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you're watching cbs5 in high definition. our dirty laundry aired for the whole country to see as the niners prepare to move to a new stadium. lights go out at candle stick. >> pg and e does a big about face. the new decision tonight on those smart meters. a dictator dead and another ready to take his place. what we know about the new leader of north korea. >> and doing it just because they can. how people across the country and now the bay area are getting the exact gifts they want from total strangers. good evening, i'm ken. >> and i'm elizabeth cook in for dana king tonight. oh candle stick. not ready for prime time. you can almost hear the 49er owners snicker about the park they love to hate. another reason to move to santa clara. a power outage turned the lights out on the monday night football game between the

niners and pittsburgh steelers. that delayed the start of the game by 20 minutes. the lights went out again at 6:43. that put the game on hold for another 16 minutes. robert lyles is at candle stick to show us what went wrong. robert. >> already, it seems that pg and e is on the defensive saying it is unclear why the power went out, but mayor lee seems to be on the offensive. he sent the fire chief, the police chief, and the general manager right here to candle stick, hoping to turn this blackout far from a black eye. at first, the sellout crowd thought the stadium was a prelude to tonight's kickoff of the much talked about monday night matchup. thousands of niners fans kept cheering. >> we were all sitting there waiting. we thought it was part of the show. >> pulling out their cell phones hoping an electronic

candle light would illuminate what was next. the public address system went dead, so did a national tv broadcast. backup generators sent electricity. they illuminated cops scrambling to handle the thousands inside, while referees backed off the gridiron, everyone totally confused. espn recorded a small explosion as the national kickoff was displayed. crews found a down power line, but that does not mean they are at fault. >> it could be any number of things. it could be equipment. or it could be equipment owned by candle stick. >> power was restored in 20 minutes. the firework hareled. the national luster was short lived just before 7:00 in the second quarter, the stadium lights went black yet again.

pausing the national broadcast at least 15 minutes. but the fans refused to leave and the 49ers refused to talk about the blackout on camera. and with pg and e doubting responsibility, the real question tonight, who fumbled? >> i couldn't believe it on monday night football that it was going to be a blackout. that's why we need a new stadium. >> it is proof positive that they need a new stadium. >> exactly. >> why? >> look at it. on national tv, man. the lights go out. you have to be kidding, man. >> now police chief greg sir says despite the power outage, the fans, more than 69,000 were never at risk. the puc says that a stadium of this size always has two major power lines and he says despite what pg and e says, the line that failed as you are about to hear is pg and e. >> shouldn't fail once, failing twice is really important to us. we want to mike sure we

understand why it did it. >> well over 100 officers. you have all the 49er security. operations plans for any event. in '89, this stadium was evacuated. again, more than 69,000 fans were inside. almost all that we talk to say there is desperate need for a new stadium. but elizabeth, they say that new stadium should be here in san francisco. >> all right, robert lyles, thank you. speaking of pg and e, most of the experts have said time and time again. the new smart meters are perfectly fine. they don't pose any health hazards at all, but enough people complain, sometimes very loudly, that tonight, kit tells us pg and e has done a big about face. kit. >> well ken, pg and e says they should be listening to their customers, not fighting

with them. if you want to, pretty soon, you'll be able to get rid of your smart meter. critics say this is progress, but it's not enough. >> customers who have battled with pg and e say today's news is a glimmer of hope. >> they have the meter of their choice, because that is important to our customers. >> it's an opt out program. if you have an analog, you'll have to tell pg and e that you want to keep it. there will be reinstallation and monthly fees. >> meter installation and of course reading the meters on a monthly or shorter or longer basis. >> pg and e took a pr hit when they cut off power to customers who complained of health problems and removed the smart meters on their own. it left customers in the dark with no heat as temperatures drop down to near freezing. pg and e was embarrassed and

trying to salvage his image. >> she is cautiously optimistic. sheen was part of a handful of customers who dumped their smart phone toys. sheen was told a company would reinstall, but instead, put in a digital one. she says offering analog meters for free is the right thing to do. >> critics will say you're trying to have your cake and eat it too. >> go find that one and put it back on. this you go. >> pg and e expects lez than 21% of the customers to take advantage of this program. as far as the speeds go, we heard anywhere from 90 to $300. as far as a moppetly fee, we heard that go from $50 a mounted. >> not going to be too happy

about that. >> no matter what anybody pays. thanks kit. >> a high speed chase and crash turns 580 into a parking lot. it started around 2:00 when two thieves tried to reach them. reaching speeds of 100 miles an hour. no one was seriously injured and police arrested the suspects. a seven-year-old boy fell 60 feet at sugar bowl. the boy landed on to rocks that were covered only by snow. he has severe head injuries and is in critical condition. it's not clear why he fell. there's something we haven't heard much lately. people out in support of gene qawn. some powerful people at that. the alameda county labor union is backing the mayor against

recall. the union represents # 00,000 county workers and said the city would be wasteful. >> designated to get rid of elected officials who are corrupt, who are misusing finances, who are getting pay backs. mayor qawn is none of them. >> there are a lot of people who want to recall the mayor. >> most recent poll shows at 47% of oakland voterrers supported the plan. take a good look at your paycheck. starting in two weeks, you could be taking home less money. congress, actually republicans in the house of representatives are holding up the payroll tax cut extension. daniel yell knotting ham tells us what's the problem. >> lawmakers are still trying to resolve the standoff over the payroll tax cut. the house now plans to vote

tuesday and is poised to reject the senate deal. >> our members do not want to just do a two month short-term fix where we have to come back and do this again. >> the nays are 10. >> when senators approved the deal over the weekend. >> we'll get it done. >> they expected their house to follow suit. but conservatives insisted on a full year extension. what they sent us over is an insult. >> senate and house leaders to meet and iron out a new agreement. but harry reid is refusing, saying he won't reopen negotiations until the house passes the senate's bipartisan deal. >> democratic senator already back home with his constituents echoed froes raiding. >> negotiationing is trying to

pin jell-o on the wall. they keep moving the post back and back and back. >> danielle, contraction news, washington. meanwhile, people brave the winter cold to pay respects to the late kim jong-il. after the dictator died on saturday. all indications are that his son will take over as north korea's new leader. a senior official says kim is young. inexperienced, and has shown nothing toward violence. kim jong-il is a volatile personality. he enrurnlg couraged the attacks last year. including the sinking of that naval ship killing 47 and the selling of an island.

moves that were meant to bolster his credibility. mindful of south korea's vulnerable ability. a midnight call to one of the -- he reiterated the united states' commitment for that country's safety. a stable koreaen peninsula. the japanese foreign minister and together, they urged calm. >> we both share a common interest in a peaceful and stable transition in north korea as pell as and insuring regional peace and stability. >> the u.s. had been in talks that they hoped would lead the north koreaen's to take concrete steps. officials are unsure whether the death of the dear leader will lead to any progress. >> we reiterate our hope and

remain deeply aned about their well being. >> the well being of north koreaens with millions of their people starving driven them to the negotiating table. in fact, the u.s. website announced this week a deal where they would get a lit of food and water. that deal is now in jeopardy. contraction news, the white house. if and when you see the movie, you'll know he wasn't entirely acting. an actor gets a real taste of what mavericks will do. >> provide ring the president without the sleigh and reign deer. >> outside will be reduced to mulch. the project aimed out protecting butterflies. ,,,,

♪

[ female announcer ] this time of year you have a lot of festive meals. and safeway helps make every holiday meal a special occasion. so you can make all of your gatherings, just as merry as can be. get a boneless beef loin ny strip roast for just $4.99 a pound. pair it with a nicely priced malbec. we have thousands of wines. and we'll help you find the right one. safeway. ingredients for life. makes mavericks one of the most dangerous surf spots in the hollywood star learned the hard way, what makes mavericks one of the most dangerous surf spots in the

world. gerard butler was shooting a movie yesterday when a set of 15-footers clobbered him. the mercury news says he was held under water and washed into some rocks. a life guard on a personal water craft rescued him. butler was checked out at stanford medical center. he was not seriously hurt. have you heard about the new phenomenon happening across the country? it involves in what's known as lay away angels. tonight, these angels have been doing their thing here in the bay area. >> these are all from saturday. >> receipts indicate the lay away angel st who have thrown into the k mart in concorde. boxes waiting for pickup filled with toys and clothes are paid for by strangers. the gesture seems to have started in the midwest last week and gained momentum. these angels and secret santas

are making christmas brighter for other families. >> they see toys and they say, i want to pay that off. >> balance is usually a penny. marty assumes the roll of one of santa's elves when she called up customers to let them know their bill is paid. >> most are stunned. one man was angry thinking he was being harassed. >> won't you call me? i'm coming in to pay, just not now. i say sir, i'm not calling about that. your lay away has been paid off. >> what did he say? >> you're joking? >> norma says the benefactors are all ages. some give a few dollars, some give hundreds. but the majority don't seem wealthy. >> i'm not rich. don't take me wrong. but i have a little extra to give. so i want to give. >> k mart seems to be the

favorite spot. perhaps because the chain had a lay away program for decades. somewhere an angel is getting its wings. >> that is a beautiful thing that people still have. >> that's amazing. i wish someone would do that for me. >> most of these unanimous benefactors don't want anything in return. they won't accept a receipt so they can claim it on their taxes. saws and chain saws can be heard. several kind of trees from hawk hill. those trees are not native to the area. they are being created to make more. wetland's and habitat habitats were lost during road and trail construction. >> where the next answer in science will come from, will it come from fungus, a tree?

it's always important to look at the larger picture and to try and maintain as much as the natural world as it was given to us. >> middle federal government kicked in more than $8 million. part of that money being used to restore the habitat. the work will continue into next month. a saudi prince bought a $300 million piece of twitter. the prince ownsen arab private investment business. now the prince says he wants tox up and down his media empire to social media. twitter was a key tool for protesters in the uprising. >> facebook has a new home. employees were welcomed with a familiar like sign. facebook has 2,000 people working on the campus. the new arrivals are sure to boost local businesses. >> i'm pretty excited.

hopefully we can have wine in here. >> facebookers come on over. >> the company plans to launch sting called face bucks. leave the campus and spend money in the community. your in this case face may be cold tomorrow morning. we'll have widespread frost, leaving us with lots of sunshine during the day. the lack of rain and where to expect it as eyewitness news continues.

on this monday, december 19, coming to an end after highs today 52 degrees and in san francisco, tomorrow 63 degrees in concorde. live cbs 5 weather camera paints the picture of a clear sky over the bay, over the city of san francisco where we do have the lack of a wind. the temperatures trailing off. it's 48 degrees. a northeast wind keeping the temperature up to 4-9d where the wind is calm. we hit 38 degrees across the bay and oakland. 39 degrees in santa rosa.

once the wind subsided become calm. everybody is going to cool off. and then we'll see widespread frost. the whole week ahead, sunny and seasonal. the extended forecast including christmas eve calls for a dry weather pattern. check out san francisco. 111% of normal as far as doctors are concerned. tonight, 49% of where we should be. 42% today. last year we were at 123%. not a rain drop in sight. actually, we had rain right there across the southland, otherwise high pressure, not going anywhere very quickly. with the dry air mass in place, dropping out to 30. mid 30s across the value i valley. it's below freezing tonight. tomorrow's daytime high 50s and 60s. it does call for the dry weather pattern each and every day. that is your pinpoint forecast.

dennis with sports up next. first, they turned off the lights. [ male announcer ] citibank's new app for ipad makes it easy for anne to view her finances from anywhere. like gate d12 for the next three hours. citibank for ipad. easier banking. standard at citibank. really? [ male announcer ] kate uses her citibank debit card because kate knows there are some things you shouldn't be charged for. refill? i'm ok. [ male announcer ] so does that guy. the citibank debit card with no monthly fee. easier banking. standard at citibank.

♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] some people just know how to build things well. give you and your loved ones an expertly engineered mercedes-benz... ho ho ho! ...at the winter event going on now. but hurry -- the offer ends january 3rd. candlestick lost power, but the 49ers flipped the switch back on against one of the premier teams in candle stick lost power, but the 49ers flipped the

switch back on against one of the premier teams. kickoff was delayed 20 minutes. after the power went off at 5:20. also a blown fuse in the pittsburgh offense. one of four turnovers forced by the league's top ranked defense. 49 everies would turn it into three more points. with the field goals, david breaks the season scoring record. the power goes out again. this time causing a 16 minute delay. 6-349ers in the third. vernon had two big catches earlier in that drive. from there, the defense turns it up. smith, one of his 2 1/2 sacks. he has 13 on the year. justin smith recovers the turnover. earlier in the fourth, it's a knockout blow. now you can turn out the lights. >> party is over. >> the 49ers beat the steelers

20-3. here's more exclusive coil. >> thanks dennis. the obvious cliche tonight is the 49ers defense played lights out. but there's not much more to add. the steelers had more turnovers than points. >> to be a team like this, an elite team that sols is always in the playoffs. that's the team we have to beat. >> we were just on the money all night long. played great. there's no doubt in my mind that he deserves to go to the probowl. he's had that kind of season and put an exically mages point on that tonight. >> after the lights went out for the second time, was there concern on the team's part that we may not get this game in? >> we'll call it a night. maybe go grab a burger and have a gutted night.

but instead, a lot later night. any time you can come away with a win, it's great. >> it is too much money when the lights go out. >> a new stadium is what we were thinking. >> it's coming. >> what is it luke in the locker room before the game? >> it was dark. [ laughter ] >> the 49ers remain tied with the saints for the number two seed in the nfc. finish the regular season with back to back road games in seattle and st. louis. at candle stick park where the lights are still on. cbs 5 sports. >> it was ged on the side of the stadium pulling the power out. >> momentum for the stadium in santa clara. they had lost two out of three. huge. >> yeah, a lot of east coast people get woken up tonight. >> i'll be looking for you.

>> we'll be right back.

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david letterman is next. >> in the meantime, start praying for rain. i want to