Severe weather began hammering the Front Range on Thursday afternoon as part of what forecasters expect to be another day of wild storms in the Denver area and beyond.
Thunderstorms with large hail and damaging winds are forecast for the metro and Eastern Plains. The most dramatic weather is expected after 2 p.m., according to the National Weather Service in Boulder.
“The risk for severe weather is back in the Denver area today,” said Nezette Rydell, NWS meteorologist. “Certainly a tornado is possible.”
The tempest’s most likely impact will be large hail and rain, she said.
Pea-sized hail was falling south of the city — in Castle Rock — by 1:30 p.m.
The weather led to a ground stop at Denver International Airport about 2 p.m., according to Heath Montgomery, a DIA spokesman. Flights were being held as officials waited for the storm to pass through.Hail left by the system needed to be cleared by the airport’s snowplow force.
Some passengers took to social media to express frustration about the delays.
https://twitter.com/jennysstafford/status/735935206306119681
“Runways are cleared of hail and traffic is moving,” the airport said in a tweet about 3 p.m. “Please check your flight status for the afternoon as we get back to normal.”
As of noon, a tornado watch has been issued for areas east and south of Denver, including Colorado Springs and Pueblo.
The watch is in effect until 7 p.m. It includes El Paso, Pueblo, Otero, Cheyenne, Kiowa, Washington, Crowley, Elbert, Kit Carson, Lincoln and Prowers counties.
Colorado Springs was also seeing severe thunderstorms about 1:30 p.m.
The chance for precipitation in the Denver area is 80 percent Thursday. Winds could reach gusts of 21 mph.The high temperature will climb to about 63 degrees on Thursday in Denver, 12 degrees below normal for this time of the year.
Rain is also likely Friday, with the chance of thunderstorms happening before noon. It will be mostly cloudy, and the high temperature will be about 63 degrees.
The chance for rain diminishes through the weekend. The chance for rain and thunderstorms is 20 percent on Saturday and Sunday. There is a slight chance for rains Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service.
Temperatures will climb back into the lower 70s over the Memorial Day weekend, with highs of about 71 on Saturday, 73 on Sunday and 72 on Monday, .
