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Severe weekend weather hits plains, as triple-digit heat scorches Southwest

Severe thunderstorm watches were in effect for areas in the Midwest while dry, mild weather welcomed Pride celebrations in the Northeast on Saturday.
Heat and climate change
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Residents in the Midwest faced an enhanced risk of severe thunderstorms across portions of the central U.S. plains as people in Kansas City and Topeka in Kansas and Lincoln in Nebraska were told to prepare.

The Northeast had a pleasant surprise as conditions remained dry and mildfor Pride celebrations in cities from Washington, D.C. to Boston in New England.

An area from eastern Colorado into Kansas was under some of the worst storm conditions on Saturday.

The primary risks associated with the storms were expected to be large hail and potentially damaging winds.

A band of severe thunderstorms over southeast Nebraska on Friday night carried the potential to push damaging winds forward as they moved in the direction of the Southeast.

Heavy areas of precipitation were tracked on radar over northern partsof Alabama and Mississippi — along with large portions of Missouri and Tennessee.

Man drinking water.

Medicine

Some medications may increase your risk of heat illness

Lindsey Theis

A persistent heat wave was expected to continue baking the Southwest through the weekend. A large swath of California was under a flash flood warning stretching from the northern to southern end of a central portion of the state, the National Weather Service said.

Triple-digit temperatures continued to set records as of Thursday — that's considered to be early in the season — including readings of 113 degrees Fahrenheit in Phoenix, 111 degrees in Las Vegas and 122 degrees in Death Valley National Park.

On Thursday 11 people were taken to the hospital for complications due to heat exhaustion after attending a rally for former President Donald Trump, as temperatures reached smoldering 110 degrees.

The National Weather Service extended excessive heat alerts for parts of Nevada and Arizona.

Temperatures were expected to tick downward over the course of the weekend, but they are forecast to stay unusually elevated for this time of year as next week begins.