jean elle nbc bay area news. >> tomorrow marks a solemn anniversary in the bay area.ve years ago a fire broke out in oakland killing 36 people. a concert to remember the 36 victims has been posted on youtube. it features videos and pictures of each person who died. now, that fire started during a party inside the illegally converted warehouse. it was home to aspiring artists but it was also a fire hazard sprinklers. we will have in-depth coverage of the anniversary throughout our newscast tomorrow. >>> we're back in 60 seconds with another twist in a story made for hollywood. a former bay area police officer now admitting he took part in a conspiracy to steal drugs and cash. the move comes, after a series of our investigations. what his courtroom stunner could mean for other cops. >>> plus, not your typical break-in. tonight, one tourist's scary encounter in the city. what happened when she got back in her car. >>> i'm chief meteorologist jeff ranieri. our calm-weather conditions will bring some unhealthy air to the east bay. i am tak >>> new at 11:00. actor alec bald

jean elle, bay area news. >>> get ready for a cold night and a wet weekend. if you stepped outside tonight, you know it is cold, clear crisp skies, and are you ready? some parts of the bay area already in the 30s. let's bring in our meteorologist jeff ranieri. are you right about that? in the 30s already? >> oh, yeah. it's going to be with us not only for tom morning but into saturday as well. it will be dropping temperatures tomorrow morning down to 34 in santa rosa, 36 in napa. back toler more, 36. san jose, 37, san martin, 35. we will have some patchy fog possible. some simple stuff to think about. we cannot forget when it gets which chilly in the bay area, wear a hat, bring your plants and your pets inside. cold air contracts and leaves more space in your tires so you may actually need to add more air to the tires when we start to get into cold weather. and the atmospheric river is lining up to hit us starting on sunday and continuing into tuesday. at this whoest totals in the mountains and the north bay. we'll have some power outages possible. i'll have

nbc bay area's jean elle has the exclusive interview. >> when he started to kick the door in, i calledhospital bed, mark tells us about the moments leading up to being slashed in the arm near his business, the box sf, on howard street this morning. sackett and his neighbors say they started following the man after he kicked the door more than once. they say they wanted to point him out to police. the owner of tony baloney's cafe and deli said the situation quickly escalated. >> so he start want to chase me and my -- got next to me and start want to chase both of us. he pulled the knife out. >> then, he pulled out like a 6-inch switchblade and started swinging it at everybody. >> reporter: video neighbors took shows police arresting the man after sackett was slashed. business owners on the block say they have had enough. >> i have been here 30 years. i am about to sell and run away. >> they say during the pandemic, theft, vandalism, and violence are part of daily life. they blame drug use and drug sales outside nearby shelter in place hotels. >> drug dealing. business, stealing and whee

jean elle, nbc bay area news. >>> the trouble kept coming. check it out. sky ranger overhead.d news is no one hurt and the mess was cleared around 5:00. >>> a warning from first responders, though. water may be deeper than it looks. this is video out of hillsborough. firefighters say they were called to a home there. had to rescue a person from that rising water. >>> best thing that could happen to lake tahoe is this, snow. this is a live look now at one of our traffic cams on highway 50. ski season is ago. our cheryl hurd is going se you our nbc bay area app. you'll get minute by minute updates where the storm is headed. you can track our live radar right on your phone so you'll know when the rain is going to be in your neighborhood. >>> new at 11:00 tonight, a homicide at the tesla factory in fremont. police confirm for us tonight that what they initially called the suspicious death is now officially a homicide. this is what we know. around 3:30 this afternoon, the fremont fire department responded to a person down in the parking lot. firefighters tried to revive that person

jean elle nbc bay area news. >>> it is time to choose. a booster? or no in-person classes?pus is making the announcement today saying all students and faculty will either need to prove they have gotten the covid booster or commit to weekly testing. the mandate comes as the country begins to see evidence of a winter surge. >> so what this does is provides a lot more protection for the individuals to not interface with the healthcare system and for the healthcare system not to become overburdened. >> the deadline for getting the booster is february 28th or six months after receiving the previous dose. whichever comes later. >>> there is a new pill that may help us move forward in the ongoing fight against covid. fda has authorized the first covid antiviral pill in the u.s. to protect against severe disease. the drug is made by pfizer. it is called paxlovid. it is for people 12 and up with mild to moderate symptoms. the antiviral drug is not a replacement for the vaccine. it is an easy treatment to help keep people out of the hospital. experts say, initially, the supply of thi

come visit us, of course. >> reporter: jean elle, nbc bay area news. >> we need some good news in the city and that looks really fun to check out. >> very pretty. is the fog going to go away enough that people will be able to see it? >> well, i think you will be able to see it but we are going to hang onto those clouds tomorrow morning, even through tomorrow afternoon. i -- i do think we will get some sun breaks in here but do be prepared for some of that gloomy weather as we start off. you can see our visibility right now. it is the worst and dangerous in pockets out towards tracie. we are down to zero-mile visibility. in the general bay area, not too bad. five-mile visibility in livermore, four mile visibility in san jose. but again, through tomorrow morning, we are going to see that widespread cloud cover here through santa rosa, napa, san francisco, san jose, back into the east bay, and for the central valley, be very careful if you are getting in your car doing a road trip off to the south. again, quarter-mile and less visibility is possible tomorrow morning. now, this is going t

here is nbc bay area's jean elle. >> one day after san francisco mayor london breed pledges to clean up the tenderloin, she comes in this park to help light a christmas tree and repeat that promise in person. >> after a community holiday celebration at the park in the tenderloin, families face what they call a worrisome walk home. >> i see lots of people -- um, people sleeping on the ground. >> the violence, drugs. you know, people getting killed, like, every day. you know, it's a war out here. >> reporter: mayor london breed telling the community tonight, she plans to make the neighborhood safer. directing police to arrest drug dealers, and to no longer allow people suffering with drug addiction to refuse services and continue to use openly like we saw tonight outside the park. >> we are going to enforce every single law at our disposal to get them either into treatment or, sadly, the alternative is jail. and that's just what it is. i'm here all the time. >> reporter: the mayor says it's a long-term effort that has already started. >> i have been in the tenderloin several times a da

jean elle, nbc bay area news. >>> turning to the oakland's a's and could it happen for them. al key milestone was hit in building a water park for the team. by the way, it's 3500 pages long. the ballpark plans to include a 35,000 seat stadium at howard terminal near jacqueline square. it includes 3,000 square units and offices and hotel rooms. dave kaval tells the bay area he's hopeful. >> it's worth millions of dollars of investment. it shows this commitment trying to get this water front to approve. we are hopeful that city council will vote yes and get this project actually over and political hurdles here in the next couple months. >> next step includes the oakland city council meeting. kaval hopes that vote will happen early next year. >>> happening today, giving toys to those in need. it's all happening thanks to one man making his mission to give no child without a gift under the tree this christmas. the director of the solano started the toy drive and vallejo area. the toy drive began 18 years ago. it has helped about 30 families and now it's helping 1500. it's today i

jean elle. >> reporter: drugs openly for sale, drug use, public.edical examiner says as of november 30th, 592 people overdosed this year in san francisco. most from fentanyl. new data by san francisco police department says officers in the tenderloin seized more than five in 2020, this year, more than 23 kilos. >> too many people are dying in the city, sprawled out all over our streets. >> reporter: mayor london breed wants to create a state of emergency, flood the tenderloin with police and offer a choice of treatment or jail. says declaring emergency will clear the way to set up center for addicts to get help within a week. >> raw human suffering. >> reporter: the district attorney agrees there is a problem but says more housing and social services are the problem, not police. >> we cannot simply arrest and prosecute our way out of the problems afflicting the tenderloin and so many parts of our city. >> reporter: tenderloin officers are making arrests, but records show 65 of them are repeat offenders who keep returning. officers arrested repeat o

today in the bay's, jean elle, has the interview. >> when he started to kick the door in i called 911rom his hospital bed, he tells us about the moments of being slashed in the harm on howard street. him and his neighbors say they started to follow the man after they kicked the door more than once and they wanted to point him out to the police, and the owner of tony bologna says the situation quickly escalated. >> he wanted to chase me and mark got next to me, and when he went to chase both of us and he pulled the knife out. >> he pulled out a 6-inch switchblade and started swinging it at everybody. >> venders on the block said they have had enough. >> theft, vandalism and violence are part of daily life. they blame drug use and drug sales outside the shelters and hotels. >> stealing and wheeling and dealing and selling, and it's a mess. >> it's a haven for drug activity. >> sacket is recovering from surgery on his arm tonight. he was at his office this morning to meet with an artist -- >> i believe san francisco is turn into a third-world country and we need to do something to curb t

jean elle in the castro. >> reporter: the san francisco film commission says the production was heren francisco for 42 days, pumping millions into the local economy, but merchants on castro street say the world premiere here is a very different story. big trucks, movie props, lots of workers have taken over a block of castro street and a public parking lot. >> on tuesday, no parking signs and public lot was locked, nobody knew why. >> reporter: said no one warned merchants a major movie event at castro theater is scheduled saturday. with hollywood stars on the red carpet, now the street closed for three days on one of the biggest sales weekends of the year. >> not this weekend, week before christmas, retail depends on it. people are no longer ordering online, got to get that stuff. >> reporter: she's worried they'll get it somewhere else. president of the merchant's association welcomes big hollywood events but timing is terrible. >> this is a disaster for businesses. big business killing the small business in a way, it's not right or fair. >> reporter: in a statement, says will take

jean elle. >> reporter: san francisco issued vaccine mandate for 35,000 employees in june.st more than 100 firefighters refused to get the shot without a long list of demands. now fire chief says most of mere members are vaccinated. >> less than 20 who have chosen not to be vaccinated. so yeah, we're in a good place. >> reporter: firefighters union president says the city put them on unpaid leave this month. union leaders have filed a lawsuit aiming to have the city allow them to collect accrued sick leave and vacation time while the city attorney's office considers exemptions and acomations. department is working on a staffing shortage intensified by the pandemic. limits the number of people in classes. >> mandatory overtime, folks are working hard. we have a class graduating in december, another starting in january. for firefighters. >> reporter: the san francisco department of human resources says 98.2% of all employees are vaccinated. nbc bay area news. >>> big win for californians who support gun control measures. san francisco's ninth circuit court of appeals reinstat

here's nbc bay area's jean elle. >> i've been itching to get out there and do some riding. >> reporterill finally be able to put some new snow boots to use in the sierra. >> we're talking about feet of snow -- >> reporter: blis conditions are on the way. after a dry november, the snow section at the store in san francisco is buzzing. >> it is picking up. people wanting reservations for reynolds and picking up their stuff early. >> what's that on the ground? >> this is the am tieser. >> reporter: there is already some snow on the ground. traffic is moving smoothly on i-80 but that's about to change. caltrans says the biggest storm of the winter season is approaching with up to 100 inches of snow possible on the i-80 summit. snow, rain and wind are expected from saturday night through tuesday. >> we're looking at anywhere between two and three inches an hour. that's blizzard material, plus high winds, 60, 70 miles an hour across the summit. >> reporter: coop says expect road closures. the chp says if you're not already on the way to tahoe, the safest bet is to wait until after the storm

jean elle is talking to experts about the new reality of omicron and what you can do to protect your family gathering. >> reporter: the marin county health officer says all the guests at this indoor event were vaccinate. many were boosted. and still, 28 people came down with covid-19. he and other experts say it is something to consider as we prepare to gather for the holidays. >> we're seeing more and more evidence of really rapid transmission in gatherings. >> reporter: he says rapid trans submission what happened at a party on december 11th for about 60 people at the farm house local restaurant in marksburg. nearly half the people who attended got covid. even with vaccination and testing requirements to attend. he says indoor gatherings come with risk. >> the likelihood that someone in that setting is infected is higher than before. and it is likely with the omicron variant so more likely that they would be more contagious to others. that's just the reality we're living in. >> reporter: the uc professor of infectious disease says if you plan to gather inside for the holiday, follo

nbc bay area's jean elle with a look. >> reporter: you wouldn't know someone broke into the restaurant this morning, unless you noticed the tarp and board on the front door. and saw a post on instagram saying someone stole the register at 4:00 a.m. it also says it's not the first time. >> have you ever seen any people stealing in here? >> aught time actually. >> businesses all over san francisco are experiencing theft. at safeway at market and church, customers say it's common. >> the old self-checkout, you would see people just walk out without paying. >> reporter: management has reduced store hours, closed a main entrance, locked up most products, and installed fencing inside. there is only one way in and one way out. the new layout is getting mixed reaction. >> i feel it is kind of weird they put that -- that get up there. >> it's safer. it feels safer. you know? and before, it was getting a little crazy. >> reporter: in a statement, safeway says in part, like other local businesses, we are working on ways to curtail escalating theft to ensure the wellbeing of our employees and to f

here's jean elle. >> reporter: new years eve is expected to be a busy night for restaurants in san francisco here along the embarcadero, restaurants that will have a view of the fireworks say late night seatings are nearly sold out or already sold out. fireworks ushered in 2021 in san francisco. it was not business as usual. restaurants were only open for takeout or closed. this year, they are looking for the to a big night. >> hugely important. it really culminates the whole year. especially as turbulent as it's been. we were closed coming into 2021 this year and reopen just before valentine's day. >> reporter: people we talked to are ready to celebrate. >> we're not worried about it. we're all triple shotters. >> find a restaurant and get reservations. >> reporter: the water bar has a new. few late night reservations left. >> as soon as the fireworks start at midnight, most of our guests typically head right to the water front so they can be as close as possible. >> reporter: tens of thousands of people gather along the embarcadero for the fireworks show. with the omicron variant spreading

nbc bay area's jean elle shows us the impact it's having at sfo. >> reporter: the last-minute rush to get home fort the holiday stalled for some passengers, with covid cases rising across the country, airline staffing levels are dropping. many airlines cancelling flights. at sfo, cancellations impacting travelers on united, delta, and alaska. >> i came for christmas and i got stuck here. >> reporter: she arrived from india expecting to get on a domestic flight to salt lake city to join her husband for christmas only to learn alaska airlines cancelled the flight. >> three months back. yeah. i have been in india -- i ever been to india and i want to see my husband for christmas. >> reporter: she is hoping to get on a plane christmas morning for the now-delayed rye union but airlines say they expect last-minute cancellations to continue. in a statement, alaska airlines says in part, going into december, we increased the number of employees for reserve positions to prepare for a very busy travel period. however, some of them have reported that they may have been exposed to the virus. thos

at sfo, jean elle, nbc bay area news. >>> our coverage continues online of omicron, we are posting the latest updates of omicron and vaccination and mask requirements. it's all in one place, head to nbcbayarea.com/coronavirus. >>> lift off from a tropical rain forest to the time itself, a voyage back to the earth of the universe. the most powerful space telescope ever is now in space christmas morning. it took off around 4:20 our time. nasa hopes james web's telescope will send back images never before seen. >> reporter: it's a telescope that's giga gigantic incise. in size. >> reporter: the james web space telescop powerful observatory ever se into space. astronomers are totally geeked about this. the technology powering it is developed about what the scope hopes to see. what their climates are like and that's going to give us some really interesting insights into our own galaxy and again how big it really is. >> when whole telescope has to fold up and you get the idea here. >> reporter: here in silicon valley early testing was done under extremely cold conditions. >> that's minus 390