Colorado
Colorado weather: Heat wave continues through weekend, severe storms return Wednesday
Above-normal temperatures will continue across Colorado this week, with 90-degree weather forecast for Denver and the Eastern Plains through the weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
After severe thunderstorms on Sunday and Monday, NWS forecasters said Tuesday will be warmer and drier.
Monday’s afternoon storms brought between quarter and tennis-ball-sized hail to the Front Range and Eastern Plains, according to NWS severe weather reports.
The largest hail reported Monday was 2 inches in diameter — about the size of a tennis ball — and found in Ramah in El Paso County, according to the reports.
Two tornadoes touched down in eastern Colorado on Monday — one 10 miles northeast of Deer Trail in Arapahoe County and another just west of Shamrock in Adams County — NWS severe weather reports show. Meteorologists have not yet determined how strong the tornadoes were.
Denver will see temperature highs around 94 degrees on Wednesday before cooling off into the low 60s overnight, according to NWS forecasters.
Out east — including Fort Morgan, Julesburg, Sterling and Limon — temperatures will also peak in the 90s Tuesday and stay high through Saturday, forecasters said.
With the above-normal heat, weather officials issued an Ozone Action Day Alert through 4 p.m. Tuesday for the Front Range and metro area.
On Tuesday, ozone concentrations will be unhealthy for sensitive groups in the south and west Denver metro area, including the nearby foothills, NWS officials said in the air quality alert.
State officials said short-term exposure to unhealthy ozone levels can cause coughing; eye, nose and throat irritation; chest pain; difficulty breathing and asthma attacks. Long-term exposure has been linked to a variety of health issues, including lung and cardiovascular disease and premature death.
During action days, people should avoid driving gas- or diesel-powered cars, rigorous outdoor activity during the heat of the day and letting their car idle until the alert is lifted.
“Increasing moisture will also mean scattered showers and storms during the afternoon hours Wednesday through Friday,” NWS forecasters said.
The primary concern from these storms will be heavy rainfall — which could cause flash flooding across the state — damaging winds and hail, according to a NWS hazardous weather outlook.
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