The deadly heat event that has broken numerous records has left the southern plains and Mississippi Valley struggling to meet demand for power and water and has cost billions in impact on crops and livestock.

“Many more days of triple-digit heat are on deck as iron-clad high pressure at most levels of the atmosphere continues to squat over the south-central U.S.,” Accuweather.com’s senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said.

The severe heat is just one part of a compounded climatic problem, an expert from the National Weather Service said.

Last year’s La Nina, the weather event that left equatorial sea surface temperatures in the central Pacific two to four degrees Fahrenheit cooler, triggered this year’s exceptional drought.

Normally, La Nina causes a 10 percent drop in precipitation.

Since January, the state of Texas, where the drought is anchored, has only had 40 percent of normal rain fall, NWS climate specialist Victor Murphy said.

Drought now affects over a million square miles of the lower 48 states, or 32 percent, according to the Weather Channel. The most extreme cases of “exceptional” drought stretch from Arizona to Louisiana and parts of Georgia, covering almost 11 percent of the lower 48 states.

The resulting lack of ground moisture prevents clouds from developing in the low level atmosphere, making daytime showers near impossible.

That problem combined with a persistent dome of high pressure, the climatic conditions are not likely to change.

FEEDBACK

“It’s a feedback process which just keeps on going, feeding on itself,” Murphy told Reuters by phone.

“Drought begets heat, heat begets drought. That’s how we’ve been since May,” he said.

The NWS drought outlook released on Thursday reported that in Texas, Oklahoma and parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Kansas, and New Mexico, the drought will persist or intensify until the end of October.

The region has felt the impact of the several months of severe weather acutely. Wildfires in April and May burned over 3 million acres and the agriculture and livestock industries have seen a preliminary impact of $6 to $8 billion, Murphy said.

Water scarcity will likely be this next pressing issue. Images of cracking lakebeds and water turn blood-red from bacterial growth have filled weather reports in recent days.

“Barring a tropical cyclone, we are forecasted to stay the same as we are,” Murphy said.

The hurricane season is likely to bring relief to Southeastern states such as Georgia, Alabama, Florida and the Carolinas.

The Climate Predication Center, a division of NWS, said on Thursday that the hurricane season would be more likely to be an above average one, notching up their outlook for tropical storms to 14-19 from 12-18 and the number of hurricanes to 7-10 from 6-10.

Despite the heat, high school football practices continue as coaches keep a weary eye on players.

Pre-season practices which are often seen as a rite of passage in the South, may have already claimed the lives of two players in Georgia and one in South Carolina as well as a coach in Texas who had a heart condition.

(Editing by Jerry Norton)

The National Weather Service has issued excessive heat warnings for Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, Kansas, Nebraska, Illinois, Iowa and Arizona.

Heat advisories were issued for an additional seven surrounding states.

High temperatures Tuesday afternoon are expected to be 95 to 100 in most areas east of the Mississippi River, while highs of 85 to 95 are expected in the mountains, along the central and eastern Gulf Coast and in Florida, The Weather Channel’s Kevin Roth said.

AccuWeather.com’s Meghan Evans warned that Tropical Storm Emily may grow by the weekend.

“As the current forecast path stands, the heaviest rain and wind from Emily would impact the Bahamas on Friday. Southern and central Florida could be impacted by rain and winds from Emily as early as Saturday,” Evans said.

In the U.S. interior, the Great Lakes region will be hit by severe thunderstorms Tuesday night, with damaging winds, large hail, torrential downpours, and possibly a few tornadoes, according to AccuWeather.com. Cities that could be affected include Detroit and Cleveland.

In Kansas City, Missouri, the National Weather Service predicted a high of 109 on Tuesday, which would easily eclipse its all-time high of 104. The temperature had reached 106 degrees by late afternoon. Heat in Kansas City this summer is already suspected in the deaths of 21 persons, according to the city’s health department.

RECORDS BROKEN IN KANSAS

Wichita, Kan. had reached 108 degrees by late afternoon, according to the weather service. Temperatures are forecast to exceed 100 degrees there for at least another six days.

Kansas recorded its fifth hottest July on record, with an average statewide combined day and night temperature of 84.7 degrees. That’s 5.8 degrees higher than normal, according to a Kansas State University report, citing state climatologist Mary Knapp.

The July heat set a record for south central Kansas, where the average temperature was 88.5 degrees — 7 degrees above average. The previous record was 87.8 degrees, set during the Dust Bowl days of 1934, said Knapp.

The hottest temperature in the state for July was recorded July 31 at Medicine Lodge in south central Kansas, with a reading of 116 degrees, breaking the record of 114 degrees set in 1985.

In Omaha, Omaha’s trash hauler abandoned some routes Monday as 12 workers fell ill during the heat. Two workers were hospitalized and 10 were sent home. The temperature hit 98 degrees Monday afternoon in Omaha.

Temperatures in Tennessee pushed toward 100 Tuesday. Heat advisories were in effect in western Tennessee, where actual temperatures were expected to reach triple digits.

In the middle of the state, around Nashville, the upper 90s and low 100s were forecast, with heat indexes into the 100s. Eastern Tennessee, where it is slightly cooler usually, is under an air quality warning.

Despite complaints from parents and students about the heat, several school systems began classes for the new academic year on Monday. More systems are opening next week.

A three-year-old Georgia boy died of heat stroke after he was left in a parked car Sunday, Warner Robins police said on Tuesday.

(Additional Reporting by Kevin Murphy in Kansas City, Carey Gillam Timothy Ghianni in Nashville, David Beasley in Atlanta, David Hendee in Omaha; Editing by Greg McCune)

The National Weather Service has issued excessive heat warnings for Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, Kansas, Nebraska, Illinois, Iowa and Arizona.

Heat advisories were issued for an additional seven surrounding states.

“High temperatures this afternoon should be 95 to 100 in most areas east of the Mississippi River – highs of 85 to 95 are expected in the mountains, along the central and eastern Gulf coast and in Florida,” The Weather Channel’s Kevin Roth said.

AccuWeather.com’s Meghan Evans warned that Tropical Storm Emily may grow by the weekend.

“As the current forecast path stands, the heaviest rain and wind from Emily would impact the Bahamas on Friday. Southern and central Florida could be impacted by rain and winds from Emily as early as Saturday,” Evans said.

In Kansas City, Missouri, the National Weather Service predicted a high of 109 on Tuesday, which would easily eclipse its all-time high of 104. Heat in Kansas City this summer is already suspected in the deaths of 21 persons, according to the city’s health department.

Wichita, Kansas expected a high of 113 degrees Tuesday, according to the weather service. Temperatures are forecast to exceed 100 degrees there for at least another six days.

Omaha’s trash hauler abandoned some routes Monday as 12 workers fell ill during the heat. Two workers were hospitalized and 10 were sent home. The temperature hit 98 degrees Monday afternoon in Omaha.

Temperatures in Tennessee are pushing toward 100. Heat advisories are in effect in West Tennessee, where real temperatures will reach triple digits.

In the middle of the state, around Nashville, the upper 90s and low 100s are forecasted, with heat indexes into the 100s. East Tennessee, where it is slightly cooler usually, is under an air quality warning.

Despite complaints from parents and students about the heat, several school systems began classes on Monday. More systems are opening in the next week.

A three year-old Georgia boy died of heat stroke after he was left in a parked car Sunday, Warner Robins police said on Tuesday.

(Additional Reporting by Kevin Murphy in Kansas City, Timothy Ghianni in Nashville, David Beasley in Atlanta, David Hendee in Omaha; Editing by Greg McCune)

A Gallup study released on Tuesday found 60 percent of Muslim Americans surveyed reported they were “thriving”, slightly higher than for Americans of any other religion except for Jews, who edged them out of the top spot by one percentage point.

Pollsters noted in particular the rapid surge in positive sentiment among Muslim Americans. The percentage of Muslims who were “thriving” grew by 19 points since 2008, double that of any other major faith group.

“Muslim Americans are happier and more optimistic today than at the end of 2008,” Dalia Mogahed, director of the Abu Dhabi Gallup Center, told Reuters by telephone.

“Muslim Americans today feel a greater sense of belonging in their country,” she added. Only three percent of Muslim Americans said they were suffering, while 37 percent said they were struggling.

Authors of the study said they attributed the change in outlook to improved economic conditions and a sense of more political enfranchisement since the election of President Barack Obama, a Christian with Muslim family roots who has reached out to Muslim communities worldwide.

The report said Obama’s approval rating among Muslim Americans was 80 percent, and that 46 percent, or a plurality, of Muslim Americans identified as Democrats, compared to only 9 percent who identified as Republicans.

“They may see Obama as promoting policies that are more in keeping with their own political views than those of former President George W. Bush,” the report said.

Muslim Americans also felt, to the tune of 64 percent, that their standard of living was getting better, up from 55 percent in 2009 and 46 percent in 2008.

CHALLENGES

The report, which focused on civic and spiritual engagement as well as overall well-being, said the improvements in Muslim sentiment came despite continuing controversies.

Those included a controversy surrounding a plan to build a Muslim cultural center and mosque near the site of New York’s September 11 Al Qaeda attack, and hearings on Islamic extremism called by U.S. Representative Peter King, which critics viewed as a witch-hunt.

A Christian preacher also caused an uproar last year by threatening to burn the Koran, and put himself back in the spotlight in March after incinerating Islam’s holy book.

“Despite some of these perceived attacks on the community, they are feeling better overall about their lives, about their country’s leadership,” Mogahed said.

Some 89 percent of Muslim Americans said that violent attacks on civilians were never justified, compared to between 71 and 79 percent of other religious groups who felt the same way.

“The finding is surprising because much of the rhetoric has been that the community hasn’t been vocal enough in its rejection of terrorism,” Mogahed said.

Jewish Americans had some views in common with Muslim Americans. A majority of Americans from both faiths agreed on a two-state solution in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Jewish Americans were also the most likely religious groups, besides Muslims themselves, to believe that Muslim Americans were loyal to the United States. Some 80 percent of Jews said this, compared to 59 percent of Catholics and 56 percent of Protestants.

“There is an untapped resource, and relationship and a possible coalition between Muslim and Jewish Americans,” Mogahed said.

Muslim Americans continued to have a deep skepticism toward law enforcement and foreign policy. Some 60 percent of Muslim Americans had confidence in the FBI, while 70 percent had confidence in the military, the lowest of any group.

Gallup said the study was one of the most expansive of Muslim American public opinion to date. Instead of finding respondents by selecting people with Islamic-sounding names or going to parts of the country with large Muslim populations, the study is drawn from a random selection of U.S. households.

Gallup said it interviewed 3,883 self-identified Muslim American adults from January 2008 to April 9, 2011. The margin of error or confidence level in the data is 95 percent, Gallup said.

(Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Greg McCune)

The complex in northwest Washington near the Maryland border shifts most of its operations in August and finally shuts its doors on September 15 as a part of a consolidation with the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

The new facility will be called the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and will have campuses in Bethesda and Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

“The ceremony is not a closing, but a transition of the organization to the next iteration of what we call ‘Borden’s Dream,’ so named after the Army Doctor who had the vision to create the first Walter Reed General Hospital,” Colonel Norvell Coots, Commander of the Walter Reed Health Care System, said in a statement.

“But for the people who make Walter Reed the magical place that it is, this will be an emotional closure as we shut down this campus after more than 102 years of service to the nation,” Coots said.

Over 1,000 people attended the “casing of the colors” ceremony where the flag of the unit was taken down and put into a protective covering, marking the unit’s inactivation, according a spokesman.

Current patients will be moved to the new campus in late August. The consolidation is a part of a 2005 measure to cut costs and address aging facilities.

In 2007, an embarrassing Washington Post investigation found that recuperating soldiers at the hospital were living in a dilapidated building infested with mice, mold and cockroaches.

Former U.S. President George W. Bush and senior defense officials had repeatedly visited the wounded in the hospital to show their concern for those who served in battle. Walter Reed has treated some 18,000 troops that fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Bush said that while most of the people working at the hospital were dedicated professionals, “some of our troops at Walter Reed have experienced bureaucratic delays and living conditions that are less than they deserve.”

Dwight Eisenhower, who suffered from heart problems while in office, was among the U.S. presidents and other political leaders treated at Walter Reed. Army Generals John J. Pershing and Douglas MacArthur were also treated at the hospital.

The complex in northwest Washington near the Maryland border shifts most of its operations in August and finally shuts its doors on September 15 as a part of a consolidation with the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

The new facility will be called the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and will have campuses in Bethesda and Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

“The ceremony is not a closing, but a transition of the organization to the next iteration of what we call ‘Borden’s Dream,’ so named after the Army Doctor who had the vision to create the first Walter Reed General Hospital,” Colonel Norvell Coots, Commander of the Walter Reed Health Care System, said in a statement.

“But for the people who make Walter Reed the magical place that it is, this will be an emotional closure as we shut down this campus after more than 102 years of service to the nation,” Coots said.

Over 1,000 people attended the “casing of the colors” ceremony where the flag of the unit was taken down and put into a protective covering, marking the unit’s inactivation, according a spokesman.

Current patients will be moved to the new campus in late August. The consolidation is a part of a 2005 measure to cut costs and address aging facilities.

In 2007, an embarrassing Washington Post investigation found that recuperating soldiers at the hospital were living in a dilapidated building infested with mice, mold and cockroaches.

Former U.S. President George W. Bush and senior defense officials had repeatedly visited the wounded in the hospital to show their concern for those who served in battle. Walter Reed has treated some 18,000 troops that fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Bush said that while most of the people working at the hospital were dedicated professionals, “some of our troops at Walter Reed have experienced bureaucratic delays and living conditions that are less than they deserve.”

Dwight Eisenhower, who suffered from heart problems while in office, was among the U.S. presidents and other political leaders treated at Walter Reed. Army Generals John J. Pershing and Douglas MacArthur were also treated at the hospital.

(Reporting by Wendell Marsh; Editing by Jerry Norton)

Forecasters said the area still suffering from the excessive heat has diminished significantly, but some regions could suffer from a return next week.

“The high pressure system responsible for the recent heat wave will remain in place across the central U.S. through Thursday, then a brief reprieve is in store,” a National Weather Service statement said.

“The long-range forecast has heat rebuilding into the Central and Southern U.S. by early next week,” the forecast projected.

On Wednesday a portion of the Central U.S., Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, and Illinois, remain under excessive heat warnings. Most of the fatalities came from that region.

Livestock has also been greatly affected by the heat wave. A poll of Iowa Cattlemen’s Association members indicates as many as 4,000 head of cattle died in Iowa.

Thousands more cattle were likely killed in other states, the weather service said.

Dal Grooms, spokesperson for the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association, said farmers are doing all they can to protect their animals, but cattle are especially vulnerable as they don’t sweat and rely only on respiration.

“I’ve talked to producers who’ve been out there just constantly looking for things to do to protect those cattle,” Grooms said. “When it gets to be hot and humid like this, it is just very difficult to stop all losses.”

Some parts of Iowa last week had six or seven consecutive days with temperatures in the mid to upper 90s and heat indexes as high as 110 degrees. The state remained under a heat advisory on Wednesday.

Some other states also continued to have heat issues. In Tennessee, an air quality alert had been issued, urging those with respiratory or other health issues to stay indoors.

Temperatures were expected to reach at least 98 degrees in parts of the state with the heat index moving into the 100-plus range.

(Additional reporting by Kay Henderson in Des Moines and Tim Ghianni in Nashville; Editing by Jerry Norton)

Twenty-one percent of fourth-graders, 27 percent of eighth graders, and 20 percent of 12th graders performed at or above the proficient level on the 2010 geography assessment conducted by the National Assessment of Educational Progress.

Performance among fourth graders improved since 2001, while eighth grade results were little changed, and achievement by 12th graders declined from 1994 levels when the assessment was first conducted.

Also known as the Nation’s Report Card, the survey is the last in a round of three highlighting stagnating or declining overall achievement among U.S. students in the social sciences, a statement said.

“In particular, the pattern of disappointing results for our 12th graders’ performance across all three social science subjects should be of great concern to everyone,” chair of the National Assessment Governing Board, which sets policy for the report.

In June, the same body published a report that found fewer than a quarter of American students were scoring at or above the proficient level in history, although there was an improvement on past assessments for students in the fourth and eighth grades, while high school seniors had slipped from 2006.

To be proficient in geography means much more than being able to find Mongolia on a map, researchers said.

“Students were asked to look beyond place-name geography, and demonstrate their subject knowledge and problem-solving skills,” said commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics Sean Buckley on a conference call.

“The Geography framework combines key physical science and social science aspects of geography and focuses on what students should know to be competent and productive 21st century citizens.”

Minority groups narrowed the achievement gap in some grade levels, making larger gains than white students.

African-American students in the fourth grade closed in on their peers by 20 points on the 500 point scale and nine points at eighth grade.

Latino students scored higher in fourth and eighth grades, diminishing the difference with their white peers in the former.

The federal government assessment representatively sampled 7,000 fourth graders, 9,500 eighth graders and 10,000 12th graders.

(Editing by Jerry Norton)

The National Weather Service said dangerously hot and humid weather would continue across much of the South and the south-central region, and issued heat advisories for 11 states.

“The heat wave is beginning to break down in some parts and it’s not as expansive as it was yesterday,” said Chris Vaccaro, spokesman for the weather service.

Counties in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, South Carolina and Georgia received excessive heat warnings, indicating the mix of heat and humidity could cause heat illnesses.

There will be a risk of thunderstorms through the central and southern states. Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi could see severe thunderstorms with high winds and hail.

On Tuesday, the national high in the United States was in Fort Smith, Arkansas, which hit 108 degrees as a forest raged in two counties elsewhere in the state.

Arkansas fire crews created a containment line for a 540-acre fire in Garland and Saline Counties that had raced out of control on Tuesday near the Ouachita National Forest but was nearly suppressed on Wednesday.

The Arkansas Forestry Commission has designated southern Arkansas near the Louisiana border as a high fire danger risk area. Burn bans were in effect for 35 of 75 counties in the state, a number that will likely increase, officials said.

RAIN PROVIDES RELIEF

A rainstorm that drenched Oklahoma City with a record 2.91 inches provided some temporary cooling there, but temperatures will be hovering near 100 degrees through early next week.

Oklahoma, which hit record highs on five days in June, is not unaccustomed to 100-degree temperatures in the summer, but the recent streak of hot temperatures is unusual, according to the Oklahoma Climatological Survey.

Despite the recent rainfall, the city is in the midst of a prolonged drought, and mandatory restrictions on lawn watering were imposed on Monday for the first time in over a decade.

The problem isn’t that the state’s largest city doesn’t have enough water. But the city can’t process and treat it fast enough to keep up with demand, said Debbie Ragan, spokeswoman for the city’s utility department.

A northern cold front that pushed across the Great Lakes and Northeast has driven down the thermometer while making it less humid, according to the Weather Channel.

“High temperatures today range from the ‘chilly’ 60s and 70s from western Pennsylvania to northern New England to the hot and humid 90s in southern Virginia,” said Kevin Roth, lead meteorologist for The Weather Channel.

In the South, high temperatures will mostly be in the 90s to near 105, with indices of 95 to 115.

On Wednesday morning, around 186,000 customers remained without power in the Chicago area from the severe storm that left a record 868,000 customers in the dark on Monday, according to Tony Hernandez, spokesman for ComEd, the utility company servicing the area.

(Additional reporting by Karin Matz in Chicago, Steve Olafson in Oklahoma, Suzi Parks in Little Rock; Editing by Jerry Norton and Cynthia Johnston)

Between Thursday June 30 and Monday July 4, 39 million people will travel 50 miles (80 kms) or more from home, according to AAA Independence Day forecast. That is a 2.5 percent decrease from last year.

“AAA is projecting a slight decline in the number of Independence Day travellers mainly due to fuel prices being approximately one dollar per gallon higher than last year,” director of AAA Travel Services Glen MacDonell said in a statement.

A gallon of gasoline averaged $3.55 on Friday. On the same day last year the average cost of a gallon was $2.75, according to AAA.

“Increased fuel costs are also responsible for a shift in the demographics of the typical Independence Day traveller as higher prices impact lower income households more significantly,” MacDonell said.

While five out of every six travellers will make their trips by automobile, the number of people flying is projected to increase by nine percent to three million travellers.

Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, often considered the second busiest airport in America, will see a three percent increase in travellers over last year’s numbers, a spokeswoman said.

At Midway Airport, also in Chicago, airlines project an six percent increase.

Higher prices for gas, airfare, and hotels will affect the plans of 44 percent of travellers, according to an AAA survey.

Charlene Smith and her 14 year-old son Nyland scaled back their vacation plans considerably.

“I went to Hawaii last year,” the Hampton, Virginia resident emphasized.

Smith said that she wanted somewhere she could make a quick trip in easy driving distance. At about 180 miles away from Hampton, the nation’s capital seemed like a good choice for the Fourth of July.

“This is a far cry from Hawaii, but it’s still nice,” she told Reuters while taking a stroll to the National Mall with her son.

The average distance travelled for the holiday is down to 573 miles from 617 miles last year while the median spending is expected to jump 25 percent to $807, the AAA said. (Additional reporting by Molly O’Toole; Editing by Greg McCune)