crescent city, california. crescent city got hit hard two times. but crescent city sits on top of one of the most dangerous quake faults in the world. >>> 25 years, years after, we'll tell you what the city of shenobel faces to clean up a nuclear spill. >>> good evening everyone, i'm frank somerville. when the quake hit in japan, most people in the bay area braced. it runs from the crescent city area north all the way down to canada's vancouver island. it's an area that scientists say is overdue for a magnitude quake the size of a nine. we have two reports beginning with our science editor john fowler who brought us this report in february 28, 2001. the same day a magnitude 6.8 quake hit near washington. >>> the sea floor is waving toward the continent. that's what triggered today's earthquake. the entire cascade mountain range and the mount st. helen's eruption are from rising rock. the so called cascadous eruption zone threatenings california's coast. geological evidence near southern oregon shows that huge earthquakes magnitude nine or even grea

the first wave will be along crescent city. that's at 7:23. we'll nola will the more in the next 20 minutes. point ray, monitor rain and at the golden gate 8:08. crepes cent city -- crescent city is the key. 7:23 is the key. low tide is a positive. even if you get a two to four foot surge, the net effect would cancel each other out. point ray is two feet. point arena 2.4. wave forecast 3 own 3. with the low tide it may be like a high tide. temperatures 50s and 60s. mostly sunny. looks like a decent day. temperatures cooling off. we're in the 40s, end up with a lot of upper 50s. changes start tomorrow, an increase in clouds. morning fog. cooler, a little breezy at times. temperatures, though, will be not that warm, cooler than yesterday, upper 50s to low 60s, and that would be a push. tomorrow about the same. night morning fog. sunday looks like a day that we cloud up. tori and dave? >> we'll continue our coverage of the tsunami warning for the west coast and all the details on the damage by the earthquake, including what's happened at their nuc

>> the search is up and down the crescent city shoreline. generally in these situations the water is fairly cold. as you know the surge is tough at this time. just given the conditions with the tsunami so we are searching a wide area. >> you said it was a rogue wave. do you have any idea of the height? >> i don't at this time but we

wave near crescent city.e waiting around the bay area and keep you posted. >> mark: we will be right back we have more dramatic video out of japan as that 23 ft. wall of >> darya: 6:00 pm i huge earthquake and then this tsunami in japan. hundreds are dead, he, hundreds feared dead appeared this a nominee tossed around boats, ship swept out to sea. homes wash away whawith this hue wave. power is out, what wasn't wiped out by the earthquake. 1000 people stranded at an airport that was flooded out by water, thousands of people roaming the streets right now. they have no communication, no power, this hit at 3:00 p.m. break at the evening commute. a lot of people ran out of their buildings. have nothing to do or no way to communicate. >> mark: out of sendai, there is a refinery fire. nuclear power plant in onahama city to evacuate because the plant's system was unable to cool the reactor. the reactor was not leaking radiation but its core remained hot even after miles northeast of tokyo. they're calling it the fif

they are continuing to monitor crescent city. the waves hit above ten feet in crescent city, b.a.r.t. will cancel service there. so far no interruptions. back to you. >>> we want to take you back out to the department of emergency management in san francisco this morning where san francisco mayor ed lee spoke a short time ago. and marla tellez is there live this morning. >> reporter: good morning, brent. yeah, that's right. we just heard from the mayor of san francisco, ed lee, who briefed us, too the media, after he talked to officials here inside the department of management. no evacuations are still needed for san francisco. he says that san francisco is prepared to handle the tsunami. he's confident about that. but at the same time, he does not expect the waves along the coast to exceed the seawalls along the coastline. so nonetheless, he is warning people to stay away from the coastline altogether this morning. he is saying that extra police officers and fire trucks are standing by in various neighborhoods just as a precauti

in crescent city, david beanik. >>> crescent city has a long and deadly history with tsunamis. since the 1930s, it has been hit four times. the worst was the good friday alaskan quake back in 1964. that's when a series of waves flooded that town killing 11 people. kathleen wright's brother and sister were among those killed. yesterday's events brought back sad memories for her as she recalls her loved ones being swept away by the waves. >> we were in the house, not far from the beach. and so it swept them out of the house. she had moments before the tsunami hit to grab the kids and she couldn't get all three. she saved the baby and bonnie and billy were swept away. >> scientists say the shape of the seabed off the shore of crescent city magnifies the effects of tsunamis. >>> well, tens of thousands of labor activists marched in madison, wisconsin today, the largest protest yesterday against legislation limiting collective bargaining rights for many government workers. (chanting). >> protestors are now vowing to recall republican lawmakers who voted for that bill which governor

they are going to wait and see what happens in crescent city. the tsunami is supposed to hit there around 7:23 and 10 feeders are cut off. if the waves are bigger than 10 feet when it gets to crescent city they will shut down the stations in the bay area. if it's less than 10 feet they probably won't have to and right now it's looking like they probably won't have to. bart said it may have to close to hopeful now that it won't. let's go over to the stations that what might happen one more time. bart thinks it might have to close the stations between west oakland and daly city. of course, between west oakland and embarcadero because of the transbay tube under water but between embarcadero and daly city because they are underground. if something were to happen to the tube and water got into those underground stations, there's a lot of electricity there and that's just not a good mix. but once again, it does look like you are going to be able to make your commute. bart is saying that it does not expect the waves to be that big in crescent city and

even now the surges are continuing here in crescent city. you can see the boats behind me being dragged around by the moving water after they were set adrift by the tsunami. but the evacuation order has been lifted and the worst seems to have passed. still boats and fishing boats sit smashed and sunk in crescent city harbor. the docks are shredded and a thick odour of fuel oil hangs in the air. >> what's going to happen to the people here? it's going to be hard. every-bodies going to have to pull together. >> it's devastating just to see this. >> reporter: the tide began rising here shortly after 7:30 in the morning. eventually the surges reached eight feet. the highest anywhere in the united states following the earthquake in japan. >> this happened two or three times before. i go out and it is not going to be that bad. and evidently it was. >> reporter: as soon as the tsunami siren sounded, many people thought back to the 1964 tsunami that killed 11 people in crescent city and destroyed much of the downtown. >> we do get a small tsunami on

down at crescent city should say 8.1, largest surge anywhere in the u.s. that includes alaska.t came in about 8:57. here's a look at all those earthquakes we just talked about off japan. look farther to the south. this tsunami will reach south america and even antarctica. we're still under a warning. they'll cancel it eventually but it looks like we have about two more hours of surges. our forecast, partly to most cloudy. lose an hour sleep, change the batteries in your smoke detectors. the rain back in the forecast for most of us. tomorrow morning you see clouds. rain possible tomorrow and even some of the drizzle developing down into the bay. then we get a little break sunday night and then sunday morning another surge comes in and all of us get wet. one behind that comes in sunday night and into the morning. temperatures will remain rather mild. low 60s today around the bay and inland with upper 50s along the coast. then we'll have i'd say near to 60 degree temperatures along the coast and mid to upper 60s for the rest of us and a better chance of rain tuesday and wednesday

down at crescent city should say 8.1, largest surge anywhere in the u.s. that includes alaska.hat came in about 8:57. here's a look at all those earthquakes we just talked about off japan. look farther to the south. this tsunami will reach south america and even antarctica. we're still under a warning. they'll cancel it eventually but it looks like we have about two more hours of surges. our forecast, partly to most cloudy. lose an hour sleep, change the batteries in your smoke detectors. the rain back in the forecast for most of us. tomorrow morning you see clouds. rain possible tomorrow and even some of the drizzle developing down into the bay. then we get a little break sunday night and then sunday morning another surge comes in and all of us get wet. one behind that comes in sunday night and into the morning. temperatures will remain rather mild. low 60s today around the bay and inland with upper 50s along the coast. then we'll have i'd say near to 60 degree temperatures along the coast and mid to upper 60s for the rest of us and a better chance of rain tuesday and wednesda

even now the surges are continuing here in crescent city. you can see the boats behind me being dragged around by the moving water after they were set adrift by the tsunami. but the evacuation order has been lifted and the worst seems to have passed. still boats and fishing boats sit smashed and sunk in crescent city harbor. the docks are shredded and a thick odour of fuel oil hangs in the air. >> what's going to happen to the people here? it's going to be hard. every-bodies going to have to pull together. >> it's devastating just to see this. >> reporter: the tide began rising here shortly after 7:30 in the morning. eventually the surges reached eight feet. the highest anywhere in the united states following the earthquake in japan. >> this happened two or three times before. i go out and it is not going to be that bad. and evidently it was. >> reporter: as soon as the tsunami siren sounded, many people thought back to the 1964 tsunami that killed 11 people in crescent city and destroyed much of the downtown. >> we do get a small tsunami on

waves move in to crescent city by 7:23 a.m. golden gate bridge just after 8:00 a.m., santa barbara around 8:17 a.m.. this is a look at how high the waves are expected to get. irina cop. when you think s you think of hundred feet waves, but it will not be that. the biggest concern right now is hawaii. we have a tsunami warning until 7:00 a.m. hour for hawaii, some of those waves could get over 10 ft.. it is certainly a concern there. this shows us where the waves could be it the greatest period ran along the coast here, we could get strong waves. but certainly nothing like it will see elsewhere. here's a look at your map showing you some of the earthquake. we are looking at aftershocks and for shot six.fof course we are looking for more aftershocks going to happen. >> erica: we are keeping a close eye on the roadways, the effect due to the tsunami warning. the only straight shut down as the grand highway most directions. yoli told you about that because of the tsunami warning in a fact. this chp could not give me much detail spi

coast guard surveyed the damage in crescent city by helicopter, and they provided this footage for us. at least six boats are confirmed sunk and docks and moorings have been destroyed. repeated surges tossed beats for 24 hours. the harbor master estimates damage to be between 25 to $25 million. appears to be a more significant event than the last tsunami to hit kris crescent city in 2006. >>> a bay area man's attempt to fly back here from tokyo. those who made it back were greet with an emotional homecoming. dozens lost their home this more than after a fire in albany. and a celebration of earth during everything irish on market street. >> leigh: hi there. i'm leigh glaser. plenty of sunshine across the bay area today. you may have noticed in the past couple hours high clouds streaming cross the region. look for >> closed captioning brought to >> closed captioning brought to >> alan: a sunnyvale maintenance desperately trying to get out of japan. he and his family were scheduled to fly out of tokyo but the main help was shut done. his biggest concern is now the continuing threat from

>>pam: we want to show you pictures from crescent city. the least five people there were watching the waves and taking pictures of the waves when there were washed out to sea. four of them were rescued but one man is still missing. you could see from the pictures the boat from their side, the docks were ripped out of the harbor. the pictures of the votes were tossed about by the tsunami waves as they rolled in from the earthquake in japan. the ways costing millions of dollars in damage. now we want to show you that hawaii was hit with the tsunami as well. it brought waves some as high as 6 ft. to harbor in now we. these images show you how high the water is in homes. >>catherine: a lot of people are reacting on line. people are sharing their stories and pictures and videos. kimberly has some of what to what we can find on line. >>kimberlee: going to focus on www.kron4.com. we have lots of pictures, videos and a lot of block conversation taking place right now. let's show you, right now live block taking place. on- line is manager bryan ans

the coast guard is still assessing the damage in crescent city where the tsunami surge reached eight feet, that's the highest in the united states. so why the discrepancy, why were santa cruz in crescent city hit so hard. >> actually higher than what we saw hit hawaii earlier that morning. let's show you what's going on in terms of how we put together the tsunami forecast. first you have the main event, which is the main quake, and then the runup as it approaches the coastline is how things start to change. with the quake happening off the japan coast, we had about ten or 11 hours before the first energy started to each our coastline and you can see how it splinters out from the site there in the western pacific. in the case of resident city, this is a scenario of how the -- we see that wave height begin to increase as that wave channels inland. in 1964, we saw 13-foot surge there. that is how you saw that energyg ra racing up through the harbor. top wave heights, 8.2 feet. san francisco and monterrey, about 2 1/2 feet and still this morning, tsunami advisory out there for our coastl

and yesterday they covered 250 square miles looking for him no luck. >>> 8-foot tsunami waves in crescent city were the largest that hit the u.s. harbour crews are still assessing the damage to the city's port as well 8 sunken boats and dozens of damages fishing vessels. >> we do get our small tsunami or surge and it breaks the docks but this is the worst i have experienced. >> damage in crescent city is expected to top $25 million. >>> 7:37 a.m. bay area travelers stranded in tokyo during the disaster have finally returned home. don nap shows us reunions with loved ones. >> once that big one started coming it just kept going it was like this is lasting longer than usual. >> reporter: ray roberts of napa was in tokyo his mother was on a plane flying back from dallas. >> 6:00 a.m. i got a phone call saying i am okay but my flight was cancelled of course. >> i said why was your flight cancelled he said well, haven't you seen the news? there was an earthquake we turn it on and start seeing how bad it was thankfully i didn't know in advance i would have been panicked. >> reporter: she was here in

i love crescent city. i'm afraid of what is going to happen when i come home. >> some people took shelter in a shelter set up by the red cross. the california patrol estimates 35 boats were damaged. we understand many of the fishermen took their boats out to sea to ride out the tsunami. now, we hear they're running out of fuel. >> you can see what the wave looked like as it reached the bay area. here it comes. this video was shot from an emeryville high rise. great pictures and here is a time lapse from another angle there is before it comes surging back, which is how tsunamies tend to work. and the waves reached the california coastline close lie we're still under a tsunami advisory including the coastline of california here, and washington, oregon and alaska. levels expected to be less than three feet. and dangerous currents and surges still suspected. greatest going to be into harbors and marine yaz. it's advised to stay off beaches and away from beaches. once again a tsunami advisory still in effect fo

there must have been a larger wave hitting. >>> in crescent city, the young man swept tout to sea is identified as 25-year-old dustin weber. crest sent city saw the highest tsunami waves in the u.s., 8-foot surges. the tsunami continued to create dangerous currents, the crew are waiting for safer conditions before they start to clean up. >> we do get a small tsunami once in a while, a surge, and this is the worst i've ever experienced. >> damage in crescent city is expected to top $25 million. >>> travelers arriving from japan at sfl had stories of chaos and confuse before flying out: families were reunited after nerve-racking hours. >> reporter: after experiencing one ever the most powerful earthquakes anywhere ever, the travelers in japan another challenge, just getting to an airport and getting a flight home of the we did talk with some as they arrived at sfo. >> the 8.9 quake and tsunami that rocked northeastern japan was felt throughout the country. tokyo, was spared from the worst. >> the whole city came to a halt. that was it. the whole city came to a halt. >> reporter: passeng

. >> it was crescent city that saw the highest tsunami waves in the u.s. 8-foot surges. crews are waiting for safer conditions to begin clean up of the damaged harbor. there are at least 17 damaged and sunken vessels and also the smell of boat fuel and oil. in addition, there are rocks, logs and other debris that need to be cleared away. >> we do get a small tsunami once in a while or surge in here and it breaks the docks up but this is the worst i have ever experienced. >> the harbor is crescent city's life blood and the sheriff says it is going to be hard to recover. >>> this is a look at the wave coming into the crescent city harbor. authorities released the name of the man swept out to sea while taking pictures of the waves. 25-year-old dustin webber. he was with two other people when they were all washed into the ocean. the two other people managed to survive and swim to safety. even parts of northern california that did not suffer damage from the tsunami saw water activity. this was posted on youtube. he noted that this wave had to go through the golden gate before

here at the crescent city harbor, there's a reminder of that 1964 tsunami, this high.r mark, eight feet above the parking lot. >> i mean, you're not going to have a half hour, 45 minutes' notice if it hits 80 miles off the shore here. when you feel it rumble, you better be moving out. >> reporter: people on the north coast now realize they can no longer think of a killer tsunami >> 7:32 now. not 6:32, believe it or not. >> that's right. >> and rain on the radar. >> it's a sleepless forecast this morning. we're looking at -- actually crescent city, you saw the wind and rain thean on the north coast. t we're starring to see me ose that on the radar just off the coast crossing across the coast, marin county into sonomame coun, santa rosa looking at light rain. heavier rain on the north coast, a pretty powerful system that will pack a bigger punch to the north today and eventually increasing chances of rain as we make our way into the afternoon and evening. main event for the storm coming up later today into tonight. coming up, we'll let you know what you can expect for th

in crescent city the harbor master thinks the damage is nearly $25 million.t least eight boats were destroyed. because of the damage to the docks fishes boats that went -- into the ocean to ride out the tsunami had to remain at sea overnight and dock somewhere else along the coast. >>> an after shock has hit japan in the last half hour. it took the east -- shook the east coast and caused buildings to sway. the usgs measured it at 6.2 and said the depth was about 15 miles. japan has suffered more 150 shocks. >> when the next big one hits experts say you need a plan to get to safety but you also need food and water for 72 hours. mike went to where the quake has been a stark reminder of the need to be reprerared. >> reporter: rob adams, his passion. >> this is a 360. >> reporter: a 74 dodge and his pennents. also in there. >> utility cords, sox. >> reporter: a quake kit. >> i think people feel it'll shake and some damage and i will go to the store. i think that's where people need to think hard. >> reporter: and they aren't alone. from drinking water to heat pad

crescent city 7:23 pacific standard time san francisco 8:08. latest from the tsunami warning center. once again it's a tsunami watch for california which of course includes the bay area coastal communities once again estimated time of arrive crescent city 7:23. san francisco 8:08 tomorrow mornin morning. >> as you have said this is no time to be heading to the coast to see what is going to happen. >> absolutely not. this is a time to get away from the beaches. get away from the low lying areas and obviously listen to your local emergency officials. this is a time to get out of the water. tsunami are series of waves takes hours in some instances to arrive here and this is the estimated time of arrival giving you an idea as to how long it may take before the waves arrive and obviously they monitor sea level changes and warning center west coast warning center but it could be a matter of hours or minutes. they are not exactly precise. these are estimated times so just get away from the water if anywhere near it. >> all right sandy thanks very much

crescent city arrival at 7:23. these are not specific times. these are just an idea.. santa barbara about 8:17. if you live in some of the coastal areas near the water, to be safe, it's a good idea to head further inland. get to some higher ground. still got some time to do that. the warnings extend all the way from washington down through eureka in through the san francisco area and point conception. we are worried about some of the areas that we have seen some evacuations already. ocean beach, watch out there. waves expected to move onshore a little later on. linda mar area has already seen some evacuations, especially because right here you have that nice funnel. see how this is shaped right here? nice little bay. it's beautiful to look at but it can really focalize some of that energy from the tsunami and if it breaches that sand berm in the front of the valley you could see flooding in the low-lying areas. also into half moon bay, they have a pretty good clip right out of here in front, not so big a problem here but toward el granada they don't have the luxury of

thank you. >> we are getting video from crescent city. the waves are coming into shore from the tsunami. one person up there is missing tonight. he was one of three people actually swept out to sea. they were all taking pictures of these waves. two others did make it back to shore safely. the person missing tonight is feared dead. >>> well, as the waves approached evacuations were ordered for several coastal cities. don knapp is in pacifica where despite the warnings most people decided not to evacuate. don. >> reporter: dana, i would say that after watching tsunami disasters around the world for the past decade the reality of a tsunami hitting the california coast did come home to a lot of people along the coastal areas and when the warnings came they did leave. prompted by tsunami warnings residents of coastal areas around half moon bay headed for higher ground and parked. this is the intersection of highways 92 and 35 around 6:00 a.m. or 6:30 a.m. this morning. but this high school scientist teacher stayed at coast level and watched wh

. >>> and crescent city took the big brunt of the tsunami in the u.s. with eight foot surges, and tonight crews are still waiting for safer conditions to begin before they can begin the cleanup of the damaged harbor. the tsunami continues to create dangerous currents, authorities say there are at least 17 damaged and sunken vessels, in addition rocks, and logs that need to be cleared with. the harbor wants to move quickly but also has to consider safety. >> we do get a small tsunami once in a while, or a surge at the breaks. but this is the worst i have ever experienced. >> the harbor is crescent city's life flood. and the sheriff says it will be hard to recover. >>> and authorities released the name of the man swept out to sea while taking pictures of the wave. 25-year-old dustin weber, he was with two other people when they were washed into the ocean. the other two managed to swim to safety. >>> and even parts of northern california that did not suffer damage from the tsunami saw unusual wave activity. this video was shot in emoryville yesterday morni

coastguard surveyed the damage in crescent city by helicopter and provided this footage.boats were confirmed sunk. much of the harbor's docks and moorings have been destroyed. tides of up to eight feet tossed boats around for 24 hours. some fishermen returned yesterday. >> this is the first time i have been down there since it happened. my boat is somewhere over there underwater crushed. i was changing the engines. >> strong surges also caused the boats to rupture and leak diesel into the harbor. >> coming up next, why a new television ad is targeting the nation's illegal immigrant. and most pressing issues for voters in san francisco, find out what is [ male announcer ] eakfast for breakfast. breakfast for lunch. breakfast for dinner. with three new breakfast lovers dishes, who needs a break from breakfast? denny's. america's diner is always open. >>> a new maneuver in the debate over immigration. most of the topics have been focused on illegal immigrants but one person says it's time to stop the flow of foreigners that live here legally, that is about a million a year.

that is the one that wiped out much of crescent city. let's swing around, see this building here in the parking lot of the marina? that tsunami would have been above or at least at the roof line of this building. nearly a dozen people were killed in that tsunami. and what has a lot of people on edge this morning is not the actual physical damage done, but the pictures they're seeing out of japan. because they know that sooner or later, there's going to be an earthquake out in the pacific ocean offer the west coast that will do damage or at least produce a wave similar to what happened in japan. >> thank you, david. >>> when it comes to those quakes, bay area also has that on their minds as we are not out of the woods with those things. what happened in japan is something that could also happen on the northern california coast. the abduction zone is cape allege of an earthquake as big as the one in japan. >> when it happens, it will be big. it will almost certainly be devastating. there will be tsunamis. there will be a lot of shaking, a

most of that is from damage to the harbors in crescent city and santa cruz.iet do shows us the clean-up. >> reporter: to anyone else it's just a 30-foot long piece of smashed and muddy fiberglass but to jody connolly it was his life. >> it's a weird feeling to actually see your home and the place of your, you know, where you run your business and your lifestyle just get, you know, sunk away in 15 or 20 minutes. >> reporter: the trident had been his home for the last two years. but, by the time the power and instructive force of the tsunami became obvious in the santa cruz harbor it was too late. he lost all his photos, business and life. >> i feel fortunate to be able to share it with a lot of people who had it and, you know, it's -- it will definitely be a, you know, in the memory books. so? divers spent the day attaching balloons to the sunken ships to float them to the surface. a crane handled the rest. the work is slow and dangerous. only 5 boats have been recovered since the weekend. what do you tell people watching this and say this is going really slow

coast guard surveyed the damage in crescent city by helicopter and provided this footage.t least six boats were confirmed sunk and much of the docks and moorings have been destroyed. repeated surges, some 8 feet, tossed boats for 24 hours. some fishermen surveyed the damage. >> this morning is the first time i've been down here since it happened. >> where's your boat now? >> over there underwater crushed. i was right in the middle of changing engines. glad i didn't have the new engine in it yet. >> strong surges also caused the gas tanks on several boats to rupture and leak diesel into the harbor. the harbor master estimates damage to be 25 to $25 million. hundreds of bay area residents have begun making it back home from japan. jenelle wang was at san francisco international airport yesterday for the emotional reunion. >> some of the first flights from tokyo arrived at sfo and a tearful reunion from gavin brown and his dad caught in the earthquake thousands of miles away in their east bay home. >> thank goodness she's in the airport! it was scary. >> many who returned hom

crescent city has a definitive horseshoe shape coastal led officers to final of the harvard. one analyst flat fee, eight moves ahead of the toughest line. the villain of the finale of the 950 for a fight that a fifth-half. if the fsx lotus will live >> the willful fifth the closest to most highly thought will fall to all of san francisco bay area the economic loss to athanasius for a larger fleet on the hayward fall, those numbers: civilian. i do know half the were fall as the highest probability of a kernel within the next >>vicki: largest earthquakes and the they carry at 54-1/5 to a flash of fat and flattened and his >>brian: there's a weather system look to the north rim of cliff there for real shall hear if this is a whiff of the will affect a for our family and the him fully. the left will hold off until the afternoon i will if your if is a subtle if you leave it to a faceless loveless if it fell lot of the osha here if even though it looks impressive, the rainfall rarely if the plan to the impressive for tomorrow. tears flow or going to see. if increase in house for to

a shore of 6 feet at the harbor, about 35 boats and most of the docks there in crescent city were damaged. the coastal town near the oregon state line is perhaps the hardest hit area in california. >>> now we're just getting dramatic new pictures into our newsroom from north of crescent city in oregon. the tsunami ripped boats and sent them down the water way almost like a flotila. brookings is a mile north of the california-oregon line. nearly half of the commercial boats were damaged. >>> other video continues to pour into the newsroom. this is another video from the santa cruz harbor where the rushing water sent boats and degree crashing into each other. >>> ktvu chief meteorologist bill martin has been watching the weather all day. so what can you tell us? >> the tsunami advisory i suspect won't be around much longer either. that's good news. but here is how it looks outside right now. we've been watching santa cruz harbor all day. the in and out surge. the tsunami impulses. this live picture showing the degree if you look down to the lower part of the screen. the pictures from today

here's some of the wave heights as we had to the day, crescent city 7:23 a.m. expect to see those waves really start to lift. golden gate 8:08 a.m.. we could see wave heights above 4 ft.. we will be right back with the kron 4 morning news, weather and traffic in just a few moments. [ ryan ] i got this new citi thankyou card and started earning loads of points. you got a weather balloon with points? yes i did. [ ryan ] points i could use for just about anything. ♪ ♪ so i used mine, to get a whole new perspective. ♪ [ male announcer ] the new citi thankyou premier card gives you more ways to earn points. what's your story? citi can help you write it. [ male announcer ] unrestrained. unexpected. and unlike any hybrid you have ever known. ♪ introducing the most fuel-efficient luxury car available. ♪ the radically new... 42 mile per gallon ct hybrid from lexus. ♪ welcome to the darker side of green. >> darya: continuous surely the seventh plan and 8.9 earthquake. >> mark: it was slow rolling ephors to continue to strengthen, swing buildings in downtown tokyo. witnes

in the day, as you look in santa cruz and crescent city.s the wave hits the continental shelf and comes on the beach as you can see those yellow waves which are about to or 3 ft. tall, they approached the red in santa cruz you for how much damage they did in the harbors here. it you see that little magenta off the coast, that's the way that will be 3 ft. tall before it touches the land perhaps 6 ft. tall when it action washes up on shore. we've heard of a lot of damage happening on the shoreline. that's one of the worst for tsunamis just because of the way the earth is structured around crescent city. he could see the color coding off the coast indicating as the waves come water to feed out of the zero some they will hit the coast at 4 5 ft. tall and a lot more damage than would suspect. of these explained on the program, tsunamis don't turn, they actually go in a straight line and she out. that is no way from all the way in japan was able to travel the thousands of miles across the pacific ocean to do damaged in the bay. reporting live, kr

the tsunami surge that moved into monterey bay and the crescent city imnated by the quake happens once in 10 years. heading toward south america where those waves are now just arriving. for us the wave we got a little bit of an offshoot here and came over the pacific. an extraordinary day. let's show you some pictures from today. because in my time doing this on television and doing a part of newsrooms. i've never seen anything like this. it's a rare sight to see a tsunami caught on video tape. you don't see it that often, especially in santa cruz harbor. for a time today we were seeing storm surges or tsunami surging going up the harbor. it went on, it wasn't one wave it was numerous waves as we went through the afternoon hours. we even had claudine wong out in the golden gate bridge in san francisco. with the water tide going out you were watching water swept in. really a spectacular day in bay area coast history. >>> the tsunami has taken a human toll here in the west coast. the coast guard is looking for a man who was swept out to sea while taking photos of the waves near the mouth

has produced some light rain near eureka and crescent city. we're on the extreme southern edge of this. 42 napa and santa rosa both 37 at this time yesterday. 43 redwood city. 43 livermore. 45 san jose. speaking of livermore we will go for 42 to start and 60 and a high of 68 degrees. so temperatures are getting there after this system right there goes through and the next one looks awesome. it's going way to the north. that's going to give us a much warmer pattern. today it's kind of in between. we still get mild temperatures but higher clouds will hold things off. but then by wednesday and thursday possibility of record highs of upper 70s to near 80. little warmer but still higher clouds will be there. low 60s mid-60s. a couple low 70s antioch and brentwood. if the clouds clear for an hour or two we'll make it. it will be close today. we'll have sunshine and warmer weather no doubt about it thursday into friday. it will cool down though on the weekend as a weak system comes in and we get more of a west wind. pam and dave. >>> thank you, steve.

crescent city is near the oregon border in del norte county. in the marina, docks tore apart and 35 boats were damaged when the tsunami ripped through the harbor. most people got their vessels out before the tsunami hit. the evacuation order has been lifted and people have been allowed to go back home. >>> as japan attempts to recover from the earthquake, there's now the threat of a possible nuclear meltdown at three of the country's plants. radiation levels are elevated. and now, we are being told about a critical design flaw that may also have an impact. robert lyles talked with an expert about that. >> what i think is -- >> peter says when the coolant systems failed, that's not because of an 8.9 earthquake. >> to me, there's not enough power somewhere. either that or the pipes are broken and i can't believe the pipes are broken because i don't think the earthquake was nearly strong enough for that. >> japan is not telling the public everything. >> this is completely out of the ordinary. the whole experience. >> he should know. the structural

the family of dustin weber says the 25-year-old had just moved to crescent city from bend, oregon, to get a fresh start after battling drug addiction. he was taking pictures of the waves when he was pulling into the ocean along with two other men. the others were rescued, but weber is presumed to have drowned. this is the first west coast tsunami death since 1964 when 11 people in crescent city died from a surge created by an earthquake in alaska. >>> part of the santa cruz harbor reopened today after suffering serious damage due to friday's tsunami, but it's still not open for boat traffic. craig explains why the delay, plus he has new video. >> reporter: dramatic new video shot on a cell phone shows the wave surge barging into the harbor and indiscriminately scooping up everything in its path. this is the aftermath. the process is slow and time consuming, raising 18 boats from underneath the surface of the harbor. divers placed intertubes under the capsized frames and pumped air into the tubes to lift the boats. not out of the water, but high enough for a tow into the launch area. t

crescent city is near the oregon border. shows us the damage throughout the town. >> it should be the calm after the storm, but -- the 6 to 8- foot waves that slammed into the city, destroyed about 38 to 40 boats. >> obviously we are having audio trouble with that package. we'll try to get it to you later on. it received a state of emergency decloration from the governor. so have three other counties, including san mateo and santa cruz. our cameras were rolling as the water surged into the santa cruz harbor today. it didn't just happen once, it happened over and over and over again. kit. >> absolutely. damage estimates are now up to $17 million just for the harbor alone. that's why governor jerry brown declared a state of emergency here in santa cruz county. the waters are calm after a traumatic day. they traveled across the pacific ocean overnight. coming from japan 5,000 mile away. to ravage the waters of santa cruz. >> what is it like to watch this? >> this is devastating. it keeps getting worse. >> the tsunami surges star

we are an hour and a half away from the tsunami impacting crescent city. so 7:23 is the forecasted time for crescent city. 8:08 here in the bay area. it will make its way to santa barbara by 8:30. we are expecting a 1 1/2-foot wave in point reyes. but as high as 2.3 feet in pacifica. we have to wait and watch to see this play out. my biggest concern is beach erosion and coastal flooding. people, we do not want you to panic right now. the situation seems to be getting better as it corresponds, the timing of the tsunami will be just in time with low tide. we are expecting a 1 1/2-foot wave in the san francisco area. nonetheless, i know a lot of people are probably trying to get out of their area right now, especially if you live in the low-lying areas because there's a concern out there. how is that impacting your drive on your way to work this morning? >>> we are looking at a live chopper shot here of these folks just trying to get somewhere besides the half-moon bay. this is highway 35 at 92. this is all the traffic coming over the hill from half-moon bay

at crescent city we are expecting that to hit at 7:23 the golden gate about 8:08.arbara about 8:17. remember, it hasn't hit in hawaii as we expected so far. so timing on these very, very difficult. we are going to have to just wait and see. right now, we are saying move to hire ground if you are out toward the -- higher ground if you are toward the coast. if you live someplace close to sea level and you're in the warning area, head to hire ground to be safe. these can be very dangerous but you can see, this is the warning located all the way from washington down into the san francisco bay area. and all the way into point conception. we are expecting those waves to begin to make their way toward the coast later on this morning in the next few hours. we are watching very closely into the linda mar area in pacifica. now, they have already started to evacuate some of this area. you will notice that berm right here along the coastline, well, that's pretty nice but if this wave should come in higher than expected and surge and possibly breach that berm a lot of these hom

the del norte county sheriff's office says there was severe damage to crescent city's harbor. and many boats sank. all along the pacific coast, the tsunami tore docks apart and damaged boats. some areas were hit much harder than others, such as santa cruz. to explain why, let's check in with . >>> some areas of the tsunami were hit much harder than others. one of those areas was santa cruz. to see why we're gonna check in with lashes. lawrence? >> yay, very interesting. about 19 hours ago, the earthquake struck japan. that set things into motion and before you knew it, that tsunami was hurdling its way across the pacific and then we began to see some of the buoys affected. we saw some waves about 6 feet in maui. by it continued on its track. we watched it and it made its way onshore, focusing, for the most part, in towards the santa cruz area. now, there's a special reason why that happened. we saw some funneling of that energy and all of that energy surging across the pacific, in some casings, in open water, can go as fast as 600 miles an hour. that's simply hauling across th

one boater says the economic impact for the 300 fishermen in crescent city will be tough, because the are unusable. >> this harbor shut down for god knows how long. >> the latest damage reminds residents of another tsunami 47 years ago, that destroyed much of crescent city. >>> in santa cruz, officials say friday's surge caused $17 million in damage to the docks alone. yesterday, crews were busy pulling some of them out of the water. authorities are putting priority on sunken boats, because they're leaking oil and fuel. some are frustrated with the process. >> their argument is they can't get a boat in there. you don't need a boat to move them, it's called rope. it's heartbreaking. we could do it ourselves. if i went down there, i could probably secure the boat, and sleep great in jail tonight. >> boaters and fishermen are told the area will be offlimits one charter boat owner says they canceled three trips scheduled for yesterday. there were still strong surges and currents running through the area. >>> most of us waking up with gray skies this morning. rain expected to follow. onto

we were standing by looking and waiting for it to happen, then we got some report crescent city and they said the water had just begin to recede there. once that had happened i knew it was coming. >> i heard you saying, if it doesn't come in at 8:08 that doesn't mean that it's not going to come in. why is it such difficult to predict the timing of it. >> that energy is traveling across the pacific, it's going about 500 and 600 miles an hour in the open water. it runs into other motion and islands. so that deflects it. it can speed things up or slow things down. that makes it difficult that's why you've got to be prepared that's why you don't go out to the water's edge. i think people that moved out of harm's way did the right thing. >> were you surprised by what we saw? >> reporter: i was surprised, i was just in awe. i mean, when you see things happen, you're watching the tsunami sweeping across the pacific, you've seen what it's done to japan, you've seen what it's done in the hawaiian area, then all of a sudden it approaches the west coast. it's not something we deal with every day. t

. >> federal government has a team assessing the damage in santa cruz in crescent city from tsunami triggered by the earthquake in gentleman japan. now more from the santa cruz harbor with more. >> reporter: good news, bad news when it comes to the updated damage assessment numbers. the total loss to the dock, the piers and infrastructure is going up. that number is expected to top $25 million. it turns out, however, that some of the surgen boats were counted twice, so that number is going down, from 17 to 13. the problem is, as long as this harbor is closed, none of the boats are going anywhere. leo, who has been a crab fisherman for ten years, right now he has an empty crab tank and 100 crab pots on the ocean floor he can't get to. >> the crab pots are still there, great. if they're not, then you got to look at almost 220 each pot. >> reporter: the santa cruz harbor is closed, which means no boats in or out. in addition to the initial tsunami damage, many commercial fishermen are taking another financial blow because right now, they're stuck in the harbor as some of the boats lined up in th

crescent city is grateful that at least, so far, no one has died. the town was not so lucky in 1964 when 11 people lost their lives. for "nightline," i'm abbie boudreau in los angeles. >>> and after a tense day here in the west about an hour ago, the pacific tsunami warning center canceled the wave warnings for the pacific basin. >>> when we come back it was a fault line 180 miles long 50 miles deep. we have the earthquake and tsunami by the numbers. just because you're born of a deep-rooted family tree doesn't mean you're content to live under it. the new 2011 jeep compass. ♪ ♪ genetically engineered with jeep 4x4 capability iconic beauty and a red-blooded attitude all its own. we followed in the tire tracks of greatness and found a whole new direction. the 2011 jeep compass. the evolution of a legendary bloodline. ♪ ♪ call her. ok. [ cellphone rings ] hey. you haven't left yet. no. i'm boarding now... what's up? um...would you mind doing it again? last time. [ engine turns over ] oooohhhh...sweet. [ male announcer ] the all-new chevy cruze with th

one fatality in crescent city. one of the worst near the oregon border.boats ripped apart, and the missing man was photographing the damage. with the 5 mi. stretch of highway 1 0 1 has been opened. to the 5 mi. stretch of highway 101 has been opened. 55 mi. stretch of highway 101 has been opened. >> start reform dock some tempos structures have been shredded. >> this is going to be difficult. everybody is going to pull together it is difficult to see this. >> reporter: shortly after 7:3:00 p.m. and bowater surged reached 80 ft. the highest anywhere in the united states that water surge reached 80 ft8 ft.. as soon as that sirens started, it was just 8 ft.. and it killed 11 people and crescent city in the 60s. >> a small tsunami once in awhile and it breaks the docks but this is the worst that i have ever experienced. >> reporter: the concern is for fishing crews that went out before dawn. now, with no home port to return. >> 25 boats went out this morning. >> reporter: what will happen? >> they will have to sit out and motor. >> isabel: coming up, dozens o

in crescent city, california, the harbor is torpedoed by waves six feet to eight feet high. one early damage estimate, $15 million. how many boats did you lose out here? >> 15 tore up, our dock structure is totally destroyed. >> 20 miles south, waves swept one man out to sea. he's not been found. some scientists warn what happened in japan should be a wake-up call for the u.s. that's because geologists say faults just off the west coast could trigger a massive earthquake and tsunami here. the cascadia subduction zone closely mirrors the area where japan's quake let loose. the last quake here was more than 300 years ago, and geologists say we're overdue for a big one. >> it could be as large as a 9 or 9.1. it could be one of the largest earthquakes recorded in the seismic era. >> the quake has also triggered a tsunami of political bickering in congress. democrats accuse republicans of being irresponsible for proposing budget cuts to noaa, the federal agency that provides forecasts and early warnings of natural disasters. if noaa's budget gets cut, are people's lives more at r