Hail devastation in Southern Alberta

August 3rd, 2009 many people woke to the crash of hail on their siding and windows of their house, the brights flashes of lighting and in most cases no power. No one anticipated the sights of the damage the next morning.

At about one thirty in the morning a belt of purple lit up on the weather radars across Alberta from Edson across the border into Montana. The sounds of the storm were very frightening to most but the fear turned into dispare when most area farmers assessed the hail damage the next morning. Over 1 Million acres have been damaged in Alberta. AS of August 5th over 1500 farmers have claimed damage to their crops and the phone keeps ringing with new claims.

Many farmers have stated that this is the worst storm in the their farming history. Although government assistance will help it doesn’t cover all costs. To many farmers, this is devastating!