our zohreen shah has more. zohreen, good morning. >> reporter: hey, good morning, whit. spears. overnight, the pop superstar speaking out about her family, this coming as she gets one step closer to possibly getting her freedom back. a judge allowing her to hire a heavyweight lawyer to represent her going forward. all gloves are off. ♪ >> reporter: this morning, britney spears has a hollywood heavyweight in her corner. after the judge in her conservatorship case approved the pop superstar's request to pick her own lawyer. ♪ spears choosing former federal prosecutor mathew rosengart to represent her. >> one thing that everybody has lost sight of in all of the controversy, all of the litigation and all of the drama, is what is in the best interest of britney spears? >> reporter: the singer joining a long list of his other high-profile celebrity clients including steven spielberg, dyfanu reeves and sean penn who called him a tough as nails street fighter with a bigger brain and principles. he argues defamation cases and defending clients in multimillion-dollar lawsuits and

. >> and i'm zohreen shah. mona is off.begin with tropical storm elsa slamming the southeastern coast of the u.s. with flooding rains and damaging tordo. a navy base was ong the areas hit d reported. >> at this hour the storm is barreling north headed for the carolinas, the mid-atlantic and eventually to ned. overnight elsa turning deadly after the tropical storm spawned this tornado in florida. >> there's a tornado right ucng down along a highway in jacksonville where the damage is described as widespread. police say a falling tree killed a driver as heavy rain and wind hit the city. >> this poor gentleman was just driving, probably heading home and tree came down and hit his car. >> reporter: another large tree slamming into an apartment building. this man was looking out his window when the winds picked up. >> all of a sudden i see my chairs pick up and go to the right and then all of a sudden they went to the left about five seconds later and everything starting going to the left. i heard a train which they say you alwa

zohreen shah joins us from oklahoma city. hey, zohreen. >> reporter: good morning, george.azing people, so many beautiful animals, and the truth is you don't have to dig very deep to find those hidden gems. oklahoma, from water-lined cities like tulsa to the natural beauty of the countryside, the state is a sight to see like the salt plains national wildlife refuge, a site of prehistoric ocean and left over salt leaving dark crystals like these. in the shallow ground below -- >> there's about 11,000 acres of salt flats which is the largest saline flats in the central part of the united states. >> this place attracts thousands of people every weekend. >> yes, so, the crystal digging area, especially when it's open from april to october will attract up to 10,000, 13,000 people on a weekend, and over 150,000 throughout that digging season. >> that's more than some california beaches. >> it's very popular. >> reporter: during the pandemic oklahomans flocked to the salt plains as a safe and fun outdoor activity. >> i just picked a whole and found the jackpot. >> good job. just o

>> zohreen, thank you. >>> tonight, the great fourth of july getaway is already under way, nearly 48 million americans are expected to travel and most of them, more than 43 million, will drive. now when they head out, in addition to heavy traffic, they may also run into higher prices at the pump and even some gas shorta shortages. so, when's the best time to leave to avoid some of those bumps in the road? here's abc's gio benitez. >> reporter: tonight, despite the highest gas prices so far this year, the traffic is back from coast to coast. more people expected to take to the roads this fourth of july holiday than before the pandemic. >> the national average is $3.09 and we expect it to increase ahead of the holiday weekend. >> reporter: airports are also packed. 3.5 million travelers eager to get back into the air and off to their holiday destinations. >> july 1st is going to be the busiest day since covid started but it will only have that record for four days because july 5th is going to break it. >> reporter: the busiest airports? chicago o'hare, l.a.x. and mccarran airport in la

linsey. >> a large number there, zohreen, thank you. >>> when we come back, consumer alert.d recalls more than 8 million pounds of chicken. the details next. a lot of people think dealing with copd is a walk in the park. if i have something to help me breathe better, everhi but i still have bad days... ...flare-ups (cough cough), which can permanently damage my lungs. my lungs need protection against flare-ups. so it's time to get real. because in the real world... ...our lungs deserves the real protection of breztri. breztri gives you better breathing, symptom improvement, and flare-up protection. it's the first and only copd medicine proven to reduce flare-ups by 52%. breztri won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. gs call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. for real protection ask your doctor about breztri. now, we all know progressive offers 24/7 protection, but we also bu

here's zohreen shah. >> reporter: tonight, wildfires across the west exploding in size. this time lapse of the fly fire in northern california shows it spreading out of control in just five minutes. in oregon, extreme conditions in the bootleg fire creating its own weather system, sending a fire tornado ripping through this forest. >> it makes me sick because the entire forest is burning now. >> reporter: to the south, evacuation orders for the almost 200,000-acre dixie fire, sending residents fleeing from their homes. flames engulfing this one overnight. near lake tahoe, firefighters urgently trying to save any structures they can. jumbo jets dropping retardant on thetamarack fire. that fire still just 27% contained. a new satellite image showing thick smoke encasing the west. from the dozens of large wildfires. air quality alerts in effect from washington state to denver, colorado. and oregon deputies have arrested a 13-year-old for starting the green district fire. that fire destroying two homes and multiple vehicles. linsey? >> zohreen, thank you. >>> in the midwest,

i'm zohreen shah. mona is off. >> i'm andrew dymburt, and we begin with brecking news, hurricane elsa just downgraded overnight to a tropical storm. it's taken aim at the west coast of florida right now with flooding rains and a dangerous storm surge. >>> landfall is expected soon and it comes as the coast guard searches for nine missing people at sea during the storm. this morning, elsa is barreling over the gulf of mexico just hours away from expected landfall along florida's west coast. boats in downtown st. petersburg overnight rocking in the howling wind. the eye is staying off the coast for now. but it's unleashing heavy rain and 70-mile-per-hour winds on land. conditions worsened quickly in st. petersburg tuesday, this >> they say it's going to be close to three foot so do the best we can. >> reporter: the storm coming early in hurricane season. it has not seen a landfall in july in 134 years. elsa is set to hit tampa where 6 to 10 inches are expected along with up to five feet of storm surge. >

first, though, our zohreen shah reports from los angeles. >> reporter: tonight, monsoon rains drenching southwest. downpours triggering dangerous flash flooding. stranding these men in their vehicle in arizona's maricopa county, rescued by helicopter from the high floodwaters. the flooding so severe, this man rowing a boat down a residential street in scottsdale. the strong winds blowing the roof right off this restaurant. >> there was a roof on that patio last night, but now it's spread out in the parking lot. this is the remaining debris. >> the wind starts shaking so bad, and like bottles are being knocked down. >> reporter: flash flood threats in multiple states today. some spots seeing rainfall rates topping two inches per hour over parched land unable to absorb the downpours fast enough. in utah rivers raged in capital reef national park, but most of the west facing extreme drought. dry brush fueling more than 80 large fires across 11 states, most of them uncontained, a situation expected to only get worse. these firefighters surrounded by walls of flames. powerful winds pummeling

abc's zohreen shah has the latest and the video of the rescue. zohreen, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, whit. the u.s. coast guard tells me they have trained for this moment their whole lives, and when they saw those two pilots alive, they knew everything they had done their entire careers was worth it. >> we've lost number one engine, and we're coming straight to the airport. >> reporter: this morning, the u.s. coast guard rescue crews speaking out about the critical decisions leading them to successfully rescue both pilots after their cargo plane crash landed near hawaii. >> this is a very small margin for error. >> reporter: this maui-bound 737 taking off from honolulu friday morning. just three minutes in, two miles off the coast, one engine fails then the second. >> we're gonna lose the other engine too. running very hot. >> reporter: the plane plunges. >> i immediately started to have the hair stand up on the back of my neck. we know that this is for sure an aircraft in the water. >> reporter: rescue conditions dire. pitch black da

zohreen, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, whit. i spoke to her family last night. they tell me they are hoping he was not involved in her disappearance. this morning, family and officials continuing their urgent search for missing san diego mom of three, maya millette, after police confirmed her husband larry is a person of interest. >> it's been seven months so for him to be named as a person of interest at this time, it's actually not a surprise for us. >> reporter: officials have not named anyone as a suspect, and maya's sister and her husband saying they hope larry is not responsible. >> if he does have anything to do with her disappearance and, you know, the kids are not going to have parents at all, you know, growing up. >> reporter: larry has not been charged and told us he prefers not to comment at this time. maya disappeared without any warning january 7th, the same day her family says she filed paperwork to hire a divorce attorney to split from her husband of 21 years. ♪ but i can't help ♪ >> reporter: the mom seen singin

. >> zohreen shah is in los angeles where the mask mandate .reen, good morning. >> reporter: hey, good morning, whit. just last month people in l.a. were rejoicing because you no longer had to mask up if you were indoors at places like stores, at the gym, here at this fitness and wellness, they thought it was a big step forward. but starting tonight, in l.a. county, if you're indoors you have to mask up. this coming as california just reported its single highest day of covid cases since february. this morning, the cdc announcing 32% of americans still have not received a single dose of the covid vaccine. >> this is becoming a pandemic of the unvaccinated. >> reporter: hospitalizations up in 39 states and the u.s. daily case average up nearly 70% in the last week. cases up in nearly every state, the worst hit states including arkansas, florida, louisiana, missouri and nevada, and louisiana's governor warning they're entering a fourth surge. >> clearly this is attributable to two things, one is the emergence of delta variant of covid-19 and vacci

zohreen shah is on the story. zohreen, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, dan.es of the game. cultural norms clashing with competition. this morning the list of controversy surrounding the international olympic committee rules growing. sha'carri richardson testing positive for thc, a key component in marijuana. disqualifying her from the games because she violated the doping policy. former nfl running back ricky williams, who retired in 2004 and became an outspoken advocate of cannabis as medicine talking about it on espn's "sportscenter." >> hopefully they ask themselves seriously does this feel right. i hope they do the right thing. >> reporter: celebrities, politicians and fans calling foul. some athletes saying they should take a closer look at marijuana rules because he does not consider it a performance enhancer. >> these are unfortunate situations. they're important because they allow us to have these conversations. there's no good reason anyone should be suspended for using cannibis. >> reporter: president biden standing by the decision to disqualify ric

good morning, zohreen. >> reporter: good morning, eva. one of the factors out here, these bone dry conditions fueling so many fires. there are over 80 large wildfires in the u.s. right now spanning across 11 states. the bootleg fire in oregon is so extreme it created a confirmed tornado. one couple nearly escaped. they said it was like driving through armageddon. the fires burning in oregon and california right now equal the size of rhode island. some fires are massive. the biggest in california is the dixie fire, exploding to over 180,000 acres. video released overnight shows rapidly moving fire over a home completely covered with flames. that fire forcing so many to evacuate. nasa just released these dramatic images. they show how smoke from wildfires has travelled over the united states. police say one fire in oregon was started by a 13-year-old playing with a lighter. it grew to 20 acres, destroyed two homes. police have now arrested that teen. matt? >> thank you. >>> now to an amazing and heroic rescue caught on tape. two police offi

abc's zohreen shah joins us with more. good morning, zohreen. >> reporter: good morning, eva.s is not holding back. she's calling out her father, her sister saying that performing again is a big condition. ♪ overnight the princess of pop sending a scathing message to her critics on social media. the ic sing e ll note soon.rming on a st in a lengthy instagram post spears reveals how the conservators dreams. the singer telling over 31 million followers for those of you who choose to criticize my dance videos, look, i'm not going to be performing on any stages anytime soon with my dad handling what i wear, say, do or think. i've done that for the past 13 years. i'd much rather share videos, yes from my living room instead of on stage in vegas. the "toxic" musician calling her sister jamie lynn for performing her music back in 2017 writing, i don't like that my sister showed up at an awards show and performed my songs to remixes. my so-called support system hurt me deeply. this comes after jamie lynn spears publicly spoke out about the judge's decision allowing britney to hire her

i'm zohreen shah. mona is off. >> i'm andrew dymburt. we begin with extreme weather from coast to coast. here in the northeast tropical storm elsa is hitting the busy i-95 corridor just in time for the morning commute and only hours after another storm triggered extreme flooding in new york city unleashing waist high water in underground subway stations and forcing some drivers to abandon their cars on the highway. >>> in the west this morning, the opposite problem, no rain. the historic drought is now expanding. one town in california has run out of water, and this weekend the temperature in death valley could approach 130 degrees. >> abc's reena roy begins our coverage from new york. reena, good morning. >> reporter: andrew, good morning to you. as you said, the heaviest rain here in new york city is expected to hit just in time for the morning commute just hours after another storm triggered flash flooding and left the ground soaked setting the stage for what could now be a possibly dangerous morning. this morning, elsa is powering up

abc's zohreen shah is on the scene. >> reporter: tonight, authorities searching for answers after what they call a catastrophic failure when an lapd bomb containment truck exploded during a planned detonation of confiscated fireworks. >> everybody was running, i couldn't find my mom. everybody was screaming. >> reporter: authorities had seized up to 5,000 pounds of illegal fireworks when they came across 40 soda can sized and 200 other smaller homemade devices. the bomb squad tried to safely destroy part of that stage when the truck ripped apart. 17 people wounded, including ten officers, one atf agent. june of those injuries life threatening. >> i've been working for atf for 11 years and i've never seen anything like this. >> reporter: a 27-year-old arrested. authorities say he wanted to resell the fireworks ahead of the fourth of july, comes as some cities are canceling fourth of july fireworks. linsey? >>> the great fourth of july getaway is already under way. more than 43 million will drive. when they head out, in addition to heavy track, they may run into higher prices at the pump

zohreen shah has more. good morning, zohreen. >> reporter: good morning, michael.cision from a judge and massive lawsuit. >> i don't want his actions to absolutely kill what i created and hope that this is not where this ends for me. >> reporter: "housewives" star erika jayne opening up about her woes and split from powerhouse attorney of 21 years tom girardi. >> he hasn't given me one dime since i walked out the door. >> reporter: in the latest "housewives of beverly hills" episode, jayne admitting she's worried over his health. >> one of the reasons i filed for divorce, the resistance to anything, you can't see well. you can't hear. you're [ bleep ] degrading in front of me and you're ignoring it. >> reporter: just recently, 82-year-old girardi deemed unfit by a california court now officially under conservatorship overseen by his brother robert because of a major neurocognitive disorder after being diagnosed with alzheimer's in march. several lawsuits accused him of embezzling a fortune from his clients' financial settlements that he and jayne flaunted on the sh

our zohreen shah is on the scene with the very latest.reen, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, whit. it's being called a total catastrophic failure. that blast last night shook this entire neighborhood. 17 people were injured. lapd and atf were attempting to safely destroy homemade explosives after seizing 5,000 pounds of both legal and illegal fireworks, some the size of soda cans, others smaller as spectators gathered. a fireball and debris overturned cars shattering windows of this laundromat across the street. this morning, officials say luckily none of the injuries are life-threatening, but terrifying moments for this entire neighborhood. michael. >> definitely terrifying. thank you so much for that. >>> now to that bombshell development in the investigation into former president trump and his company. the first charges stemming from that probe filed overnight and our chief washington correspondent jon karl has been tracking all the latest. jon, good morning to you, my friend. >> reporter: good morning, michael. abc news