It was so hot on Wednesday, you almost instinctively knew something had to happen.

The heat and humidity combined for virtually unbearable conditions on Wednesday, with at least one heat index reporting a “feels like” temperature in Dexter of 134 degrees.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) official report for Dexter reports a noonday temperature off 98.7 degrees, 102.1 at 1:40 p.m., and superhot 103.8 degrees at 3:20 p.m.

By late afternoon storm clouds were rolling, and some area photographers were snapping photos of unique cloud formations. Rain arrived with thunder and lightening, but the NOAA rain gauge only measured .27 of an inch.

The National Weather Service in Paducah has issued a Severe Thunderstorm Watch for Stoddard County on Thursday. A Severe Thunderstorm watch means conditions are conducive to the development of severe thunderstorms in the area. The watch is in effect until 3 p.m. Thursday.

The forecast for Thursday calls for a bit of relief from the extreme heat and humidity. Today will we'll have sunny skies with a high in the low 90s. East/northeast breezes will be between 5 and 8 miles per hour. There's a 20 percent chance of showers or thunderstorms tonight. The low will be in the low 70s.

Heat that has its grip on the Missouri has contributed to the buckling of roads, the drying out of fields and several deaths. The National Weather Service in St. Louis said this past July was the fourth-warmest July and the hottest in more than 70 years in St. Louis. It was the sixth-hottest July recorded in Columbia.

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services said 11 heat-related deaths have been confirmed from May 1 through Monday. Nine of those deaths were in the St. Louis area, one was in Kansas City and one was elsewhere in Missouri. The state health agency said another 24 deaths were suspected to be heat-related. Health officials said there have been 1,362 heat-related visits to emergency rooms.

Photo Above: Storm clouds rolled through the region Wednesday evening. SMT Reader April Isbell took this shot of the unique clouds near One Mile Road and Fannetta. Photo Below: Thanks to SMT Reader Brian Crawford, for this exceptional shot, taken on Saddle Spur Road in town.