pleasantton in the next five to seven minutes. tonight, periods of rain. .10 to a half inch of rain overall. winds 10 to 20 miles per hour. the rosre a going to stay slick right into the morningre commute. what we're following is a very active pattern out here in the west. a strong push of pacific moisture. that's gng to have several different storm systems moving in over the next seven days. here is a quick look at some of the highlights. periods of heavy rain, anywhere from 2 to 4 inches expected in lower elevations. also, windy at times, 20 to 40 miles per hour, isolated flooding, and also isolated thunderstorms as well. once again, from the period from friday to monday. so we're going to continue to monitor that. i'll have more in my seven-day forecast coming up. winter is here. jeff, thank you very much. new tonight at 5:00, still no answers. three months after that natural gas explosion in the san bruno neighborhood, there is no clear explanation of exactly what

caused the blast. nbc bay area's kimberly terry is in san bruno where federal investigators just briefed reporters about their investigation. what's the latest, kimberly? >> reporter: tom, san bruno's mayor said this is really just a snapshot in time. there are no official words on causes right now, as you mentioned. but several investigators right now are just eliminating possibilities. >> some christmas spirit and the neighborhood still desperately struggling to rebuild. the mayor of san bruno said the city changed forever september 9th, and it's a slow crawl through the healing process. >> there's 38 residences that are not there any longer. and it's right next to people that have christmas trees up. so it's something you have to sort of accept and you can't try to figure out. we're doing what we can to help them as much as we can. >> federal investigators looking into what caused the explosion that killed eight people and leveled dozens of homes issued a

second preliminary report today, meeting with the mayor, and u.s. representative jackie spear. >> we've now ruled out corrosion, the preexisting leak, and a piercing of the pipe by some excavation. so we now move on to looking for yet another cause. >> it's a very, very slow process. very exhaustive process, but a necessary process. we have to get to the bottom of this, not just because of san bruno, but because of what this holds for other neighborhoods and communities around california, and the country. >> one issue of concern to them is that the investigation found the 30-inch pipe had welding seams, which is in contrast to previous claims by pg&e that it was seamless. pg&e representatives claim there is no difference in the regulation of seamless versus welded pipe. nevertheless, they're asking for a meeting next week with regulating authorities and pg&e to discuss the issue and future pipe assessments.

meantime, federal investigators say there is much more information to go through, including analyzing the chemical and mechanical properties of the pipe, as well as unspecified environmental factors at the accident site. >> reporter: the national transportation safety board does not expect to issue a final report for at least another eight months. live in san bruno, kimberly terry, nbc, bay area news. friends and family on the peninsula tonight are mourning the death of a 21-year-old redwood city soldier, who was among six killed in afghanistan on sunday. the department of defense says army specialist derrick simonetta and his fellow soldiers were fatally wounded when insurgents attacked their unit in kandahar province, using an ied. all six were assigned to fort campbell, kentucky. now to an nbc bay area news follow-up in a san francisco courtroom today. the man accused in the cross-country kidnapping of a

virginia child waived extradition. jeffrey easley will soon be heading back to virginia where he faces charges of abduction and credit card fraud. the girl was found outside a san francisco supermarket. investigators in virginia say he's also a suspect in the killing of the girl's mother, who was his girlfriend. san francisco supervisors have decided to move ahead with the potential congestion pricing plan. but they did stake out some detours. the bottom line, some commuters could see tolls in high traffic areas. nbc bay area's tracy grant is on the story. last night this threatened to become a border war with san mateo, tracy. >> reporter: you're absolutely right, tom. san mateo elected officials not only threatened to come up with state legislation to keep san francisco from opposing these tolls, but they also threatened to start a toll war by setting up their own tolls for san francisco commuters traveling

south. in the end, these threats appeared to have worked. because now the controversial southern gateway is no longer on the table. >> there's a misperception that somehow this is putting a moat around san francisco and charging people an admission fee. that does not fit with the way we all live in the bay area. >> reporter: jose, the executive director of san francisco county transportation authority, tried to make it clear that all he was asking the board of supervisors today was to put the results of a three-year federally funded study on congestion pricing on the record. and authorize another one. but that was little consolation to people who both support and oppose the idea of making commuters pay tolls to travel around sections of san francisco during peak hours. especially people who travel to the meeting from san mateo county just for the chance to be heard. >> we stand ready to work with you on this. but we honestly feel that san mateo county has been singled out. >> reporter: san francisco's

southern neighbors saying the idea of including a southern gateway is unfair. and even punitive for commuters coming from san mateo county. some of the supervisors questioned the idea as well. >> what kind of outreach, what have we been doing with our neighboring counties regarding san francisco's congestion pricing ideas. >> reporter: he said he's kept san mateo representatives informed throughout the process. but others, including the city and county association of governments in san mateo county insist that wasn't the case. >> it hasn't been a conversation with san mateo county, it has been a monologue with san mateo county. and that has not produced anything of any significance that we can move forward with. >> i think that this specific proposal over the next several years of the study certainly needs to involve a conversation with folks in san mateo county. you know, but ultimately we're going to have no other choice. but some sort of pricing scheme. >> reporter: now, that appears

to have been the philosophy that pushed the majority of san francisco supervisors to leave out that southern gateway portion. but to go on with the rest of the study. traci grant, nbc bay area news. supervisors unanimously approved a deal to give rights to piers 30 and 32 for over 60 years. in exchange, backers of the race would spend $300 million repairing rotting piers and other preparations. earlier this week, organizers from the bmw oracle racing team indicated they were not very happy with san francisco's bid. but architects of the city's proposal say they are pleased. >> this is going to be a whole new venue, a whole new type of race. i admire the fact they were tenacious and continue to be in trying to get the best deal. but the city, i think, has responded with the very best

offer. >> america's cup organizers are expected to announce the winning venue by the end of this month. from a dot-com giant, yahoo! has become a heart breaker, laying off hundreds more employees today. our business and tech reporter scott budman is here to give us the latest on the bad news. >> it is bad news for lots of yahoo! employees, at least for now. but the company's latest round of job cuts comes at a time when lots of startups here in silicon valley are looking to hire. it will lay off 4% of its work force, that's about 600 employees. yahoo! did not specify which parts of the business will be trimmed. it's the most recent of several rounds of layoffs at yahoo! over the last few years. yahoo!'s news did not move the stock price. it didn't affect the investors who sent the prices higher. auto desk rgin on news of a stock buyback. loosking ahead to 6:00, we know where yahoo! rival google is

putting some of its money. a first look at a google-backed startup that wants to make freeways less crowded. we'll show you how they plan to do it tonight at 6:00. pg&e is under scrutiny in a spy scandal and smart meters are at the center of it all. the san jose mercury news reports that court documents reveal a series of e-mails exchanged showing pg&e sent someone to monitor and photograph a demonstration in sonoma county against its smart meters. earlier, pg&e reported the executive acted alone, but the papers make it clear other employees knew about his actions. a senate vote is expected this evening on a tax package negotiated by president obama, and republican lawmakers in the senate. the bill could be passed and sent to the house for approval. among other things, the package would provide a two-year reprieve from tax increases, scheduled to take effect next year at all income levels. we're following tonight's vote. we'll bring you the latest

tonight at 11:00. still ahead at 5:00, they are smoking fewer cigarettes, but teens are smoking more pot. why california voters might be to blame. money, education and obesity, how the three factors affect men and women differently. dental dangers, why the fda is taking a second look at a common dental procedure. and governor-elect jerry brown issues a warning over the budget and education, as a bay area school district prepares for a meeting tonight over its own budget cuts. good evening. i'm chief meteorologist jeff ranieri, tracking more rain across the bay area. temperatures in the mid to upper 50s. still very, very damp here across the entire bay area. tonight we'll continue to track showers lingering, and a very wet weekend in my seven-day forecast. full detainls on some dipofll o ooflomdi cupngg in.oo

gut wrenching decisions will be made tonight by members of the mount diablo school board in contra costa county. they expect to give a negative certification to their budget, meaning it will not cover next year's expenses. the americay news reports it has to pay an extra $2.5 million in mental health funding because the state vetoed that money. the district is also working to cut employee benefits. and the news is no more encouraging from governor-elect jerry brown. today he is warning california's educational leaders to have their seat belts fastened when he unveils his budget proposal next month. during an education budget tuesday at ucla, brown gave no

specifics, but said the state's fiscal crisis is worse than he thought. school superintendents begged brown to avoid further cuts. our health watch tonight, how safe are the silver fillings in your teeth. the fda says fillings that contain mercury are not harmful. but a panel of experts is meeting to reexamine that issue. nbc bay area's garvin thomas reports. >> this is an amalgam filling right here. >> reporter: dentists have been filling cavities with amalgam fillings for decades. they're a combination of metals, including mercury. mercury is a poison. but the question is, whether it poses a health risk in the form of dental fillings, which releases a small amount of mercury vapor. this doctor is a spokeswoman for the american dental association. >> amalgam is not only safe and effective, but it's an extremely important option that patients should have. >> reporter: amalgam fillings are often the cheapest and

longest lasting option, but some blame them for health problems. this patient developed balance problems in 1998. >> i didn't really know what happened to me. >> reporter: doctors first thought she had ms or lupus. then turned to the amalgam filling she recently had. >> mercury is still somewhere in the body. but i am -- i would say 98% improved without having those mercury fillings in my teeth. >> reporter: she'll tell her story to the fda panel of experts during its two-day meeting. garvin thomas, nbc bay area news. men and women are quite different. as we all know. and when it comes to obesity, the same applies. a new study finds that women who are better educated and live in higher income households are less likely to be obese. but for men, there is no

difference when it comes to their income and very little difference when it comes to education. an estimated 72 million adults in the u.s. are considered obese. federal health officials say more teens are smoking marijuana, rather than cigarettes, but fewer teens are binge drinking. 16% of 8th graders reported using marijuana in 2010. that's a jump of nearly 2% from the previous year. and as many as 6% of high school seniors say they use marijuana daily. federal officials say the push to legalize marijuana in several states, including california, may confuse teens about whether pot is safe. on a positive note, health officials say teen binge drinking appears to be at record low levels. well, more snow and bone-chilling cold arrived in parts of ohio, pennsylvania and new york. but canada is seeing the most winter drama right now. police there believe at least 300 drivers are stranded in southwestern ontario. the storm hit with such force,

that even snowplows were stopped cold. rescuers were able to pull many cars to shelters, but the truckers, they're stuck. many of them say the highway authorities underestimated the storm and should have closed the road hours before they did. which brings us to our weather. and i guess the rain by comparison looks pretty tame, jeff. >> yeah, it does. >> pretty big story. >> the same thing enhancing our weather pattern, el nina, is also enhancing the midwest and those storms lately. it helps to amplify things across the northwest. we're getting a tail edge of this amplified pattern right now. the radar, consistent rainfall right now from the peninsula into the south bay as rain has returned to the bay area. let's zoom in. right now to the north bay, you started with the most consistent rainfall early this afternoon. spotty showers from santa rosa into novato. the heaviest rainfall has now pushed to the south. san francisco peninsula, also for the east bay, and now starting to get in on it in the

south bay as well. as we zoom in, you can see san jose with moderate rainfall right now. mountainview, extremely heavy rainfall, reducing visibility down to less than a couple hundred feet in some cases on highway 101. also in milpitas, heavier rainfall as well. in the east bay, traveling on 580, heavy pockets of rainfall around livermore and also dublin. that will be pushing here off to the south into pleasanton in the next half hour. it will stay wet tonight. temperatures, they're going to be dropping into the 40s from these current mid to upper 50s that we have right now. let's look at the weather headlines. for tomorrow, here's the good part. we'll be undergoing a short break force, with clearing, pockets of sunshine. but then in our seven-day forecast, we are following several different systems that could even bring some flooding here as we head into this upcoming weekend. satellite radar picture shows this front, very expansive stretching across california.

and it's so slow to move here to the south that we'll keep this chance of rainfall in the forecast as we head into those overnight hours. and take a look at this, the frontal system extending offshore, but then it's also feeding into an enormous plume of moisture out here in the pacific. really helping to amplify this rainfall across the entire west. so tomorrow, we'll see this cold front continue to push to the south. then we'll get clearing in here for wednesday, and also thursday's forecast. we'll call it cool, with temperatures remaining in the 50s. and then as we head into friday, saturday, sunday and monday, that's when things really get active across the bay area. more in that in the seven-day forecast. east bay, starting off tomorrow with the chance of scattered showers and 45. but by 11:00 a.m., we expect it to be dry. breaks of sunshine and temperatures in the low 50s. also, starting off down here in the south bay, with 45 in san jose, 41 in los gatos, near 50 from redwood city into san francisco. your numbers tomorrow, near average, mid to upper 50s. oh, yes, that's the sun, it's

going to be coming back out tomorrow for your wednesday. once again, with the short-lived break. we'll be undergoing for your wednesday and your thursday. 58 in san mateo, 57 in san francisco, 55 in concord, 56 in pittsburgh, and 54 in fairfield. north bay, plenty of mid to upper 50s throughout santa rosa down to sausalito. more on the weather channel on cable. and after that break wednesday and thursday, rain returns on friday. heavy rain on saturday. more rain sunday. and then another heavy bout of rain on monday. and by monday of next week, that's when we'll really have to monitor the local rivers and streams for potential flooding. so it's going to be a storm-by-storm situation that we'll watch this and monitor that chance of flooding here. >> winding up, are we? >> the storms certainly are. >> jeff, thank you. still ahead at 5:00, an 11th-hour push to repeal "don't

ask, don't tell." teens and texting, the fcc meeting on the issue today. and how much teens do text. why november proved to be music to the ears of u.s. retailers. we'll be rightk. b

commerce analysts are seeing encouraging signs in the pre-holiday sales. retail sales rose for a fifth straight month in november. increasing just under 1%. the increase was fueled by department store sales, which rose nearly 3%. that's the highest jump in two years. while employment numbers are still low, retailers are thrilled to see any number which indicates that people are willing to spend. are you wondering what's behind all those added text messaging charges on your teen's cell phone? a new survey shows that teenagers use text messaging more than most of us thought,

averaging one text every ten minutes. one in three young people sends more than 100 texts per day. in washington, the fcc today hosted a forum on navigating the new high-tech reality, and its many pitfalls. such as cyber bullying and sexting. >> about 4% of american teens who have cell phones say they have sent a nude or nearly nude suggestive image of themselves to somebody they know. and 16% said they have received such an image. >> 64% of parents said they look at the contents of their child's cell phone. about half limit the times of day kids can use their phones. opponents of "don't ask, don't tell" are making a last-ditch effort to overturn the law. today house democrats introduced legislation mirroring a senate bill written to lift the ban before this session of congress ends. last week senate republicans blocked a complex defense bill that would have repealed the policy. senator joe lieberman

co-introduced a stand-alone bill ending the policy. the house vote could happen tomorrow. the end of the year congressional schedule is tight, but supporters say the stand-alone measure is gaining support. if it is signed into law, the pentagon would begin the implementation process immediately. we'll be right back with the newest bay area california hall ofo e f california hall ofame. f

the red carpet is relied out in sacramento tonight. and in less than an hour the governor will pay tribute to the new unductees to california's hall of fame. there are 14 in all, including barbra streisand and betty white.

and facebook founder mark zuckerberg. what a year it has been for him. it kicks off at the california museum in sacramento. tonight on "nbc nightly news," how classic holiday tunes are turning unknowns into celebrities.