Vanessa Big Eagle, a band councilor overseeing housing for the Pheasant Rump Nakota First Nation, faced damage to her own home due to severe weather. She described the winds in May as exceptionally strong, causing significant damage to 23 out of 54 homes in her community, with her own residence being the most severely affected.
Insurance claims have been filed for the damaged homes managed by the First Nation, but many are still in need of repairs. As a result, one family has had to temporarily relocate to a hotel. The repeated occurrences of extreme weather have raised concerns about the need to budget for such events on a yearly basis.
Recent data indicates a surge in insured losses in Saskatchewan due to severe weather events, potentially leading to increased insurance rates. Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. reported that Saskatchewan experienced record insured losses of $450 million last year, the highest amount since data collection began in 2008.
The extreme winds in June caused the most significant insured loss in the province, amounting to $240 million, followed by wildfires in the north the previous summer. Laura Twidle, the president of Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc., highlighted the unprecedented insured losses in the past two years, particularly from fires.
Jason Thistlethwaite, a professor at the University of Waterloo, emphasized that the impact of rising insured losses can lead to higher premiums and limited coverage for property owners. He suggested a shift towards proactive measures to prevent property damage rather than relying solely on post-disaster recovery efforts.
Local repair companies, such as Leeway Mechanical Inc. in Oxbow, Saskatchewan, have seen a surge in demand for services to address weather-related damages. They have experienced a notable increase in calls for repairing water damage and fixing roofs, reflecting the growing impact of severe weather events on property maintenance and repair services.
Fire & Flood, a restoration company, has also witnessed a rise in calls, particularly related to basement flooding caused by severe weather. The company’s operational manager noted the increase in employees from 85 to 150 in response to the escalating demand for restoration services due to weather-related incidents.