Summer in America: Union Creek, Ore.

Larry Bradburn sent us this shot of the upper Rogue River at Woodruff Bridge, a rugged spot near Union Creek, Ore.

Send us a photo of summer in your area as the season gets underway. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this summer, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. As much as we like cute kids and dogs, please keep the focus on landscape and scenery (to avoid the need for model release forms and other clutter!)

4. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

5. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

6. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Summer in America: Perdido Key, Fla.

Trent Barrilleaux sent up this photo of seagrass bed while kayaking Ono Island on Florida's Perdido Key.

Send us a photo of summer in your area as the season gets underway. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this summer, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. As much as we like cute kids and dogs, please keep the focus on landscape and scenery (to avoid the need for model release forms and other clutter!)

4. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

5. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

6. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Summer in America: Louisville, Ky

Barry Sanford sent this photo of Floral Terrace, a Victorian section of Old Louisville that was developed about 100 years ago south of the downtown area. Barry notes that the houses face each other across a "walking court."

Send us a photo of summer in your area as the season gets underway. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this summer, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. As much as we like cute kids and dogs, please keep the focus on landscape and scenery (to avoid the need for model release forms and other clutter!)

4. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

5. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

6. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Summer in America: Clearwater, Fla.

Doug Nebel took this shot of people frolicking in the waves near Pier 60 at sunset on Clearwater Beach, Fla., as storm clouds rolled in.

Send a photo of summer in your area as the season gets underway. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this summer, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. As much as we like cute kids and dogs, please keep the focus on landscape and scenery (to avoid the need for model release forms and other clutter!)

4. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

5. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

6. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Spring in America: Ogunquit, Maine

John Angelone sent us this shot of the view off Marginal Way in Ogunquit, Maine.

We will be posting the last of our spring photos over the next couple of weeks and are gearing up for summer photos.

So break out the cameras and send us a shot of summer in your area as the season gets underway. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this summer, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. As much as we like cute kids and dogs, please keep the focus on landscape and scenery (to avoid the need for model release forms and other clutter!)

4. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

5. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

6. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Spring in America: Meadville, Pa.

A crab apple tree in Meadville, Pa., turned into a new home for a family of robins. "I was blessed to this get this picture from a swing on my front porch," Linda Watt says.

We will be posting the last of our spring photos over the next couple of weeks and are gearing up for summer photos.

So break out the cameras and send us a shot of summer in your area as the season gets underway. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this summer, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. As much as we like cute kids and dogs, please keep the focus on landscape and scenery (to avoid the need for model release forms and other clutter!)

4. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

5. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

6. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Spring in America: Coventry, R.I.

These mallard ducklings are feeding in a marsh under the watchful eye of their mother not far from my home in Coventry, R.I., says the photographer, Ron Ylitalo.

We will be posting the last of our spring photos over the next couple of weeks and are gearing up for summer photos.

So break out the cameras and send us a summer shot from your area as the season gets underway. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this summer, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. As much as we like cute kids and dogs, please keep the focus on landscape and scenery (to avoid the need for model release forms and other clutter!)

4. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

5. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

6. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

What's the best beach in America?

If you believe the hotly anticipated annual rankings compiled by Florida International University professor and coastal expert Stephen P. Leatherman - a.k.a. "Dr. Beach" - it's San Diego's Coronado Beach. The 300-yard-wide, 1.5-mile-long stretch of silvery sand fronts the red-roofed Hotel del Coronado, a National Historic Landmark where Marilyn Monroe cavorted in the 1959 classic Some Like it Hot.

Coronado was runner up to Florida's Siesta Key last year, and represents the first California beach to win in the 22 years that Leatherman has been crafting his top-10 list of major public recreational beaches along the Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf of Mexico coasts.

Contenders are ranked based on 50 detailed criteria, from public safety and noise to water quality and sand softness. Landing the top spot typically brings a 15% to 20% boost in visitors, the Associated Press notes. But once a beach wins, it is retired from further competition - a fact that has earned the doc some criticism, even from Hawaii, the state with the most winners.

RELATED:  Dr. Beach picks top Great Lakes beaches

Two reasons for the absence of winning Golden State beaches in previous years: cold water and pollution. But while California swimmers can't do much (other than don a wetsuit) about Pacific water temperatures in the 60s, pollution is another matter, says Leatherman.

"There are still some problems, especially where rivers and streams meet the ocean," he says. "But California has really cranked it up the last 10 or 15 years to turn around the water quality."

Rounding out this year's top 10:

2: Kahanamoku Beach, near Waikiki's Hilton Hawaiian Village in Honolulu, Hawaii

3: Main Beach, East Hampton, N.Y.

4: St. George Island State Park, Florida Panhandle

5: Hamoa Beach, Maui, Hawaii

6: Coast Guard Beach, Cape Cod, Mass.

7: Waimanalo Bay Beach Park, Oahu, Hawaii

8: Cape Florida State Park, near Miami

9: Beachwalker Park, Kiawah Island, S.C.

10: Cape Hatteras, N.C.

View the original article here

Spring in America: Bloomfield, Mich.

Kim Austin, of Bloomfield, Mich., says this is the second year that the same two swans have chosen this small pond for their home.

"As one sits on the nest, the other swims around feeding and keeping the geese out of their territory," Austin says.

Please send us a photo from your area. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this spring, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

4. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

5. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Spring in America: Austin

David Evans took this picture of agave in an April walk through the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin.

Please send us a photo from your area. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this spring, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

4. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

5. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Spring in America: Fieldbrook, Calif.

Joan Binnie took this shot of tulips in her front yard in Fieldbrook, Calif.

Please send us a photo from your area. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this spring, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

4. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

5. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Spring in America: Scottsdale, Ariz.

"This large old Saguaro is located across the street," says the photographer, Cameron Davis. "Usually the flowers are inaccessible at the tops of the giant plants, fortunately this flower and buds are located on a rare low growing branch."

Please send us a photo from your area. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this spring, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

4. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

5. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Winter in America: Bryce Canyon, Utah

Danny Kean, traveling pianist and photographer, took this shot while heading south through Bryce Canyon, Utah, with Piano Dog Mo.

Please send us a winter photo from your area. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this winter, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

4. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

5. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Winter in America: Bryce Canyon, Utah

Danny Kean, traveling pianist and photographer, took this shot while heading south through Bryce Canyon, Utah, with Piano Dog Mo.

Please send us a winter photo from your area. We'll select the best to appear in On Deadline.

A few guidelines:

1. Please submit only one photo.

2. It must be from this winter, and it must be your original work on which you control all the rights.

3. Include a sentence or two of description about where the photo was taken.

4. Don't forget to send us your name, so we can give you a photo credit. Include your e-mail address and/or phone number (which we will NOT publish) in case we have any questions.

5. Send the photo with a brief caption in your own words to OnDeadline@usatoday.com

View the original article here

Heavy rains hammer Central America; 36 dead (AP)

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador – Heavy rains generated by a low-pressure system hammered Central America for a third day Friday, putting officials on alert in countries where mudslides and swollen rivers have already killed 36 people.

At least 21 people have been killed in Guatemala and thousands of others were evacuated or saw their homes destroyed by the incessant downpours.

In El Salvador, rivers have overflowed their banks, destroying villages and prompting an evacuation of about 4,000 people from their homes, the country's disaster management office said in a statement Friday.

In Honduras, six people have been killed in floods and the roads connecting the nation to Guatemala have been destroyed. Other communities have been left isolated by the floods. In Nicaragua, four people have died this week.

The system is expected to hover over the region for the next couple of days, generating more rainfall, said the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Irwin was weakening and drifting away from Mexico in the Pacific, three days after Hurricane Jova slammed into the same coast, killing six people.

Irwin's maximum sustained winds as of Friday afternoon were near 45 mph (75 kph), and the storm could begin weakening on Saturday, the hurricane center said.

Irwin was centered about 165 miles (265 kilometers) west of Manzanillo, Mexico, and moving south-southeast at about 2 mph (4 kph).

View the original article here

Heavy rains kill at least 66 in Central America (AP)

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador – Central American authorities said on Sunday that at least 66 people had died in six days of heavy rains that caused landslides, floods and bridge failures throughout the region. Officials ordered evacuations as the rain was expected to continue.

El Salvador's director of civil protection, Jorge Melendez, said in a news conference that at least 24 people had died in the country, most of them buried in their houses by landslides.

The country is in a state of alert and preparing for "major disasters," Melendez said.

Authorities were evacuating people from the area around a volcano near the capital of San Salvador, where hundreds died in landslides in 1982.

Melendez said flooding had closed a major highway in the country's west and destroyed a bridge. In the eastern state of San Miguel, water overflowed from the Rio Grande river and had inundated large expanses of farmlands.

He said Sunday morning that the rain was expected to remain heavy for 24 hours and possibly continue until Wednesday. He said El Salvador had seen 7.9 inches (200 millimeters) of rain in the previous 12 hours.

Guatemalan officials confirmed 28 deaths in their country, adding that two more people were missing and that rain was expected for two more days. Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom declared a state of emergency that would be sent for approval to the congress Monday.

In Honduras, officials tallied at least nine deaths and the damaging of 2,500 homes, eight bridges and 29 roads.

"The worst is yet to come," said Rodolfo Funez, deputy director of the country's emergency commission.

Officials in Nicaragua said five people had died there with the rain abating somewhat.

___

Associated Press writers Sonia Perez in Guatemala, Freddy Cuevas in Honduras and Filadelfo Aleman in Nicaragua contributed to this story.

View the original article here

Central America death toll at 45 from heavy rains (Reuters)

TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) – Torrential rain in Central America this week that forced thousands to abandon their homes and trapped many more has killed at least 45 people, with Guatemala the worst hit, authorities said on Saturday.

A tropical depression hit the region early on Wednesday, causing flooding, mudslides and lightning strikes in the chain of countries between Mexico and South America. Many areas were cut off as the rain inundated villages and clogged roads.

The destructive weather system that bore down from the Pacific killed 22 in Guatemala, and nine in Honduras, two of whom were struck by lightning, emergency services said.

Hundreds were stranded on the roofs of their homes in Honduras, especially in the southern regions of Choluteca and Valle, local emergency officials said.

In El Salvador, where seven people were killed, President Mauricio Funes declared a state of emergency. At least seven others died and thousands more were evacuated in Nicaragua.

No deaths were reported in Costa Rica, although dozens of families were evacuated from communities on the Pacific coast and the capital, San Jose.

Strong rain continued to fall in parts of Honduras and Guatemala on Saturday, while precipitation was easing in Nicaragua, El Salvador and Costa Rica.

At least four people also died in Mexico earlier in the week when Category 2 Hurricane Jova struck from the Pacific, forcing the country's busiest port to close. The main cargo port of Manzanillo later reopened.

(Reporting by Gustavo Palencia in Tegicugalpa, Nelson Renteria in San Salvador, Mike McDonald in Guatemala City, Ivan Castro in Managua and Alex Leff in San Jose; Editing by Peter Cooney)

View the original article here