HETTINGER, N.D. (AP) -- Visitors at this town's centennial celebration were looking for shade as temperatures climbed to 100 degrees.
Hettinger and Dickinson, in southwestern North Dakota, had reached 100 by 3 p.m. Saturday, the National Weather Service said. Other cities around the state were in the 90s.
"Everybody's really pleased with our air conditioner," said Shireen Erickson, one of the managers of the Tip Top Motel in Hettinger. Residents said their community of about 1,300 nearly doubled in size for the weeklong centennial celebration, with class reun-ions and an ice cream social among the highlights.
"They drink lots of water and try to stay in a shady spot as much as possible," Erickson said.
"It's like 106 right now," said Lindsey Ketterling, the head lifeguard Saturday afternoon at the pool in Hettinger. "A lot of people have been staying inside more."
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Professional wrestling was scheduled Saturday night. "I'm sure they'll have lots of fans," Ketterling said.
National Weather Service meteorologist J.P. Martin, in Bismarck, said the air was too warm Saturday even for thunderstorms.
"The middle part of the atmosphere is so warm, we just can't get storms going," he said. If they start brewing, it likely would be in the evening, possibly in the eastern part of the state, he said.
Relief from the heat was in sight.
"Temperatures are falling across eastern Montana. There's a cold front approaching," Martin said. Sunday's high temperature could drop to the 80s, with north-northwest winds, he said.
"If you're anywhere in North Dakota today and in the same spot tomorrow, you're going to say something happened, and if you know anything about the weather, you'll say a cold front came through," he said.
