Gomers -- What's going wrong

GIVE US A BREAK: Iowa, thankfully, hasn't endured the violent weather events that have hit many other places in the country this year, but Mother Nature has beat on us in other ways: heat and lack of moisture. The statewide average daily temperature is running more than 6 degrees above normal for the year. And most areas of the state are several inches under average precipitation, primarily because of a parched June. The prospects for July, which got off to a brutally hot, dry start, aren't looking great so far, say state weather forecasters. But at least we're not yet approaching the summer of 1936, when July was by far the hottest month ever recorded in the state. Let's hope we get a heat break this week, and more regular rainfall soon.

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DROWNINGS LESSON: The drowning deaths of three young children in the Iowa River near Marshalltown last week were a tragic reminder of how dangerous rivers can be. Low water levels during this extended dry, hot period afford their own kind of treachery. They don't protect swimmers and waders from the nearby deeper pools with stronger current that inexperienced people don't readily recognize. You just can't be too careful in a river.

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