A second day of stormy spring weather jangled nerves on the eastern rim of the metro region Thursday, briefly dropping two twisters, hail and heavy rain on the open plains.
The weather pattern on the plains could repeat itself Friday, forecaster warned, with heavy snow headed to Colorado’s High County.
A winter storm warning is in effect for most areas above 9,000 feet until noon Saturday. The mountains could see 14 inches to 28 inches of new accumulation before Saturday afternoon.
Travel could be difficult with 30 mph wind gusts at times, forecasters said.
An upper level low-pressure system over the Great Basin shifted eastward Thursday and could bring widespread snow above 7,000 feet Friday.
Mountain valleys and the foothills could see a rain-snow mix Friday night, the National Weather Service said.
The chance of rain in Denver on Friday is 100 percent with wind gusts up to 23 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
Showers are expected to continue on and off until about noon Saturday. The chance of rain Saturday in the metro region is 80 percent.
Thursday afternoon, as many as four possible tornadoes were on the ground on the Eastern Plains, according to the National Weather Service, but there were no reports of damage or injuries.
The Cherry Creek School District sent the students in its 59 schools to the hallways and designated storm shelters near the end of the school day when a tornado warning was issued.
No tornado touched down in the area, though a home in Aurora reportedly caught fire after being struck by lightning.
“When the sirens go off and we receive word for the National Weather Service, students are moved into the hallways and other shelters at all our schools, ” said Tustin Amole, the spokeswoman for the Cherry Creek School District.
Several tornado warnings were issued in central Cheyenne County after local law enforcement and storm chasers reported a tornado in a rural area seven miles northeast of Kit Carson.
At about the same time, a similar twister was reported on the ground about six miles south of Fort Morgan near Adena in central Morgan County.
Earlier, touch downs were reported in Bent County, east of Las Animas, and near John Martin State Park about 20 miles west of Lamar.
Joey Bunch: 303-954-1174 or jbunch@denverpost.com
