As a severe thunderstorm slams the Tucson area the Fire Department has responded to several calls for stranded vehicles throughout the city.

At Rodeo Wash, just south and east of the railroad tracks at Irvington between Park Ave. and 6th Avenue, a woman was standing atop her vehicle as a Tucson Fire Departments swift-water rescue team was preparing to assist her, Fire Department officials said.

A hook and ladder truck had extended its ladder over her as several other firefighters went downstream to be ready if needed.

The Tucson Police Department received a call at 2:30 p.m. in reference to two or three vehicles stuck in a wash near East Fort Lowell Road and North Mountain Avenue, said Officer Dallas Wilson, a Tucson Police Department spokesman.

The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for eastern Pima County that was set to expire at 2:15 p.m.

About 1:30 p.m., a cluster of severe thunderstorms capable of producing penny-sized hail and damaging winds in excess of 60 mph were located about seven miles northeast of Saguaro National Park East and extended to Corona de Tucson, said Glenn Lader, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

The storms, which could generate heavy rainfall, were moving west toward Tucson at 10 mph, Lader said.

The weather has forced several road closures, said city spokesman Michael Graham.

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©The Arizona Daily Star, 2006