Should I be concerned? I'm scheduled to fly out to Colorado Springs on Saturday morning, and now I get news of this twister. I may find myself tapping my Vans together while repeating "there's no place like home, there's no place like home" this weekend...
(CNN) -- At least one massive tornado swept across northern Colorado's Front Range on Thursday, killing at least one person, destroying several buildings and dumping golf ball-size hail, authorities reported.
Shane Scofield, a Weld County sheriff's deputy, said numerous buildings in the town of Windsor were destroyed by the storm. "Some are completely demolished and unrecognizable -- just masses of timber," he told CNN.
Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter declared a state of emergency for Weld County, sending National Guard troops to help move emergency workers into and out of the stricken area, according to a statement from his office.
"We will be doing all we can to assist the people of Weld County as we assess the damage and determine how the state can provide the most effective aid," Ritter said. "My heart goes out to the people of Weld County during this very dangerous time."
Windsor is about 80 miles (129 km) north of Denver. The agency said said one person died at a park between Windsor and the county seat of Greeley, but no details of the death were available. Weld County fire spokeswoman Brenda Stroman said the storm hit "several other areas" of the county as well, and a new round of possible tornadoes was reported about two hours later.
Weld County sheriff's Cmdr. Ken Poncelow said the storm went through a neighborhood in Windsor, and the number of homes damaged "could be 100 or better."
Also, CNN confirmed that another tornado has touched down in Laramie, Wyoming, hitting a high school, a middle school, a Wal-Mart store and houses.
In Fort Collins, Colorado, the Larimer County Sheriff's Office had several reports of damage, including one home destroyed and another in which residents were trapped by a fallen tree, spokesman Don Nadow said. And witnesses reported funnel clouds over parts of Loveland, about 13 miles south of Fort Collins, he said.
Several power outages were reported due to downed power lines, but there were no reports of injuries in Larimer County, said Capt. Steve Fleming of the Poudre Fire Authority.
The storm struck about noon MT. Scofield said he was at a golf tournament in Windsor when the weather turned threatening.
"Initially, it started off with light rains and very quickly, within a few minutes, turned into heavy rains, large hail, over golf ball-size," he said.
Inspector Dan Engelhardt, a Loveland Fire Department spokesman, said "multiple" funnel clouds had been reported in that area and several touched down. Loveland and other area fire departments have contributed engine companies and rescue teams to Windsor, he said.
Windsor, Fort Collins and Loveland lie in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, where the Great Plains give way to steep hills.
"It's very unusual to see this by a mountain range. It's kind of a freak thing," Fleming said.
The storm, moving northwest, dissipated quickly after the tornado struck. But watches and warnings remained posted for northeastern Colorado.
"We are expecting some more pretty severe weather until about 8 o'clock," Engelhardt said.
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