Sizzling high temperatures punished much of the eastern United States again on Saturday, one day after hurricane-like thunderstorms killed at least 11 people and cut power supply to millions. Thermometers brushed the 100 degree Fahrenheit (37.7 Celsius) mark from the Mississippi River to the Mid-Atlantic coast as a vast area of high pressure squatted over the southern states with no signs of moving on soon. The storms delayed third-round play at the USPGA Tour’s AT&T National in the suburbs of the US capital Washington for several hours, and organizers barred golf fans from attending, creating a surreal atmosphere for the players. At least 11 people died in storms triggered by the heat wave, CNN reported, and four states — Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and Ohio — declared states of emergency. Some 3.7 million homes in nine states lost power. President Barack Obama telephoned the four states’ governors to express concern for the loss of life and property, and to pledge federal government help, the White House said. Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell said it would take several days for his state to recover from what he called the biggest non-hurricane-related power outage in its history. On Saturday, those without power — and hence without air conditioning — had no respite from the punishing heat. “High temperatures this afternoon will exceed 100 degrees across the mid/lower Mississippi River Valley eastward through the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast today,” the National Weather Service said. “In fact, some locations are expected to break record high temperatures,” it said, as it issued excessive heat warnings for areas stretching from Illinois to Georgia. Five of the reported fatalities occurred in and around Washington, where storms packing winds of up to 80 miles (130 kilometers) an hour barreled into the area Friday night.
