to us just completely devastated. >> reporter: at least 100 people are missing. >> i don't know where my husband is. i don't know if he is alive. >> reporter: the force of the quake had debris falling and crushing people. it's the deadliest earthquake to hit new zealand in 80 years. the last one in september was bigger but didn't kill anyone. new zealand's prime minister warns the death toll is likely to rise. >> i don't think we can go past the fact that we may well be witnessing new zealand's darkest days. >> reporter: several countries are coming to the aid of new zealand. the u.s. state department is sending a team to help search and rescue. charlie d'agata, cbs 5. a delayed flight from new zealand arrived at sfo this afternoon. passengers say they took off just hours after the earthquake hit. many shocked at the

devastation. they were, of course, worried about their family, too. >> i got a brother-in-law. he got through the first one as good as gold so it's not good for the people living down there. >> this is new zealand's worst earthquake since the one that hit back in 1931. that one killed 256 people. what appears to have been a dispute among pirates triggered an explosion of gunfire that killed four americans. the deadliest case of piracy yet ended with a knife fight between a navy seal and one of those pirates. all four americans killed were avid sailors. their journey began with a group of other sailors but for some reason, those four aboard the yacht called the quest decided to break off and go it alone and it appears that decision cost them their lives. christin ayers spoke with the niece of one of the hostages killed. >> they're in our prayers. and we are terribly distraught and devastated over this news this morning. >> reporter: until this morning, families of the

sailors on board a yacht hijacked by somalia pirates say they were holding out hope that their loved ones would be rescued. >> we understood that if they got to shore, it was going to be a really bad situation. we also understood that the navy was doing their best to prevent them from getting to shore. >> reporter: but the pentagon now says at some point negotiations between the pirates and the navy suddenly broke down. >> a rocket-propelled grenade was fired from the quest, gunfire also erupted inside the cabin of the quest. >> reporter: when navy seals boarded they discovered all four americans had been shot including bay area resident nina crossland's aunt, phyllis macay. >> my aunt was not dead when the navy seals arrived on the ship. she had been shot. she was not dead at that time. and they did try to save her, but they were unsuccessful. >> reporter: all four americans died, a devastating to end a sailing adventure that went horribly wrong when the four american adventurers broke away from a group of sailors on their way to the mediterranean. >> and why they were in that

area, we don't know. but she was not haphazardly out on the ocean just -- just doing what you know -- loosely traveling around. >> reporter: crossland says her aunt was a savvy sailor who was living out her dream traveling the world by sea for the third year. >> the world is an empty place without my aunt here. >> reporter: christin ayers, cbs 5. traffic for the evening commute moving smoothly now on the dumbarton bridge. this follows a fiery wreck this morning. chp says a big rig slammed into a stalled car in the eastbound lanes and that sparked the fire. smoke and flames could be seen coming from both the car and the jackknifed big rig. emergency crews were able to get the flames out pretty quickly. nobody was seriously hurt. however, the accident as you might imagine created a mess for all the other drivers. eastbound lanes closed for more than three hours. the backup went for miles. drivers stuck on the bridge were forced to back up, try to turn arnold after chp blocked the east -- forced to try to

turn around after chp blocked the eastbound lanes. oakland police looking for robbers. investigators say two men have robbed at least six people most of them women at gunpoint in the last month. now, police say the men follow the victims home after they leave a safeway on redwood road near high 13. the men then rob them either in the garage or driveway. a neighbor's surveillance camera captured one of the crimes and the police have a warrant for one of the suspects. the men sit in the safeway parking lot in a white suv with some pretty distinctive roof racks. officers have increased their patrols and have set up undercover surveillance, as well. first they were told you're out of a job, thousand dozens of laid-off supermarket -- now dozens of laid-off supermarket employers say their employees say they are owed a lot. mark sayre reports. >> reporter: the city of san

jose invested half a million dollars in this now bankrupt supermarket chain through an economic development program. >> sorry... >> reporter: gabrielle was a dairy manager at the market and like all other employees he was given just a few minutes notice that he was out of a job. >> it was last minute. they said we are out of business. >> reporter: he fell on hard times. >> it was really bad. it was really bad because by that time, i needed my pay check to pay my rent. i have three kids at home that i need to feed t wasn't nothing really easy. >> reporter: but now he and 50 other former employees of the two san jose locations are suing their former and now bankrupt employer. the workers' attorney say they are collectively owed $225,000 in unpaid wages and penalties. >> such as deducting for medical insurance that was never provided to the employees

and not paying the employees their required wages and hours having them clock out, work during their lunch breaks. >> reporter: since the parent company has filed for bankruptcy there is no telling if these workers will get paid.san jose invested millions in an economic catalyst program. >> we don't know what happened to the program. the money was there to help soviet union vianda to expand, remain -- to help suvianda to expand, remain vital. >> reporter: magdalena says she homes this lawsuit sends a message. [ speaking spanish ] >> i'm very upset. i believe that we have the right to know in advance when you're going to lose your job, you know? and what happened to is us egregious. >> reporter: now, the city of san jose is a party to the bankruptcy proceedings but a spokesman says the city does

not expect to get its money back. as for the bankrupt company, they do not have an attorney of record listed to respond to today's lawsuit. reporting live in san jose, i'm mark sayre, cbs 5. they say their lives are in danger and the state agrees. the fine that one bay area hospital is facing for putting its staff and patients at risk. it's a bold move. the steps san jose's new police chief is taking to repair the department's shattered image with minorities. pushing for a bigger police presence at a bay area mall. the constant crimes strange police resources. ,,,,,,,,,,,,

racial profiling. under the new policy, it's a tonight, san jose police officers are following a new definition of racial profiling. et it is a violation under the new policy for an officer to show biased behavior at any time. it only applied when an officer first stopped someone solely because of race, gender or other bias. the new police chief says he feels some instances of profiling may have been missed in the past. 10 oakland cops are back on the job. the "oakland tribune" reports the laid-off officers returned to work on monday but it could be two weeks before they are on the streets again because they need new training.

last month, mayor jean quan promised to rehire 10 of the 80 cops laid off in july over the city's budget crunch. she says that the money to pay for the returning officers comes from a combination of officers and overtime savings. firefighters are mopping up after a fire in berkeley. it broke out on hey street near telegraph avenue. no word on the cause. no injuries reported. the job is to help save lives but nurse at one bay area hospital say their own lives are in danger. now the medical center might have to pay. linda yee shows us why nurses at oakland's children's hospital are so concerned tonight. linda. >> reporter: well, allen, children's hospital here has been slapped with a $10,000 fine for violations that they say made sure that their staff was not in any safe working condition. and this is because they have had a recent osha -- osha

inspectors were here recently . here's what they had to say. reporter: the incidents were dangerous and according to osha, the hospital's lack of training policies were unacceptable. last july, a gunman ran into the emergency room and held two staff hostage he was running from police. several months later, three gunshot victims came in, one left on the steps of the hospital. in the chaos and confusion, hospital security locked out the nurses and doctors who ran out to help. >> they wouldn't allow us to bring the patient inside. the patient was dying and needed immediate care and i -- my job is to help the patient. and that's what i was trained to do. and there were a number of other people involved in the incident were running across the street towards us and it was terrifying. i feared for my life. >> reporter: hospital officials say they are required by law to treat anyone within a 250-yard radius. they admit the confusion and lack of security policies forced them to reexamine how they will handle these calls in

the future. >> so base cloudy what we have put into place -- so basically what we have put into place is a security team to assess the scene. if it's safe, they will come back and consult with the physician in charge. >> reporter: the hospital has also started new safety training sessions for staff. but e.r. staff say that hasn't happened yet. hospital officials deny that they have done anything wrong and in fact what they are saying now tonight, allen, is that they are going to appeal all of those charges. >> all right, linda yee in oakland, thank you. all right. this is your brain, this is your brain exposed to cell phone radiation. you have heard that play on words there. a new look at what goes on in your head during those long cell calls. and the fiery speech that a dictator made on state tv. coming up. from the weather center, this is our live high-def doppler radar scanning the skies for precipitation. but check this out.

nothing but clarity, lots of clear skies, the snow and when it will fall in san francisco. we'll pinpoint the day as eyewitness news continues. ,,,,,,,,,,,,

martyr. defiant and combative during a rambling address on state tv... he blamed the un who are libyan leader moammar qaddafi is vowing to die a martyr. definant and combative during a rambling address on state tv, he blamed the unrest on, quote, rats who are agents of foreign intelligence services. qaddafi denies using force but the u.s. says pro government forces have killed more than 250 people since protestors demanded qaddafi step down last week. >> this bloodshed is completely unacceptable. it is the responsibility of the government of libya to respect the universal rights of their own people. >> the united nations security council is calling for an immediate end to the violence. back in the bay area a 94- year-old driver who ran into a pedestrian this afternoon may have been blinded by the sun. san francisco police say that

the suv's driver hit and critically injured a woman while turning at anza and park presidio. the driver is okay. police just re-opened park presidio about half hour ago. some other bay area headlines. because there has been so much shoplifting, there might be a permanent police presence at one of san francisco's main shopping centers. cops say they respond to westfield mall several times a day, which is on market street. that strains police resources. so top brass are considering adding a police substation there. westfield does have its own security force, but its job is mostly to monitor areas outside the stores. we have seen as i say the play on words. we have seen pictures of a brain on drugs. now we are getting a look at the effects of cell phone radiation on brain activity. dr. kim mulvihill joining us with details on that. kim. >> reporter: well, allen this new study adds an intriguing angle to the ongoing debate over the use of cell phones and whether they can harm your health. reporter: almost everyone

has a cell phone. >> because i just feel connected to everyone and to the world. >> reporter: but there are lingering questions about safety. >> i do think about it. i try not to talk on it for too long at a time. >> reporter: now a preliminary study from the national institutes of health shows how holding a cell phone next to your head for 50 minutes may have an impact on your brain. >> it shows that the human brain is sensitive to the electromagnetic radiation that are emitted from cell phones. >> reporter: researchers studied 4 healthy adults as they held cell potential to the left and right side of the head in the on and off position. they then used "pet" scans to measure the brain activity of the 47 healthy adults as they held cell phones to the left and right side of the head. the yellow and red areas signify increased activity stop. what this means? >> there is no way to know whether that's good or bad at this time. >> reporter: the neurooncologist of ucsf says the findings are interesting but -- >> beyond that there is no

clinical significance. >> reporter: so until support known -- >> an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. >> reporter: this scientist is with the environmental working group. to be on the safe said she says use a headset. they emit much less radiation than phones. other tips include holding the phone away from your body and choosing texting over talking. >> at least are not very hard steps and they may do you a world of good down the road. >> reporter: now, as for those wireless headsets, don't wear them like an earring. they are always on. so take them off when done with your call. if you have a poor signal, fewer bars, stay off the phone. experts say the phone is emitting more radiation to get the signal to the tower. and allen, we have all this list on our website if you want to check it out. >> we'll look for it. thank you. all right. i guess we could say here's your body on sunshine and coming up your body in snow! >> you have to go back to 1976 to have snow fall and accumulate all the way down to sea level and it looks like that may happen this friday. not to be confused with five or six years ago when we did have

a little light dusting at twin peaks. that was at higher elevation. today we saw snow drop off very rapidly at mount diablo. there you can see the tip-top, 3,849 feet where the temperature today topped off in the low 50s. at the bottom of the mountain we are still seeing temperatures in the mid-50s. in fact danville and blackhawk, south gate side of mount diablo, their temperatures 55 and across other portions of the district, our temperatures are in the 50ss across the board from the north to the east to the south. there you have cupertino now at 53 degrees. to the north, novato at 50. and belmont on the peninsula. crystal clear skies and 54 degrees, once the sun officially does set at 5:55, dropping off and cooling off very rapidly. so if you are out and about, keep that in mind with the numbers right now upper 40s to the mid-50s. tonight chilly with a clear air mass firmly in place. 30 in santa rosa, 34 in napa, back in through sonoma,

freezing in throughout the tri- valley and upper 30s across the santa clara valley. area of low pressure taking a nosedive to the south out of here allowing high pressure to briefly build into the bay area. and with the clear skies because of that high, we will see the temperatures drop down to that freezing point but not as cold last night when we dipped down to 26 in santa rosa. now we are going to be seeing clouds in that area. partly cloudy wednesday. numbers coming down due to the cloud cover and the winds blowing out of the west and northwest 10 to 20 miles per hour. so remaining at least a good 6 degrees unseasonably cool and then here comes the big change. the rain moves into the picture on thursday. it's a cold rain. cold rain and snow level down to 1500 feet on friday, we could see sea level snow level on friday night into saturday morning. then we dry out on sunday.

here's our mypix picture. keep all your photos coming to mypix@cbs5.com. allen, i have been asking people if you have photos from 1976 snowfall, send them in because i wasn't born then. >> better do it. all right, roberta, or else. thanks. coming up on the consumerwatch, the great smoking debate. should the right to smoke outweigh the right to breathe clean air? [ male announcer ] breakfast for breakfast. breakfast for lunch. breakfast for dinner. with three new breakfast lovers dishes, who needs a break from breakfast? denny's. america's diner is always open.

it's not too well done? nope. but it is a job well done. what are you reading, sweetie? her diary. when you're done, i'd love some feedback. sure. your mom and i read that thing cover-to-cover. loved it. thanks. would you mind if i cut the lawn this weekend? only if you let me talk to your mother on the phone for hours on end. done. [ male announcer ] u-verse brings peace to the family. at&t u-verse lets you record four shows at once from any room and play them back on any tv. get u-verse tv for only $29 a month for 6 months.

on the consumerw

the move to ban smoking in residential buildings is heating up in san jose. on the consumerwatch, julie watts has more on the fight that's pitting neighbors against each other in apartments and high-rise building. >> reporter: 78% of californians think smoking should be regulated in multi- unit buildings. today they are calling on the city of san jose to do something about it. >> reporter: you may remember this person's story. >> smoke coming in. >> reporter: she was forced to sleep on the balcony of her high-rise in san jose due to her neighbor's secondhand smoke. a stanford researcher found high levels. >> approaching the levels would you see in a smoky casino. >> reporter: today at this brief california press conference it was clear her building is not alone. >> the smoke is so horrendous it comes in through all the windows and doors. >> sometimes i sleep in my van because the smoke is so thick.

the smoke alarm is constantly going on. >> this is no law against secondhand smoke. >> reporter: these are just a few of the stories breathe california hears every day. >> we are hear today to speak for those who are afraid of eviction. >> reporter: the group is challenging san jose to go smoke-free. stanford researchers presented the information they gathered in one building. >> this data illustrates strongly it can pose a health issues. >> reporter: it would be easy for san jose to adopt the county smoking ordinance already in place which currently only impacts the unincorporated areas of san jose. >> the county legal department has done everything it can to provide very well crafted ordinances that can be adopted by any city. >> reporter: but while no one was available to speak on camera, the city of san jose says they just don't have the financial resources to enactor enforce the ordinance. while polls show only one in

ten san jose adults smoke, what about that one? >> there are a lot of folks who say i'm a smoker and i have rights to. that, this man said . >> you're free to smoke but why is it coming into my apartment to where it's affecting my health and my lungs and now it's my problem and i have to leave? >> reporter: now, members of the san jose city council have proposed new smoking regulation for dining areas and service lines but the proposal is still far from becoming ordinance and does not include multi-unit residential buildings. on the consumerwatch, julie watts, cbs 5. ,, ,,,,,,,,,,

♪ [ female announcer ] starbucks via is planted the same... ♪ ...harvested the same... ♪ ...and roasted the same as our other premium coffees. it only makes sense it would taste the same. so, try it for yourself. buy a pack of 100% natural starbucks via ready brew. we promise you'll love it or we'll send you a bag of starbucks coffee. it's the starbucks via taste promise. look for it where you buy groceries. "since 1986 we've been burning i'm dana king. here's what we're working on for eyewitness news at 6:00. >> since 1986, we have been burning oil up faster than we're finding it. >> unrest across the middle east, oil companies struggling to find oil, even a mysterious wikileak. add it all up, gas prices are rising and a lot of people are talking about the next energy

crisis. tonight it's time for another look at peak oil. that and more at 6:00. >> thank you for watching us at 5:00. "cbs evening news with katie couric" is coming up next. the latest news and weather are always on cbssf.com. >> couric: tonight, a tragic end too a hostage drama on the high seas. four americans living their dream of sailing around the world are killed by somali pirates. i'm katie couric. also tonight, disaster in new zealand. an earthquake turns buildings to rubble, dozens are dead. a frantic search is on for survivors. as his army battles protestors in the streets, libya's moammar qaddafi vows to fight to the last drop of his blood. and why a former pro-football player took his own life in a way that allowed his brain to be donated to science.