2022, were too young to travel. but now they're all grown up and ready for the journey. the bison nearly went extinct, but now their numbers are slowly climbing. nine bison are still at the oakland zoo. if you want to swing by and say hello. don't forget you can watch our newscast 24/7 on roku and other streaming platforms. rajapattai joins us now with what's coming up next at 530. i know you love the oakland zoo as well. it's one of my favorite places. here's here's what we're working on. janelle. it's a busy friday. the high profile congressional race remains unsettled. the results of a recount for second place were supposed to be announced today, but we'll explain why. there's a delay in san mateo and santa clara counties. this is to replace congresswoman anna eshoo. also, it's no secret that your pga bill is getting more and more expensive with even more hikes on the way. we investigate why these rates are skyrocketing. plus, expect detours and delays

on parts of 680 this weekend. we have details of the latest freeway shutdown. welcome to the news at 530. thanks so much for joining us. i'm janelle wang and i'm raj mathai. nearly eight weeks after super tuesday, we still don't have an answer. and more than a week after the recount, we have a delay in that high profile congressional race. who came in second place here? the second place finisher will square off against sam liccardo in november to replace congresswoman anna eshoo. here's nbc's ian cole work has wrapped up for the day here at the santa clara county voting center. there are still a small number of ballots left to be examined, and we're told tonight that that process will continue into next week. the question now is, will any of those ballots break the tie? we are our team is working hard and we're definitely at the tail end today. some of the final votes in the 16th congressional race are being tallied as new details have surfaced. santa clara county

officials say seven challenged ballots that were not included in the original results have now been counted. officials won't say which candidate those ballots may favor until the recount is over. and late today, say they don't know exactly how many votes are left to recount a handful of votes that need to be recounted. and in order to complete these precinct batches, while election officials initially expected to be done today, they say the challenging and verification process can be painstakingly slow and they will not rush it. we know former san jose mayor sam liccardo will move on to the november election. the recount of nearly 180,000 ballots could break the tie for second between joe simitian and evan low. the district spans two counties, with san mateo finishing its recount wednesday. officials there say there was no change to the results, but there are 16 ballots that were previously rejected now being challenged. voting officials say they are still in the envelopes and were

rejected in the first count. the challenge really is to the vote by mail envelope. and did it receive, was it received on time and was the postmark accurate? and so those details are being reviewed at this juncture to make sure there was an accurate determination for the rejection of that ballot. voting officials are even checking with the postal service to see when those ballots were scanned and delivered. those talks and conversations with attorneys on all sides are ongoing. as for when all of this will end, the state will not finalize the results until all of those remaining challenges are resolved in the south bay. ian cole, nbc, bay area news. another issue of all this who's funding this recount has also come under intense scrutiny. there is no automatic recount in a race like this. it was requested by jonathan padilla. he's a tech entrepreneur and former staffer for sam liccardo. he said he's not acting on behalf of any campaign. it's costing about 12,000 bucks a day

in each county and is being paid for by a newly formed super pac called count the votes. representative anna eshoo, who the candidates will replace, has called for financial transparency. she believes voters should know who's paying for this recount. padilla says they're following all the rules and will disclose their list of donors by july 15th. dramatic images of a building in san francisco up in flames this morning. firefighters say the fire was sparked around 430 this morning. the building, which is four stories tall, is located in the presidio heights neighborhood at lyon and clay streets. the fire was contained about 90 minutes later. nobody was hurt, but given the conditions this morning, san francisco fire says it could have ended up a lot differently. the early morning win that we had coming over the hill were just south of the presidio. smoke was down all the way to the street level. visibility was almost zero at some points. we also had a spitting mist almost a rain, which makes all of our

tools and equipment slippery. the owner of the building told fire officials the building was vacant and undergoing renovations. investigators are still searching for the cause. we have launched a new series here at nbc bay area called the high price of power. this is something that so many of us can relate to our skyrocketing pg and e bills. what's behind all the pg and e rate hikes? here's nbc investigative reporter jaxon van derbeken. hawaii, the isolated island paradise where everything costs more, including power. much of it comes from oil. that has to be shipped in from as far as libya and argentina. the cost to generate it accounts for about half the average $0.41 per kilowatt hour. price customers pay, according to the federal energy information administration. hawaii has been held out as the entity with the highest rates in the united states. mike campbell

tracks rates for the consumer watchdog arm of the california public utilities commission. he says over the last five years, pg and e rates have doubled where it operates in california. after the rate hike in january, customers pay an average 39.6 cents per kilowatt hour, compared to $0.21 per kilowatt hour in 2019. to put it in perspective, an average customer uses about 500 kilowatt hours per month, one kilowatt hour is the amount of energy it takes to power ten 100 watt light bulbs for an hour, so the average customer will paid $100 for power back in 2019, now pays nearly twice that amount. bills have been going up at a pace far beyond inflation, and we're at a place now where pg and e's rates are, unfortunately, approaching the levels of hawaii, but with a network of dams, a nuclear plant, abundant solar, all tied to a multi-state power grid,

mike campbell and other ratepayer watchdog say our power should be much cheaper than hawaii. so why do we now pay almost as much pg rates are clearly insane right now. matt friedman is an attorney with the ratepayer advocacy group tern. he points to this analysis of the added costs borne by pg and e ratepayers. ratepayers are now paying $0.06 more per kilowatt hour for wildfire efforts. that includes pg and his plan to put power lines underground. there are $0.06 more per kilowatt hour to subsidize rooftop solar and $0.02 more per kilowatt hour for low income subsidies. it's low income customers in pg and e service territory are really facing a crisis of affordability. we saw 180,000 customers disconnected for nonpayment last year, and about a third of pg and e low income customers are late in paying their bills right now. state

regulators have proposed one way to make bills more affordable. it involves charging an income based monthly fee to account for fixed costs, while trimming rates per kilowatt hour. we're in a race for the highest rates in the nation, and that is an ignominious prize to win. but critics like former cpuc president loretta lynch say many customers don't use enough power, even at a discount to make up for the proposed standard $24 monthly fee for people who rent apartments. people who are in smaller units, people in urban areas where usually the footprint of the house is smaller, are going to pay more per period. besides, she says, any benefit wouldn't last long as pge already has approval for rates to go up even higher next year. lynch says the only long term solution is for regulators to limit pg and e spending. i'm not as worried about beating a hawaiian becoming the most expensive state for electricity in the nation. i'm worried about it continuing for the next 5 to 10

years at this rate, pg and e says it knows the current structure isn't fair to low income customers. it has sought a $75 monthly fixed fee, but with greater discounts. pg and e says any change will take time. and although pg and e says rates should go up about $50 per month this year to pay for bearing 1200 miles of lines and other wildfire investments, ratepayers may see some relief as soon as next year thanks to cost cutting. it's achieved as it already is. cut fire risk by 94. we are working hard to have average bills decrease in 2025 and 2026 compared to this year, even as these investments continue to pay off in greater safety and reliability for our customers, the utility says. the cpuc is slated to consider the rate change proposal as soon as next month. jaxon van derbeken nbc, bay area news. well, for years, it's been difficult to

get straight answers about these pg and e rate hikes. tonight we go straight to the source. our exclusive interview with the ceo of pg and e! ceo patty poppy. when will rates come down and if so, by how much? and what's she doing with the $2 billion in profit that pg and e made just last year? our exclusive interview coming up on our 6:00 news heads up plan for detours. if you're driving through the east bay this weekend, caltrans is shutting down southbound 680 for repaving work, starting tonight, all lanes of southbound 680 will be closed from 580 to koopman road in sunol. the closure begins at 9:00 tonight and is expected to wrap up by 4:00 monday morning. northbound 680 will remain open all weekend . it's possible for your air conditioner to deliver nice, cool air without making you boiling mad about your high electric bill? i'm consumer investigator chris kimura. i'll show you how next we're checking in on those wind speeds down to

the teens in san jose. but 20 to 30 mile an hour winds along san francisco and the peninsula. we'll talk about how they do this weekend. and if you like warmer temperature

and we want to talk about summer. it's just around the corner and you can cool your home without unnecessarily heating up our planet. our consumer investigator chris chmura is empowering us to be climate warriors with the little ac and diy. air conditioners are notoriously hungry for energy. in fact, pg and e estimates they account for about 40% of our summer electric bills. but if you give your ac a little tlc, it might run a lot more efficiently. the energy department says you can hire a pro to check out the coils and perhaps clean them, but there are some other steps you can take yourself. for starters, check the filter and consider

replacing it. the energy department says replacing a dirty, clogged filter with a clean one can lower your air conditioner energy consumption by 5 to 15. check your outdoor unit two. debris can disrupt air flow and cost you money. the energy department also recommends at least two feet of breathing room, so trim back plants and shrubs at least 24in inside your home. check your ductwork and use tape to seal any loose connections. the state contractor board says sealing and insulating ducts can improve the efficiency of a home's heating and cooling system by as much as 20. sealing ducts will require time, elbow grease, and possibly squeezing yourself into your home's crawl space. yes, that's me. the work might pay off in a big way. consider a big home with a big ac. well, sealing everything up and lowering the bill 20% equates to roughly $50 a month every month. those savings are pretty cool. and those those rates pg and e rates will be rising when the

summer kicks and we're all clicking on our ac or many of us, it's going to go sky high. i look forward to more of your interview at six with the ceo of pg and e! let's talk about the weather the weekend. a bit windy today. we had to bundle up. yeah, i mean, you look to the skies. it's beautiful. right? but then you hear the wind on your window and you step outside. you're like, oh, maybe i should grab a jacket. i think we should keep the jackets lying around for the weekend, because those wind speeds could stick around as we go on and check on our microclimate forecast. if you're staying put or maybe traveling about, we've got it all for you. let's check on conditions outside in oakland right now. low 60s. and look at those winds out of the west northwest at around 26 miles an hour. and we go out to sfo, not only the winds, but the return of that coastal marine layer out there. so definitely bundle up. if your plans include sfo, the peninsula on south, let's go to the north bay. it's breezy out there towards the civic center. temperatures 63 degrees. and we come down here to san jose where we've had a bit of that cloud

cover, but the peaks of the blue and the sunshine also come about. our winds down here at around 17 miles an hour. you might be wondering where it's all coming from. there's been a few weak systems that have moved through parts of the state, even bringing sometimes isolated thunderstorms as you make your plans to head to the sierra, i would bring about those chains and the warmer jackets just to keep you nice and safe later on tonight, even if you're heading down south through the central valley into la, also be careful with those changing conditions. let's see how those wind gusts go as we go on into this evening. making our friday plans still bringing those jackets, those layers, as we go to about 730, 37 mile an hour wind gusts through san francisco, continuing through redwood city and down into san jose, and further on east. they'll die down a little bit as we go on into the overnight hours, but then continue on for our saturday plan. so if you have any outdoor plans, make sure you tie everything down and just be prepared for another bit of a breezy day. how are our temperatures going to look aside from the breezy conditions? not too bad as we make our way into our inland valleys, we've got 73 in concord, 71 in morgan hill

and another 73 on the map in santa rosa. it's a pretty nice and comfortable away from the gusty shoreline, and our mountain passes as well. so just be careful with those changes. there a bit of a more events for you. sausalito yard sale. this will start at nine and continue on into 1:00. bring that jacket. we start in those low in those mid 50s and only top out in those low mid 60s as we go on into the afternoon. if you missed the san francisco cherry blossom festival, well we've got one in cupertino for you this weekend. we also start off in the upper 50s. and then those temperatures should climb into the upper 60s. as we go into the afternoon. let's fast forward and talk about sunday. the winds should start to die down just a little bit further, and our temperatures will live up to the sunday funday name in those 70s through our wine country area, 71 out in livermore, the tri valley to those upper 60s. as we make our way from san francisco through the peninsula, we'll do 69 in mountain view for our sunday plans. let's talk about

what's ahead for next week. we're saying goodbye to the final days of april and starting to warm up over the next couple of days in santa clara by the middle of the week, may 1st. we're up to those upper 70s and continuing to enjoy those warm temperatures as we go on into thursday and friday. high pressure is building back in here, and it won't be too bad in san francisco either. after we get done with a windy weekend, we will be looking for sunglasses or short sleeve shirts, as those temperatures could also hit the 70s as we go on into the end of the week. and if we're talking 70in san francisco, you know it's going to be warm inland as we go from 70s to mid 70s to those 80s. by next week, i don't care if it's windy, it's friday. oh, there we go. that's true. we're good. that's the bright side. well, i have to work tomorrow morning. but for everybody that it is friday for them. you're welcome. we'll be watching you and kira today in the bay. thank you so much, cynthia. thanks, cynthia. up next, the rookie has landed

a new sign, the 40 niners, welcoming their new player, ricky pearsall. he's the bay area's newest millionaire. he is cashing in. could he be the answer for the 40 niners today? the rookie showed up for his first day at work. here's nbc's anthony flores with his family and his girlfriend by his side, ricky pearsall was introduced as the newest member of the 49ers. words can't really describe my feelings right now, man, you know, it hasn't hit. it hasn't

hit yet, just trying to soak it all in. we're going to make you a niner right now, okay? we are 40 niners. when he received the call last night, he said he was overwhelmed. the niners were selecting him in the first round with a 31st overall pick. obviously, this is a legendary program, and i just appreciate the entire organization taking a chance on me, man. and, you know, i'm gonna prove them right. so i'm looking forward to , you know, getting the work in and, you know, showing everybody the six foot one, 190 pound arizona native played the past two seasons with the florida gators prior to the swamp. he spent three years playing near his hometown at arizona state. there he was briefly teammates with current niners star receiver brandon aiyuk. he says bay made a strong impression on his game. it just felt like every time he touched the ball or was throwing his way, he was taking it to the house. so, you know, watching the dude like that really helped me. you know, seeing, you know, what it takes to get to that next level, he

can separate down the field. he can separate underneath. got really good hands. the 40 niners also like his versatility. his addition to the niners creates uncertainty in the wide receiver room. the team is trying to reach a new deal with aiyuk, who's entering the final year of his contract. but the niners appear to be keeping their options open when it comes to a possible trade for aiyuk or deebo samuel. never close the door on a trade. i mean, we, you know, we'll always listen and, and we have and, but we like our group as it stands, the first time we'll see pearsall and the rest of the 40 niners draft class rookie minicamp during the second week of may at levi's stadium. anthony flores nbc, bay area. excited to see him play. all right, guess what. it's orange friday the giants at home at china basin tonight hosting the pittsburgh pirates. and you can see the game right here on nbc bay area. our coverage begins in a little over an hour from now at 7:00. de la salle alum kyle harrison, the local kid scheduled to start for the

giants tonight. next, we are counting down to the olympic games. we're taking a look at the traditional torch relay on its way to paris, where it is right now, and the special meaning this place holds norman, bad news... i never graduated from med school. what? but the good news is... xfinity mobile just got even better! now, you can automatically connect to wifi speeds up to a gig on the go. plus, buy one unlimited line and get one free for a year. i gotta get this deal... that's like $20 a month per unlimited line... i don't want to miss that. that's amazing doc. mobile savings are calling. visit xfinitymobile.com to learn more. doc?

locations. this is the first significant progress after nearly a year of bargaining.

discussions center on the process to resolve grievances. representation of baristas and other issues. in a joint statement, both sides said there's more work to do, but they are committed to working together. several starbucks stores in the bay area have voted to unionize a big meeting today in china. us secretary of state antony blinken sat down with chinese president xi jinping. blinken shared concerns that cheap chinese exports are threatening american jobs, but the president of china countered and said the us is suppressing china's economic growth. both leaders agreed, though it's important to strengthen ties between the two countries. blinken said he believes he made progress on what he called people to people ties and on topics like military communication, narcotics and the future of artificial intelligence. the olympic flame is on its way to paris for the summer games. it's all part of a tradition, and it happens in greece every four years before the olympics, the olympic flame is handed over to the host country. and that's what

happened today in athens. greece passed the torch to the president of the 2024 french olympic organizing committee. it will now sail on a ship to france. after it will arrive in marseille, where torch bearers will carry it to paris. the torch will be showcased at the opening ceremony, of course, on july 26th, we haven't seen much of king charles lately, but buckingham palace says that will change soon. the king will resume his public duties next week. this comes almost three months after his diagnosis with cancer. while charles underwent treatment, princess kate was also diagnosed with cancer. both have stayed out of the public eye. last month, she posted a video announcing her diagnosis. we have a lot more news ahead and audrey asistio joins us now with what's coming up next. janelle and raj right now at six, learning more about that fiery crash in pleasanton. the new details we discovered about the car brand involved and why the vehicles raised safety concerns. just last month, the

original popular horn barbecue restaurant was destroyed in a fire, but today it reopened in downtown oakland. and as you can see, a lot of people are happy about it. we'll show you why. coming up, also on nbc bay area exclusive, we sit down with patty poppy, the ceo of pga wired the rates so high. and is she mismanaging the multi-billion dollar company? the news at six starts right now. good evening and thanks for being with us on this friday. i'm raj mathai and i'm audrey asistio we begin tonight with the story that is frustrating and angering thousands of families in the bay area, talking about our sky high pg and e rates. they've nearly doubled since 2019. and to make matters worse, those rates continue to rise unless you go solar. we don't have many choices here. for most of us, pg and e is the only option.

tonight we get some answers directly from the top. a rare and exclusive interview with the ceo of pg and e! she is the ceo of one of the most controversial companies in the bay area and in many ways, patty poppy is on damage control. what do you think the perception of pg and e is? oh, we know that the perception, has been challenged. you know, i think, the company is on a path to rebuild trust with the people that we serve. since taking over pg and e in 2021, just two years after the utility filed for bankruptcy, poppy has dealt with wildfires, government regulations and accusations of mismanagement. but perhaps the biggest damage has been to its ratepayers. bay area families feeling the pinch of a multi-billion dollar company repeatedly raising rates