🗞️ An Amtrak train with 60 aboard hits a tractor-trailer in Greensboro

🗞️ Heat and drought are tightening their grip on the Triad

🗞️ Miss Mary's Children's Parade adds shade for Saturday's heat

🗞️ Forsyth neighbors clean up after this week's damaging storms

🌡 Hot and dry, little rain in sight | High: 90°F | Low: 68°F

A hot, dry day with a high near 90 and almost no rain in the forecast as the drought hangs on. Drink plenty of water, take it easy outdoors, and go easy on the lawn watering.

A scary scene in Greensboro on Wednesday afternoon ended without serious injuries. An Amtrak train carrying 60 passengers collided with a tractor-trailer around 2:20 p.m. in the 100 block of Buchanan Church Road near Burlington Road, the Greensboro Police Department said. The driver of the tractor-trailer suffered minor injuries and was taken to a hospital, and no injuries were reported among the train's passengers.

A nearby worker, Tim Nicolson, did not see the crash but heard it from his job site on Burlington Road. "All I heard was a loud boom," he said. "It sounded like a bomb went off." After seeing the mangled truck, he said it was a wonder no one was badly hurt.

"If it would have been two foot further back, it would've hit the fuel tank," Nicolson said. "It would've been a whole lot worse." Authorities say the cause of the collision is still under investigation. For Kernersville commuters who cross the region's rail lines every day, it is a reminder to never try to beat a train at a crossing.

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This has been one of the driest stretches the Triad has seen in decades, and this week's brief storms barely helped. North Carolina just logged its second-driest spring since 1895, and Guilford County has gotten only about 60% of its normal rainfall this year, roughly 12 inches against a normal 20. From Greensboro east to Raleigh, conditions have reached D-4 exceptional drought, the highest level the National Weather Service assigns, while most of the rest of the central Piedmont sits at D-3 extreme drought.

You can see it in the reservoirs. Greensboro's Lake Townsend is more than two feet below full, and Lake Brandt is also down, though Water Resources Director Mike Borchers says the city still has enough supply to meet demand and is about two percent away from triggering voluntary restrictions. Winston-Salem is having its fifth-driest spring since 1894, sitting about 7.4 inches below normal rainfall, but the city-county water department says it has a robust supply from the Yadkin River, Salem Lake and W. Kerr Scott Reservoir and has no restrictions planned.

Both water systems are asking residents to use water wisely. With daily temperatures well above average and little rain in the five-day forecast, forecasters say the drought will remain a concern. If you are sensitive to heat, limit your time outdoors, and it is a good week to skip the long lawn soakings.

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With a hot weekend in the forecast, organizers of Kernersville's Miss Mary's Children's Parade are making sure families can stay cool. The parade is held on the lawn in front of Town Hall, and this year shade tents will be scattered throughout the courtyard so kids and parents can duck out of the sun between activities.

The free event, hosted by the Kiwanis Club of Kernersville for children ages 6 and younger and special-needs children of any age, is set for Saturday, June 27. Check-in is at 9 a.m., with a dance party at 10:15 a.m. and the procession around the courtyard at 10:30 a.m.

It is a small but thoughtful adjustment for a beloved local tradition. If you are planning to go, dress the kids in light, red-white-and-blue clothing, bring water, and plan to take advantage of those shade tents and the misting station near the fire truck.

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Forsyth County families are still digging out from Monday evening's storms, which downed trees and power lines across the area. Among the hardest hit was a home on Skye Abbey Lane, where a massive tree crashed through the side of the house and onto parked cars, leaving a hole now covered by a tarp.

The Forsyth County 911 center fielded more than 550 storm-related calls, most between 6:30 and 7:30 p.m., said Marie Kiestler with Forsyth County 911. A tree came down into Tony Jennaway's living room around that time. "It's just been really hard to take," he told FOX8. "We aren't hurt and our animals aren't hurt, but still it's been devastating." In Winston-Salem, Angela and Randal Landreth had a tree uproot and fall into their home, scattering glass and branches. "I was in shock. I am still in shock," Angela said.

A Duke Energy spokesperson said the company hoped to have power restored across the county by midnight. With more heat on the way and crews still clearing debris, it is a good time to check on older neighbors and anyone who may still be without power.

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