The hailstorm that slammed the Brooks area, southeast of Calgary, on Aug. 20 is expected to cost millions in crop damage alone, according to insurance providers.

The powerful storm sent golf ball-sized hail smashing down and left a large swath of destruction stretching from Alberta to Saskatchewan, with windows smashed, siding ripped from homes, power lines knocked down and crops flattened.

More than 350 hail claims from the storm have already been filed, covering more than 350,000 acres of damage, according to George Kueber, claims adjusting manager for the Agriculture Financial Services Corp. (AFSC), a provincial Crown corporation that insures Alberta farmers. The AFSC doesn't have a final estimate on the cost of the storm yet because the inspectors still need to survey the damage

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