The US just had its warmest March ever, by a historic margin
The sun rises over Lake Powell in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, July 10, 2025, in Page, Ariz. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — March 2026 was a historic month for temperatures in the United States, fueled by an extraordinary and prolonged heat wave that shattered temperature records across much of the West, according to a new report released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Last month not only shattered the previous March record set in 2012, but it also marked the first time any month has exceeded the long-term average by more than 9 degrees Fahrenheit.
Daily record highs were widespread and persistent, especially in the Southwest, where some locations saw over 12 record-setting days. Around one-third of the population, 130 million Americans, saw their single-warmest March day on record.
Remarkably, 10 states recorded their warmest March on record: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and Wyoming.
Several major cities in the West and Southern Plains also experienced their warmest March on record, many of them by a wide margin, including Dallas, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Albuquerque, Denver, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Phoenix, Arizona, experienced nine 100 degrees Fahrenheit or greater days in March. Previously, the city had only experienced one triple-digit day in March since records began in 1895.
Human-amplified climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events, according to the Fifth National Climate Assessment. It is also causing seasonal shifts, including milder, shorter winter seasons and spring warmth beginning earlier.
For much of the country, March was not only exceptionally warm but exceptionally dry, ranking as the driest March since 2013 across the Lower 48. However, unusually dry conditions have plagued many areas since the start of the year and beyond, with January to March 2026 also ranking as the driest on record.
According to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor report released on April 2, nearly 60% of the contiguous U.S. is experiencing drought conditions, an increase of about 5% from the beginning of March. The Lower 48 now has the largest extent of drought since November 2022.
Widespread, persistent drier-than-average conditions in March led to drought expansion and intensification across parts of the country.
Drought conditions worsened significantly in Nebraska last month, contributing to the state’s largest wildfire on record. The Morrill Fire scorched more than 640,000 acres. Florida is enduring its worst drought in 25 years, according to the National Integrated Drought Information System, with the dry conditions contributing to a heightened risk of wildfires this spring and prompting water restrictions in parts of the state.
In the western United States, well-above-average temperatures occurred during periods of well-below-average precipitation, which has had dramatic impacts on seasonal snowpack and water resources. With mountain snowpack sharply reduced, the region’s water supplies are facing mounting challenges and wildfire risk is elevated earlier than usual.
The Colorado River provides water for more than 40 million people and fuels hydropower resources in seven states: California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming, according to the Bureau of Reclamation. Major reservoirs in the Colorado River Basin remain well below average, the agency’s latest data shows, heightening concerns about water availability across the region.
Lake Powell, the second-largest reservoir in the United States, is one of them. Water levels have dropped more than 10 feet so far this year and are forecast to continue a gradual decline through the months ahead. Despite the recent drop, the reservoir remains more than 8 feet above its record low set in April 2023. However, current projections suggest that level could be approached, or even challenged again, by late summer if dry conditions persist.
Over the next two weeks, NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center says there is an increased likelihood of near- to above-average precipitation across a large portion of the country, including much of the West, Midwest and South. Near- to below-average precipitation is more likely along the East Coast.
The outlook also indicates an increased probability of above-average temperatures across much of the nation, with the highest chances along the East Coast and in the South.
New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs attends his arraignment hearing at Dedham District Court on February 13, 2026. (David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
(DEDHAM, Mass.) — New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs was arraigned on charges of strangulation Friday morning.
The charges stem from a December 2025 incident in which he allegedly assaulted a private chef.
Diggs did not speak at the hearing, but his attorney entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.
The judge released him on his own recognizance and he was ordered to have no contact with the victim, including third party contact.
The incident stemmed from a dispute over wages the victim was requesting Diggs pay her, according to police records obtained by ABC News.
Diggs is accused of strangling or suffocating Mila Adams on Dec. 2, according to police records.
Diggs allegedly entered Adams’ unlocked bedroom, where they began to discuss the unpaid wages. Adams told police that during the discussion, he got angry and allegedly smacked her across the face, according to a police report.
She then tried to push him away, but then he choked her using the crook of his elbow around her neck. As she tried to pry him away, he tightened his grip, Adams told police. He then threw her on the bed, according to a police report.
When she told him she still hadn’t received her money, Diggs allegedly told her “lies,” according to the police report.
“StefonDiggscategorically denies these allegations. They are unsubstantiated, uncorroborated, and were never investigated — because they did not occur,” Diggs’ attorney David Meier said in a statement in December.“The timing and motivation for making the allegations is crystal clear:they are the direct result of an employee-employer financial dispute that was not resolved to the employee’s satisfaction.Stefonlooks forward to establishing the truth in a court of law.”
Adams told police she believes she is still owed a month of wages, according to police records.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department announced on Sunday that a woman missing in Arizona is the mother of “Today Show” host Savannah Guthrie. (Pima County Sheriff’s Department)
(NEW YORK) — Investigations are continuing on Tuesday after the mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie disappeared over the weekend in what authorities believe was a possible abduction from her Arizona home, police said.
Nancy Guthrie was last seen in the Catalina Foothills area on Saturday night, according to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. Her family reported her missing on Sunday around noon local time, authorities said.
Investigators do not believe Nancy Guthrie left her home willingly and that she was abducted in her sleep early Sunday morning, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department told ABC News.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said investigators processed Nancy Guthrie’s home on Sunday and “saw some things at the home that were concerning to us,” and that it is considered a crime scene.
“She did not leave on her own, we know that,” Nanos said during a press briefing on Monday.
DNA samples collected from Nancy Guthrie’s home have been confirmed to belong to her, though authorities have not yet confirmed if they were blood, the sheriff’s department said Tuesday.
The sheriff is planning to hold a briefing on the case at approximately 1:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
Nancy Guthrie is described as having some physical ailments and limited mobility, but does not have cognitive issues, her family said, according to the sheriff.
She takes medication that if she doesn’t have in 24 hours, “it could be fatal,” Nanos said Monday.
Authorities said they are reviewing the home’s security cameras and have Nancy Guthrie’s cell phone.
Sources briefed on the probe told ABC News that investigators are focusing on Nancy Guthrie’s electronic devices to see if there is data that could point to an assailant or a specific time when the abduction would have occurred.
Investigators are also paying attention to the condition of the home and whether things were moved or left out of place, which could suggest that someone with greater strength or agility was in the home and when, sources said.
“Right now, we don’t see this as a search mission, as much as we do a crime scene,” Nanos said.
In an Instagram post on Monday night, Savannah Guthrie asked her followers for prayers amid the investigation.
“Thank you for lifting your prayers with ours for our beloved mom, our dearest Nancy, a woman of deep conviction, a good and faithful servant. raise your prayers with us and believe with us that she will be lifted by them in this very moment,” the talk show host wrote, alongside a prayer.
Les Wexner speaks onstage at the 2016 Fragrance Foundation Awards presented by Hearst Magazines – Show on June 7, 2016 in New York City. (Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images for Fragrance Foundation)
(WASHINGTON) — Members of the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday are set to depose retail billionaire Leslie Wexner, whose wealth fueled Jeffrey Epstein’s fortune before an alleged multimillion dollar theft ended their relationship, newly revealed documents suggest.
After learning that Epstein stole hundreds of millions from him in 2007, Wexner opted to quietly resolve the issue with Epstein, who at the time was being investigated by federal prosecutors for both sex crimes and money laundering, according to emails and a memo later drafted by prosecutors.
A vitally important person in the transformation of Epstein from college dropout to multimillionaire adviser to the ultra-wealthy, Wexner — a businessman behind brands like Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works — has received substantial scrutiny over his association with Epstein since Epstein’s arrest and death by suicide in 2019.
Years after the two severed ties, prosecutors in New York initially included Wexner in a group of potential co-conspirators to be investigated after Epstein was arrested in July 2019, though they later determined there was “limited evidence regarding his involvement,” according to a recently-released 2019 email from an FBI agent who was part of the sex crimes investigation.
“The Assistant U.S. Attorney told Mr. Wexner’s legal counsel in 2019 that Mr. Wexner was neither a co-conspirator nor target in any respect,” a spokesperson for Wexner told ABC News in a statement following the release of Epstein files by the Department of Justice last month. “Mr. Wexner cooperated fully by providing background information on Epstein and was never contacted again.”
Lawyers for Wexner, in a meeting with federal prosecutors about two weeks after Epstein’s arrest, claimed that Wexner “had no knowledge of any inappropriate or unlawful activity with young women by Epstein” and that Wexner’s dealings with Epstein were “more professional than social,” according to a December 2019 prosecution memo summarizing the investigation into Epstein’s potential collaborators.
Wexner’s attorneys said the two ended their relationship after Wexner learned that “Epstein had stolen or otherwise misappropriated several hundred million dollars” from him, according to the memo. The memo stated that Epstein personally profited by repeatedly purchasing properties for the Wexners before buying them for himself at a fraction of the cost.
“The Wexners then decided to cut off Epstein,” prosecutors wrote in the memo summarizing their discussion with Wexner’s counsel.
‘All I can say is I feel sorry’ Epstein was — throughout 2007 — the subject of an ongoing investigation in Florida into sex crimes involving minors that had expanded to probe potential financial crimes and money laundering. The Wexners did not report the alleged theft of their funds to law enforcement and instead resolved the matter privately, according to prosecutors.
Wexner was contacted by federal prosecutors in Florida as early as August 2007 regarding the Epstein investigation, according to handwritten notes released last month by the Department of Justice. Notes from an August 2007 call between an attorney for Wexner and a DOJ representative suggest that prosecutors inquired about Wexner’s interactions with his “money manager,” documentation of their meetings, and whether Wexner ever visited Epstein’s home.
At the time, prosecutors had begun to broaden their investigation to not only cover sex crimes but also potential money laundering and wire fraud, documents suggest.
“She just wanted to know if Les has been to my house,” Epstein emailed his associate Ghislaine Maxwell in August 2007, in an apparent reference to the prosecutor’s contact with Wexner’s lawyer, according to emails obtained by DDOSecrets, a transparency website that received a cache of Epstein emails that were not included in the DOJ’s disclosures.
“That’s odd?? Why” Maxwell responded.
“It’s bulls—, she just wanted to let him know about an investigation is my guess,” Epstein wrote back.
It is unclear if Wexner was aware of the investigation into financial crimes when his attorney was contacted, but in the following months, Wexner began the process of ending Epstein’s role as his money manager, according to emails in the DDOSecrets collection between lawyers for Epstein and Wexner.
“All I can say is I feel sorry. You violated your own number 1 rule … Always be careful,” Wexler emailed Epstein in 2008 days before Epstein reported to prison for soliciting underage sex, according to documents included in DDOSecrets collection.
“No excuse,” Epstein replied.
‘She pretty much wants everything’ According to a 2019 prosecution memo, Wexner’s wife began to look into Epstein’s management of their money after Epstein claimed he was “having legal problems involving an overly aggressive police chief and some sort of massage.”
According to the memo, Abigail Wexner discovered Epstein “misappropriated a significant amount of the family’s funds,” including by purchasing property on the Wexners’ behalf before selling it to himself at a fraction of the cost.
“When confronted, Epstein tried to convince Wexner’s wife that she did not understand the financials and insisted that he had the Wexners’ best interests at heart,” the memo said. “The Wexners did not want to bring unnecessary public attention to the issue, so they withdrew the power of attorney, and hired counsel to negotiate a private settlement with Epstein.”
Epstein resigned from the foundation and all of his roles with Wexner in September 2007, according to an independent review conducted in 2020 of Epstein’s involvement with the Wexner Foundation.
“Mr. Wexner terminated Epstein as his financial advisor, revoked his power of attorney, and directed that he be removed from all bank accounts,” a spokesperson for Wexner said in a statement to ABC News.
As early as October 2007, emails indicate that Epstein began transferring assets back to Wexner.
“When speaking with [Abigail Wexner], she pretty much wants everything,” Wexner’s financial controller told an attorney for Epstein.
Later that year, an attorney for Wexner pushed the process along, telling an attorney for Epstein that his client “is eager to execute documents,” according to the DDOSecrets cache.
Prosecutors wrote in a 2019 memo that Epstein returned $100 million to Wexner by January 2008.
Though the dispute with Wexner was privately resolved by January 2008, Epstein’s attorneys appeared to have mounted a pressure campaign to discredit the prosecutor pursuing a money laundering investigation into Epstein, according to emails in the DDOSECRETS collection. Epstein had signed a non-prosecution agreement in September 2007, but his lawyers continued to negotiate with the government over its terms for several more months.
“In what can only be seen as an attempt to intimidate Mr. Epstein, Ms. Villafana [an assistant U.S. Attorney] then added money-laundering and unlicensed wire-transmittal to the list of violations under investigation even though there was no evidence against Mr. Epstein concerning these charges,” attorneys for Epstein wrote in a letter to the Office of Professional Responsibility dated Feb. 11, 2008.
By June 2008, Epstein began his jail sentence in Palm Beach after reaching the controversial plea deal that allowed him to avoid federal charges.
‘You and I had gang stuff for over 15 years’ Although Epstein and Wexner appear to have severed ties following Epstein’s plea deal, documents released by the DOJ suggest that Epstein may have attempted to rekindle their relationship in subsequent years by drafting a letter reminding Wexner of shared experiences and alleged secrets. In the letter, Epstein wrote that he protected him when he was questioned by Wexner’s wife about his management of their money.
“You and I had ‘gang stuff’ for over 15 years. A great deal of it, that she was unaware of. I had no intention of divulging any confidence of ours, no matter what accusations she made. And she made quite a few,” Epstein wrote in the draft note. Based on publicly available documents, it is unclear whether Epstein ever sent the note to Wexner.
Wexner publicly addressed his relationship with Epstein in August 2019 amid mounting public pressure, saying in a letter to his charitable foundation that he was “deceived” by Epstein.
“As the allegations against Mr. Epstein in Florida were emerging, he vehemently denied them. But by early fall 2007, it was agreed that he should step back from the management of our personal finances. In that process, we discovered that he had misappropriated vast sums of money from me and my family. This was, frankly, a tremendous shock, even though it clearly pales in comparison to the unthinkable allegations against him now,” Wexner wrote.
