Weekend hailstorm left gardens decimated, broke through the mall’s roof dome
The sudden, powerful hailstorm that swept across Calgary Saturday night left gardens decimated, damaged the siding of homes and even appeared to shatter a Plexiglas dome of the Chinook Mall food court.
David Coderre was at the mall in southwest Calgary around 8:30 p.m. when he and his children heard a “huge noise” coming from the hallways.
“I was like, what’s that sound?” he said. “It almost sounded like a marching band came through with drums.”
Knowing that a thunderstorm warning had been issued, Coderre soon realized it was hail.
As he and his kids walked to the second-floor food court to see the scene outside, they noticed a Plexiglas dome above their heads shattered, letting in the elements.
“It didn’t seem dangerous because it wasn’t actually glass, it was plastic, but it was kind of weird to see hail coming through a food court,” Coderre said.
Mall management did not respond to requests for an interview.
Environment Canada meteorologist Andrew Palmer said Saturday’s fast-moving storm developed over the western part of the city and moved south. He said on Sunday he had heard no reports of major damage.
In the way of the storm, Ashley Brown’s duplex was in the southeastern community of Riverbend. She said hail the size of golf balls shredded her yard and shattered her siding.
The hailstones also crushed Traci Zeller’s yard in Marda Loop, southwest Calgary. The storm came on so fast that Zeller didn’t have time to cover her plants.
“It was probably one of the boldest I’ve seen in a long time,” says Zeller, who has lived in Calgary for more than 25 years.
Michael Metcalf, who recently moved to Calgary, was riding Deerfoot Trail in southeast Calgary when the storm hit.
He said traffic came to a standstill as cars packed under the Glenmore Trail overpass.
“I have hail damage,” he said. “Everyone under that bridge was obviously concerned about their vehicles as well.”
Rob de Pruis, national director of consumer and industry relations for the Insurance Bureau of Canada, said the severity of the weekend storm is currently being assessed, adding that it will generally take a month to assess the extent of the damage and its financial impact. to decide.
The Prussian also underlined that extreme weather events are increasing with the new reality due to climate change.
“Catastrophic weather losses continue to rise in Canada, with $2 billion in annual insured losses being normal,” he said.
For Brown, she knows that hail damage in Calgary is simply a fact.
“It was only a matter of time before it hit us.”
