The possibility of heavy rain and storms in the weather forecast concerns recent North Texas storm victims who are still trying to make repairs to damaged homes and vehicles.
This week’s giant hail stones in Wylie added to the challenge for roofers, already scrambling to make repairs from previous damage in Collin County.
Just about every home on Ronnie Richard’s street in Plano had problems from a March 23 hail storm and he’s had many complications since trying to get repairs to the damaged drywall, roof, skylights, gutters and fence.
“First, the insurance adjuster has to come out and then the roofer, and they have to give estimates. Then we had to go through the mortgage company,” he said.
Richard said an insurance check finally arrived Friday to begin repairs from the hail damage.
”It just was pounding the house. I’d been in the house with hail before, but I’d never heard anything like that,” he said. “By the time I had gotten downstairs with my 2-year-old, the hail had already busted through the skylights, and it was rolling at my feet and everything, so it was pretty crazy.”
Heavy business at the Plano location for Service King Collision Repair on Central Expressway increased again after this week’s hail in nearby Wylie. The company has 34 North Texas shops.
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“It’s certainly a challenge. And, back to back hail storms like that,” said Steve Sikes, Service King Vice-President for Business Development. “We take advantage of all 34 locations when we have this, so that we can move cars to locations that weren’t affected. So, all of them are feeling a piece of this storm now.”
Sikes said insurance companies estimate 100,000 vehicles have been damaged by hail in North Texas this year. Car rental companies are struggling to provide vehicles for hail damage customers who need substitute transportation.
Sikes urged owners to put vehicles in a garage if possible with more bad weather in the forecast and repair shops already jammed.
“We seem to have skipped a few years as it relates to having nasty weather and now [we're] getting it all in one year,” Sikes said.
Richard hopes the roofers will start work on his house next week before there’s more damage inside.
“I definitely am concerned when there’s storms in the forecast,” he said.
