and a good morning. thanks for joining us for our midday newscast. i'm marcus washington. kamala harris back in her home state of california. she's here speaking with officials about wildfires and the devastation they have caused. nbc bay area's kris sanchez is tracking that trip. kris? >> reporter: well, hi there, marcus. we expect that kamala harris is going to talk about climate change. just yesterday she said to reporters we cannot afford with governor newsom and fire officials near the creek fire where hundreds of people were trapped by flames and ultimately had to be national guard. visit

met with president trump where cal fire launches its biggest fire fighting aircraft. in california 57% of forests are owned by the federal government. newsom urged the president to reconsider his position on climate change, which based on this exchange you're about to see with the state's natural resources secretary, he won't, and biden pointed to the consequences. >> it'll start getting cooler. you just watch. >> i wish science agreed with you. >> i don't think science knows actually. >> literally on fire, and he blames the people whose homes and communities are burning. he says, quote, you got to clean your floors, you got to clean your forest. >> reporter: harris is going to be with governor gavin newsom.

she's also going to meet with fire personnel. we understand that she may be meeting with some of the families who are under evacuation order at an evacuation center. of course we will follow her trip as she makes her way through central california. and we will bring that to you on nbcbayarea.com. also a full wrap-up at 5:00 and 6:00. kris sanchez, nbc bay area news. >> we'll be watching. kris, thank you. well, a micro climate weather alert for you. today marking the 29th straight spare the air day. not the sight we love seeing. well, there is some good news though. the air is changing. meteorologist kari hall has been tracking it. we see a slight change in the north bay this morning. >> yeah. we've seen some improvements there. but i wanted to show you this big map that shows the smoke traveling across the country. if you follow me on social media, i've been re-tweeting people in the midwest and even in new york city and connecticut that are seeing that smoke coming through.

it gave them a reallyeven as we another storm system bring in some fresher breezes. but it's also drawing in some of that smoke as well. we have so much of it to get rid of as we take a live look outside in walnut creek. looking at all of our micro climates and the air quality that will remain unhealthy today, we've seen some improvements near the coast as well as parts of the north bay. but the forecast calls for some more improvement going into the weekend. it doesn't mean it'll be completely clear, but we'll talk about that in a few minutes, marcus. >> any improvements gets us a little excited. well, september has traditionally been the month when apple invites select members of the press to see the new iphone. not much is traditional in this age of coronavirus. scott mcgrew has been following this. apple not holding that usualt. no new iphone, scott?

>> reporter: no new iphone. the 5g model not yet. as for the crowd, there wasn't one. this one is all virtual. >> here at apple, we feel a deep responsibility to keep innovating, to continue making products that enrich people's lives in meaningful ways. today we're focusing on two products that have played integral roles in people's everyday lives, apple watch and ipad. >> reporter: that was tim cook welcoming people to a virtual event. apple says its newest model of phone will be delayed. many companies seeing their products delayed because of the pandemic. apple was able to show off a few new things as it conducted its meeting online, including the ability for the apple watch to now read oxygenation levels through the watch. that is a big deal, especially in this day and age of covid. an important achievement really. something called apple one. that's all apple services in one

monthly payment. and apple realizing services can be as profitable as itsor ipad, better performance of the new ipad air. [ bell ringing ] apple stock is up this morning as is most of the stock market as well. it seems like they've got the jitters from last week out of the way, although, marcus, september tends to be very difficult on stocks. so, with this apple thing, not a lot of new things, new colors, new improvements. but it is easy to forget what miraculous things apple is able to accomplish, particularly the oxygenation -- i have such trouble saying that through its watch. but, again, no brand-new products to tell you about, just improvements on very good old products. >> absolutely, scott. and that's the word i have a hard time saying too. thanks.

well, just into our news room, a big bust by federal officials and concord police. this is of a street gang alleged to have operated throughout contra costa county. three people now face charges linked to unsolved homicides in the county. the u.s. attorney's office saying that they are members of the surenos street gang. in addition, they also say that the gang members sold guns and drugs out of a shopping center along monument boulevard including ak assault-style weapons. more than two dozen people were arrested in connection with that investigation. san leandro police officer was in court. this is to answer charges tied to a deadly shooting in a walmart. two weeks ago prosecutors filed charges against officer the death of stephen taylor in april. that video shows fletcher holding a baseball bat in the store. investigators say less than 40 seconds passed from the time fletcher arrived to when he tazed taylor and ultimately shot

him. fletcher will be arraigned on those charges of voluntary manslaughter. the fight to slow the spread and protect others from covid-19 continues. one bay area city now looking to join other cities by fining people for not wearing those masks. nbc bay area's cierra johnson is live for us in berkeley. i know that vote to approve that fine takes place today. >> reporter: good morning. exactly. when those city council members gather today, they will vote to pass or deny an ordinance that would allow the city to enforce the health orders of the city health official, essentially fining folks for not wearing a mask or following social distancing. this really looks to address those not taking this ordinance seriously. if approved, a fine of $100 would be issued for not wearing a mask or following social distancing. that fine would increase for those repeating the behavior. we've been out here and we had a

chance to speak with someone. listen to their thoughts on this ordinance. >> it protects me and protects the person i'm talking to. plus, the spread of the disease. and i think we as a society, especially in america, we are privileged, and we just need to take care of each other. that's the bottom line. >> reporter: and if approved, the city would join other municipalities like contra costa and napa and sonoma counties. the city of berkeley is reporting seven new covid cases each day. and according to the spokesperson for cal berkeley here, the university has allegedly received 24 reports of covid-related violations, both on campus or off-campus housing.

so, we'll be sure to let you know what comes out of that meeting. that meeting of course virtually because we are in the midst of a pandemic. we'll bring you the latest both on air and online. reporting live from berkeley, cierra johnson for nbc bay area news. well, contra costa's restrictions are easing just a bit this week. right now the county is at the most restrictive level, which is purple. this is on the governor's 4 tier system. the current restrictions are actually more severe than what the state requires. starting tomorrow, that will all change. the county will allow all businesses on the state's permitted list to reopen, meaning personal care salons and card rooms will be able to reopen, providing they operate outdoors. well, that smoke is not only bad for your lungs, but it could also be bad for the wine industry. nbc bay area's bob redell is in livermore to explain the growing concerns for winemakers now in the middle of harvest season. >> reporter: the threat of smoke

is a real concern for winemakers in napa, sonoma and livermore. he says if enough smoke gets on the grapes and permeates the skin, the wine can end up with an acrid, smokey lick the bottom of the ash tray kind of flavor even though the scu fire burned several mile as way from his vineyard, there was a lot of smoke and ash that blew through here. they are now waiting on test results to see if his grapes were affected by that smoke. problem is ets laboratories is backlogged with so many test requests from winemakers, he won't get the results in time so he'll have to harvest his grapes, make his wine andd out three years from smoke taint. if there are issues, it's kind of like making a cake for the queen of england and you bake the cake and you don't know until you take that first slice whether it was salt or sugar that you put into the cake. that's kind of what we're dealing with. we really won't know until the

product is finished. ets laboratories tells us the smoke may be transitory in as little as none at all. even though it's too early to speculate, ets doesn't think the smoke would affect an entire vintage. this is a first for him in his 25 years of making wine. again, he reiterates he doesn't know yet if his wine was affected. and if it was, he wouldn't be putting that wine out in the market. reporting here in livermore, bob redell, nbc bay area news. >> all right, bob, thank you. and tonight we continue our week-long series on black businesses fighting to make it in the bay. and we raise a glass to the bay area wine industry. so the bay area has no shortage of reds and whites, but it's rare that the person creating them is black. meet the black livermore winemaker working to change that perception one glass at a time. be sure to watch that story up tonight at 6:00. and much more ahead for you this midday.

an l.a. county deputy is being called a hero. her action that saved her partner's life. and we're tracking hurricane sally as that storm takes aim at the gulf coast. the danger people living in that area are facing. plus, kelly clarkson plays a game with singer jason derulo. the competition you don't want to miss. you can watch "the kelly clarkson show" at 3:00 this afternoon. [upbeat music] ♪ today was the day that i put everything in perspective. ♪

♪ i fell asleep but when i woke up. ♪ (boy) hi, do you want to share my sandwich? (vo) good feeds our connections. good feeds us all. hormel natural choice lunch meats.

welcome back. this is a live look right now. this is after the situation settlement dealing with breonna taylor. we're expecting the family's attorney to speak about that settlement with the city of louisville. taylor died in march when officers broke into her apartment with a no-knock search warrant in connection with a drug investigation. the city will pay a seven-figure

sum. attorneys say that the agreement will be one of the largest the city has paid in its history. kentucky attorney general is now investigating that shooting. san francisco leaders will meet today to discuss what to do with some of the money reallocated from police de-funding efforts. now the examiner reports that the city's office of economic and workforce development will receive 21 million additional dollars to this fiscal year. that doubles the overall amount to more than $43 million. mayor london breed has previously said that that money will likely be reinvested into the black community. other money had been redirected to the public health department. now to the latest on that ambush in compton, that attack leaving two l.a. county sheriffs deputies gravely injured as an urgent manhut is still underway for the person who shot those officers at near point-blank range. we've seen the video of that ambush as those deputies were

sitting in their patrol car. and now we are seeing heroism captured on another security camera as those two deputies took cover. and we should warn you that that video is graphic. here's nbc's gaddy schwartz. >> reporter: this morning new details on the hero deputy shot in what law enforcement is calling a cowardly ambush in compton. >> she gets on the radio in spite of the condition of her mouth and she puts out some radio traffic. >> reporter: the 31-year-old mother of a 6-year-old boy had to have her mouth wired shot after they were shot. >> there's no provocation, conflict, nothing. it was just cold-blooded ambush. >> reporter: the other officer, a 24-year-old man shot multiple times stumbles out of the car. >> he is bleeding excessively from his arm and his forehead. >> reporter: the female deputy still not named by authorities was shot in the face but somehow manages to call for backup

murmerring their location through a broken jaw. >> she's tending to their partner. she's hiding him and her motherly instincts are taking over. >> reporter: she applies a tourniquet before help arrives. the deputies rushed to the hospital where both are now in stable condition. it comes as sheriff alex villanueva is issuing a new challenge to one of the biggest names in sports. this challenge is to lebron james. i want you to match that and double that reward. asking lebron james to match the reward money for the gunman who is still on the run this morning. james is one of the most vocal athletes to speak out about social issues and has condemned police shootings in the past. >> i know people get tired of hearing me say it but we are scared. >> likewise, we need to appreciate the respect for life goes across professions, across races, creeds, and i'd like to

see lebron james step up to the. so the fbi has offered to assist in finding the person responsible. the reward for information leading to an arrest was $100,000. but now has been increased to well over $150,000 and growing. meanwhile, the sheriff says that he expects both officers to be okay. hurricane sally continues to turn in the gulf and is inching closer to making landfall here in the u.s. forecasters are predicting as much as two feet of rain for some parts of alabama. historic flooding is predicted in some parts of the gulf coast. that slow pace of the storm is a major concern. >> we are going to have a huge amount of rain with a slow-moving storm and then on top of that we still have to surge. >> storm surge in some spots is landfall sometime late tobeing those storms,h.

and this storm moving so slowly. they're talking about the possibility of about a foot and a half of rain in this region. this is what the storm looks like right now as we see it turning right over the water. and once again not really moving too much. and so as we see the track of this storm, it's not expected to intensify much more from where it is now, which is good news, but the slow nature of that tropical system will dump lots of rain across that region. and then we have several other hurricanes and tropical storms as well as tropical depressions that we're watching out there in the atlantic basin. it's been so active. of course, another day of record setting in the atlantic basin as well as what we're seeing across the country. let's get a look at our live view. finally, we can see -- taking a look at some of these cameras, it's like taking off a plind blindfold that we've had on for about a week.

it's nice to see the improved air quality looking from contra costa county over toward much of the east bay. and then we've also been able to see a little bit more in the distance as we look over close to sausalito. so we've seen some improvements in our air quality this morning thanks to a delta breeze picking up. it improved it for some of us mostly in the north bay we are seeing those numbers coming down. air quality that will affect people with breathing problems, still not the best of air quality but it's nice to see a turn toward the positive here. as we look at the south bay and south county, well, that delta breeze didn't help us out too much here. we are still looking at very unhealthy air quality. as the winds start to pick up heading into the evening from the south, it is possible that we could see our air quality going downhill once again. but our winds are coming out of the south and we do have some fires burning just to the south of us. but a wind of about 20-25 miles per hour with some of those higher gusts is what we're expecting as we go into the rest

of today. and then tomorrow once again we'll just do it all over again. there may be some spots that improve and others that see really poor air quality. but what we really need is a really strong westerly wind to pick up. we are going to get that by the end of the week as this storm system approaches. but we are seeing some of that smoke being drawn into this low. so we will have to see how that helps or if our air quality truly does improve as we go into the weekend. but we're not expecting complete clearing here. we'll see our sensors turning from red to yellow as we et som here, marcus. >> we love great news, kari. thank you. coming up for you, laura has something good. but first happening now, white house adviser peter navarro is refusing to testify before congress. congress wanted to hear from navarro about a canceled contract that democrats say would've wasted $500 million.

congress believed the white house was going to overpay for ventilators. but back in september navarro canceled the contract. now congress wants to know what other wasteful spending could go on. we'll be right back. today on "california live," howie mandel's message about keeping your heart healthy. plus, simple home renovations to lift your spirits and property value.

>> it's all happening on "california live" this morning on nbc bay area. jean, did you know geico is now offering

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well, you know our team always on social media. and there's a lot going on with our weather right now, especially here in the bay area. kari hall always posting the go forecast for you. so be sure to follow her on facebook, twitter, and instagram to watch and share those videos. a marvel superhero tells people to mask up. and you have your chance to live like the fresh prince of bel air. oh, yes, here's laura garcia with those stories that'll hopefully brighten up your day. >> time to wear a mask, millennials. that's the new viral psa from new york governor andrew cuomo. he enlisted a well-known honorary millennial to help spread that word. >> get this, apparently a lot of

covid is transmitted by us millennials. so cuomo asked me, he said, paul, you got to help. what are you, like 26? and i didn't correct him. [ laughter ] >> that's antman star paul rudd who, you know, maybe no surprise to everybody, isn't a millennial. the 51-year-old joked about how he's a certified young person in the new psa rudd goes on to appeal to millennials to wear a mask if he wears one too. well, trending this morning, if you're feeling during this pandemic tha well, we want to take a little bit of a moment now. sit right there and we're going to tell you how to become the next fresh prince of bel air. ♪ ♪ i was finally there ♪ sit on my throne, the prince of bel air ♪ >> will smith is opening up the classic '90s tv show "home."

and it's actually all booked. no wonder it was quite the deal. the cost was 30 bucks a night to celebrate the show's 30th anniversary. while staying there, guests have several perks including playing basketball in will's room while wearing air jordans. pretty unique little air b and b. >> that didn't sound too bad for 30 bucks, kari. >> and i got caught up in a fresh prince marathon on saturday. so now i'm like really thinking about it as of course a lot of people. yeah. i was watching it pretty much all morning on saturday. all right. let's get a look at how our weather is. we've all been staying inside and probably a lot of binge watching too. and we're going to still have that unhealthy air quality and warmer temperatures over the next few days. we'll be looking forward to those fresher breezes by the end of the week, marcus. >> looking forward to the end of the week. well, that does it for our midday newscast.

the next one coming up for you at 5:00. and we're always on at nbcbayarea.com. and look at this. a nice beautiful day in san francisco.

right now one of america's favorite funnymen gets serious about his heart attack as cholesterol. >> you, howie, have high cholesterol. then he explained it to me and not so good. then, cash prizes. we've got a surprise for the little boy w lesson in courage. >> wow. plus, stuck at home? we're going to show you how to make the most of it with some simple home renovations. and nurse barb has some travel tips to keep you and your family safe on the road. >> i just recently took a road trip and i flew