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Alberta floods Canada’s costliest natural disaster
September 25, 2013 By Administrator
Sept. 25, 2013, Calgary – Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) reports that the latest PCS-Canada estimate of the insured property damage caused by last June's southern Alberta floods now exceeds $1.7 billion. It is the costliest natural disaster in Canadian history.
"It's a staggering number that we expect will go even higher," said Bill Adams, IBC vice-president of western and pacific regions, in a media release. "While the monetary cost of the floods is huge, the emotional toll on Albertans is incalculable.”
Flooding was the result of torrential rainfall between June 20 and 24. Four people died and 100,000 people were forced from their homes. The provincial government declared a state of emergency for a number of communities in southern Alberta.
Immediately after the flooding, around 5,000 insurance professionals deployed to focus on helping with the claims process.
The preliminary estimate of insured losses was calculated by Property Claim Services Canada (PCS-Canada), a service that tracks these losses arising from catastrophic events in Canada. PCS-Canada also reports that well in excess of 25,000 claims have been filed in the wake of the floods. PCS-Canada will update both numbers in 60 days.
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