tonight, the new major milestone in the battle against covid-19. but coming one month late. the u.s. finally hitting president biden's goal to have 70% of adults receive at least one vaccine dose. this as the delta variant fuels a worsening summer surge. the u.s. on friday recording more than 100,000 new infections in a single day for the first time in nearly six months. the country's daily case average jumping 532% since mid-june. nearly 80% of counties reporting high or substantial community transmission. in the area around austin, texas, just ten icu hospital beds remaining for a population of millions. louisiana facing the nation's highest infection rate and rising cases among children. the state now reinstating its indoor mask mandate. in baton rouge, a federal

disaster team arriving to join the fight. and the new warning about pregnant women and covid. the dramatic return of simone biles. the olympic superstar now just hours away from one final event. american gymnast jade carey clinching gold and the extraordinary sportsmanship of two high jumpers. plus heartbreak for team usa women's soccer. james longman reporting from tokyo. back here at home, five police officers now facing charges in two violent arrests in the heart of miami beach. troubling surveillance video showing officers kicking one suspect. what we're learning from prosecutors tonight. fears of a potential housing crisis looming in america. millions of struggling renters facing an uncertain future after the expiration of the federal eviction moratorium. also in washington, the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill takes a big step forward as the senate officially opens debate. the u.s. launching new daily air strikes against the taliban.

the militant group waging a bloody offensive, gaining ground in rural areas and fighting around major cities. and the travel nightmare for scores of flyers tonight. hundreds of flights canceled by one airline. why they were forced to ground a third of its fleet. also tonight, comedian kathy griffin revealing she has lung cancer. what she's saying about her battle ahead. good evening. it's great to have you with us at the start of a new week. i'm whit johnson, in for david tonight. we begin with the pandemic and alarming new fallout from the surging delta variant. cases soaring. more than 100,000 reported in 24 hours this weekend. the highest since february. hospitalizations also on the rise. federal disaster teams stepping in to help out. this map here showing the virus spreading across the country,

nearly 80% of u.s. counties now reporting high or substantial community transmission. the hardest-hit areas there in red. louisiana with the highest case rate in the country. their largest hospital out of icu beds tonight. florida right behind. long lines developing for testing in miami. more covid hospitalizations there than ever before, even in 2020. and amid the conflicting rules about masks, cases in children are also on the rise. parents with strong feelings on both sides of the debate. the cdc's dr. rochelle walensky stressing once again, this remains a pandemic of the unvaccinated. all the vaccines strongly protect against severe illness and death. and tonight, the nation finally reaching that goal president biden set for the fourth of july, now a month late. 70% of everyone 18 years and older with at least one dose. and tonight, the new warning about covid and pregnant women. and after israel and the uk decided to offer booster shots, will the u.s. soon do the same?

dr. jha weighing in in just a moment. but we begin tonight with abc's janai norman in hard-hit louisiana. >> reporter: tonight, faced with the highest covid infection rate in the country, hospitals in louisiana starting to run out of beds. some reporting seeing a new covid patient every hour. >> there are no more beds left. these are the darkest days of the pandemic. we are no longer giving adequate care to patients. >> reporter: federal disaster teams arriving in baton rouge to help handle the crush of covid patients as hospitals facing staffing shortages. >> we are beyond the tipping point. if adults and children 12 years of age and older would simply get what we know to be a safe and effective vaccine, we could avoid all of this. >> reporter: across the country, health officials say it's the unvaccinated being overwhelmed by the delta variant. in missouri, 31-year-old daryl barker regrets not getting

the vaccine, as he's fighting for his life in the icu. his wife and 6-year-old son only able to watch through this window. >> i was strongly against getting the vaccine, just because we're a strong, conservative family. but that little boy out there is a reason to have a vaccine. >> reporter: nearly 80% of u.s. counties are now either reporting high or substantial community transmission. hospitals in those hot zones now pushed to the limit. austin, texas, with just ten icu beds for a metro area of 2.3 million people. officials there sounding the alarm about the threat to pregnant women. >> now we ask, lord, your special blessing upon this unit. >> reporter: teams on the front lines praying to get through this latest surge. >> our nurses, who are dedicated to their community, their home, are heartbroken, watching their friends, family and neighbors die. literally die. >> reporter: over the weekend,

more than 100,000 covid cases reported in just 24 hours. the highest daily number since february. >> this remains a pandemic of the unvaccinated, where the vast majority of spread in this country is among those who are unvaccinated. >> reporter: dr. anthony fauci saying cdc data shows just .01% of breakthrough infections after full vaccination led to hospitalization or death. today, the u.s. hitting the president's july 4th goal of getting 70% of adults partially vaccinated, nearly a month late. but 90 million americans eligible for the vaccine have yet to get a single shot. and across the country, a maze of shifting mask rules. louisiana today announcing a new statewide mask mandate. >> simply put, there's a dangerous amount of covid spreading in louisiana right now. >> and we're seeing recommendations in other cities, as well. janai norman joining us from baton rouge.

and janai, dr. fauci discussing those breakthrough infections and he really laid out the lower risk for vaccinated people compared to those who are unvaccinated. >> reporter: yeah, whit, he did. and when you look at the risk, if you are fully vaccinated, you are eight times less likely to even get the virus. 25 times less likely to end up hospitalized or die if you do get covid. here in louisiana, about 14,000 people are now getting their first dose of the vaccine every single day. in austin, texas, officials saying they are seeing the delta variant more severely impact pregnant women, who are ending up hospitalized and in the icu. all of this is why officials continue to urge those who have not gotten vaccinated to do so. whit? >> something else to follow in all of this. janai, thank you. let's bring in dr. ashish jha, dean of the brown university school of public health. dr. jha, good to have you. let's start with booster shots here, because israel is now giving them to people 60 and older, germany and the uk reportedly could start offering them in september.

why aren't health officials here in the u.s. announcing plans to do the same? >> yeah, so, whit, thanks for having me back. you know, this is a really important issue. the fda is reviewing data on the value of a booster. i'm hopeful that they will make a determination very soon. i suspect for high-risk people, people living in nursing homes, elderly, people who are immunocompromised, we may see a determination. we'll have to wait for the data, but i'm hoping we'll see some sort of a ruling from the fda in the weeks ahead. >> dr. jha, thank you for your time this evening. we move on now to tokyo and the olympics. simone biles making a comeback, set to compete tomorrow in the balance beam. amid all the scrutiny, biles will have another shot at gold, after she withdrew from a series of events, siting challenges with mental health. meantime, team usa earning more medals in women's gymnastics and in track and field. but a devastating loss for the women's soccer team. abc's james longman in tokyo. >> reporter: tonight, star

athlete simone biles is back in the olympics. usa gymnastics confirming she will compete in the balance beam final tomorrow in now what is most certain to be one of the most anticipated events of these games. she withdrew from the team final a week ago and then one by one, each individual event -- vault, bars and floor. she took on instead the role of team cheerleader, making room for some of the other members of team usa to shine. jade carey today winning gold in the floor routine. carey giving her dad, who is also her coach, a huge hug. >> it means everything to me to have my dad here. we've been working so hard for this together. >> reporter: over the weekend, 24-year-old mykayla skinner, on the verge of retirement, taking home a surprise silver in the individual vault. >> this has seriously been such an honor to be able to step in for simone and be able to win this medal and just to do it for myself. >> reporter: and all-around gold medalist suni lee winning bronze in the uneven bars. but a hard strike for u.s. women's soccer, defeated by canada in the semifinls. they'll go on to compete for a

chance at bronze. and what will be one of the defining moments of these games, for the first time, since 1912, the gold medal shared in athletics. mutaz barshim of qatar and gianmarco tamberi of italy tying each other in the men's high jmp. >> can we have two golds? >> reporter: barshim asking if they could share first place, instead of continuing with a jumpoff. the official saying that it was possible. and the longtime friends then overcome with emotion. >> just an incredible moment there. james longman joining us from tokyo now. and james, there's also news tonight about an olympic sprinter from belarus who feared for her own safety if she were to return to her home country. >> reporter: yeah, that's right, whit. krystsina tsimanouskaya says belarusian olympic officials tried to force her back to belarus after she had criticized them publicly. she managed to reach out at the airport for help, she was taken into the kind of custody of tokyo 2020 officials and she's now managed to get a humanitarian visa for poland. whit? >> a dramatic development there in tokyo.

james, thank you. next here tonight, five miami beach police officers facing battery charges in connection with the rough arrest of two men. newly released surveillance and body camera video showing the officers repeatedly striking one of the men, even though he was handcuffed. abc's victor oquendo with the video, and a warning, it is disturbing to watch. >> reporter: the surveillance video shows officers inside the royal palm hotel on miami beach surrounding 24-year-old dalonta crudup, who the district attorney says allegedly hit an officer while fleeing in a scooter after being stopped for illegally parking it. as more miami beach police officers arrive, crudup is on the ground, handcuffed, when, according to the state troublg attorney, officer kevin perez kicked crudup several times and slammed his head to the ground.

sergeant jose perez kicks crudup in the head, as well. >> it was just unfathomable, it was unspeakable, just inexcusable. it's just inexcusable, and i'm not alone in that feeling. >> reporter: another video shows officers tackling a bystander who was recording the arrest. that man was arrested. five officers have been charged with battery. they turned themselves in here to miami beach police headquarters and have been relieved of duty. officials say more charges are possible. whit? >> all right, victor oquendo, thank you. next tonight, the senate officially opening debate on the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill. and it's already facing headwinds, not just from some republicans, but from progressive democrats, as well. though divisions deepening after the eviction moratorium was allowed to expire. here's abc's congressional correspondent rachel scott. >> reporter: tonight, with just days until august recess, democrats are racing to pass the bipartisan infrastructure package. >> let's start voting on amendments. the longer it takes to finish, the longer we'll be here. >> reporter: but the senate's top republican says, what's the rush? >> senators on both sides expect and deserve opportunities to have a say and to put their own

state's imprints on this major bill. >> reporter: at least ten republican senators must sign on for the bill to head to the house, where it faces another set of obstacles. progressives are demanding their party pass a larger package first. >> we will uphold our end of the bargain and not pass the bipartisan bill until we get all of these investments in. >> reporter: many of those progressives now furiou at the white house and congress for letting the federal moratorium on evictions expire over the weekend, stranding millions of americans, like treeiana clark of harvey, louisiana. >> for right now, this is all that i have. this is all that my family has right now. >> reporter: she fears she and her two small children will soon be out on the street. >> i'm literally going to be in my car until i figure something out. >> reporter: house democrats are calling on the white house to act. the white house pointing the finger right back at congress. meanwhile, six states and d.c. have decided to extend the eviction moratorium on their own. >> and rachel scott joining us from capitol hill.

rachel, as the senate debates this infrastructure bill, there's also some news coming out about one prominent senator who now has covid. >> reporter: whit, senator lindsey graham of south carolina has tested positive for covid-19, even after being fully vaccinated. he has mild symptoms, but tonight, we are learning that he was with six other senators this weekend at a gathering hosted by senator joe manchin of west virginia, on his house boat. so far, graham is the only one to test positive. whit? >> rachel, thank you. and there's more news out of our nation's capital. an 18-year veteran of the washington, d.c. metropolitan police department has died by suicide. officer gunther hashida was assigned to the emergency response team and was found deceased at his home. the emergency response team responded to the riot at the capitol on january 6th. officer hashida is the third mpd officer to die by suicide this year. overseas now, to afghanistan, and the u.s. launching air strikes daily for

the past two weeks to block the taliban advances on three key cities there. all of this happening as the taliban gains ground and u.s. troops head home. and a second flight arriving here in the u.s. carrying afghan interpreters and others. here's abc's senior foreign correspondent ian pannell. >> reporter: tonight, afghan fighters racing to turn back the taliban onslaught as militants advance on three major cities. since america's deal to pull out, the taliban has moved rapidly. by one estimate, now controlling more than half of the country's 400 districts. civilian casualties are at record highs and hundreds of thousands are being forced from their homes. now, for the first time in this offensive, three provincial capitals are being assaulted. as we saw when we visited afghanistan in may, many government troops were preparing to fight, but since then, they've often been unwilling or unable to stop the taliban advance without crucial american

support. today, afghan president ghani blaming the situation on president biden's abrupt decision to withdraw. the escalation in violence comes as more flights arrive in the u.s. with afghans who'd worked for america. well, those u.s. air strikes obviously welcome by the afghan government, but there are also concerns about what happens when the troop withdrawal is completed at the end of the month. and whit, i can tell you tonight, it's the taliban who have the momentum. >> all right, ian, thank you. back here at home, major disruptions for air travelers tonight. american airlines canceling at least 430 flights today. and 600 more were delayed. the airline blaming weather in the dallas area. and spirit canceling more than 260 flights, roughly a third of all their scheduled trips. a spokesman telling abc news it was a perfect storm of bad weather, staffing shortages and crews reaching their hourly limits. there's still much more ahead on "world news tonight"

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get the grease fighting power of dawn in a disinfecting wipe. finally tonight, america strong. a teenager with a lot of heart. her emotional surprise for her former coach. coach daniel donaldson from haleyville, alabama, mentoring so many, including 14-year-old alecia, in foster care. alecia and daniel's family -- wife tiffani, children brody, samuel and deacon -- would all come to bond over the years. eventually, alecia asking if they would foster her. and they always left it up to her to decide if she wanted to be formally adopted. and so, on daniel's birthday, alecia had a surprise for him,

with the whole family's help documenting the moment. blindfolding daniel, asking him to hold these signs. "this man here started out as just my coach but he stepped up when he didn't have to. he is now not only my coach, my encourager, my protector, my provider, but now the man i call daddy. i have been part of this family for 524 days but today, for his birthday, i want to ask if we can make it official. he has no clue that i'm about to ask him to adopt me. please take and read this note, then turn around." daniel taking off his blindfold and reading the note as his family lines up behind him. trning around, he sees them, his family and the question -- "let's make it official. will you adopt me?" alecia telling us tonight, "i will always remember that day and the hug he gave me. i felt so happy and safe." beautiful family.

and we're thrilled for all of them. i'm whit johnson in new york. thank you so much for watching. have a great night i am worried about my health

. >> are you really? >> yes! >> it goes on from there. tonight, a peek at what some retail workers are dealing with. because it is more contagious, we need more protection. >> the bay area reinstates a master mandate but is it enough to protect us from the delta variant? >> the delta variant has thrown the whole recall up in the air. it is right in front of him. >> politics and the pandemic. plus abc 7 news insider. breaking news. take a look. a complete traffic standstill through oakland. this video shows just how bad the backup is. it affects both directions to the freeway. officers are responding to an

incident at high speed and 80. traffic is backed up eastbound. westbound, it starts near highway 13. google maps shows you just how bad traffic is. the dark red is a solid backup. 580 is completely shut down at high street in oakland because of police activity. 880 is backed up as well. be warned that travel is slow this evening and could be that way for quite some time. good evening to you. >> the virus has changed. >> delta is different. >> the rules are different too. starting first thing tomorrow, the bay area is bringing back its indoor master mandate. >> quite frankly vaccines are keeping thousands out of bay area hospitals