Through today it will continue to produce moderate to heavy rain, winndy conditions and the possibility of downed trees and power lines. Ill give you a look at the forecast animation showing more Rainy Weather to come. Spencer, thanks very much. The rain is welcome news for some in the east bay, particularly those in charge of the water supply. Rain has falling steadily and could slow the drive home. Reporter hi, yes, good afternoon. You can see behind me this area already has a lot of traffic this type of day. All these cars are heading east making for a very messy commute along 80. The soggy weather didnt keep people from handling their business. These two College Students are job hunting. The weather made for a few delays, but they made it to oakland for Tuesday Morning interviews. It is very important because i have to support myself and now its time to grow up so i have to find a way, no matter what the weather is. Reporter from an environmental standpoint, the rain is long overdue, considering the drought. No matter how the weather is, we still need to conserve water. Reporter east bay mud Officials Say thousands of customers are getting that message by saving water. The water level at San Pablo Reservoir is a hopeful sign, a far cry from where the level was many months ago. Right now our system capacity is at 80 overall, so thats all the reservoirs, all the storage, and thats really good. Bt looking forward, we do need the snowpack to be healthy as well. Reporter officials are monitoring the levels of all seven reservoirs that fall under the east bay utility district. January was off to a good start with rainfall but its too soon to determine the impact. Generally speaking i can say our supply is very healthy right now. However, we do have to remember that were earl in the season. Its only january. Reporter officials are watching what happens further up north. Colder weather in the Higher Elevations helps build the snowpack which melts and feeds into reservoirs like this one. So thats the message were getting from the utility district and even from the state level. Its off to a good start, the rainy season that is, which is january and february, but too soon to tell. As you can see, traffic moving right along now along 80. Lonni, thank you so much. In the sierra, so much snow has fallen theres now an avalanche warning. Youre looking at heaven ly mountain resort. It applies to backcountry areas. Chains are required for drivers on 80 east of placer county. Take a look at the snowpacked freeway. Today also brought the first snowpack survey and despite all the new snow, its below average at just about half of normal. Now lets head to the north bay where tourists stopped at vista point, needed either a paurc poncho or good umbrella. There was a lot of ponding around storm drains as the rain fell fairly heavily. In Sonoma County they are keeping a close eye on the russian river, hoping it does not flood by the weekend. The storm brought snow to the top of mt. Hamilton making it look like a winter wonderland. Only about an inch fell but that was enough to close the road to the 4300foot summit. Eventually the snow turned to rain and the road was reopened. Well, they let the dogs out early today at walnut creek. Heather Farm Community park it was all about getting in some playing time before the downpour. One puppys owner told us the key was having towels ready when you get home. He also predicted it would be a twotowel storm today. Abc 7 news found plenty of pulls in fairfield. Driving was challenging on the wet roads with all that rain coming down and more on the way. You can track todays storm any time you wish with the abc 7 news app. Watch live doppler 7 and track the rain where you live. Also enable push alerts to get weather updates sent right to your phone or your tablet. A popular east bay elementary schoolteacher has been accused of putting duct tape over the mouth of a fifth grader. Those allegations have been outlined in a lawsuit recently filed by the childs parents. Laura anthony is live with the details. Reporter these alleged incidents have been investigated by both the School District here and the Police Department over the past year, and so far no charges have been filed. Now with this lawsuit, though, a popular teacher here is under fire. He didnt do anything that justifies any treatment of this nature. Reporter attorney larry cook says his client, then an 11yearold student at los perales elementary had duct tape placed over his mouth twice in a onemonth period last year. The first occasion, duct tape was placed over his mouth and face and in front of his entire class, fifth grade. And on the second occasion, the student was forced to put the duct tape on the students own mouth. Reporter after the boys parents complained, the School District reported the incidents to police but an initial investigation yielded no charges. Recently the young man who was involved was made available to us for an interview and so we just conducted an interview with him last week. We will be taking that new information along with the previous investigation and reviewing it with the District Attorney in the next couple of weeks. Reporter the school superintendent, bruce burns, said in a statement, quote, at the time the first report was made, the district investigated the matter thoroughly and took appropriate action. The district understands that protecting our students has to be our highest priority. The teacher was put on leave for a time last year, but is back in the classroom at los perales. According to cook, at the time of the alleged incidents, the teacher warned the students in her class not to talk about it. This teacher made a statement to the students and had apparently made the statement on other occasions as well that what occurred in this classroom stayed in this classroom. Reporter the boy transferred out of the class at the time and now attends a different school. In moraga, laura anthony, abc 7 news. Charles manson, one of americas most notorious criminals of course, is now in a hospital after getting sick in prison. Manson is now 82 years old and hes currently an inmate at Corcoran State Prison in the san joaquin valley. The Los Angeles Times reports manson is seriously ill. Prison officials have refused to release any details. Manson and some of his followers were convicted of killing actress sharon tate and six other people in 1969. A 25yearold livermore man is facing charges after allegedly hitting a man with a baseball bat. Police say Gabriel Ponce showed up just after 4 00 this morning. He reportedly banged on the front door with the bat. When the man inside opened it, he hit him in the head. The victim was taken to the hospital where shes in stable condition. He will survive. Police say the two men know each other but they didnt say what prompted the attack. The family of a north bay teenager stabbed to death last year hopes an increase in the reward will solve his murder. 18yearold Kirk Kimberly was found buried face down near sonoma state university. Police do not believe it was a random crime. They say kimberly was likely targeted, but they do not know why. His family has now raised enough money to take the reward over 12,000 to anyone who has information leading to the arrest of his killer. It may be a little more difficult for you to get what you need done at Alameda County courthouses. Court clerks went home at 2 30 today. Even traffic courts are affected. Be glad this isnt smellovision. Take a look at this video posted by San FranciscoDistrict Attorney george gas cone. It shows water dripping from a light fixture at the hall of justice. Except that isnt just water, its stinky sewage dripping down. Cleaning crews mopped up the mess in the hallways. A sign on the door simply called it a water emergency. Well, emergency repairs on the Golden Gate Bridge are finished after the movable barrier that acceseparates northbound and southbound lanes was damaged. A passing car likely hit the barrier preventing the zipper truck from setting up the normal commute configuration. Thats four southbound lanes going into the city and two northbound going out. Instead it was three going in, three going out this morning while those emergency repairs were made. Despite the rain and one less lane going into San Francisco, actually traffic wasnt too bad. It could have been very, very bad and so were really grateful that the word got out and people were able to adjust their commutes in order to get to where they needed to go. Bridge Officials Say this is one of the first problems they have experienced with the barrier since its installation two years ago. A group of hayward teens got together to support a classmate diagnosed with hodgkins lymphoma, a type of cancer that affects 200,000 people every year in the u. S. Theyre raising money to help with her medical bills by following a simple recipe. Live, love and bake. Lyanne melendez explains. You dont want too much water. Reporter students in hayward have taken up a hobby and a cause. When their classmate was diagnosed with hodgkins lymphoma, her friend, elias, rallied the troops. We felt that it was needed to do to help her and her family, so they wouldnt have to struggle so much because its very hard. Reporter so far they have raised more than 500. They called the campaign cookies for cookie, her nickname. This Alternative High School was so proud of its students they posted pictures on instagram. They worked really hard. Some of them got super sick of baking cookies, but they knew that it was for such a spectacular human being. Reporter while they were baking today, cookie was undergoing chemotherapy. Too sick to talk to us, her mother told us off camera shes in good spirits. Its just wonderful to know that my daughter and myself are surrounded by wonderful people t help us get through this. Reporter knowing that more money is needed, her friends also started a go fund me page to help pay for some of her medical bills. Were hoping that people out there see this and hopefully if they can donate whatever they can, a dollar, anything helps. If you can donate financially, just keeping her in your prayers. Reporter lyanne melendez, abc 7 news. We have a link to the go fund me page benefiting cookie on our website. Still ahead on abc 7 news at 5 00, can teenagers be legally banned from the mall . Up next, one Northern CaliforniaShopping Center has done just that. Why they did it and whos fighting to get the ban reversed. And closing a loophole in the states new legalized marijuana law. What state lawmakers will propose to keep stoned drivers off our roads. Getting fit in the new year with the help of wearable technology. 7 on your sides Michael Finney takes a closer look at fitness trackers and the best ones to track your over 1,000,000 californians have gotten something thats been out of reach for far too long Health Insurance. How . They enrolled through covered california. Its the Health Insurance marketplace where youll find a range of plans from leading Health Insurance companies that offer you the best combination of quality, rates, and benefits. And, through covered california, you may get financial help to pay for coverage. To get covered, youve got to get going. Open enrollment ends january 31st. Visit covereca. Com today. 2 years ago the count was 6500 and 70 have no permanent shelter. As david louie reports, a Major Campaign is hoping to put a dent in those numbers. Reporter maybe youve seen them picking up debris from freeway ramps and swabs. Theyre members of the downtown streets team recruited from among the homeless. But look whos out here today, the mayor, sending a message that san jose is serious about helping to find housing for the homeless. The city has released a 45 million funding opportunity for development of housing for the homeless. Weve converted two motels already. Were beginning construction on other projects. So were going to keep trying to expand the inventory. Reporter j. J. Jones has been a streets team member for three years. By volunteering and by cooperating with a social worker, shes no longer homeless. He worked with me and i made all my doctors appointments and i did what i was supposed to do. And if you volunteer your time and you make the effort, then, you know, youre real about it, then good things come to you. Reporter the members of the streets team get paid 5 an hour and people like j. J. Put in 20 hours a week. Its not a lot of money, but it does help. However, its estimated seven out of ten homeless in Santa Clara County arent as lucky as j. J. , they remain on the streets. Phil russell is one of them, homeless for ten years. He hears about programs like this but it hasnt helped him. If they say housing is going up here. Well, a lot of people out here, the Homeless People think what kind of housing . The housing we see going up are 3,000 a month for one bedroom. Reporter the mayor remains optimistic that inroads can be head made to house the homeless. Governor brown and first lady ann brown are in hawaii tonight for a quick vacation. The couple will be back on sunday to begin a busy month. Early next week Governor Brown will unveil his state budget and deliver his state of the state address later this month. The california Highway Patrol is stepping up enforcement of people driving if they are using marijuana. Right now it is illegal to drive while under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, but proposition 64, which legalized Recreational Marijuana use, did not specifically ban marijuana use behind the wheel. Two bay area legislators have proposed legislation, therefore, to close that loophole. In the meantime the chp will treat it as a dui. We dont want it to be where someone said i only had one beer, i can drive. If youre driving, you cannot be smoking orrin gesting any type of marijuana. Right now there are no breathalyzers that detect marijuana use so the chp will rely on Officers Training and experience to monitor pot use behind the wheel. A Northern California malls decision to ban teenagers is facing push back. Teenager can say no longer enter the mall unless theyre with a parent or guardian. Thats sparked outrage from the aclu and parents who say the policy is discriminatory. The mall is defending the new rule saying its just trying to keep the peace. They point to fights in years past. It is a new year and youre probably getting back into the exercise groove perhaps, putting on one of those fitness trackers. Michael finney partnered up with Consumer Reports to finds out if those trackers actually work. Jogging first thing in the morning are we now . Well, somebody is. Somebody somewhere. Fitness trackers are all the rage these days, but a new study, one of the biggest and longest today, suggests for some they probably wont help them lose weight. Consumer reports explains what fitness trackers are actually good for and then reveals the top choices in these exclusive ratings. Trainer amanda durr used a fitness tracker to help her lose 40 pounds of post pregnancy baby weight. After i got to my goal weight, i stopped looking at it because i didnt need it anymore. Reporter what if you dont necessarily need to lose weight . A 2016 study tracked 800 adults for a year. Most wore fitbits and logged between 50 and 70,000 steps a week. But after just six months, none of them showed improvement with weight or blood pressure. After a year, 90 of them stopped using their fitbit altogether. Taking steps alone isnt enough to help you lose weight. Youre going to have to pair that with an intense exercise regimen and also with a healthy diet. Reporter just like amanda did. She ate a proper diet, hit the gym and used her fitness tracker to help her measure her activity. Consumer reports tests fitness trackers for step count and heart rate monitoring accuracy, Water Resistance and ease of use in pairing, as well as readability in both bright or low light. Consumer reports top rated trackers, the fitbit surge for 250, the tomtom spark cardio plus music for 130. Another highly rated tracker, the Garmin Vivosmart hr for 150. Amanda doesnt use hers anymore because she says shes in maintenance phase. I feel like its a shortterm tool. Its not like a forever tool. Consumer reports reached out to the makers of fitbit who said fitbit continues to invest in the development of new devices and innovative motivational tools and social features to further enhance User Engagement and help individuals achieve their health and fitness goals. Thanks, michael. Our stormy tuesday weather continues. Heres a live look at doppler 7 and you can see the entire area covered by green with lots of orange and yellow. Along with strong gusty wind. Heres a look at current wind gusts. 36 Miles Per Hour at sfo, 35 over at fairfield, all around the pay its windy. Out on the coast 40mileperhour gusts at half moon bay. This is looking over the embark da embarcadero. Temperatures are mainly in the low to mid50s. This is view of the golden gate where the pavement is wet and some rain is approaching the golden gate once again after a broef break. Its 50 degrees up at santa rosa, 52 at napa, 55 at concord and deliver more at 52 degrees. Heres a view atop mt. Tam. You can see the trees waving in the breeze there. These are our forecast futures. Well see heavy rain and wind continuing tonight. Shower