Hail Pummels Denver, Delays Rockies Game, Flooding Closes Roads (PHOTOS)

T​he Denver area was struck by severe thunderstorms packing heavy rain, high winds and hail Thursday evening, delaying a game between the Colorado Rockies and the Los Angeles Dodgers by nearly two hours and sending commuters running for cover.

Coors Field, where the game was scheduled for 6 p.m. MST, was covered in a blanket of hail before first pitch, which was pushed back until 8:30 p.m. Dugout attendants were scooping buckets of hail away from the dugouts before the game began.

P​hotos show hailstones covering the field tarp, flooding in a ballpark doorway and people throughout the city running and riding bikes as pea-sized hail pummeled the city.

T​he National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for Colorado's northern Front Range and eastern plains, including the Denver-metro area, as well as other cities such as Boulder, Fort Collins, Greeley, Fort Morgan and Sterling, as well as parts of Wyoming and Nebraska, which expired at 9 p.m.

A​ section of 20th Street between I-25 and Coors Field was closed due to the storm but reopened around 6 p.m. Parts of Highway 36 between Watkins and Bennett were flooded, and multiple other roads were flooded and washed out, according to the Bennett-Watkins Fire Department. Vehicles were stranded due to high water near 88th Avenue and Schumaker Road.

O​fficials warned motorists not to drive through floodwaters and people were told to head to higher ground.

T​he National Weather Service Boulder warned of more thunderstorms today, with possible golfball-sized hail near the Palmer Divide.

C​lick through the slideshow above to see photos of Thursday's hail in the Denver area.

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