thank you. >>ank you somuch for inth intec we talked about wine, climate change, and the tonight, the delta variant fueling the summer surge. authorities now saying that this could keep getting worse until october. and tonight, alabama's republican governor saying it's time to start blaming the unvaccinated folks for this spike. the highly transmissible delta variant pushing some hospitals to the limit. in kansas city, hospitals running out of beds. st. louis county reissuing its mask mandate. florida, missouri, and texas accounting for 40% of all new ca cases. and tonight that new model predicting this latest surge, that we won't see the worst of

it until well into fall. tonight, dr. jha answering your questions about the millions heading back to school. under 12 not eligible for a vaccine. should they be wearing masks? how do you keep them safe? for vaccinated americans, the breakthrough cases. we ask the doctor when and where you should put a mask back on, even if you're vaccinated. the summer olympics under way in tokyo tonight with that city under a state of emergency because of the virus. the celebrations and the protests. demonstrators concerned about holding the games during a pandemic, clashing with police. what the u.s. women's soccer team and gymnastics team did today. images from the ceremony. james longman live in tokyo. the extreme weather, just as we start the weekend. wildfires exploding across 14 states tonight. this couple escaping the massive bootleg fire in oregon. fire crews driving through a wall of flames in the tamarack fire in california. and in colorado rescuers searching for victims of a deadly mud slide.

flash flood alerts as we come on, and much of this country set to feel the intense heat moving in again. ginger zee standing by, tracking all. news on mario battali, settling allegations of sexual harassment in the workplace. what's happening with new and used cars. many sold before they reach the lot. used car prices soaring up to 45%. and tonight, how much some owners are making selling their cars back to the dealership. what's driving this. here in new york, the shark warning amid sitings. authorities adding patrols in the air and on the water. once the cleveland indians now with a new name tonight. and they never gave up day after day this. country moved by them, and tonight we honor them. who are our persons of the week?

good evening, and it's great to have you with us here as we near the end of another week together. we begin tonight with these alarming new numbers. this new summer surge of the coronavirus and the ominous warning tonight. the new model that says what we're seeing now might not peak until october. fueled by the delta variant and vaccine hesitancy. tonight, the republican governor of alabama, kay ivey clearly frustrated today and making national news saying, pmaybe its time to start blaming the unvaccinated folks. with the cdc guidance unchanged they're seeing a major surge are taking action on their own. in st. louis county, missouri, new mask mandates going into effect. one of the top three states with new cases. under stress tonight sending a strike team to springfield. and the mask mandate in st. uigoing

5ew i florida tonight. hospital admissions there up 55% in just a week. the governor saying he won't require masks for unvaccinated children going back to school, saying our children need to breathe. but governor kay ivey of alabama with a very different message tonight, saying she's done what she can, it's now up to those who haven't gotten the shot to get it. in some cases, seeing this surge with large number of unvaccinated they are starting to see an uptick in new vaccinations. tonight, the numbers here. more than 187 million americans have received at least one dose. 66% now of everyone 12 years and older. and that new model tonight, how long this current surge might last. we also have dr. jha standing by. how do you keep your children safe going back to school? with breakthrough cases when should the vaccinated consider putting masks back on, and where? we have it all covers for you tonight.

abc's victor oquendo leading us off. >> reporter: tonight, the delta surge is pushing some hospitals in hot zones to their limit. in the kansas city area, doctors say they're running out of beds, and kansas state health officials are bracing for it to get worse. >> everybody needs to think of this as a crisis. this is a crisis situation. >> reporter: with the rapid spread of the delta variant, st. louis county late today reinstating a mask mandate. and now a new national model predicts the surge in covid cases may not peak until mid-october, with daily deaths potentially more than tripling what they are now. 38 states and new york city are seeing daily case averages double, triple, or quadruple over the last two weeks. 1 in 5 new cases are in florida. >> when you see someone under 40 die because of covid, when there's a vaccine they could have gotten to prevent it, that breaks your heart. >> reporter: three states, florida, missouri, and texas, accounting for 40% of new cases. in alabama, the least vaccinated state, a frustrated governor

kay ivey not hiding her anger with the unvaccinated, but she won't issue any new restrictions. >> folks are supposed to have common sense. but it's time to start blaming the unvaccinated folks, not the regular folks. it's the unvaccinated folks that are letting us down. >> reporter: the white house asked whether the administration should take a tougher approach toward the unvaccinated. >> i don't think our role is to place blame, but what we can do is provide accurate information to people who are not yet vaccinated about the risk they are incurring not only among themselves, but also the people around them. >> reporter: the unvaccinated making up 99% of deaths and 97% of hospitalized patients across the country. in los angeles, stephen harmon lost his battle with covid the same day he was put on a ventilator. the 34-year-old was unvaccinated, often joking about the vaccine on social media, even tweeting, i got 99 problems but a vaccine ain't one. harmon saying from his hospital bed -- i will not be getting

vaccinated once i am discharged and released. in sacramento, mia vinnard regrets she and her husband, brad, didn't get the vaccine. she says his dying wish was for others to get the shot. >> honey, please, go tell our friends to get vaccinated. it's a real tragedy that this had to happen because we weren't on board by getting vaccinated. >> reporter: back in alabama, derek duke this week finally decided to get the shot. >> i been looking at the news and seeing everybody's been getting their vaccine and the ones that haven't been getting sick. so i have been thinking about my family and i want them to be well, so i brought them all down, we got our shots and i'm feeling happy. >> reporter: and after the nfl pressured players to get vaccinated or risk forfeiting games and pay, assistant coach y won't coach with the minnesota vikings after choosing not to get a vaccine. they're still holding talks with

dennison. >> victor, officials are pointing to one positive sign in parts of this country, an increase in vaccinations now in some of the hardest hit states? >> reporter: david, the white house says five states with the highest case rates and low vaccination numbers have seen an increase in their vaccination rates. arkansas, louisiana, nevada, and missouri and florida saw more people get vaccinated when compared to the national average. >> victor oquendo leading us off. we know many of you at home have questions with the newest surge, so let's get to dr. ashish jha. always great to have you with us. and i wanted to get back to alabama there. governor kay ivey, her comments that made national news, saying it's time to start essentially blaming the unvaccinated folks, were her words. we know that alabama has the lowest vaccination rate in the country. she said, i've done what i can. i have had mask mandates. it's now up to people who

haven't been vaccinated to get the shot. how do we get the word out, encourage more people to hear that message? >> david, this can for having me back. i don't know if it's useful to blame people. ly tell you at this point across the country we're seeing a lot of unvaccinated people getting very sick and dying. my message to people is it's about protecti about protecting yourself, your family. these vaccines make an enormous difference in you getting sick and dying. this is how we put the pandemic behind us. >> perhaps a more productive message than the governor, but she was clearly frustrated by the cases she's seeing in her state. and we're also worried about the breakthrough cases among those who are vaccinated. you and other health authorities say the cases are mild, but obviously they're not going to the hospital, there's no official log, how do we know what the numbers really are in this country, and if you are vaccinated when and where should you consider putting a mask back on to protect yourself from a

breakthrough case? >> two really good questions, david. first of all, we're not capturing the breakthrough cases because we're not testing enough people. we should do that. that said, we're certainly capturing breakthrough cases that lead to hospitalizations and deaths, and those are very rare. so what we know and can be confident about is breakthrough infeks happen, but they don't lead to you getting very, very sick. in terms of mask wearing when you're vaccinated, my general rule is if you're going to be aound a lot of unvaccinated people and you're in a hot zone with lots of infections you want to prevent the breakthrough infection and the best way is to wear a mask. >> we know millions of children under 12 still not eligible for the vaccine. they're heading back to school in the coming weeks. the academy of pediatrics urging parents to send them to school with misks. what do you say to parents worried they're going to be interacting with kids in families where they don't know if there's been vaccination or

not? >> this is a tough question. if you are in an area with a lot of infections happening, it makes sense to have all kids who are unvaccinated masked up. you may argue in some places like vermont you could get away with it. but i have a 12-year-old and my goal is to get him back to school this fall with a mask on. >> always helpful. dr. jha, thanks and we'll see you next week. in the meantime, there's concern over the virus at the summer olympics. the opening ceremony today joyful inside and the protests outside. concern there over holding the games amid this pandemic. and the new numbers tonight inside the olympic bubble. abc's james longman in tokyo again tonight. >> reporter: tonight, an evening of celebration and of protests as the tokyo olympics gets underway. while tennis star naomi osaka lit the olympic cauldron, marking the official start of protesters concerned about holding the games during a pandemic clashed with police. listen to that, that's the sound of police shouting at

protesters. there are quite large crowds of them on this street down here where we're not allowed to go be're olympic bubble. but apparently they can hear these chants from inside the stadium. the 68,000 seat stadium had fewer than 1,000 guests, most of them foreign dignitaries. a $1.5 billion arena welcoming athletes from some 200 competing countries. among those there, f only a third of team usa appearing. flag-bearers, sue bird from the wnba and baseball's eddy alvarez, leading the u.s. delegation. but notably absent, the women's soccer team and team usa gymnasts, including simone biles, who held their own ceremony at their hotel outside the olympic village. on social media, biles pointing to covid concerns. the pandemic looming large over the day's excitement with 19 more covid cases linked to the olympics reported, bringing the total to at least 110. and all night outside the stadium, the streets filled with japanese citizens carrying signs saying "cancel the olympics."

protesters furious, as new covid cases have risen in tokyo ahead of the games. but earlier today, the executive director at the ioc telling our amy robach he's confident with where things stand despite the opposition. >> is there a scenario in which these games could be canceled? >> there's no scenario in which they can be canceled. >> they say the games will go on. james longman with us live from tokyo tonight. james, now it's not just the pandemic they have to deal with. they're also watching the forecast for the coming days. a major tropical storm forecast to hit parts of japan early next week, bringing heavy rain and winds? >> reporter: yeah, david, there is a storm forming in the philippines sea south of japan. it could hit monday or tuesday. it's not known if it's going to impact these olympics but even if it doesn't hit tokyo, there are plenty of events outside the capitol that could be impacted. david? >> james longman, thanks to you and amy robach there all week

for us. wildfires, monsoon rains and flash flood alerts. the intense heat for much of the country yet again. ginger is standing by, but first, the 80 fires burning in 14 states. a new one exploding near california's dixie fire threatening hundred of homes. in colorado, monsoon rains turning deadly. kayna whitworth on the scene tonight. >> keep driving, baby. you're doing very, very good. >> reporter: fawn smullin says it was like driving through armageddon she shot this video as her partner, russell king, raced through the flames of the bootleg fire in oregon. >> we're fleeing! >> reporter: returning days later. >> here's where our house was. there's the water container. >> reporter: this crew fighting the tamarack fire escaping a fast-moving flare-up. that fire still out of control tonight. the fires made worse by the

worst western drought in history. monsoon storms packing 60 mile-an-hour winds, doing more harm than good, dumping more than two inches of rain an hour in spots. rain in colorado. three people still this all started from a stream that the locals tell me is just some three feet wide and it turned into a ten foot wall of water full of rocks and trees that destroyed absolutely everything. families worried their community may never recover. >> what do you call normal after this? >> we were spared by the fires twice, and then to have this. >> reporter: david, the wind and rain kicking up here again. many of the burn scarred areas throughout the state remain under the highest threat level possible for flash flooding. >> kayna, thank you. let's goat ginger zee. she's in lake tahoe nevada tonight tracking all of this. hi, ginger. >> reporter: david, we could barely see the mountains around lake tahoe.

the visibility already reducing in the valleys in nevada. we're close to the tamarack fire and we are not going to get that monsoon rain. but the folks who areenal flash flood danger. the areas cover in the green. i think arizona is going to have rounds of very heavy and dangerous rain. if you get a warning this weekend, please do not drive through water. the rio grande valley throughout new mexico, a problem, too. they'll get a dent in the drought, but the brought is intense. worst we have seen in the west, 65% highest two levels of drought since we started recording that. the heat, it is building and dangerous from louisiana to minnesota. david, it's moving east early next week. >> here we go again. ginger zee with us tonight. ginger, thank you. your money tonight. what's happening with new and used cars. new cars being sold before they even reach the lot, and used car prices soaring up to 45%. here's abc's erielle reshef. >> reporter: tonight, the new reality for americans looking to buy a car.

dealerships with new cars sold before they even arrive on the lot. the prices of used cars soaring. and it turns out, in some cases, car owners selling their cars back to the dealership for a profit. brian walsh is a car salesman in scranton. >> we've never seen anything like this before. >> reporter: so, what's driving this? computer chips crucial for many new cars are now in short supply. production slowed down by the pandemic. leaving dealerships across the country with low inventory. many of those dealers now looking to find used cars to sell. used cars in high demand, and prices on the rise, too. in some places the cost of a used car up 45% over the last year. in paramus, new jersey, sales director mathew jelling says he's been watching what's happening with used cars in awe. are dealerships now more keen to buy used cars was you need inventory? >> oh, without a doubt. they always said you lose 30% of your value the minute you walk up the floor. it's not that way now.

>> reporter: franko dokaj owns a car detailing business in st. louis. he says this summer he's made $15,000 selling used cars back to dealers. >> i can't believe for once i'm leaving the car dealership with money in my pocket. >> reporter: wesley kissner is looking to buy a new truck in chattanooga, tennessee, and he says several dealerships have offered him top dollar for his 2018 nissan titan. >> that's the first thing they ask me is they want to buy it. i like new cars but at the moment they're not available. >> reporter: and gelling says in many cases cars haven't even arrived yet and they've already sold. >> if you see cars coming off of a truck, chances are those ten cars have been sold. >> reporter: david, car dealers we talked to say that they expect this supply chain issue could last through the end of 2022, and with all that pent-up demand, it could make that wait even longer. david. >> thank you. when we come back tonight in new york, the shark warning now, and the major headline involving a one-time celebrity chef tonight. surance with liberty mu,

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finally, they never gave up. >> reporter: tonight, in surfside, florida, the community honoring the brave men and women searching in the rubble for 29 days now. we remember the moment of silence. a prayer next to the site. tonight, the firefighters officially ending their mission. >> providing closure to families was the ultimate test of everybody here, and i think we did our best to do that. >> reporter: many of them now returning to their own families after sleeping at the site for weeks. 3-year-old isabella hernandez and her 4-year-old big brother eric waiting to see their father, captain eric hernandez, holding their sign, welcome home to our hero, dad. tonight a community, a nation

grateful. >> takes breath away that people love us so much, they a building a better bay area. moving forward. finding solutions. this is abc7 news. within three days, nine businesses got the window broken out. >> a terrifying attack. an explosion at one business and window smashed at others. neighbors now searching for a solution. thank you for joining us, i am dan ashley. >> and i am kristen sze. you are watching abc7 news at 4:00 here on abc7, hulu live, and wherever you stream. this video shows the suspect before the explosion. >> it's not the first incident. dion lim has a look at why the owners are considering how much longer they can stay. >> it feels like a terrorist.

explosive, not acceptable. >> reporter: what you are watching is the explosion that rocked the business early friday morning. what in class burst into the restaurant. so intense, it activated shotspotter technology, a sensor that detects gunshots. >> some sort of explosive. >> while police don't know what caused the explosion, they say this is uncommon. it may be the final straw for this family-owned business that was also broken into months earlier. >> cracking window, okay, maybe some small stuff, but this is so big. >> reporter: the vandalism across this corridor of the tenderloin has been rampant in recent weeks according to the executive director of the tenderloin merchants association, keeping track of it all. independent asian owned businesses that have suffered disproportionately during the n

majority of the targets. >> everything happened on market street and within three days. nine businesses got their windows broken out.