. >> o'donnell: omar villafranca, thank you. and as we approach the 20th anniversary of the deadliest terror attack on u.s. soil, we wanted to share a story with you that few people have ever heard, about two fighter pilots who took off on 9/11 to protect the nation's capitol, knowing it might be their last mission. >> it was a normal tuesday morning. >> o'donnell: lieutenant general marc sasseville and heather penney flew f-16s for the air national guard. on september 11, 2001, they

omar villafranca, thank you. well, something pretty remarkable is about to take place just hours from now. for the first time, an all- civilian crew of four will be sent intrt cbs' mark strassmann reports tonight from the kennedy space center in florida. >> our first all-civilian crew. >> reporter: civilian space voyagers. for inspiration 4s crew, that dreams both in the stars and the countdown's final hours. thy suited up this afternoon and headed into their spacex crew dragon capsule. crew member sian proctor: >> every day is just gets better and better. >> reporter: on the launch tower, high above pad 39-a, jared isaacman, the mission commander, back in may showed us their walkway to the cosmos. >> this is where the rocket launch is. this is where you get strapped in. >> reporter: the billionaire chartered the flight. the price tag? reportedly about $200 million. >> this is a first, that's significance, that's responsibility. >> reporter: responsibility being the first that there will be a second and a third?

omar villafranca, cbs news, del rio, texas. >> o'donnell: and there is still much more news ahead on tonight's "cbs evening news." california police officers charged with felony assault in the vicious beating of a young black man. and giant sequoias that have lived thousands of years face imminent destruction. what's being done to protect them. and how a crew is making the most time in space. most time in space. how much you'll need, and build a straightforward plan to generate income, even when you're not working. a plan that gives you the chance to grow your savings and create cash flow that lasts. along the way, we'll give you ways to be tax efficient. and you can start, stop or adjust your plan at any time without the unnecessary fees. talk to us today, so we can help you go from saving...to living. michael: this is the story of two brothers. david: my grandfather, pinchas. michael: my great-great- grandfather, rachmaiel. gigi: pinky and rocky. simi: there was an uprising in poland. david: and then the family broke apart. michael: they scattered around in different place gigi: th

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norah. >> o'donnell: omar villafranca, thank you. and as we approach the 20th anniversary of the deadliest terror attack on u.s. soil, we wanted to share a story that few people have ever heard, about two fighter pilots who took offo on 9/11 to protect the nation's capitol, knowing it might be ths their last mission. >> it was a normal tuesday morning. >> o'donnell: lieutenant general marc sasseville and heather penney flew f-16s for the air national guard. on september 11, 2001, they watched two planes hit the world trade center. >> we knew, immediately, as soon as we saw the images, that we needed to protect and defend. >> o'donnell: protect and defend the nation's capitol, as commercial airliners had become weapons of war. what did you understand about the rules of engagement, heather? >> we understood what the threat was. we were looking for a rogue airliner, flying low, that was not communicating with air traffic control. >> o'donnell: the pilots had no time to spare. the country was under attack. they knew of at least one plane

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omar villafranca, thank you so much. let's head out west now. near south lake tahoe, california, fire crews are using bulldozers to build fire lines to protect the evacuated city from the wind-whipped caldor fire. now, calmer winds helped crews make progress, but the coming hours are critical. cbs' carter evans is there tonight. >> reporter: it's a desperate battle t treasure. the massive caldor fire keeps advancing, threatening thousands of homes around lake tahoe, but firefighters caught a short break from the high winds. >> a lot of opportunity to make some progress last night. >> reporter: but what happens over the next few hours is critical. with 30-mile-an-hour wind gusts in the forecast, stray embers could cause big problems. you could see the flames just take off in this brush right here, but firefighters are letting it burn right now, while the wind is calm, to clear out some of this fuel. the fires burned for more than two weeks, exploding to over 200,000 acres. fire captain mark abeloe has been battling it since day one. >> just tryin

omar villafranca, thank you. well, something pretty well, tonight, the president and the pentagon are defending the nation's top military officer after bombshell revelations that he reached out to china, fearing a war in the final days of the trump administration. cbs' nancy cordes reports from the white house. >> reporter: president biden expressed complete support today for the nation's highest ranking military officer. >> i have great confidence in general milley. >> reporter: general mark milley, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, is facing calls from some republicans to resign, after two veteran reporters wrote that in the tumultuous closing days of the trump presidency, milley secretly reassured the chinese "we are not going to attack." in their new book, bob woodward and robert costa say milley feared that former president trump had gone into a serious mental decline in the aftermath of the election and might go rogue, launching a strike against china. pentagon spokesman john kirby said milley did

norah. >> o'donnell: omar villafranca, thank you so much.ell, one of the hardest hit by hurricane ida is houma. that's a city southwest of new orleans. residents there said this was our katrina. most homes and businesses there were damaged as howling winds ripped structures apart for hours. and cbs' mireya villarreal is there tonight. mireya, good evening. >> reporter: well good evening, norah. the wind and rain tore this place apart. i mean, that's the roof right over there. if you can believe it, the owner says he is still going to live here. that's because as covid numbers continue to surge here in louisiana, there is a shelter here that people can go to, but they don't want to go because they are worried about being in a confined space with no air conditioning no running water and no working bathrooms. hurricane ida is long gone, leaving behind a trail of destruction and heartache in houma. >> it sounded like a freight train was coming through. everything just started flying. the house started vibrating. >> reporter: 70-year-old theophil

. >> omar villafranca reporting from louisiana there. >>> now, those hurricane shelters aren't the only placed where the virus can spread, of course. as people return to the office, a growing number of businesses are requiring workers be vaccinated to come back to work. elise preston has this story. >> reporter: banana concepts is serving up something new at its restaurants in colorado. the company is requiring all employees be vaccinated by september 30th. and says almost all of them have agreed. >> we have had 20% of our non-vaccinated employees, almost 20%, sign up to get vaccinated within 24 hours of us rolling out this policy. >> reporter: a growing number of major corporations from united airlines to google are mandating a covid-19 shot for certain workers. many companies want the same for new employes. indeed.com says job postings requiring vaccination are up 90% in august, compared to july, while that's less than 1% of listings. indeed economist annie liz beth conkil says it's meaningful. >> this may be the start of a trend that really takes off. >> reporter: vaccine mandates on

. >> omar villafranca in memphis. >>> it's not only kids filling hospital beds, a growing number of pregnant women are suffering from covid that's got doctors he pressuring them to take the jab. yadier molina records. >> she's enjoying every moment with her son cj, after contr contracting covid-19 at 6 and half months pregnant she ended up the icu. >> i prayed to god my husband and mom could raise my son because i don't think i'll make it out of here is. >> reporter: she had not been vaccinated. >> i wanted to get the vaccine but wanted to see how it panned out a little bit more. >> reporter: nearly 76% of adults have received at least one dose of the covid-19 vaccine but only 25% of pregnant people. the cdc and other major medical groups have strengthened pregnant people get vaccinated. >> pregnant people have increased risk of hospitalization and need for ventilation systems and higher risk of dieing. >> dr. miller said recommendations were originally not stronger because pregnant patients were excluded from clinical trials. >> scientists are working tirelessly to fill the gaps and we're a

more now from cbs' omar villafranca. >> i will talk with you about vaccine booster shots. >> reporter: early this morning, c.d.c. director rochelle walensky, expanded who is now eligible for a pfizer booster shot, overruling one of the recommendations from her agency's advisory panel. >> in a pandemic, we most often take steps with the intention of do the greatest good, even in an uncertain environment, and that is what i'm doing with these recommendations. >> reporter: her decision now aligns the c.d.c. and f.d.a. guidelines, saying anyone 65 and older who has been fully vaccinated with the shot should get a booster after at least six months and recommends a booster for fully vaccinated people 18- who work in healthcare or other jobs with an increased risk of exposure to covid, like schools and nursing homes. vaccinated people 18-64 with medical conditions putting them at high risk for severe covid, at high risk for like obesity, diabetes, or pregnancy, are also eligible for >>s of today, up to 20 miion icans n get a booster shot. >> reporter: but at a white house covid task force me

cbs's omar villafranca reports. >> the motion passes. >> reporter: tonight, a c.d.c.ory panel cleared the way for a booster shot of the pfizer vaccine for tens of millions of americans, once they're six months past their second dose. the c.d.c. still needs to sign off before boosters can officially be administered. >> and the ayes have it, and i believe this recommendation is adopted. >> reporter: under today's new guidelines, the booster is available to pfizer recipients who have been fully vaccinated for at least six months, are 65 or over, or 18- through 64-year-olds at high risk of getting severe covid. those include individuals who are overweight or obese, those with diabetes, or pregnant women. the most common side effects from the third dose are similard to those from previous doses. is there enough evidence that this third booster shot from pfizer is safe? >> well, most of the information we have from the third booster is from israel, where this practice has been underway for a number of weeks, and so far, during that time frame, yes, it seems to be. >> report

omar villafranca has more from kenna, louisiana. >> more generators are being brought in. the city. that's going to be helpful when you try to clean up damage like this at this warehouse. the governor says there are more line workers in the state than at any other point in history. but for the hundreds of thousands of people who are still without power, things can't move fast enough. >>> four days without power and new orleans is starting to boil. >> it's hot and tempers are fraying. >> reporter: long lines for military rations, ice and freshwater. miss ebony simmons said she walked a mile. >> i got a pillow and blanket and i'm going to go down there and sleep if i have to. >> reporter: there has been some progress. power was restored for more than 11,000 people in east new orleans. >> that was a blessing, you in the dark. >> and if it's not by morning i'm leaving. >> reporter: without water and power, the frustration is growing. but here on grand isle, the residents who live here haven't even had a chance to see what's left of their island. and for most of those 1400 resi

omar villafranca is in kenner, louisiana. omar, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, vlad. more generators are being brought in, so we're starting to see some lights pop up across the city. that's going to be helpful when you're trying to clean up damage like this at this warehouse. the governor says there are more line workers in the state than at any other point in history. but for the hundreds of thousands still without power, things can't move fast enough. four days without power, and new orleans is starting to boil. >> it's hot, and tempers are fraying. >> reporter: long lines for military rations, ice, and fresh water. miss ebony jewel simmons says she walked ten miles just to fill her cart with supplies. >> i woke up this morning, i got me a pillow and a blanket, and i said i'm going to go there to sleep. >> reporter: there has been progress. >> yay. >> reporter: power was restored for more than 11,000 people in east new orleans. >> it was a blessing, you know. >> reporter: but many are still in the dark. >> if it's not by morning, i'm leaving. >> reporter: without w