At least seven tornadoes touched down in eastern Colorado on Sunday, and the FAA for several hours stopped flights from coming into Denver International Airport due to severe weather.
Denver International Airport was put under an inbound ground stop at 4:30 p.m. before it was lifted at 8:13 p.m., said airport spokeswoman Alex Renteria. Heavy hail briefly pelted the airport and strong wind shears made it unsafe to land planes.
“There has not been any hail damage as it only lasted for a few minutes,” Renteria said.
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Severe activity fired up first in southeastern Colorado, according to Randy Gray, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Pueblo. A spotter reported a tornado about 8 miles south of McClave in Bent County at about 2:54 p.m. Another tornado touched down at 2:38 p.m. 3 miles northeast Wiley, which is in northwestern Prowers County. A third tornado came down 4 miles south of Eads in Kiowa County at 4:10 p.m.
That breakout was followed by four more tornadoes in northeastern Colorado. The first, reported at 4:38 p.m., was located 1 mile northwest of Keenesburg in Weld County. Another hit the ground at 5:37 p.m. 2 miles northeast of Watkins in Adams County. A tornado was reported on the ground a minute later 6 miles northwest of Roggen in Weld County.
Most were short-lived, but a tornado spotted at 6:08 p.m. about 5 miles southeast of Hugo in Lincoln County spent 10 minutes on the ground, Gray said. As with the other tornadoes, it ran through open fields.
“There was no damage or injuries,” Gray said, citing initial reports.
Several areas reported large hail. Springfield, in the southeast corner of the state, was hit with 2.5-inch diameter hail, large enough to damage crops and vehicles. Hail larger than 3 inches in diameter was reported in the area of Denver International Airport.
Kiowa, Cheyenne, Weld, Arapahoe, Adams and Kit Carson counties all faced tornado warnings during the afternoon and into the evening. Drenching rains from storm cells triggered flash flood warnings in Cheyenne and Kit Carson counties.
Campers and boaters in the eastern part of the state, out to enjoy the holiday weekend, were a particular area of concern, due to a lack of shelter, said Jennifer Stark, a meteorologist with NWS Pueblo.
A tornado watch remains in effect until 9 p.m. Sunday for Baca, Bent, Cheyenne, Crowley, Kiowa, Kit Carson, Las Animas, Otero, Prowers and Yuma counties.
A separate tornado watch lasting through 10 p.m. covers Adams, Arapahoe, Denver, Elbert, Lincoln, Morgan, Washington and Weld counties.
Breaking – tornadoes reported in Colorado right now. One is in Bent County, south of McClave. And @McCartyConnorWX caught this one in Wiley. The southeastern part of the state has the highest risk. pic.twitter.com/EON6yAOifv
— Matt Mauro (@mattmauronews) May 26, 2019
And to not ignore the Western Slope, the National Weather Service in Grand Junction issued a winter weather advisory Sunday evening stretching from Rangely to Cortez and from the Utah border to Vail.
Colder temperatures and snow are expected to make a return there Monday and Tuesday, with temperatures 20 degrees below normal and snow likely.
“Mountain passes will likely become snow covered with elevations above 9,000 feet possibly seeing several inches of new snow,” the advisory warned Memorial Day travelers.
