tonight, we re learning it s a mistake that could end up costing him a quarter of a million dollars in total. here s abc s adrienne bankert. reporter: tonight, the tennis world rocked. the favorite to win the u.s. open ejected. novak djokovic hitting a ball in frustration, accidentally striking a lineswoman in the neck. he immediately runs over to see if she s okay. the world s number one-ranked player then makes his appeal to stay in the game, saying the official isn t seriously injured. you re saying you have no choice, but you do have a choice, you just told me you have a choice. she doesn t have to go to the hospital for this. reporter: the usta citing grand slam routes that say djokovic hit a ball dangerously or recklessly. it s not the first time a player has been disqualified. in 2017, this match was forfeited after the chair umpire was accidentally struck in the face by a ball. last year, michael mmoh threw his racket in anger, hitting a linesman. oh, my god. oh, my
love with me. the soldiers are, but the top people in the pentagon probably aren t. reporter: abc has not confirmed the report that solely relied on unnamed sources. tonight, a former top aide to general john kelly joining others in denying the article, saying, i did not hear potus call anyone losers when they spoke about visiting the world war i cemetery in france. still, joe biden seizing on the scathing accusations today in pennsylvania. when it comes to veterans, he s downright un-american. calling those who have served, risked their lives, even gave their lives to our nation losers and suckers. these are heroes. i ll tell you something. my beau wasn t a loser or a sucker. reporter: the president using the white house this labor day to attack biden s running mate for casting doubt on his promise
garden hoses and water from the swimming pool. and near san diego, the valley fire already destroying nearly a dozen homes and outer buildings. and tonight, fierce winds are now fueling those flames. abc s zohreen shah leads us off from the fire lines. reporter: tonight, new evacuations for residents near the creek fire, burning out of control in california s sierra national forest. more than 900 firefighters battling rugged terrain, heavy fuel and high temperatures. this after daring nighttime rescues over the weekend. more than 200 people trapped by flames northeast of fresno. we are completely trapped. there s fire on all sides, all around us. all the roads are burnt. reporter: jeremy remington among those at the mammoth pool reservoir when the fire came out of nowhere. a bunch of us are stranded here and supposedly there s well, we have no cell no phone reception. this is hell, if i don t know what else. reporter: the meek family trying to escape in their vehicle. f
dejoy believes that he has always followed campaign fund-raising laws and regulations. now, when i asked the president today if these allegations of a campaign finance scheme are true, could dejoy lose his job? trump telling me, yes if, indeed, he did something wrong. tom? all right, kyra phillips with that new reporting tonight. kyra, thank you. this labor day weekend is a critical moment for the coronavirus pandemic. health officials fear holiday social gatherings could become covid hot spots in a matter of weeks. tonight, the virus has taken more than 189,000 american lives. crowds like this in las vegas this weekend could fuel the spread. so could social events among college students. this lake outing near indiana university. and all of it as we head into the fall, with the flu season on the way. here s abc s stephanie ramos. reporter: tonight, the labor day weekend dealing this country a crucial test in its battle against the coronavirus in las vegas, crowds spotted with l
history of verbal spats with officials, saying djokovic should have known better. the pressure just got to him. he s going to be the bad guy the rest of his career. reporter: now djokovic is apologizing in a statement, saying, this whole situation has left me really sad and empty. i need to go back within and turn this all into a lesson for my growth. that lineswoman is expected to be okay. djokovic will lose $267,500 in prize money and additional fines and even more valuable, a chance to win a fourth u.s. open title. tom? glad that line judge is recovering. adrienne, thank you. there s still much more ahead on world news tonight this monday. the frightening home fire. an elderly man with dementia celebrating a birthday when the blaze breaks out, unaware of the flames. what happened next. and not one, but two tropical storms forming today. we ll have the latest on what is already a record-breaking hurricane season in the atlantic. stay with us. i am robert strickler. i ve