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“This is a life-threatening situation. You could be killed if not underground or in a tornado shelter.” That was the explicit public warning heard in communities across five states over the weekend as a weather pattern idea for the creation of severe storms lived up to its billing by weather forecasters. More than 100 tornadoes in 24 hours hit following an extraordinarily clear and persistent series of warnings days in advance. But the warning did nothing to temper the severity of the storms. Michael Kimball is a reporter with The Oklahoman, the largest daily newspaper in Oklahoma.

Each summer, weather forecasters start tell their audiences how hot it is according to the thermometer and how much hotter they feel, based on the heat index.

The metropolitan area is under an excessive heat watch through Friday evening — and Con Ed is telling New Yorkers to brace for heat-related power outages.

It's peak season for severe summer weather. Just this week, the National Weather Service says a tornado tore through a half-mile stretch in the North Riverdale section of the Bronx, touching down along the property of the Hebrew Home for the Aged just west of Palisade Avenue on the east bank of the Hudson River.