Americans warned not to swim or drive in hazardous flood waters

Jodi Kelly, left, and her husband Dan use a canoe to remove supplies from the flood-damaged Stonecliff Veterinary Surgical Center in Montpelier, Vermont. Photograph: Steven Senne/AP

As parts of the US grapple with a historic combination of rising temperatures and severe flooding, officials are warning people to avoid swimming or driving in flood waters because they pose toxic and drowning hazards.

The unprecedented high temperatures, paired with the onslaught of rain, have prompted federal agencies from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Weather Service to issue statements emphasizing: “Turn around, don’t drown!”