>> just a remarkable woman. right now on "america this morning," the new decision from the fda on covid vaccine booster shots and the vote expected today at the cdc. what we're learning about who could get the booster shots and when. plus, could grocery store workers and teachers be among the first in line? for the first time the biden administration reveals how many of the migrants creating the crisis at the border have been deported back to haiti. and overnight homeland security responding to reports about a migrant detention facility being built at guantanamo bay, cuba. the volcano emergency in the atlantic takes a troubling new turn. a wall of lava 40 feet high crashing into more homes. we'll take you there to hear the explosions, plus, the new plan to save more neighborhoods from

being destroyed. a new witness comes forward in the gabby petito case. what she saw just outside the park where the 22-year-old's body was found. it was the biggest art heist in world history. $500 million in masterpieces stolen from this boston museum. this morning why this cold case just got even colder. and the best city in america for coffee. you might be surprised. good thursday morning, everyone. thank you for joining us. i'm mona kosar abdi. >> and i'm phil lipof. andrew is off today. the cdc is set to vote on pfizer's booster shot, this coming after the fda authorized a third shot for millions of americans at high risk of the disease. abc's ike ejiochi joins us with the very latest. ike, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, mona.

health experts say pfizer's third booster shot will mean more protection for the most vulnerable. this morning, the food and drug administration approving pfizer's booster shot for seniors and high risk american adults. though the cdc will likely come out with specific guidance this week, fda acting commissioner janet woodcock giving us an example of who they have in mind for the shot. health care workers, teachers, child day care staff, grocery workers and people in homeless shelters among others. >> hopefully director wollensky will give final recommendations at who is at high risk including those above the age 65. for everyone else we just need more data. >> reporter: americans who receive moderna or johnson & johnson's covid vaccine will also have to wait a few more weeks for approval from the federal government. dr. fauci hypothesizing what he believes to be the inevitable. >> i believe the correct regimen is going to be two doses at first and a few months later a third dose.

for j&j it'll be the first dose followed a few months later by the second dose. >> reporter: 2 million americans with compromised immune systems have already been cleared for pfizer's booster shot. alison rogers has crone's disease. >> if you've already gotten the second one, the third one is a breeze. i got it on saturday and by monday i was back at work. >> reporter: hospitals being pushed to the brink. in iowa the head of the largest head in the state say staff are burnt out. wisconsin, icu beds are nearly full. still, the shots are working. our medical team has found that states with the lowest vaccination levels have death rates nearly four times higher than in states leading the country in vaccinations. >> we have a degree of vaccine hesitancy in this country that's really quite disturbing. >> reporter: now, cdc director dr. rochelle walensky is expected to lay out the full guidelines by the end of the week. >> ike ejiochi in washington, thank you.

and covid isn't the only concern as we head into the winter season. the former head of the fda is warning the flu season could be a, quote, whopper. he says because we didn't see a flu season last year, our immunity is low, and he says when the flu does return, it will come back aggressively. president biden's approval rating has hit a new low as he faces a series of growing challenges. a new gallup poll shows 53% of americans now disapprove of the job that he's doing. those sinking numbers come as the president scrambles to unite democrats engaged in party in-fighting that could derail his agenda. he spent most of wednesday on the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill and $3.5 trillion spending package aimed at improving social programs. meanwhile, a government shutdown is looming with funding set to run out one week from today unless a deal can be reached. now to the crisis on the southern border. the biden administration responding overnight to reports that it is considering opening a migrant detention center in

guantanamo bay, cuba. and now for the first time, we are learning just how many migrants are being deported. this morning for the first time the crisis unfolded at the bridge in del rio, texas, the white house is releasing specific numbers about the mostly haitian migrants trying to enter the country from mexico. the homeland security department now saying more than 1,400 haitians have been returned to haiti on 12 different flights since sunday alone, and more than 3,200 have been sent elsewhere for processing or expulsion. >> to have everybody cleared out by the end of the week i think is doable assuming we don't have any more crossings. >> reporter: as the biden administration faces growing criticism over its handling of the crisis repeatedly declining to give specific numbers until last night. >> do you have the numbers? how much haitians have been deported? how many have been processed and how many have been allowed to stay in the united states? >> i certainly understand why you're averaging and understand why people have been asking

secretary mayorkas. those are numbers that the department of homeland security would have the most up to date numbers. >> reporter: the camps in del rio now hold fewer than 5,000 people down from about 14,000 last weekend. >> you couldn't move. border patrol had to be moving constantly to make sure they all shift to one side. >> reporter: this steel barrier of texas state police vehicles now lines the border. abc news has learned border patrol agents warned the administration months ago that del rio could be overwhelmed. the white house is now reportedly searching for a private contractor to operate a migrant detention facility at guantanamo bay, cuba, but overnight the department of homeland security pushing back on that report tweeting, the agency will not send haitian nationals to guantanamo bay. criticism is also mounting after agents were seen on horseback appearing to use reins as whips against migrants. those agents have now been

placed on administrative duty pending an investigation. president biden is taking heat from both sides of the political aisle. republicans are slamming him for not securing the border while many democrats are outraged at how the migrants are being treated. a grieving family in louisville says a 16-year-old boy shot and killed at a school bus stop yesterday was not targeted. police say someone opened fire on a group of students, two others were wounded. police are now looking for a gray jeep scene in the area. the police chief says judges have been too lenient on people illegally carrying guns. it's all part of a deadly increase in gun violence across the country. more than 43,000 people have been shot in the u.s. so far this year. that's well ahead of the previous two years. in washington, democrats and republicans are blaming each other for failing to reach a deal on a police reform bill. the talks began after the death of george floyd last year. the white house says president biden is now considering taking executive action. there are new concerns this morning about that exploding volcano in the atlantic.

a 40-foot wall of lava has already destroyed hundreds of homes on la palma island forcing thousands of people to evacuate and now even more homes are being threatened. experts say the lava could keep flowing until november. abc's james longman was live on instagram when this happened. >> i just need to continue to show you this line over here because -- what was that? what was that? >> the volcano. p>> reporter: was that the volcano? >> of course. >> reporter: okay, so there we go. an explosion live on instagram. when the volcano first erupted over the weekend authorities sprang action and felt like things were under control but as new fissures have opened up lava has spread more widely and this situation feels more and more unpredictable. >> and the pictures are unbelievable. emergency crews have started digging trenches and actually building walls of earth hoping to divert the lava away from homes. time now for a look at your thursday weather.

waves up to 18 feet have been predicted for lake michigan which could mean flooding along chicago's lakefront. the same cold front formed a waterspout over the lake, but it did not come ashore. that cold front is moving into the northeast today bringing heavy rain and potential flash flooding to washington, d.c., philadelphia and new york later today. checking today's high temperatures, around 60 near the great lakes. 70s from the gulf coast to new england and triple digits for the southwest. 101 for phoenix. coming up, the search for answers after the biggest art heist in history hits a roadblock. but first new details on the search for brian laundrie. the fiance of murdered florida woman gabby petito. and a new witness coming forward describing what happened just before gabby's disappearance. and later one tough grandma.

back, now, with details about the hdeadly hot air ballon crash. the pilot and four passengers were killed when the balloon hit power lines in albuquerque. a toxicology report reveals that the pilot had marijuana and cocaine in his system. we turn to the gabby petito case, who claims she saw petito just before her disappearance where her body was found. the search for brian laundrie continues today. a new witness claiming she had a blowout between petito and her fiance, just before her disappearance. >> i'm freaking out. >> reporter: she says the couple

had an explosive argument at a restaurant in jackson hole, wyoming. she describes laundrie's body language as aggressive, arguing with petito and restaurant staff. >> she walked back in and was screaming at the hostess. and he walked back in to talk to the manager and tell the hostess off. >> reporter: the restaurant confirming on instagram that petito and laundrie were there, adding they notified the fbi. >> i remember telling him, this guy is freaking me out. his demeanor, the way he was acting, how persistent he was. he freaked me out. >> reporter: the restaurant is just outside grand teton national park, where agents found petito's body. laundrie's whereabouts is a mystery. authorities are searching for him in this nature preserve, not far from his family home, where he returned from a cross country trip this month bout petito.

laundrie is a person of interest in petito's disappearance. >> if authorities charge brian in gabby's death, that would make him a fugitive. and anybody helping him would be committing a crime. until then, he is free to run. >> reporter: this case is captivating people across the country. people gathered for this vigil in salt lake city, one of the last places that petito was seen alive. >> being in my 20s, it touched me in a way. she was a woman. she was possibly a victim of domestic violence. it felt close to home. >> reporter: while the coroner has ruled the death a homicide, the exact cause of death could take weeks to determine. coming up, a new study looking at teenagers on social media and what they are learning about alcohol. also ahead, a high-profile witness at the trial of elizabeth holmes. what former secretary james

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media app is giving the wrong impression about drinking. 98% of the most popular videos on tiktok using #alcohol, portrayed drinking in a positive light. one-third of tiktok users are too young to drink. but the study found a link between social media and early alcohol use. many promote alcohol and friendship. a high-profile witness took the stand at the trial of elizabeth holmes. she is the former billionaire accused of lying about her company's blood testing technology. >> reporter: this morning, revealing new testimony at the fraud trial of former tech billionaire elizabeth holmes, founder of the blood tech company theranos. james mattis says holmes misled him about the technology. after retiring, mattis invested

$85,000 in theranos and was recruited by holmes to add him to the board. >> why did you add him to the board? >> he is one of the most brilliant strategists i ever met. >> reporter: the retired general said holmes led him to believe the company could help save the lives of troops in battle, by revolutionizing how blood is testing, using only a pinprick of blood to scan for health problems. this could be very, very helpful for medical personnel if it could do what she said it would do. but prosecutors say holmes knew her technology could not deliver on that promise. mattis resigned in 2016, saying he was worried the company was not living up to expectations. he testified, there came a point when i didn't know what to believe anymore. years later, he told pbs -- >> the bottom line is, we all make mistakes at times. and it was obviously that a mistake on my part to be part of

it. >> reporter: on cross-examination wednesday, the defense argued board members like mattis should have done more to raise concerns and ask questions, to which mattis agreed. other big name on the theranos board, include henry kissinger, george schultz and larry ellison. elizabeth holmes maintains her innocence. but if she is convicted, she could face up to 20 years in prison. mona? bill? if you were hoping to win last night's powerball jackpot, you didn't. neither did we. no one had all six numbers, which means saturday's draw willing be worth $523 million. coming up, the best city in america, for coffee. also ahead, a giant moon on the run. we'll explain. ♪ thousands of women with metastatic breast cancer

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♪ time to check "the pulse." we begin with the mystery surrounding the largest art heist in world history. >> for decades, a suspected mobster named robert gentile denied any knowledge of the art theft at the stuart gardner museum. masterpieces were among those stolen with a combined value of $500 million. >> well, this morning, we learned that gentile has died. he was believed to be the last surviving person of interest in the case, which means we may never know who took the art or where it is. >> investigators believe he may have, at one time, had one of the paintings. there's a $10 million reward in the case. from art to coffee. a new study is out on the best cities in america for a cup of

joe. >> you might think seattle topped the list. it didn't. portland, oregon, took first place in the new survey. it looked at the quality and number of coffee shops. >> san francisco came in second place, followed by seattle. we keep hearing about the companies experimenting with delivery drones. here's one of the dangers. >> a guy in australia was getting his coffee delivered by a drone. a raven nearby decided not in my backyard. several birds were upset. next, a celebration of the full harvest moon that took a wrong turn. >> this comes from china. a giant moon balloon escaped from a festival. people had to run and chase down the moon before it caused challen damage. and finally, a rookie on the field, not a player baa golden retriever. > he stole the show. instead of a ball boy, they had a ball dog. and he took his job very seriously. >> maybe he was just homeward

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moving forward, finding solutions. this is abc 7 news. >> you must mandate vaccination. >> parents can choose to vaccinate or not. >> we just became the california to require vaccinations for students. the latest from overnight. kumasi: protection for the most vulnerable americans. getting covid-19 booster shots to vulnerable groups. reggie: backlash against the biden administration about migrants. kumasi: also this morning, a high-tech pet robot. the machine that will follow you around just like a dog. we will explain. reggie: now. kumasi: getaway. unless you have snacks. reggie: why do we need a robot dog? go down to your local shelter.