Recording. Relative humidity 33 near the walbridge fire. 7 degrees relative humidity, 49 . Now conditions are a bit more favorable in terms of humidity and temperature at the woodward fire. 55 degrees and relative humidity 100 . The wind gusts up to 23 miles an hour and that is not helpful to fire containment. To the Santa Cruz Mountains in the czu lightning complex, 63 degrees there, humidity up to 72 . The wind gusts, not the wind speed thats a computer mistake, 9 miles per hour. As for air quality, the unhealthy air quality in santa cruz and san jose. Green, good to see that, indicating good air quality in fremont, San Francisco and oakland. Yellow in concord, livermore, san rafael, napa, fairfield. Ft. Bragg, ukiah and point arena. Ill have a further look at the weather later and the fire conditions. Dan . The lnu lightning complex is a top priority for cal fire. Its expanded across napa, sonoma, solano, lake and yolo counties to 357,000 acres. The National Guard brought in 280 guards men and women to help fight the fires. The fires remain a challenge especially in areas that havent burned in more than 100 years. Make no mistake theres lot that has to be done on the walbridge fire. Theres no fire history over there. What i can tell you theres a good plan in place. The folks over there are working tirelessly every day. Cal fire says its letting more evacuees go home. Live to abc 7 News ReporterWayne Freedman in healdsburg near where the walbridge fire is burning. Wayne . Reporter good evening, dan. You might call this a day of Small Victories fighting a very big fire. Firefighters had a chance to catch up with it. In the hills this is what passed for firefighting most of the day, hosing down still smolders trees, cutting stumps, and trying to stay ahead of a walbridge fire that has been hard to catch and more difficult to contain for a week. When you hear about a fire line this is a classic small scale example. This cleared here, this area here burned, that over there is where they dont want the fire to go. Firefighters are working above the Russian River communities. Its deep and accessible and hasnt burned since the 1900s so working out where to establish the containment lines can be tricky. Reporter winemakers may need to call on a few tricks in dealing with the 2020 vintage. This has been one of the earliest harvests on record but they still cannot predict the effect of smoke so thick that at times we could not see from one side of the valley to the other. Bill williamson evacuated last week. He spoke to us from crescent city. The shortterm damage might be some of the vineyards have smoke taint. They are the higher elevations. The valley floor probably suffered pretty well. Reporter how about a restaurant in healdsburg donating boxes of burritos to those firefighters. We can eat. Burning a lot of calories doing this work. Reporter worth noting the firefighters are from patterson and turlock. They told me they havent been home for ten days since the fires began. You have to bet a burrito never tasted better. Live near healdsburg, Wayne Freedman, abc 7 news. All right, wayne, thank you. At least 1,000 Solano County families still cant go back to their homes after being evacuated from the fast moving lnu lightning complex. The wildfires claimed hundreds of homes and toepd as eric thomas toured whats left of one of them with a vacaville woman who lived there. Where this ends we have a deck. And those are the chairs to the deck. Reporter desiree gates has lived off and on in the family home in vacaville since she was 15. Where when your room . Upstairs. Reporter so its somewhere in here. Where that rubble is. Reporter her greatgrandmother moved in and so would desirees dad and sister. This was her sisters mini cooper. Now its just scorched junk. The family was forced to evacuate last wednesday when flames crept up over a nearby ridge. The first time i was ever scared of a fire out here. We just grabbed a bag and the dogs and we left. Reporter despite the enormity of her loss she says she hasnt had time to be sad but is focused on rebuilding. It never ceases to amaze how the flames can leave one home totally unscathed yet a few feet away totally destroy another building. For some of the vacaville residents who lost homes these two 16yearolds are putting their all into helping out. Laura and zana began a small effort to gather food, toiletries and clothes for fire victims but at an event sunday hundreds of people dropped by to donate filling this classroom and part of another at vacaville high. And the best part . They did it without parental help. We just wanted to be there for people who have helped us in our hard times, our friends and family. They came by. It was great knowing they were helping and we were helping those people who needed it. Reporter they plan more events and to distribute in the future. An update on the scu affecting the east bay. 665,000 acres have burned and the complex is 25 contained. Officials say the weather has given crews a small reprieve but they still have a long way to go. Its a moment we need to take a big, deep breath and we need to maintain our diligence for our safety, for the safety of the public. People still need to heed those orders and warnings in place. The communities evacuated, its an inconvenience. We are not going to keep those orders or warnings out there any longer than we have to. Check out the latest map. The Evacuation Order zones are shown in red. Thats where people have to leave, they must get out. The evacuation warnings are in yellow, not mandatory but advised. In green, thats where people are allowed to return home. Lets listen in to a live update from cal fire on the czu lightning complex. Were trying to get this News Conference for you. Theyve been doing it every night right about this time giving us the latest information. Were just continuing to monitor that part of the fire and trying to wrap that up to make that safe. Working down the highway 1 corridor were having more and more success with that putting the control line where we need to. Some selfmitigated, as i said before, and were continuing to monitor that. Davenport is looking really good. Today they were working on reenergizing the electricity back to the community. A lot of work along highway 1 by pg e as well as cal trans to make sure the road is safe to pass. Our line to the south continues to hold. Looks really good. Thats protecting santa cruz and the uc campus. I was there about an hour ago. It looks solid and were comfortable with that. In particular well start seeing the weather change, a northerly push of the wind moving into this weekend so i feel comfortable that will hold and what we also did with the wind blowing on that, a wind test. The lines will hold based on the wind. To us thats a great measure of success because it means that that fire is extinguished and lines are doing what theyre supposed to do. Felton is looking really good. We have good line around threequarters of it and continuing to put line up through the highway 9 corridor behind ben lomond. A lot of crews in. We received a few more hand crews come in and they are working. We put them right to work so were having a lot of success with that and will continue to have success with that. And down just between ben lomond, talking about a burnout operation, just came from that operation right now. Were taking that slow, methodical. The weather conditions, had to delay the operation. As we saw today some fog stuck around a long time, kept the relative humidity up. We had to wait before we started lighting that fire so we have an effective burn and one that we can control readily. Its looking good, burning well, doing exactly what we want it to do. It will take us longer to accomplish the mission because of the weather. Were looking at making that line go just on the back side of felton just below ben lomond and tie into highway 9. So that will give us a good level of protection for the community of felton and then well continue up as we stated up the highway 9 corridor. Bonny doon is looking good. They are mopping up around homes, continuing to find any fire in the ravines and drainages and start to extinguish that, mop that up. There are a lot of hazard trees in there. Weve had a number fall across felton road, specialty crews in to open up the road, cut the trees down and eliminating the hazard trees that could pose a hazard to our personnel or any of the Utility Company folks that are working in that area to start restoring that infrastructure which they are doing as we open up the roadways throughout the fire and the 236 corridor and working with caltrans so we can get deeper into the park and setting up the structure to restore. One matter of note and an unfortunate situation, as i said this morning, highly qualified individuals that are setting up, planning and running the operation. One of our personnel, the commanders that is setting up and running the operation unfortunately last night somebody broke into his Fire Department vehicle and stole his protective equipment. It delayed the operation as well. He was able to get restocked with equipment and continued forward with his mission. A little bit of a delay unfortunately due to that circumstance. The Police Department is working in conjunction with our officials to deal with that issue and moving forward with that. Aircraft, unfortunately, due to the weather today, couldnt really get a lot of hours of flying. Weve been able to max out our aircraft, drop a lot water. Today wasnt as successful, unfortunately, we could not fly due to the weather. As soon as we had the small window of opportunity we did. We were only able to drop about 10,000 gallons of water. Still not bad but in order to support our Ground Troops we couldnt do the maximum effort the past few days. Thats just part of the job, the nature of the job. We have to be able to bounce back, take care of the fire line and start mitigating the circumstance. We believe the weather in the next few days will be better for us and well be able to maximize that effort. Thank you. An update on the czu lightning complex. This is taking place in scotts valley. As you heard really very good news around all the communities, davenport, felton, ben lomond, bonny doon. Everything looking fairly encouraging today. About 80,000 acres and 19 contained. The weather made it a little difficult, as you heard, because of the fog to do a burn operation today. It kept things too moist and they could not fly their aircraft as much as they wanted to because of the weather. A pretty good report out of the czu lightning fire complex today. Its only 19 but encouraging. And you can follow fires statewide with our exclusive wildfire tracker updated with the latest information from cal fire. Check in to see containment information in real time. The fire tracker available at abc7news. Com. I dont agree with what the new cdc guidance, full stop. Its not the policy in the state of california. Its more than federal versus state. Hear what bay area experts have to say about the cdcs new guidelines for coronavirus testing. Symptoms are very similar. As a doctor it will be hard to tell the difference. Think weve had enough . Were about to face a twindemic as cases overlap with fl a live look outside from our mt. Tam camera and a thick layer of smoke still in the distance. You know the situation is serious when you see this thing deployed to fight a fire. Part of cal fires aerial assault against the wildfires has been this boeing 747 specially adapted, of course. It dumped a long streak of red flame retardant over the scu complex. When sky 7 caught up with it this afternoon. Its a payload of nearly 20,000 pounds of retardant or water. The quad jet is the Worlds Largest aerial firefighting aircraft now working hard here in northern california. Smaller aircraft have been making passes over the fire zone like this helicopter. Sky 7 found it siphoning from a lake for another mission over the scu complex. Very impressive to see the equipment they can deploy these days to fight fires. Absolutely. As always as we heard in the czu complex update it depends on the weather whether or not they can fly. So true. The weather is helping a little bit in some ways and not so much in other ways. Our current 24hour temperature change. Notice how much cooler it is all across the area. Significantly cooler than at this time yesterday. Thats helpful, of course. The relative humidity is up and the temperature range right now 50s on the coast, 57 here in San Francisco, low 60s around the bay and 60s and 70s inland. Thats all good news for the fire containment effort. Hazy conditions, low temperatures in the mid to upper 50s. Tomorrow another hazy, smoky day. A little bit warmer than today but not hot tomorrow. Highs will range from mid60s at the coast to mid70s around the bay to mainly upper 80s and low 90s inland. The accuweather sevenday forecast. Two more spare the air days tomorrow and friday cleaner air over the week and a moderate range of summerlike temperatures. Dan, ama . Up next, california makes major changes to coronavirus testing vo my name is cynthia hawkins, the owner of Hawkins House of burgers. My grandparents came here in 1939 and weve been serving this community for over 80 years. My dad always said, take care of your community and they will always take care of you. And they have done so. Through the ups and through the downs. My name may be on this building, but this place belongs to all of us. Inflammation in your eye might be to blame. Ck, looks like a great day for achy, burning eyes overthecounter eye drops typically work by lubricating your eyes and may provide temporary relief. Ha these drops probably wont touch me. Xiidra works differently, targeting inflammation that can cause dry eye disease. What is that . Xiidra, noooo it can provide lasting relief. Xiidra is the only fda approved treatment specifically for the signs and symptoms of dry eye disease. One drop in each eye, twice a day. Dont use if youre allergic to xiidra. Common side effects include eye irritation, discomfort or blurred vision when applied to the eye, and unusual taste sensation. Dont touch container tip to your eye or any surface. After using xiidra, wait 15 minutes before reinserting contacts. Got any room in your eye . Talk to an eye doctor about twicedaily xiidra. I prefer you didnt xiidra. Not today, dry eye. Building a better bay area means looking out for our health. The pandemic appears to be subsiding. The number of new cases, about 6,000, is below average. The number of hospitalized patients continues to drop and is down to about 4,300 from the peak of more than 7,000 a month ago. That number is above average. The test positivity rate, the percentage of tests coming back with a positive result, is on the decline. Over 14 days its at 6. 1 . Seven days its down to 5. 8 . Our special correspondent appeared on abc 7s getting answers at 3 00 and explained why its difficult to fast track a vaccine. It wants to go through three phases of trials. The data has to be great and an fda approval. You make sure the vaccine works and making sure that it can be transported and stored properly. Once approved it wil go to essential workers. Californias governor announced big plans today to expand covid Testing Capacity, cut down costs and shorten test turnaround times, a new plan the state is launching to prepare ahead of flu season. Reporter ahead of whats projected to be a busy flu season. Governor gavin newsom a new approach to disrupt the covid testing market. People that develop flu like symptoms are going to understandably and likely request that they get tested not only for flu but for covid19. Reporter in an effort to prepare the state signed a contract with a major Diagnostics Company that will process an additional 150,000 covid tests per day that will more than double the states current Testing Capacity plus drive down test turnaround times. We are demanding test results back within 24 hours, the latest 48 hours. That will be a big cut from the current five to sevenday wit. Current lip the average cost for a covid test is 150 to 200. Under this new partnership the goal is to drive down that price to around 30. The state hopes to have these labs up and running between november and march of next year. Stepnie sierra, abc 7 news. Officials now say that people without symptoms of covid19 no longer need to be tested even if theyve potentially been exposed to the virus. This abrupt change is prompting alarm from Health Experts who believe this could make matters worse. Abc 7 News Reporter chris nguyen has local reaction from san jose. Reporter Public Health officials didnt hold back after learning about the new covid19 testing guidelines from the cdc. When i first heard about this change in guidelines, i actually didnt believe it. Reporter the Nations HealthProtection Agency now says that as long as a person doesnt show symptoms then testing may not be necessary. Health officers, however, are questioning the guidance saying that its important to identify infections in the small window preceding the onset of symptoms while people are still contagious. It seemed entirely bizarre in that it undercuts our very basic tenets of how we control an infectious disease. Reporter this comes amid questions whether politics has leaked into science. White House Coronavirus Task force member dr. Anthony fauci expressed his concerns earlier this afternoon about the interpretation of these new guidelines saying he was undergoing surgery and under general anesthesia at the time these changes were being discussed by the group. County Officials Say they will continue to urge anyone who may have been exposed to get tested as soon as possible. Failing to test is not going to end this pandemic. Failing to test will not make the virus go away. Reporter the governor saying he disagrees with the cdc. Influenced by those that are experts in the field that feel very differently and so with respect to the cdc that is not the policy guideline we will embrace or adopt in the state of california. Reporter according to their own estimates, those infected with the coronavirus may never go on to develop symptoms which is why experts believe proactive testing is essential. Identifying particularly asymptomatic individuals who have capable of spreading the virus to others, i think, has to be a key part of controlling this pandemic. Reporter in santa clara county, chris nguyen, abc 7 news. Coming up next, the latest on the bay area wildfires that are burning their way into californias record books. Reporter evacuated homeowners could have money coming their way. Im michael finney. 7 on your side is coming up. Fighting a fire is a distinct endeavor and it comes with its own language. We lets get you up to date on the fires burning around the bay area tonight where the weather is helping fire crews. Lets begin with the scu complex where more than 365,000 acres have burned. The complex is 25 contained. 20 structures have been destroyed. Evacuations and road closures remain in place. The National Guard is joining firefighters at the lnu complex burning in napa, solano, lake and yolo counties and has scorched 357,000 acres. It is 33 contained. The fires remain a challenge, however, especially the walbridge fire in Sonoma County where crews are battling difficult terrain in areas that have not burned in more than 100 years. The czu complex in san mateo county. 80,000 acres burned. So far just 19 contained. Things are Getting Better on the fire lines. First responders are pleading with residents to stay out of the evacuation zones until theyre given the all clear. One evacuee got lost. He found a route kind of on the outskirts of the evacuated zone and decided to make his way through a trail, got lost, in an area very steep and luckily for him he literally survived two nights in the woods. These are photos of three missing people from the evacuated fire zones. If you know where they are call the sheriffs office. Evacuation orders for uc was lifted today. Chris reyes spent the day on the front lines with firefighters. Reporter good evening. This is probably the best weather the area has had since the fire ignited. Its smoky and dangerous. When youre fighting a fire in the Santa Cruz Mountains, this is what it looks like. One firefighter scaling a steep terrain. All to fight one hot spot. Some of the hardest hit areas of the czu lightning complex fire. This scene too common along this route and in both counties. More than 500 structures destroyed. The most common question, when will they be allowed to go back home . Let me show you the roads to get to this point and ill give you an idea why thats not happening just yet. Dark, smoky, full of ash and debris and hot spots that continue to smolder and burn. We have to make sure everybody has their utilities in place and the roads are safe to travel. Less smoke, more fog. The extra moisture in the air doesnt allow the fields to burn as intense as it was when it was hot and dry. Reporter that means fire crews can do this kind of work, firing operations where crews fight fire with fire. And they have a couple of firing operations where we fight the fire with fire and make that buffer and heat up the unfueled fire. Reporter its that progress that makes a difference. This black line in the northern zone of the fire their biggest one yet. It means theyre in full control of that area and Evacuation Orders for santa clara kuntzy could be lifted. The roads may be deserted but we found signs everywhere of a community grateful. Another really important piece of information we empathize with residents asking is my home Still Standing . We have a link on our website. You plug in your address and get an answer of your neighborhood. All right, thank you, kris. This map gives you an idea where the danger zone is. The area in red is an Evacuation Order. People there have to get out. As you listen to descriptions of firefighters youll end up hearing the same words used over and over. We use the word complex a lot these days, given to multiple incidents in the same area. To control a fire means its extinguished. Firefighters will go through a mopup stage after the fire has been controlled, crews come through to extinguish anything still burning and remove material that could ignite. The goal is to avoid a reburn, quote, the burning of an area previously burned. Tens of thousands evacuated from the lightning fires may qualify for insurance payouts even if their homes escape damage. Michael finney has some important advice. Reporter the lnu complex fire forced evacuations from the five county area ranging from napa and sonoma counties to lake, solano and yolo counties. Most will be able to return. Insurance Information Network advises homeowners they can get reimbursed for the cost of the evacuation. You may have extra expenses if youre staying in a hotel or having to buy food you wouldnt have normally bought. Reporter janet says those are payable under the loss of use coverage of your homeowners policy. Keep all your receipts and then file your claim. Just know there are limits warns carmen. It may have a dollar amount cap. Doesnt mean that you can head over to the ritz and get that covered. Reporter unfortunately, others may discover their home has burned to the ground. This woman found the home she grew up in destroyed. I had a feeling and, yeah, its pretty bad. There are still flames up there. Reporter dont be afraid to push back if the adjuster reaches a settlement you feel is unfair. At the end of the day the claims adjuster works for the Insurance Company not for you. People often dont realize they negotiate and talk with their claims adjuster and Insurance Company like with a contractor. Reporter she suggests not to go in and retrieve any salvageable items or begin the cleanup until a claims adjuster has inspected. You want the claims adjuster to be there first to document the loss before you start removing eye tells. Reporter a reminder for all of us it is easier to document losses if you take 30 minutes today and video your home and possessions. Im michael finney, 7 on your side. Coming up here next the latest on the coronavirus pandemic affecting our health and education. We love our new home. Theres so much space. We have a guestroom now. But, we have aunts. Youre slouching again, ted. Expired, expired. Expired. Thanks, aunt bonnie. Its a lot of house. I hope you can keep it clean. At least geico makes bundling our home and Car Insurance easy. Which helps us save a lot of money oh, teddy. Did you get my friend request . Uh, ill have to check. doorbell ringing aunt jonis here for bundling made easy, go to geico. Com. Hello . Health experts are sounding the alarm to head off what could be the perfect storm for california hospitals as two potentially deadly viruses strike statement. Reporter Laura Anthony has our story. Some insurance what we refer to as the twindemic, the flu and covid season. Reporter as if the covid crisis isnt enough. State and local Health Officials are gearing up for the upcoming flu season. Its going to be hard to tell the difference. Reporter hospitals like john muir will test for both to determine best treatments. We have a few different testing platform, two of which test mainly for just for covid and then we have a third platform increasing capacity of the test for covid, influenza and the most common respiratory. Reporter schools could make reopening decisions based on covid only to be hit later by a surge in flu cases. Although flu outbreaks alone dont normally cause school closures. In short medical experts strongly urge people to get a flu shot this year. We dont have polio today, small pox today and were able to prevent severe influenza infection. Vaccinations have changed the whole scope of medical care. Reporter perhaps one bright spot in all of this the fact were all masks up for the coronavirus may help keep the spread of the flu in check. Evidence from australia indicates all the coronavirus precautions stifled a major flu outbreak there. One of the suppositions was because of masking and social distancing. A supposition not proven, but i think that makes a certain amount of sense to me. Reporter its a trend experts hope also plays out here. Laura anthony, abc 7 news. Part of building a better bay area is ensuring our students get a quality education, of course. Santa clara county is approving waivers for schools to offer inperson classes. The first approval is for the Moreland School district in san jose allowing it to provide inperson instruction. Students of essential workers and students who have struggled with remote learning. Classes started last week and today is the first day of classes for cal students though the campus is officially closed and all are held remotely. You can get an idea just how quiet uc berkeley is on this first day of the new semester. Abc 7 News ReporterLyanne Melendez shows you what its like on the ground. Reporter one year ago uc berkeley was bustling with students as the fall semester began. Today the plaza was noticeably empty as the virus sent everyone learning from a distance. All my classes are online. I just had spanish over zoom this morning at 8 00 a. M. Reporter the Student Union was closed and so was the main library. Students on campus are limited to one per one. Anyone gathering a gathering on or off campus will face disciplinary action. Everyone has to be tested and students are meant to selfisolate. You are supposed to be by yourself for seven days. But then after that you are allowed to have a small group of people you can go out and do stuff with. Reporter more than 50 years ago the steps served as the place students gathered to demand that uc berkeley lift its ban on political activism. Today their voices have been temporarily silenced by the virus. Still, there was one Group Protesting today. A cal alumna remembers her days of activism. I gathered in support of anita hill. This is where i would meet my friends for lunch. I just remember a very vibrant campus with little or no inperson, stu alumni agree the spirit of cal will live on. Its a bad time but, go bears still. Our little chant, you know it, you told the story, you tell the whole world this is their territory. Reporter those memories live on despite a canceled football season. All nba playoff games today are canceled. It started as a player several major developments tonight in the Police Shooting of jacob blake in wisconsin. Wisconsins department of justice released details today saying kenosha officer Rusten Sheskey fired his weapon seven times seriously wounding blake. The investigation says police first used a taser on blake but that didnt work. A 17yearold boy from illinois arrested accused in a shooting that killed two people during Police Protests last night in kenosha. Witnesses say he opened fire after he tripped and fell. Police describe the teenager as a white police admirer. Two people are dead. This is not a police action. This is not the action i believe of those who set out to do protests. It is the persons who are involved after the legal time involved in illegal activity that brought violence to this community. Wisconsins governor says hes sending an additional 500 National Guard troops to kenosha tonight. Blake was shot sunday in the back as he appeared to reach in his car. The family Attorney Says he did not have a gun. In protests there are no nba games. The giants dodgers game just canceled the game that was supposed object under way right now. Sports director larry beil is live with details. Once again the Sports Community getting very involved in whats happening in the news. The Milwaukee Bucks decided not to play because of the shooting in wisconsin and the impact was felt throughout the sports world hour by hour with three nba playoff games postp e postponed and three Major League Baseball games postponed including, as you mentioned here in San Francisco where the giants and dodgers decided they were not going to take the field tonight. Ever since the shooting of george floyd in may athletes have been vocal taking part in protests. When nba players went into the bubble in orlando they insisted the spotlight remain on the black lives matter movement. With this recent shooting the players are saying enough is enough here. They want League Owners to start using their political and financial muscle to make sure that real changes in society occur. Weve seen the horrendous video of jacob blake being shot in the back seven times by a Police Officer in kenosha and the additional shooting of protesters. Despite the plea for change, there has been no action. Some things are just bigger than sports and i dont think it should require athletes needing to boycott playoff games to remind us black lives matter and that Police Brutality is unacceptable. Its amazing why we keep loving this country and this country does not love us back. Im very proud of the players. I dont know the next steps. I dont really care what the next steps are but the first steps are to garner attention and they have everybodys attention around the world right now. This feels like were stuck. Things are not changing. Were not doing anything productive. How can we get something to change, right . We need something to change not just attention on the problem. As a black man, as a former player, i think its best for me to support the players and not be here tonight. Its unclear what will happen with the nba playoffs, more postponements could be in the works. Well have to see on that. From Major League Soccer the earthquakes match with portland tonight has been postponed. By the way, today happens to be the fouryear anniversary of the first time 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick did not stand for the National Anthem which might be a good time to ask how much has really changed in four years . Dan, ama, back to you. Hurricane laura is poised to strike as a powerful category four storm. People rushed to board up homes. Officials arent taking any chances either ordering more than half a Million People to evacuate across texas and louisiana and are warning of a storm surge that could reach 20 feet. This has been categorized as an unsurvivable storm surge where it will be hitting. And that storm surge could continue inland for about 30 miles. Once it gets past a category 2 with the surge issues theres no way i will take that chance. Everything is boarded up. Other than that i think ill be all right. This view from the International Space station shows the enormity of the storm. Look at it. Its so big. A state of emergency is in effect in arkansas. More than 300 miles inland. This is no joke. People are gearing up. This is a monster, ama. A cat 4. Im not sure one has ever hit that part of the coast at that strength. Not quite. Katrina was a category 5, that was in 2005, that was further to the east. This one is closing in on category 5 strength right now, dan. Almost no doubt this will be a catastrophic hurricane with maximum sustained wind right now 150 miles an hour. As i mentioned its getting even stronger. Lets take a look at the area affected. We have Tropical Storm warnings and hurricane warnings not only for the coastal areas of eastern texas and louisiana but look at all the inland areas as well. As ama pointed out in her piece there we expect a storm surge of about 20 feet which would just be devastating and potentially deadly. The storm is expected to make landfall between 11 00 p. M. And 1 00 a. M. Our time tonight and push inland still as a powerful hurricane before it loses strength and makes an eastward turn going to the Atlantic Coast that would happen some time tomorrow. It has many states to cross over before it goes back out to sea again and, of course, it could do unspeakable damage. A possible storm surge up to 20 feet, were talking about a dangerous and deadly storm. Shelters are being set up at the same time people are coping with covid19. Back to the bay area. Hazy, smoky conditions with low temperatures mid to upper 50s. Tomorrow look for hazy, smoky conditions again. High temperatures will range from mid60s at the coast to mid70s around the bay shoreline. And heres the accuweather sevenday forecast. After two more spare the air days we expect cleaner air. Better air quality and slightly cooler conditions going into the week because friday looks like it will be a hot one in our inland areas. Ama and dan . All right. Vice president mike pence will take the stage tonight at the Republican National convention wel have its made for this guy a veteran who honorably served and its made for her shes serving now we made it for all branches and all ranks whether they served one tour or made a career of it. We also made usaa for military spouses and their kids usaa is easy to work with and can save you money on auto, home and renters insurance. Become a member today. Get an insurance quote at usaa. Com quote usaa. What youre made of were made for its night three of four of the Republican National convention tonight, and its the Vice President s turn to take the stage. Live coverage starts at 7 00 p. M. So coming up shortly abc 7 news anchor is here. The theme is land of heroes and through that lens is how Vice President mike pence is expected to deliver his speech tonight. His team says there will be a heavy emphasis on military, veterans, Law Enforcement and everyday heroes. The backdrop is ft. Mchenry. We know the Vice President has been very vocal about his opposition to athletes to kneel during the National Anthem. It will be interesting and interesting timing given the nbas decision today to postpone all games because of the Police Shooting of jacob blake. Its unclear if the Vice President will address the shooting tonight. Already we heard from the Vice President s wife, second lady karen pence, she spoke about military spouses and the 100th anniversary of women getting the right to vote. We heard from tennessee senator Marsha Blackburn who criticized the calls to defund the police. As hard as the democrats try they cant cancel our heroes, they cant contest their bravery, and they cant dismiss the powerful sense of service that lives deep in their souls. So far tonight we havent heard about the potentially catastrophic hurricane barreling towards texas. All of these speeches are taped. We will see how and if he addresses it tonight, the Vice President , and we will also see the president again tonight. Hes going to join the Vice President at his speech in baltimore. Now live abc Network Coverage begins next. It runs from 7 00 until 8 00 p. M. Starting right after the convention catch united we fall, the goldbergs, the conners and single parents. Jeopardy followed by wheel of fortune. Reporter im kate larsen where the National Guard has just arrived today. You can see their gear and tents and vehicles are all set up here ready to go. Heading to the front lines of the walbridge fire tomorrow. Coming up at 11 00 all of the training that they have received to get ready for the firefight. And feeling anxious and tired. Thousands of wildfire evacuees head to san jose. That is going to do it for this edition of abc news. Thank you for joining us tonight. Im ama daetz. And im dan ashley. For all of us here, we appreciate your time. Enjoy the rest of your evening and well see you tonight at 11 00. We saw the earthquake grace in bold was offering a grant program. I signed up and i was actually selected it leaves the house in tack. You now know that in the next earthquake your house will be standing and we also got a discount on our earthquake insurance. If there is an earthquake. Our house has a better chance of surviving in. This is an abc news special. Its on. An ardent defender. This election has never been clearer. And loyal lieutenant. Now is the time. This is the moment. For each of us to do everything that we can in our power to reelect this president. Tonight, Vice President mike pence defends the ticket and makes his case for four more years. Live from new york city and across the country, the Republican National convention. Now reporting, chief anchor george stephanopoulos. Good evening and welcome to night three of the Republican National convention. The headliner tonight, Vice President mike pence. From ft. Mchenry in baltimore. The sight of the battle that