main substation powering the airport triggered the entire outage. joining u