raj mathai, nbc bay area news. >> he and abbey fernandez have daily chats. >> rob mayeda's here trackingthe forecast. it was a bit cooler, it was nice. >> we cooled down here raj is sweating right now. the hot weather continues outside. we take a look at how things are shaping up. daytime there looks a little bit like what we saw over the sierra here today close to 90 degrees. the humidity up to 65%. a sauna-like atmosphere. a little relief could come in scattered showers and temperatures ramp back up. 66 degrees in livermore. over in san jose, mostly clear, of 63. tomorrow's weather will involve some drizzle at times and then clouds clearing inland around 10:00 or 11:00 in the afternoon. temperature also start off in the mid to upper 50s, 65 tomorrow around san francisco. warmest places tomorrow out towards concord and livermore, upper 80s to near 90 degrees. as can you see around the bay area, smoke for the most part continues to stay in the northern part of the state. it should stay there as long as the sea breeze keeps temperatures mild. and daytime heating provided for thunderstorms

with ja nell and raj mathai and nightly news with lester holt is back at 6:30. we hope you join us as we dive deeper into the day's headlines on nbc bay area news tonight at 7:00 p.m. with raj mathai. >>> we have much more ahead on "today in the bay." >> i am certain that there will be students at my school on monday that are infecteded with covid-19. >> coming up some bay area teachers returning to the classroom say it's too soon to bring back students as well. every one of us is connected. everyone. everywhere. where everyone is included. where everyone has access to information, education, opportunity. ♪ ♪ ♪ when everyone and everything is connected. that's really beautiful. anything is possible. good morning. cisco. the bridge to possible. california, did you know our homes share power? but when we try to stay cool in a heat wave our supply is pushed to the limit. but you have the power to keep us up and running! “i do?” yup, we all do! with flex alerts. they notify us when to shift our energy use if our power supply is stretched. so from pre-cooling our hom

good evening, i'm jessica aguirre. >> i'm raj mathai.here's new trouble with the infamous millennium tower. >> the big fix is causing it to sink even further and all work has just been halted. jaxon van derbeken has more. >> reporter: it's officially called the perimeter pile upgrade, an ambitious fix to shore up the 58-story millennium fire along fremont and mission street. something has gone seriously wrong, and the fix may be making things worse. the problem appeared soon after crews began to drill three-foot-wide holes to install piles along fremont street to support the building. the fix relies on new piles being sunk to bedrock and attacked to the foundation to prevent it from sinking further. but since work started in may, the building has suddenly shrunk a full inch, which translates into five more inches of leaning at the top. >> that is disturbing. >> reporter: david williams is a structural engineering expert who specializes on deep foundations and bridges. >> the trend is very disturbing. >> reporter: it raises questions abou

. >> raj mathai is in tokyo. skateboarding brand new this year and a breakout moment for some of these young ladies. >> thank you. i have mosquitos, forgive me as i swat away on live tv. good evening from tokyo. laura and marcus, a 12-year-old medal, wins a medal here in tokyo. i have a 12-year-old, know what he's doing, sleeping after a long night of video games. that's the difference here. but i love the kid. let's show you what happened in skateboarding. here in tokyo, everyone's loving the sport around the world to watch it and here's why. the kids are doing so well. here she is, 12-year-old kakona haraki of japan. look at her form. she becomes the youngest individual medalist since 1939. not just the 12-year-old, we have a 13-year-old on the podium as well. sky brown wins the bronze medal. she's from the uk. simone biles, the team usa gymnastics star has left tokyo on her way back home now to the united states. everyone is still talking about that bronze medal. simone biles saying herself the bronze was bett

>>> i'm raj mathai. flex on nbc bay area news tonight, entire communities are leveled. >> most people's homes did not survive the caldor fire. >> we're taking a deeper look at how bad their fire is. >>> hawaii's governor is asking people to stay away because of covid. what happens if you go anyway? >>> and a big fix that was supposed to stop the millennium tower from sinking is causing it to sink further. >>> i'm raj mathai. it's happening again. the millennium fire flex door to the salesforce tower is sinking and leaning. there was supposed to be a fix. they've now halted the work that was supposed to stop the leaning. let's start with one of the most beautiful areas of the world and how it now has the worst air quality in north america. the flames are approaching lake tahoe. it is ominous, orange and hazy. reminds us of last summer in the bay area. you can see this view along the western side of the lake. at one point today the air quality index was 559. the scale typically goes to 500. it's literally

good evening, thanks for being with us, i'm raj mathai. >> i'm jessica aguirre. we begin with breaking news, the destructive wildfire in clear lake. it started around 1:30 this afternoon. at this hour it's burned more than 100 acres and no containment. video shows flames destroying homes, cars. about 1,000 people have been forced to evacuate. we have an interactive map on nbcbayarea.com. click on the link in the trending bar to check it out. let's give you a live look at what it looks like. you see a lot of haze and smoke. cheryl hurd is at the fire lines right now talking to crews and evacuees. she's going to be with us in just a little bit, in a half hour on our 6:00 newscast. >>> more details about the third moderna and pfizer vaccine. studies show the effectiveness of the vaccines do decline over time. couple that with the rise of the delta variant, the white house is rolling out a plan to give booster shots to those who are already immunized. if approved it would be available by late september. >> my administration has been planning for this possibility and

. >> i'm raj mathai. we are tracking two natural disasters causing a lot of destruction and evacuations. the caldor fire is five or six miles away from south lake tahoe. about 22,000 people are scrambling to leave town. that includes the casinos on the south shore. and hurricane ida trapping people in floodwaters in coastal louisiana shattering the power grid there. let's start with the destruction in the wake of that hurricane. search and rescue efforts continue after this powerful category 4 storm roared across the coast. right now more than a million people are without power. so far, one person is confirmed dead. sadly, that death toll is expected to rise. let's bring in liz mclaughlin who joins us in new orleans. what's happening around you this evening? >> reporter: raj, officials are only beginning to assess the impact of hurricane ida. here in new orleans we've got debris lining the strees. a massive tree behind us in jackson square, a famous part of new orleans, just snapped in half like a twig. a

i'm raj mathai. what we're seeing right now outside is eerily similar to what we went through last year about this time. remember those orange skies? tonight not as bad. but here we go, talking about unhealthy air quality. the haze so thick it looks like fog out there. the smell of smoke and ash on your car, we are under a microclimate alert because of all this smoke. it's coming from fires burning across california. a new fire tonight forcing evacuations in lake county. dozens of homes already destroyed in the town of clear lake. this is new video from our nbc bay area skyranger late today. this is called the cache fire. it started around 1:30 this afternoon. it moved quickly. you can see roaring through the area surrounding the cache creek mobile home park. it's burned at least 75 acres. cal fire says they've stopped the forward progress of this fire, that's good news, but there are mandatory evacuations at this hour. >> it's like a war zone. pretty nuts. frantic, you know, my wife is here with the

. >> let's check in with raj mathai who is live in tokyo. this is so cool. you were actually at the competition. you got to see simone compete in person. >> yeah. not just see it, i just felt it. everyone in that arena, few thousand of us, support staff, journalists and the other people there, you felt that energy inside that arena. simone biles has been taking so many of us on this emotional journey for the last couple weeks. her mental health issues we can all relate to or many people can, because it's so real. just because you're an olympic champion doesn't mean you don't go through these things. tonight you will see the full competition. let's take you behind the scenes. i got my own camera out and took photos to share with you all here. this is the balance beam finals. you see all the athletes lined up and see the crowd there. again, it's not full, but you did feel that energy inside this arena. as for biles, she was strong. physically and emotionally, even we're going to hear from her in a minute. her smile actually lit up that arena as soon as she was

>>> i'm raj mathai. next on nbc bay area news tonight, an exclusive interview with dr. sarah cody. >> covid is probably here to stay for a while. so the strategy needs to be how do we live with covid. >> she was the first health officer in the country to take significant action against covid at the beginning of this entire pandemic. she tells us the things she'sing to personally because of the delta variant and her advice for parents with children too young to get vaccinated. >>> also yesterday we broke the news. today more exclusive information about the leaning and sinking millennium tower in san francisco. >>> how dry are we? see for yourself, before and after pictures of our reservoirs and the troubling reality of our drought. >>> good evening, this is nbc bay area news tonight. >> i'm raj mathai. at one point, if you think about it. in the height of the pandemic, dr. sarah cody says she was getting death threats. tonight no threats but plenty of criticism. people are frustrated. there seemed to be a sense the pandemic was coming to an end, but thousand a new surge

of course i would like the on join the army. >> reporter: i'm raj mathai. >>> kamala harris is on the way to southeast asia. she'll be spending a week in singapore and vietnam building on the message that america is back. the white house says harris will emphasize the need for strategic partnerships between the and u.s. asian countries. before boarding her plane, the vice president said evacuations in afghanistan will be a high priority this trip as well. now, the vp is giving governor newsom her high profile approval. coming back for an anti-recall rally. friends and political allies dating back to when she was san francisco d.a. and he was mayor. we have put together a voting guide that has all the answers to your questions. things like what if you didn't get your ballot? what if you want to vote in person? how do you find your polling place? simple. proof of vaccination on the menu for indoor dining and drinking in san francisco tonight as the city's new mandate went into effect. day one had restaurant operators opening up about the challenges of enforcing that new rule. nbc bay ar

. >>> coming up here on "today in the bay," gold medal gymnast suni lee talks with raj mathai live inforecast today as you're stepping out the door in concord. slow warmup as the sky clears we'll get a look at all of our microclimates coming up. >> the sky clear enough for us to see the tops of the towers. bay bridge traffic flows smoothly as the crash cleared from 101. speeds restoring there. we'll keep an eye on your roads coming up. ♪ we can fly where you want to ♪ ♪ we can leave your house behind ♪ ♪ but if your friends don't mask ♪ ♪ and why don't they mask? ♪ ♪ well they won't fly this airline. ♪ ♪ you can fly if you want to ♪ ♪ cause we do safety right ♪ ♪ we have air that's clean and disinfectant machines ♪ ♪ zapping germs like an arcade space fight ♪ ♪ and we dance ♪ ♪ do the dance, do the dance ♪ ♪ hepa filters cleaning commence ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ alaska safety dance ♪ ♪ alaska safety dance ♪ >>> right now at 5:00, young olympianss winning big in skateboarding's debut. we're live in tokyo this morning. >>> a back-to-school covid outbreak expands. more contra costa schools confirming ne

especially for stanford grad who won a gold medal and just visited with raj mathai. >> raj joining us again this morning. raj, this is it. you've been with us for two and a half weeks. this is your last day. it's kind of sad for me. >> you're going to make me cry now. my morning show is the evening show. happy 10:00. everyone says happy friday. i've been in friday 20 hours already. we are having fun. guess who we just saw on the way up to our fifth floor balcony. i felt like kind of a kid in the candy store, who is short guy a and alix klineman. klineman, of course, she still loves the stanford community, graduated in 2010 and says i miss the bay area. take a look at what happened. klineman and ross the breakfast of champions. take a bite of the fwold. beat the australians in straight sets. maybe we'll see these two at the 2024 olympics in paris. guess what's happening tonight? 7:30 p.m. bay area time, the gold medal basketball game kevin durant, draymond green taking on france. live here on nbc bay area. 7:30 tonight. we sat down with steve kerr who is reuniting and loving the fact h

i'm raj mathai. >> and i'm janel wang. fda appears to be on the verge of expanding the covid vaccination to include a third dose for people with compromised immune systems. >> while infections and hospitalizations are growing, so are the battles against masks and vaccine mandates. >> reporter: a third shot of protection coming soon for millions of americans with compromised immune systems. the fda now working with pfizer and moderna to allow an extra dose of covid vaccine for people with diseases like cancer or who have had an organ transplant. >> this action is about ensuring our most vulnerable who may need an additional dose to enhance their biological responses to the vaccine are better protected against covid-19. >> reporter: the cdc weighs in tomorrow and shots could begin by this weekend. health officials not yet recommending boosters for anyone else, though they're closely tracking when immunity may wane. >> inevitably there will be a time we have to give boosts. >> reporter: the biden administration announces the

. >> raj mathai is in tokyo. skateboarding brand new and a breakout moment for some of the young ladies. >> i mean 12, years old, laura and marcus. that is incredible to have a 12-year-old olympic medalist. what were you doing at 12? i was playing hide and seek and baseball and that's it. skateboarding making its debut at themuch fun to watch. a big success big reason why, the kids dig it, 12-year-old kakona haraki of japan. she wins silver. this is park skateboarding. sky brown wins the bronze, from the uk. the podium, sky brown who is 13, you have 12-year-old haraki, really cool to see the youth movement here in tokyo in skateboarding. here back in tokyo everyone is still buzzing about simone biles, the bronze medal, never felt so good. simone biles and the u.s. gymnastics team now mid flight back to the united states. in fact, we will see simone biles, she's scheduled to appear along with her teammates in san jose september 26th at the sap center. the exhibition for the post-olympics performance. now, you're l

i'm raj mathai. check your mailbox. your recall ballot should be there. if you think governor newsom isn't worried about losing his job, think again. his actions speak volumes here. he is crisscrossing the state of california shaking hands in full campaign mode or some might say damage control. the actual election is september 14th, but there are so many people casting their mail-in ballots right now and gavin newsom knows it. today his people reached out to us. here's what you need to know. voters are being asked to decide if they think the governor should stay in office. and if not who should replace him. ultimately what we decide could have sweeping impacts on the direction of this state and country. so much so president biden and vice president kamala harris will soon be here in the state and the bay area to campaign for governor newsom. today our jessica aguirre chatted with the governor. >> i want to start with the biden administration yesterday. president biden saying that booster shots will be available, that third shot, for most americans in a ro

. >> want to send it out to raj mathai live in tokyo. you have the latest on this. we get to see her perform. >> we got a lot going on. it's not a sleep yes monday morning. it's a lively monday night. little after 10:00 local time in japan. simone biles is in. she's been opting out for mental health reasons for the past three individual events, but she is in now for the final individual event, the finals of the balance beam. she will be competing tomorrow. that is good news. also on this monday, ready for this, this is like a jolt of coffee before you have your coffee, team usa the women's soccer team loses to canada. the canadians in the red jerseys win on a penalty kick. 1-0 the final. team usa are not out, they go to the bronze medal game. in the pool, ryan murphy wins gold. the 4 by 100 medley relay. he graduated from cal a couple years ago, lives in berkeley and says i love it there and not leaving the bay monday. we're going to see in just a few minutes, take you inside the world famous fish market here in tokyo and kind of tell you, what this is. yeah. we do

so yes, of course, i would like to join the army. >> reporter: i'm raj mathai nbc bay area news. >>> vice president kamala harris is giving her high profile endorsement to governor gavin newsom in his fight to keep his job. this video is from her visit in april. the vice president is returning next friday for an anti-recall rally. going back to when she was san francisco district attorney and he was mayor. >> we put together a voting guide that has answers to all of your questions, what if you didn't get your ballot, what if you want to vote in person, how do you find your polling place? head to nbcbayarea.com/recall. >>> it's time to get back on track for sprinter sha'carri richardson, remember she was banned from the olympics for testing positive for cannabis. today she returns to the track for the classic in oregon. she spoke to tom yamas on why it was important to own up to her mistake. >> it's really just for the support, the people, it's a thank you because at the end of the day, i did make a mistake but that doesn't take away from my talent, from who i am. >> several members o

. >> i'm raj mathai.are tracking two natural disasters causing a lot of destruction and evacuations. the caldor fire is five or six miles away from south lake tahoe. about 22,000 people are

good evening, thanks for being with us, i'm raj mathai. >> i'm jessica aguirre. we begin with breaking news, the destructive wildfire in clear lake. it started around 1:30 this afternoon. at this hour it's burned more than 100 acres and no containment. vi

. >> i'm raj mathai. there are chilling images in kabul. people are so desperate they are trying to hang onto moving airplanes, those are hundreds of people on the tarmac. thousands of afghans are trying to flee the country as the taliban takes over. people fearing for their lives, uncertain of what the future holds. evacuation flights left kabul this morning and over the weekend, carrying diplomats and their staff to safety. they are escaping as the afghan government has dissolved. the taliban is quickly taking control of the capital city. several entered the abandoned presidential palace. the western-trained security forces fell. the afghan president has fled the country. now the world is watching two capitals, kabul and washington, d.c. where president biden faces the fallout. we have the latest from washington. >> reporter: scenes of desperation at the airport in kabul as afghan citizens try to make it out on the last planes out before it's too late, while the world watches the taliban takes over that capital, president biden returning

. >> i'm raj mathai. next on "nbc bay area news" tonight, it is getting strict in san francisco. you've got to be vaccinated to go inside restaurants, gyms, theaters, and even a warriors' game. >>> how can we not do our part to do better, to get vaccinated? >> we're going to break down what exactly the rules are and when they're being added. >>> and how are businesses handling this? >> i'm very concern about, you know, the business operation. >>> we're having discussion about what comes next and what you will need to do as an employee and as a customer.

i'm raj mathai. >> i'm jessica aguirre. let's start with the breaking news in lake county. tense afternoon at clear lake north of the bay area. a fire called the cash fire destroyed homes, cars, nearby neighborhoods told to evacuate. cheryl hurd joins us live. i know you've been there talking to firefighters and getting assessment. they've just told us that the forward progress has stopped. how are they communicating to you about what's happening? >> reporter: well, that is the good news. they say that they started out saying it was 100 acres. they've scaled it back to 75 apg acres, but the bad news is zero containment. the calls started coming in around 12:30. this fire raging through this lake county community. crews calling for evacuations. school's in session for the first time since covid and an elementary school had to get the kids out. i spoke with the boyd family moments ago, and they decided not to evacuate >> like a war zone. my wife is here with the kids. pretty crazy. >> reporter: lot of smoke, flames? >> yeah, the flames went all the way to my back yard. and we

. >>> i'm raj mathai, next on nbc bay area news, you can see it and you can smell it. smokey skies. jeff ranieri explains why we're just now seeing the worst of the smoke. how bad is it for you to be outside breathing in this air? we're talking to a pulmonologist, and does the matches you're wearing for covid help with smoke? >>> some refugees from afghanistan have made it to california. we're talking about the volunteer effort to get them what they need.

. >> i'm raj mathai. we begin with breaking news in san jose. we've been on this story for the past three hours. evacuations continue after a gas pipe ruptured at race street and park avenue. our nbc bay area skyranger is overhead. this is just a few blocks from the s.a.p. center and lincoln high school. the evacuation order is for anyone within a 900-foot radius of this leak. officers are going door to door to help people get out if they can't make it out on their own. again, this is a live look now from our nbc bay area chopper. here's some key information now. anyone who needs to go back into their home to get their pets should head to the walgreen's on west san carlos street. police will then escort you to your house. pg&e estimates it will not be able to cap this gas leak until midnight. so there's still a long ways to go. this is on race street and park avenue in san jose. >> the bay area's largest city could be on a collision course with its own police department over the issue of mandatory vaccinations. 88% of police officers have been v

. >>> one person very happy right now, our own raj mathai after being in tokyo for two weeks, and he'sty. good morning. >> reporter: thank you. our quarantine is over. our 14-day quarantine has come to an end and we are out and about in tokyo this weekend. first thing i did, it's just like being paroled, and i left the hotel and got in a taxicab and crossed the street and did a lot of walking and went to the world famous market. man, we found everything. do we go with the grilled lobster or meat and fruit -- forget it, we went with the bread and butter. for a point of reference, it was $30 for two of us to eat. there's no tipping here in japan, and we still wanted to show our appreciation, and we gave the restaurant staff our olympic pins. we had people giving us trinkets, and -- what are they called? origamis. i don't know if i'm ever coming back. >> i can see why he doesn't want to come back. he and abby fernandez have daily chats about the olympics in tokyo and highlights. >>> it's time to check in with vianey arana. >> it has been humid out there, and you have seen him talking abou

i'm raj mathai. we begin this week with a favorite vacation spot for the bay area. a lot of prayers at this hour that south lake tahoe avoids major damage. the entire south lake tahoe basin is under evacuation orders. let's take you out to a live chopper video now of the caldor fire. one final ridge stands behind this fire and the entire south lake tahoe region. you can see sun setting near the sierra. the fire continues to burn along highway 50. homes, businesses and other structures are gone. this is a shot near the homes at sierra at tahoe resort. some are gone while others have been saved. and that kind of hopscotching the of the fire line, we've seen this kind of behavior in the prior years. about 20,000 people were told to leave today. here's the latest evacuation map, it includes all the communities up to the nevada state line. if you want to explore this map further, we've posted it on our website. with highway 50 closed in terms of westbound, the main route was highway 50 eastbound. major roads and right there along the highway, major gridlock with a lot of

good night >>> i'm raj mathai. flex on nbc bay area news tonight, entire communities are leveled. >> most people's homes did not survive the caldor fire. >> we're taking a deeper look at how bad their fire is. >>> hawaii's governor is asking people to stay away because of covid. what happens if you go anyway? >>> and a big fix

. >> i'm raj mathai. we begin with breaking news in san jose. we've been on this story for the past three hours. evacuations continue after a gas pipe ruptured at race street and park avenue. our nbc bay area skyranger is overhead. this is just a few blocks from the s.a.p. center and lincoln high school. the evacuation order is for anyone within a 900-foot radius of this leak. officers are going door to door to help people get out if they can't make it out on their own. again, this is a live look now from our nbc bay area chopper. here's some key information now. anyone who need

. >> raj mathai is live in tokyo. you were there at the competition. first of all you're lucky to be able to see simone biles perform. you got to see her compete in person. tell us how it was. >> i did. it's different from watching it on tv or watching it from an nbc newsroom. it's spectacular. simone biles won the gold med al here, even before the event started she won. competing here especially with her well-documented mental health issues, the ability to be able to compete is a huge victory. sitting in that arena, you could feel the energy. we're going to show you the full broadcast later on coming up tonight on nbc bay area but let's take you behind the scenes, show you some of the photos that i took and among the things that actually stands out, it's not quite as empty as you might think. there are a few thousand people in there journalists, support staff and all the teammates from the other countries and teams. as for simone biles, she was strong. physically and i would imagine here mentally. lot stronger than she's been the last couple weeks. sh

. >>> good evening, i'm raj mathai. is it simply symbolic, or will today's fda approval prompt more people to get vaccinated. more workplaces will require employees to be vaccinated. >> reporter: pfizer's covid vaccine is the first to be given fda approval. it is 91% effective in preventing disease. many predict the approval will be enough to convince holdouts to finally get the shot. >> at the individual level we know from the kaiser family foundation that one third of the unvaccinated folks may be more willing to get a vaccine if it's fda approved fully. >> reporter: public health experts say the fda's decision has more wide-ranging implications as the state struggles with a surge in covid cases driven by the more-infectious delta variant. >> it will lead to more mandates among employers, governments and schools, and that will have a much bigger effect. >> reporter: the pentagon is already saying it will require the vaccine for more than a million service members starting next month. >> we're going to move forward mak

coming up next on "today in the bay," raj mathai is live in tokyo with the latest headlines.ve some breaking news from the g.o.a.t. kari is tracking our weather conditions here. >> we are seeing some cool weather starting out this morning around the bay area. we have a really nice day ahead. we'll talk about that in the forecast coming up. >> looking over here live look at the san mateo bridge. there's a lot of traffic, a lot of cars going westbound with the taillights. no traffic it's good across the bay. a bigger look coming up. >>> we're following the breaking news for you this morning, a fire prompts an evacuation of an island in contra costa county. we're going to have the latest for you after the break. it's 4:58. triple bacon chee... how's that song coming along? that's for me? oh no, you're making music, i don't want to get in your way. oh c'mon man. oh. hang on a second. my triple bacon cheesy jack combo. only at jack in the box. >>> breaking news, a 200 plus acre brush fire lighting up the sky over east contra costa county, sending a lot of smoke and prompting evacu

. >> and i'm raj mathai. we are 30 minutes away from the bay bridge series of, the a's hosting the giants at the coliseum. both teams fighting for local bragging rights. more importantly for positioning. you can watch on nbc bay area at 6:30. you can see it's still smokey. jeff ranieri leads off our coverage with the weekend smoke forecast. how are we looking, jeff? >> i think we're going to be doing a lot better. if you're heading to the a's game we have moderate air quality there so it is expected to be okay to be outside and breathe in that air. but you can see all the smoke from the fires moving down across the bay area. so where are we right now

raj mathai is joining us live from tokyo. what a night. >> it was a great night and day. we'll take you behind the scenes with the gymnastics team in a moment. we have been here almost three weeks so far, this is brutal and more so these last 48 hours. that's just for us normal people. can you imagine if you are one of the olympians especially in track and field. let's take a look. this was the heavy weight matchup two of the best runners on team usa. two of the best runners in the world. sidney mclaughlin and dalilah muhammad. this is the 400-meter hurdles. this is the best rivalry in sport. it is mclaughlin coming from behind to beat her teammate. the 21-year-old finishing with a world record. dalilah muhammad gets the silver. the first time women from the same country wins gold and silver in the women's 400 hurdles. >>> simone biles are now leaving tokyo. the next time we'll see them in a public figure will be late september, september 26th, they're all scheduled the perform in san jose at the sap center for one of those exhibition events. as from what we saw from simo

raj mathai is live in tokyo with the breaking news from the games.ol start to our morning as you're heading out in palo alto. feeling a little bit humid, but nothing compared to what they have in tokyo. we'll have a nice day ahead. we'll have a look at all of our microclimates and the forecast coming up. >>> traffic looks fine. it's a live look, big view of freemont, 880 up and down your screen there and going over that, the overpass, we're near toward tesla coming up. >>> right now, grab your mask again. bay area counties making it mandatory, but not all. what you need to know moving forward. >> requiring vaccinations. we draek down which schools are making students get their shots before classes begin. >>> first, a spoiler alert from the olympic games. this is "today in the bay." >>> good tuesday evening here in tokyo. tuesday morning for everyone back home. while you were sleeping a lot of things developing at the olympics including simone biles on the balance beam. we'll tell you all about it next. >> pretty exciting stuff. good morning. thank yo

. >>> i'm raj mathai. next on nbc bay area news tonight, he's feeling the pressure.ne on one with governor newsom. >> there is some kin creasing fear in a lot of californians that we're going to be moving back to a stay-at-home order as we continue to require more. is that even a possibility? >> not if we keep getting vaccinated. quite the contrary. >> we're talk everything from how the booster shot rollout will go and why he thinks he's facing a recall. also as wildfires rage around us we get a firsthand look at just how quickly they can take out an entire neighborhood. >>> and the unhealthy air isn't going anywhere.

good night >>> i'm raj mathai. next on nbc bay area news tonight, an exclusive interview with dr. sarah cody. >> covid is probably here to stay for a while. so the strategy needs to be how do we live with covid. >> she was the first health officer in the country to take significant action against covid at the beginning of this entire pandemic. she tells us the things she'sing to personally because of the delta variant and her advice for parents with children too young to get vaccinated. >>> also yesterday we broke the news. today more exclusive information about the leaning

raj mathai is live in tokyo with their story. >>> we have a cool start in san jose and palo alto thisning. 61 degrees. warming up, we'll talk about air quality coming up. >>> and this is the bay bridge. now we have cars. didn't for a second. that was very light friday. more coming up. >>> plus, wildfire smoke and haze making its way to the bay area. we've got a live look overlooking san jose. looks nice right now. we are following the latest on the wildfire. it's 4:58. >>> right now at 5:00, northern california wildfires sending smoke towards the bay area. meteorologist kari hall is tracking our air quality which is now starting to feel the effects as the flames rage on. >>> hospitals overwhelmed as the delta video variant continues to spread. the warning to the unvaccinated. >>> bay area gold, locals spiking to the top. we're live in tokyo. "today in the bay" starts right now. >>> 5:00 on your friday morning. we begin with a live look outside this morning where smoke from the massive wildfires in northern california now drifting over the bay area. we're keeping our eye on it. good mo

i'm raj mathai. world history is playing out as we speak. afghanistan is 7,000 miles away, but there's a deep connection here in the bay area. fremont, as you might know, is one of the biggest afghan populations in the united states. this 20-year war is now ending how it began, with the taliban in control. the taliban is an islamist military organization. tonight we are seeing the fall of afghanistan. people fleeing, worried that their lives are in jeopardy under the hard-line taliban rules, especially women and people who supported the outgoing afghan government. this is a scene that's reminiscent of the fall of saigon in 1975. hundreds of people at the airport in kabul trying to leave the country. that's a u.s. air force plane there, some grabbing the outside of the plane and others. the president of achx afghanistan has fled already. president biden stood firmly in his decision to withdraw the remaining troops from afghanistan, but he admitted the government's fall has happened a lot quicker than his administration anticipated. >> i will

. >> i'm raj mathai. big news from the fda. the federal agency has granted full approval to pfizer's vaccine, making it the nation's first to move beyond the emergency use authorization. here's the possible impact here. this full approval might prompt a lot of those skeptical people to finally get vaccinated, and this could also lead the way to more vaccine mandates. here's sarah dollof. >> reporter: the pfizer vaccine taking center stage, as the first to be granted full fda approval for people 16 and up, tracking more than 40,000 subjects. half received the vaccine, half a placebo. finding it 91% effective at preventing the disease. >> this really tells people that there's no doubt whatsoever based upon this independent scientific review that the benefit far outweighs the risk. >> reporter: they hope it will lead to an increase in inoculations. >> that will be one more reason for those 90 million people who have still not gotten their first dose to say "okay, i guess it's time." >> reporter: and it's expected to pave the way f

. >>> as we know, tokyo is keeping our raj mathai very busy. aj, abby fernandez interviews raj about life in tokyo every day. he is out of quarantine. he got out of the quarantine over the weekend and is getting out and b. >> this is a really cool hip part of town in tokyo. abby, this video does speak to me as well because it just shows you the olympics are here. it's so hard to say that because it's all quarantine, but if you do go out and stay safe and distanced from people, people are out and about and it's such a fabulous city. >> we're checking in with raj every day. you can watch more of these conversations online just go to nbcbayarea.com/checkingwithraj and that will take you to a page to watch every episode. >> do we have time for a last check of the weather? it's hot in tokyo, like 100 degrees? >> we're looking at low 100s, on and off thunderstorm chances. back here in the bay area, it's going to be pretty comfortable. 92 as we roll through tomorrow and upper 80s, low 90s through the next seven days. >> okay, great. nightly news is nex

>> our old raj mathai says the old phrase is true, it's not the heat. it's the humidity. >> you're drinking so much water. your energy is drained. i haven't even done that much. that's what it does. for the olympians actually competing, especially track and field, that's an issue, and all of a sudden it starts raining out of the middle of nowhere. it's pretty intense. people from miami, our nbc colleagues here that i'm working with, say oh, my gosh, miami is nothing compared to them. >> and yeah, we caught raj doing his laundry where each machine is a washer and a drier. we're checking in with raj every day. you can watch more of these conversations with raj and abby online. you can watch every episode. >> 105 degrees out there. we're both from florida, we know that humidity. raj says it's not even the humidity we know, and you also know these midday thunderstorms where all of a sudden it starts to rain and it's a deluge in the middle of the day. >> it makes it so unpredictable for the athletes. a lot of them did train for these humidities. you really h

. >> and i'm raj mathai. we are 30 minutes away from the bay bridge series of, the a's hosting the giants at the coliseum. both teams fighting for local bragging rights. more importantly for positioning. you can watch on nbc bay area at 6:30. you can see it's still smokey. jeff ranieri leads off our coverage with the weekend smoke forecast. how are we looking, jeff? >> i think we're going to be doing a lot better. if you're heading to the a's game we have moderate air quality there so it is expected to be okay to be outside and breathe in that air. but you can see all the smoke from the fires moving down across the bay area. so where are we right now on that air? well, still unhealthy over the north bay for parts of the east bay, and for the south bay as well. but let's get to the good stuff. as we roll through tomorrow morning, what you're going to see on this map is a lot of that orange and red, which is the unhealthy smoke starting to move more off towards the east. now, it's going to be getting replaced b

. >>> our own raj mathai, he's been out of quarantine for a week, and ever since then it's been look ut tokyo. >> he's all over the place. today i'm checking in with raj, he takes digital editor abby fernandez on a walk downtown. >> this is the world famous shibuya crossing, 3,000 people cross each time. you're allowed to cross every 90 seconds. think of a times square for japan. >> wow. yeah, i see those aerial views. it doesn't look too packed right now. that's good. >> it feels like 108 degrees. that's one reason, and also because of covid everyone's staying indoors. >> now we're checking in every day with raj. you can watch more of these conversations with raj and abby online. head to nbcbayarea.com/checkinginwithraj . that will take you to the page where you can watch every episode. we'll be right back. it's a new day. and it's coming at you fast. it could be the day your workforce doubles... or the day your visitors quadruple. with comcast business you'll be ready... with the flexibility to control multiple wifi networks from anywhere. all on the network that can deliver gig spe

. >> i'm raj mathai. next on "nbc bay area news" tonight, it is getting strict in san francisco. you've got to be vaccinated to go inside restaurants, gyms, theaters, and even a warriors' game. >>> how can we not do our part to do better, to get vaccinated? >> we're going to break down what exactly the rules are and when they're being added. >>> and how are businesses handling this? >> i'm very concern about, you know, the business operation. >>> we're having discussion about what comes next and what you will need to do as an employee and as a customer. . >>> also, radio talk show host larry elder attracting a crowd in the south bay tonight. could he actually unseat governor newsom in the recall election? our political analyst is here to talk about elder's popularity. >>> earlier this week we told you about a driver accused of trying to hit a people, not once or twice but three different times. tonight, a new development. ♪ ♪ >>> good evening. this is "nbc bay area news" tonight. i'm raj ma shy. after nearly four weeks in tokyo, it is nice to be back home. just a quick note about

i'm raj mathai. >> and i'm jessica aguirre. you've seen it. smoky skies.veryone's talking about it. the skies sticking around with us for a long time. at least till the weekend. here's a live look across the bay area at this hour. the bay area quality management district has issued a spare the air alert for today and tomorrow. so if you smell smoke you're being told to stay inside, close your windows, close your doors. let's bring in chief meteorologist jeff ranieri who's tracking the smoke. and jeff, you told us earlier you're expecting maybe the weekend? >> yeah, certainly looks like we're going to get some changes in here that would help to push the smoke out of here as we head into this weekend's forecast. look at this view. i've shown it a couple of times tonight but this really illustrates what

raj mathai joins us to explain. >> reporter: konichiwa from tokyo. team usa gymnastics now back in the united states. the next time we will see them in the bay area at least will be september 26th. this is pretty cool. it's one of those post-olympics gymnastics extravaganzas. these exhibitions they put on. simone biles, suni lee, all the members scheduled to appear. again, that's september 26th. we actually caught up behind the scenes with suni lee. 18 years old. she's coming home with the gold medal in the all-around individual. that's a big deal. we talked to her not only about her gymnastics but the impact she's having, especially in the asian-american community. >> i have a lot of people messaging me and telling me that i'm their inspiration and how much they look up to me. it just means the world to me that i can inspire people because obviously i look up to like simone and a lot of other people. so it means the world to me when they come up to me and say that to me. >> reporter: from suni lee we turn our attention to valarie allman. that is pur

. >> i'm raj mathai. there are chilling images in kabul. people are so desperate they