Waves of heavy snow and rain will sweep over Colorado Thursday afternoon into Friday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

Starting around 3 p.m. Thursday, heavy snow will fall over the mountains along and south of Interstate 70 and in areas of the southern foothills above 7500 feet of elevation, according to NWS meteorologists.

The mountains will see 6 to 12 inches of snow accumulate overnight Friday, with higher snowfall amounts possible over the Mosquito Range, NWS forecasters said. Four to 10 inches of snow are expected to stack up in the higher-elevation foothills.

Snow showers and potential overnight thunderstorms Friday could create icy road conditions in the mountains, especially in the morning, according to a NWS hazardous weather outlook.

Rain showers will douse the Interstate 25 Corridor Thursday starting afternoon, especially from Denver down to the Palmer Divide, meteorologists said.

Thunderstorms and rain showers are expected to continue through the weekend for the metro area, especially as temperatures warm back up on Saturday and Sunday.

Temperatures in Denver are expected to stay on the cooler end Thursday and Friday, with daily highs hovering in the mid-50s and overnight lows around 40 degrees, forecasters said.From Saturday into mid-next week, the city and surrounding area will see a warming trend as temperatures begin to rise back into the mid to high-70s.

Chances of overnight and afternoon rain showers and thunderstorms are projected to continue through next Wednesday, but the heaviest downpour will soak Colorado Thursday through this weekend.

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