NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Forecasters are warning that severe weather could hit parts of the nation’s midsection during the weekend.

The Storm Prediction Center said there is a risk for tornadoes and very large hail in northeastern Colorado on Friday, with severe storms developing in Nebraska and Iowa during the day Saturday.

By Sunday, the storms could stretch from near the Oklahoma Panhandle into the Ohio Valley.

Heating during the day Friday could help form supercell thunderstorms in Colorado. The weather is expected to move into western Kansas in the early evening.

The threat of tornadoes during the day Saturday in the mid-Missouri River Valley is expected to evolve into a mass of storms with high winds.

Large hail and high winds are possible Sunday from northeastern New Mexico to western Ohio.

TECUMSEH, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska inmate serving a sentence for sexually assaulting a child has died.

The Nebraska Department of Correctional Services says in a news release that 55-year-old Robert Nelson died Tuesday. He was serving a 60-year sentence at the state prison in Tecumseh for first-degree sexual assault of a child.

The cause of death hasn’t been determined, but Nelson was being treated for a medical condition.

He began his prison term in January 2014.

A grand jury will investigate his death. That is the policy whenever an inmate dies in prison.

LONGMONT, Colo. (AP) — A tornado that touched down in northern Colorado has damaged several homes as storms brought flooding and marble-sized hail to some areas.

Larimer County emergency management director Lori Hodges says at least three homes were destroyed Thursday evening in the town of Berthoud, about 40 miles north of Denver. Crews checking on reports of about 25 other homes that were possibly damaged were hindered by heavy rain and hail.

No injuries have been reported.

At least two tornadoes touched down Thursday afternoon near Simla, about 60 miles southeast of Denver. Elbert County officials say at least five homes were damaged in the area.

No injuries were reported from that string of storms.

Forecasters had warned that the Front Range and the Eastern Plains could experience severe weather Thursday.

LOVELAND, Colo. (AP) — Family and neighbors say the man found shot to death along a street in northern Colorado was a cancer survivor who often took late-night walks through his quiet neighborhood.

They identified the man as 65-year-old William Connole, but police haven’t released his name.

He was found late Wednesday about two blocks from his home in normally safe Loveland. Police are looking into whether the man’s death is related to two other recent unsolved shootings nearby.

In one, a bicyclist was found dead along a rural road. In the other, a driver was shot in her neck on Interstate 25. She survived.

The incidents have raised alarm about a possible serial shooter in the area. Authorities have declined to comment on that and say it’s too early to know if the Loveland shooting is connected to the other two.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Officials in the Omaha School district are considering providing free meals to all students, regardless of the children’s ability to pay.

It would be an expansion of a pilot program the district kicked off in January at six elementary schools.

Omaha was one of two districts in Nebraska to participate in a federal initiative this year that pushed for schools with high concentrations of low-income students to serve free meals to all. Schools can participate in the program if many of their students already were receiving public benefits, such as food stamps or welfare.

In Iowa, participating districts included Council Bluffs and Des Moines.

WINNEBAGO, Neb. (AP) — A 31-year-old Nebraska man has been sent to federal prison for assaulting a federal officer.

The office of U.S. Attorney Deborah Gilg (gihlj) says Thomas White Jr., of Winnebago, was given 33 months behind bars and must serve two years of supervised release after he leaves custody.

Prosecutors say the officer was employed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The officer was on duty at the Winnebago school Oct. 17 when he approached White, who’d been asked to leave the school earlier that day. Prosecutors say White charged the officer and struck him several times on his face, head, arms and side. The officer eventually gained control of White and put him in handcuffs.