now let's check in with patti lee. patty? >> reporter: i'm right outside the refinery where you can see the plumes, the sky. depending upon your angle you can see three to five flames shooting here. you can also see the smoke starting to dissipate slowly in the sky. that's what the health officials are worried about. that's why there is a level iii warning in the community and despite that, there are groups of people who have driven out to the street they are walking around kind taking pictures almost like this is an attraction -- attraction they say they are not re-- they are not really worried about their health. they come out here all of the time. dan, you come out here and tell me why you come out here. >> i'm always interesting in stuff like this. it's interesting to know what's going on so we -- >> reporter: i'm sorry. you are interested in knowing what's going on but yet you are not worried about your health? >> no. i'm not worried about my health. i'm nowhere near the smoke and as nar as i'm concerned, it's not a haza

patty lee is live at the scene with the very latest. >> reporter: we are live at the refinery where you can see these flames burning. shooting black smoke into the sky. it started just after 4:00 with the power outage. that is what you are seeing now could we have cap or two in the air. from this angle you can see the problem which is -- chopper two in the air. health officials issued this level three warning. residents have been asked to stay inside, close their doors and windows, and for those with respiratory problems to take extra precautions. health officials are say and when the smoke dissipates they neglect the warnings. but as you can see the flames are still going strong. when that might be is still anybody's guess. patty lee, ktvu channel 2 news. >> residents wonder how hazardous this plume of smoke may be to the health. >> sirens could be heard in concord warning residents of the shelter in place. a hazardous materials unit had been in that neighborhood taking air samples. so far they say air quality is not a major problem. >> we have been taking air samples of this area. >>

patty lee has the story tonight. >> reporter: you can blame it on the weather but the small shops here did not get a lot of foot traffic earlier today, picking up now. but that led to mixed reviews from retailers about small business saturday. >> the fact that it was business as usual at walnut creek disappointed buyer erica bollwig. it's been slow. i don't think that small business saturday picked up as much asset should. >> because expectations for the promotion was low, any business was welcome business. >> i don't know if that's pause of the support small business thing. >> small business owners say that they historically have received a lot of local support. and, this year, black friday retail numbers are up slightly. .3% over last year. and that was reflected locally. >> yesterday, we had our biggest black friday sips we opened this part of the store 4 1/2 years ago. >> consumer confidence also up in walnut creek. >> people are tired of spending money. they want to be happy and buy gift for their friends and family. >> here, competition for dollars is tougher t small business own

reporting live, patty lee. >> our coverage continues at ktvu.com. you will find an enter active map showing where the violence happened in oakland last night. click on the case tab on the front page. >> right now police are searching west oakland for two gun men believed to be responsible for a double homicide. details still coming in but officers were called to the scene of 8th street around 3:30 this an. they found two bodies inside a car. the victims have not been identitied but officers say they are both african american men ages 18 and 22. police say the two gun men are still at large. >>> gun fire rang out in oakland. one man died after being shot after a party. it happened just before 11:00 p.m. another man and a woman were also injured but are expected to recover. officers at the scene say they found another man suffering from a gun shot wound later near 82nd avenue. police say he was shot in the hand. they think he may be responsible for the first shooting. >>> oakland police responded to shots fired in 73rd avenue shortly after 11:00 p.m.

ktvu's patty lee reports. >> reporter: the fact that it was women as usual at this boutique in walnut creek disappointed erica. >> it's been slow. i don't think that small business saturday has picked up as much as it should. >> i don't think there is any more people. >> reporter: but at the toy store sweet dreams in berkeley, because expectations for the promotion were low, any bump in business was a bonus. >> it is a little better than last year. but i don't know if that is because of the support small business thing. >> reporter: small business owners along college avenue say they historically have received a lot of local support. >> yesterday we had our biggest black friday since we have opened this part of the store four and a half years ago. >> reporter: sales at the jeans bar slash mimic the national numbers. black friday retail sales numbers for the country are up slightly. 0.3% over last year. an indicator of an uptick in consumer confidence, however slight. >> i think that you would be a fool to feel confident about anything. i mean, let's be honest. it's christmas. but, you

patti lee is live with why the film was pulled. >> reporter: the decision to cancel the screening ofthis documentary on teen sex is now raising sum a ruckus. film maker kathie jay is speaking out. she says the executive director gave her this reason. >> she said that two of the board members of the theater did not like the subject matter of the film and they felt that the topic was irrelevant to marin audiences. >> reporter: board of director chris alvenson is leading the charge on damage control. >> as far as i know, i wasn't in the conversations but as far as i know those comments were never made. so i'm not sure how that conclusion was made. >> reporter: he tells us daddy i do was mistakingly added to the current line up of movies of educational pressure. but the director of the theater did not get the opinion of parent advisors. and in the end, parent advisors objected the movie. >> i'm not sure why that would pull this from the theater. >> reporter: she adds, the controversy is adding publicity to the movie. this kind of resistance is the reason she made the film in the first pl

ktvu's patty lee is live now in the city with more fan reaction. hey, patty. >> hey, heather. i'm live along the embarcadero embarcadero where this is filled with giants fans. and where you watch often dictates what you celebrate. >> anything but appetizers and entrees used to be banned. a t.v. at the bar was unheard of. but that was bws or before the world series. >> we are about a good dining experience and about food. but the giants being in the world series kind of transcends all of that. >> a small television now hangs near the kitchen. for patrons and especially the staff can get their giants fix without resorting to desperate measures which involves whispers. >> you can see the free runners were running around. sometimes i will call them over and let them tell me what the score is. >> near the ball club a difference experience here. here self described salty sailors refusalled watching the giants play on the big screen and in making noise. [ applause ] >> this is the waterfront. and to have all of these guys come down here and watch their team. and, mind you, the park i

ktvu's patty lee has more on the lasting impact of the bart shooting case. record brian geiger prepares for a day of patrol. taking care to put his taser on the front seat in reach, but not in his holster. >> in light of what's happened with former officer mehserle, i have decided to no longer carry it on my person. it's no longer a primary tool for me. >> reporter: he says that was a personal decision. but the fatal shooting of oscar grant led to changes in taser policies for his police department and others. requiring that the tasers be holstered opposite from the gun and requiring a higher level of threat before firing. but the more lasting legacy may be a shift in how officers are trained and how they approach critical situations. >> you think about the ramifications of what they are doing. you have to think about, you know, how it's going to affect other people. they are making these decisions in a matter of second. >> reporter: former san francisco police chief tony ramirez says the tragedy has led to a push towards value- based training which requires

. >> in san francisco, patty lee of course ktvu channel two news. there's more straight ahead on bay area tv news. >>> the sound of the holiday season. the a friendly game of basketball turns rough for president obama. the injury that forced the commander and chief to get a dozen stitches. >>> our next storm is approaching the the bay area. when the rainfall begins and when had we will get a break -- and when we will get a break in the wet weather. you know it's the holiday season when the salvation army kicks off the red kettle drive. >> it's the sound of the season and steven is taking his volunteer work seriously. ringing, and singing. >> it's beginning to look a lot like christmas. spencer is one of thousands of bell ringers nationwide today that are launching the red kettle drive. passing shoppers dug into their pockets or pocket books to donate, they take the money and they use it for good reasons. and the salvation army is staying in tune with the times. we found out in a couple of test cities that the average gift was two dollars that went i

patty lee is live there with a report. >> reporter: julie, witnesses tell us that a woman in her 20s,n american woman first led and then left a toddler in this yard sometime before 8:00 this morning. they say she then around around the corner into a waiting taxi cab. >> well, evidence -- he was a fine little black boy across the street there. >> reporter: wilson says he spotted this little boy in front of his house just after 8:00 this morning. i walked over and picked him up. you know, i gave him a little kiss. >> he then notified the police who started asking neighbors if they recognized him. >> we are going to find out who did this. >> reporter: lieutenant kent bay says the boy does not speak clearly and can't answer questions about his name. the toddler was wearing a dallas cowboys shirt and missing a shoe when he was found. >> obviously if the child only had one shoe on, they were in a hurry to drop him off and get away. >> bay says whoever abandoned him was likely familiar with the neighborhood and picked this semi-secluded yard deliberately. >> that was an opportunity for her t

patty lee is live there with a report. >> reporter: julie, witnesses tell us that a woman in her 20s,n american woman first led and then left a toddler in this yard sometime before 8:00 this morning. they say she then around around the corner into a waiting taxi cab. >> well, evidence -- he was a fine little black boy across the street there. >> reporter: wilson says he spotted this little boy in front of his house just after 8:00 this morning. i walked over and picked him up. you know, i gave him a little kiss. >> he then notified the police who started asking neighbors if they recognized him. >> we are going to find out who did this. >> reporter: lieutenant kent bay says the boy does not speak clearly and can't answer questions about his name. the toddler was wearing a dallas cowboys shirt and missing a shoe when he was found. >> obviously if the child only had one shoe on, they were in a hurry to drop him off and get away. >> bay says whoever abandoned him was likely familiar with the neighborhood and picked this semi-secluded yard deliberately. >> that was an opportunity for her t

reporting live in redwood city, patti lee. >>> charter schools were created to reduce red tape but tonight there's call for more oversight. many charters schools are under performing and lack for oversight. the commission says a new board should be created to do the job. >>> at this point in time, charter school students make up about 5% of the over all public school population and yet to have the state board which has these broad duties so focused on charter schools seems inappropriate. >>> the commission is a state run oversight organization. >>> well it's a cold night in the bay area and it's about to get everyone colder. probably the coldest night of the season. let's go to our chief meteorologist bill martin for the details. >> temperatures near freezing or below freezing in some cases. a freeze warning in effect for the north bay inland valleys and a frost advisory for the rest of us. that temperature has been coming down over the last hour. it's 2 degrees cooler than it was an hour ago. temperatures coming off quickly. it's going to be cold tonight. coldest night of the season as ju

reporting live in oakland, patti lee, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> as the busy holiday travel season gets underway, more attention being paid to those controversial full body scans and pat-downs at airports. passengers traveling through airports this week will see or hear a new message from tsa chief john pistole reminding them about security measures. it essentially explains procedures, options and the reasons behind the searches. his message comes amid the backlash from some people against the government's use of full body imaging machines and new invasive pat-downs. >> i think they do need to readdress it. i think they need to look at how it's impacting people. >> anything for safety really. i mean, i don't -- i would rather have them doing their job more thoroughly than not as thorough. >> reporter: pistole says the tsa will review the procedures but it won't happen until after the holiday travel rush. >>> as families head out for the highways for holiday travel, a new first ever statewide survey on driving issues finds distracted driving to be a growing problem. according to the cali

ktvu's patti lee reports. >> reporter: lightning, rain and wind knocked out power and knocked down trees, toppling some into homes. through the roof on this house on buckeye drive and into this cottage off conference drive- you could hear it. it was like an explosion of a transformer. >> reporter: this winter storm hit the santa cruz mountains hard. >> we ent to have power and probably won't until 9:30 tonight at the earliest. >> reporter: he lives in one of the 150 homes in felton and scottsdale voyle without power since 7:00 after a redwood tree toppled into powerlines, requiring crews to install a new utility pole this afternoon. >> we heard the crackle and that means everybody get ready for cover, because you know, we don't know if it's going to hit our house or hit the ground. >> reporter: 834 families along highway 9 had their power restored at about 8:00 tonight. three hours later than anticipated. pg&e says the number of outages actually increased throughout the day. one of the problems, field crews say the that damage from the storm was more extensive than anticipated and that i

we begin with patty lee who's live at the refinery. >> reporter: the tesoro refinery is now stable after power was fully restored here around 7:45 this evening. it allowed the flares that you can still see burning behind me to burn more efficiently. they may burn through the night to keep harmful emissions at bay. just after 4:00 this afternoon, a power autoage led to shutdown of the tesoro golden eagle refinery. six flares acted initially. >> the flares did what they were supposed to do. they released pressure from our system due to the sudden power outage. >> reporter: if left unburned, the gases have the potential to release carbon monoxide into the air. officials reacted immediately by sounding a level-two alarm. a threat that was upgraded a half hour later to a level- three. >> they were monitoring the air in realtime with hand held instrumentation and collecting samples. >> reporter: air quality officials detected odors as far south as walnut creek. despite the health warnings, onlookers showed up to stare at the flames. >> i kind of have a thing for fire. i just wanted to check it

patti lee has this story. >> reporter: pat and ben august spent the day getting ready to host his sonnd friends. thomas brooks who returned from afghanistan 21 days ago has the normalcy of this scene, the abundance after food and comfortable places to sit is a little surreal. >> it's a good feeling to have everyone, all the family around and friends. >> reporter: especially in contrast to the life lived for more than six months in afghanistan, a world of regular ambushes, where jake henry was severely wounded. >> i was shot in the leg and then hit by an iud. and hurt my knee. got some shrapnel in my leg. >> reporter: they also lost a good friend. >> we're wearing these bracelets for corporal larry d. harris, he's one of our good friends. we're sad he's gone but we're honoring him by thinking about him every day. >> reporter: for parents, seeing these boys at ease in the kitchen brings on a powerful feeling of gratitude. for a reason you might not get. >> they have each other and that bond of brothers, is just like what you see in the movies. it's stronger. >> reporter: the marines, th

patti lee has this story. >> reporter: pat and ben august spent the day getting ready to host his sonnd friends. thomas brooks who returned from afghanistan 21 days ago has the normalcy of this scene, the abundance after food and comfortable places to sit is a little surreal. >> it's a good feeling to have everyone, all the family around and friends. >> reporter: especially in contrast to the life lived for more than six months in afghanistan, a world of regular ambushes, where jake henry was severely wounded. >> i was shot in the leg and then hit by an iud. and hurt my knee. got some shrapnel in my leg. >> reporter: they also lost a good friend. >> we're wearing these bracelets for corporal larry d. harris, he's one of our good friends. we're sad he's gone but we're honoring him by thinking about him every day. >> reporter: for parents, seeing these boys at ease in the kitchen brings on a powerful feeling of gratitude. for a reason you might not get. >> they have each other and that bond of brothers, is just like what you see in the movies. it's stronger. >> reporter: the marines, th

patti lee. >>> this may be thanksgiving but tonight police are hard at work trying to solve a stringent may have been this morning. three suspects, one with a bat the other with a large knife robbed a market. >> reporter: it is too early to tie the robbery early this morning here at the black diner restaurant in walnut creek to a string of robbery, armed robberies which started in september in contra costa county, but there are similarities. the description of the suspects black males wearing masks and black clothing, possibly hooded sweatshirts makes this morning's robbery similar to other recent robberys in central contra costa county. a difference is that this business was closed when the perpetrators struck. >> one of the employees stepped out of the back of the rest rant to dump garbage and assaulted by three men. struck in the head and knocked down. >> reporter: the suspects got away with a small amount of cash. in neighbors pleasanthill, four business have been struck while they were open by this guy's armed men. the latest was a denny's restaurant. pleasanthill police sergean

we begin with patty lee who's live at the refinery. >> reporter: the tesoro refinery is now stable after power was fully restored here around 7:45 this evening. it allowed the flares that you can still see burning behind me to burn more efficiently. they may burn through the night to keep harmful emissions at bay. just after 4:00 this afternoon, a power autoage led to the shutdown of the tesoro golden eagle refinery. six flares acted initially. >> the flares did what they were supposed to do. they released pressure from our system due to the sudden power outage. >> reporter: if left unburned, the gases have the potential to release carbon monoxide into the air. officials reacted immediately by sounding a level-two alarm. a threat that was upgraded a half hour later to a level- three. >> they were monitoring the air in realtime with hand held instrumentation and collecting samples. >> reporter: air quality officials detected odors as far south as walnut creek. despite the health warnings, onlookers showed up to stare at the flames. >> i kind of have a thing for fire. i just wanted to chec

patti lee joins us in oakland for a live report. >> reporter: if you want to grow marijuana on a largele here in oakland we got our hand

patti ann: i'm patti ann browne in for jenna lee. we're in the fox newsroom. al qaeda appointing a new terror chief. jon: a new report tapped this man, al-adel. his name means the sword of the just. he is supposed to become al qaeda's new chief of international operations. his role? to spearhead the terror group's war against the west. catherine herridge joins us live from washington. who is this guy. >> reporter: he is well-known to u.s. investigators. he is on the fbi most wanted terrorist list for wanted in bombings of u.s. embassies in tanzania and kenya in 1998. they killed and wounded thousands of people, mostly african muslims. he was reported to be under quote, house arrest in iran with a group of senior al qaeda members including one of bin laden's sons. iran never publicly acknowledged adel and others being in iran. this led to speculation the arrest was really code for giving the men shelter and some sort of protection after 9/11 when they fled afghanistan, jon. jon: and supposedly he is reported to be planning a certain kind of attack? >> reporter:

ktvu's pat lee has been talking with mehserle's friends and joins us with a live report, patty? >> reporter: julie, there was almost no public reaction to the sentencing even though an estimated 7,000 napa residents filled this football stadium tonight. in private, friends of mehserle told us they felt some relief, even those who did not believe the punishment fit the crime. in napa, crowds gathered to watch football in a brand new stadium, the protest action in oakland. >> someone texted me and said what a relief, it's over. >> reporter: for nate, friend of johannes mehserle since they were both 7, viewing the sentence as a victory is in poor taste. >> to use the words like best and happy is not something i like to do. i don't feel it's anything but a tragedy for every person involved really. >> reporter: he wouldn't say whether he thought the sentence was fair because it wouldn't change the outcome but could provide new threat to retaliation. >> ever said anything remotely to the defense of johannes, wasn't okay. >> the family was part of our community. we loved and cared abou

ktvu's pat lee has been talking with mehserle's friends and joins us with a live report, patty?>> reporter: julie, there was almost no public reaction to the sentencing even though an estimated 7,000 napa residents filled this football stadium tonight. in private, friends of mehserle told us they felt some relief, even those who did not believe the punishment fit the crime. in napa, crowds gathered to watch football in a brand new stadium, the protest action in oakland. >> someone texted me and said what a relief, it's over. >> reporter: for nate, friend of johannes mehserle since they were both 7, viewing the sentence as a victory is in poor taste. >> to use the words like best and happy is not something i like to do. i don't feel it's anything but a tragedy for every person involved really. >> reporter: he wouldn't say whether he thought the sentence was fair because it wouldn't change the outcome but could provide new threat to retaliation. >> ever said anything remotely to the defense of johannes, wasn't okay. >> the family was part of our community. we loved and cared about

lee. you have water with the coffee. and then, do chopped-up peppermint patties. and do that with whipped topping.ry christmas. >> i'm not allowed to drink on the air. >> the beans go all out. >> the recipes and coffee-inspired treats at abcnews.com/gma. we learned a lot about you with >>> mark, one last assignment. can you read us off the air? >> i'll give it a whack. next week on "good morning america," travel to turkey. we're counting down to thanksgiving to make it the best one ever. >> good job. >> live and in hd, this is an abc 7 news update. >> good morning. here is lisa baden with a look at the traffic. >>> on 66, 95, up 395, we have an instrument of woe on the outer loop of the american legion bridge. we will take you to 270 southbound leaving shady grove road, much improved. the delay to the legion bridges easing up. there's a crash after the bridge that caused this delay after river road to get to the toll road but all things are open. we will end with wilson bridge traffic for this is a dump truck broken down on the outer loop in local lanes. that is alexandria to get into oxon hill. >

lee. you have water with the coffee. and then, do chopped-up peppermint patties. and do that with whipped topping.y christmas. >> i'm not allowed to drink on the air. >> the beans go all out. >> the recipes and coffee-inspired treats at abcnews.com/gma. we learned a lot about you with sandra lee >>> mark, one last assignment. can you read us off the air? >> i'll give it a whack. next week on "good morning america," travel to turkey. we're counting down to thanksgiving to make it the best one ever. >> good job. >>> now maryland's most powerful doppler lay dar and forecast certified most being a ret by weatherrate. >> 8:56. temperatures in the backyard 50 in the thermometer. that's nice improving considering we started near or below freezing. 46 in towson. same in ellicott city. you're catching up to work hall-- rock hall. we don't have a storm here but it's about a thousand miles or so east of the coastline burks it's stirred up big wakes and helped to keep the water rising on the chesapeake and had could be problems. check online for nearby high tides near the chesapeake for problems extending thr

patty murray was declared the winner in washington. the senate race in alaska will be the last to be decided. in that race in alaska, incumbent senator lee summer cowskin ran as a right in candid after losing to -- lisa murkowski. she is leading by about seven points. mr. miller's campaign has said there may be a legal challenge to the results. >> changes need to occur in congress and it is only going to occur if the people of our country really began to get involved in the political system and began to run for congress and come over here to make changes that are necessary. >> that was john boehner in 1990. you can learn more about the presumptive speaker of the house through his own words in over 800 appearances on line at the c-span video library. it is washington, your way. >> in a few moments, more election analysis and a discussion hosted by congressional quarterly and roll call. in a little more than an hour, you will hear from stuart rothenberg. after that, freedom works chairman dick armey with his assessment of the election and the gop agenda. several live events to tell you about tomorrow. we'll have more election analysis from