Manitoba hit by more than twice the average number of hailstorms this year
Manitoba's stormy summer has already seen more than twice as many hail events as the average over a nearly 30-year period, Environment Canada says.
From 1991 to 2020, Manitoba saw an average of 43 severe hail events each summer, the weather agency says.
This year, the province saw that number of hail events in July alone.
From May to July 31, there were 89 severe hail events — those involving hail that is nickel-size or bigger — Environment Canada says.
Manitoba hailstorm. (Credit: Donna Clarke/Facebook - Fisher River Man., July 26, 2023)
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More than 1,500 severe-weather-related insurance claims were filed by Manitobans stemming from storms last week alone, according to Manitoba Public Insurance.
Amanda Buhse is among those whose car was damaged by a hailstorm last week.
"It ended up kind of hitting us right on," said Buhse, who was at her sister's in Falcon Lake when a storm broke out last Wednesday.
"Next thing we knew there was this crazy wind, crazy hail like I've never seen before," she said, with hail coming down for a solid 10 minutes.
A home in Oak River, Man., experienced significant damage to its siding after a storm passed through the western Manitoba community on June 7. Manitoba has already seen 89 severe hail events this year, which is more than double the summer average of 43, says Environment Canada. (Eric Todd McLean/Twitter)
"In this case, it just came zero to 100 — it was just out of nowhere," she said.
The golf ball-sized hail dented the hoods and roofs of three vehicles that were on her sister's property, said Buhse, and also left a significant crack on her windshield.
The July 26 storm that produced baseball-sized hail in Falcon Lake, along with significant hail across a swath of southern Manitoba, was one of 43 severe hail events in July, according to data from Environment Canada.
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In comparison, there were only 11 in July 2022.
"It's been a busy season, and it's likely to continue being a busy season," said Natalie Hasell, a warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.
"A good number" of the July storms produced hail that was golf ball-size or bigger, "so it's been a season with quite a lot of larger hail as well," she said.
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But Manitoba is actually below average for the number of tornado events this season, she said.
Every year is going to be a bit different, with lots of variability and variation in the number and nature of storm events, she said.
Hail happens "pretty much in every thunderstorm," said Hasell, and "you don't really get thunderstorms without ice in the storm."
But "the fact that we've had many events of larger hail does say that we've had a busy season."
Hail-related claims up
It's also been a busy season for weather-related claims to Manitoba Public Insurance, with a large jump in hail-damage claims this year compared to last.
The Crown corporation said as of Monday, approximately 1,700 claims had been made across the province as a result of storms on July 25 and 26.
MPI said it's too soon to tell how the recent weather events compare to prior storms, but its preliminary data says that from January to December 2022, there were 3,873 hail-related claims.
From January to July 30 of this year, there were 5,247 hail-related claims, with the numbers subject to change as customers continue to make reports to the public insurer.
Hail seen in Winnipeg, Man., on May 10, 2023. (Charles Dunham/Submitted to The Weather Network)
With more hailstorms this summer than average, Hasell encourages people to be prepared when a storm hits.
That means seeking shelter when hail comes down and if you're outside, making yourself as small as possible, facing away from the wind and covering your head and neck with whatever you have.
Buhse said the next time she hears of an incoming storm, the hail she saw last week and the damage it caused will also be at the top of her mind.
"It was pretty unbelievable," she said.
The story was written by Gavin Axelrod and published for CBC News.