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Jeff Bezos says he’s curious how space is ‘going to change me’ ahead of historic flight

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ABC News

(VAN HORN, Texas) — Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is set to launch to the edge of space on Tuesday, fulfilling a lifelong dream and ushering in a new era of space tourism via the first crewed flight from his private space-faring firm Blue Origin.

The billionaire, who stepped down as Amazon CEO earlier this month, opened up about the historic spaceflight in an interview with ABC News’ “Good Morning America” on Monday.

“I have just been dreaming of this really my whole life, but I don’t know what it’s going to mean for me,” Bezos told ABC News’ Michael Strahan. “I don’t know, I’m very curious about what tomorrow is actually going to bring. Everybody who’s been to space says it changes them in some way. And I’m just really excited to figure out how it’s going to change me.”

“People say they see the thin limb of the Earth’s atmosphere, it teaches them how fragile and precious the planet is, how there are there no boundaries,” Bezos added. “I don’t know what it’s going to do but I’m excited to find out.”

Bezos will be joined on the historic journey by his brother, Mark Bezos. The other members of the crew include 82-year old Wally Funk, a pioneering female pilot whose dreams of being an astronaut in the 60s were deferred, and 18-year-old Oliver Daemen, a student from the Netherlands. Funk and Daemen are set to become the oldest and youngest people ever to go to space.

Funk told “GMA” that she trained not only in the U.S., but also with Russian cosmonauts during the original U.S.-Soviet Space Race era.

“About about two or three weeks after my training … I was told that I did better than the men,” she said. At the time, however, women were not being sent into space.

Bezos quipped that she is still “doing better than the men” when it comes to astronaut training. “She can outrun all of us, she’s 82-years-old and she can outrun all of us,” he said.

Daemon, meanwhile, said he hopes to set an example for other young people curious about space travel, but admitted it still feels surreal.

“I don’t think I’ve realized yet how special it is to become the youngest person ever, and it’s such an opportunity for me to do that,” he told Strahan. “And also to be an example for other kids.”

“It’s so amazing for me to go, I still can’t believe it,” the teen added.

With the launch less than one day away, Bezos said he is excited but not nervous, citing the successful test flights. He chose the date because it is the 52nd anniversary of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin’s moon landing on July 20, 1969.

The inaugural crewed flight for Blue Origin is set to launch Tuesday morning from west Texas. In total, the flight is only about 11 minutes, and approximately four minutes will be spent above the so-called Karman line that is defined by some as the boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and outer space.

Bezos said the goal is ultimately to pave the way for future astronauts and make visits to space as commonplace as flying on a commercial jetliner.

“What we’re hoping to do is to build the road to space for the future generations,” Bezos said, adding that Blue Origin’s goal has been to make reusable launch vehicles and spacecraft that make space less costly and more accessible for all.

“If we can get to that stage, then the things that the next generations will figure out how to do in space, how to benefit Earth with all those things in space … that’ll be amazing to see, so that’s the real goal,” he said.

Bezos’ flight comes on the heels of a brief, successful spaceflight from Sir Richard Branson’s firm Virgin Galactic earlier this month. The back-to-back missions are seen as ushering in a new era of space tourism that has been propelled by an emerging, billionaire-backed commercial space industry.

The modern space race from the ultra-wealthy comes at a time, however, when the pandemic has only deepened the divide between the haves and have-nots — meaning not everyone is rooting for the billionaires heading to space the way Americans got behind astronauts in the Apollo era. A Change.org petition calling for Bezos to stay in space has garnered headlines and more than 150,000 signatures.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

US, NATO to ‘expose’ China for ‘malicious cyber activities’

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iStock/Dusanpetkovic

(WASHINGTON) — The United States, several allies and partners and NATO are joining forces to “expose and criticize” China for a “pattern of malicious cyber activities,” announcing on Monday that China is profiting off some of the cyberattacks it’s supported, and officially saying it was behind the Microsoft Exchange server breach in March.

“We will show how the PRC [People’s Republic of China] MSS, Ministry of State Security, uses criminal contract hackers to conduct unsanctioned cyber operations globally, including for their own personal profit,” senior administration officials said on a call with reporters Sunday night. “Their operations include criminal activities such as cyber-enabled extortion, cryptojacking and theft of victims around the world for financial gain.

Officials said they also know of some “government-affiliated cyber operators conducting ransomware operations against private companies that have included ransom demands of millions of dollars.”

Senior officials said they found the MSS-affiliated ransomware attacks to be “surprising” and gave them “new insights” into how the MSS operates and the “aggressive behavior” coming out of China.

Asked how the tactics from the Chinese differ from similar attacks they see coming out of Russia, senior officials said they sometimes see “some connection” between Russian intelligence services and individuals, but “the MSS use of criminal contract hackers to conduct unsanctioned cyber operations globally is distinct.”

Joining the U.S. in this public announcement is the European Union, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Japan and NATO. It’s the first time NATO has condemned Chinese cyber activities.

The FBI, NSA and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency released a list Monday of tactics, procedures and techniques used by Chinese state-sponsored cyber actors.

Among the trends, officials say these actors are “using a revolving series of virtual private servers (VPSs) and common open-source or commercial penetration tools.” They are also accused of looking for ways to exploit vulnerabilities in major applications, like “Pulse Secure, Apache, F5 Big-IP, and Microsoft products.”

The advisory also states that they are using a “full array of tactics and techniques to exploit computer networks of interest worldwide and to acquire sensitive intellectual property, economic, political, and military information.”

“Countries around the world are making it clear that concerns regarding the PRC malicious cyber activity is bringing them together to call out those activities, promote network defense in cybersecurity, and act to disrupt threat to our economies and national security,” a senior administration official said.

The group will also formally attribute the Microsoft Exchange server cyberattack in March to China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) “with high confidence.”

Asked what caused the delay for the U.S. to officially point to China for that attack, a senior administration official said they wanted to work with allies and partners because victims of this attack were not just in the U.S.

Officials said they have raised these incidents with senior Chinese government officials and “are not ruling out further actions to hold the PRC accountable,” adding that their actions “threaten security, confidence and stability in cyberspace.”

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

‘Most Wanted’ suspect caught after asking about reward money for her arrest on police Facebook post

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Tulsa Police Department/Facebook

(TULSA, Oklahoma) — A woman who was on the run for allegedly being an accessory to a murder in March has been arrested after commenting on the police department’s Facebook post asking about her reward money.

The strange ordeal began last Wednesday when the Tulsa Police Department in Oklahoma posted a couple of images of Lorraine Graves on Facebook as part of their “Weekly Most Wanted” campaign.

“The Tulsa Police Department is looking for information about the whereabouts of Lorraine Graves,” the post read. “Lorraine Graves is charged with Accessory to Murder. Detectives say she was involved in the city’s 10th homicide of 2021 where Eric Graves was shot and killed at the St. Thomas Square Apartments.”

Not long after the post went up, authorities saw a familiar name in the comments section: Lorraine Graves.

“Where’s the reward money at,” Lorraine Graves can be seen posting after she saw that she was on the “Weekly Most Wanted” list, on a screen shot shared by the Tulsa Police Department.

Her comment, perhaps unsurprisingly, sparked a lot of reaction on social media.

“Giiiiirl you better stay off social media they can track you !!” one person commented.

“Aint gonna be as funny when you get processed,” said another in an image shared by the Tulsa Police Department.

Graves was subsequently arrested the next day at approximately 4:30 p.m. after detectives with the Tulsa Police Department’s Fugitive Warrant’s unit were able to track her down in a home in north Tulsa.

The two other suspects allegedly involved in the murder of Eric Graves — Jayden and Gabriel Hopson — have been charged with murder and are already being held in police custody.

Authorities did not disclose the relationship between Eric and Lorraine Graves but did confirm that she has now been charged with Accessory to Murder and her bond has been set at $500,000.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

COVID-19 kills 57-year-old husband, dad: ‘His family came first’

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iStock/Pornpak Khunatorn

(NEW YORK) — More than 609,000 Americans and counting have died from COVID-19.

Each week ABC News is spotlighting several Americans who have died from the virus.

Adel Hamdan

Adel Hamdan, a New Jersey veterinarian who was called the “animal whisperer” by his wife, died on Dec. 30, 2020, at the age of 73, NorthJersey.com reported.

Hamdan owned Totowa Animal Hospital, where he performed surgeries on animals and offered free care to those who needed it, the newspaper said.

“He would never let an animal go if it wasn’t taken care of,” his brother, Dean Hamden, told NorthJersey.com. “He gave of his time and he talked to kids about the profession. He was generous with his time, energies and his finance.”

Hamdan is survived by his wife, two children and grandson.

Frederick Holloway

Frederick “Fritz” Holloway died on Jan. 28, 2021, at the age of 92, his obituary said.

The New Jersey resident spent 34 years as a bus operator, retiring in 2007, said New Jersey Transit.

“A proud U.S. Army veteran who served during the Korean conflict,” Holloway “enjoyed a good game of cards, a day at the racetrack, and a family cookout,” New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy told reporters in June.

Holloway was predeceased by his wife who died in 2006.

Juan Llanes

Juan Llanes, a correctional officer in Miami-Dade, Florida, died on Feb. 1, 2021.

The 57-year-old leaves behind a wife and son.

Llanes had been a member of the Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department since 1988.

“He was always there for anybody who needed help,” former officer George Hubbard told ABC Miami affiliate WPLG.

“His family came first, and then his friends,” correctional officer Lynette Smith said in a statement. “We helped one another during difficult times . … After working with Juan for the last couple of years, I gained a brother.”

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Kataluna Enriquez, 1st transgender woman to win Miss Nevada USA, speaks out on overcoming challenges to claim title

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ABC News

(LAS VEGAS) — Kataluna Enriquez made history on June 27 by winning the title of Miss Nevada USA and becoming the first openly transgender contestant who will compete in the upcoming Miss USA competition.

Enriquez, who is Filipina American, beat out 21 other contestants to win the crown at the South Point Hotel Casino in Las Vegas. In March, she also became the first transgender woman to represent Miss Silver State USA, an official preliminary for Miss Nevada USA.

“I am so happy and grateful to be Miss Nevada USA 2021 and represent our state Nevada in this year’s Miss USA,” Enriquez told “Good Morning America.” “This has been one of my longest dreams and I am happy to share it with my community, especially the LGBTQ+ youth.”

“When I was young, I always said, ‘I wish I could see someone like me on that stage,’” Enriquez continued. “That’s something that I always didn’t have growing up and to be able to give that to other people, that’s one of my hopes in life to just be able to represent and create a positive change for those who haven’t always had those moments in life.”

Her historic win was met with an outpouring of support on social media, including a congratulatory post from the Miss Nevada USA organization.

“Good Morning WORLD! The Universe rather,” read the Instagram post. “Congratulations to @mskataluna for her historical win!!!”

Winning the crown was not always an easy feat for Enriquez. She got her start competing in transgender pageants in 2015 and later began competing in cisgender pageants where she had to overcome several challenges.

“When I started competing with cisgender women or the Miss USA organization, there was one competition where I was asked to provide documents that I think were invasive and were singling me out,” Enriquez revealed. “Also, I was not provided roommates, regardless of my identity.”

She said that despite providing all required documentation for a pageant in another state, she still had to undergo a stricter vetting process. Enriquez said she had to provide pageant organizers with legal orders, doctor’s notes and her identification card verifying that she is a female.

“It was basically just refusing me to be there, so that’s one of the experiences I’ve experienced,” she said.

“There’s a lot of backlash that I’m receiving and I think I want to use this time to really educate people on what it means to be trans, on what it means to be part of the LGBTQ+ community,” Enriquez continued. “And I think there’s still lack of representation in being a trans woman of color and being a Southeast Asian American.”

Now, she plans to use her life experiences “as a trans woman of color, and as a woman who is a survivor of physical and sexual abuse” to shape her platform called #BEVISIBLE, which aims to combat hate through vulnerability.

“I’ve learned that people just take advantage of our vulnerable moments and use it to kind of belittle us and dehumanize us but in reality it’s what makes us connect as humans,” said Enriquez. “My goal this time is to expand my platform for other people and have them share their stories so we can create a world where everyone is aware of things and we can have positive conversations and not let anyone who is experiencing difficultness or different situations in life to feel like they are less than.”

In addition to being a titleholder, Enriquez also works as a healthcare admin specializing in LGBTQ+ care, a model and is the owner of her own clothing line called Kataluna Kouture.

“I started my design company because I didn’t have money growing up,” Enriquez said. “I didn’t have money to be able to afford clothes and gowns and I couldn’t find anything that fit my body type and so that was very important for me,”

She attended school for fashion design, and says that when she first started competing in her own designs, parts of the evening gown would fall off. Her skills improved over time and she even designed the rainbow sequined evening gown she wore during the state competition in honor of pride month.

“My win is hope for a lot of people, hope that they can have a better chance in life, better opportunities, different outcomes,” she said. “I hope that my win gives them hope and a chance that lets them know they can also have a successful path in life regardless of what they’ve experienced and what they’re going through.”

Enriquez will compete for the national title of Miss USA in November. If she wins, she will advance to the Miss Universe competition and would become only the second transgender woman to compete in the pageant. In 2018, Spain’s Angela Ponce made history and became the first transgender woman to compete at Miss Universe.

“I’d love to be the first Asian woman to win a title of Miss USA and the first trans woman,” said Enriquez. “I think that will be a great example for moving forward to create a better future in our country.”

“My win is visibility and representation of hope and an example to love and celebrate diversity and your differences,” she added. “We cannot wait to spread our colors on the Miss USA stage.”

 

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Multiple wounded after suspect opens fire on EMTs, firefighters responding to separate incidents

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At least two people are dead and several others are wounded after a driver of an SUV allegedly shot at several people Sunday in Tucson, Arizona, including multiple first responders.

The shootings unfolded at three locations where emergency personnel were responding to separate incidents.

Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus said the incident began as the Tucson Fire Department was dispatched to a fire at 3:45 p.m. local time in the 2100 block of Irene Vista. At “pretty much” the same time, EMTs were responding to an unrelated medical emergency in a nearby park. That’s when, according to Magnus, a suspect got out of his silver SUV, approached the ambulance and opened fire, striking the driver in the head and the passenger in the arm and chest.

The 20-year-old EMT driver is in “extremely critical condition,” while the EMT in the passenger seat, a 21-year-old woman, is listed in stable condition.

Then, as firetrucks arrived to the call at the residence, neighbors were also at the scene trying to help.

That’s when the suspect “arrives on the scene and starts firing at both the fire department personnel and the neighbors,” Magnus said during a press briefing Sunday night.

At this point, firefighters called police to say they are being shot at. One fire captain was shot in the arm at the residence and is in good condition, while a neighbor died after being shot in the head, police said. A second neighbor was grazed by a bullet and is in good condition.

Then as a responding police officer arrives at the scene, he sees the suspect’s vehicle in the area. The SUV then rams the officer’s car, disabling it, Magnus said. The officer then exited the car and exchanged gunfire with the alleged suspect, striking him. The 35-year-old alleged suspect is in critical condition at a local hospital.

Magnus said making the incident more complex is the fact a dead body was found inside the burning residence. At this time, that victim’s identity is not known and police said they are unsure if that person’s death is directly related to the suspect.

Adding to the suspicions around these incidents, authorities said the whereabouts of “two or three” children “associated” with the burning residence are unknown. Anyone with information about these children, of which a description was not immediately available, was asked to call 911.

This is a “highly tragic, really horrific incident with many unknowns,” Magnus said Sunday night. The investigation, he said, will be “lengthy and complex.”

“I ask our entire Tucson community to join me in thinking about and praying for the victims of this afternoon’s fire and shooting by Silverlake Park, including first responders from AMR and the Tucson Fire Department. This was a horrific and senseless act of violence,” Tucson Mayor Regina Romero said in a statement Monday.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Six Flags Texas water park evacuated after chemical spill sends dozens to the hospital

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Enes Evren/iStock

(SPRING, TX.) — A chemical spill at a water park in Texas sent dozens of people to the hospital, according to officials.

The incident began around 2:30 p.m. in a children’s pool at Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Splashtown in Spring, Texas, when a lifeguard and several guests started to get sick, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo told reporters.

Children and their parents were experiencing “respiratory issues,” and 28 of them were transported to hospitals, the Harris County Fire Marshal’s office said.

After evacuating the park and conducting preliminary tests of the air and water, investigators found the water had a chemical combination of 35% sulfuric acid and 10-13% bleach, Scott Seifert, the chief of Spring Texas Fire, told reporters. The chemicals are commonly used to clean and treat swimming pools.

Over 65 people were contaminated by the substance, however, no one suffered any chemical burns, according to the fire marshall’s office. The affected persons were decontaminated.

The most serious case involved a 3-year-old child, and as of Sunday, that child was stable at Texas Children’s Hospital, according to Hidalgo.

“Everybody else was in the less urgent position,” she said. “Most people were feeling better afterward.”

A representative from the park said in a statement that it was closing Hurricane Harbor Splashtown indefinitely as they work with health officials to determine what caused the spill.

“The safety of our guests and team members is always our highest priority,” Rosie Shepard, a spokeswoman for the park, said in a statement.

The fire marshal said the last time the park had its fire and safety inspection was June 29 and the Harris County health department conducted health and safety inspections for commercial pools in April.

Hidalgo said that the park is supposed to have systems in place that track the pH level in the water and alert crews quickly, however, she reiterated that the city will make sure this doesn’t happen again.

“If you can have 60-plus people get sick, and your system doesn’t catch it … then clearly something is wrong with the system,” she said.

ABC News’ Timmy Truong contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

How COVID-19 changed the movie industry

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Ines De La Cuetara/ABC News

(CANNES, France) — It was almost a strange sight; packed movie premieres and actors again walking the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival — maskless- — while throngs of photographers snapped away.

With going to the movies put on hold for more than a year, and the festival canceled last year due to the pandemic, even some of the stars were struck by what felt like a return to normal.

“I was a little overwhelmed last night, and I’m really glad that we’re here this year. Because I think we’ll all look back and remember launching out of COVID — and what a way to do it,” said actor Matt Damon, who teared up after the standing ovation he received at the premiere of his new film, “Stillwater.”

Beyond the glitz and glamour, the Cannes Film Festival is also home to the world’s biggest movie market, the Marché du Film. Set up inside the Palais des Festivals, a convention center behind the main theater where premieres are held, the marché is where thousands of directors, producers, sales agents and distributors from around the world try to get their movies made, bought, sold or distributed.

“The Marché du Film is really the business of film, we’re the less sexy and exciting part of the film festival,” said Monique White, senior vice president of distribution for California Pictures who’s been coming to Cannes for years.

This year, cinema’s power players were eager to get back to work, hoping the deals struck here will serve as evidence the business of film is also back. The industry took a massive hit during the pandemic — global theatrical revenue in the U.S. fell from $42.3 billion in 2019 to just $12 billion in 2020, according to the Motion Picture Association’s Annual Report — leaving film professionals scrambling to adjust.

“COVID-19 has forced more change on the film industry — from production and financing through distribution and exhibition — in 12 months than the business had seen in the previous decade,” wrote The Hollywood Reporter’s Europe bureau chief, Scott Roxborough.

Some argue perhaps the single biggest change was the streaming boom.

“COVID changed the way we watch anything now. Whether we’re watching on just the internet, on Facebook, Instagram, Netflix, Hulu, whatever. We have more eyeballs on our computers and our phones,” said White.

While tensions between traditional theaters and streaming platforms had been growing for a while, the problem really came to a head during the pandemic, with the controversial online release of Universal Pictures’ “Trolls World Tour” movie in April 2020 marking the beginning of a new era and sending shockwaves through Hollywood.

AMC, the country’s largest cinema chain, responded by temporarily refusing to run Universal movies.

“There used to be more of a professional understanding that you would wait a period of time before you released,” said White. “But now it’s really subject to the production and the producer and how they want to release the film domestically.”

The feud between Universal and AMC was eventually resolved, but a number of other studios have since then followed suit. Disney, the parent company of ABC News, decided to release films like “Mulan” and “Luca” online, and WarnerMedia announced the company would release all of its 2021 films on HBO Max the same day they hit theaters.

The shift to digital has even prompted the Oscars to change their eligibility rules — whereas movies first had to be released in theaters to qualify for the awards competition, the Academy is now allowing movies released online to participate.

As a result, “Nomadland” which was released on Hulu, eventually won best picture, and Netflix won seven awards and 35 nominations, the most of any studio this year.

Recently announced Emmy nominations are reflecting a similar pattern with streaming services winning more nominations in 2021 than those of broadcast and cable combined.

The Cannes Film Festival, for its part, is maintaining requirements that a movie must first air in theaters to be able to qualify.

“Of course, the streaming companies exploded and they needed lot more product which is great because now they’re asking for more,” said Hernan Aguilar, a distributor focused on the Latin American market.

Aguilar said he sees an upside to the shift to streaming.

“In general it’s good this thing is happening, because cause more product is being asked for,” he said. “The demand is going up, so in that sense, that’s good.”

The change is causing a certain uneasiness in the industry, with some fearing streaming services could not only put theaters at risk, but also the likes of producers and distributors. A number of streaming platforms are now producing their own content, instead of buying films made by independent filmmakers.

It’s an issue that’s top of mind in Cannes this year.

“Cinema and screening platforms can coexist. At one time, there was a thinking that TV was going to kill cinema. This stuff is not new. It’s all cycle,” said director Spike Lee, president of the Cannes Film Festival jury this year.

Some argue studios won’t be able to continue bypassing theaters, as there’s just no substitute for box office revenue. The recently released blockbuster “F9” — released exclusively in theaters — raked in $70 million on opening weekend.

White predicts streaming services will eventually have to raise their prices.

“They’re all gonna go up. And before you know it, let’s say in the next couple of years, it’s gonna be like 20 bucks for Netflix, I’m sure. That’s not gonna be sustainable,” she said.

Aguilar thinks it’ll be the opposite.

“I think what’s gonna happen is there’s going to be more and more streaming platforms and with competition the prices will go down but I think it’s really not expensive at all right now compared to tickets in the cinema,” he said.

Another big question: will streaming change the type of content that’s being produced?

“Streaming is definitely … if you see the quality of the content you’re seeing, you’re seeing more lower quality in terms of the story or how things are done,” said Juan Pablo Cadaveira, producer and co-founder of Blue Productions.

It’s unclear what will happen next, but some are hopeful the end of the pandemic will mean a return to theaters, pointing out it was the Great Depression that inspired Hollywood’s Golden Age.

“I just think now though hopefully with things opening up, we’re gonna be less on [streaming platforms] than we were before. No one wants to be in a small apartment. They want to go out and see people and go to the movies,” said White.

“I think as people go to church for religion, you go to the cinema to watch a good film, but it’s true that for me people are going to do it less and less because it’s so much easier to watch a good film in your house,” said Aguilar.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

4 people dead after terrible single-vehicle accident splits car in half

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ABC News/WLS

(NEW YORK) — Four people have died and two people have been injured in a terrible single-vehicle accident that ended up splitting their car in half.

The incident occurred at approximately 2:24 p.m. on Saturday, July 17, in Hickory Hills, Illinois, when police say a car with six people inside ended up losing control and striking a tree, according to a report from ABC News’ Chicago station WLS-TV.

None of the victims involved in the accident have currently been identified but authorities told WLS that two people died on the scene and two people died after being taken to the hospital following the accident. The condition of the other two people have not yet been disclosed.

Police are still investigating the circumstances surrounding the accident but an eyewitness told WLS that the aftermath of the accident was shocking.

“I have never seen anything like it,” Joanna Proszek told WLS. “It was bad, tragic. I think they just, like, started flying because there is a hill. So I am thinking they just revved up the engine and they just flew into the tree.”

It is unclear if speed was a factor in the accident but authorities say that the investigation into what caused the crash is ongoing.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

‘Very reasonable’ for local officials to reimplement mask mandates amid delta surge: Dr. Vivek Murthy

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peterschreiber.media/iStock

(NEW YORK) — Local officials have the right to reimplement mitigation strategies to stop the spread of COVID-19 amid a surge in cases fueled by the delta variant, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said Sunday.

“Unfortunately we’re seeing rises, particularly among the unvaccinated in many parts of the country now,” Murthy told ABC “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz.

Approximately 97% of COVID-19 hospitalizations in the U.S. are among the unvaccinated and at least 58% of current reported cases were directly linked to the delta variant. At the end of May, the variant was estimated to account for just over 3% of new cases.

The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention has for the last two months said that vaccinated individuals can enter public, indoor spaces without a mask. Amid a surge in cases, Los Angeles County reinstated its indoor mask mandate in all public places for all individuals, regardless of vaccination status and at least 10 additional counties in California, including the city of Berkeley, have highly recommended all residents wear masks indoors again.

“In areas where there are low numbers of vaccinated people, where cases are rising, it’s very reasonable for counties to take more mitigation measures, like the mask rules coming out of LA,” Murthy continued. “And I anticipate that will happen in other parts of the country — and that’s not contradictory to the guidance the CDC issued.”

Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Chair Hilda L. Solis told Raddatz in a separate interview on “This Week,” that the new mask mandate was not punishment for the vaccinated, but prevention.

“We still have 4 million people out of 10 million that haven’t been vaccinated — and many of them are young people,” Solis told Raddatz. “And we’re seeing that this transmission is so highly contagious that it will cost more in the long run.”

Murthy reinforced his support for LA County’s decision as an acceptable mitigation approach based on data on the ground. The county reported over 1,000 new COVID-19 cases daily this past week.

“We saw this during the last year of the pandemic, that we have large numbers of people gathering in indoor spaces that is the right setup for COVID-19 to spread,” Murthy said, adding that the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention will provide surge response teams to assist regions experiencing high coronavirus cases.

Raddatz asked Murthy about the World Health Organization’s warning that the delta variant and three additional variants of concern could prolong the pandemic and possibly lead to the emergence of deadlier strains of COVID-19.

“If we don’t get this under control now, what do you anticipate the fall looking like?” Raddatz asked.

“I am deeply concerned,” Murthy responded. “We’ve made so much progress over this past year, but what I worry about are those that we still have — millions of people in our country who are not vaccinated.”

“We have to still protect our children under 12 who don’t have a vaccine available to them.” Murthy added. “Our kids depend on the people around them being protected, being vaccinated in order to shield them from the virus. And that’s why, again, it’s so important for us to get vaccinated.”

“We have to still protect our children under 12 who don’t have a vaccine available to them.” Murthy added. “Our kids depend on the people around them being protected, being vaccinated in order to shield them from the virus. And that’s why, again, it’s so important for us to get vaccinated.”

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