Storm Leaves Catastrophic Hail Damage In Calgary

The weekend hailstorm that tore up houses, smashed car windows and flooded streets in Calgary is expected to be labelled a natural catastrophe, according to an insurance expert.

Saturday evening’s storm left a trail of destruction primarily in the city’s northeast. The carnage is extensive, and even though the Insurance Bureau of Canada can’t predict the total amount of damage, Mayor Naheed Nenshi anticipates it could be as high as $1 billion.

Insurance Bureau of Canada spokesman Rob de Pruis said the damage is expected to cross the $25-million threshold for the storm to be labelled a natural catastrophe.

“When it has over $25 million in insured damages then it’s labelled a catastrophe and there’s more tracking that takes place within the industry,” said de Pruis.

In the past decade, hailstorms have caused more than $4 billion in damage and the average storm costs about $141 million in insured costs. But de Pruis said Saturday’s storm appears to be significantly larger than average.