Calgary airport terminal damaged as severe thunderstorms pummel region

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Parts of the Calgary International Airport remained closed Tuesday morning after multiple severe thunderstorms in the Calgary region set off emergency alerts the previous evening.

Northern areas of Calgary were hit especially hard by the wild weather, which left of a trail of dented roofs, shredded siding and flooded streets in its wake.

The storms were capable of producing very strong wind gusts, “baseball size or greater hail” and torrential rain, Environment Canada said in multiple warnings, which had all ended by Tuesday.

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Images and video circulating online depicted hail the size of toonies and larger. Many other reports showed hail had caused heavy damage to siding, windows and skylights in various parts of the city. Vehicles were also damaged, with windshields smashed and bodies dented.

Entire lawns were seen carpeted in hail, as if snow-covered.

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Many reports of property damage were logged with Calgary police, a spokesman told Postmedia Tuesday morning, mainly from neighbourhoods in northern parts of the city.

Monday night’s storm caused heavy damage to the roof and siding at the home of Redstone resident Josiah Chinedu.

After receiving an emergency alert and moving his vehicles into the garage, he took cover inside as the hail approached.

“It sounded like a train, it was that bad,” he told Postmedia Tuesday morning.

“Past 8 p.m., it started hailing, a little bigger than tennis ball size. It was so crazy that the kids were screaming. We had to tell them everything was going to be alright. It was very scary to say the least.”

Chinedu’s home was also battered by the June 2020 hailstorm, which at the time was the costliest such event in Canadian history.

“I feel like this area is prone to hailstorms,” he said. “There’s nothing anyone can do about it other than try to minimize the damage and ensure you have the right insurance coverage.”

Still, he said he hopes government can step up with financial relief to help with repairing the damage, while expressing skepticism about how much insurers will actually cover.

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Meanwhile, the Calgary International Airport wasn’t spared, with its terminal building sustaining damage as one of Monday night’s storms passed through the region.

Videos recorded by users of Reddit, Facebook and X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, showed water cascading from the ceiling inside parts of the Calgary International Airport.

“We can confirm there has been damage to YYC’s terminal building due to hail and heavy rainfall,” the airport said on social media.

“For the safety of all guests and staff, B gates and some C gates are being evacuated due to water damage. No injuries have been reported.”

Cleanup and damage assessment began overnight, YYC said, and while the airport is operational, parts of the domestic terminal building will remain closed in the meantime.

Delays are anticipated, according to YYC’s website, with travellers asked to check with their airlines about the status of flights. Many arrivals and departures throughout the day were shown as being cancelled as of Tuesday morning.

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Meanwhile, City of Calgary traffic cameras showed vehicles attempting to shelter from the storm at the Deerfoot Trail-Stoney Trail underpass, and at underpasses along Stoney Trail in north Calgary, blocking all lanes during the worst of the downpour.

The storm resulted in a few minor accidents with minimal injuries, police told Postmedia.

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Brooks, Strathmore, Vulcan, Airdrie, Cochrane, Olds, Sundre, Calgary, Drumheller and Three Hills were affected by one storm that developed shortly before 8 p.m., said Alberta Emergency Alert on its website.

Meanwhile, about an hour later, a second severe thunderstorm was headed for Blackie, Arrowhead, Milo, Vulcan, Carmangay and Lomond.

Environment Canada warned of a third storm south of Calgary near Okotoks shortly after 9:30 p.m.

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“Extremely large hail can smash windows, destroy property and vehicles and cause life-threatening injury. Strong wind gusts can toss loose objects, damage weak buildings, break branches off trees and overturn large vehicles,” the weather office said in its warnings.

An emergency notification sent to mobile devices and over broadcast media told people to avoid windows and, if outdoors, to protect their heads.

The severe thunderstorm warning for Calgary proper was rescinded at 8:43 p.m., according to Environment Canada, although rain and wind continued to pummel parts of the city long afterward.

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— With files from Jim Wells

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