The northeastern United States sweltered this week in a scorching summer heat wave, complete with stagnant, sticky air and no winds for relief, forecasters said. Even in a summer already filled with stretches of very hot weather, this week will be stubbornly brutal, with no relief in sight until the weekend brings thunderstorms to the region, they said. "Plain and simple, this week may feel the worst of any week for this summer in the Northeast," said Accuweather.com meteorologist Alex Sosnowski. (Reuters)

An Afghan girl carries water on her back as she climbs a hill in Kabul, Afghanistan February 20, 2017. A growing population is straining water supplies in Afghanistan's capital, forcing those who can afford it to dig unregulated wells ever deeper to tap a falling water table. Finding water in arid Afghanistan is virtually always a challenge, but a drop in the groundwater level in Kabul caused by overuse and drought is making it even more difficult for residents, especially the poor. (Photo by Omar Sobhani/Reuters)

A workman sweeping the highest sidewalk in the world, the 81st story of the Empire State Building, the world's tallest building, to the top of which the greatest dirigible “Los Angeles” will attempt to moor, New York, New York, early 1930s. This photo was made 1,248 feet above street level. (Photo by Adam Glickman/Underwood Archives/Getty Images)

A Goat is displayed on a stage for animal breeders and collectors during a rare levant goat auction and exhibition on April, 27, 2018, in Amman, Jordan. Animal breeders participants came from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar and Palestine to bid on rare goats at the Jrdanian breeder Yahya Abu Jaber near the Jordanian capital. (Photo by Salah Malkawi/Getty Images)

A storm is seen in Sarasota, Florida, June 24, 2018. (Courtesy of Val Vasilescu/Facebook.com/Kingofsunsets via Reuters)

Rob, a British man in his late 20's in Magaluf, Majorca on his stag party, kisses a participant in a wet t-shirt competition hosted at Mambo's Terrace on June 28, 2013. (Photo by Peter Dench/Getty Images Reportage)

People enjoying the races on a wet day at Chester Racecourse on May 12, 2017 in Chester, England. (Photo by Alan Crowhurst/Getty Images)

A girl carries bottles of water filled from a charity tank at a camp for internally displaced people (IDPs) near Sanaa, Yemen on March 25, 2022. (Photo by Khaled Abdullah/Reuters)