listening to speeches. rally organizers say they are relieved the court blocked key provisions of the immigration law that would require police to check immigration status of people they suspect are illegal but say that law is just a small piece of a large problem. rally organizers want congress to pass the development relief and education of alien minors' act which would created a pathway to citizenship. and they want a secure community program suspended. that program sends fingerprints taken in the city to officials so people that get in trouble may end up getting deported. protesters want to see an end to immigrant families being ripped apart. >> we're living in fear not knowing if you're parents are going to be there when they get home. that's not a way to live. i think that we can come up with smart solutions to the broken immigration system. the people feel it's wrong and it's important that this should be a line that people get into.

>> reporter: protesters here say they will continue to monitor developments in the arizona case as well as continue their fight for comprehensive immigration reform. their concerned as long as federal rules aren't changed state also continue to take controversial action against immigrants. rally organizers say this is just one of several actions that will be taking place here in the bay area in the next 24 hours. they say lawmakers need to start talking and get to work on immigration reform in a statement from house speaker nancy pelosi's office it says she agrees it's time to start talking and stop the politics. reporting live in san francisco, nbc bay area news. >> thank you. for more on today's immigration ruling including reaction from arizona tune in to "the nightly news," with brian williams. that's coming up at 5:30. for state workers it is here we go again! governor schwarzenegger says he is going to implement furlows again because of the state's fiscal crisis. the governor will require state workers to take three unpaid days off each month beginning in

august, until there's a budget. and there is no sign of that happening. excluded from the furlows are 37,000 workers represented by unions which have agreed to contracts that include furlough days and higher pension contributions by workers. the highway patrol and the department of fire and forestry protection are among several departments not affected by this new furlough order. in spite of all the financial trouble the state is in there's one millity billion dollar project which continues fuel steam ahead. the new eastern span of the bay bridge we're talking about. today was not just any day. the first piece of the bridge's signature tower is moving into place as we speak. nbc bay area's garvin thomas is live on treasure island with a look at the progress at long last. garvin? >> reporter: let's take you right to the action. action might be too strong a word. mikey, zoom into that spot. see that metal framework in the

white and grey tower that's sitting inside? it almost looks like a rocket and it's ready to launch. it is being lowered ever so slowly into place right now. now, lowered so slowly as you stand here and watch it you can't even discern the progress. but it is going down there. they say they don't want to go too fast because they don't want to get it swinging at roughly 1200 tons that would be a bad thing. come to think of it, how slowly this tower piece is moving into place is a pretty good metaphor for how long this whole bridge project is taking. even those who showed up to celebrate a milestone today couldn't help but regret what's happened in the past. >> i have to be honest, i, at a point when i was the city supervisor thought this would never happen. this thing got caught up in so much politics the likes of which i never could imagine. >> reporter: but apparently, time and some $6 billion were enough to fix the problem.

we're making history. this is expected to open sometime in 2013, at the beginning of construction on the to youer is a big part of meeting that goal. so big caltrans took a boatload of reporters and photographers to watch it happen today. this will be 525 feet tall, the largest of its type in the world and we're putting the first 165-foot tall section of it in place on the bay today. the tower which will eventually be made up of 20 pieces like this, will be the signature element of what will, one day, be the world's largest self-anchored suspension bridge. it will be worth the wait they tell us. >> this is a world-class structure. nothing like it in the united states of america. one can argue there's no tower like this anywhere in the world! this is something for generations that we're going to be very, very proud of. >> reporter: as the tower continues to be lowered ever so slowly, i want to leave you with one final thought. one reason as to why they were taking such great care with it. once it is in place, it is

expected to stay there for the next 150 years! reporting live from trease island, garvin thomas, bay area news. today's milestone was a long time in the making. in october of 1989, the earthquake caused part of the eastern span to collapse. in february, 1997, governor pete wilson announced the eastern span would be rebuilt. then in january of 2002, the groundbreaking for the project was held and caltrans predicting completion in 2007. in june of 2002, the date was pushed back to 2009, which brings us to today with the crews beginning to install the first piece of the 525-foot tower of the self-anchored suspension span. the project is expected to be finished in the year 2013. the estimated opening to traffic, a year later. no weekend service for ac transit. that's one of several drastic

possibilities facing the agencies as it tries to dig out of an estimated $60 million deficit. the agency wants its largest union, the bus drivers and mechanics to make $15 million in labor concessions. atu balked at that and when negotiations broke down the agencies imposed new work rules which a judge upheld temporarily. last week, at least 180 drivers called in sick every day which is twice the usual amount. on friday, the court is scheduled to review the union's challenge to overturn the contract. off the mound. san jose mayor chuck reed is ending his efforts to put a downtown ballpark proposal on the november ballot days after the surprise announcement the city would get the ball park proposal on the ballot to get the oakland a's to san jose. we talked with baseball executive who is promised to pay for a special election if one is needed in the spring. reed still plans to ask the city

council so adopt the resolution of support for aloufing the a's to move to san jose. a new fix for the iphones antenna problem and it comes from a giant retail chain. nbc scott budman is here to show us how it works. scott? >> we haven't found many people with antenna problems with the new apple phone but there's a new solution, this one from best buy giving away this side shield. essentially, a slice of clear plastic from a company called "zag." the offer is good from an iphone 4 from best buy and it starts today. checking your money, stocks falling back after weakness in the economy. shoppers bought fewer durable goods. big-ticket items like washers and dryers. among the stocks to watch tomorrow, symantec, cupertino and shares dropping after hours

by 8%. we got earnings from san francisco credit card giant, visa, lots of people using plastic but the company's profit dipped a bit over the last three months. visa shares fell by 2%. firefighters continue to battle two huge fires in southern california this evening. the first one is in the mountains about 70 miles north of los angeles. so far, it is burned more than 1400 acres. initially investigators said the fire destroyed 30 to 40 structures. but they revised the number to 25. about 150 homes remain threatened and only the fire is about 25% contained. about 40 miles to the north of that fire, in the sequoia national forest another fire has burned about 24 square miles. so far, it has burned eight homes near and no word what started the fire. a more in-depth study on the possibility that fire retardant

may kill endangered fish and plants. a judge ruled a current study was inadequate and gave the forest service until the end of next year for a new assessment. still ahead at 5:00, need a jolt? the two bay area cities topping the list of the most caffeinated places in the country. signing up for free backpacks? why this year's need is unprecedented and the kids are inspirational. critical information tonight about cpr. the new research that could help save more lives. and the potential diabetes breakthrough involving wireless technology. and good afternoon, i'm chief meteorologist jeff ranieri. another mild day across the bay area. we did have a little bit of warming. we'll tell you about morel rnretuinom cg up.wh t 80s will return coming up. what this droid does will change how you do movies.

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summer goes by fast, doesn't it? it's this time of year. time to start thinking of back to school shopping. for an increasing number of families in this down economy that means looking for a helping hand. nbc bay area damian trujillo spent the morning at sacred heart community center in san jose where the line stretched around the block. >> reporter: these are families who don't even have enough for school supplies for their kids. even the south bay charity was amazed as today's turnout. hundreds of people signing up for free backpacks. by 7:00 a.m. the line already stretched around the block. >> this is unprecedented in terms of what we're seeing. >> reporter: what they were seeing was a flood of people. some too tired to watch the

turnout. they're here because they want their kids to have all the tools to start the school year. >> folders and pencils and like, a lot of stuff i need for my school. >> reporter: but with tightening budgets, no families in this line can afford the basics. >> it's hard getting school supplies for -- even though our parents don't have enough money to buy them. >> we came here because our parents don't have jobs and they can't afford to buy us a backpack because they have no jobs so that's why we came here. >> reporter: here, is the sacred heart service's center. the line to register for backpacks was just getting longer. >> we've never seen this. many middle class families are reaching out and saying, i don't have enough money to provide the seven shalts for my children to start the school year right. >> reporter: it took this rodriguez family four hours to get to the front of the line.

the kids say it's not fun when all the other kids in class are breaking in new shoes or new backpacks. >> i feel left out, kind of. but it's okay. i know some day i'll have good stuff. >> reporter: the power of optimism. >> the backpack give-away begins on august 19th. they say this year's demand easily surpassed last year's number so they are hoping for an increase in donations to meet that demand. >> thanks a lot, damian. a potential medical breakthrough for diabetes patients. it involves an implantable sensor that constantly measures blood sugar and transmits that information wirelessly. when it's tested in animals the sensors give accurate readings. for more than a year researchers from the university of san diego and university of the california san diego hope to begin the first human trial in a few months. if the fda ultimately approves

that sensor they say it could replace sticking your fing jeer if someone collapsed in front of you and needed cpr, would you know what to do? two new studies suggest simplifying the instructions may be more beneficial for someone suffering a medical emergency. we have this story. >> reporter: that disco hit by the bee gees came to mind when he saw this. the man suffered a major heart attack while jogging. staying alive has 103 beats a minute. it's about the speed experts say you should go if you ever need to do chest compressions during cpr. tom ellison kept the beat until help arrived saving the man's life. but too often bystanders are not comfortable. how many times do you push on the chest? when do you breathe? it's so complicated and hard to remember for most people is a

problem. >> reporter: two new studies published may help clarify matters both suggest the best cpr method is a hand's-only approach. chest compressions only. no rescue breathing needed. >> push hard and fast in the center of the victim's chest and that's all you have to do. you don't have to remember how many times. you don't have to think about the breathing piece. >> reporter: most cpr training programs include rescue breathing, a technique experts say is helpful in limited circumstances like drowning victims and children. but in any emergency, researchers say chest compressions are better than nothing. >> they can't make them any worse. if you do nothing they're going to die. >> reporter: luck by for this jogger tom ellison did do something, saving a life by keeping the beat. the american red cross supports the hands-only cpr approach but encourages taking certified courses to become trained in chest compressions and breathing. >> it's important to know that stuff. what a beautiful day it was

today. >> it was. a little bit of the mercury going up. if you have a pool great day. that's for some parts of the bay area you see in san jose, it was comfortable but we're on track for the coldest july in history for san jose. 68.2 is the current average. the coolest july average back in 1987 was 68.3. that's the daytime highs and lows at night. currently, it's pleasant and enjoyable but certainly, if we were in an average period when it comes to temperatures where you should have some 90s in the south bay but we've got 72 in san jose and 81 in gilroy. we should still be in the 80s for the east bay but we're look k at 77 in livermore and 74 in the north bay to santa rosa. the fog is off the coastline and tomorrow we'll get some slight warming in here for a few more 80s coming to our inland spots.

overall we're looking at a mild trend lingering right into the beginning of august as we'll look in our seven-day forecast. right now, off the satellite loop we have some areas of disturbances out here. no major storm systems but we've got some cool air for this time of year associated with this so we're getting a small slice of that. combine that with the marine layer at the lower levels that's what's keeping us mild and will for the next two days. we'll see a few 80s for tomorrow but no widespread heat expected for thursday. and for friday, numbers going up a little bit more as well for some of our inland spots. tomorrow morning, starting off with patchy fog inland at 6:00 a.m. with temperatures in the low 50s. by 11:00 a.m., mostly sunny and near 70 degrees. for tomorrow, the warmer spot for the south bay, 80s. morgan hill,gilroy, evergreen, low 80s. 77 in san jose. a mix of 60s and 70s for the peninsula from san francisco down to redwood city heading over to oakland, 69.

80 in concord. 84 in fairfield and 76 in napa. for the north bay, one of our biggest temperature ranges, anywhere from 61 to 75 in sonoma to 80s in calistoga and lake port. morningtime on the weather channel on cable. otherwise, you'll see as we head to the weekend, mid 80s inland as we roll over into august and cool at the coast with temperatures in the low 60s and some clouds. right where we've been it looks like we'll be staying. >> all right. not so bad at all. >> no. >> thank you, jeff. when we have some breaking news right now to share with you. we had told you earlier about the immigration reform protest that are under way in san francisco. let's go back out to jeanne. we understand that some arrests are being made? >> reporter: there are, tom. this rally has moved out to 7th street. let me get out of the way. protesters have moved off the plaza of the federal building and into the street blocking traffic at 7th and mission. it looks like 7th is closed and

mission is opened at this point. you can see san francisco police officers and federal police officers are surrounding people who have decided to sit down in the middle of the street and block traffic. the police departments have made some arrests. this is all part of the protesters effort to get lawmakers attention. they say it's time to talk about serious, comprehensive immigration reform and they say what happened in arizona today is a good step but there's still a lot to talk about as far as getting immigration reform on the table. so these protesters have decided to move into the street and block traffic. police are speaking with them and making arrests. we'll keep you updated on the situation but right now 7th street at mission is blocked and police are moving in to those folks out of the street. reporting live, nbc bay area news. >> thank you. we'll have an updat a st> he alad hhe here, more news, stay with us. er

i had on the calendar. former first lady, nancy reagan, joined governor schwarzenegger in southern california for a ceremony signing that makes february 6th every year ronald reagan day. the bill signed in simi valley reagan was governor of california before he became president of the united states. governor schwarzenegger says the day will serve as a reminder of everything reagan did for the state. >> a few of any figures have had such a profound influence on me as ronald reagan. he's my hero. i have a bust of him in my office. pictures of him in my office. some of the cabinet room is named after him. the ronald reagan cabinet room and when we make decisions we think first o about what would ronnie have done. >> reagan's 100th birthday will be february 6th of next year. a second bill creates a commission to created a reagan

centennial celebration. tonight a controversial cocaine law signed during reagan's presidency is headed to president obama's desk with major revisions. congress passed the "fair sentencing act" today narrows the divide for possession of crack and powder cocaine. that measures alters a nearly 25-year-old law that puts a person convicted of crack cocaine possession behind bars with for the same as amount of 100 times cocaine. it's used by a disproportionate law of black users so they have concerns about discrimination. we're learning that the man who owns "trader joe's" died. he was 88 years old. forbesranked him the 36th richest person in the world. he bought trader joes in 1979 and expanded to 340 stores in 25 states. he had remained fairly reclusive

since he was kidnapped in 1971 and held for ransome for 17 days. and we'll behtk wacitacht wh the most caffeinated cities in the country.

people in the bay area just love their jolt of java. in fact, two bay area cities top a new list of the most caffeinated towns in america. no surprise, seattle, which is on the starbucks, ranks number one in the list that the "daily beast" compiled. san jose is number three and san francisco rounds out the top five. the list used cities with the most number of coffee shops per capita and the average monthly spent on coffee. >> no surprise most cities have a lower temperature than we do

here. well, "the nightly news" is coming up next. more local news headed your way at 6:00, including the arrests at the immigration reform rally in san francisco. we'll see you then!