4:30 p.m. update: Flights at Denver International Airport were grounded Wednesday afternoon as thunderstorms brought the threat of hail and tornadoes.
3:44 p.m. update: Winds of up to 40 mph and half-inch hail are possible with a storm system heading through the eastern Denver metro, .
The statement, in effect until 4:15 p.m., advises that the areas around the Denver International Airport, Bennett and Strasburg could get high winds and hail. People in the area should seek shelter in a sturdy structure.
1:30 p.m. update: The National Weather Service has issued a tornado watch for southeastern Colorado until 9 p.m. Wednesday, according to an .
The area -- which includes La Junta, Yuma and Lamar -- could see multiple tornadoes, apple-sized hail and scattered wind gusts up to 70 mph, meteorologists said in the alert.
A has also been issued by the weather service for eastern Colorado, including Las Animas, Otero, Crowley, Pueblo, El Paso, Lincoln, Elbert and Washington counties.
That watch will be active until 8 p.m. Wednesday.
Original story: Thunderstorms will bring heavy rain and up to 2-inch hail to Colorado on Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service.
Hail an inch in diameter or larger is considered "severe," according to the , which is part of the same federal agency as the weather service.
The plains in southeastern Colorado can expect damaging wind gusts up to 70 mph, 2-inch hail, heavy rain and a chance for tornadoes, according to a from the weather service's Pueblo office.
Hail that's 2 inches in diameter falls between the size of a golf ball and a tennis ball, according to meteorologists.
Scattered rain showers and thunderstorms will start as early as noon Wednesday, but the strongest chance for severe weather will be between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., according to the weather service.
Hail is expected to be smaller in northeastern and north central Colorado, . The largest hail forecast is an inch in diameter, about the size of a quarter.
Scattered afternoon storms are expected each day through the weekend. The rainy weather will accompany rising temperatures that could hit 90 degrees Sunday in Denver, .
