4 p.m. National Weather Service forecasters issued a tornado warning for Weld County until 4:15 p.m.
Radars detected a severe thunderstorm near Eaton, 7 miles northwest of Greeley and moving northeast at 15 mph.
NWS radars showed rotation, and flying debris will be dangerous to those who don’t seek shelter.
Residents should move to a basement or interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building and avoid windows.
Original story: Northeastern Colorado is under a severe thunderstorm watch Thursday afternoon as the possibility of tornadoes, tennis-ball-sized hail and 75 mph winds move in on the state, according to the National Weather Service.
The watch will remain in effect for Logan, Morgan, Sedgwick and Weld counties until 7 p.m. Thursday, NWS meteorologists said.
After two days of cooler-than-average weather, the heat returned to Colorado on Thursday alongside a wave of afternoon thunderstorms, forecasters said.
Nearly 90-degree weather is set to return to the Front Range, metro area and Eastern Plains on Thursday, NWS forecasters said.Temperature highs will rise to 89 degrees in Denver, 86 degrees out east in Limon and 90 degrees in northeastern Colorado’s Sterling.
Severe thunderstorms will rain down on Colorado this afternoon and evening, especially in the mountains, northeast plains and Denver area, forecasters said. The greatest threat of severe weather lies on the Colorado-Wyoming-Nebraska border in northeastern Colorado.
Tornado touchdowns are possible and damaging wind gusts of up to 75 mph will blow through the area, according to NWS forecasters.
Hail up to 2 1/2 inches in diameter — about the size of a tennis ball — and damaging wind gusts will be the largest threat, forecasters said. Heavy rainfall may also cause flooding.
The risk of flash flooding is elevated in burn scars — including those left by Cameron Peak fire in Jackson and Larimer counties, the East Troublesome in Grand and Larimer counties and the Williams Fork fire in Grand County — between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. Thursday, according to NWS forecasters.
In areas where fire burns hot or long enough, the soil can develop a water-repellant layer that reacts like rain on pavement, weather officials said. Rainfall that would normally be absorbed by the forest canopy and loose tree litter on the ground instead runs off, starting flash floods during periods of heavy rain.
“If you can look uphill from where you are and see a burnt-out area, you are at risk,” NWS meteorologists said.
Storms were expected to hit the Denver area around noon and are set to continue off-and-on through midnight, forecasters said.
Stormy weather will continue through Friday but dry up for the weekend, according to a NWS hazardous weather outlook.
“From Saturday through Wednesday, less thunderstorm coverage can be expected, along with above normal temperatures for most areas,” the outlook stated. “Some areas of the plains could see afternoon high temperatures reach 100 degrees on Monday and Tuesday.”
Overnight Thursday, temperatures in Denver will drop to 63 degrees before bouncing back up to 89 degrees Friday, according to NWS forecasters. Temperatures in the metro area will officially reenter the 90s Saturday and heat up to 99 degrees by Tuesday.
Get more Colorado news by signing up for our daily Your Morning Dozen email newsletter.
Originally Published: June 20, 2024 at 6:53 a.m.
