Vanessa Big Eagle, a band councilor overseeing housing for the Pheasant Rump Nakota First Nation, faced significant damage to her own residence due to severe weather conditions. She described the May winds as exceptionally intense, causing harm to 23 out of 54 homes in her community, located 160 kilometers southeast of Regina. Big Eagle’s own house suffered the most damage, with a large portion of the roof being blown off. Insurance claims have been filed for the affected homes managed by the First Nation, with many still requiring repairs, leading one family to seek temporary accommodation in a hotel.
Recent data highlights a surge in insured losses in Saskatchewan due to severe weather events, potentially resulting in increased insurance premiums. Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc. reported that Saskatchewan experienced its highest-ever dollar amount of insured losses from severe weather events last year, totaling $450 million, the most significant since data collection began in 2008. The extreme winds in June resulted in the highest insured loss recorded in the province at $240 million, followed by wildfires in the north during the previous summer.
Laura Twidle, the president and CEO of Catastrophe Indices and Quantification Inc., emphasized the exceptional nature of the last two years in terms of insured losses, particularly due to severe wildfires. The escalating losses are expected to impact insurance rates, as insurers may seek to recover their losses through increased premiums and stricter coverage policies.
Jason Thistlethwaite, a professor at the University of Waterloo, highlighted the need for a shift towards proactive measures to prevent property damage rather than relying solely on post-disaster recovery efforts. Thistlethwaite emphasized the increasing costs associated with managing climate risks and stressed the importance of reducing risks before disasters occur.
Repair companies in Saskatchewan, such as Leeway Mechanical Inc. in Oxbow, owned by Duane Lee and Allison Thompson, have observed a growing demand for their services to repair homes affected by extreme weather conditions. They have experienced a significant increase in workload, including tasks like pumping water out of basements and repairing roofs damaged by storms. Similarly, restoration company Fire & Flood has seen a rise in calls for assistance, particularly in response to basement flooding caused by severe weather conditions, leading to an expansion of their workforce from 85 to 150 employees in the past few years.