DENVER (AP) -- Hail has pounded parts of the northeast metro area and tornados have been reported east and north of Denver as thunderstorms sweep along the Front Range and eastern Colorado plains.

Greeley police Sgt. Joe Tymkowych says authorities are checking reports of a tornado in the area. He says the funnel reportedly is moving northwest toward Fort Collins.

The Weld County sheriff's office told The Tribune in Greeley that a Union Pacific engineer reported that a tornado overturned train cars in the Fort Lupton area, about 30 miles north of Denver.

A trained weather spotter is reporting golf-ball-sized hail five miles northeast of Commerce City. Police are assessing the damage, including reports of battered vehicles and crashes.

The National Weather Service has issued several severe thunderstorm warnings in eastern Colorado.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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