My french toast sticks are back starting at 2. 50. Now with a sweet new twist Cinnamon Sugar churro. Dunk, bite and savor them any time of day. Or all day its totally up to you. Only for a limited time. Welcome to jack in the box wet start to the weekend as wind and rain soaks bay area cities and snow is piling up tonight in the sierra, powerful blizzard shutting down a stretch of interstate 80 and leaving hundreds of drivers stranded and just going to wait it out and see see if we can make it through. A life threatening blizzard slamming the sierra tonight. Good evening. Im greg lee and im cristina rendon, new video tonight showing the treacherous conditions for drivers heading through the mountains, car after car stuck at Donner Summit on interstate 80. This video here was shot around 7 00 tonight. It shows the whiteout conditions near lake tahoe. Strong winds whipping heavy snow right across the mountain. Well give you a live look now of 80. This is at donner lake. All roads shut down from baxter to the nevada state line due to spinouts, ice and poor visibility. It is unclear when 80 will reopen. Meteorologist mark tamao joining us now. And mark, we are in the thick of this storm tonight. Yeah thats right. In fact, the snowfall rates could actually pick up a bit more as we head into your saturday. Christina. So the blizzard warning it has been it has has been in place for a long time. Yesterday. Today will continue into tomorrow and then for the first half of sunday. So here we go. The blizzard warning is in place until 10 00 sunday morning. Snowfall rates could be on the order of 4 to 5in an hour. So with that, weve already been seeing things develop with whiteout conditions and dangerous to impassable travel over the over the passes and snowfall in general, around 5 to 10ft in some of the higher peaks. The highest peaks could be topping ten feet. Of course, as you have have been hearing, travel has been disrupted. This was the scene earlier. Interstate 80, the highway 89 intersection, Road Conditions right now. Full closure near baxter. State highway 50. We have chain controls near kyburz. Both of these locations close to the 4000 foot level in the sierra. So here is the radar imagery. You can see its a constant lots of snow streaming into the area. Heres a closer look. You can see where the rain is falling out toward grass valley, out toward placerville. But as you do, head out to the east, just a little bit. We are talking about snowfall and some heavy snowfall, and the winds have been a big factor as well. Take a look at this wind report up at palisades earlier today. They had a max gust of 157 miles an hour. Thats at 8700ft. So extreme winds there. South lake tahoe right now reporting a wind gust of up to 38 miles an hour. Reporting some light snow. And truckee reporting some light snow and a current wind gust of 29 miles an hour and visibility. These have been coming down so heres the forecast model showing you this as we put this into motion saturday morning. This is saturday afternoon 5 p. M. And then sunday morning we could still have some snow falling, but the intensity could be backing off later in the day. On sunday. But when this is all said and done, the forecast models have consistently been producing excessive snowfall amounts that will continue to create a dangerous situation in the sierra. And these numbers continue to blossom. Over the weekend and into early next week. We have a lot of rain to talk about the in the bay area forecast. Well have more on that coming up in just a few minutes. All right mark, thank you. Tonight. No sign of that storm letting up the blizzard, shutting down highways chp cautioned drivers to avoid travel, but that didnt stop some from trying to pass through the sierra. Caltrans plows working around the clock, trying to clear the feet of snow that is already fallen. Ktvu zac sos has the latest tonight from placer county. We thought we were going to make it so like you said, hopefully fingers crossed. Devin and his girlfriend makaya hitting a road block friday on their way from livermore to her dads 60th birthday in reno with a blizzard over the sierra, interstate 80 shut down in both directions just before blue canyon reports of multiple spinouts ahead. My familys out there, so we just kind of woke up and were like, you know, just planning on going to celebrate. But, um, we didnt expect to have to sit right here. Dozens of trucks lining the highway waiting for it to reopen. The couple with sparse supplies. I got starbucks and water First Responders urging anyone on the roads to take further precautions. Fully charging your ev and ensuring that your gas tank is completely full. You have extra food and water, you have warm clothes, possibly even a sleeping bag. Um, having all the essential supplies that you would need for 24 to 72 hours. But thats only if you need to be on the roads. The preference everybody should be trying to avoid travel as much as possible on the highways. Most of the local highways are closed for a lot of spin outs that are happening. Meantime, many already in the tahoe area opting to hunker down for the day with feet upon feet of snow and high winds expected. Others in selfcontained resort towns like the village at northstar are able to venture out far more easily. If the snow keeps coming the way it is at this moment, its probably looking more like an inch an hour, so its exciting, exciting. Once the snow passes. But for now, a number of tahoe skiers, including northstar ski resort, are scaling back operations or completely shutting down. We love to open the resorts up, but unfortunately this is a major system right now. And guess what . Monday morning when this is done, ill tell you what certifiably cold smoked pow and this temporary closure of i80, one of many highway Closures Expected over the next few days, Something Else to keep in mind if youre planning to come up after the storm. It could take several days to clear some area roads in placer county. Zac sos, ktvu, fox two news, cal trans says it is always working around the clock to keep roads open and clear as much as possible. The chp in truckee shared this video shortly after 5 00 of whiteout conditions. Shortly after caltrans made the call to shut down 80, both chp and caltrans are working together to ensure the turnarounds on both sides of the closure are going smoothly. Thank you for your patience. Were trying to get this roadway open, as you can tell, a little bit of snowfall. Traffics moving slowly here. Were doing our best. So a chp officer near the nevada state line posted that video. You can hear the whipping winds showing the challenging conditions up there tonight in santa clara county. All lanes are closed tonight on part of northbound highway nine due to a mudslide. Caltrans shared these photos on social media. You can see here the fallen trees and the slippery conditions lanes are closed between Redwood Gulch and sanborn road near saratoga. The caltrans has not determined when the road will reopen. A tree fell on a car in San Francisco tonight, injuring four people. San francisco fire shared this photo. The tree collapsed on laguna street at golden gate avenue around 515. It landed on top of the car, injuring the four people who were inside. They were all taken to the hospital. The tree is estimated to be up to 25ft tall. Several lanes in the area are closed. A quick reminder you can always stay ahead of the storm with our free ktvu weather app. It has current conditions, a live interactive radar and it breaks down the forecast hour by hour. New at ten opponents of waymos robots are considering an appeal following a decision from state regulators today approving the companys request to expand its services into the peninsula and los angeles. Kttv Jana Katsuyama joins us live now with waymos response and the objections from critics. Jana waymo here in mountain view, is a basically a subsidiary of googles parent company, alphabet, and opponents such as the los angeles d. O. T. Had wanted to have a hearing about oversight at tonight. I talked with a local lawmaker who says this came as a shock, and they are considering an appeal. Waymos driverless taxis are a common sight on San Franciscos streets, and on friday, the California PublicUtilities Commission gave waymo the green light to expand its robotaxi service. Waymo submitted these maps to the cpuc, showing the expansion area along the peninsula and silicon valley, as well as the area of los angeles where robo taxis now will be able to roll out the cpuc. S letter said it received 81 letters in support of waymos expansion and five objections from south San Francisco, san mateo county, Los Angeles Department of transportation, San Francisco transportation authority, and the San Francisco taxi workers. This was an irresponsible decision by the puc. San mateo county supervisor dave canepa says there are concerns about safety and a need for more communication with waymo to address concerns with local stakeholders. Were trying to put guardrails and making sure that that local jurisdictions have local control. A bill by san jose state senator dave cortese is calling for more local power to oversee autonomous vehicles. The dmv actually, in some ways has primary authority. Theyre the ones that are taking all the accident reports. So its very transparent. And then the Public Utilities commission regulates them as a taxi service. Ethan elkind is director of the Climate Program at Uc Berkeley Law Center for law, energy and the environment. And he says nationwide, states have maintained primary authority over avs. Theyre all dealt with at the state level. I dont know of any states that actually give local governments any kind of formal role or veto over our jurisdiction of autonomous vehicles, as some people say. Theyd be glad to catch a ride. I heard, or i actually read, that its been through a lot of trials and its pretty safe. So i would do it. Yes others say they feel the approval is too fast and want a slower rollout, but i would say im not really for them right now. You know . I mean, let them develop them and all that. But i just, uh, i just, i worry at the, at the speed of, of things. I reached out to waymo and received a response that reads in part, were grateful to the cpuc for this vote of confidence in our operations. As always, well take a careful and incremental approach to expansion by continuing to work closely with city officials, local communities, and our partners to ensure were offering a service thats safe, accessible and valuable to our riders. I checked the waymo app, and tonight it does not show any service in those expanded areas. A spokesperson tells me that no date has been set yet for when they will start up that service. Greg something we will continue to follow Jana Katsuyama on the peninsula tonight. Jana. Thank you. An east bay man is facing felony charges for criminal acts during a protest of the war between israel and hamas. Christopher houshiary of hayward has been charged by the Contra Costa County das office with Second Degree robbery, grand theft and arson with a special hate crime allegation after Authorities Say he pushed a woman to the ground, took her israel flag and set it on fire. It happened in el cerrito last month, when protesters for both sides clashed. New at ten police in oakland have a man in custody following a robbery turned shooting today near the fruitvale district. It happened on foothill, across the street from the Melrose BranchPublic Library workers tell us this happened around 1150 last night. They say a man came into the store trying to steal beer and chips. Employees say he shot at the cashier, but luckily no one was hurt. The employees say they saw officers arresting the man about a block away. Coming up. Thieves in the east bay steal a truck and the gift of literacy from kids. The owners plea to return the donations. Also, a west oakland deli dealing with another break in while getting away with cash wasnt enough for the burglars. Also, a new program on the peninsula that police say will target and deter would be burglars. The plan to use decoy devices in homes throughout the Atherton Community overflowing with ideas and energy. Thats the San Francisco chronicle endorsing democrat katie porter for senate over all other options. Porter is easily the most impressive candidate. Known for her grilling of corporate executives. With deep policy knowledge. Katie porters housing plan has bipartisanfriendly ideas to bring homebuilding costs down. And the chronicle praises her ideas to end soft corruption in politics. Lets shake up the senate. With democrat katie porter. Im katie porter and i approve this message. Did my legs shrink . I can move them. I mean, i knew Alaska Airlines premium class had extra legroom but this. This feels different. Okay. Crazy idea. On the count of 3. Im going to try and cross my. Ohhhhhhhhhhh boyy thats nice. Woooooo his truck was stolen along with hundreds of books, he tells ktvu amber lee. Despite the theft, he wont give up on his passion project because its about giving back. Amber joins us live in studio now with what he plans to do next. Christina. The san leandro man tells me hes not concerned about getting his truck back, but he wants to continue the book drive for his literacy project. He credits his professional success to being an avid reader since he was a child. Now he wants to give back by helping children and teens look at my truck, which is typically right here in number 11. Rudy ortiz shows me the spot where his truck was parked in the gated parking lot of his townhouse complex in san leandro. It was stolen along with 500 donated books for kids as part of his literacy project. That was my initial reaction. First, disbelief. And then, uh, acceptance. Yeah, just pay it forward and do the same thing. Thats all ortiz is cohost of the morning show for Radio Station kblx. This sunday night, baby, come on now. He also works as a stand up comedian. Collecting books for kids is a personal passion, so the theft is no laughing matter, he says. He was an avid reader as a child. I really do think that it boosted kids confidence and thats priceless. You know, you only get one chance to build that up in your childhood or leave them in the bag. Ortiz tells me he received donations from many people. He started the drive, which he named second gift project, last october. Ortiz says he was halfway to his goal of 1000 books. He wants people who donated to know what happened. We were making strides. Were back to zero because of what happened with the truck being stolen. His truck looked like this one, a 2004 black chevy silverado. It was stolen during the night of january 22nd and the Early Morning hours of the next day. There are surveillance cameras in the lot, but he says none of them work. San Leandro Police tell me they have no leads. Books are really important to me. City Council MemberBrian Azevedo pledges his support for ortizs project. He tells me he and his father built this Little Free Library on the front lawn of his home. We build community. Literacy is really important. You know, people are able to read and write, so its really important that people have books. Ortiz vows to continue to collect books, to distribute them to schools and hospitals. As long as we keep our our mind and our eyes on the prize. And just remember that were trying to do something for the greater good for the community. I think thats the most important thing. Ortiz is asking people to donate books appropriate for students from kindergarten to 12th grade. They can drop them off at kbl, the offices where he works in daly city, new books are preferred, but any in Good Condition are accepted. Christina. Well, lets hope he gets a lot of donations. Is amber lee in studio tonight . Amber. Thank you. A thief reportedly started a fire inside of a deli in oakland after breaking in and taking money. Stay cold. Deli posted this video to social media. They say someone broke in by cutting the doors open with angle grinders. The thief took 180 in change and some checks, and then they sent the deli menu on fire to. Steagul deli says this is the second burglary in two weeks. They believe that it is the same person. Weve reached out to police for more information. New at ten. The Atherton Police department is rolling out a new program to help prevent home burglaries. The Police Department is planning to use bait houses to target burglars. Each bait house will be equipped with high tech surveillance equipment. Police say this will allow officers to respond quickly and arrest the suspects while theyre in the home. Bait houses will be strategically located in areas known to have a higher rate of burglaries within the town of atherton. Its a bay area parks and recreation areas are also closed due to the storms. In San Francisco. The Japanese Tea Garden and San FranciscoBotanical Garden in Golden Gate Park closed at noon today. Pine lake is closed through saturday and stern grove remains shut down due to previous storm damage and access issues. City park officials are urging people using other parks this weekend and to be wary that strong winds could knock down branches. Lets check back in with meteorologist mark tamayo with the latest on our weather. Hi, mark. Hi there. Christina yeah, we do have wind advisories for parts of the bay area. Some gusty wind