.jpg)
Billions of dollars in damages were caused by the hailstorm that struck Strathmore and the surrounding area including Calgary back in August.
According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), the record-breaking hailstorm caused nearly $2.8 billion in damages, making it the second most expensive event in Canada's history, second only to the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire.
The bureau also claims that over 130,000 insurance claims have been made due to the hail, Environment and Climate Change Canada received reports of hailstones the size of chicken eggs and tennis balls damaging homes and vehicles.
"By the end of the storm, almost one in five homes in Calgary were impacted," wrote IBC on its website. "The Calgary area in particular has seen several catastrophic hailstorms in recent years, including the 2020 and 2021 hailstorms that caused over $1.2 billion and $700 million in insured damage, respectively."
IBC also says that insurers have paid out more in claims for the hailstorm than the federal government has invested in climate adaptation in the last decade. Craig Stewart, vice president of climate change and federal issues with IBC, says that improved hail alerting should be put into law to help families and businesses in the area.
Staff with IBC said severe weather has cost insurers over $3.6 billion in Alberta throughout the summer of 2024, as the recent Jasper wildfire also caused $880 million in insured damage.
