making news in america this morning -- raging wildfires. the attack in full force in five states. flames getting close to homes and thousands of acres burning with no end in sight. remembering bobbi kristina. whitney houston's daughter dies six months after being found in a bathtub. overnight rkt celebrities reacting on twitter. record fine. an american automaker admitting to violating safety laws. the penalty being called unprecedented. what it means for drivers' safety. rough landing. a plane with hundreds of passengers rocking back and forth as it approaches the runway.

and good monday morning to you all. we have to start with the fierce battle against wildfires. new fires erupting over the weekend. >> this morning, 24 major fires are burning in 5 states. more than 700,000 acres in flames. california getting the worst of it. with four separate fires around sacramento coming dangerously close to homes. bazi kanani is tracking it all. >> reporter: the fire-fight in full force. planes and helicopters attack from above. and a tough battle below as firefighters try to get ahead of an unpredictable opponent. >> fire is a living, breathing organism. you never know what it's going to do and where it's going to go. >> reporter: hot, shifting winds and steep slopes among the challenges for the more than 1,000 firefighters in hard to reach terrain about 45 minutes northeast of sacramento. the lowell fire burning so hot you can see it from space. >> i'm very worried about my

house. this is all i have right here. >> reporter: the house he built himself is now in the hands of firefighters. as flames approach crews get set to defend the home. clearing out trees and brush. one of about 2,000 structures threatened, people forced to evacuate. >> i'm going to grab my four dog, put them in the car, and leave. and hope that they can save my house. >> reporter: this fire season is an exhausting one. 5.6 million acres burned so far, compared to just 1.6 million acres last year. >> we're at the peak of summer. though we're in july, we're experiencing conditions we could typically see later in the year. >> reporter: experts warn each year this war is getting harder to win, as more people build homes in fire-prone areas and as more flames are put out before they can naturally burn off the dry trees and brush building up. bazi kanani, abc news, washington. more extreme issues on the east coast of another kind though. widespread flooding across

florida. >> the water forcing the evacuation of more than 320 homes in the community of trinity, florida. that's just north of tampa. several straight days of heavy rain has pushed rivers and lakes over their banks from there to miami. some residents have been seen fishing in their front yards. >> some rain swirling off southwest florida in the gulf. the big story on radar is approaching the east coast. heavy rain and flash flooding possible along the i-95 corridor. turning to bobbi kristina brown. the only daughter of whitney houston and bobby brown passing away at 22. >> she died at a hospice near atlanta six months after she was found unresponsive in her bathtub, eerily similar to the way her superstar mother died three years ago. she was still struggling to come to grips with the death of her mother. meanwhile, her mother's cousin singer dionne warwick, reacting on bravo last night.

>> she was a sweetheart. she will be missed, that's for sure. she was a good girl. she was a good little girl. she really was. she's in much better hands now. >> the houston family released a statement saying bobbi kristina is quote finally at peace in the arms of god. >> and condolences pouring in overnight online. among them oprah tweeting peace at last. from sherri shepherd, she's finally back in her mother's arms. #rest in peace bobbi kristina. today, the families of the the women killed at the louisiana movie theater shooting are getting set to say good-bye. two funerals scheduled for this morning. the deadly attack on the theater was not a random act. ryan owens explains. >> reporter: he planned it and wrote it down. that's the startling new conclusion state police have come to after reading the journals of 59-year-old john "rusty" houser. >> he made comments he was coming. it was written down. the movie theater. the time, everything. "trainwreck" 7:15.

>> reporter: in that journal? >> in that journal. >> reporter: officials found that journal along with disguises in his hotel room. they called him a drifter. he visited several local movie theaters before they think he settled on this one perhaps because the grand doesn't have security on thursday nights like they do on the weekends. houser had a long history of mental illness. his own family had him committed. despite that, he was legally able to buy a gun at a alabama pawnshop. >> we must choose life when others have chosen death. >> reporter: at sunday services in this deeply religious community, prayers for the nine injured and the two women who lost their lives. in this senseless tragedy. 33-year-old jillian johnson and 21-year-old mayci breaux. >> please pray for us. play from jillians family. the other victims who were shot. >> reporter: ryan owens, abc news, louisiana.

donald trump leads the pack in the latest polls. in new hampshire, he has 21% of the vote followed by jeb bush and scott walker. the polls taking on importance because only the top ten candidates can participate in next week's republican debate. hillary clinton revealing more details on her climate change proposals today in iowa. she says she's a grandmother with two eyes and a brain and she knows what's happening in the world. also in iowa clinton again denied she ever sent classified information on her private e-mail server. more of those e-mails will be released this week. president obama is in ethiopia this morning. the first sitting president ever to visit that country. he was in kenya, the country where his father was born. speaking to a crowd in nairobi, he urged them to treat women and minorities as equal citizens.

the trip wasn't all fun and games. look at this. mr. president getting down. listening to music of a popular kenyan pop group and they put a more modern spin on a traditional african dance. the president clearly having a good time and going right along. >> he sings, he dances. we're learning so much these last few years. still ahead, cracking down on auto safety. federal regulations. handing done a record fine. lost at sea. massive search going on right now for those two guys. two teenagers missing after their boat found capsized. new details about where they were heading. plus, rough landing. a jumbo jet packed with passengers and its tough touch-and-go moments on the runway.

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a towering inferno at a luxury hotel in the las vegas strip. the cosmopolitan hotel's roof top pool area burning. fueling the fire palm trees made of plastic. firefighters arrived within minutes. put out the flames within a half an hour. guests on several floors had to be evacuated for a short time. the casino never closed. that rooftop pool is back up and running now. a major consumer alert this morning. auto maker fiat-chrysler has been hit with a record fine. they've been told the pay $105 million. the two dozen recalls involve 11 million vehicles. as part of the deal, they must offer to buy back more than 500,000 ram pickup trucks. which have defective steering parts. also owners of more than 1 million older jeeps with rear-mounted gas tanks might be able to trade them in or get the vehicles repaired.

full details at abcnews.com. we turn now to a powerful visual statement. on the cover of the latest "new york" magazine. take a look. this week's issue shows 35 of bill cosby's accusers seated. see the black and white image. there's an empty chair there as well said to symbolize those who have yet to speak. women share their personal but similar stories of how they say they were abused by cosby. many of them saying they were drugged and raped by the comedian when they were teenagers. among them former supermodels beverly johnson and janice dickinson. zblornlgts a major change today for the boy scouts of america. the organization is expected to end its long-time ban on gay leaders. however, scout pax run by churches will be allowed to choose leaders who are in line with their moral values.

turning to the box office now. it was "ant-man" staying on top by a microscopic margin. the superhero pick from marvel and our parent company, disney, kept its top spot. in the second week of release, it brought in nearly $25 million. meanwhile, adam sandler's comedy "pixels," came second. with $24 million. millions. "minions," i should say, came in third. when we come back, a wild wreck. a spectacular crash during a race. and payday. how a guy walked away from the horse track with $500,000 after what? just a 50-cent bet? ♪ every auto insurance policy has a number. but not every insurance company understands the life behind it. those who have served our nation. have earned the very best service in return. ♪

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all without missing a beat. walgreens. at the corner of happy and healthy. something odd last night in the skies over san diego. that's a runaway hot air balloon. losing control right near a freeway. the balloon eventually landed safely. police say there was no threat to traffic and no one was hurt. let's check your morning road conditions. flooding possible on roads across florida. it will be a wet ride to work across the southeast and the midwest. across the northern plains and into the rockies. if you're flying, airport delays are possible along the northeast korcorridor from boston, all the way south to washington d.c. coast guard crews worked through the night to find two teens who vanished friday morning. >> they're 14-year-old best friends. they set off to go fishing near jupiter, florida.

they were texting friends they were headed to the bahamas. yesterday, their boat was found 150 miles north, capsized and damaged. family and friends still holding out hope. >> if anyone knows austin and knows his love of the sea and just his knowledge that he somehow found a way to you know fight through that storm and so that's just that glimmer of hope that we're all holding on to right now. >> the coast guard using ships and planes. focusing the search where the boys' boat was found. off the coast of daytona beach. they have already covered 26,000 square nautical miles. the search for the missing cat in milwaukee goes on. there were several sightings over the weekend, including by police, by the man got away. reports indicated a lion was on the loose. experts say the animal is more likely a cougar someone had been keeping as a pet. a pilot is dead after a fiery plane crash in southern california. the single-engine plane narrowly missed two houses. before slamming into a backyard.

it happened about half a mile from the airport in riverside. shortly after the pilot reported losing engine power. no one on the ground was injured. frightening moments aboard a passenger jet in amsterdam. the klm flight was struggling to land in the middle of a violent storm. you can see this thing rocking side to side. it tilts sharply just moments before touching down. the skillful pilots should be credited here. everybody on board was okay. and speaking of rough landings here's what happened at a motorcycle race in japan. a rider named casey stoner was in the lead when he violently crashed. this was his first competitive race since three years. stoner wound up with a broken shoulder and leg. the crash is being blamed with a problem on his bike throttle which got stuck as he entered a sharp turn. let's turn to some other, hopefully not so painful sports now. highlights from our guys at espn. he's jay harris, i'm steve levy. welcome to the mike trout show. >> yeah he's the reigning a.l.

mvp. and i think his reign will be a very long one. just ask the texas rangers. trout and the angels looking to avoid a sweep by the rangers. no score. no more. trout, off of nick martinez. his 30th home run of the season. angels up, 1-0. just like that. bottom six. 4-2, angels. bases loaded for trout. you know what he does with bases loaded. that's a grand slam. and it's going to fall into a fan's trout net. trout, 4 for 4, 5 rbi, two home runs, including that one. the angels roll, 13-7. baseball hall of fame class of 2015 inducted on sunday afternoon. craig biggio. paid roe mart nez. john smoltz, randy johnson. first time three pitchers were all inducted in the same class. all of them elected on the first ballot. a big trade in baseball. the royals get an ace.

the reds' ace, johnny cueto. kansas city with a 7 1/2-game lead in the a.l. central. the e.r.a. of cueto will bolster them down the stretch. the teams have null baseball's july 31st deadline to complete nonwaiver trades. >> for the latest trade news and highlights, check out a live "sportscenter," 9:00 a.m. eastern on espn. >> all right, fellas, thank you. up next, "the pulse." and the premiere episode of "i am cait." caitlyn jenner's new journey and the surprising exchange he had with kanye west. and hanging ten. a wild stunt by a surfer. ok, let's try this online snacking thing again. ugh! rough around the edges. ugh... greasy... oh! dan n. oikos tasty and healthy. and if i don't love it, it's free? could be

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all right. time for us to check "the pulse" now. we start with the much anticipated premier of caitlyn jenner's docuseries. >> some of the big moments, caitlyn meeting her 88-year-old mother,ester. and she was afraid to meet her youngest daughter kylie. >> one of the strongest things that have happened in our, you know existence as human beings that are so controlled by perception. because you couldn't have been up against more. like your daughter's a supermod. . you're a celebrity. you have every type of thing.

and it was still like [ bleep ] everybody. this is who i am. >> a rare appearance there from kanye west. later in the episode, caitlyn paid a visit to the family and friends of a transjentder teen who had committed suicide. we don't usually mention much about horse racing outside the triple crown. one lucky better bringing home a ton of money. >> this happened on saturday. like most horse racing bets a combination of skill and luck. >> the person bet 50 cents and correctly picked the winners of the day's first five races. the payoff more than $471,000. somebody might not be going to work today. >> 50 cents? you picked five winners. >> yeah five winners. >> on a 50-crept best? oh my good psness you wouldn't think a surfer would have an attraction to

fire. >> he dreamed up the moment. got folks at red bull to go along. wearing a thermal suit and three more he was set on fire and caught when he described as the best wave of his life. in practice he burned off an eyelash, an eyebrow, when it came to the real wave this went off how it was supposed to. sptacular sight, some would say. why do it? because you can. >> that's what i want to know why? >> if there's ever a place you want to be on fire it's in the water. >> in the middle of a wave. stwl >> if it goes badly, you can put the fire out. everybody is pushing the envelope. he's in the water. everybody else is worried about sharks. the man's on fire. is this that's true. the surfers last week. >> not enough danger. for some of you, your local news is next.

>> for everyone else, "america this morning" continues after this. ♪ ♪ food should be good. strawberries should sing. lettuce should be dirty. dressing, clean. debates should be healthy. hatchets buried. tables should be full. and good food should be good for you. we're not saying these are the rules we should all live by. but it's a good place to start. panera. food as it should be. it's hard finding time to moisturize your skin every day. new vaseline spray moisturizer absorbs in seconds to help heal dry skin. that's... the healing power of vaseline. in seconds! no student's ever done the full hand raise in ap calc. but your stellar notebook gives you the gumption to reach for the sky. that's that new gear feeling. all hp ink buy one get one 50% off. office depot officemax. gear up for school.

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live from the kgo-tv broadcast center this is abc7 news. >> good monday morning. thanks for joining us. i am matt keller here for christian. >> i am eric thomas. there is warmer weather ahead. >> comfortable weekend. especially compared to what we will deal with later this week. you can see live doppler hd and how quiet it is this morning. there is a lack of clouds everywhere. as you can see from our east bay hill camera, we are looking at temperatures running in the 60. then we will have 60 at the coast, 70s around the bay 80s inland and at noon it will be warm or mild to warm and mild toment 60s at the coast

80s and 90s around the bay and inland and by 7:00 we are going to have 60s at the coast and 70s and still some 80s inland so it will be warm. now, a check of the monday morning commute. >> good morning everyone happy monday. hope you had a wonderful weekend. we do have one accident that is southbound 880 on the express we, but other than that, we have fairly clear conditions looking at the bay bridge toll plaza and traffic is stacking up in the cash-paying lanes if you are making your way from the east bay and san francisco, you could be met with a couple of minutes of a wait. 101 southbound from san francisco to sfo is 11 minutes. 880 northbound from 238 to the maze is thin minutes. northbound side of 101 in the south bay from highway 85 to the san jose airport is 11 minutes. >> it is 4:29. developing news from santa cruz a search is underway if a

missing eight-year-old girl, and madison middleton or maddie was seen at 4:00 yesterday afternoon playing outside her mother's apartment complex on river street wearing a purple dress and a helmet riding a white scooter, she is 4' tall and weighs 48 pounds. if you have seen madison called 9-1-1. janet o is on the scene with a report at top of hour. >> an amber alert has not been issued. certain criteria must be met. the shield has to be 17 years old or younger law enforcement must confirm an abduction has taken place and the child must be at risk of serious injury or death. also, there needs to be sufficient description of the child or captor vehicle to issue an alert. authorities have not issued an amber alert. our coverage continues on