Single day and several a day, as well. We have been getting rain it seems like every, single day. Today we have a break in the activity according to our hi def Doppler Radar a stray shower so keep that umbrella handy just in case. Temperatures 40s and 50s out the door and today mostly cloudy skies, highs in the 50s and 60s. And checking the roads right now, we have had a stalled vehicle that now turned into an accident. Its at the tunnel bay bridge upper deck causing a bit of a backup there now. We have Highway Patrol on scene there. Its blocking at least one lane. So heads up as you work your way through there. As you make your way towards the toll plaza this morning, we have a bit of a backup there in the cash lanes. Fastrak users, youre cruising right through but the other lanes backed up beyond the parking lot in the cash lanes. Westbound 580 Altamont Pass no problems although there is a pothole in the number 2 lane at north flynn. Thats causing vehicles to swerve around it. So be careful as you work your way through there. A few raindrops on that camera though, right . Bay bridge. Its been raining a little lately. Just a bit. After threats sony says it wont release the interview. Kpix 5s anne makovec live in San Francisco where the movie was scheduled to be shown. Anne, many are wondering if this was the right call. The latest from sony as you mentioned, they wont release it on theaters or online. There is a possibility sony will release the movie on dvd. The film is a fictional plot about journalists who are sent to kill north Korean Leader kim jongun. Hackers say the world will be full of fear, remember the 11th of september. And in a statement, sony responded, canceling the movies relight. The decision made with, quote, paramount interest in the safety of employees and theatergoers. Now, hollywood stars a lot of them are against this move. They say its a real hit on creative expression. Well hear from them coming up in the next halfhour. Live in San Francisco, anne makovec, kpix 5. A bay area Cyber Security firm is helping sony identify the hackers, called fire eye and its based out of milpitas. After 54 years, the u. S. And cuba are making nice. The two countries are working to restore diplomatic relations but as Susan Mcginnis reports, not all americans are keen on the idea. Reporter across washington and the nation, there was nothing but joy over the release of american alan gross after five years in a cuban prison. Gross first words to his two daughters were, im free. God bless you and thank you. It was crucial to my survival knowing that i was not forgotten. Reporter his release comes as the white house renews diplomatic relations with cuba including opening an embassy in havana. I am convinced that through a policy of engagement we canmore effectively help the cuban people. I just. Pleased that these actions have been taken. I think it will improve the lot of ordinary cubans. And its good for americans, as well. Reporter while many praise the move as a new beginning, others including lawmakers of cuban descent remain opposed to warming relations with what they call a still brutal regime. It is a victory for the oppressive cuban government but a serious setback for the repressed cuban people. The white house has conceded everything and gained little. Reporter some republicans are promising to do all they can to block the administrations moves including holding back funding for a u. S. Embassy in cuba. Susan mcginnis, cbs news, washington. Cubanamericans will now be able to send more money to family in cuba and u. S. Credit and debit cards will soon be accepted there. And only congress has the power to lift the longstanding travel ban on american citizens traveling to cuba. Some breaking news out of Redondo Beach and l. A. County. Two more people are now confirmed dead after a suspected drunk driver plowed right through a dozen people last night. That brings the death toll now to three. The victims crossing the Pacific Coast highway after a christmas concert. They were struck. Two of the People Killed were women in their 80s. The driver finally came to a stop after crashing head on into another vehicle. Uber is promising to focus on rider safety after a massachusetts driver was arraigned on charges of rape and kidnapping a woman he was picking up. And a passenger in San Francisco was beaten with a hammer by an uber driver. Uber says new initiatives will include teams that can rapidly respond to safetyrelated reports and new ways to screen wouldbe drivers. Its another blow to the struggling San Francisco 49ers. The team of has decided to drop defensive lineman ray mcdonald from the team after a woman said he sexual assaulted her. As kpix 5s betty yu tells us, this was the final straw. Reporter ray mcdonald wasnt talking tonight as he got out of his new bentley and walked into his silver creek home. But the 9ers general manager was. Rays demonstrated a pattern of poor decisionmaking that, um, has led to multiple distractions for this organization and this Football Team that really can no longer be tolerated. Reporter mcdonald has yet to be arrested or charged. His mother said surveillance cameras at his home will show the truth that nothing illegal happened. Colin kaepernick said he hopes this is just a misunderstanding. Not a situation, um, you want to hear about, uhm very unfortunate. Reporter today several people stopped by his house on bently ridge drive including a man who identified himself as his driver muhammad. He is a wonderful man, he is a kind man, a gentleman and he brought good christian house thats all i can tell you. Reporter four months ago, San Jose Police arrested mcdonald for Domestic Violence against his pregnant girlfriend but the d. A. Said there wasnt enough evidence to prosecute. This is what mcdonald said then. You know, im not, you know, the kind of guy that would, you know, um, you know, put my hands on a woman like that. Reporter betty yu, kpix 5. Mcdonalds case will now be forwarded on to the santa clara d. A. s office for review. Oakland police say they were unaware the chp had undercover officers at a recent protest. The officer and his partner were with protestors during a march last week. The chp says a protestor outed the officers and then attacked one of them. The other officer pulled out his gun. The chronicle reports chp claims Oakland Police knew about the officers and the opd says they didnt and that they are investigating the incident. Time now 5 07. Amateur video captures wildlife officials during a tense snake takedown. How a mans call for help might have prevented a tragedy from happening. And the Worlds Largest light sculpture apparently here to stay. What its going to take to keep the lights shining on the bay bridge. We are able to see those lights this morning because we are not shrouded in fog around the bay. Good morning, everyone. We are tracking a new storm and well do that together. And ill tell you why you need a few extra minutes if you are taking the bay bridge this morning. ,,,,,,,,,, welcome back to kpix 5 morning news. It is thursday, post wednesday, prefriday. And were looking toward the Golden Gate Bridge this morning a little wet. Carry that umbrella. But well tell you when the big rain is going to hit next. Walnut creek shoppers will have to bring a bag or pay 10 cents for one of the the citys Plastic Bag Ban goes into effect today. Retailers can offer customers a paper bag for a dime. City Officials Say goal is to cut down on litter. Walnut creek is the fifth city in Contra Costa County to ban plastic bags. Sometimes the Lesson Learned in school has nothing to do with textbooks especially around the holidays. Hillsborough crocker middle schoolers are learning firsthand all about the middle east not to mention kindness, and we think thats pretty cool. Reporter the 7th and 8th graders in mrs. Fairchilds class are learning their social studies firsthand. These crocker middle schoolers adopted the Army First Brigade combat team 101st Airborne Division now stationed in afghanistan. They shipped off over 100 christmas c. A. R. E. Packages all packed with nothing but goodness from cookies to q tips, magazines and trail mix, a welcome sight for soldiers so far away from home. I think with so much competition now on making the grade, that they are understanding that it is just as important to make the difference. Reporter the items were all donated by the students families and the community and each gift box is earmarked for a soldier and personalized with a card written by one of the students. Dear soldiers, thank you so much for serving our country and saving us. I appreciate all that you do. Thank you. Reporter whats that do to your heart to help these guys . It means a lot to me because i feel better when i see them opening it or, like, they send us the pictures saying thank you. Yeah. It means a lot. I feel all that they the pain or all the homesickness that they have gone through, through their letters that they sent, its really important that we do send these every year. Reporter the adopt a unit program is coordinated through the Hillsborough Police department who helps to ship the boxes off to the middle east. Up next this huge banner that each student signed and eventually will be hung at the base in afghanistan. I feel like were telling them that there is still someone who does still care and that they are just not all alone. Reporter its crocker middle school, this weeks cool school whoo they were fired up. I got to tell you. The boxes went out a couple of weeks ago right after thanksgiving and they arrived on monday. Awww. So they got an email on tuesday and thats when i did the story. The guys were psyched and thenar a penpalling back and back and forth and they are learning about whats going on. Its sweet of them to just, uhm yeah. By the way, the students at crocker also help the homeless. They have sent uniform soccer equipment to the kids in mexico so heres a school thats really giving back. Yeah. These are good kids. What is cool about your school . Email your nominations to coolschools kpix. Com. We may come and feature your school on the show. And this is pretty cool too. The lights on the bay bridge, they are here to stay. A nonprofit raised 4 million to reinstall the bay lights on the western span. A philanthropist donated 4 million to keep them up. Next light they are taken down to replaced with sturdier l. E. D. S they will glow in time for super bowl 50 of course at levis stadium and i think that game is on channel 5. Yes. It is. Youre absolutely right. I do have to admit, i love seeing the bay bridge lights when i come in. I know. Just seems like a nobrainer, right, gianna . Kind of gets you going if the morning when you drive in and see it, its beautiful especially when its dry weather, theres no rain kind of blocking your windshield. Hopefully that will be the case this morning. At the bay bridge we have an accident at the tunnel. First it was a stalled vehicle according to our kcbs phone force, another vehicle hit that brokendown vehicle so theres an accident now. Its in the right lane, no injuries. Hopefully it will clear skoon. The bay bridge itself we are seeing a backup in those cash lanes. No metering lights. Fastrak users moving well. But the cash lanes traffic slow through there. It was backed up past the parking lot so its improved a bit. Westbound 580 Altamont Pass looks like we are starting to see business as usual slow and go conditions through there. There is a pothole reported in the number 2 lane near north flynn. It is causing some vehicles to swerve. So you will see some slower speeds as you as you make your way through there. Once you hit 680 though a little extra volume. So far traffic still moving nicely towards 680 eastbound not showing any problems this morning. We had an earlymorning accident north 880 at whipple. Good news, gone out of lanes. 880 moving nicely both directions no delays northbound southbound looking good, as well. Couple of raindrops there on the camera at the Golden Gate Bridge. But traffic pretty light coming out of marin county. Its moving nicely into San Francisco. Take you about 14 to 15 minutes, 580 to the Golden Gate Bridge toll plaza so a nice ride through there this morning. And not seeing any problems as far as accidents go for the san mateo bridge. But we just did check in with chp. They did say there is a wind advisory for the san mateo bridge. So use caution as you work your way across the span. Elsewhere, no delays on 101 towards sfo. 280 all clear and 92 both directions no delays. With the forecast, heres roberta. Couple of Different Things going on at this particular time. Good morning, everybody. First off the wind advisory over at the san mateo bridge. South winds gusting to 21. Then we have some rain at the Golden Gate Bridge because were still picking up a lot of lowlevel moisture. Grab an umbrella today. 40s and 50s. 51 san jose. By the way, in san jose, check this out. So far, it is the second wettest december on record. The record is back in 1955. Thats when it was set with 9. 26 of rain established. We still have a whole lot of december to go so we could realize a new record here. This is what you can expect today. A stray shower is possible. Well have mostly cloudy skies with few sunny peeks and we have one more round of rain ton go before the weekend and that will occur on friday morning at this time. This is todays futurecast. This is the morning commute. And again, these little hit and miss scattered light rain showers occurring in and around the bay area, heres lunch around on the peninsula. The need for the umbrella. Then here comes the frontal boundary. It will cross the San Francisco bay area about this time within 24 hours during the morning commute. At that particular time thats when well see the heaviest rainfall. As the day wears on friday under mostly cloudy skies for the bul of the afternoon, except for lingering showers in the morgan hill and gilroy area. Saturday morning perhaps residual showers to the north. Thats about it. Well begin our dry weather pattern by saturday afternoon. One more area to go before we go to the dry weather pattern. We could see an inch of rain across the bay area today. 50s across the central portion of the bay area. Low 40s in the greater lake tahoe area where currently it is 32 degrees with light snow falling all the way down to lake level. 50s and 60s a seasonal late autumn day here in the bay area. I say late autumn because winter officially does arrive on sunday 3 03 in the afternoon and we have a dry weather pattern each and every day after that. You want to follow the next storm coming this way . Its easy to do and its fun. I got to tell you this is one of the easiest apps to use. All you have to do is search kpix in the app store and download the app for iphone and android. Check local conditions and get realtime radar. If you want the real deal we call you. Her number is . You can email and twitter, facebook. We got it all. Check out this story. A close call with a big snake in south florida. Wildlife officers and firefighters wrangled a 14foot python last night after a man spotted it outside his restaurant. He was worried because he had a small dog and a child there. Whoo wildlife officers said they turned the snake over to a licensed handler and the python will likely be used for research. Where did it come from . Thats a big boy. I dont know. But they got it. No kidding. 5 20 now. The recent storms wash up more than just debris. The mystery creature discovered and the efforts to figure out what is that thing . And im dennis odonnell. Coming up, will jim harbaugh return to College Football . He has 49 million reasons why except there is no lombardi trophy in the national championship. Ill tell you about it coming up. ,,,,, female announcer sleep trains interest free for 3 event ends sunday. Its your last chance to get three years interestfree financing on beautyrest black, stearns foster, serta icomfort, even tempurpedic. Plus, get free delivery, and sleep trains 100day low price guarantee. But hurry sleep trains interest free for 3 event ends sunday. Guaranteed sleep train your ticket to a better nights sleep good morning, everyone. Jim harbaugh has never hidden the fact that he bleeds michigan wolverine blue. I guarantee well beat ohio state this saturday and well be in pasadena on january 1. Michigan experience changes you. And they are reportedly primed to change his bank account. According to multiple reports, the wolverines offered harbaugh a sixyear deal worth 49 million. It would make him the highest paid coach in the country. Of course he still has a job dont forget. He is still the head coach of the 49ers. Man, you have to go back to the clinton administration, the last time the stanford women lost to an unranked nonconference opponent. They are still trying to figure out what chattanooga mock is. Stanford shot 28 from the field. Carly samuelsson knocked one in but no stanford player scored in double fix. Chelsea shepherd five shots from downtown. This one from the parking lot. Chattanooga won 5446. They knocked off tennessee earlier this year and thats where stanford will be on saturday. Sergio romo staying put after reportedly agreeing to a twoyear 15 million deal with the giants. Romo lost his job as a closer during the season but allowed just two runs in the final two months as the giants setup man. By the way, i know everybody is wondering, what is a chattanooga mock . Its short for mockingbird. There you have it. Im dennis odonnell. See you tonight. And remember, you can watch the 49er game right here on kpix 5 this saturday. Pregame is at 4 30. Kickoff is at 5 25. And thats followed by the 5th quarter at 8 15 p. M. And at 9 p. M. , a kpix 5 news special presentation, californias green rush. Hope you had a pencil to write all that down. I thought it was a mock turtleneck. No, no. Mockingbirds. Play of the day, we have griz at the spurs 2. 6 seconds left for double overtime. Grizzlies up by 2. Duncan with the jump ever and does what he does the best. It goes in and forces the third overtime. Take another look. He is going to bank it off the glass. Gets a couple of lucky rolls and boom in it goes. But San Antonio Falls to memphis, they are good, they beat the warriors, 117116. Play of the day. 5 25 right now. The 9ers cut ties with veteran ray mcdonald. Why the team says this time, he will get no second chance. Some good news. American spending less money at the pump. How much a new report says you will save on gas in the new year. ,,, you used to sleep like a champ. Then boom. What happened . Stress, fun, bad habits, kids, now what . Lets build a new, smarter bed using the dualair chambers to sense your movement, heartbeat, breathing. Introducing the sleep number bed with sleepiq™ technology. It tracks your sleep and tells you how to adjust for a good, better and an awesome night. The difference . Try adjusting up or down youll know cuz sleep iq™ tells you. Give the gift of amazing sleep, only at a sleep number store. Find our best buy rated c2 Queen Mattress with sleepiq. These guys shouldve gone to my place, cuz right now, i have two breakfast croissants for just four bucks. Theyre both made with a freshly cracked egg and melting cheese on a buttery, flaky croissant. Try the supreme with bacon and ham, or the sausage. Theyll fill you up for whoa hey what are you doing . You cant make a commercial for your restaurant at my restaurant not if you keep interrupting me, i cant. By switching to progressive. That was me, mom. [ laugh ] i thought you said, that was me, mom. [ laughter ] to a crisp. The string of fires that has pol afternoon unprecedented move an unprecedented move from hollywood that some say is caving to terrorism. Im anne makovec with the decision to cancel the interview. The string of vehicle fires that has San Francisco police trying to find the criminals. More rain in the forecast. Well track an incoming storm coming up. And better news at the bay bridge plus the new accident along 280. Good morning, everyone. Its thursday, december 18. Im michelle griego. Hi, everyone. Im frank mallicoat. Nearly 5 30 now. President obama is hoping to open an embassy in cuba. The two countries are working to restore diplomatic relations after 54 years of hostilities. But as Susan Mcginnis reports, not all americans are expecting cuba with open arms. Reporter across washington and the nation, there was nothing but joy over the release of american alan gross after five years in a cuban prison. Gross first words to his two daughters were, im free. God bless you and thank you. It was crucial to my survival knowing that i was not forgotten. Reporter his release comes as the white house renews diplomatic relations with cuba including opening an embassy in havana. I am equipsed that through a policy of engagement we can more effectively stand up for our values and help the cuban people help themselves as they move into the 21st century im just pleased that these actions have been taken. I think it will improve the lot of ordinary cubans. And its good for americans, as well. Reporter while many praise the move as a new beginning, others including lawmakers of cuban descent remain opposed to warming relations with what they call a still brutal regime. It is a victory for the oppressive cuban government but a serious setback for the repressed cuban people. The white house has conceded everything and gained little. Reporter some republicans are promising to do all they can to block the administrations moves including holding back funding for a u. S. Embassy in cuba. Susan mcginnis, cbs news, washington. Cubanamericans will now be able to send more money to family in cuba and u. S. Credit and debit cards will soon be accepted there. And only congress has the power to lift the longstanding travel ban on american citizens traveling to cuba. You think of cuban cigars. You go to month real or the caribbean, people get it and the markup is incredible in montreal and the caribbean. They will be better. And the chocolate. There you go. Its a unique forecast this morning. We have windy conditions at the san mateo bridge with southeast winds at 15, gusts to 21. Then we have areas of fog throughout livermore and also in hayward. Santa rosa, as well. Hidef Doppler Radar not picking up any kind of precipitation but we do have some very light sprinkles not even detectable but you will need your windshield wipers on occasion this morning. Concord in the low 50s. Overnight lows should be near 36 degrees. This is the next approaching area of low pressure. Bringing more rain overnight tonight. So we are kind of in between systems now. A little bit of residual moisture this morning. Later today, mostly cloudy skies. Temperatures in the 50s and the 60s. The winds will be pretty much 10 Miles Per Hour out of the southeast. Heres the extended forecast. Well have rain, the bulk of it at this time tomorrow morning. Then leaving us with mostly cloudy skies during the afternoon hours on friday. Perhaps a residual shower very early on saturday. Then the weekend will be dry and winter officially arrives on sunday. Gianna . Thank you, roberta. Lets head to the bay bridge right now. The good news is they had an earlymorning accident on the upper deck near treasure island. Thats cleared out. Stacking up in the cash lanes. No metering lights yet. They will go on within the next 15 minutes. Elsewhere taking a look at your ride on the san mateo bridge no accidents or stalls. But we have a wind advisory in effect so use caution as you work your way through there. Northbound 280 looking good. Southbound though near sand hill we have reports of a possible injury accident. It is blocking the offramp not affecting the main lines of the freeway. But that will slow you down this morning. 101 northbound if you are headed to sfo along the peninsula traffic looking good. 92 no problems. To avoid the roads, maybe some slick surfaces, you can always use mass transit. Everything is on time. The search is on this morning for a car arsonist in San Francisco. Four vehicles torched near dolores park early yesterday. The same thing happened last month. Three cars were destroyed at that time. We believe someone broke the windows, set fire inside. When the police and firefighters arrived, everything was gone. Investigators have Surveillance Video of the first series of fires. They are checking to see if cameras in the area may have captured yesterdays fires. After multiple threats surfaced, sony says it will not release the upcoming comedy the interview. Anne makovec is live in San Francisco where the movie was scheduled to be shown. Many wonder if this was the right decision. Reporter it was a very costly move to sony pictures. The decision ultimately made by the Theater Companies who one by one backed out of showing the movie. Then sony made it official. There is still a possibility, though, that movie will come out on dvd. It is a film based on a fictional plot where a couple of journalists are sent to try to kill north Korean Leader kim jongun. It was supposed to be released on Christmas Day until sony got a threat from north korean hackers called guardians of peace. It said the world will be full of fear. Remember the 11th of september. In a statement, sony canceled the movie Theatrical Release a decision made with paramount interest in the safety of employees and theatergoers. Its a very dangerous precedent to set in terms of the Free Exchange of ideas. Reporter some hollywood stars disagree with t steve carell says sad day for creative expression. Jimmy kimmel an unamerican act of cowardice that validates terrorist actions. The department of Homeland Security is investigating. Anne makovec, kpix 5. According to a north Korean State News Agency leaders deny the attacks and say the allegations they are behind it are groundless. 49ers ray mcdonald is cut from the team. The decision came after a woman said mcdonald sexual assaulted her and this is just months after his pregnant Girlfriend Told Police mcdonald hit her. Mcdonalds dismissal is another blow for the already struggling 49er team. Its ver unfortunate. He is a wonderful kind gentleman in a good christian house. That man said he is a driver. He is one of several people who stopped by the home in san jose yesterday. Mcdonald has yet to be arrested or charged by the way. His case will now be forwarded on to santa claras d. A. s office for further review. Happening today, the case of suspended state senator leland yee and the corruption charges he faces in court today. The judge hearing the case has set a timeline so the case doesnt drag on. Yee is among 28 people charged in a complex 228count indictment that also accuses Chinatown Association leader Raymond Shrimp Boy Chow of conducting an organized crime enterprise. The judge set a hearing today to listen to any objections defense lawyers may have against the prosecution plan. In a boston courtroom today, marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is scheduled to appear. Three people were killed and hundreds were injured when two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon last year. Tsarnaev has pleaded not guilty. He could face the Death Penalty if convicted. This will be the last hearing before a jury is selected on january 5. The russian economy is in crisis cbs News Business analyst Jill Schlesinger is here to explain whats behind the crisis and why we need to pay a lot more attention to the spillover that it the russian instability could cause globally. Jill, whats the big problem there . Reporter well, we have seen a 50 plunge in oil prices and that could cause the energy dependent russian economy to shrink by as much as 4. 7 next year thats if prices remain at these low levels. Adding to the pressure, the effective western sanctions over russians involvement in ukraine. The sinking russian economy has prompted a lot of nervous investors to just yank their money out of the country and sell the ruble. Thats pushed the value of the ruble to all time lows against the dollar. Now, heres what the russian government did. They wanted to entire investors to stay in the country. They actually increased Interest Rates to 17 thats didnt help only after the government officials said they would take further action did the ruble stabilize. Jill, what is the effect for russian citizens . Reporter you know, russians have seen this movie before back in 1998. So they are now rushing to exchange their savings from rubles to dollars and they are also fearing runaway inflation so they are out spending like crazy on everything from cars to furniture to gucci bags. One item they cannot buy a new iphone. Apple has suspended all online operations in russia because the weakening ruble left products in the country way cheaper than it was in the rest of europe. Wow. And whats the potential impact now for investors . Reporter well, i want to reiterate that russian has a lot of currency reserve so they can pay their debts. In fact, Vladimir Putin said that this morning in a state press conference. Its in no immediate danger of default at all. But russia accounts for about, say, 2. 7 of the World Economy k and there is a potential for spreading contagion. Thats because investors who piled into risky assets over the past few years might scramble all at once to get out. By the way, if you own an emerging stock or bond fund in your retirement account you may not want to look at that this month. If russia false into a prolonged recession it could stunt global growth. And i think it goes without saying that theres geo Political Risk because president putin were to just walk away from Foreign Debts that would put global lenders including our own banks and investors and Insurance Companies on the hook for lots of losses. This is not going away. Its stabilized for now. But it could be with us for the next couple of years. All right, Jill Schlesinger, thank you. A judge has denied a request to have a videotaped statement by this man steve jobs released to the media. The tape was made six months before he died in 2011. It was used in a lawsuit against apple that accused the company of abusing its power in the music industry. Apple won the suit earlier this week. The Associated Press bloomberg and cnn have all requested to see that video. 5 41. Christmas comes early for some bay area families. The unexpected help getting them back on the road in time for the holidays. And we are going to take you out live a little peek at what looks like the bay bridge toll plaza there. And people getting a bit of a wet start today. We have a complete look at your weather and your traffic straight ahead on this thursday morning. Well be right back. ,,, start a revolution a revolution in coffee quality with the finest nespresso coffee blends. A revolution in technology with unique centrifusion. A revolution in taste with a naturally formed crema on both coffee and espresso. Nespresso vertuoline. Experience the revolution of coffee. Drivers are getting an early good morning. Welcome back to kpix 5 news this morning. Stop what youre doing, take a look at this the city by the bay. This is San Francisco. We have fog and drizzle and we have a brandnew storm moving in. Well track it together as the news continues. Drivers are getting an early gift as gas prices fall. The average price for gas nationwide is now down to 2. 51 a gallon. Oil prices have dropped over the last six months due to lower demand in europe and asiana. Last time prices at the pump were this low was 2004. Christmas came early yesterday for five bay area families with a hard time getting around. John ramos shows us priceless reactions and the moment they stepped into their new rides. Reporter you got to hand it to the guys at mikes auto body in antioch. When they throw a Christmas Party the door priceses are amazing. For 14 years, mike rose has been giving away cars to deserving families in the east bay. The cars start out as total losses, donated by Insurance Companies. But workers refurbish them to likenew condition. It feels like a brandnew car. It is a brandnew car. Its my car. Reporter five families were selected this year each with a different story. We want somebody that is trying to help themselves, help their families and help to better their lives and they just need that extra little push to him them out, and that happens to be transportation. Reporter tito ramos is a former marine going to college to become a police officer. He says the feeling about todays gift runs deep. Not only did i get a car, they chose me based on my character and my merit and my conduct and thats something this isnt just for me, its for my family. Reporter but his son was even more impressed by the presents stuffed in the trunk. This is the best car in my Life Reporter this has become the christmas tradition here. Give life to an old car and change the life of your fellow man. In antioch, john ramos, kpix 5. Best story of the day. And the car was red like a sleigh. There you go. There you go. Filled with all kinds of toys. The kids got new wheels, too. Firefighters donated new bikes as their parents or grandparents got the car keys. See it was christmas always way around so it was christmas all the way around. That little guy was just too cute. My favorite story of the day. We have reports of an accident westbound dumbarton bridge in the toll lanes there. So its blocking lanes thats causing a bit of a backup there. No word on any injuries. So well keep you updated on that. We are seeing some slow and go conditions through the area. You can take the san mateo bridge as an alternate. Just a heads up though there is a wind advisory on the san mateo bridge. So take it slow if you do. We are still seeing decent drive times westbound 13, 14 minutes to go between 880 and 101. Still moving nicely through there. All right, northbound 101 if you have a flight to catch at sfo, traffic is moving along nicely. No major delays southbound 101 along the peninsula just yet. We do have reports of an accident southbound 280 sand hill blocking the offramp causing spectator slowing at the scene. Bay bridge backed up in the cash lanes. This is beyond the overpass. At this point there was an earlier accident at treasure island. Thats completely cleared. But the damage is done. Metering lights are most likely on at this point. Thats a look at your morning drive. And will we see some rain today . We are seeing some rain already in the form of some very light rain. Almost a drizzle across the Golden Gate Bridge. Its our microclimate coming into play this morning. Check this out our hidef Doppler Radar. You dont see much on the screen. All the precipitation has ejected to the east. But we are picking up some very light drizzle not even being detected by radar. Its in the upper 40s in santa with residual moisture. Livermore areas of fog as well as concord and hayward. San francisco is at 52. Pretty breezy out towards the san mateo bridge. Southeast winds 15. San jose this is the second wettest december on record. We still have a lot of december to go and we have one more rain event and that is happening tomorrow. Now, meanwhile, this is what you need to know. Today, we have the need for an umbrella because of a stray shower. But the bulk of the day will be mostly cloudy. You will have some sunny breaks which means rainbow weather and one more round of rain and that will occur in the overnight hours tonight through your friday morning. And, in fact, lets track along together. This is futurecast. You see a stray shower here or there for the morning commute. Also around the san mateo coastline moving into the bay towards lunchtime and heres your afternoon hours. That is the front breezing through tomorrow at this time tomorrow so the bulk will move through friday morning. Then mostly cloudy skies for the afternoon hours. Showers on saturday morning and dry weekend. The area of low pressure will bring an inch of rain over the next 24 hours. Then the drying out period begins on saturday afternoon. It is mostly cloudy and 30 degrees going up to 41 today. Highs 50s and 60s normal for this time of the year. Extended forecast, dry weekend with winter officially arriving on sunday. The recent storms brought more than just debris on the california shoreline. Take a look at this. This brownish creature with sharp teeth and claws washed up at a Santa Barbara beach. It was found near a drain washout. No one knows what it is. Its a pig . Could be. Some speculate it might be a pig or a bear. Experts are still trying to classify the animal but really, do we need to . no. [ laughter ] its a little too early to look at that, too, i think. 5 50. A new look coming for an iconic bay Area Business hub. Details on the changes to the old flower mart to keep it alive in a struggling economy. Coming your way. ,, my baby drove up in a brand new cadillac. My baby drove up in a brand new cadillac. Look here, daddy, im never coming back. Discover the new spirit of cadillac and the best offers of the season. Lease this 2015 standard collection ats for around 329 a month. Good morning. Rain on the bay bridge camera this morning. Metering lights are on at the bay bridge. Youre backed up almost to the maze. Well have a look at the Altamont Pass coming up. Thank you gianna. 5 573. A benicia man took a wrong turn looking for his exgirlfriend and broke into the wrong home. Police say he was drunk when it happened around 4 a. M. Yesterday gave an elderly couple a square. When police say he didnt find his exgirlfriend inside he refused to leave so the homeowner shot him. He was yelling, why are you keeping me out . I cant believe you locked me out. My dad yelled you dont belong here, this is not the right house. The suspect got the wrong house. It was about 100 feet away up a hill. He is okay. But he is now facing charges of trespass and public drunkenness. A possible gas leak cleared out a cancer drug company in south San Francisco. Firefighters were called out to Onyx Pharmaceuticals on grand avenue just after 3 00 yesterday afternoon. After workers reported smelling gas inside. No one was hurt. And crews are still trying to determine the source of the smell. The San Francisco flower mart is getting a pretty big renovation. Kilroy realty bought the property at 6th and brannon street this year raising an issue about the future of the flower mart. But current tenants and Kilroy Realty reached an agreement finally. The wholesale operation will now move underground. Retail will take over at street level and office space will be built above. The flower mart has been around for more than 50 years. Schools and parks across the state could have their artificial turf torn out after some concerns over cancer. A proposal by state senator jerry hill would temporarily ban the use of recycled tires in the synthetic surfaces. Studies have linked a chemical in the old tires to certain cancers but only when the material is burned and inhaled. Hills bill would ban installation of new turf in schools and parks for three years while more studies are done. 5 55 now. Safety concerns have plagued Ridesharing Companies after multiple reports of violence against passengers on board. Now one company is promising big changes to keep riders safe. Tell you about that and more when we come back. ,,,,,,,,,,, its a very dangerous precedent to set. Sony pulled the plug on the movie the interview about a plot to assassinate the leader of north korea. Unprecedented decision comes in response to online threats against moviegoers. Demonstrated a pattern of poor decisionmaking that has led to multiple distractions for this organization. The 49ers have cut ties with ray mcdonald after a woman accused him of sexual assault. Mcdonald has not been arrested or charged. Four months ago, prosecutors decided not to pursue charges against mcdonald after his fiancee accused him of an assault. Make him really happy. I feel that i have been slapped in the face. [ crying ] cubanamericans are divided over the announcement that the u. S. Will now renew ties with the country. From across the bay to around the world, the stories that matter on kpix 5 news this morning. Captions by caption colorado comments captioncolorado. Com your realtime captioner is linda marie macdonald. Good morning, im michelle griego. Hi, everyone. Im frank mallicoat. Nearly 6 00 on this thursday. And after multiple threats surface sony says it will not release the upcoming comedy the interview on Christmas Day. Kpix 5s anne makovec joins us live in San Francisco where the movie was scheduled to be shown. A lot of people are wondering if this was the right call. Reporter yeah. Because this was caused by terroristic threats. It is an unprecedented move by hollywood. And really the decision was made by the Theater Companies themselves like this amc theater here behind me. Basically it backed out of showing the picture. That is when sony finally made its decision which became official yesterday. The film is based on a fictional plot about journalists who are sent to kill north Korean Leader kim jongun. It was supposed to be released on Christmas Day until sony got a threat from north korean hackers called guardians of peace. They said the world will be full of fear. Remember september 11th. In a statement, sony canceled the movies release a decision made with paramount interest in the safety of employees and theatergoers. Now, one of the movies stars set rogan was here in San Francisco last seth ro