Severe storms creep across the U.S. as intense heat plagues the coasts

Intense heat and severe storms are continuing to make their way through the United States this week and will creep into next week as summer temperatures officially take hold across the nation.

Friday will be the last hot day for the East Coast, with numerous record highs likely for cities including Baltimore, Washington, New York, Philadelphia and Raleigh — where it reached 101 degrees Fahrenheit on Thursday.

New York opened its cooling centers on Thursday as temperatures reached into the 90s.

This above-average warmth combined with high humidity will lead to dangerous heat index values of 95 to 105 degrees, but temperatures are expected to cool off this weekend.

For the West, record heat arrives Sunday and Monday, with temperatures forecast to soar into the upper 90s to low 100s. Portland and Seattle could set record highs next week.

Meanwhile, severe storms will continue through the weekend in many places.

On Thursday, there were 500 total storm reports, making it the third-most-active day of 2026 so far. More than a dozen tornadoes were reported in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.

Devastating damage was seen in Illinois, with homes destroyed and debris littering the ground. In the small city of Streator, an entire cul-de-sac was ravaged by the twisters.

Neighbors of one demolished home told NBC News that the couple who lived there was trapped under the rubble and had to be pulled to safety.

NBC News witnessed another man, trapped under pieces of what appeared to be his home, complaining that his leg was broken. He was later rescued by police.

The storms also brought large hail across the middle of the country, with cars in Iowa seen being battered. Flooded roads and blinding rain were seen from Wisconsin to Pennsylvania.

As of Friday morning, there have been no reports of storm-related deaths.

Severe storms will once again be possible for 66 million people across two regions Friday.

The larger region is the mid-Atlantic, the Appalachians and the Northeast, where damaging winds will be the main threat. Cities to watch Friday include New York, Philadelphia, Washington, Baltimore, Raleigh and Charlotte.

The second is a smaller area of western Oklahoma, the Texas Panhandle, and small portions of New Mexico, Colorado and Kansas, where hail, strong winds, and a tornado or two are possible.

On Saturday, the severe storm risk returns to the Midwest and the Plains, where 14 million people are at risk from northern Oklahoma to Illinois and Iowa. Cities to watch include Wichita, Kansas City, St. Louis, Des Moines and Peoria.

The main hazards will be wind gusts greater than 75 mph, hail greater than 2 inches in diameter and a few tornadoes.

Severe storms will continue into Sunday, with 23 million people across the mid-Atlantic facing damaging gusts exceeding 60 mph. This threat zone includes Richmond, Norfolk, Washington, Baltimore and Philadelphia.

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