Expect a hot, smoky summer in much of America. Here's why you'd better get used to it
Forecasters say the only break much of America can hope for anytime soon from eye-watering dangerous smoke from fire-struck Canada is brief bouts of shirt-soaking sweltering heat and humidity from a southern heat wave that has already proven deadly.
The Latest: Appleby cleared to play for Florida
(AP Photo/Michael Conroy)The Latest on the second round of the NCAA Tournament (all times Eastern):___7:45 p.m.Florida guard Tyree Appleby has been cleared to play and was in the starting lineup for No. 1 seed in the second round for a third time, joining the 2000 team against Arizona and the 2017 squad against Villanova. Sister Jean Delores Schmidt gave an inspirational pregame prayer to her Loyola Chicago team before the eighth-seeded Ramblers met top-seeded Illinois in Sundayโs second round. UCLA and Abilene Christian face off Monday, assuring that at least one double-digit seed will reach the Sweet 16. This is the first time four teams seeded 13th or worse made it to the second round.
Nothing to sneeze at: Global warming triggers earlier pollen
In this undated photo provided by Atlanta Allergy & Asthma, Dr. Stanley Fineman looks through a microscope at Atlanta Allergy & Asthma Center in Atlanta to examine the pollen. Just look at cherry blossoms opening several days earlier in Japan and Washington, D.C., he said. The South and southern Midwest are getting pollen season about 1.3 days earlier each year, while itโs coming about 1.1 days earlier in the West, he said. The northern Midwest is getting allergy season about 0.65 days earlier per year, and itโs coming 0.33 days earlier a year in the Southeast. But since the 2000s, about 65% of earlier pollen seasons can be blamed on warming, he said.
Surging virus cases get a shrug in many Midwestern towns
It's not that people in Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa and elsewhere don't realize their states are leading the nation in new cases per capita. โThey donโt think itโs real," she said. Like most people, Jay Stibbe, 52, of Fargo, North Dakota, said he and his family are respectful of COVID-19 protocols and wear masks where required. However, Stibbe said he doesnโt see enough โconcrete informationโ about the virus to stop him from going about his normal life, even though North Dakota leads the nation in the number of virus cases per capita. ___Associated Press writers David Pitt in Des Moines, Iowa, and Dave Kolpack in Fargo, North Dakota, contributed to this story.
GOP governors in spiking states strain for silver linings
But that's not the message coming from a number of Republican governors in the region, who are working to find silver linings in the ominous health data as outbreaks surge in their states. North Dakota's governor has called his state's test positivity rate an achievement, even though its rate of new cases tops the nation. Kim Reynolds, however, has defended the state's decision to reopen bars and send students back into classrooms without masks required. Some governors are even pushing back against Trump's own advisers for giving blunter assessments of their states' situations. Hutchinson has continued resisting calls to roll back some of the state's reopening, saying he's relying more on personal responsibility.
Cristobal remnants bring thunderstorms, flooding to Midwest
Erin Shaw, left, and Brittany Schanzbach stand near crashing waves near the seawall of Lake Pontchartrain from a storm surge in New Orleans, Sunday, June 7, 2020, as Tropical Storm Cristobal approaches the Louisiana Coast. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)MILWAUKEE The remnants of Tropical Storm Cristobal were moving out of the Midwest on Wednesday and into Canada, with gusty winds and heavy rain leaving behind flooding in Wisconsin, Missouri and Iowa. Scattered severe thunderstorms were possible Wednesday from Ohio and Michigan into parts of the Northeast, forecasters said. In western Wisconsin, the rain from remnants of Cristobal washed out portions of some roads. Cristobal's remnants moved into the Midwest after lashing the South.
US home construction drops 30.2% in April as virus rages
The Commerce Department said Tuesday that ground breakings plummeted 30.2% last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 891,000. Construction of single-family homes dropped 25.4% to an annual rate of 650,000. Housing starts dropped 43.6% in the Northeast, 14.9% in the Midwest, 26% in the South and 43.4% in the West. Commerce reported a 8.1% drop in the completion of homes under construction, which means many are being left half built. Building permits for new housing dropped 20.8% to an annual rate of 1.07 million.
Arctic conditions blamed for at least four deaths
Arctic air has been moving across the eastern two-thirds of the United States, bringing snow from the Midwest to the Northeast. NEW YORK - Arctic conditions are to blame for at least four deaths, and the weather is only expected to get worse for much of the country. Arctic air has been moving across the eastern two-thirds of the United States, bringing snow from the Midwest to the Northeast. By Thursday morning, the Mid-Atlantic region to Maine could see even more record cold temperatures, according to CNN meteorologist Michael Guy. Across the Northeast, more than 70 schools in Vermont, New Hampshire and New York state canceled classes due to the snow, according to Vermont Public Radio.
Flood watches stretch from Mexico to Michigan
Nearly 18 million people are under flood watches or warnings stretching from the Mexican border to almost the Canadian border in Michigan. A slow-moving stationary front across the center of the country will continue to drift east over the region through Wednesday night. "This is the dividing line between the cold air in the West and the warm air in the South," said CNN Meteorologist Dave Hennen. The most torrential rain today is expected in the Midwest, where 2 to 4 inches of rain could fall over a widespread area. Rainfall across the US is being enhanced by the moisture from Tropical Depression Narda on the western coast of Mexico.
Rare bee loses 96% of its population
Researchers fight to bring the rare rusty patched bumblebee back from the brink of extinction. HAMPTON, Ill. - A research team in the Quad Cities is fighting to bring a native bumblebee back from the brink of extinction. Fish and Wildlife Service has a list of plants the rusty patched bumblebee likes to feed off of. They're also studying the bee population and documenting how it changes over the years. He hopes the population of the rusty patched bumblebee found at Niabi Zoo earlier this start a new colony at Illiniwek.
Part of South grapples with dangerous heat wave
The heat index soared to 121 degrees by late afternoon in Clarksdale, Mississippi; and to 119 degrees in West Memphis, Arkansas, the weather service reported. In Alabama, the temperature hit 100 degrees with a heat index of 106 degrees by mid-afternoon in Birmingham, the states largest city. More of the same is in store for Tuesday, when heat and humidity will again make for dangerous heat indexes over a wide area. The region hardest-hit by the heat wave could experience many more days each year when the heat index soars as the effects of climate change increase, scientists say. Southern states would feel the brunt of increasingly dangerous heat in coming years, said Astrid Caldas, one of the studys authors.
Heat wave finally coming to an end
From the Midwest to the East, a widespread heat wave poses potential dangers for more than 130 million Americans. NEW YORK - The brutal heat wave that engulfed more than half of the country, left tens of thousands without power and resulted in two deaths is finally coming to an end. Excessive heat watchAbout 195.7 million people were under an excessive heat watch or warning or a heat advisory Friday, according to the National Weather Service with alerts stretching from New Mexico to Maine. Buchanan tells CNN his department responded to 64 heat-related calls since the heat wave began on Thursday. Earlier this week Maryland officials announced four heat-related deaths between the July 3 and 15 but these were unrelated to the current heat wave.
Same heat Sunday, cold front coming soon
Much of the East Coast is experiencing abnormally high temperatures with highs expected over 100 degrees by the weekend. A cold front moving through the Midwest will reach the East Coast by Monday, bringing heavy rain and cooler air, according to CNN Meteorologist Ivan Cabrera. This week's high temperatures prompted cities across the US to open cooling centers, issue safety instructions to residents and cancel many outdoor events. One death has been attributed to the high temperatures: Former NFL player Mitch Petrus, 32, died of a heat stroke after working outside Thursday during a heat advisory in Arkansas, officials said. While temperatures on the East Coast and Midwest may sink down to the 70s on Monday, Sunday still has some heat in store.
Police ask residents to hold off on crime until after heat wave
From the Midwest to the East, a widespread heat wave poses potential dangers for more than 130 million Americans. The Braintree Police Department asked the community to put a pin in crime until the heat wave passes in a Facebook post Friday. The National Weather Service issued an excessive heat warning for parts of the eastern United States, including Braintree in eastern Massachusetts. In the post, the department suggested everyone wait out the heat wave indoors and suspend the illegal stuff until things cool down. According to the post, Braintree police are just finishing up the second season of "Stranger Things."
Half of US will see 95+-degree temps over next 7 days
joe Raedle/Getty Images(CNN) - Nearly half of the US population will see temperatures of at least 95 degrees over the next seven days, according to meteorologists. More than 70 million people are under heat watches, warnings or advisories in different parts of the country, including the Midwest, the National Weather Service said Tuesday. "Low temperatures from the Midwest to the Northeast will be in mid- to upper 70s. In some locations, the overnight temperatures may not drop below 80 degrees." Ward said dozens of locations will set records for warm overnight low temperatures.
Good Samaritan pays for 70 Chicago homeless to stay in hotel
CHICAGO, Ill. โ A good Samaritan offered to pay for hotel rooms for 70 homeless people in Chicago who were camped out in tents amid the bitter cold blanketing the Midwest. The offer came after the Chicago Fire Department on Wednesday confiscated nearly 100 propane tanks that had been given to the group to keep them warm. Temperatures at the time sank to negative 22 degrees (negative 20 Celsius). City officials then called the organization to say someone had offered to pay for hotels. Rachev says she wasn't sure of the identity of the good Samaritan and only knew the hotel was on the city's South Side.