CONCORD, N.H. — Kyla Gill had never so much as touched a sewing machine or picked up a crochet hook two weeks ago. Now, she’s hooked on crafting for critters 10,000 miles away, to the point of temporarily putting aside her floor refinishing business in Pittsburgh.

Icy roads, deadly tornadoes, punishing waves — severe weekend weather has been blamed for 11 deaths and major damage in parts of the Midwest, South and Northeast.

SYDNEY — Cooling temperatures and calmer winds brought some relief Sunday to Australian communities raked by wildfires, but the heat stayed on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to accept responsibility for the crisis and take action.

SYDNEY — Two people died on Saturday as Australia braced for one of the worst days in its wildfire crisis, with strong winds and extreme heat forecast to bring flames to more populated areas, including the suburbs of Sydney.

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Tens of thousands of Indonesians were crammed in emergency shelters Saturday waiting for floodwater to recede in and around the capital, Jakarta, as the death toll from massive New Year’s flooding reached 47, officials said.

FARGO, N.D. — A fierce winter storm that created blizzard conditions in parts of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota shut down interstates, led to hundreds of vehicle crashes and brought a metropolitan area of more than 200,000 people to a standstill on Monday morning.