The unstable July weather is producing thunderstorms, funnel clouds and flood warnings for parts of the Eastern Plains this afternoon.
About 3:30 p.m. Doppler radar picked up a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado 4 miles southeast of Kiowa moving east at 5 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
A brief funnel cloud and brief touchdown was reported southwest of Kiowa.
A flash flood warning for northeastern El Paso County remains in effect until 6 p,m., as a result of the slow-moving storm, forecasters said.
“Very heavy rainfall will move across the warned area,” the Weather Service said in a bulletin.
“This heavy rainfall combined with already saturated ground conditions will produce areas of flash flooding over northeastern El Paso County.”
Communities on alert include Calhan, Ellicott, Peyton, Ramah, Rush, Truckton, Yoder and Schriever Air Force Base.
Scattered showers and thunderstorms, with a 50 percent chance of rain, are expected in the metro region this afternoon, after a high temperature of 73 degrees. Rain chances in Denver diminish this evening, forecasters said.
Temperatures are expected to rebound into the mid-80s tomorrow with a 30 percent chance of rain, but temperatures return to about 90 degrees on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
