abc 7 news reporter elissa harrington is live at the bank of america on san pablo avenue which is now boarded up. >> reporter: looters used chunks of concrete like this to smash windows and here at bank of america, even the windows that were not damaged are still boarded up in case that group comes back out here tonight. meanwhile, other business owners are in a big hurry to make repairs before the storm sets in. what started as another night of protest turned reckless in emeryville. hundreds marched starting peacefully at uc berkeley. they headed into oakland and on to highway 24, then into emeryville, where some broke away, looting stores and breaking car windows. today, the community picked up the pieces, like roger, whose car windows were smashed. do you have insurance? >> [ inaudible ]. >> it kills me because we all live locally. we are part of the community. i just don't understand why they are ruining their own community. >> reporter: rachel runs the 7-eleven with her dad. she showed us surveillance footage of the convenience store getting robbed. employees had locked the doors

elissa harrington, abc 7 news. >>> just because there's a break in the rain doesn't mean the dangerous driving conditions are behind us. the california highway patrol says you still need to take it slow because there is still standing water on the roads. some drains on the freeways are clogged and that makes it tough for the water to drain. >> we have had some flooding that's deep enough, people will have to stop and actually go around until we can get crews out there. >> if you do end up on the flooded road, the officer says the best thing to do is let off the gas and stay off the brakes so you don't lose control, then start hydroplaning. >>> pooling rain water busted through the roof of an apartment building in antioch this afternoon. this was on l street around 2:00 today. the man who owns this unit says the water just came gushing through the ceiling and right into his living room. he says all the rain just collected on top of the roof and then simply gave way. >>> a homeowner faces a big cleanup job after a big tree fell in half moon bay. a eucalyptus tree at least 80 feet tall bu

elissa harrington, abc 7 news. >>> a judge is refusing to throw out a lawsuit against facebook claiming the social network giant scammed private messages sent between users. the complaint claims the company would scan messages for links to web sites, then deliver targeted advertising to users. facebook stopped the practice in 2012 but the company says it's still analyzing some messages to protect against viruses and spam. >>> south korean prosecutors have brought charges against the ceo of uber. he is accused of violating a transportation law. south korea's capital, seoul, may ban the ride sharing service on grounds it's unsafe and competes with licensed taxi services. uber also announced today its users in new york city must pay a $2 surcharge when they book a yellow cab with uber's service. >>> governor brown today kept up with the christmas eve tradition. today he pardoned 105 people who had been convicted of minor drug offenses, completing their sentences decades ago. all of them are posted online. in each notice, brown says each person is now living an honest and upright life. a pa

abc 7 news reporter elissa harrington has more on their mission to help underprivileged youth. >> reporter: 17-year-old riley sorts out shirts and other items of clothing from boxes of donations stacked in her parents' garage. the san ramon valley high school senior runs the nonprofit run closet, a charity that collects gently used clothing for low income teenagers, many in foster homes and homeless shelters. >> we have clothes for every day, mostly, and we also have business professional because part of like giving to these kids that are in need is giving them confidence, especially to go out and get a job or college interview or whatever. it was really sad for me to hear they only get hand-me-down clothes or that little amount of money to spend. that's really not enough these days. >> reporter: laura graham from oakland started the charity with her mom four years ago when she learned many foster children only get $200 a year for clothes. she passed the torch to riley when she went to college. >> there are so many clothes that i don't wear and my friends don't wear that we can just do sma

in vallejo, elissa harrington, abc 7 news. >>> a mother and her newborn daughter are doing well this evening after protesters on interstate 80 blocked their ride to the hospital. sky 7 hd found berkeley fire department paramedics helping adriana torres last night. she had been scheduled to give birth in san francisco but her sister called 911 when the expectant mother's contractions were two minutes apart. the family provided this picture of torres and her daughter, camilla, who arrived just after 2:00 this morning. everybody is doing fine. >>> abc news is devoting a full week of programming to report on race and justice in america. please watch for coverage on good morning america, world news tonight and nightline. tomorrow, george stephanopoulos will moderate a live town hall session on the issue on facebook. >>> now to the big storm that is forecasted to hit the bay area beginning late tomorrow. crews spread out across san francisco today to clear debris from storm drains before the wet weather really hits and they have a lot of work to do. as you can see from the live camera in e

elissa harrington, abc 7 news. >>> in san francisco, a large sinkhole opened up during this morning's storm. crews are making repairs at 6th and lake street. they're expected to be there through the night. here's abc 7 news reporter carolyn tyler. >> reporter: neighbors say they've been trying to avoid a patched-over piece of asphalt on lake street for weeks, which is where today's sinkhole developed. >> the city knows there's a problem but haven't done anything about it. >> we're trying to do 10 or 15 miles a year. >> reporter: police say this morning a driver's tire fell through the asphalt. she wasn't injured but the accident set off a chain of events involving a 110-year-old water pipe, and an aging sewer system. >> when a sewer pipe collapses, that has a lot of storm water in it, not sewage, storm water in it, when that collapses, it pulls the roadway -- sort of sucks the roadway into it. that compromised the street and left the water pipe hanging there exposed. >> reporter: when the water pipe burst -- >> around 8:30 or so, the water went off. i called several neighbors. >> repo

elissa harrington is live in san jose with a look at what's happening during today's council meeting. >> reporter: they could decide who to appoint tonight. right now they are hearing from four candidates and will expect to make a decision a little later on today but some opponents want that seat to stay open until a special election, when the public can vote. >> this unprecedented, it's dishonest, it's unethical. >> reporter: he was joined by the south bay labor council and members of the community blasting the process used to fill his san jose city council seat. two left, elected to state assembly. >> this is really a trust issue. >> reporter: one he says does not give the public a right to weigh in on who they want. the new mayor is already taking heat from the police union, who backed his opponent during a very close race in november, and he inherited mayor chuck reed's pension reforms. the city council is hearing from several candidates for the spot but lecardo has thrown his report behind margie matthews, who is willing to do the job for free. >> she has a strong record for inde

elissa harrington, abc 7 news. >>> firing up the generators in the diamond heights neighborhood after a downed wire cut the electricity this morning. about 2,000 customers were left without power. the safeway and walgreens at the diamond heights shopping center had to close for several hours. a bakery stayed open but couldn't brew coffee. customers still preferred going there to staying at home in the dark. >> i need a lot of light. and the light from the window, i need more than that. so the flashlight comes in handy. >> seven hill veterinary hospital was also left in the dark without their x-ray machines or computers. the staff had to cancel their appointments today. pg & e restored power to all affected customers by 1:00 this afternoon. >>> still ahead on abc 7 news at 4:00, the problem that shut down b.a.r.t.'s new shuttle to oakland international today, leaving nearly three dozen passengers stranded. >>> also, the cleanup effort that's now under way at a flooded redwood city mobile home park and the residents wondering what's next. >>> and new at 4:30, the korean airlines officia

abc 7 news reporter elissa harrington has the story. >> reporter: a man who used to live in the jungle watched as cleanup crews tear down what used to be his home. workers are clearing debris and hazardous waste from the site in san jose. the city called the encampment unsafe and unsanitary. yesterday the homeless who camped here were forced out, wheeling shopping carts with their belongings through the mud. >> there's a few people that have returned to the site. the site has been officially closed since yesterday so we have had to either escort them out or if people were unwilling to leave we worked out other means to get them off the site. >> reporter: the city's homelessness response manager says they have been transitioning people into housing alternatives but not everyone is using those resources. we found a group setting up near the creek despite the no trespassing sign. and more people camping in the walmart parking lot. i asked why they were not at a shelter. >> i don't like the confinement, the rules, having to get up and pull your stuff all over the place. i just like to be f

elissa harrington, abc 7 news. >>> water levels rose up to two feet in parts of petaluma this morning, swamping the city's storm drains and trapping two drivers whose cars got stuck. that was on lakeville street, where police were forced to close the road. the two cars were later towed and the street reopened. nearby petaluma river remains below flood stage. >>> now let's head to sixth avenue and lake street in san francisco. this is an area that police are saying you should avoid right now and here's why. take a look at the size of this sinkhole right in the middle of the street. a car driving on lake street fell through the pavement this morning, punching a small hole in the street which got bigger and bigger. the car, they've got that out. the driver's okay. a 100-year-old water pipe beneath the street burst. dozens of people in that area are presently without water. >> first time i have seen anything like this. not that it's excitement. but around 8:30 or so the water went off. i knew right away, called several neighbors and could tell that this was a bigger issue than just my hom

abc 7 news reporter elissa harrington is live in palo alto where officials are still urging people to reporter: water district officials say today's rain is a good start but it's not nearly enough to make a significant impact. they are still urging people to cut back on water use. a storm is exactly what's needed in drought-stricken california but marty grimes with santa clara valley water authority says don't get too excited. >> please remember we're still in the middle of a drought. >> reporter: the message is still to conserve. last week the board agreed to extend a call for a county-wide 20% reduction of water use. the lexington reservoir was just at 13% capacity when the rain started falling. >> the watersheds above these reservoirs have been so so dry because of the drought that a lot of this water, even though it's a lot of rain, it's just soaking right no the ground. >> reporter: in palo alto even though it's wet, there are still rebates to re-landscape your yard with drought resistant plants. the owner of this house took part in the city's buy-back program. homeowners are eli

in napa, elissa harrington, abc 7 news. >>> a highway patrol officer killed a drive in humboldt county this morning, responding to a car crash near willow creek. the chp said the driver attacked their officer, and the patrolman defended himself. the fatal shooting is, of course, under investigation. >>> san francisco based uber is promising to improve rider safety. just yesterday, an uber driver in boston was charged with kidnapping and raping a customer, among other things. users say it is creating a new team to respond to passengers. complaints about safety uber is trying to do something more. >>> richmond city council has unanimously adopted a resolution to accept president obama's my brother's keeper community challenge. the challenge is designed to make sure young boys and men of color have the tools they need to succeed. it calls for specific actions for each community to accomplish, setting goals in the areas of education, work opportunities, and violence prevention. >> we know that every single one of our young people, regardless of what race they are, regardless of what color