Thunderstorms poured over the Front Range and onto the Eastern Plains on Tuesday afternoon and evening, prompting flooding that stranded motorists on city streets, overflowed fields and washed over wildfire burn scars.
The turbulent weather lacked the drama of Monday’s tornado sightings but nonetheless triggered advisories and warnings over a huge swath of Colorado. A first round of storms struck around mid-afternoon, and after a brief break more heavy weather churned across the state in the evening.
While the storms gradually diminished into the night, another round of activity formed to the west, around Grand Junction, and to the north, setting up the potential for more showers Wednesday morning.
“We’ll have to see how this next section times with heating tomorrow,” said meteorologist Kyle Fredin of the National Weather Service in Boulder. “Hopefully it will come in the form of light and widespread showers.”
Still, a flash flood watch for most of the state remains in effect through 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Conditions are expected to resume a more normal summer pattern of isolated showers and thunderstorms Thursday, with highs returning to the 80s for the weekend.
Tuesday afternoon’s activity prompted a flood advisory for a wide stretch of the metro area — then delivered on the threat with downpours of 2 inches an hour that produced some flooding and pulled emergency crews into action.
7News reported that two adults and two children were rescued from a car at the underpass at 38th Avenue and Inca Street in Denver, with no injuries reported.
Denver International Airport reported that the weather affected many flights into Tuesday evening because flight paths in and out of the airport were restricted by the storms.
Even more intense rain fell to the north, where Windsor reported 4 inches during a 90-minute stretch, and local fire rescue workers reported assisting at least five motorists stranded after they drove into standing water, according to the Greeley Tribune.
The city deployed barricades and personnel to intersections to keep cars from entering water as deep as 30 inches.
A flash flood warning for northeast Larimer County remained in effect until 11 p.m. in anticipation of flooding and mudslides.
To the southeast, flash flooding threatened the towns of Eads, Wiley and McClave and closed U.S. 287 in both directions south of Eads because of high water. More than 5 inches fell in Eads by late evening.
To the west, a mudslide closed westbound Interstate 70 near the small town of Wolcott in Eagle County.
At one point, the weather service’s Pueblo office issued a flash flood warning for parts of El Paso County as a thunderstorm unleashed heavy rain over the Waldo Canyon burn scar, closing U.S. 24 between Manitou Springs and Cascade.
“We’re in our secondary wet season, which typically runs from July 10 to the end of August,” Fredin said. “This year is no exception.”