they are mourning the death of a classmate and a teenager killed in an overnight crash. nbc bay area's christie smith is live in danville right now with more from a community simply in shock. christie, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. it is the first day of school and certainly a sad one here at san ramon valley high school. three seniors riding in a car last night, there was a crash and one of them died. now, what should have started as very happy day here actually started with a moment of silence for the students at around 9:00 this morning and the heartbreaking announcement this morning, flowers and a sign are up, actually, on el capitan and that's where the accident site was for 17-year-old robert orlando. he was the senior here. this morning, students arrived to find grief counselors on campus. many tell us that they actually heard the grim news on social media late last night or this morning that orlando was a passenger in a car last night, about 9:00, with two other seniors at the school, when the driver on clarridge and el capitan lost control for some reason, hit a tree and a fence. the car spun out, hitting the passenger side. the two other teens, ages 16 and 17 suffered broken bones but they will recover, a tragedy that friends and the entire school are just trying to understand. >> this is not how you want to start the school, the first day of school with grief counselors not the way you want to start. but unfortunately, it's the reality for us today here at san ramon. so, we will deal with it as best we can. >> he was really cool. he just didn't care what anyone thought. he was a really nice kid. yeah. no, just like unbelievable. >> reporter: police say they respect sure what caused the accident. they say there were no signs of alcohol or drugs or even speeding, so that will certainly be part of the investigation. friends describe orlando as funny and kind. they say they are in shock and certainly sending condolences to his family. grief counselors will be here as long as the students need them. live in danville, christie smith, nbc bay area news. >> thank you very much. and happening right now, firefighters facing yes an uphill battle trying to gain ground on that massive fire burning in yosemite. more than 3700 fire bern nell are in tuolumne county now trying to keep the flames from spreading. at last check they now have the rim fire at 20% contained. now it has burned nearly 180,000 acres. for reference here, that is almost the size of san jose, san francisco and oakland, all three combined. 5500 structures now being threatened, forcing the evacuation of a number of sites out there including tuolumne city. so far, we can tell you 23 structures have been destroyed, including ones at berkeley's tuolumne family camp located about seven miles outside of yosemite national park. ♪ last night, an emotional one for families who have taken trips out to that camp for years now and they held a memorial to honor the lost camp. >> it was all about family and there are so few places on earth that are all about family. >> you really felt like you were sharing in making that community be what it was and so all the kids could be free to go where they wanted to go and you knew that there would be some other family that would be watching out for them if you weren't right there. it was safe that way. that's special thing. >> for the record, that city opened up the camp 91 years ago. it was evacuated just last tuesday. over the weekend, most of those 80 buildings, including 72 tent cabins, burned down. now, city officials, they say they have not been able to survey that damage yet with the flames raging on, so at this point, they are not sure about rebuilding it yet. what happens in yosemite bay be surprised directing 2.5 million people in the bay area. how is that? the drinking water right now in jeopardy. if you happen to live in san francisco, the peninsula, south bay and much of the east bay, your water comes from the hetch hetchy reservoir near that fire. local water officials, they are quickly filling other reservoirs right now, filling them one water from a source in the sierra nevada in case hetch hetchy becomes contaminated by all that ash that's blowing around. so far, the falling ash has not sunk far enough down into the reservoir to reach the intake pumps. the rim fire proving to be nothing short of a costly one for the state. fire officials right now estimating the cost of this fire at $20 million and counting. a lot to get contained out there. the state right now spent a total of $44 million on wildfires since back of july 1st. that's more than a quarter of its budget forth entire season. the federal government announcing just yesterday it will be reimbursing the state for as much as 75% of the rim fire cost. make sure to stay with us for continuing coverage of the rim fire, both on air and online. we will keep you up-to-date online, nbcbayarea.com, we update that around the clock. all you have to do is search rim fire and a little bit later on, meteorologist christina loren, she will come on to explain why the weather could help or possibly hurt the brave firefighters' efforts. now to some developing news overseas. the u.s. and its allies now considering military intervention after last week's alleged chemical attack in syria. a convoy carrying u.n. inspectors to the site of that attack yesterday coming under fire from unknown gunmen. nbc's richard engel has more from near the syrian border. >> reporter: u.n. inspectors in damascus, one of their vehicles shot by a sniper, interviewed victims yesterday and doctors and looked for evidence of a chemical attack. but it maybe too late. u.s. intelligence officials are convinced the syrian regime used chemical weapons last week on a scale not seen anywhere in decades. so the united states is once again building a case for military action, this time, on moral grounds, and to discourage others from using chemical weapons. >> the images of entire families dead in their beds without a drop of blood or even a visible wound. bodies contorting in spasms. human suffering that we could never ignore or forget. anyone who could claim that an attack of this staggering scale could be contrive or fabricated needs to check their conscience and their own moral compass. >> reporter: while the white house says no final decision has been made, the u.s. has military options for a limited strike without sending in troops. officials tell nbc news to expect cruise mills from four warships and two submarines in the mediterranean, targeting regime command and control bunkers, artillery and airfields but not chemical stockpiles. that would be too risky. the u.s. isn't alone in considering military action. the uk, turkey and france have all also expressed support. richard engel, nbc news, turkey. >> richard engel, thank you very much. much closer to home, police in palo alto on the hunt for two armed men who robbed a couple in a post office parking lot that married couple was dropping letters off at the post office on east bayshore road. this happened just after midnight. that's when a car pulled up next to them and two men got out. one of those men pointed a gun at the couple and demanded cash. the husband wisely complied. the gunman took the money and drove off, heading north to east palo alto. and we are getting new images of the people who broke into a tiffany's jewelry store in walnut creek. this happened earlier this month. overnight, police releasing surveillance images of the thieves and their vehicles. they were shot just before the break-in actually happened. you can see them here. pictures showing six people meeting out in a parking lot where police say they removed the license plate from a white chevy trail blazer that was later used as a getaway car. right now, a preview of an exclusive investigative unit report. paramedic inside one of the bay area's largest emergency response systems sounding an alarm. the problem, a potentially dangerous flaw in how shootings and stabbings are dispatched much the nbc bay area investigative unit analyzing 15 months of emergency calls and what we found has forced officials to make some serious changes. paramedics, they contacted the investigative unit after their concerns were not addressed. they say calls to shootings and stabbings are not receiving the priority they should. >> they don't know that units are getting dispatched off shootings for people that are dizzy, intoxicated, complaining of headaches. i just don't see how somebody who is vomiting is in a more dire straits than somebody who's been shot. >> basically, what we found is that there's been a problem. >> i think it's a perceived problem. >> tonight, we investigate one of the bay area's biggest 911 dispatch systems. make sure to join us at 11:00 to hear what paramedics say needs to be fixed now and what is leading administrators take changes to the emergency response system. crews ramping up their work ahead of the bay bridge closures. brace yourselves for what thank one. what you need to know to get around the expected traffic nightmares. i'm bob redell. take you live to the south bay, where the city of san jose could become the largest city in the state, possibility country, to ban this. that story coming up. plus, the truth behind the fight over the debt ceiling. we will take a look, coming up. and we are cranking up the heat this tuesday morning. i will let you know how long that will last, plus we just received a new image of the smoke plume from the rim fire that extends well into canada. your mind might just be blown when i show you that image, coming up right after this break. [ male announcer ] at sizzler... it's back for a limited time! fire grilled steak and golden all-you-can-eat shrimp for an incredible $9.99! only at sizzler! you know those styrofoam takeout boxes you get at restaurants? they soon could be a thing of the past right here in the bay area's largest city. nbc bay area's bob redell live now in san jose where this afternoon's crucial vote for the city council. hey, bob, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, jon. in a few hours, the city of san jose could become the largest city in california to ban styrofoam. 1:30, the city council at city hall will vote on whether or not to stop businesses, mainly restaurants, from using this sort of plastic in their cups and containers. now, the goal of this ban is to help protect the environment and keep styrofoam, a product as we all know takes a long time to degrade, keep it out of local landfill and waterways. groups like the san jose silicon valley chamber of commerce oppose this ban, arguing it is too much of a financial stress on small businesses, considering that last year, they had to stop using plastic bags, which increased costs. next month, they must increase their minimum wage from $8 to $10 an hour, a $2 increase. a ban on styrofoam would force businesses like the sandwich shop to move to a paper product which they tell us would be twice the cost of styrofoam. >> it hurt me, because i need to buy -- need to spend more of my money on the container. of course, if we use another container, we need to raise the price and the customer really doesn't like i raise the price. >> reporter: if the city council passes the styrofoam ban, smaller businesses wouldn't have to comply until the start of 2015. bigger businesses would have to stop using styrofoam starting this january. san jose would be joining 30 other cities and counties in the bay you're thank have already enacted a similar ban on this product. reporting live here at san jose city hall, bob recommend, nbc bay area news. >> bob, thank you very much, as kermit the frog once said you can sometimes it ain't easy being green. thanks for the report. 32 hours from now, crews will shut down the bay bridge to connect to the new even span. engineers, optimistic about the reliability about hundreds of at-risk steel fasteners, this after 32 rods snapped earlier this year. the chronicle says tests conducted by caltrans are going well and there is a chance the parts will not need to be replaced. the problem threatened to delay the opening of the new span, but because of this quick fix, things are moving forward as planned. here is a look at that xenlg urnlg the bay bridge will be closed tomorrow night starting at 8:00 and then it's rescheduled to reopen on tuesday at 5 a.m. no building bridges in congress right now. in fact, the two sides now growing further apart with a fight over the debt ceiling coming up. scott mcgrew, some republicans, they say they won't raise that ceiling. >> well, which would be devastating to the full faith and credit of the united states. good morning. now, to remind you, the debt ceiling covers our repayments of debts that we already have. congress, fussing about not raising the debt ceiling, but remember, it was congress that set the budget in the first place. so, as we wade through all the politics of this, and there's going to be a lot of politics, do keep those truths in mind. brand new this morning, facebook's just issued a report saying governments from 74 countries asked for information on 38,000 facebook users in the past six months, with half of those requests coming from the u.s. government. facebook joins google and twitter in revealing as much as it can about the demands for that data. and we got the latest housing data this morning showing a nearly 25% increase in house prices in san francisco year-over-year. those numbers do not chart the south bay. so it's a moving average. it's comparing june to june and next month, july to july, and those coming from standard & poor's. back to you. a new bill designed to protect california's big cats now just one signature away from becoming law. bay area state senator jerry hill introducing that legislation following the controversial killing of two mountain lion cubs out in half moon bay. that happened last november. this bill would give fish and wildlived or narns non-lethal alternative, such as working with zoos or wildlife groups, relocating the an moors chasing them from residential area. a new measure allows customers to bring their own growlers to be filled a microbreweries. they are glass containers that hold a half-gallon of beer. need a lot of pretzels and peanuts to go with that existing laws only allow brewies to sell and refill the growl observers to refilled with their own label. the bill would streamline regulations for breweries and make buying beer easier for customers, supporters say. clearly, the hops and barley, high priority. people want it to be very easy. today might be a good one, cool beverages of any sort, a lemonade, some ice tea. >> less trips up there to get that refill. >> half gallon, need a bucket, swim in it. >> who wants to wait in line? >> warm. >> gets a little warm. good point. good point. >> always thinking about the brew. >> got to have the kooz zi. updates for that rim fire burning. give you an update where we stand now. 20% containment, the latest, where we were last night, where we woke up this morning. we will have an update hopefully by 5, 6 and 11. the winds shifted and we are expecting thunderstorms in the area. show you the mind-blowing image. this is from nasa. look that the smoke plume. the entire basin of south lake tahoe filled with that rich smoke, i hate to say tax a lot of people like to head up there for labor day weekend. so going to be a keeping an eye of that for you for now, doesn't look like a great place to take the family. the smoke plume extends well into canada. head through the next couple of days, this is what we are expecting, thunderstorms headed that way. as you can see right here we stopped the clock for ought 4 p.m. this afternoon, expecting showers over the rim fire, potentially, pretty good showers as well n addition to that, likely see thunderstorms, watching that for you, we head throughout the afternoon. chief meteorologist jeff ranieri will have the latest. we have been so blessed in the bay area and the beautiful weather continues, especially the city by the bay, a gorgeous day thought in san francisco, 66 deg grip, wi degrees, winds west northwest, 13 miles per hour, bringing in the cool ocean air, peak warmth, good air quality for your wednesday, cooler holiday weekend headed our way, 90s today in livermore, concord, 92, fairfield, 70 in the meantime in san francisco. really can't beat that as we get into the holiday weekend, temperatures start to drop off, really no major heat. what i can tell you is late monday night into tuesday, john, maybe some showers, might be bringing in that umbrella, we kick kick off the unofficial start to have fall. back to you. >> keep must the loop there, christina, thank you very much for reports. still to come, the countdown is on, the winter olympics now just 164 days away for those of you keeping score at home. the upcoming games may happen without one key member of the san jose sharks. let you know why joe thorton is skipping canada's orientation camp. joe thorton was invited to canada's olympic team hockey orientation but personal reasons, he is saying thank you but no thanks. he was scheduled to be in alberta this week but he stayed home because his 2-month-old son, river, was battling a sickness. river was hospitalized earlier this month but since been released. that is very, very good. joe decided to stay behind, just in case, that's what good dads do. two other sharks at canada's orientation, including dan boyle, who says joe absolutely made the right decision. mean time, the u.s. men's hockey team says it's going for the gold at sochi, brings back the miracle on ice people police 1980. the team wasn't expected to medal three years ago in vancouver but pulled off a silver medal win this time around, the americans actually might be the favorites. among the 48 players this week's orientation camp, sharks center, joe pavel ski. to hoops now august freshman at colorado state this is awesome, colorado state university living large after a free year's worth of tuition, bang, nailing the half-court shot. this kid is just 19 years old, wins the prize after he sinks that bad boy. he actually was given three chances to do this at a pep rally over the weekend, but he only needed one. let's take another look. that thing just was laser radar, right on the money. and the kid picks up the random drawing to take part in this give away and then he nails it for the free tuition for the year. that is a beautiful thing. congratulations, kid. we will be right back after this. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ [ female 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[ male announcer ] choose at&t and build your bundle. it's whatever works for you. ♪ a couple of wisconsin teenage verse broke an beginness world record for a good cautious the longest table ten his rally ever this one started at 8 a.m. monday morning. aft mother than eight hours of play, the teen record holders emerged, max fergus and luke logan, they came up with the idea last winter to break that record and raise money for special olympics. so congratulations, young men and hopefully arms on ice. probably tired. see you back here tomorrow. [door opens] >> lemon. do you know what the kidney does? >> of course. i was a kidney in my fifth grade school play. ♪ oh, i'm a kidney the other kidney is singing now. >> milton needs a kidney. >> milton, as in your dad? >> my dad? i don't know this guy. >> professor milton greene, who's writing a three-volume biography of jimmy carter, and if i give him a kidney he could live to finish it. >> so what're you gonna do? >> i don't know. he's too old for the waiting list, since giuliani left it's gotten tougher to harvest hobo organs. so it's up to me, and i don't want to be a match. it's too much. does that make me a bad person? >> of course not. >> this is really hard. i need your help. >> ♪ the brain helps you make decisions ♪ >> okay. >> ♪ and your colon pushes out-- ♪ >> okay, that's not helpful. >> sorry. [exciting jazz music] ♪

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