Severe storms, possible tornadoes to batter Great Plains

May 9, 2015 4:02 PM

By Victoria Cavaliere

May 9 (Reuters) - Residents in parts of Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas were bracing on Saturday for severe thunderstorms that could spawn tornadoes, just days after a series of twisters tore through several Great Plains states, leaving one person dead.

The National Weather Service issued a warning saying there was an "enhanced risk" of severe weather beginning on Saturday afternoon that could bring hail, strong winds, flash floods and possibly conditions leading to tornadoes.

"The area of greatest concern is from southeast Colorado to portions of Texas," it said in its advisory. "The primary threat with these storms will be very large hail, but damaging winds and even a few tornadoes cannot be ruled out."

The storm system could bring lashing wind and rain as far north as Kansas and southern Nebraska, and to parts of central Texas, including Dallas and its suburbs.

"All of the ingredients will be in place for Saturday to unfold as one of the most substantial severe weather outbreaks of 2015," meteorologist Becky Elliott said on forecasting site AccuWeather.com.

Another band of storms were due over the same region on Sunday, but were not expected to be as severe, forecasters said.

On Wednesday, a weather system battered a region from Texas to Nebraska and produced dozens of reported tornadoes, including several that touched down in Oklahoma, causing one death, injuring 12 and flattening buildings. [ID: nL1N0XY21I]

Tornado season in the Southern Plains states normally lasts from May to early June.

(Editing by Clelia Oziel)