Vanessa Big Eagle, a band councilor overseeing housing for the Pheasant Rump Nakota First Nation, experienced significant damage to her own home due to severe weather. She described the winds in May as unprecedented and damaging, affecting 23 out of 54 homes in her community, located 160 kilometers southeast of Regina. Her own house suffered the most damage, with much of its roof blown off. Insurance claims have been filed for the homes managed by the First Nation, but many are still in disrepair, leading one family to seek temporary accommodation in a hotel.
Recent data reveals that Saskatchewan is facing a surge in insured losses due to severe weather events, potentially resulting in higher insurance premiums. Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. reported that last year, the province recorded the highest dollar amount of insured losses from major weather events at $450 million, the highest since data collection began in 2008. The extreme winds in June caused the most significant insured loss of $240 million ever recorded in the province, followed by the northern wildfires last summer.
Laura Twidle, the president and CEO of Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc., highlighted the exceptional nature of the past two years in terms of severe weather events. This surge in losses may prompt insurers to raise premiums and restrict coverage to offset their financial losses.
Experts like Jason Thistlethwaite from the University of Waterloo emphasize the need to focus on preventing property damage rather than merely recovering losses post-disaster. He suggests that Canada should adopt strategies to mitigate climate risks effectively to reduce the financial burden caused by repeated disasters.
Repair companies in Saskatchewan, such as Leeway Mechanical Inc. in Oxbow, are witnessing a growing demand for services to address weather-related property damage. Duane Lee and Allison Thompson, the owners of the company, have observed a significant increase in calls to repair homes damaged by extreme weather conditions. Similarly, restoration company Fire & Flood has experienced a surge in requests for assistance, particularly for basement flooding caused by severe weather this year. The rise in extreme weather events has necessitated an increase in staffing levels to meet the escalating demand for repair and restoration services.