Repairing a ruined economy
CALGARY — The massive hailstorm that struck Calgary and area on June 13 is officially the fourth-mostexpensive natural disaster in Canadian history, with insured damages pegged at almost $1.2 billion.
According to Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. (CATIQ), the storm — which shredded siding and pounded cars, particularly in hardesthit northeast Calgary — is the costliest hailstorm in Canadian history. In terms of all natural disasters, it is surpassed only by the 2016 Fort Mcmurray wildfire ($4 billion), the ice storm that walloped Eastern Canada in 1998 ($2.3 billion) and the 2013 flooding in southern Alberta ($1.7 billion).
Most of the insured damage from the June 13 event involved personal property and vehicles, with a smaller percentage of damages to commercial property.
Damage caused by hail and wind is typically covered by insurance. In addition to the $1.2 billion in insured damages, the Alberta government announced financial support for residents who experienced overland flooding as a result of the storm, as this type of insurance is not always available in flood-prone areas.
The damages exceeded early estimates on insured damage claims cited by Jason Kenney of between $250 million and $500 million, and even Mayor Naheed Nenshi’s estimate that the storm had caused $1 billion in damages.
For Coun. George Chahal, whose Ward 5 was battered by the hailstorm, the scale of the damages didn’t come as a surprise.
“Now it’s all about us moving through the process, making sure that companies are being responsive, people are getting their claims in, and we can find out where the gaps are,” Chahal said.
According to Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) western vice-president Celyeste Power, more than 70,000 claims from the storm are currently being processed. While the number of claims and amount of damages is startling, she said it wasn’t a shock.
“The pictures and what we’ve heard from residents certainly confirms that it’s quite devastating,” said Power.
“We definitely could recognize early on that this was a significant event.”
Khalil Karbani, a Taradale resident and an advocate for community supports following the storm, echoed that he wasn’t shocked by the storm’s financial tally.
He believes the number of claims and the $1.2-billion figure will continue to climb over the coming weeks.
“From the residents that we’ve spoken to, not all of them have even had an insurance assessor come to their house yet to quote for the damage,” Karbani said.