Only to never install that technology. And were going to be joined by two bay area natives who are generating potential oscar buzz for their film shot entirely in armenia. Good evening. This is nbc bay area news tonight. Im jessica aguirre. Were going get to the stories in a moment. But we want to begin with this, smoky skies. Lets give you a live look across all of the bay area tonight. Even though we havent had much fire activity here lately, we are still feeling the effects as smoke blows in from oregon and northern california. In the south bay today, air quality index topped 150. In gilroy and san jose. Thats a level thats considered unhealthy, especially for anyone who might have a respiratory problem like asthma. A reading in that 150 range would be like smoking half a pack of cigarettes a day. And a reading in that 50 to 100 range is like smoking a quarter pack of cigarettes in a day. Okay, thats a lot of cigarettes in a day. Lets get straight to chief meteorologist jeff ranieri. Thats a lot of cigarettes and smoke ticking in. When do we expect the smoke to leer . This is the smoke map right here. We have over 12 fires burning off to the north. This is the smoke plume as we head to tomorrow morning and tomorrow afternoon. We still have that haze with us. So im still calling for unhealthy air for sensitive groups, especially if you have respiratory problems. One spot that could go moderate is the coastline. Improved air quality, marked improvement by friday night into saturday the way im seeing it right now. Okay. We have a situation brewing in the north bay. A red flag warning starts at 11 p. M. Tonight . Thats right. The map will show its right around the areas here of yountville, st. Helena, calistoga, cobb, middletown. In the mountains, wind gusts 15 to 35. Humidity 20 to 30 . But this expires by 11 00 a. M. Tomorrow. Its a quick burst of wind coming our way. And then we have what could be some clearing. Youve been talking about this for a couple of days. Now starting to look like rain is more of a reality for us. This is really lining up for us. The smoke improving friday night. Saturday as we fast forward things into monday morning 9 00 a. M. , rain over eureka, i think by monday night 11 00 p. M. , we get some rain here in the bay area, and then that would linger right into tuesday afternoon. Now the heaviest is going to go to the north. Look at this bullseye. Eureka, yeah, 1 to 2 inches. Maybe a little more for them. For us a quarter inch for most of us. But the north bay could get in on maybe a half inch. Were still several days out. This is very promising. Is this unusual to get this much rain this early . Its actually not. Weve undergone so many years in the past where its taken so long to get rain, but our rain season officially starts on october 1. This would be right on time. Well see you a little later. I want to talk more about the smoke. Our Marianne Favro is live. I know you spoke to a doctor about the possible impacts of breathing the bad air. What are we talking about in terms of impact . It really runs the gamut, from watery eyes to a pop, which i must admit, but serious problems. The problem is the smoke has little tiny particulate matter, and when the particles get into your lungs, they can really cause some problems, especially if you already have respiratory illnesses such as emphysema or asthma. And here is a problem with smoke. It can create very tiny, tiny particles that can enter your lungs and then move on to your bloodstream, which could put you at a higher risk of getting a heart attack or having a stroke. So i am assuming its time to pull out that n95 mask, like weve had before. I have mine right here. But the best thing you can do is doing what im doing right now and staying indoors. A pulmonologist with kaiser said this is the mask you need to have, the n95, the other masks wont cut it in the smoky air. The other thing, when you get into your vehicle, set your car on recirculate. And dont exercise. We still saw people out there exercising today. And the problem is when you exercise, you breathe harder. Well, guess what . Youre breathing in even more particulate matter. So that makes it even worse. So hold off on the exercising until we dont see the spare the air days anymore. And one final thing. Go around your home. If you smell smoke inside your home, that means that your windows arent sealed properly. And thats something you should really look into. Thats a really good one. I wouldnt have thought than one. Thank you very much, marianne. Friday cant come soon enough for all the smoke. You bet. Turning to other headlines tonight, a big turnout, but not much decided at an Emergency School meeting in sunol tonight. Sunol is in the east bay. A large crowd of parents, teachers, and Community Members jammed into the sunol glen k through 8. Its a tiny school in the only School District there. The board called a meeting to discuss the future of the School Principal and molleen barnes. Barnes recently discussed a School Board Resolution that declared only u. S. State flag could be flown on school property. That resolution created after a pride flag that was hung on campus got vandalized. The flag was put back up, and thats when all the heated back and forth happened. Some parents believe Board Members want to fire barnes. But the crowd that showed up at todays meeting overwhelmingly supported her and opposed the boards flag resolution. The sense of community has been disrupted by this board. Please do not do anything further to disrupt our school staff and Leadership Team that until the boards actions last tuesday was a community all working for a single goal, success of our students. That after a closed session, the two Board Members who were present punted the issue, said they wouldnt be making any decisions tonight, they would, that little tiny district would hire Legal Counsel to figure out what it should do next. Okay. Fast and brutal and really painful at the pump. If youve been to the gas station lately, you know what im talking about. Such a quick jump in the price of gas, up more than 30 cents in just the past week. So now why . Analysts say saudi arabia and russia cut back on oil production, and that that triggered a spike in the price of crude oil, which of course took gas prices along for the ride. Ultimately, that price hike is hitting commuters hard. Its also running up the price of transporting goods around the country, which is leading to almost higher prices for everything. So that means all food costs go up. All lumber and Construction Costs go up. All clothing, all shoes. The Consumer EnergyAlliance Says the production cuts are likely to last through the rest of the year. So dont expect the gas prices to drop any time soon, which is a total bummer. All right. You call 911 because you need help. But problems with 911 response times in oakland have left a lot of people frustrated, and in some cases, frankly, a little bit scared. This is a story that our Investigative Unit broke. Now were learning that the city actually spent millions of dollars on technology to upgrade that failing 911 system years ago. But they never installed it. On top of staffing shortages, that Outdated Technology is another reason why the citys 911 response times are dangerously long. Thats according to a new recent grand jury report. Now our Investigative Unit found that oakland has the worst answering time out of any city or county in california when it comes to those 911 calls. And city leaders have repeatedly warned more delays could result in 911 outages. And actually, thats exactly what happened last july. Dispatchers had to resort to using a pen and a paper to actually take the information down. And oakland blamed it on a power outage. We have Investigative ReporterCandice Nguyen joining us. Youve been digging into this. Its outrageous that theyre using a pen and paper, and now youre telling us they actually spent money and didnt install this thing . Why . That grand jury report found that oakland did not invest into the staff and resources needed to actually install the technology that they purchased in 2018, jess. So five years it has been sitting there. City leaders now say theyre accelerating this process, but were going to stay on top of it, because at this point current and former officials have been promising this upgrade and have not gotten it done. So you spoke to the city leaders. What are they saying . They had a press conference just last week, the city administrator there. I want to show everyone what happened when i took the opportunity to ask him how is the city handling these outdated upgrades . If the recent grand jury report is correct, that new 911 software was purchased by the city back in 2018. Is that acceptable and all the public funds that were spent . I cant speak to what happened in 2018. But what i can say is our mayor and council and Leadership Team is working aggressively to ensure that what were doing now were taking a day forward approach. How much did that Technology Cost in 2018 . I apologize. I cant answer that question right now. Cant answer a lot of questions it seems. Do you know how much that cost in 2018 . A yeah, that took a bit of digging, but i found an earlier civil grand jury report found in 2017 the City Council Approved a 12. 8 million what . 12. 8 million to upgrade the citys 911 i. T. System. 12. 8 million. But the story doesnt end there, jess. Because its taken so long, now oakland has to spend another 150,000 to create a chained order in its contract with motorola. And remember, this is 150,000 that oakland did not need to spend if they had done these upgrades on time. And so that will finally put this system in place . We hope so. But we have to remember over these five years, according to civil grand jury report, oakland has been saying well get it done in six months. Well get it done in six months. And now theyre saying its going to be accelerated six months. Lets see if they can get it done this time. Lets hope they dont have to resort to pen and paper anymore. No. And not spending more money on the system theyre supposed to have already implemented. Thanks for that investigation. Good digging. Still ahead, its your chance to own an island, complete with two helipads, a yacht and a dock. How much will this little plot of land cost you in solana county . And it is about to hit theaters in the bay area. Were joined by two bay area natives at the helm of a new natives at the helm of a new fi Liberty Mutual customized my Car Insurance and i saved hundreds. With the money i saved, i started a dog walking business. Oh. [dog barks] no its just a bunny only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Wendys new breakfast 2 for 3 is so good, the crew is giving every combination codenames. I got that saucbis and some taytays. Egg man and saucy boy. Two hot coffees. No matter what you call it, wendys breakfast is that breakfast. Choose wendys new 2 for 3 biggie bundles. Okay. If youve ever dreamt of owning your own private island, and who hasnt, now is your chance. But youre going to need 75 million. A small private island on the southern edge of grizzly bay in Solano County just went up for sale this week. 50acre property. Its called point buckler. You can call it whatever you want. Its one of the few islands in San Francisco bay thatsnt protected by state or federal government. Its only accessible by water or air. It has two helipads as well as a dock. Thats ready to accommodate your favorite weekend recreational watercraft or mega yacht. Sauvie island was last sold for 150 grand in 2011. So this is a big price bump to say the least. Switching gears for a moment, the cdc says it is time for you to get boosted. But for the First Time Since the pandemic began, the federal government isnt paying for most people to get the updated covid vaccine, and thats causing some problems. The latest vaccine targeting new variants started rolling out last week. But some people getting the vaccine at cvs and other stores say they were charged up to 190 for that, even if they had insurance. Whats up with that . Well, it seems some insurers have not yet recognized the vaccine as a covered expense. Some of the people we talked to say the price tag has them holding off on getting it. I got the first shot. Im at the point where okay, that might be enough. And i think the cost factor might be pushing it a bit too far. I think it really depends on where youre going and what your insurance, unfortunately. So i definitely wouldnt tell people to wait, but i think its good to know what your Insurance Coverage is ahead of time. Now, if you have a copay or youre uninsured, you can still get the shot covered through the federal bridge access program. That guess on until the end of the year. Okay. This is really exciting. Two bay area film makers are generating some potential oscar buzz for their film amerikatsi that is set to premiere in the bay area tomorrow. Watch this. I was actually born in armenia. Might as well head back to the homeland and learn about my armenian roots. Start over, you know. I find you good call. Really . This is about a housing situation . No, there has been a mistake. Michael and patrick went to bishop odowd in oakland. Now michael wrote, directed and stars in the film, and patrick produced the filment and it was entirely shot in armenia. The film follows the story of charlie, a survivor of the 1915 Armenian Genocide who goes back to armenia during the period of soviet rule which was in late 1940s. He is mistaken and jailed for being a spy. Joining me now is michael and patrick. Im so excited to talk to you guys tonight. Thank you for being here. I saw the trailer, and it is gorgeous. So i want to start with how did two guys from bishop odowd end up making this sweeping foreign film shot entirely in armenia . What was that journey like . Ill take it. We actually met in a cafe in downtown oakland. I dont know if you remember, that pat. I was writing the script, living in oakland at the time. And pat and i had reconnected after many years from being in high school together. And were both armenian. And i told him about it. And i told him what i wanted to do. And pat, like he jumped in and said look, this is an important film. We need to make things that help our country. We need to make films that arent just about the genocide, but that can help expand what people think of when they think of armenians and armenian culture. So that was kind of the beginning of it. And that was a few years ago. They actually shot the film during the pandemic, which was quite crazy. But we finally completed it. And now its out in theaters. Were opening in San Francisco this weekend. And were both very excited about it. Patrick, lets talk about this, because this, even the history of armenia, the genocide and the whole soviet rule really not a piece of history that a lot of americans here know a lot about. But the story, amerikatsi of charlie, which is really a theme that many people have been forced to flee their country can connect with. Its such a story of loss and hope, right, that immigrants share . Absolutely. We think is a universal story that really appeals and could be applied to so many different people from anywhere. All of us as americans came from somewhere. 23 me is very popular today. We yearn for that experience. And thats the story of charlie. Michael, what was it like to play charlie in armenia . Because you guys shot the movie there. What did that mean to you personally being of armenian descent, to be able to put yourself back in this space that happened in history . Well, i visited armenia for the first time in 2006, and i think like many armenians, that experience was pretty profound for me. Something about being back in the land around people that look like me and sounded like me, it felt like home. And honestly, thats kind of what the root of the film is about, its about someone trying to find home, or their identity, but really home. And i think at the core of the film, its not a film about hope, and the fact that armenians in particular are quite good that despite all the things that the world throws at us, we keep going on. We survive. We find a way to keep going forward. Yeah, a really beautiful story. I know its been submitted for the oscars for best foreign film category. Its going to premiere this week here in the bay area where you grew up. How does that make you feel . What does it mean to you . Its pretty exciting. Were thrilled to have so much support here locally. Well probably see lots of friends that we havent seen for a while, and we feel pretty honored. I need to know were playing in san rafael starting friday too. Dont worry. Were going to tell everybody. Michael, how do you feel . I feel good. Its been a long journey, and the bay area has been my home for many years. Its great to be able to be back here and share the work that patrick and have i done with all of our friends and family. Hope all of your bishop odowd peeps come out to see you. Dragon thank you so much. And good luck. Thank you. Like we said, the film is showing in the bay area starting tomorrow, kabuki in San Francisco. And the Smith Rafael Film Center in san rafael. Taking a look from oakland tonight. Things are still looking you didnt choose cat allergies. Your hairline. Or that thing where your knee just gives out for no reason. But. You can choose your doctor who will care for all the things you didnt choose. Kaiser permanente for all that is you. Okay. Lets check with jeff one more time about that haze. When is it going to go . Friday night into saturday we are looking at improvement in the air quality. Lets get you a closer look at the microclimate forecast, and ill show you what to expect here for tomorrow. And once again, some unhealthy air here for most of the bay area, except for the coast which could again dip into the moderate range. And once again, improved air quality here friday night into saturday. Now as we head through tomorrow mornings forecast, temperatures will start off in the 50s. Then as we roll through the afternoon, we are looking at some comfortable temperatures. So at least its not going to be hot with that smoke that were dealing with. 78 in santa rosa. 79 in concord. Over to the coastline, were going to be in the 60s. A little wind up into the north bay. We could see some gusts up to 30 miles per hour. Otherwise, the best thing about our forecast is once we hit monday, we are looking at some rain chances by 11 30 at night. And then those rain chances would continue into tuesday afternoon. So totals right now for the bay area, we see trace amounts to about a quarter inch. But the north bay could get quarter, maybe a half inch. Highest totals up towards the northern coast, 1 to 2 inches are going to be likely with that. Thats going great to put out these fires thats moving in the smoke across the bay area. So as we look at that sevenday forecast, temperatures in the 70s and 80s the next couple of days. And again, the rain chances monday and tuesday. So happy to see that on the sevenday forecast. Thats for sure. Thank you. As we wrap up, mario lopez is Getting Started with access hollywood. Heres whats coming up next. On tonights access, were breaking down the dramatic revelations from the apple tv docuseries including Cindy Crawfords interview with oprah when cindy was only 20 years old. Looking back now, cindy feels it was quite inappropriate, and she is very candid with the reasons why. And then the return of our golf cart confession series which lives up to the title, because the cart has matthew answering absolutely everything, including the possibility that he and Woody Harrelson are brothers. Woody is lets go find out, you are, youre my brother. Its easy to say, because you gain a brother. For me i its like a lose a dad. Fans going wild every time matthew captures the Universal Studios fans. Thank you, mario. That looks funny. Here is your primetime lineup. Americas got talent at 8 00, followed by backtobac episodes at night court at 9 00 and 9 30 then chicago p. D. At 10 00. And of course the most important of all of those, the 11 00 newscast. So we hope that you will join us for that. Thats going to do it for 7 00. Ill see you at 11 00. Byebye