i'm consumer investigator chris chmura. a revealing look inside the unemployment office next. >>> welcome back. imagine applying for a job, getting hired and getting paid to do nothing. that's exactly the gig the state gave hundreds of californians, and you paid for it. we all did with our taxes. consumer investigator chris chmura is here with more troubling findings inside the state unemployment office. >> reporter: the employment development department just paused new unemployment applications to reset and address a backlog of 600,000 claims. but that's not the only misstep that triggered this sudden pause. state workers walked away from their phones, ignored important mail and, yes, hundreds more state workers hired and paid to do absolutely nothing. laidoff workers could not reach the edd to file for unemployment benefits. >> 300 calls just to get through to someone on the other line. >> reporter: governor newsom said his office responded with a heroic effort. >> we moved people to work the phones. >> reporter: but thro

i'm chris chmura. we want to hear from you. we'll show you how to participate in a new national survey next. >>> nbc bay area responds to frustrated customers every day, many feel customer service is the worst it's ever been. is it really? we have an invitation to tell us what you think. here is consumer investigator chris chmura to explain. >> reporter: we're looking to take the pulse of the people together with our nbc and telemundo sister stations nationwide conducting a survey about customer service. this is your chance to tell us what you think. ♪ >> reporter: service with a smile. the way it was. >> this is a recording. >> reporter: the way it is, does a smiley emoji from an automated bot count as service. >> we've heard from hundreds of people. >> waited and waited and didn't get anything. >> reporter: who harshly criticized their contacts with all sorts of customer service centers. >> i might as well start a fire and try to send smoke signals. they're more likely to answer that than the phone or email. >> reporter: many

our consumer investigator chris chmura here with one of these complaints that stands out. chris? >> antoinette martinez in sunnyvale told us she couldn't get her money back for a flight to mexico after she cancelled the trip. she paid about $1,000 for airfare and travel insurance when she booked through aarp, but when she asked for a refund, antoinette said the agency only offered an airline credit of 350 bucks. she turned to us because she expected a full cash refund. we reached out to aarp. a few days later, antoinette said she got all her money back, $1,027.38. so what changed? we don't know. aarp only told us it made contact with antoinette and we feel the situation is resolved sa satisfactory. true antoinette is happy. we have one quick note about travel insurance. one of the main reasons to buy it pre-pandemic was to avoid nasty airline change fees and hotel cancellation fees, but many airlines and hotels have stopped charging them. so before you buy travel insurance today, figure out what you'll actually get out of it tomorrow. if anything. if you're getting nowhere with a

chris chmura has an option to keep everyone safe. >>> day begins with low clouds and drizzle but ends fire weather >>> a lot of families are still reluctant to let anyone inside their homes for fear of contracting covid-19. but if something breaks, you need a worker to fix it. >> chris chmura shows how innovative virtual handyman works and how much it cost s. >> talking about fixers, not michael cohen but fixers with one-on-one coaching for diy home products without anyone entering your home. >> got stuck at one point doing plumbing work underneath my sink. >> reporter: works in i.t., the actual pipes in his oakland home needed attention. >> usually handy but no way i could figure it out. >> reporter: needed expert but family member is high risk for covid-19, letting someone inside wasn't an option. tried something new, virtual expert on fixer.com. >> i own my home and idea of learning process is better than just hiring someone to do it and not having something. next time this happens, i can figure it out myself. >> if you're stuck at home, need your toilets working. >> reporter: foun

chris chmura has an option to keep everyone safe. >>> day begins with low clouds and drizzle but endswith another fire weather watch for north bay hills. talk about that and more wind in the seven-day forecast when we come back. we made usaa insurance for members like martin. an air force veteran made of doing what's right, not what's easy. so when a hailstorm hit, usaa reached out before he could even inspect the damage. that's how you do it right. usaa insurance is made just the way martin's family needs it - with hassle-free claims, he got paid before his neighbor even got started. because doing right by our members, that's what's right. usaa. what you're made of, we're made for. usaa in business you have to be then do it all over again. comcast business gives you fast, reliable internet on the nation's largest gig-speed network. and now for a limited time, you can also get fast shipping- with amazon business prime essentials. so no matter what comes next, you'll always be ready to bounce forward. get started with powerful internet and voice for $64.90 a month, and ask how you can

i'm chris chmura, nbc bay area responds. >>> our team is always on social media. when she's not on anchor desk or in the field kris sanchez just a mom like lots of us. her younger daughter was trying to convince her to get a pet raccoon making a presence. i don't know where you get a t ppet raccoon. you can tell kris the strangest request your kids have ever made on facebook, twitter and instagram. you can find her there. you're watching "today in the bay." in business you have to be able to shift-pivot-adapt. then do it all over again. comcast business gives you fast, reliable internet on the nation's largest gig-speed network. and now for a limited time, you can also get fast shipping- with amazon business prime essentials. so no matter what comes next, you'll always be ready to bounce forward. get started with powerful internet and voice for $64.90 a month, and ask how you can get one free year of amazon busines prime essentials on us. call or go online today. comcast business. >>> welcome back. 5:24 for you that morning. oakland is a part of a new lawsuit file

i'm investigative reporter chris chmura.is his passion- it is his fault he didn't lock the garage. don't even think about it! been there, done that. with liftmaster® powered by myq®, know what's happening in your garage- from anywhere. you can take a day off fromy worrying about your packages. ♪ ohhh yeahhh! just connect your myq® app to key. ♪ ohhh yeahhh! get free in-garage delivery with myq® and key by amazon. >>> okay. every day of the week. nbc bay area responds of course. consumer investigator chris chmura here with a look at the recent wins. >> we work hand in hand with colleagues at telemundo to resolve consumer problems in english and spanish. so far we've responding to more than 4,700 viewers. our crew helped manuel in san francisco. he was still being billed for a theme park membership after he canceled it. they called the park and helped manuel get a $78 refund. jess in santa clara asked for help on a telecom account. she couldn't get a billing problem straightend out on her own. it gave jessica a credit of $54.

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura. we want to hear from you.ll show you how to participate in a new national survey next. >>> welcome back. it's 6:24. a landmark moment for foster city-based gilead sciences, the food and drug administration has formally approved remdesivir treatment for covid-19. it is the first drug to be formally approved for treating covid. remdesivir is sold under the brand name and was used under emergency authorization. >>> if a coronavirus vaccine was available today, would you get it? many californians would not jump at the chance. a new poll by the public policy institute shows only one quarter of adults would definitely get the vaccine if there were one available today. around 30% say they would probably get it. 40% say that they would definitely not or probably not roll up their sleeves. >>> okay. so what do you think about customer service right now? okay, yeah, maybe a little better, a little worse? >> consumer investigator chris chmura and his team are actually conducting a survey about it, and they'd like you to

she asked consumer investigator chris chmura and his team to help her get money back for a las vegashow that really didn't get off the ground. >> reporter: good morning. let me set the stage. last year heidi silva bought tickets at vegas.com to see cirque du soleil in april. a few weeks before the show, the promoters canceled due to the pandemic. heidi got an email stating a full refund was on the way. but it never arrived. after several weeks she asked if we could help. we reached out to vegas.com again and again and again, and it didn't answer any of our team's calls or emails. we went to plan "b" and asked paypal to help. since heidi used paypal to buy the tickets. as soon as paypal started investigating heidi got her $414 back. the tickets were covered by its purchase protection program. paypal has a whole webpage including a list of things that are covered and those that are not covered like real estate and cars. we've added a link to our website nbcbayarea.com/responds. >>> it is 5:27. up next on "today in the bay," the top stories we're following for you this wednesday morning

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura.bc bay area responds next. >>> okay, so we're letting marcus enjoy a few days off. but we're not forgetting him because he celebrated a birthday. we were thinking about him. happy birthday, marcus. we're celebrating all week. that's how we do it here on "today in the bay." what would make his day if you followed him on twitter, facebook and instagram. you're watching "today in the bay." 5:23. want to eliminate odors without heavy, overwhelming scents? we get it. introducing febreze light. it eliminates odors... with no heavy perfumes... in light scents you'll love. new febreze light. i felt like i was justs little constantly cleaning up his hair. then, i got my paws on the swiffer sweeper... it's a game changer! these heavy duty dry cloths pick up a crazy amount of hair. this is all you. we stopped cleaning and started swiffering. >>> new this morning a case of food tampering. a new hampshire man accused of putting razor blades into pizza dough bags at local supermarkets in new england

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura, nbc bay area responds next. in the bay area, we believe in science. traffic and air pollution will be even worse after the pandemic. that's why we support measure rr to keep caltrain running. which is at risk of shutdown because of the crisis. to keep millions of cars off our roads, to reduce air pollution and fight climate change. and measure rr helps essential workers like me get to work and keep our communities healthy. relieve traffic. reduce pollution. rescue caltrain. [all] yes on measure rr. >>> welcome back. a clayton woman who says her refund for an online order went missing. >> she turned to chris chmura and his team for some help. >> reporter: good morning. katherine paid jcpenney $38 for a new coat. it was supposed to be delivered to her house in eastern contra costa county. somehow it went to a jcpenney store in san jose 65 miles away. >> i really wasn't worried because the email confirmed shipment clearly stated if the coat wasn't picked up by a specific date the order would be canceled and a full

consumer investigator chris chmura shows us how a virtual handyman works. >> we're talking about a fixertype, but these are one-on-one coaching for diy projects without anyone entering your home. >> i got stuck at one pointing the some pluming work. >> reporter: gary jones works in i.t. his day job is clearing clogs in the virtual pipeline and then the actual pipes needed attention. >> i'm usually a little bit handy but i couldn't figure this out. >> reporter: a family member is high risk for covid-19, so letting someone inside wasn't an option. so gary tried a virtual expert. >> it's better than hiring someone to do it and not have anything. next time this happens i can figure it out myself. >> reporter: so it turns out if you're stuck at home, you need to have your toilets working. >> reporter: mike evans founded fixer as an on demand handyman company and then covid hit so they added a virtual service to the tool box. >> we had to figure out how to do this in the contactless way. because we had built a training center ourselves, going from educating our fixers to educating customers at

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura.g our expertise, reading complaint letters to help you write a more effective complaint letter. we'll show you how next. >>> but first, you can always get your news updates on the go, on social media, be sure to watch our mini synced in shows. you're watching right now "today in the bay." your clothes get damaged when you wash them. you can protect them when you use this. new downy defy damage can give your clothes total wash protection from stretching, fading, and fuzz. new downy defy damage. vicks vapopatch. easy to wear with soothing vicks vapors for her, for you, for the whole family. trusted soothing vapors, from vicks >>> developing now protests in west philadelphia erupted overnight in the wake of a deadly police shooting. protesters gathered outside the police station, at least four officers were sent to the hospital after being hit by bricks and a police sergeant broke his leg. all of this took place hours after a person was killed. officers fired when he ignored orders to dro

i'm chris chmura. we're flipping our expertise, reading complaint letters to help you write a more effective complaint letter. we'll show you how next. >>> you can get your news updates on the go on social media. be sure to watch our mini shows on twitter and instagram. just follow nbc bay area news. you're watching "today in the bay." >>> protests in west philadelphia erupted in the wake of a deadly police shooting. protesters gathered outside the police station. at least four officers were sent to the hospital after they were hit by bricks and a truck hit a police sergeant breaking his leg. all of this took place hours after officers shot and killed 27-year-old walter wallace. police say officers fired when he ignored orders to drop a knife. >>> back to the recent surge in covid cases and concern from hospitals about handling patients. across the country 41,000 people are hospitalized, that's a 40% jump over last month. covid cases are up at least 10% in all but eight states including right here in c

i'm investigator chris chmura, nbc bay area responds and telemundo next.saa insurance for members like martin. an air force veteran made of doing what's right, not what's easy. so when a hailstorm hit, usaa reached out before he could even inspect the damage. that's how you do it right. usaa insurance is made just the way martin's family needs it with hassle-free claims, he got paid before his neighbor even got started. because doing right by our members, that's what's right. usaa. what you're made of, we're made for. ♪ usaa >>> developing now the national guard is set to arrive in philadelphia over the next few days following several nights of unrest. following the deadly police shooting of a black man police say was armed with a knife. the man's family members say they don't want the officers to be charged and believe the shooting happened due to a lack of training. >>> federal authorities arrested an alleged white supremacist leader and one of his associates in part because of this photo that was taken in december. police say one family was terrorized w

i'm chris chmura, nbc bay area responds next. >>> but first our team always on social media. check out this photo of meteorologist kari hall posted on social media. she says her husband got her this new coffee mug because mornings can be hard. be sure to follow kari on facebook, twitter and instagram. she posts updates to the forecast. woman 1: get your vote-by-mail ballot? woman 2: you can stay healthy and fill it out from the safety of home. surfer: or you can fill it out anywhere. man 1: it's easy to mail it back. you don't even need a stamp. man 2: or you can use an official drop box. woman 3: you can even drop it off at the polls. man 3: then, track it to confirm your county got it. see? they got it! woman 4: mail ballots are the simple, safe, and secure way to ensure that your vote is counted. their laundry smells moremily amazing than ever.in flings, uh, honey? isn't that the dog's towel? hey, me towel su towel. there's more gain scent plus oxi boost and febreze odor remover in every fling. gain. seriously good scent. >>> 5:24. developing now in colorado wildfires stil

consumer investigator chris chmura is here with one that landed in his team's inbox. >> reporter: good morning. antoinette martinez said she couldn't get her money back for a flight to mexico after she canceled the trip. she paid about $1,000 for airfare and travel insurance when she booked through aarp. but when she asked for a refund antoinette said the agency only offered an airline credit of $350. she turned to us because she expected a full cash refund. we reached out to aarp. a few days later she said show got all her money back $1,027.38. so what changed? we don't know. aarp only told us it made contact with antoinette, and we feel the situation is resolved satisfactorily. antoinette is happy. if you're ready to start planning trips, one quick note about travel insurance. one of the main reasons to buy it prepandemic was to avoid nasty airline change fees and hotel cancellation fees. but many airlines and hotels have stopped charging them. before you buy travel insurance today, figure out what you'll actually get out of it tomorrow. if anything. if you're getting nowhere with a

. >> reporter: i'm consumer investigator chris chmura. paying for parking during the pandemic, some of the consumer cases we've tackled for viewers like you at nbc bay area responds. this election, all californians will be able to vote safely from home. every active, registered voter will receive a vote-by-mail ballot with a unique barcode. you can track it using where's my ballot? and you'll receive automatic notifications by text, email or voice call to let you know the status of your ballot once you mail it, drop it off at your polling place or at a drop box. vote by mail ballots. simple, safe, secure. counted. learn more at vote.ca.gov >>> welcome back. 6:25 for you this morning. an nbc bay area responds to a wide variety of consumer complaints during the pandemic. >> that's right. consumer investigator chris chmura has more of the problems you've been sharing. >> reporter: good morning. first please allow us to pat ourselves on the back a little bit. since january 1st we've helped viewers like you get back or save more than half a mi

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura, nbc bay area responds next. >>> but first, you can find our teamsocial media. check out raj and janelle at levi's stadium. they hosted our pregame show over the weekend. they said it was really weird to be there without the fans. for more behind-the-scenes photos and game highlights follow nbc bay area. you're watching "today in the bay." say yes... to the best bargains ever at ross! yes! oh, yeah! yep. yesss! savings on savings on savings? that's yes for less. at ross. oh, yeah! there's always somethiat ross.n store yep. oh yeah! say yes to those looks, the best brands... ...and "check you out" bargains! savings from top to bottom! that's yes for less. at ross. >>> 5:24 now. for a police detective hankison is due in court today, one of three officers involved in the deadly breonna taylor raid in march. he was fired in june and charged with three counts of wanton endangerment for blindly firing into neighboring amounts but not directly for taylor's death. taylor's family is asking kentucky's governor to announce a new special prosecutor and reopen

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura, nbc bay area responds next. >>> over the weekend in my householdly celebrated a pretty big anniversary. five years ago we adopted this sweet little puppy named pip squeak. it looks like we rescued him but i think it was really pip that rescued us that year. you can let me know the big events you're celebrating in your life during this pandemic. we're always looking for some happy. follow me on facebook, twitter and instagram. a lot more news ahead. you're watching "today in the bay." uber and lyft are like every big guy i've ever brought down. prop 22 doesn't "help" their drivers-- it denies them benefits. 22 doesn't help women. it actually weakens sexual harassment laws, which are meant to protect them. uber and lyft aren't even required to investigate sexual harassment claims. i agree with the la times: no on 22. uber and lyft want all the power. so, show them the real power is you. vote no on prop 22. >>> happening now weekend snowfall is helping bring relev to firefighters battling colorado's biggest ever wildfire. more than 12 inches of snow f

. >> reporter: i'm consumer investigator chris chmura. refrigerator prepare and paying for parking, some of the cases as nbc bay area responds next. breaking news. the president and first lady quarantining at the white house after testing positive for covid-19. a live look in washington. the president and first lady say they will quarantine at home. we'll have much more ahead at 5:30. >>> nbc bay area responds to a wide variety of consumer complaints during the pandemic. >> that's right. chris chmura joins us now to share some of the problems that they've been solving. >> reporter: good morning. first please allow us to pat ourselves on the back a little bit. since january 1st we've helped viewers like you get back or save more than half a million dollars that comes in amounts big and small. let's look at some of our recent wins starting with marianne in richmond. she was billed for a parking permit she couldn't use during the pandemic. we helped her track down a refund of $262. william in pittsburg had concerns with the way a loyalty pro

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura, nbc bay area responds next. oscar the grouch here to tell you, yeah, you, to wear a mask out in public around other people. sure it'll keep you healthy. but more importantly, i won't have to see your happy smiling face. ugh. and if you don't want to wear a mask, i've just got one thing to tell you. scram, go away. ugh. caring for each other because we are all in this together. so wear a mask and have a rotten day, will ya? ugh. >>> a really tense moment for a family in indiana. police trying to get the word out to find the four men who barged into this home in south bend where a mother and her son were sitting at home. police say the little boy jumped into action trying to defend his mother and his home. it's terrifying because you can see that those men are armed. he's swinging and throwing things as the invaders tries to talk them down. the men did run off and are still on the loose. police say shots were fired during the incident but no one was injured. that poor little guy. >> god bless him. god bless him tr

we asked chris chmura to find out. >> reporter: good morning. bottom line is concerts as we represent them probably will not resume anytime soon. over the past few weeks we've been speaking with artists, promoters and venue operators about the future. they all seem to agree the 6-foot rule is a huge hurdle. >> we don't anticipate we'll have concerts until there's a vaccine and be social distancing is a thing of the past. >> reporter: that doesn't mean all live music is a thing of the past. how some musicians are getting creative to keep playing and we'll give you a sneak peek at some unexpected stages. please join us tonight after the billboard music awards. >>> up next the top stories including red flag warning that is now in effect and the elevated fire danger. kari has a look at our forecast next. >>> and some help for people just trying to make it in the bay. the aid coming for those feeling impact from the santa rosa firestorm. >>> plus, no stars this year. the reason michelin is holding off on giving recognition to california raun. in busi

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura. we want to hear from you.ll show you how to participate in a new national survey next. >>> but first, you must have seen this video right here. this is of a guy chugging ocean spray singing along with fleetwood mac's hit "dreams." the new impact on the charts through all that social media attention. you know what, a member of our own team decided to do it himself. take a look at this, one of our producers, tony, with the remake video on instagram. check him out there. >> always a fun time to watch on instagram. way to go, tony. >> i think palo is helping as well. be sure to follow nbc bay area on facebook, twitter and instagram to share your videos with us. we can't wait to see what you're doing out there. 5:22 this morning. serena: it's my 9:12, no-days-off migraine medicine. it's ubrelvy. for anytime, anywhere migraine strikes without worrying if it's too late, or where i am. one dose can quickly stop migraine in its tracks within two hours. unlike older medicines, ubrelvy is a pill that directly blocks cgrp

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura. nbc bay area responds next. >>> and i am one proud niece this morning. my aunt sanchez just recognized with a lifetime achievement board from the colorado association for bilingual education. she's a former national teacher of the year, too. it is just so special for us as a family and especially special because it's hispanic heritage month. >>> you can follow us on instagram, facebook and on twitter. thanks for letting me humble brag. you're watching "today in the bay." >>> participates of southwest louisiana still only starting the long process of cleaning up after hurricane delta tore through the region. at least one death is now being tied to the storm with fears the number may rise. nearly half a million people across the southeast are without power. the storm made landfall near many of the same areas hit hard by hurricane laura last month. one couple who own a restaurant have had a run of tough luck. >> just rebuilt after laura. just finished. the restaurant was open for the las

i'm chris chmura. more shautoffs are forecast. pg&e is look at much widespread outages at sunday 4:00 where extremely high fire danger is forecast to arrive in the san francisco bay area. those outages are currently expected to last until wednesday. pg&e says it's still monitoring the situation and notes that conditions could change. if you are at risk of losing electric, expect a notification as early as as this afternoon. >>> let's look what is driving this with meteorologist kari hall who is looking at the red flag warning. where are you focused? >> mostly on the east bay as well as the north bay. we have time to prepare for that. let's get a look what i'm expecting here today. we are enjoying calmer winds now that that red flag warning has expired. we are also going to have much cooler temperatures for the weekend but that high wind event comes with another push of cool air after seeing a nice cooldown for today. we are going to see highs in upp upper 70s. we get to that red flag warning and the high fire danger that we will h

i'm chris chmura. marcus and laura are off. scott, you've got some important updates from this morning. go ahead. >> reporter: i've got a number of them. let me start with this, chris. that is we are getting reassurance from others in government they have not tested positive. obviously, our first question was about mike pence, speaker pelosi. they are both negative as is the secretary of treasury. secretary of state, the former vice president joe biden, kamala harris all reporting negative results. but utah senator mike lee and the president of notre dame both who met with the new candidate, the new nominee for court, have tested positive. the other important update for you, chris, is the white house is now saying the president is experiencing minor symptoms. that's very different than earlier reports that said he was asymptomatic. we will be watching for any change in the language the white house is using to describe the president. you're seeing video of him in minnesota wednesday where he was accompanied by hope hicks, who was

i'm consumer investigator chris chmura.

we asked nbc bay area's chris chmura to find out. >> good evening. the bottom line is concerts as we remember them probably will not resume any time soon. over the past few weeks, we've been speaking with artists, promotors and venue operators about the future. they all seem to agree the six-foot rule is a huge hurdle. >> we don't anticipate that we'll have concerts until there is a vaccine and the social distancing is a thing of the past. >> but that doesn't mean all live music has gone silent. tonight after the billboard awards, we'll show you how some musicians are getting creative to keep playing. please join us tonight after the billboard music awards. >> thank you, chris. okay. let's check in with jeff ranieri. we have a red flag warning. fire danger, especially in the higher elevations. tell about that, jeff. >> that's exactly right. it's really all about the mountains for this best chance of wind gusts of 30 to 50 miles per hour. it's much, much stiffer down at the lower elevations where the wind's relatively light at the current moment. only

. >> chris chmura. >> these fixers offering expert on one-on-one coaching dwi projects without anyone entering your home. >> i got stuck doing some plumbing work. >> his day job is clearing the virtual pipelines. one night his pipe needed attenti attention. >> gary needed an expert. a family member is high-risk for covid-19. letting someone inside was not an option. gary tried a virtual expert online. >> the idea of learning is better for me than hiring somebody to do it. it turns out if you are stuck at home, you need to have your toilet working. a handyman company. customers stop letting workers inside so fixer added a virtual service to its tool box. because we had built a training center ourselves, educating our fixers to educating customers at home with a pretty easy transition. they talk you through the steps. the first five minutes are free then 15 bucks for every 15 minutes after that. most calls are less than an hour. we'll guide you through things so you don't make things worse. >> the fixer website says coaches are vetted and background checked and trained. >> the state con

consumer investigator chris chmura has the warning. >> qr stands for quick response. some thieves are corrupting these quick codes for fast cash. with four lots, two garages and 2,475 total spots, it's easy to forget where you parked at san jose international. but this airport qr code can help. you scan it when you park, and it saves your location for later. sjc says you can trust its qr codes. >> managers monitor and manage the qr code system there. >> reporter: but as quick response codes are popping up everywhere -- >> dr. dr. allister martin star qr. >> reporter: we need to slow down. >> it's just another way for a hacker to get to your device. >> reporter: alex mosher is with mobileiron in mountain view. 40% scanned a qr code in the past week, and 53% wanted to see more of them. but 71% admitted they couldn't spot a malicious qr code. >> you don't always know when you're scanning a qr code if it's taking you to a site you can know and trust. a qr code that's legitimate and one that's not look exactly the same. >> reporter: mark cray knack said he fell victim. >>

i'm chris chmura. walnut creek. one city feeling the impact from power shutoffs. now. let's turn to vianey. how long can we expect the heat and wind to continue? >> well, we're definitely not in the clear when it comes to the threat from the winds. the red flag warning will be in effect through tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. the reason for that is we've seen some gusty conditions up through the mt. diablo area. dry air, low humidity. expect the temperatures to remain through tomorrow and then we cool off heading into sunday. still, we've got to remain on high alert heading into tonight. especially overnight into the early morning hours as well. we can expect to see the north bays,unta santa cruz mountains and east bay hills be affected. there's a chance you probably won't even get to see the wind but keep in mind that in the higher elevation areas, it's definitely gusty out there. >> vianey, thank you very much. a follow report at 11:00 a.m. i'll have another local news update for you in half an hour. back to the "today" show. i didn't choose this job because it was easy.

i'm chris chmura.s turned off due to fire danger this week. more shutoffs might occur this weekend. pg&e is now looking at possibly much larger and more widespread outages starting sunday. that's when extremely high fire danger is forecast. pg&e says conditions are still in flux, though. customers at risk of losing electric might be notified later today. >>> all right, who do you recommend should be keeping an eye on the weather this weekend, kari? >> i think it will definitely be the east bay and parts of the north bay. we are going to see still some nice, calm weather for today and definitely a good day to prepare for the potential of having power outages as our highs in concord and livermore reach the upper 70s. san jose will see mid-70s. it's going to be nice throughout the weekend but, of course, we are going to continue to watch out for that fire weather watch that will be in effect for pretty much all the bay area and our elevations up above 1,000 feet. and the high winds will start late sunday

i'm chris chmura.ut off during the red flag alert. oakland's montclair district has had its power restored. north bay, however, is a different story. that's where most outages remain. they expect to have all power restored later today. as for the red flag alert, let's get an update from vianey arana. good morning. >> good morning. and the good news is that it's still on track to expire at 11:00 a.m. i'm noticing in the models the wind significantly diminished after 10:00 a.m. 30s, 20s to 15 to 20-mile-per-hour range when it comes to the wind speed. still dry and still hot. if it feels warm out there early on, it was, and it will continue to warm up. 80s and 90s, even around the coastline, areas like half moon bay 86. when we started at 4:30 in the morning, half moon bay was at 82 degrees. we'll see the wind shift heading into the weekend. a little bit of a cooldown but a red flag warning still on track to expire at 11:00 a.m. chris? >> vianey, thank you. if weather conditions change, our weather team w

. >> consumer investigator chris chmura here to explain how to get your share of it. >> reporter: goode found more than a dozen complaints with lg refrigerators dating back to 2016. both the freezer and fridge stopped working. cindy in lafayette, it stopped working completely. and renee in san jose. i have no working refrigerator. there might now be some relief for them. a class action settlement is in the works with lg. attorneys say there were deflects sold from 2014 to 2017. specifically they say more than a million and a half had a cooling failure. no cold air inside led to a freezer full of spoiled food. >> anywhere from a few hundred dollars to reimbursing for parts or labor all the way up to thousands of dollars if you've had a really particularly bad experience. >> reporter: lg denies any wrongdoing or deflects but is participating in the settlement. lg said we agreed to avoid further litigation costs and in the interest of customer satisfaction. we've made it easy for to you figure out if the settlement covers your fridge. go to nbcbayarea.com/responds. you can see if you qual

i'm chris chmura, nbc bay area responds next. >>> over the weekend my family celebrated a really greatary for us. five years ago we adopted this little puppy there named pip squeak. it looks like we rescued him but he was the one who really rescued us this year. he's just a bundle of happiness. share with us your big events in your life especially during this pandemic. we all need a little happy. follow me on facebook, twitter and instagram. a lot more news ahead at 5:23. how's everybody doing? hey you guys. hi! it's time to lean on each other. all of you guys, so much great support. and laugh with each other. (laughs) cheers! let's do it together. with caregiving chats and more. come find us at aarp.org/nearyou with caregiving chats and more. your clothes get damaged when you wash them. you can protect them when you use this. new downy defy damage can give your clothes total wash protection from stretching, fading, and fuzz. new downy defy damage. vicks vapopatch. easy to wear with soothing vicks vapors for her, for you, for the whole family. trusted soothing vapors, from vicks >> rep

i'm investigator chris chmura, nbc bay area responds with a tip for everyone next. >>> but first our team always on social media and kris sanchez sharing a heartwarming reunion between a bay area firefighter and his daughter. take a look at that, follow kris on facebook, instagram and twitter. >> oh, my gosh! >> how are you? i missed you. i missed you. >> oh, yes. a beautiful reunion there. make sure you follow kris, facebook, twitter, instagram to share this story. beautiful reunion. >> reporter: good morning. antoinette told us she couldn't get her money back for a flight to mexico after she canceled the trip. she paid about $1,000 for airfare and travel insurance when she booked through aarp. but when she asked for a refund, antoinette said the agency only offered an airline credit of $350. she turned to us because she expected a full cash refund. we reached out to aarp. antoinette said she got all her money back $1,027.38. so what changed? we don't know. aarp only told us it made contact with antoinette and we feel the situation is resolved satisfactorilily. antoinette is happy.

consumer investigator chris chmura is here with a warning. >> reporter: qr stands for quick response. some thieves are corrupting these quick codes for fast cash. with four lots, two garages, and 2,475 total spots, it's easy to forget where you parked at san jose international. but this airport qr code can help. you scan it when you park and it saves your location for later. sjc says you can trust its qr codes. >> third-party managers who monitor and manage the qr code system there. >> reporter: but as quick response codes are poupg every -- >> dr. al stare martin started vote er. >> more and more. >> we have qr codes on the table. >> reporter: cybersecurity experts say we need to slow down. >> it's just another way for a hacker to be able to get to your device. >> reporter: alex mowsier is with mobile iron, a tech security company in mountain view. it just polled 2,100 people in the u.s. and uk. 40% had scanned a qr code in the last week and 53% wanted to see more of them but 71% admitted they couldn't spot a malicious qr code. zw . >> you don't always know when you're scanning a qr

i'm chris chmura. we've been following a breaking news story all morning.ovid-19. several people close to the president, like the vice president, mr. pence, and his wife, as well as the president's daughter ivanka have tested negative. hope hicks, however, one of the trump's top aides has tested positive. coming up, scott mcgrew will walk us through the latest developments and ongoing reverberations. for realtime updates, check out our twitter feed. >>> the glass fire continues to force people out of their homes in the north bay. cal fire says it's only 6% contained and has burned more than 60,000 acres so far. i'm looking at your mri. your shoulder seems to be healing nicely. i'm sorry baby... i don't want you to play with that... (singing) twinkle, twinkle little star. how i wonder what you are... how are you doing? schedule a video visit with your doctor. kaiser permanente. thrive. in the tubbs fire. the flames, the ash, it was terrifying. thousands of family homes are destroyed in wildfires. families are forced to move and higher property taxes are a hu

consumer investigator chris chmura. >> reporter: we have helped you save or get back more than half athis year. we called and that opened the flood gates to a $4,671 refund. juan in san francisco was hungry for his money back too. he paid for a grocery delivery that never arrived. we contacted the supermarket to see what was cooking. juan then bagged $296 refund. and jess in santa clara was locked in a billing battle with a telecom company and she got $54.13 back. do you need help with an unfair bill or refund? connect with us just like jess, juan and joshua did. give us a call and have a great weekend. >> thank you, chris, you too. >>> now to more family friendly that's how six flags plans to celebrate halloween this year. boo 2020 is replacing the park's traditional freak fest to make sure it's safer for covid-19. the rides are still closed, pending state health guidelines, but marine world is open. the park will also feature socially distanced trick or treating and socially distanced photos. >> we're going to try to give our guests and our visitors the best holiday experience we ca

our chris chmura is here to tell us how it works. >> reporter: good morning. leaky pipes, clogged toilets, broken light switches, everyday problems that in normal times you might hire an expert to come over and fix. what if you could do it yourself with a pro watching over your shoulder and giving you tips along the way? there's now an app for that and it could save you money, too. the virtual handyman. >> the idea of learning the process is better for me than hiring someone to just do it and not have anything like next time this happens i can figure it out myself. >> reporter: so how does it work and what does it cost? tonight after the 49ers game here on nbc bay area we'll show you the service and whether it's a good alternative to hiring an expert. i'll see you again tonight after "sunday night football." >> we look forward to it. that looks cool. >>> 7:38. still to come on "today in the bay," how much can a debate change a voter's mind? political analyst larry gerston joins us to explore the topic in a few minutes. >>> but first the 49ers are back in prime