admire, pick up characteristics. >> cheerio. right now on "america this morning" -- a surge in coronavirus cases. health officials sounding the alarm as new infections rise in nearly every state. some areas now putting mask mandates back into place. plus, one of the biggest games at the olympic games forced to withdraw after testing positive. back to ballpark, fans returning to nationals park 24 hours after gunfire at the stadium. the historic heat wave fueling dozens of fire in west and now new concerns about the heat is doing to christmas trees. clear for launch. jeff bezos and his crew making

final preparations for their trip. overnight -- abc news getting inside a capsule like the one that will carry the crew to space. plus, britney spears calling out her father and her sister in scathing instagram posts in to end of her conservatorship. and how this 12-year-old soared into the history books at the x-games. good monday morning, everyone. we begin with the growing concern over the rapid rise in covid infections from coast to coast. >> delta variant driving up cases everywhere. with the exception of south dakota and wyoming. arkansas the highest infection rates in florida. and missouri. health officials are struggling to convince more people to get vaccinated. >> in another disappointment for the olympics.

american tennis star coco gauff forced to pull out of the games after her covid test came back positive. andrea fujii. >> reporter: coronavirus case are soaring across the country. hospitals are pushed to the brink again. unvaccinated americans account for nearly all new cases. the delta variant fueling cases everywhere but south dakota and wyoming. arkansas, florida and missouri seeing the highest infection rates. this hospital in arkansas says it's full. admissions statewide surging 80% in the past two weeks. >> covid is still here, right now, and we're fighting it. >> reporter: in florida new cases have doubled in a week. a federal appeals court ruled pandemic restrictions on florida based cruise ships will remain. meanwhile, seattle cruise season set to begin today, after a year and a half pandemic hiatus. over the weekend, los angeles county reinstating their indoor mask mandate regardless of vaccine status as cases rise there. u.s. surgeon general agreeing

with the decision. >> cases are rising it's very reasonable for counties to take more mitigation measures. >> reporter: more than 65 .of americans 12 and over have received at least one dose of the vaccine, but the biden administration believes social media misinformation around covid is hampering vaccination efforts. >> if we had had the pushback for vaccines the way we're seeing on certain media, we probably would still have smallpox. >> reporter: as the summer olympics are set to start in just days, u.s. tennis star coco gauff out after she tested positive for the virus. concern growing in tokyo. more than 50 confirmed cases linked to the games. accelerating the review process to fully approve the pfizer vaccine. dr. fauci says that may come by the end of august. he still expects young children may not get a shot until winter. or end of the year. >> thank you.

two more democratic lawmakers from texas who fled to washington have tested positive for covid. that brings total number of confirmed cases to five. just days after they left texas in an effort to block a restrictive republican voting bill. democrats say they are experiencing mild symptoms or none at all. >> i honestly thought i just had a cold, because i was fully vaccinated. and i had the pfizer vaccine earlier this year. i had aches, i had loss of appetite, and a slight fever. >> the white house says vice president kamala harris had a routine doctor's appointment sunday, several days after meeting with the texas democrats who later tested positive. a spokesperson for harris says the vp was not in close contact with the legislators. breaking news overnight, in arizona, a man opened fire an ambulance crew and shot a fire and others as they tried to put out a nearby fire.

one person was killed. a badly burned body was found in the home and two children are now missing. the suspect was critically injured in a shootout with police. baseball fans return to nationals park in washington d.c. 24 hours after a shooting outside the stadium. the gunfire sent people in the stands scrambling saturday night. this morning, police are searching for the suspects who caused the mayhem. this morning, police on the hunt for suspects after gunshots sent crowds fleeing the washington nationals baseball game. >> 8-4. >> reporter: gunfire echoing across the stadium saturday night, in the middle of the sixth inning. >> into the dugout. >> reporter: some fans running to the dugouts to take cover. others ducking under seats fearing an active shooter. >> we were lying on the ground. we thought there was somebody above us with a gun. >> reporter: police say three people were injured in the shooting, including one person

who attended the game. d.c. police say they're trying to find this vehicle, possibly involved in the shooting. on sunday an increased security presence at the park as fans return to watch the team resume the game. this woman feeling it was safe enough to bring her two children to the stadium. >> we thought it was an incident. isolated. it's sad we have to think to go to a public event how would we exit this leaving with our kid and safety. >> reporter: and both managers getting emotional reflecting on the violence. >> to be with the men in there, and obviously they're going out and thinking their loved ones, and they're getting their families. seeing fans and people in panic. they did the right thing. >> i love this city. the city is my home. it can get crazy. we all know that. we all want to feel safe. >> no arrests have been made in the shooting.

officials say two people are being questioned. military-grade malware allegedly used to spy on journalist and world leaders. a group of outlets identified more than 1,000 people in 50 countries believed to be potential targets of an israeli based group working on behalf of government clients. they say at least 37 smartphones were hacked including one belonging to fiancee of slain saudi journalist khashoggi. huge piles of muddy debris can be seen and towns in germany, belgium and netherlands this morning. the devastating floods are blamed for around 190 deaths. german chancellor angela merkel toured the damage on sunday. calling the floods a reason for faster action against climate change. abc's maggie rulli surveyed the damage left behind by raging

floodwaters. >> reporter: they ripped apart the home. that bridge. it's hard to think about the force created to tear apart concrete like this. it took trees and uprooted them. destroying everything. this town is now completely cut off. >> the floods came after the area experienced more than a month's worth of rain in 24 hours. about 70 major wildfires burning in the u.s. across the drought-stricken west. hundreds of homes south of lake tahoe have been evacuated. that fire already consuming about 30 square miles. california and oregon have dangerous fire weather for at least the next day. recent extreme heat in oregon is killing christmas trees. at an alarming rate. that can mean higher prices during the holiday season. time now for a look at monday morning weather. all right, there's still a big mess to clean up after a rare tornado roared across southern new jersey. the twister was on the ground

for nearly eight miles with winds 90 miles per hour. no injuries reported and today there's rain for most of the and there are concerns about lightning sparking fires in the west. high temperatures 86 l.a. and portland. 80s around the great lakes. boston reaching the low 70s. ide coming up, a deck collapses injuring several people. the images coming in. also ahead, jeff bezos and his crew about 24 hours away from launching into space. how they are preparing this morning. dozens treated after they

narrator: covid-19 has changed how we show up and show out with our family. now it's time to take the first step that lets us get back to talking smack with a side of mac and cheese. before we can safely come together, we need the facts. as covid-19 vaccines become available, you may have questions. man 1: should i get it? man 2: is it safe? woman: should i wait? narrator: it's smart to question. now get the facts at getvaccineanswers.org so you can make an informed decision when vaccines are available to you.

back now with the popes back now with the pope's first vatican appearance since his surgery on july 4th. praying for flood victims and he also recommended taking advantage of summer as time for rest and compassion. a toddler among eight people hurt in a deck collapse outside baltimore. a section of the deck gave way yesterday at a home in ferndale. two people suffered serious injuries. no word on what caused the collapse. a waterpark in houston will be closed through today after a chemical spill. there will be a vapor release containing sulfuric acid and bleach. to the hospital, and many others felt the chemicals on their skin. >> i was wondering why i was burning. >> a lot of people running. life guards and security.

running back and forth. >> officials are trying to figure out what caused the leak. the park will reopen when they are confident it's safe. now to jeff bezos and his flight crew making final preparation for the trip to space. it will include thdest person to ever go into space and the youngest. blue origin is officially cleared for liftoff. the rocket set to take off tomorrow morning. with amazon founder jeff bezos and his three crew mates on board. overnight, abc's gio benitez getting inside a training capsule, similar to the one that will take the crew to space. >> these are the largest windows that have ever flown in space. >> it's roomy. considering. you wouldn't think so. >> the other thing to note, once you're up in space and zero g. you end up having this third dimension as well. it feels even roomier. and give you a sense, this is ten times the amount of volume

on the first flight to space in 1961. >> reporter: the crew now preparing to blast off for the 11-minute flight. and experience three minutes of weightlessness. >> you are going to start to essentially levitate out of the because you're in zero g. you'll get out of your seat. you can come and do flips. >> reporter: bezos will be accompanied by his brother, and 82 year-old and 18 year-old. first paying civilian aboard a spacecraft. bezos will be the second billionaire to leave the planet. after branson launched a spaceship last week. they will travel 62 miles above the surface of the earth, a little farther than branson's 53 miles. >> blue origin will take off from west texas. the weather looks favorable. and abc news will provide live

coverage of the flight tomorrow morning. coming up, the reward increasing after a popular podcaster is killed in a hit and run. [slow electronic notes fade in] [fast upbeat music begins] [music stops] and release. [deep exhale] [fast upbeat music resumes] [music stops] why hide your skin if dupixent has your moderate-to-severe eczema, or atopic dermatitis under control? hide our skin? not us. because dupixent targets a root cause of eczema, it helps heal your skin from within, keeping you one step ahead of it. and for kids ages 6 and up, that means clearer skin,

and noticeably less itch. hide my skin? not me. by helping to control eczema with dupixent, you can change how their skin looks and feels. and that's the kind of change you notice. hide my skin? not me. don't use if you're allergic to dupixent. serious allergic reactions can occur, including anaphylaxis, which is severe. tell your doctor about new or worsening eye problems, such as eye pain or vision changes, or a parasitic infection. if you take asthma medicines, don't change or stop them without talking to your doctor. when you help heal your skin from within, you can show more with less eczema. talk to your child's eczema specialist about dupixent, a breakthrough eczema treatment. ok everyone, our mission is to provide complete, balanced nutrition for strength and energy. whoo hoo! ensure, with 27 vitamins and minerals, now introducing ensure complete! with 30 grams of protein. it's very common to have both sensitivity and gum issues. ensure complete!

dentists and hygienists will want to recommend sensodyne sensitivity and gum. you get the sensitivity relief as well as improved gum health all in one. microban 24 doesn't just kill bacteria once, then stop. it keeps killing bacteria for 24 hours. just spray and let dry to form a shield that's proven to keep killing bacteria for 24 hours... ...touch after touch. microban 24. back now with something you don't see every day. a strange sight in denver. a teenage driver was at the wheel taking a car straight to the bottom of the swimming pool.

the driver and passenger escaped ininjured. a diver attached a chain to the car which was used to pull it out. police offering a $50,000 in the hit and run death of a popular podcaster. matt george co-host of she rates dogs killed saturday. the show takes a humorous look at dating advice from pop culture. he was hit by a bmw as he crossed the street. in the beverly grove. he was 26. another court hearing is being held today in britney spears' battle to escape conservatorship. it comes after spears called out her family in a social media post. ♪ >> reporter: this morning, pop icon britney spears taking aim at her critics on social media. telling her more than 31 million instagram followers the conservatorship headed by her father has quote, killed my

dreams and for those of you who choose to criticize my dancing videos, look, i'm not going to be performing any time soon. i have done that for the past 13 years. i'd much rather share videos from my living room. instead of on stage in las vegas. spears' latest post comes a day after she lashed out at those close to her, after they shared supportive posts online. saying they weren't there for her when she was drowning. she also slammed her sister. for performing her music back in 2017. writing, i don't like that my sister showed up at a show and performed my songs to remixes. my so-called support system hurt me deeply. she's fighting to end the 13 year conservatorship that has controlled her life and career for 13 years. today's the co-coserve or the is

scheduled to be in court. to pay for additional security. claiming she has received death threats. >> spears has received support from fans and celebrities, and says she's hopeful a judge allowed her to hire her own attorney. hollywood heavyweight matthew ro rosengart. spears next hearing is september. >> thank you. in golf, now one of eight men to win two majors before his 25th birthday. morikawa used a strong final round to come from behind and wn the british open by two strokes. joining tiger woods as the only golfer to win the british and pga championship before age 25. coming up, how experts possibly found michelangelo's fingerprints. hit at the box office. even i'm ill exploring what's ne.

and still going for my best. even though i live with a higher risk of stroke due to afib not caused by a heart valve problem. so if there's a better treatment than warfarin, i'm reaching for that. eliquis. eliquis is proven to reduce stroke risk better than warfarin. plus has significantly less major bleeding than warfarin. eliquis is fda-approved and has both. what's next? i'm on board. don't stop taking eliquis unless your doctor tells you to, as stopping increases your risk of having a stroke. eliquis can cause serious and in rare cases fatal bleeding. don't take eliquis if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. while taking eliquis, you may bruise more easily and it may take longer than usual for any bleeding to stop. seek immediate medical care for sudden signs of bleeding like unusual bruising. eliquis may increase your bleeding risk if you take certain medicines. tell your doctor about all planned medical or dental procedures. ask your doctor about eliquis. and if your ability to afford your medication has changed, we want to help.

[swords clashing] - had enough? - no... arthritis. here. new aspercreme arthritis. full prescription-strength? reduces inflammation? thank the gods. don't thank them too soon. kick pain in the aspercreme. to run a growing business, is to be on a journey. and along the ride, you'll find many challenges. your dell technologies advisor is here to help. so you can stop at nothing for your customers.

♪ time to check "the pulse." a new begin with an out-of-this-world performance. >> lebron james lifts "space jam" to the top of the box office. the reboot pulled in more than $31.5 million during its north american debut. the figure comes despite not so kind reviews from critics. which prompted james to post the words "hi haters." alongside news of the box office numbers. next our own robin rer hos jeopardy.

she starts tonight. following her fellow anchor. who had his turn last week. >> she wants to bring alex trebek to the podium. now to england and word of a classic fingerprint? >> it's a possible remnant of michelangelo in wax. a fingerprint in 500--year-old work called the slave. an official called the discovery an exciting prospect. some historymaking skateboarding at the x games. >> talking about a 12-year-old from brazil. you have to check it out. pulling off a 1080. three revolutions in the air. the first time it's been done in competition. called himself super-stoked. >> it made him the youngest gold medalist in x games history. he was congratulated by skateboarding legend tony hawk. i know his dreams were made.

>> and tony hawk back in the day he pulled off a 900 in competition. competition. what if i told you... the best place to begin is within. with collagen, that supports our body from the inside, out. because when we feel supported from within... ♪ our confidence... comes from way deeper. it's within us. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ just two pills for all day pain relief. aleve it, and see what's possible. truthfully, it's frustrating to see how fast dust reappears. but dusting with a cloth is a pain. and dealing with a bulky vacuum.. . is such a hassle. uchhh!!! so now we use our swiffer sweeper and dusters.

the fluffy fibers? they pick up dust easily. grabbing it in all those hard-to-reach places. gotcha!!! and for our floors, sweeper's textured cloths lock all kinds of dirt, dust and pet hair. unlike my vacuum, it sneaks under and around places. look at that!! dust free and hassle free. stop cleaning and start swiffering. ♪ when all that chuggin' makes you want to get out, get out there. and bring a friend. lipton green tea with antioxidant vitamin c keeps you feeling better, while making time together better. lipton. stop chuggin'. start sippin'. ♪ ♪ while making time oh, son of a poppyseed! ah, there's no place like panera. enjoy the cool, refreshing strawberry poppyseed salad. panera. order on the app today. nicorette knows, quitting smoking is freaking hard. you get advice like: try hypnosis... or... quit cold turkey. kidding me?! instead, start small. with nicorette.

which can lead to something big. start stopping with nicorette all denny's pancakes are made to order with fresh buttermilk. but this month's spotlight stack is a patriot. fresh, sweet and full of freedom. new red, white & blue pancakes. this month's spotlight stack. see you at denny's.

i'm morgan, and there's more to me than hiv. this month's spotlight stack. more love, more adventure, more community. but with my hiv treatment, there's not more medicines in my pill. i talked to my doctor and switched to fewer medicines with dovato. dovato is for some adults who are starting hiv-1 treatment or replacing their current hiv-1 regimen. with just 2 medicines in 1 pill, dovato is as effective as a 3-drug regimen... to help you reach and stay undetectable. research shows people who take hiv treatment as prescribed and get to and stay undetectable can no longer transmit hiv through sex. don't take dovato if you're allergic to its ingredients or if you take dofetilide. taking dovato with dofetilide can cause serious or life-threatening side effects. hepatitis b can become harder to treat while on dovato. don't stop dovato without talking to your doctor,

as your hepatitis b may worsen or become life-threatening. serious or life-threatening side effects can occur, including allergic reactions, lactic acid buildup, and liver problems. if you have a rash and other symptoms of an allergic reaction, stop dovato and get medical help right away. tell your doctor if you have kidney or liver problems, or if you are, may be, or plan to be pregnant. dovato may harm your unborn baby. use effective birth control while on dovato. do not breastfeed while taking dovato. most common side effects are headache, nausea, diarrhea, trouble sleeping, tiredness, and anxiety. so much goes into who i am. hiv medicine is one part of it. ask your doctor about dovato-i did. ♪ building a better bay area.

moving forward. finding solutions. this is abc7 news. we are having a lot of fires every year. they are really bad. more than a dozen fires across california. the metaphor positive information here. and fighting across the covid-19 surge. and what is behind the wall? the rescue of something very precious. good morning, welcome to monday, july 19. we want to start with a check on the forecast. there is some good news. we went to bed with a red flag warning and high fire danger. but there is a threat of thunderstorms out there. they're not going to be as dry as originally thought. lightning potential as you see in that entire area, which is the bay area. here is a look at the