One year later: Calgarians remember hailstorm that did $1.2 billion in damages

CALGARY (660 NEWS) — It’s been a year since a hailstorm that caused more than $1 billion in damages rained down on the city.

The June 13, 2020 hailstorm did $1.2 billion in insured damages throughout Calgary, Rocky View County and Airdrie.

The Insurance Bureau of Canada calls it the fourth costliest natural disaster in the history of Canada. It’s the most expensive hailstorm Canada has ever seen.

Pieces of ice, some as large as golf balls, ripped through the sky, causing damage to cars and buildings throughout the communities. There were more than 70,000 homeowners that reported damage to their homes, as hailstones made holes in windows, siding and shingles.

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Flash flooding dominated Deerfoot Trail during that storm. Emergency response crews resorted to using boats to rescue stranded Albertans. Vehicles could be found submerged along 14th Street.

Stuart Harder lives in the Saddleridge area of Calgary. Both his home and vehicle were damaged by the storm.

Once the storm cleared, Harder took pictures of the damage to his home and truck so he could submit it to his insurance company right away. He says that this made the process of insurance claims easier for him than some of his neighbours.

“I expected this to be a process,” Harder said. “For my landlord to have the entire house repaired, it cost over $25,000.”

He says only around 40 per cent of homes that were damaged by the storm have been repaired so far.

WATCH: Calgary cleans up from devastating hailstorm (June 15, 2020)

We are already at the anniversary of the storm, and in the midst of active weather season.

“The active weather in Alberta really takes place in June and July,” said 660 meteorologist Michael Kuss.

READ MORE:

• Report says 2020 was fourth worst year on record for natural disasters in Canada
• Deep freeze to devastating hail: Calgary weather in 2020

Kuss explains that hailstorms are formed when cooler artic air converges with dry warm air. He says we generally see this type of weather dissipate by August.

“I am expecting a quieter than normal season this year,” said Kuss. “That said, it only takes one major storm to hit your neighbourhood to make it a devastating year.”

Alberta is home to the country’s top two most expensive natural disasters of all time. The 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire caused damages costing nearly $4 billion, and the Southern Alberta floods of 2013 racked up a bill of $2 billion in insurable damages.