Coloradans can look forward to cooler temperatures this week as afternoon rain showers and thunderstorms return across the state, according to the National Weather Service.
Scattered rain showers and thunderstorms will form Monday afternoon across Colorado, becoming stronger as they move east, according to a hazardous weather outlook from the weather service.
Storms are likely in the Denver area on Monday between 9 a.m. and midnight, with the strongest chance for heavy rain and thunder around 5 p.m., according to hourly forecasts from the weather service.
There will be a greater chance of rain showers in the city on Tuesday from 6 p.m. to midnight, the forecasts show. Thunderstorms are less likely on Tuesday than on Monday.
Temperatures will peak in the 70s throughout the week in Denver and on the Eastern Plains, forecasters said. Mountain temperatures will be in the low to mid-60s on Monday and Tuesday, but may creep up into the 70s later in the week.
Western Slope temperature forecasts range from the mid-70s to the high-80s, even as rain showers are expected to douse the drought-stricken area, according to the weather service. No 90-degree days are expected.
“Monsoon moisture” is also likely in southern Colorado on Monday and Tuesday, according to the weather service office based in Pueblo.
The main flood threat on Monday is in southeastern Colorado, where the weather service has issued a flood watch. That watch will be active from noon to Monday evening.
Parts of Fremont, Teller, El Paso, Pueblo and Las Animas counties are included in the flood watch, according to the weather service. The Rampart Range and Pikes Peak are also at risk.
“Excessive runoff may result in flooding of rivers, creeks, streams and other low-lying and flood-prone locations,” forecasters stated in the flood watch.
On Tuesday, heavy rainfall and thunderstorms may cause flash flooding in southwestern and western Colorado, Pueblo forecasters said.
The warning area stretches north to Glenwood Springs and Breckenridge, east to Colorado Springs and Pueblo, south to the Colorado-New Mexico Border and west to the Colorado-Utah border.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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